I did something similar a couple years back - but much simpler. I just bought a cap for my truck and stuck my sleeper futon mattress in it:
How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
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Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#72This resonated with me: "Life is easy. Humans are fucking badass -- we absolutely dominate our environment and are so smart and powerful."
I really understood that in the desert in Utah, where I got the feeling that I wasn't supposed to be there, far away from any semblance of civilization, but there I was surviving just fine with the help of our machinations.
I bought my RV for what you did, and its a perfectly comfortable home... a home that goes 80mph! I've been to almost every state now, and lived on hilltops with "million dollar" views, been in the desert under the stars, worked from deep in the rainforest in the pacific northwest, all for less money than rent for my apartment was. We can live comfortably for about a week completely off the grid. I would have bought a smaller, more offroad capable van, but I live in it with my fiance, so that was untenable.
I don't know how long you've been doing it, but there are definitely stressors and downsides that accompany the lifestyle. My RV was broken into once and I had everything stolen, and since then I've been constantly on edge when being away from my vehicle, so I often wish it looked beat to shit to deter people from messing with it. Also, staying in parking lots sucks and is sad if you're doing it for any extended period of time. I definitely have a missing sense of community and permanence, but its been a great journey!
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#73I'm genuinely curious - why did he do all the repairs in his house before selling it? Was the market for housing that bad that he couldn't sell it as-is for the new owner to do repairs?
For some stuff the repair/improvement more than pays for itself in either increased sale price, or reduced time on the market.
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#74That was pretty awesome, I enjoyed reading all the way to the end. I wonder how long it'll take him to regret the fact that his bed only fits one person in it.
I don't think he plans on company, because really how much creepier can you get than: "Do you wanna check out my van?" or "Come back to my van with me"
Even though I know his whole backstory, I still wouldn't come right away and I'm a 25 year old dude...
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#75I love the idea of doing something like this, but I'm wondering about how to get dependable, high-speed internet access. Anybody have any ideas?
yes, your 4G connected phone. 50GB of data for 19.99, isn't that great?
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#76I am "happy" in my mortgage-limited slave life, but I've always wanted to extend my vehicle a bit. My car is essentially like a little piece of my home I take with me from place to place. I feel as comfortable in my car as I feel at home.
I've been looking into a second battery and solar setup just for the main goal of running a computer in my crossover. But I'll admit, that job does take up a lot of time I might otherwise use for doing it.
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#77I absolutely loved reading this. I liked how he went into it cautiously, testing out whether he could get by with a small fridge, small bed, less possessions, etc. And I also appreciate the web page design itself -- one long vertically-scrolling piece, very easy to read through! One thing I find ironic though is the attitude towards other people who make a different decision about the worth of a home and the mortgage…
He could have done it at a friend's or his own home after another short stint of saving.
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#78So why didn't he just buy an RV? Not to take away from his accomplishment, but isn't this just the most engineery thing to do? Instead of leaning on another industry that has spent decades perfecting exactly what he is trying to build, he spent all the time he could have used actually exploring the world building what is certainly an inferior solution in every regard.
Because RVs suck for a lot of things. First, you're restricted where you can drive. You won't be touring the finer dispersed camping sites down some bumpy, rock-strewn forest road in an RV. Or even (for example) Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier NP if your RV is outlandishly large. Second, anything bigger than a camper van and your choices of paid campsites is reduced. For instance, over the U. S. Labor Day holiday I'…
I was able to "offroad" a bit in my class C RV to get to dispersed camping spots, most of the forest roads were fine. Driving it was also nice since you are pretty much king of the road. Overall, I'm glad I had the class C, especially since I was living with someone else in it. If I were to do a hybrid lifestyle, I would get an offroad capable van (think sportsmobile), but I don't think I'd be able to live permanently in one. I skipped the class B's since they were too expensive
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#79So why didn't he just buy an RV? Not to take away from his accomplishment, but isn't this just the most engineery thing to do? Instead of leaning on another industry that has spent decades perfecting exactly what he is trying to build, he spent all the time he could have used actually exploring the world building what is certainly an inferior solution in every regard.
