Carliving.info - Free information about living in cars, vans and campervans.

Van FAQ .

These are some of the most frequently asked questions from the Yahoo Vandwellers group. Also see carliving 101

What sort of van should I buy?

This will depend on a lot of factors such as your budget, how big you are, medical needs, fuel economy, the sort of comfort level you want. This generally is not an easy question for another person to reply to without knowing your situation and needs. Personally, I would suggest that if you can afford it, go for a campervan over a van that you will have to convert yourself. It will have preinstalled amenities, bed and storage. Generally it has also been my experience that police will bother you less in a well maintained campervan.

I would suggest you compare the benefits of campervans to conversion vans.

What should I take with me?

What it comes down to is that you need a van that can look after several main factors. It needs:

Somewhere to sleep - A bed.

Somewhere to cook - A stove, microwave, or oven - whatever best suits your needs..

Somewhere to wash - A sink and/or shower.

Somewhere to go to the toilet - A portapotti or cassette style toilet.

Somewhere to store your stuff - Cupboards, storage tubs, zip lock bags, hooks, - whatever best suits your needs.

The ability to drive it from place to place.

Some of those things won't take up as much space as you think, a portapotti for example can be stored away when not being used.

Some essential items will be ones you already have. More obvious ones will be:

Bedding - blankets, dunas, quilts, sheets, sleeping bags etc. They must be able to keep you warm during very cold nights.

Clothing - Enough changes of clothing to last you between washes. Typically a week's worth of clothing. Apart from some wet weather gear clothing should be no different from what you would wear in a house.

Cooking and eating utensils. Once again these need not be any different from household items.

Entertainment - Anything from books, a pack of cards to television, computer and radios. Whatever keeps you occupied and entertained. Pretty much these days a computer is very handy, as a way of tapping into information and a means of communication.

Medical supplies - If you have medical conditions, you need your medication.

Familiar things - Stuff that you have an emotional attachment too or that you find comforting. In my case, my duna cover and teddy bears have been comforting and familiar.

Can someone explain electricity to me?
How do I get electricity?
What are inventors?
How do I get mains electricity?

Yes, thankfully there are a lot of VanDwellers out there who have a good grasp of electricity. I suggest consulting the following web pages and sites:

From this site:

Electricity. 12 volt, 240 volt and using appliances.
Electricity. Installing a dual battery system / battery isolator.
Electricity - a basic solar power system. - New
Electricity - buying solar panels online and information on batteries and regulators.
12 volt distribution panel. I rewire my 12 volt power.

Bob W's web page http://cheaprvliving.com/howtohaveelectricity.html

Phred Tinseith's page http://www.phrannie.org/battery.html

How do solar panels work?
Can some one tell me more about solar panels for my van?

Electricity - buying solar panels online and information on batteries and regulators.

What is the best way to go when it comes to charging my house battery's from the alternator?
With a continuous duty solenoid, will it over charge or boil the battery's on longer trips?
Would a battery isolator be the better way to go?

More info soon.

How do I get water?
How do I store water?

Water is easy to get if you have a bit of guts and bravado. You can get water carrying plastic containers. They usually have a carrying handle at the top, and a filling point on a top corner. Generally you can buy these for under $10 empty in some hardware stores, camping stores or military surplus stores.

Keep an eye out for taps where you can fill these. Most petrol stations will not have an issue with you filling up on water if you are buying fuel. You can usually fill up at an outside tap or in a wash room. Though be careful to disinfect the tap in the wash room first! Parks generally have drinking taps, road side shelters may have them, picnic areas have them, they're all over the place. If you check into a caravan park one day a week, then you can do your laundry and fill up on water.

Water - obtaining it and storing it.

How do I store food?

Storage. Storage containers, storing items in your car or van, storage depots.

How do I keep food cool?

How do I keep cool?
How do I keep warm?

How can I earn money on the road / while VanDwelling?

Generally if you already have a job, you should keep hold of that and continue to work it.

Do a job that you can do working out of your van such as mobile handy person, plumber, electrician, locksmith, dog washer, whatever. You can tow a utility trailer with your tools of trade in it.

Making and selling crafts.

Creating a web site and earn an income from adds. Though from those that do this, this income is minimal and is not enough to live on.

Working in caravan parks as attendants, grounds keeper etc in exchange for a small income and free camping spot.

© 2007 - 2008 Romana S. This text is copyright. The ideas and concepts are not. Feel free to link to it, but if you want to put it on another web site ask for permission to do so in the forum. Not for release on commercial web sites or Wikipedia or Wikibooks.

Main

Better Living In Your Car So I'm sleeping in my truck now. I have a pickup with a fiberglass cap, I'm sleeping in the back. I have a long cushion from a chaise lounge and blankets, it's not too bad. My cap has sliding side windows with screens for some fresh air. The side windows are tinted but the back window isn't so I hung a towel over it. I may get fancy and install some curtains. I'm on a small dead end street so there's little traffic. One annoyance is the street lights, the other is I can't lock my cap from the inside. I'm in a decent area here so I'm not that worried about locking it. I got a little battery powered radio, a wind-up alarm clock and some snacks in there, I had a portable TV but I can't find it. I slept in there Saturday and Sunday night. Last night Veggie came home without any alcohol, I thought it might be a quiet night so I slept in my bed. It was a fairly quiet night but I still woke up like 10 times hearing him moving around all night. I'm going back to the truck tonight. It's just a lot less anxiety for me.