UNIVERSAL CAMPER VAN SIDE WINDOW INSTALLATION - VW Crafter Van Build - Van Life Conversion Fitting

Added: 2026-05-06

[00:00:00]Now then, here we are onto another scary job on my van build and that is fitting a side window.

[00:00:09]This is going to be situated somewhere about there which will look kind of beautiful. But the reason I am fitting this well there's two reasons really.

[00:00:20]The first being that if I want to have my uh V5 document changed, so this is classed as a camper van. It just means that I do have to have two windows on one side. So, there's one of them. And the second one is going to go here. The second reason is the fact that I like to in a morning when I wake up when camping in a van, I like to just sort of have a peek out to see what the world's doing before I make the decision on whether I get out of that warm cozy bed or not.

[00:00:52]So, if I've got a little window there that I can just have that a little sneak peek out of, cuz my bed's here, it is just going to mean that I can stay in bed longer. That's the plan. First job, I'm going to cut a template of the window itself, just so I can offer it up and work out exactly where I want to position it. So, I'm just going to lay this on perfectly straight against this one edge, which I've cut with this already, so I know it's perfect. And I'm just going to with a sharp blade chop all the way around.

[00:01:44]Doing a few measurements. It looks like the internal frame is 23 mm inside of the external glass, which means I need to allow a little bit of tolerance for my cutout. So, I'm going to say 21 mil is my measurement, which I need to take off all the way around here. So, then I know exactly where my cut cut out is going to be.

[00:02:26]I'm just marking my 21 mm along one edge.

[00:02:33]And I will now just draw through.

[00:02:40]Through past experience, I always do at least three marks on any straight edge because you make a mistake with one and you've only got two, it means that it's going to be completely cocked. So, three just means it makes sure that you are actually correct with it. You've not made a mistake and it does happen.

[00:03:06]And the hardest bit is going to be able to come around this. I've got my three lines which are 21 mm off the straight edges. But to do these corners, I'm just going to use my magic scribing tool, which is my hand.

[00:03:32]Somewhere like that.

[00:04:08]We're going to lay this on now just to make sure that it actually fits, which it does. It's actually just a little bit slack on the four corners.

[00:04:20]So, my magic scribing hasn't worked perfectly, but we've only got a couple of mil and it doesn't make any difference for the actual fitting. So, I'm quite happy with that. So, that gets my stamp of approval, which I can actually give a proper stamp.

[00:04:35]There we go. Some blood.

[00:04:39]The window itself actually took me forever to find. scrolling the internet just to get the exact size that I needed. And the size being I wanted one that fit between this section here and this upright pillar cuz I didn't want to take too much of this structure out. So, I'm going to end up taking just one out.

[00:04:59]And that honestly could not be any better. So, I've just dug out the uh website I got it from. It cost me about £150 and it is this one here. Don't know if you can see that it says leisure vehicle windows suppliers of panel van conversion glass. And this is the universal camper vent window 780x 240 mm with internal sliding fly screen. So if you look here, it just uh unlocks with that and then the whole lot will slide open. But that is actually leaving a fly screen there. So this actually slides open as well. And for 150 quid, I think that is pretty damn awesome. It is beautifully made and it is tinted, so it's going to match in with the rest of my glass. And yeah, it's going to look awesome. So, we need to try hopefully get it to fit perfectly in that space there. And even this curve matches that curve. So, I'm hoping I can obviously offer it up on the outside, cut through, and just get it absolutely bang on. The glass on the outside can pretty much go up to the top of that line there just to match in with that, but I am happy for it to sit a little bit lower. And it just gives me a little bit of uh wiggle room to make sure that I get it on on the inside. So if I eye up through the line of the van there to what we've got inside, it actually shows that the panel on the outside comes up to about there, which means I've got this little bit of play here for where the glass can sit. So ideally, I want the inner to fit along there and then the glass panel top will be probably somewhere around that line. So, if I just uh pop you down, try and give you an accurate representation of what I'm doing. Don't use a level in a van, but I'm using it as a straight edge because if I just line up the top of this metal work here, let's just see.

[00:07:18]I just want to make sure that that line is perfectly straight, which it does look like it is. This middle section is maybe 1 mil down, but if I'm happy with that, all I'm going to do is I'm going to measure 100 mil off off the uh top of that window frame.

[00:07:47]and another 100 mil off this.

[00:07:55]And I am going to double check the measurements.

[00:08:00]So that is cockon 100 mil and that is also cockon 100 mil. So now if I take my drill, I can put two holes through and that's pretty much going to be in the center of the window, which means I've got a bit of wiggle room down to that point or up a little bit as well. So I can then take these two points from the inside. We're going to show on the outside and then I can measure and put my template up and hopefully it's going to work out all right somewhere like that.

[00:08:33]Oh, I don't like drilling holes in a van.

[00:08:40]Let there be light.

[00:08:52]One thing also that I did check before uh I started drilling and that's the weather. We have got sunshine all day so we're not going to have any rain. We have two holes and I'm going to put a stick in both of them. And that just gives me something a bit easier to measure off.

