Making a Plan

 With winter not ready to let go yet, we've had extra time to plan and budget. This has been a blessing in disguise!

UltraVan is 24 feet long, 8 feet wide and 9 feet long at it's highest point. That being said, the entire vehicle with its 3 tanks empty weighs less than a standard modern mid-sized sedan.

With a full remodel ahead of us, we really needed to consider that lightweight factor in all our decisions.

There were so many options out there but very few descriptions of actual costs or item weights for what is available for the everyday person without a contractor's license or a manufacturer's contract.

That left us on the backfoot, starting from a disadvantage. Having this extra time to plan has been necessary just to answer our own questions about which items are best for which area. It's also meant that there has been a lot of rethinking and overthinking each and every decision, but that's probably normal for anyone starting a DIY project for the first time.

Before we start going through each section of our budget and explaining why we are choosing the materials that we are using, let's talk money.

Renovations of any vehicle are NOT CHEAP. And when your vehicle is twice the size, has plumbing, 2 electrical systems AND a heating system? You know this is going to start getting pricey.

So how to pinch pennies without sacrificing safety?

We are stacking as many coupons/shopping programs as possible.

Starting with an online shopping program, MyPoints. MyPoints acts as a shopping portal in your web browser. Simply shop as usual, starting at the MyPoints website, be sure your checkout purchase email matches the one you have registered with MyPoints and watch your points rack up. You can then cash those in for store gift cards, PayPal transfers or Visa gift cards.

Military / Veteran Discounts

Then, see what automatic savings your can get. With one of us being a retired veteran, there are some companies who offer a military discount year round. You'll need to verify your status with their shopping programs, but the discount is applied automatically at checkout.

For this renovation, we know we'll be using the following for certain:

• Lowe's The My Lowe's program gives a military discount of 10% for all eligible purchases (exclusions apply, such as Bulk or Contractor purchases, so watch carefully!)
• Home Depot Home Depot also offers a military discount of 10% for all eligible purchases with exclusions, but there is a maximum annual discount of $400 total, so check your receipts.
• Joanne Fabric gives a 15% discount for veterans and active duty every day. It can't always be combined with their coupons, so check for the best choice.
• Michael's Crafts offers 15% off all items, including sale items, year round.

Are there more sites who offer military discounts? Of course. We probably won't be using them on this project, but we'll be checking before each purchase.

Now that you have your coupons and discounts sorted, you'll want to save more, right?

Shopping at Amazon? Use your Amazon credit card to earn rewards for your next purchase.

Shopping elsewhere? PayPal Rewards gives cash back to your PayPal account with qualifying purchases.

Capital One also does discounts that can be combined with those store-specific rewards programs. But you need to shop through their website, not use MyPoints or a similar point portal.

Why does this all matter?

Our budget currently sits at $30,052. Admittedly, this is a "worst case possible" and not accounting for us using materials we already have.

If we can save 10 percent on any of those purchases, we are going to do that! Also, by using our rewards and cards, we can make purchases in stages. Then use reward points and credits from Purchase 1 to lower the price of Purchase 2 and so on.

Now, on to the actual budget....