Calling all van dwellers
I'm gonna be living in my van for about a month. I want to prepare it for that, and do some converting. What should I do?
People have told me to insulate it, but I'll only be in it a month and during that month it's quiet temperate around here.
Suggestions? I have $1000 and a week to do whatever I do
Did you buy this van specifically to live in it, or did you already own it?
Will it be parked down by the river?
I've owned it for months, I bought it because it was cheap. But since I have it I'm thinking of prepping it to live in
It gets boring rather quickly.
>Don't bother with insulation
>Don't over pack, you'll regret it daily
>You won't actually use a 32" TV or PC nearly as often as you'd think
>Hopefully you don't mind eating bland - thankfully Veeky Forums prepped me there
Will do it again this summer. Still have a lot of Michigan to explore and see. Might pick up fishing for entertainment value. And a small kayak.
>massachusetts
what part my nigga?
How do you even use a pic in a van? What's it plugged into?
Is a previa big enough to live in
Op here, looks like you do basically what I am looking for. Can you give me a rundown on your setup? How do you store and prepare food?
Cape cod, so it should be easy to find a place to park and it won't be too cold to go without insulation
I found my extended Safari a bit on the small side. Then again, I was over packed.
I stored my entertainment supplies in the back near the sub. I'd setup my PC on my bed during the day and move it back when I went to bed.
Found out turning on Windows power saving options and lowering the brightness would increase the battery life drastically.
Spent a lot of time walking around eating wild berries during the summer. Read a lot of Clive Cussler, too.
Once November came around I started using a heated blanket before I moved back into a rental house.
AC Power
>Big 3 upgrade up front for electrical charging
>220AH auxiliary deep cycle marine battery
>1000w continuous invertor, 1800w peak
>2gauge wire to smart isolator, to aux battery
>Used an electric blanket for cold nights - 22-30f
>Used a small 800w element burner to heat the inside of the van in the mornings to get out of bed, wanted a little buddy heater but those were out of my price range, plus storage size
Food
>Blender
>Powder milk
>Instant oats, not steel cut or old fashioned
>Bananas
>Protein powder
>Water; had 10+ gallons I hauled around everywhere
>Iirc 1,300calories, ridiculous carbs, 100g+ in protein, per meal, twice a day
>Multivitamins and pseudoephedrine + caffeine
>Wild berries; blueberries, blackberries, strawberries
>Canned goods + ramen heated over a fire for nights I felt like eating something delicious
Probably pick up fishing this summer for meat. Considered a small games license for squirrels and rabbits.
Bed
>2" longer than I am
>18" wide at the feet, locking hinges up front held all my containers shut while driving and extended to 38" when opened for sleeping
>Reflection things for privacy + heat reflection; these things made a HUGE difference in temperature inside the van
>Blackout curtains
>Small DC fans from old PCS for airflow
Rainy days are absolute hell in a van. The humidity can ruin a good day.
I never camped in town.
Built my shelving and bed out of 2 sheets of 3/4" plywood and one 8' stud. It was completely overkill but it allowed me to save space by not building tons of support braces. Used a brad gun and stapled the entire thing together.
Picked up my plastic storage containers on Amazon relatively cheap. The auxiliary battery was by far the most expensive part of the setup.
Don't cheap out on a battery if you want to enjoy AC. Consider buying a lifetime alternator as well. I ruined the first battery I had as it wasn't a deep cycle battery.
man I was down at the cape the other day and I can't believe what a disaster that place is. I am from Norfolk county which I guess is comparatively affluent so you NEVER see shit like people loitering in front of a 7/11 or in front of a gas station or crowds of degenerates just aimlessly roaming the streets. the police put a stop to all that shit instantly.
but not down in the cape. both in wareham and dennis it was the same shit...just hordes of complete zombies loitering in front of convenience stores....the weirdest shit...like fat bitches riding around for hours in the parking lot on a little scooter. hella people pulling up to the back of the store and of course no one going in.
that place is a mess my dude.
I'd love to set it up for some AC power. I bought a 600w continuous inverter because I got it cheap. But I'm pretty clueless when it comes to electrical stuff outside of low voltage. Is there any guides you could link for doing this type of thing? Should I look at having a pro wire up an extra battery properly? I honestly don't know the first thing about augmenting charging systems
Yeah I'm in Hyannis and it's the worst part for that shit. The cape is a total dump, believe me I'm leaving soon.
But also
>wareham
>the cape
Nigga
...
>falling for the le everything before the bridge isnt the cape meme
If you can read and follow instructions you can do pretty much anything.
Google
>Big 3 electrical upgrade
>Automotive Battery isolator
>Wire auxiliary battery
>Deep cycle batteries
The electrical bits will be the most expensive parts of your build. Expect to spend $60 on wire alone.
Wouldn't recommend paying anyone.
IRL kek
C O M F Y
you sound like someone from Wareham.
Fair enough. I do only have about a week to do whatever it is so learning all that and installing it all will leave me crunched for time. What type of stores sell the electrical stuff I'll need, would a place like home Depot?
find a way to raise the bed up so you can store shit underneath it. Look up ski bumming, they have this sort of thing down to a science.
Sweet porno van! If the velvet was red it'd be epitomal.
Where do you shit and wash your ass? Serious question.
Gym membership for showers and shits. Piss jugs for piss
>Piss jugs
Do I look like Ray? Cause that's not the way things go.
Only a month? Comfy bed, curtains, propane cook top, small solar charger for phones/laptop (or inverter to cigarette lighter), make sure maintenance is up to date, no leaks for water, that's about it. A month is nothing.
Longer term, solar panels 3 minimum. Deep cycle batteries, cabinets, insulation, a vent fan, small tv with dvd, propane/butane cook top, plug in Ac if you can, curtains, fishing shit, bike/kayak rack, pack clothes, cooking shit, lots of socks, and toiletries.
I love this thread. It makes "prepping" seem much easier.
Find one of these.
Way of the road bub
That's because everyone down the cape is a drug addict and the addiction comes alive during the winter months when the cape sucks. It's like that a lot of places. Martha's Vineyard is even worse. To be honest some guy living in a van makes more sense if they are from cape cod.
I had a friend from the cape whose father retired and a week later someone broke into their home and ransacked it and this guy had to come back out of retirement. Have lots of family down there as well and they are all more or less trash
more like this?