[00:09:13]And then we can work out whether it's going to be square off this line or off down here just to make sure it looks good on the outside.

[00:09:21]That's the plan. I've got me tape measure and a hop up just so my eye can be a bit closer to see the exact measurements. So, let's jump on up here on my van as well. I've got this nice rigid line all the way down, which I can actually hook my tape measure on. And obviously, that is exactly the right level I need to be parallel to. It's getting windy. So, if I just pop that on there and have a good look at that, we have got 187 and a half 187 1/2 mil. I'll work to the half mil. And then this one do exactly the same. We have got 187 and a half. No way. Absolutely bang on. So, I know those are parallel to what I need it to look like on the outside. And now what I can do is drill through exactly at that top point and that top point because that will be the inner skin of my window.

[00:10:34]Yes, summer like that.

[00:10:38]I'm now going to drill through just a couple of millimeters down from this internal line just so I've got that tiny bit of wiggle room and also the fact that when I'm cutting my line from the outside with the jigsaw, it's not got like a little bit of a a rounded bump in it from the drill bit which potentially it would show. And even though it's never seen, it would play on my brain.

[00:11:00]So, let's get this absolutely perfect.

[00:11:06]So, right. So, about 2 and 1/2 mil down there. So, let's just make sure I get exactly the same on this side.

[00:11:24]Clear that sticky crap off so I can get a good eye at it.

[00:11:39]Okay.

[00:11:41]So, now I'm going to put my two drill bits through, which are nice and tight.

[00:11:52]And all I have to do is hook this on them on the outside and literally draw around it. And that's me done. actually is not because I need to position it that way next.

[00:12:03]That'll be another hole going through this bit. Let's work out in a second.

[00:12:08]Right, we have our two drill bits sticking through to the outside now. And all I have to do is get my template, hook it on, stand back, and just hope that it looks right.

[00:12:25]It looks absolutely bomb to me. So, the next thing to do is just work out where where it's actually going to sit, whether it's going to be forwards or backwards on that. But that is absolutely perfect. Now, one thing to note, if you were to do this at the back of the van, as you can see, the back actually curves down. So, you'd want to keep the same line going through, but it would tighten up on that corner there.

[00:12:52]So, it's just a bit trickier to get exactly right compared to this section which has this really nice straight edge to work with. There you go. Hanging the template on the inside. I have lined it up with the upright of this pillar here cuz that is a perfectly straight edge.

[00:13:11]Which means if you come over to this side, you can see it literally fits within a millimeter in that space. So, I might just need to just nibble off a tiny bit off this metal work here. But it could not actually fit any better than that. So, let's hope I can get it absolutely on. Starting with drilling a hole there so I can line it up on the outside to know where to put my template. And that's it. Cutting time.

[00:13:43]Again, I'm just going to take it off this straight edge by about a millimeter.

[00:13:56]And that now gives us our line.

[00:14:00]The template is hooked on. We just need to line it up with this hole here. And that is the internal cut line.

[00:14:09]So that is the final resting place of the window. It is going to look beautiful.

[00:14:17]All I need to do now is now transfer this internal line onto the van so I have a cut line. So I'm going to masking tape it all off and then pencil onto the masking tape so I can get a more accurate cut.

[00:14:30]That's the plan.

[00:14:55]We are all set up to draw a magic line around the inside of this. I've actually put on plenty of tape all the way around now because when I get my jigsaw out, I'll be running it over the paintwork and I do not want to scratch this beautiful paintwork.

[00:15:13]Concentration. Do you know what? I'm going to put you down cuz then I'll be a bit more accurate.

[00:15:24]Take that off. And now we have this perfect line all the way around.

[00:15:30]And that means we now need to get jiggy with in hand, which is a little premature because first I need to put a slightly bigger drill bit through than the blade itself so the jigsaw can fit in and then I can do the cutout.

[00:15:49]Hopefully I can just do one hole.

[00:16:10]And now let's get on with this bit.

[00:16:22]We are in. That was actually plain sailing. The only point you just have to be a little bit careful of is when you're going through two of the skins because obviously it just needs a bit more of a firmer hand to make it work.

[00:16:36]So, we need to now see if that window is going to fit. Let's see what it looks like from in here.

[00:16:45]That is nice. As soon as you open it up, it just gives you that little bit more of a view. Not that the view's too exciting out there, but window blue sky somewhere.

[00:16:57]I placed this piece of cardboard here, and I also taped over the top from the metal work onto here so any of the filings would actually run down and catch on the floor.

[00:17:08]And that seems to have done a brilliant job. And that just means I have got less to think about tidying up here. So, none of the filings now should be in that cavity or attached itself to this lovely insulation. Before I fit that in that hole, I am first going to take off all these sort of sharp edges because I don't want to try and squeeze it in and scratch all the black paint off this edge in here because obviously that paint is protecting that metal work.

[00:17:37]Now, my tools of choice for this are firstly a belt sander. So I can just sort of get in and shape it nicely. And then I'll finish it off with this. So then hopefully we won't have any sharp edges.

