What size van do I need?

[Welshbeef]

I am just starting out and was after some advise on the size of van I will need. I have about £4000 to spend. I have thought about the vw transporter, but they are quite pricey. Also the t220 transit connect. But would I get away with such a small van? Your thoughts
Thanks

 

[Puddle]

No matter what size van you get,you will always find you need the next size up !

If you are just jobbing the smaller vans are ideal,for parking and economy ,if you are doing installs ,maybe something a bit bigger ,I have a nissan nv200 and with roof rack does me fine

 

[marleyco]

I have connect, slightly small but does the job, transporter would prob be ideal size. Just need a bit floor space to get a boiler etc in rather than sitting it on top of tools

 

[diamondgas]

I have a VW Caddy which suits me fine, but i don't do a lot of installs! Depends on what your plans are Welshbeef?

 

[REDSAW]

sell you my transit jumbo for £3.5k wont let you down and will carry all you will need.

 

[Best]

A van that you can get a few 3m lengths copper & waste pipe inside ( down one side ) is handy. But a small van is easy to fit in the side of people's houses etc, & saves you a lot of carrying. Decent shelving & most can be made of space in a small van. Most guys need a medium van at least. Depends on what you work at 90% of time. I love transporters, but they are a bit ugly if you park them beside your own house.

 

[AWheating]

my transporter is great, but as already mentioned whatever size you get you will fill it and want a bigger van. Unless you need to carry a heating pack all the time i would consider a connect and a decent roof rack. If you rack it out make sure at a min you can fit a bath inside wtihout any problems.

 

[vectra65]

i downsized to a connect from a transit best thing i did got fed up of cleaning transit out every other week always filled it with crap

 

[Welshbeef]

Thanks for all your advice! I will prob be only doing small
Plumbing jobs to Start off, so will only need a small van, but eventually I want to be doing installs. I think I will go and test drive a couple of vans and see what I think.

 

[stevetheplumber]

there is two ways to look at this small van for small jobs isnt necessarily true most of my work is jobbing and small works and ive got a big transit the more varied the work the more you need in the van nothing worse than a 30 minute drive to get a pan con on a fifty quid job
if your work is in a rural rea the abillity to carry more stock is even more important
big jobs can always be delivered to site so the man doing installs only needs to carry his tools
also there is the security aspect pipe on a roof rack is vunrable to easy theft
as youve said the transporter is a good size but they are exspensive, similar sized transits are much cheaper and there are many more makes out there

 

[Welshbeef]

Yeah your right. Nothing worse than going back and fore to the merchants, maybe will look at a small transit or a Vito. Thanks

 

[SimonG]

Fiat Doblo does me. Some days though even an articulated lorry wouldn't be big enough. I find though that the bigger the van the more crud you tend to carry around.

 

[PlumbBobBob]

i agree i have a store in the garden which is full up of gear which wont go in the van (peugeot partner) when i need something i just swap boxes round. bit like thunderbirds 3 and it's pods lol.

 

[gravytrain]

i've got a vauxhall combo. i somehow manage to install bathrooms and kitchens with just this, i cut a hole in the bulkhead to allow 3m pipe in, i put the copper inside the waste pipe so you cant see it from outside, only time i wish i had a bigger van is when i need to fetch sheets of plasterboard or plywood. which wont go in the van.

 

[twistednuts]

I had a renault kangoo for about 5 years. Fantastic little van, plenty of power, cheap to run and totally unbelievable what you could fit inside. Theyre not wide vans but quite tall.
The best bit is the passenger seat folds level to the rear floor, so you can easily get 6 x 3 plasterboard in.
I managed in it doing kitchens, bathrooms and tiling, full heating and boiler swaps.
Most merchants deliver for free so no need for a monster van whilst your startin out, you want cheaper the better.

Trouble is, i got fed up of having nowhere to put me dinner when the passenger seat was down, so i bought a transit 🙂

 

[Guest123]

Def a Transit. I need to carry a lot of stock and need space for plywood sheets and a bathroom so got a LWB Transit. Great piece of kit and easy to drive (and reverse)

 

[dontknowitall]

I've a SWB transit and a horse trailer if required.

(Means I can do the plumbing at the house while they go out hunting the collect them later on when I'm finished.)

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

we have 2 vans the transit and the mk1 expert i bought to replace the astra van,the expert is massive compared to the astra and just a size down from the transit i try to keep it tidy i get involved mainly in break downs/installs and find it a tidy size,its the hdi so can take out most cars:santa_smiley: love it to bits,had the head go under warranty since that was done its been 100% reliable

 

[cr0ft]

Personally I went for a VW Crafter, but I do plumbing, electrical and tiling works. If you start doing a couple of trades you very quickly either need a bigger van or need to start taking stuff in and out of the van each night, between jobs.

As has already been said, good van racking will mean you can get by with a smaller van when you start up. The difference in fuel costs between the smaller and larger vans aren't that substantial to be honest so buy the biggest one you can afford is my advice.

Well I do anyway!

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

The difference in fuel costs between the smaller and larger vans aren't that substantial to be honest so buy the biggest one you can afford is my advice.

thats true croft the transit is better on diesel than the expert,they both have peugeots psa dw10 engine(yes the ford transits engine is french) the transits chain driven and 16 valve,with 90 bhp the expert is belt driven and 8 valve with 130 bhp the expert uses more fuel ? both are serviced on time i know the experts faster but the transit carries more weight???? it dont make sense

 

[REDSAW]

I've a SWB transit and a horse trailer if required.

i was thinking more of using a horse box

 

[bert large]

Which transit engines are french Gasman ?
I have an 06 Transit with the 2 litre 85hp engine.
Lovely van with plenty of space but the paintwork is not very tough, got several stone chips now which have turned into rusty spots. I am told the paint on later transits is tougher. Apart from the paint I can't fault it.

 

[plumbqate]

have a long wheel based sprinter. its the best van i have ever driven and does everything you need . downside you cant always get them into parking spaces they only do about 24/25 mpg running around and surface rust is a problem. mind you it has done 390,000 miles and runs as sweet as anything. also use a bipper which is a great drive and has loads of space for a van which is only 4m long !! which incidently is the length of the load area in the sprinter.
As the guys above said there will always be a time when the van you have is the wrong size forwhat you are doing at that time.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

Which transit engines are french Gasman ?
I have an 06 Transit with the 2 litre 85hp engine.
Lovely van with plenty of space but the paintwork is not very tough, got several stone chips now which have turned into rusty spots. I am told the paint on later transits is tougher. Apart from the paint I can't fault it.

the 2 liter durotorq fitted to all swb/mwb transits dont worry though they are very reliable engines,its the diesel pumps designed by ford that can play up

 

[REDSAW]

Which transit engines are french Gasman ?
I have an 06 Transit with the 2 litre 85hp engine.
Lovely van with plenty of space but the paintwork is not very tough, got several stone chips now which have turned into rusty spots. I am told the paint on later transits is tougher. Apart from the paint I can't fault it.

woz it do to the gallon is what i want to know, mine only does 22-25 at 120mph