Living in one for months at a time

[DonL]

My wife are considering purchasing a Sportsmobile or Jeep and would like to know if it`s possible to live semi-fulltime in either. The reason I ask is given the current economical slump we will not be able to purchase an Earthroamer, at least not right now. Hopefully that will change in the future. The travel bug has bitten us and we would like to get out there and see this beautiful country of ours. Now that the JK Habitat has been somewhat finalized I have been leaning toward purchasing a Jeep and pulling a small overland trailer. However, the Sportsmobile seems like a good fit between the Jeep and Earthroamer.

Does anyone have any experience living in one for more than two months at a time?

[haven]

The question is not if it's possible to live in a van for an extended period. People do it all the time. Every city in America has an out of the way location where homeless folks park their vans for the night.

Instead, the question is whether you and your wife can tolerate living in very tight quarters for weeks at a time. If you haven't done so already, I'd suggest renting a camper for a couple of weeks, park it in your driveway, and try living in it. No cheating by going into your home to watch tv.

Most big cities have camper rental outfits. Now that summer is over, rates are lower. The most expensive part of camper rental is the charge for miles driven, so if you're parked in your driveway the out-of-pocket expense won't be too bad.

[DonL]

I guess I should have been more direct. We have stayed in an RV, so I know that it`s possible. What I would really like to know is what are people doing with regards to showering and toilet?

Are most people carrying a porta-potty and separate showering system?

[r_w]

Well, that is the dilemna. Shower, john, fridge, HVAC--those are the four basic things you have to deal with when going non-trad--whether off-grid or RV or micro-van.

It isn't whether it can handle it, but if YOU can. And only you can do that.

[nosnerd]

baby wipes help////

[RoosterBooster]

DonL
i camped a couple times together with a person at some dog events who was doing just that;
IIRC after a divorce she sold the house , got a sportsmobile and is living kinda semi- full time in it.
and not alone ; she actually shares the small space with 3 Rhodesian ridgebacks :Wow1:
she simply plans the travel route around the personal needs;
for every couple days (nights) of primitive camping she picked a spot with facilities like shower and washer/dryer ...
as others posted it all depends on if you are willing to deal with this way of living.

[pr39]

Hi DonL,

I have been full time in a Sportsmobile since 2007. My SMB has all the commendations
of a home just a lot smaller. My coach has a small bathroom and shower. I bought mine used at a great price. Let me know if I can answer any questions you might have.

Pr

[Jnich77]

Yeah..I'd pass on the jeep... in fact.. if it was me I'd probably get a more "normal" RV for 1/2 the cost and spend the rest of the money on fuel, beer, and BBQ...lol.

[DonL]

There will be three of us traveling. I was planning to spend the summer traveling throughout the US, mainly BLM and national parks. I have come across several used SMBs that would probably suit our needs, but was apprehensive due to not having a permanent shower and toilet. Maybe if I bought a porta-potty and a shower enclosure the wife wouldn`t be so apprehensive, and as long as I took care of the dumping. As for the shower, I could install a hot water exchanger and use the shower off to the side in the same enclosure.

Is this what a lot of people are doing?

We would want to save money by not having to stay in motels, etc.

[r_w]

It is easy(ish) to rig a shower in or out of a van. Especially with a poptop and/or the spare tire area cargo compartment (bedliner and a drain makes it a very good shower pan).

The hard part is hauling the water.

[Jnich77]

Wait, three people... yeah... I think I'd go bigger.. much bigger.

[mph]

If you are able to travel with the seasons; that would be much better!

[bobDog]

If you are able to travel with the seasons; that would be much better!hmmmmm......."A man for all Seasons" :sombrero:

[hecataeus]

You might look at one of these by Partner Steel, as a portable toilet. They are pretty cool, very portable, leak proof - and if you will be pulling into RV parks and the like on occasion, they can be washed out via the normal RV toilet hook up. You need to check out the accessories, to get the full idea of what it entails:

http://www.partnersteel.com/?detail_page&record=jonny

[dzzz]

We would want to save money by not having to stay in motels, etc.

It's unlikely you will be saving money unless you go many nights or buy a very inexpensive vehicle.

[762X39]

A van based RV will probably work for you but you will have to workout some details like where to get water and where to empty the toilet. In Ontario (as an Ontarian), you can camp on crown land for free for 21 days in one spot (we just got back from Temagami where we spent 6 days in the bush) and have decided that maybe next year we will try for 16 days or so if we work out the water issue.:coffee:

[richmeyer]

Might not work for what you are doing but what about a gym membership with national locations...It would work for when youre in major cities. Just a thought.

[zimm]

ive owned about 800 ford vans and love smb's for the capability... but if youre "done " with the jeep thing... and dont necessarily need a van that can scale a wall, there are other more practical rigs out there with a similar footprint. a real RV, a cab over box truck, any larger cut van. an SMB is only one rung below a unimog in my opinion. awsome, but dont get one for just dirt roads.