Recent content by Schwoebs

I'm heading from Austin as well. My first RTR with mostly done conversion of a E350 passenger van with fiberine high top. Due to job and spending some vacation on family... Leaving Saturday, January 12th and booking it down I10. Probably 4-5 days at RTR.

I went more complex and we're still working on it. Plan to full-time, so wanted it to work for me. Good electrical, water pump & 2.5 gallon electric water heater, high top. Jerry cans for gray water & cassette toilet for more flexible dumping. It is over budget and over on time. In hindsight...

Sarah is a woman and general contractor on this van conversion (electrician & mechanic involved for some tasks), plus the handy-est person I know. I am not a woman :-) You can see the pole-wrap best on the high top/van seem under the angle iron. It is used to wrap poles in finished basements...

These pics show why I'm so happy my friend Sarah is building out my van home - beautiful and functional.  We decided to run wires outside of insulation/ceiling for ease of access (R14 insulation in ceiling).  Instead of making the plastic conduit purely utilitarian, they are painted to fit in...

I found insurance through Progressive. The questions were interesting. They do insure full-time. I had to confirm it was not a schoolie and that it had the requisite RV qualifiers - bed, plumbing, electricity, cooking. But yeah, once I get to full-time later this summer, I sell by car and...

Allstate is willing to insure the van I'm turning into an RV as an RV, but not to insure it for full-time use.  How are people insuring themselves since living full-time in an RV is 'sketchy'?  I don't want to lie and then not be insured if I need it.  Is Progressive better? Thanks...

Craig Childs.  The Secret Knowledge of Water is a good one for desert dwellers.

E350 and other one ton vehicles are considered a commercial vehicle in most states with very high interest rates. If you could find a E250 at a lower cost, the interest rate may improve. I got lucky. My credit union is small and gave me a normal rate for my E350.

Haven't posted in a while.  Steady, slow progress on van build.  2013 Ford E350 passenger with Fiberine high top.  Phase 1 'cause sometimes this takes longer than one expects (late April original deadline).  Here are 3 photo updates taken at different points: This one gives you an idea of the...

Anyone have recommendations on fresh water tank vendors/sites to buy them?  I'm looking for a 30 gallon tank and seem to find too cheap, too expensive, or wrong-sized tanks for my space.  Thinking 30 gallons in the 24" x 20" x 16" size or something close to that.  I may just need to sleep before...

I'm converting a passenger van now. The big disadvantage - there are no clean lines, flat surfaces, etc. Insulating has been a longer term process than expected. The videos showing nicely square insulated panels in a cargo van don't apply to passenger vans. I still like the windows, but...

An NV with an extra foot and a half would be awesome. I hope a good hybrid van is available in 7-10 years (when my current in progress build will get replaced). I will miss the rumble growl of a good V8.

The Western Slope of Colorado has separate water courts just for cases involving water rights.  Yeah, desert SW takes water very seriously.  Depending where you are, there are often municipal water works that sell water quite cheaply in bulk.  For instance around Montrose, Colorado...

My current plans, for what it's worth as a first time campervan builder & near-term dweller, include a VanTred mat as the base layer since it conforms perfectly (hopefully) and then perhaps a 1/2 inch of polyiso for extra insulation topped by lighter colored vinyl flooring. Not using the black...

Perhaps research Tiny Home construction? You could build one on top of the flatbed. Just a thought. Bob has a video on a truck camper tiny home build on a flatbed: