Box Truck Becomes a Modern Apartment on Wheels, Features a Solar-Powered Gaming Setup

Back in 2018, out of necessity, Jasper moved into a van and slowly built it out himself. He moved back into a conventional home by the time the pandemic hit, but he soon realized living in a mobile home was a much more suitable choice for him. And so, he started designing his dream condo on wheels.

What we have here is a 2004 Ford E450 box truck sporting a 6.8-liter Triton V10 engine. One of the first things you'll notice about this vehicle is that it's fully covered in Line-X, a special protective coating. It's unscratchable, and Jasper says it acts as a sound barrier and extra insulation layer.

The box truck rides on different size all-terrain tires: 235s in the front and 225s in the rear. Because it was previously used as a utility vehicle, it's equipped with 13 leaf springs in the back. This means that its end sits higher than the front, and putting on imbalanced tires solved this issue.

This rig features all sorts of practical exterior elements. For instance, it's equipped with a large light bar at the front, as well as two yellow flood lights, one on each side.

There's a drawer housing Jasper's tools on the passenger's side. Right next to it, a door leads to the back of his fridge and to his propane locker. Moreover, another door hides his hot water on-demand system.

And finally, the last door on the passenger's side will open up to Jasper's plumbing system. It comprises two 30-gallon (114-liter) freshwater tanks, a water pump, and two grey tanks. What's more, the battery system, made up of 550 Ah batteries, is also integrated into an exterior compartment.

You'll notice the living area is separated from the driver's cabin by a wall and a door for security purposes. It also helps the space feel more like a home or apartment when you don't constantly see the steering wheel.

Once you step inside through the rear doors, you'll discover that Jasper chose a modern aesthetic for his home, blending darker colors with wooden elements. On your left, you'll find a spacious shower featuring a stainless-steel shower pan and walls with the same vinyl planks Jasper used for the truck's flooring.

Next, we have a seating area with a window, a lagoon table, and two benches. Jasper maximized the available space by creating compartments under the benches: one is for storage, while the other houses a Dometic fridge/freezer.

On the opposite side, Jasper devised a large kitchen. It features a long bamboo countertop, a deep double sink, many overhead cabinets, a full-size oven with a three-burner stovetop, and various other cabinets and drawers. Oh, I almost forgot, there's even a tiny wood stove.

The electrical system is located on the kitchen wall, just by the rear door. It's made up of two solar charge controllers, a fuse box, a 3,000 W inverter, and more. By the way, Jasper has lots of solar power, having installed two 370 W panels at the back of the roof and two 340 W panels at the front for a whopping total of about 1,500 W.

As you'd expect, Jasper's favorite part of his home on wheels is his PC gaming setup. Specifically, it features a Founder's edition RTX 3090 graphics card, an Intel i9 processor, 64 GB of RAM, and a 2 TB SSD, with a large, curved display and two small speakers, all mounted on a wooden desk. These specs might sound like gibberish to you if you don't know a lot about computers. But those of you who are gamers, just like I am, will understand this is quite a powerful PC.

This is the first time I've ever seen someone mine cryptocurrencies while living in a van. Jasper explains his crypto-mining operation nets him about $250 to $350 (€ 237 to €332) a month, all powered via solar. That's quite an impressive feat, especially since crypto mining requires a significant amount of power, around 450 to 550 W in his case. Luckily, his solar panel setup is up to the task.

And lastly, we have the bedroom. It has an RV-sized double bed, a Sirocco fan, a ceiling fan, and a small window. Next to the bedroom, Jasper installed a coat rack with shoe storage underneath.

All in all, Jasper did a fantastic job with his box truck, especially considering it's a DIY creation. It's practical, spacious, and very convenient since many of the utilities I mentioned can be accessed from the exterior.