Kitchen

If you are looking for a motorhome registration, or if you don't want to live on 5-minute terrines on the way, you should consider installing a kitchen in the future camper. In addition, there is of course the option of using the stove or grill outdoors - but what if it rains or winds? So we decided on a kitchenette , also against the background of the possibility of storing various utensils, such as dishes, food, refrigerator, etc.

After some consideration, we decided not to use a wash basin and decided to install a mobile refrigerator instead, because our T4 with a normal wheelbase unfortunately no longer offers space. We now always have the water canister with us for water. In addition, our kitchen has two cutlery drawers, a small dining table and sufficient storage space for food, as well as a spice rack and the compartment for storing olive oil, balsamic vinegar etc.

Used material

• Telescopic rails fridge: https://bit.ly/3dKwbPc

• Telescopic slide drawers: https://amzn.to/2vV5tCd

• Drawer handles: https://amzn.to/39eLwnC

• Piano hinge: https://amzn.to/39gWKYU

• Bullet snapper : https://amzn.to/2QEq0lP

• Wood mainly poplar 15mm

  Tools used

• Cordless screwdriver: https://amzn.to/2U4lKhB

• Jigsaw: https://amzn.to/2U8Gjte

• Ratchet box / ratchet: https://amzn.to/2xQzvHS

• Allen key set: https://amzn.to/2whaPbk

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Planning & purchasing

As usual, we started building the kitchen with a detailed sketch. So we knew the required lengths and were able to have all boards cut to the correct sizes in the hardware store. A big advantage if, like us, you only live in a city apartment and don't have a workshop or garage at your disposal for handicrafts.

We have also ordered lockable telescopic rails or heavy-duty pull-outs for the refrigerator and simple telescopic rails for the cutlery drawers. Due to the lower weight of the filled drawers, we did not lock these telescopic slides. They are used so that they remain closed when closed.

Frame & left front

Finally we screwed together the frame of the kitchen: We sawed out the door in the left kitchen front (which is also our table) with the jigsaw, sanded it and then installed it: here we didn't use hinges but a piano hinge - great thing!

Normally the individual parts of the kitchen should have been oiled - unfortunately we missed this and so we were able to complete the oiling in the installed state. To this day, we still have no way of locking the table or door in the raised position in order to access the items and food stored there - this is still on our to-do list.

Dining table

So that our table can stand stable, we bought a simple table leg in the hardware store. To use this as a support, we sawed it to the correct length. With a thread on the underside of the table, we can screw the table leg on and off at any time.

!!! The height of the kitchen front is important for the whole and previous calculation of the kitchen, since this had to be high enough so that the table above our legs is ultimately sitting. The heights of the bed / seat and upholstery also play a decisive role in this. You should also know the dimensions of your fridge, as these determine the bed height.

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Drawer installation & oils

When the telescopic rails finally arrived, we could start installing them. Four small ones were used for the drawers and two large ones (more precisely: heavy duty pull-outs) for the refrigerator.

When installing these, it is important that the rails are attached at the same height. If these do not run parallel to one another, the drawers may be difficult to move, clamp, or cannot be used at all. The more precise you are in this step , the easier it will be to pull out the drawers later . You can also see in the photo how Kathi oils the wood in the kitchen.

Spice shelves & flap

In order to optimize the installation and reduce perpetual requests, we have installed two spice racks afterwards.

In addition, we had the problem at the beginning that we could not get to the things in the left part of the kitchen when the bed was made - logical, since this blocked the door of the kitchen front / table. For this reason, a flap was subsequently sawn into the worktop and attached with a piano hinge.

These two supplements have already paid off on subsequent trips due to their improved practicability. In addition, the spice racks ensure a real homely look.

Fridge & handles

In the last step we have these leather handles   attached to the drawers. In terms fridge we chose this decided by Dometic, as it has the advantage that it can be operated with power (12V / 230V), and gas (mbar 50). This allows us to use the power connection on campsites, for example, or, if we are self-sufficient, just use the gas bottle that we have with us. This gives us flexibility, which is a big plus when traveling. The 12V operation is particularly suitable to keep the temperature in the refrigerator low . You should only use gas operation if sufficient   Fresh air circulation is available. Therefore, we will install two ventilation grilles in the vehicle body on the rear of the refrigerator .