One word: Stealth. He can park this van on virtually any street in the world and sleep for free, and nobody will be the wiser. Try that in an RV and many places the police will be called on you in 30 minutes.
Stealth camping is nerve racking, and its never that stealth, you can always tell when someone is sleeping in their van.
Re: How I Built a Custom Camper Van (2015)
#80So why didn't he just buy an RV? Not to take away from his accomplishment, but isn't this just the most engineery thing to do? Instead of leaning on another industry that has spent decades perfecting exactly what he is trying to build, he spent all the time he could have used actually exploring the world building what is certainly an inferior solution in every regard.
One word: Stealth. He can park this van on virtually any street in the world and sleep for free, and nobody will be the wiser. Try that in an RV and many places the police will be called on you in 30 minutes.
Absolutely this. And, it can't be emphasized enough if you want to keep your expenses down.
As a preference, I think that this guy being able to make van living work is awesome. That being said, it's not necessarily cheaper than regular living unless you're willing to adhere to a certain kind of lifestyle. Awhile back, I looked at van living and there's an amazing community on YouTube of all places that chronicle the practicalities of van living and they talk about everything like expenses, sex life, etc. As one example on the expenses:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXA8_YeMvAA
Anyway, as much as everyone thinks that you can just park at Walmart every night, that's not necessarily the case or desirable. Not every Walmart allows it. After awhile, you don't want to live there. That leads people to guerrilla camp, which there's an art to. Industrial areas aren't always safe as there's no one around in case something happens. If you park in front of someone's house, they probably will call the police because it's weird. As such, the best guerrilla camping spots are in mixed commercial/residential areas where you can park on the commercial side of the street and still be near people for safety. As long as you move the van before the business opens, no one really cares. However, that moving around increases living costs. Loaded vans get terrible gas mileage. Gas isn't always cheap.
Alright, so we can just park in National Parks, right? Not always. Many, if not most, National Parks require camping fees per night, but it depends. Also, with budget cuts in Congress and not everything being fixed since sequestration, many parks have shut down their camping spots between Labor Day and Memorial Day, so there are fewer places to go. BLM land can be a bit more forgiving, but, really, because BLM doesn't have the money to patrol the amount of land they have and this only works in areas of the country with huge BLM controlled areas.
Alright, so say you do want to do it legally. What's the cost? If you ever want to shower, the cheapest place is a Planet Fitness membership at $10/month and there are many around the country. As far as rent, trailer parks vary in price, but in smallish cities I see them going for $300-$350/month. As far as food, since there's little storage place and refrigeration, expect to eat out quite a bit more or buy in smaller quantities, so more money.
As an aside, cooking is sort of a pain in the ass because cooking in the van will vaporize the fats in the food. That will, in turn, get it all over your stuff, which sucks and is a pain to clean. I wish I could find a link to it, but there was a video from one guy who did a beautiful build out of a van where he created an isolated kitchen in the side door of the van. In that way, all of the cooking problems were isolated from the living area with the consequence of having to go outside the van to cook, which made it more difficult to guerrilla camp.
As another aside, if you're unwilling to guerrilla camp, I came to the conclusion that it's better to just have a trailer that's towed. It tends to be more comfortable. When your vehicle breaks down, and it will break down, you still have a place to live while doing repairs unlike a van or RV. Also, the startup cost is much cheaper. I was at a maker fair this last weekend and this guy was there showing off a trailer:
$4500 for a full build out and all he started with was an axle. The result seemed pretty good, but I'm not an expert. I believe he sells plans for it as well. Certainly, trailers require a vehicle to pull them, but a small trailer like this can get away with something like a Tacoma and a used one can be had for a few thousand dollars.
Anyway, I think mobile living is amazing and workable. However, I wouldn't necessarily call it cheap. You pay for freedom, but it's a workable amount of money.