Van conversion plywood cut list: Ford Transit L2 H2 worked example

For a full Transit L2 H2 conversion covering floor, walls, ceiling and a basic furniture shell, you will typically need 7 to 9 sheets of plywood, depending on the thickness choices and how carefully the parts nest. The breakdown below shows exactly where every sheet goes, using a real cut list rather than estimates.

Waste is higher in a van conversion than in a flat-pack furniture project. Curved walls and a barrelled ceiling mean you are templating and trimming to fit, not cutting rectangles. That reality is priced in throughout this guide.

The van: Ford Transit L2 H2

The Transit L2 H2 (medium wheelbase, medium roof) is the most popular starting point for UK van conversions. It gives a usable interior that fits in most car parks, with enough height to stand upright after insulation and a ply ceiling layer. The key interior dimensions are:

• Floor length between bulkhead and rear doors: approximately 2800 mm (9 ft 2 in). This is the usable length; the structural floor of the van itself is slightly longer.
• Floor width between the wheel arches: approximately 1300 mm (4 ft 3 in). The wheel arches intrude on both sides and are the tightest point. At full floor height the width opens out to around 1750 mm (5 ft 9 in), which is covered by side panels running above the arches.
• Interior height H2: approximately 1860 mm (6 ft 1 in) from factory floor to the highest point of the ceiling curve. After a ply sub-floor (18 mm) and ply ceiling (9 mm), standing height is around 1830 mm.

These are usable working dimensions used throughout the UK van conversion community, not the headline figures in Ford's brochure, which measure to the outer body.

Plywood choices for van builds

A van conversion uses several thicknesses. Here is the breakdown used in this example, along with the reason for each choice:

• 18 mm ply: floor substrate and furniture carcass. Needs to take foot traffic and bed loads without flexing.
• 9 mm ply: ceiling and upper wall panels. Thin enough to flex slightly around the van's curve; lighter than 12 mm; still rigid enough to hold tongue-and-groove or trim strips.
• 6 mm ply: lower wall panels and wheel arch covers where flex is an advantage. Some builders use 4 mm Luan (lauan) here for maximum flex, but 6 mm takes screws and clips more reliably.

The cut list

This list covers: a continuous floor panel, side walls from floor to ceiling, the ceiling, wheel arch covers, a fixed bed platform at 800 mm height, and a single overhead locker above the cab end. All dimensions are finished sizes after templating; add your own waste allowance for the curved cuts (see below).

Floor (18 mm ply)

The centre floor panel is 2800 mm long and 1300 mm wide. A standard sheet is 2440 × 1220 mm, so the floor cannot come from a single sheet in either dimension. The simplest solution is to join two sheets end-to-end: one full sheet covers the rear two-thirds and a piece cut from a second sheet covers the remaining 360 mm. That second sheet provides the 360 × 1220 mm strip, leaving an offcut of 2080 × 1220 mm: large enough for the furniture carcass parts below.

Wheel arch covers are shaped to the profile of the arch. Template them in card first. The dimensions above are rectangular bounding boxes; the actual part area is smaller.

Walls (6 mm ply)

Lower side walls cover from the floor up to the window line on each side, approximately 700 mm. Each panel is 2800 mm long: longer than a sheet, so each wall needs a join. Placing the join at a batten (a ply or timber strip fixed to the van ribs) hides it neatly. Two sheets of 6 mm ply provide the side lower walls with material to spare.

Ceiling (9 mm ply)

The Transit H2 roof has a pronounced barrel curve. Running the ply panels across the width of the van (perpendicular to the length) allows the 9 mm ply to flex across the shorter span. Each panel spans the internal width, approximately 1750 mm before trimming to the curve. Three panels of 1220 mm length cover the 2800 mm interior length with an overlap for scribing and trimming. Each panel cuts from a sheet left after the side wall cuts.

The upper wall strips above the window line follow the same curve and need scribing to fit. Budget one additional sheet of 9 mm ply for trial cuts and waste on curved sections. This is the area where van conversions deviate most from flat furniture projects: a rectangle-on-paper becomes a compound-curved cut in practice.

Furniture shell (18 mm ply, from the floor offcut sheet)

The bed platform at 800 mm height gives under-bed storage accessible from the rear doors. The 1900 mm sleeping length suits a person up to 1850 mm (6 ft 1 in); add 100 mm if you sleep diagonally. The overhead locker sits above the cab-end wall, using the space that would otherwise be dead air.

The large offcut from the floor (approximately 2080 × 1220 mm of 18 mm ply) covers the bed platform top and one end panel. The second end panel and the locker parts come from one further full sheet.

Sheet count summary

A simpler build without the overhead locker, using one wall thickness throughout, can come in at 7 sheets. An ambitious build with a full kitchen unit and wardrobe can reach 12 or more. The curve waste sheet is the one most often underestimated: don't drop it from the order to save money.

Why van builds waste more material than flat furniture

A wardrobe or bookcase is a set of rectangles. A van is not. Three things drive extra waste in a conversion:

• Ceiling curve. The barrel ceiling of an H2 Transit means ceiling panels need scribing and trimming. A trial piece cut to the wrong curve is scrap. Budget at least half a sheet for ceiling trial cuts.
• Wheel arch profiles. Each arch is a different shape and requires its own template. The ply offcuts from adjacent cuts rarely fit the arch outline exactly.
• Short panels joining to span the length. Because the van is 2800 mm long and sheets are 2440 mm, almost every run of wall or floor needs a join piece. That join piece often comes from a fresh sheet, leaving a large but awkward offcut.

The 20% waste rule of thumb used for flat furniture becomes closer to 30% for walls and ceiling in a van build. The floor and furniture are closer to furniture waste rates.

UK sheet sizes and sourcing

The standard UK full sheet is 2440 × 1220 mm, the metric near-equivalent of 8 × 4 ft. That is the size used throughout this guide. For US readers: an 8 × 4 sheet is 2438 × 1219 mm, close enough that the cut list above works without adjustment.

For a van build, WBP (weather and boil proof) plywood is worth the extra cost over interior-grade ply. A van is a damp environment: condensation, wet gear coming in, and temperature swings will delaminate cheap ply over time. Travis Perkins, Wickes and most independent timber merchants stock WBP in 6, 9 and 18 mm thicknesses.

Nine sheets is a large order. Most merchants offer a panel-cutting service, which is worth using for the rectangular pieces, particularly the floor panels. Bring a written cut list with every part's length and width in millimetres. For the curved ceiling and arch pieces, you'll still need to do the final scribing yourself.

Plan your own van cut list

Every van conversion is different: different vans, different layouts, different ideas about whether the kitchen goes driver-side or passenger-side. The parts above are a worked starting point, not a universal template.

Once you have your own part list, SawReady can work out the nesting and tell you the minimum sheet count. Enter the rectangular parts (the curved ones you're templating separately), set your sheet size and kerf, and it produces a cut plan you can take to the yard or use while cutting yourself.

Plan your van conversion cuts