It is early on in my adventure, but I am already starting to hear some of the same questions in regards to how I am living in a van. These questions range from where do you go to the bathroom, which is valid, to how do you stay cool at night. This post is devoted to some of the more common questions and how I handle day to day living in a van. Please know that this may be edited or revisited in the future as I encounter new issues.
1 . WHERE DO YOU GO TO THE BATHROOM?
First off, I try my hardest to remember to go to the bathroom at any place I visit. Before I leave a restaurant, Walmart, the gym, etc, however from time to time I forget since I am still in normal house living mode.
That said, what do I do when I have to go to the bathroom and I am in the van? Easy! I pull out my Dometic 2.6 gallon portable toilet that is located under my oven. In hindsight, it may not have been the best location, but I couldn’t fit it anywhere else. This toilet is compact and you simply fill it up with water and a nice freshener so that it smells like roses. It even has a handy flush button that pulls the water from the tank to rinse it out. The waste is then deposited into the bottom to be “dumped” out later at a local RV establishment. Obviously it is much better to go #2 in a public place rather than have to go when you are in the van, but when nature calls.
* Side note, before I had water in the portable toilet, I woke up and really had to go to the bathroom. Normally as a guy, when you are in the woods this is an easy fix, just find a tree, but what do you do when you are in a wide open parking lot and do not want to draw attention to yourself at 2am. Well you quickly find a cup or bottle in the van, release any fluids you may be holding onto, open the side door, and dump it under the van. Repeat as many times as needed depending on your current supply.
2. WHAT DO YOU DO FOR A REFRIGERATOR?
I am currently using a Yeti Cooler that unfortunately does not keep Ice for the advertised 10 days, but has been good enough lasting 3 days. I typically keep fruit, ranch, yogurt, deli meat, cheese, and salad. All in quantities that last me 3-4 days, but I will usually drain and refill with ice every few days.
Other options are RV refrigerators that will use the power supply to keep things cool, however I chose to neither use my power or spend the $999 for the unit.
3. HOW DO YOU KEEP COOL AT NIGHT? OR WARM IN THE WINTER?
I haven’t hit winter yet, so this post will need updated down the road. I am less concerned with the cold than I am with the heat. My philosophy is I can always add more clothes and blankets but in the heat I can only take so much off.
During high temperatures, I have the vent fan on the roof running on full power to suck out the heat that is brewing in the van during the day. Usually you would park in the shade but recently I have had some battery drainage issues and need a side fan running at night, so power is more important right now. I will however use a sun shade for the windows to minimize sunlight inside.
Now I will say I am blessed to be in Colorado, a more dry area, so when the sun goes down it does cool off well. This helps in getting to sleep at a decent hour. When it dips below 80 degrees I will flip the Maxxflow fan to suck in air to get some air movement in the van, and I add that to a little $15 fan I have going in the back. If it is still hot, I will suck it up and spend the extra gas money to run the car for a while and have the AC blowing. This only works for so long since the AC only runs great when the vehicle is in motion.
Other ways to stay cool while living in a van, are swamp coolers, a second max flow vent fan in the back to create a wind tunnel, windows on the side rear panels allow air to run across your body, or install an AC unit. I have heard the AC unit is problematic due to leaking. One thing you don’t want in a van is too much moisture.
Usually I will joke with people and say I am living the dream each night, I strip down naked and eat ice cream in bed to stay cool. It is not entirely true but I don’t doubt it would work.
For staying warm, I have heard that diesel heaters under the passenger seat work great and keep you warm. Aslo, great insullation goes a long way.
4. HOW DO YOU TAKE A SHOWER?
Well for one I do not take a shower in the van. Didn’t have room, plus putting a wet bath in a van is very problematic given the risk of pipes freezing and not having easy access to the pipes. If I am not working usually I will wipe down with some lemon scented baby wipes to get me through the day, but if work or public interaction is needed I will shower at one of the over 1700 locations of Planet Fitness. Memberships are just $21.99 for the month and allow you to use all 1700 locations. This also works at keeping me honest on my fitness goals.
Other options include truck stops, week or day passes to other gyms, a public swimming pool, or a nice water fall you find in the wilderness.
5. WHAT DO YOU EAT IN THE VAN?
I am dedicating a separate post to this because in talking to friends, this is a very interesting topic and a unique diet that is not all that bad or different than most fitness/weight loss diets.
