Early in the van build, we decided we wanted to have a window in the side door. We oriented our couch to face the sliding door window so even with the door closed we could see outside. We also knew a window with a vent and a screen was important for encouraging air circulation without having to open any doors or the front windows.

We use the vented window for air circulation daily. However, the mechanism that opens the Tvent has broken once and that meant ordering a replacement part from CRL that they don’t stock and had to manufacture. We are not sure how it happened. It could have been from shutting the sliding door with the window open too often, over tightening the window when closing it, or something else we haven’t thought of. We are trying to be a bit more careful with the window now to prevent further breaks.

Part List:

CR Lawrence Ram ProMaster Passenger Side Sliding Door T-Vent Window (Buy on Amazon)
Rust-oleum Clean Metal Primer (Buy on Amazon)

Checking the fit of the plywood template.

IMPORTANT: There is an area on the inside of the sliding door on the Promaster that looks like you can just cut along the edge to match the window contours, but it is slightly the wrong dimensions. Don’t do this!

It is helpful to have a second pair of hands for this installation as the window is unwieldy and having someone hold the window in position while it is screwed in is nice.

Our strategy to install the window was to create a template of the window and use this template to cut out the exact hole that was necessary in the sliding door.

We measured the outer dimensions of the window, marked it on 1/4” plywood, and then cut it to size. We checked our cut by setting the window on the plywood to ensure we had it right.

Then, we measured from a bunch of places from the interior ring of the window to the edge of the window and marked the measurements on the plywood to create a template for the hole we would cut out of the van. We also measured the length and width of the hole that we would cut to double check our measurements.

We created paper templates of the curvature for the corners in order to cut these correctly into our template. Once we had the curves and lines for the hole drawn on the plywood, we cut it out using a jig saw.

Once cut, we made sure that the window fit into the hole and that the edges of the window lined up with the edges of the template. It is important that the window fits into this template snugly as you can always take off more material after you cut, but you can’t get it back if you cut too much off.

Lining up the template and ensuring it is level and even.

Then we placed the plywood template on the sliding door and lined up the edges with where we wanted the window to be located. The front and back of the big window pane were lined up with the edges of the sliding door. Everything else was roughly centered in the area contoured for a window. We secured the plywood template to the sliding door using duct tape. We double and tripled checked the template was centered and level. You may want to place painters tape under the plywood on edges so it does not scratch the paint, although it will be covered by the window in the end.

We taped trash bags inside the van to catch metal shavings that were created as we cut the hole.

Probably our best decision when installing the window. Easy clean up.

First, we took a small drill bit and drilled a pilot hole near the corner of one edge of the cutout. We made sure it was far enough away so we could get a large 3/8” to 1/2” drill bit in there without hitting the edge of the template. Then the pilot hole was widened with the larger drill bit. We knew the pilot hole was large enough when a sheet metal jig saw blade fit. We repeated the process for the other 3 corners of the template so we had 1 hole at each corner large enough to accommodate a jigsaw blade.

For the sheet metal cut, we made sure to have a suitable sheet metal blade for the jigsaw as well as backups if the first got dull. We used the jigsaw to begin cutting from one of the drill holes we made and hugged the edge of the template, without cutting into the wood. We had to make multiple passes with the jigsaw to get the corners correct. We also made multiple starting cuts from each of the corner drill holes instead of trying to do one continuous cut.

Tracing the template for the window hole. We need additional passes on the bottom to match the curve of the template.

We then removed the sheet metal we cut (and did a victory dance) and sanded down any burs or rough edges. We then tested to see if the window fit in the hole we cut. We cut it a bit conservatively the first time and had to remove more material by cutting and filing the edges. Once the window fit, we made sure to file down all sharp edges, then used sand paper on the edges that were just cut. Using metal paint, we painted the raw metal edge and let it dry to prevent rust.

After the cutout was the perfect size, we placed the window into the hole. We placed the bracket with screw holes over the inside edge of the window and started to screw it in. It was helpful to have someone support the other side of the window until it was secured. Some of the screws took a bit of work to get in, but I’d recommend hand tightening them to ensure the heads do not get stripped. We then tested the window’s seal by spraying it with a hose to ensure there were no leaks. This window has a gasket and did not require any window weld or similar treatments. We have had no issues with leaking with ours.

We now have a nice looking window with a vent!

If you have any questions or something isn’t clear, please feel free to comment below, send us an email or find us on Facebook or Instagram! We would love to hear from you!