Installing Sprinter Windows | Van Build Series

You made it out of the neighborhood. I made it out of the neighborhood. I'm on the 16th mile per hour roads now. Flooring this baby. No, I'm just kidding. It's actually not that hard to drive. It doesn't feel very wide, like Adam told me. It doesn't feel much wider than our SUV and I agree. It's not that bad. It's just weird not seeing out the back, like not having windows. Which we eventually will, but for now it's weird because it's just darkness. But so far so good. I'm doing it! So we're starting what might be the scariest part of the van build. Putting in the windows. So in this box we have our T vent window for the door. And then in this box we have two back windows. So looking at the van, we'll have a window that goes here. And then a window that goes on the door. And then another one back here. And then we're eventually going to get two back windows, or two windows for the back door. But since we have a 2019 Mercedes Sprinter, they just changed the design of the back windows. So they don't have them in stock yet. So we bought these through Van Windows Direct. There are quite a few places you can buy them online, but they had all the different ones we wanted. So we really wanted a T vent for the door. That way we can open the little vents and get some more air circulation, especially with cooking. And then we really wanted back windows by the bed just so we can look out while we're working. So we bought them through Van Windows Direct. They had them on sale, which was nice. We still spent quite a bit of money on them. We'll kind of add more descriptions below. So yeah, we're about to get started. Oh, we're kind of scared. Totally forgot I had these sexy glasses on. But safety first. And I think they're pretty stylish. How are you feeling? We put some holes in the van. So we're drilling holes on the inside where the window is supposed to go. So we can see on the outside kind of where the window will be. So we can know if our jigsaw will be able to make the curves. So hopefully it goes well. We don't have to go to Home Depot again. Now we are tape framing the window using the little holes that Adam drilled as kind of an outline. We've also added some cardboard just in case anything falls. Any metal pieces we don't want to scratch up the van. We're also going to put more duct tape. Or sorry, painter's tape on the sides where the jigsaw will touch. That way we don't get any scratches there either. Watch the van. Now we are filing down the cuts that we made. Unfortunately, the guy at Home Depot gave us the wrong filer. It's not for metal. It's for wood or PVC. So we're going to see if we can make it work without, once again, making another trip to Home Depot. So we removed all of the metal. We removed the tape. And we just cleaned the exposed metal areas that the window will be attaching to with rubbing alcohol. Now we're about to prime the inside of it where we have the exposed metal. So we did end up having to go back to Home Depot to get a metal filer. So just make sure you get the right filer whenever you go. Because you just never want to make another trip to Home Depot. Everything's filed down. It is primed. And we're about to apply the adhesive and then put up the first window. So they say when applying the adhesive to do at least half an inch away from the edge of the window. Just so nothing spreads out too far. And this gun is not good. And this is really hard. But Adam's so strong! Alright. We got the two back windows in. It seemed pretty straight forward. And it kind of is. But it's just a lot of hard work. So we cut it out. And then cleaned it up a bit. And then added the adhesive stuff. And then mushed it on there. There's a little bit of a gap here that gets left there. We guess if you put a window right here that they kind of meet. So don't be alarmed if you do this and you see that. But it looks good. I'm happy with it. So we got these two back ones in. We still need to do the door one. And that's the next big project. So got her done. But not all the way. It was an adventure. So we have some bad news. This morning I came out to show my brothers what I've done with the installation. And I noticed that water was dripping inside of the window. So one of the windows that we installed a few days ago must not be sealed properly. And it had rained overnight and there were a few water droplets. It doesn't seem too bad. And we've looked at the window. And the adhesive is actually right on the inside. So we're just going to try to add a little bit more. We're going to test it. We're going to spray some water on the window to see where it's dropping. And then hopefully seal up that spot from the inside pretty easily. We called Van Windows Direct to see what they suggested. And the first option is to basically do what we're doing. Find the exact spot where it's happening and fill it in. The second option is to seal the whole inside of the window. And then the third option is to replace the window. So we're trying to avoid option number three. It kind of sucks that this happened. But now we're going to test all the windows. And just make sure that we don't run into this issue again. So we laid some paper towel down just in this area. That way we don't get this area wet. And then my dad sprayed the window. And we uncovered a spot right up there. You probably can't tell. It's not focusing. But there was some water that dripped down right here. So we marked the spot. We marked some areas where we're going to just reseal this entire portion. And hopefully that will solve the problem. You can see the water going down right now. We also tested this side. And at first we didn't see any water. But when I put a light up in this little area, I noticed it was a little bit shinier on the adhesive. So we marked some spots on the left and the right where that area looked a little shinier. And then when my dad sprayed the fan on the ceiling, the water started running down the side of the van. So we checked it again. And I did notice some water dripping down from that spot. We had kind of noticed some dried water marks there. So I had a feeling. So I'm really glad we kept testing it. So we need to wait a few days now for it to be less humid and a little sunnier and warmer out so these areas dry really well. And then my dad's likely going to fill the spots when we're not here. So I can't unfortunately share that part. But hopefully we've shared enough. That way you know what to do in case this happens to you. But I really hope it doesn't. The next step for our windows is to install our sliding door T vent window. We have a CR Lawrence T vent window that we got from Van Windows Direct. The majority of the steps are the same as the other windows, but the last part's a bit different. So I'll highlight that part a little bit more than the others to avoid being super repetitive. My dad did 40 holes in the amount of time it took me to do 5. So I'm really glad he's here to help me because I would have been here all day. I'm going to do a step fit so we don't scratch the paint and help clean up the holes a little bit. So we primed around the edges where we cut the metal just to prevent rust. Now it's time to see if the thing fits. I am holding up the front of the window while they screw in the back of the window. The window is made up of two pieces. It is the glass part with the seal around it, and then there's this frame that you screw into it from the inside of the van. So that's what my dad and brother are working on right now while I hold this up. We installed the T vent window. It was definitely a little bit harder than we thought it would be, which I think is the theme of van building so far. So it was really straightforward and easy, but when we finally were putting the window in the spot, there were just certain areas that didn't align perfectly with what we needed. So we had to keep filing some stuff down. We finally got the window in. However, it is sticking out a little bit more than we think it's supposed to on the outside. So my dad's going to check it out tomorrow after I fly back to Seattle and kind of see what he can do, if he can tighten anything, adjust anything. So I'm excited to see what he does there. Despite that issue, it looks awesome. We love having all these windows in the van. It's definitely transformed this from a box to more of a home. It makes it feel more open and spacious. So awesome decision to do windows. Highly recommend it, even though it's kind of a daunting task. This T vent window in particular is really cool because it's a larger window, and then it has a small window here and a small window here. And this one has a screen, kind of like a screen door for your back door to your backyard or whatever. And you can open the window, which you can't see because it's dark. We finished so much later than we wanted to. I was hoping to show this in the light. But the window goes out, so you can get more air circulation. So this combined with the fan will make the van feel less stuffy. It'll also help with any kitchen smells. We're going to be cooking in this tiny little space, so it'll probably smell like ground beef or bell peppers that we saute. So we're trying to get some of the smells out so it doesn't smell like a kitchen all the time. So we're pumped to have this. We still have two back door windows to install, but those won't be until March. So we're going to cut the window installation vlog here. We hope you've learned how to install two different types of Sprinter windows, as well as a few different ways you can kind of fix leaks if you get them. We'll probably try to provide an update later if that actually works. But if you guys have any questions, let us know. We feel like we're finally getting some stuff done. It's been a week, and we've done a lot so far. So we're just going to keep trucking along, trucking along, and June will be here before we know it.