Here are some key items and ways I go about storing food in the van. First, as a bachelor, I do eat out from time to time, however now that I do not have a fridge for left overs so I order less and snack in the van if I am still hungry.
I will still cook in the van from time to time. I do have a propane camper stove/oven that fits a 9×12 sheet and acts like a toaster oven. On the stove I can cook normal items like breakfast burritos, steak, sautéed veggies, etc. I do need to be careful and cognizant of cleanup.
As for food stored in the van, I do everything I can to not utilize the cooler. I stick to dry goods and canned/packaged meat. I stick to chicken and tuna. They are good for low carb based diets. I am also exploring some vegan meat options because they do not need to be kept refrigerated prior to preparing.
When it comes to diary, I use dry milk and make about 2 cups at a time. I use Blender Bottles to mix it up and store it in the cooler. The Blender Bottle is great because it doesn’t take up too much space, but also survives the ice melting. I will keep 6 eggs at a time in the cooler along with cheese, and yogurt.
Lastly, I have moved over to a shake based diet as well. I am not doing this 100% of the time but it does help with keeping minimal items stored in the van while also giving me the needed nutrients for certain meals. I keep 3 different kinds of protein mixes, powdered peanut butter (easier for clean-up), and some ground oats. I will add in yogurt and some different flavor options to change it up. Mornings I add in cold brew coffee to add a jolt, while I will add in applesauce and preserves for more fruit based options. Now you may ask, why not just use real fruit? Well I decided to abandon the blender since it uses up too much power right now, so I need to stick to items that will shake up well in the blender bottle.
6. WHERE DO YOU PARK?
So I usually look for places/restaurants that are open 24 hours. This is still a developing system but so far I look for parking lots that do not have a “No Overnight Parking” sign at the entrance. Most of the times you can park at Target, Walmart, Cracker Barrel (Very RV Friendly), IHOP, and Planet Fitness’. Most of the times if you ask the manager of a place of business that you have spent money at if you can stay in the parking lot, most are ok with it and wont call the cops on you. Even if the cops are called on you, just be polite, accommodating, and open to relocating if need be. More times that not they just want to make sure the local area is safe and will stay that way.
Outside of that you can always park on BLM property (Bureau of Land Management). Some states have restrictions on the length of stays on state property. For instance, Colorado requires you to leave after a couple of weeks.
Lastly, some of the best places to stay are at Truck Stops. These are open 24 hours and have food and showers.
In the future, I will be looking for camping spots in the mountains, public beaches, and on occasion I will pay for parking if the location is great! There are several resources out there for free parking spots for RV lifestyles.
7. HOW MUCH POWER DO YOU HAVE?
Can I be honest and say I have no clue how much I have? The previous owners purchased the my van from one of their friends and he already had everything installed and sealed up. This means access to my actual batteries is very difficult and I haven’t wanted to mess with the system just yet. All that said I don’t know the power my batteries have or if they need replaced. They definitely need replaced but they still have a little life in them and its not bad being trained on how to efficiently use power.
There is a little solar gauge on the side of the wall that tells me how much power I am taking in during a solar charge and if it is a good situation for solar (IE. Frowns face displays at night, smiley face in direct sunlight). Outside of that I do not know when I will officially run out of power and have not fully ran out. I say fully because I have an inverter that will scream at me that the battery bank is low.
My inverter converts the battery power (DC) into a traditional household plug in (AC). I only flip this on every couple of days to charge up items or to run the fan as needed. The reasoning behind that is due to the inverter screaming at me around 3-5am that the batteries are running low. This is not fun to go turn off because it is under the bed frame. I will usually need to get dressed, walk around to the back, and turn it off. I do still have power running and have enough for basic needs such as lighting. But at 3am all my devices are charged and I have no need for huge amounts of power.
To minimize how many times I drain the batteries, I will charge my devices at random places that I am at for two hours at a time.
8. DO YOU HAVE INTERNET?
Yes, I do! I purchased a mobile hotspot plan with Sprint and I get 100GB of data for $60 a month. The only downside is that I only get it where Sprint has service, but when I am in big cities, I get LTE data and 100GB is plenty each month.
I will add to this list as more questions start coming in. All in all, it is an adjustment to my life structure and schedule, but in the end its not that huge of a leap. I always have all my belongings with me so I never have to worry about forgetting anything at home or dreading the hours long drive home.
Feel free to ask any questions in the comments section below!