[00:18:09]The moment of truth.

[00:18:22]Yes, she's in.

[00:18:26]There's actually no play whatsoever with that. So, it almost might be too tight, but we like it tight, don't we?

[00:18:37]So, let's see about getting this cleaned up and prepped, ready to fit.

[00:18:48]It is a beautiful day. Look at them clouds. That looks like the Simpsons.

[00:18:53]We've also got the sun fragmenting its way through that tree and giving me a smile on my face.

[00:19:02]Anyway, we need to now prime the metal work and the glass. Ready for actually sticking the adhesive to. So, I am firstly going to just give it a wipe down with this degreaser all the way around. Make sure it's nice and clean.

[00:19:16]And then we can actually seal this metal work perfectly well. So, we just reduce the chance of any rust happening in the future.

[00:19:48]I have got some primer bollocks. I've got some primer and a little device to apply it with. So, I'm just going to dip that in there.

[00:19:57]soak it through and then just ease a lot of it out again because it can be quite wet. So once I've got this on, I'm just going to go around this window.

[00:20:25]And there we have it. Hopefully that's enough just for the adhesive to adhere properly to it. Now I need to do all the metal work around here in exactly the same way, just where the adhesive is going to actually stick.

[00:20:44]Now I've got this nice line all the way around for the adhesive. I'm just going to make sure that the edge of the metal work is completely covered just so we don't get any rust forming at any point.

[00:21:08]Perfectly primed and prepped.

[00:21:12]Now, I'm going to give you two top tips now before you start applying adhesive.

[00:21:16]Top tip number one, make sure you have two skeleton guns to hand. Because if you've only got one and it fails, it means that you might have a halfhour round trip to the shop to get another one and by the time you get back, the adhesive's gone off and the whole job is ruined. That is an example of what can happen, the handle can snap off. Top tip number two, and that is use something like a fan heater to preheat the actual adhesive in the tube. So, I just keep coming in and rotating that. So, that's going to be nice and fluid because it's actually quite a rigid glue. So, it does take some getting out of the tube. Hence why sometimes this can happen. So, let's now get some glue on there and we'll stick it in that hole. E, we're ready to go.

[00:22:10]Starting at the bottom, we'll hopefully do a nice continuous bead all the way around.

[00:22:25]All right, then. Let's stick her in.

[00:22:27]Make sure she's the right way up cuz that would be a drastic mistake.

[00:22:45]She's in and looking good, but it did squidge out a little bit on the sides.

[00:22:50]So, as you can see there, we've actually got some overspill, which I've just wiped off with a normal sort of wipe.

[00:22:57]But now, I'm going to show you how to get that off. And that is using some of this again. So, let's do it. Uh, whilst you're in my hand, we'll get a bit of that on there.

[00:23:11]And then just watch how good this is.

[00:23:14]It literally just wipes it all off.

[00:23:18]So, if you've got any excess or mess anywhere, definitely use that. Just make sure the window's nice and clean. And we'll clean the actual edge up down there.

[00:23:40]That now looks beautiful. Sorted, eh?

[00:23:47]That is awesome. Well happy with that.

[00:23:49]Ah, job done, eh?

[00:23:56]The job is complete. I just decided to add an extra bead all the way around from about that point along the top and down this side just so any water will be completely thrown away rather than it just sort of sat in the squidgy riffles of my adhesive. But as you can see, it is super neat now all the way around.

[00:24:18]Now, the only reason I could do it to that neatness was using this absolute godsend. This will literally just wipe it completely clear and off. And obviously using a little bit of an old t-shirt to help that out as well. So, let's have a quick look inside. That is beautiful. It couldn't fit any better.

[00:24:38]It even follows the form of the actual panel there. And at this end here, you can just see I've not even cut anything off that. It just fits perfectly in. So, we've still maintained the rigidity of the panel by keeping that in. And even that, because that's actually glued in, that is obviously maintaining that rigidity as well. So, let me show you how it works. In the middle here, we have a hinge which acts as the locking mechanism. So, when it's in the upright position, this window will not open at all. Not that you really need to keep it locked cuz who can fit through that.

[00:25:14]When you drop it down though, it just allows this to smoothly open and close.

[00:25:22]That is nice. And even when open, you can see that the bug net is still intact, but that will also retract as and when you need. But for me, it could not be any better. The height is perfect because my bed height is somewhere here.

[00:25:38]So even with my body laid above my bed, it still allows the air flow just to cross over to keep me cool on those hot summer nights when I am sweating from all the action that's happening. Eh, anyway, that is the full installation of a side window. And it's a universal window, so it will fit in any van. So I hope I have helped some of you guys out.

[00:26:02]The next major job for me is to cut a massive hole in the roof, take this beam out, and fit my very own personally designed roof light. I cannot wait to get that in cuz that is going to be absolutely mega. Anyway, give the video a big fat thumbs up. Go press that button now. And uh yeah, join me on the next one. We'll see the take care.