Hi and questions re fulltiming...

[poma]

Hi all!

I just bought an old Ford Transit Leisure Drive and I'm pretty stoked!

It's small and cute and takes up 5-6 people (theoretically, although I think I would go nuts if I had 5 other people in it for much more than a couple of days!!). And it came with some very rusty spots inside --it's a 1994 and the underneath and the main stuff outside has been taken care of as it's necessary to keep it on the road legally.

I have to move out of my current place soon and there doesn't seem to be very many apartments available in my area (rural Irish West Coast), so I'm considering living in the van. 

My main concerns are:
1. Cold
2. Lack of shower
3. Price of portable toilet liquids (I don't have a proper bathroom but I ordered a Porta Potty Qbe 145 today so I can store it away)



For (1) I'm planning to buy insulating material to fit it in every window at night. I used to have something like that in my old van and made a huge difference. I also need a heater as it's Winter in Ireland and it never really gets warm here anyway (even in the Summer I used to be cold in my old van, when not in bed!). I've been looking at gas heaters (can't depend on electricity because I want to be mobile *and* staying in campgrounds /caravan parks in Ireland is ridiculously expensive). The nice ones are too expensive for my current budget. Any thoughts on this one?
 http://www.campingworld.co.uk/en/Kampa-Double-Parabolic-Heater/m-19293.aspx
PROS: Cheaper than Mr Heater products and available in Ireland (Mr Heater doesn't have a provider in IE)
CONS: Burns to touch; Might not produce enough warmth

For (2) I'm considering becoming a member of a gym / pool. I also get in the ocean regularly (I surf) and if I rinse off with water afterwards I feel quite clean  

I'm not sure how to solve (3) other than using public toilets everywhere I go.. and possibly buying cheaper liquids. The thing is, as soon as I use the portable toilet, I'll have to empty the tank and refresh it with liquids after 4-5 days, so even if I don't use the toilet much, liquids go to waste (pun not intended). Any recommendation for cheap liquids?

Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for any tips!


(I'm used to small spaces as I had a VW T4 (1999) for a few years. I LOVED it, but I sold it in 2015 when I moved out of the country to travel around the world by other means (planes, public transportation, hitchhiking).)

 

[Wabbit]

I poo in a bucket(like a luggable loo)with cheap 4 gallon kitchen bags...srsly. The urine goes into a plastic jug, when its convenient, it gets dumped. Have to throw plastic jug out after awhile. The bucket setup I have is 2 buckets though. First go in one bucket\bag, then that gets tied up and placed inside another bag in another bucket with a waterproof lid. Its a lot of plastic, but plastic degrades faster than it used to.

Prob not much help but best of luck!

 

[highdesertranger]

Welcome poma to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you. highdesertranger

 

[hepcat]

The Mr. Heater products are still your best bet.  Any portable heater used in an enclosed space is dangerous.  They need to have ventilation both for oxygen and for venting water vapor, which partially lets the heat out that you're making anyway.  A vented unit is a much better plan; but that of course, requires a plumbed and mounted propane solution.

I wouldn't use any propane heater without both a tip-over switch AND a low-oxygen shutoff.  The Mr. Heater Big Buddy has both.  It's twice as expensive in the UK as it is here, but it's still worth its weight in gold.   I used one in a 16' Scamp travel trailer that didn't have a furnace.  I still have the heater, even though the trailer is long gone. 

There are also butane-fired heaters that are much less expensive to buy, although are more expensive to use.  I have a butane-heater andstove on my small sailboat.  The advantage to butane on a boat is that it vents to atmosphere rather than dropping to and pooling in the bilge where it becomes a fire/explosion hazard.  But there's no reason that a butane stove wouldn't work for you as well... and at a quarter of the price of a Big Buddy heater.

As far as the portable-potty...  I'm not sure what 'liquids' you have to buy for yours.  I have had several over the years, and the upper tank just uses water.  If you dump the holding tank every few days, you don't necessarily need a deodorant; particularly in cold weather.  I generally use dry enzyme deodorants rather than formaldehyde-based ones. 

As far as the shower... well... you're on your own with that!  The gym membership sounds like a good plan.  Here in the US we have public swimming pools, campgrounds, truck stops all that offer public showers... I've no idea what you have in Ireland!

 

[SoulRaven]

As someone else just said, you don't need to use the "liquids" in the portable toilet, we have had a few over the years. If you feel that you need them to mask odor, if you'll read on the bottle/package, for a porta-potti, you are only using maybe a tablespoon full in the tiny tank. If you don't use liquid additives and odor develops, just rinsing the tank with a little bleach and water will take care of the problem.

Reflectix, 2 sheets of aluminum with bubble wrap in the middle (more or less) makes a handy insulation. It is easy to deal with for the backs of cupboards and windows, vents, etc.

 

[poma]

I poo in a bucket(like a luggable loo)with cheap 4 gallon kitchen bags...srsly. The urine goes into a plastic jug, when its convenient, it gets dumped. Have to throw plastic jug out after awhile. The bucket setup I have is 2 buckets though. First go in one bucket\bag, then that gets tied up and placed inside another bag in another bucket with a waterproof lid. Its a lot of plastic, but plastic degrades faster than it used to.

Prob not much help but best of luck!

Thanks for sharing, really appreciate it! I am quite environmentally conscious and defo try to avoid using so many plastic bags... I even struggle a bit with the chemical liquids that I'll need to use in the porta potty, but at least if I dump them in safe places (which I will), they'll be treated.

 

[poma]

I wouldn't use any propane heater without both a tip-over switch AND a low-oxygen shutoff.  The Mr. Heater Big Buddy has both.  It's twice as expensive in the UK as it is here, but it's still worth its weight in gold.   

Thanks, let's see if they get back to me with a solution on how to even get their products in Ireland.

There are also butane-fired heaters that are much less expensive to buy, although are more expensive to use.  I have a butane-heater andstove on my small sailboat.  The advantage to butane on a boat is that it vents to atmosphere rather than dropping to and pooling in the bilge where it becomes a fire/explosion hazard.  But there's no reason that a butane stove wouldn't work for you as well... and at a quarter of the price of a Big Buddy heater.

Yeah... I don't like using disposable stuff and those canisters don't last long! Plus, once I bought one of those heaters and it stopped working after one or two uses

As far as the portable-potty...  I'm not sure what 'liquids' you have to buy for yours.  I have had several over the years, and the upper tank just uses water.  If you dump the holding tank every few days, you don't necessarily need a deodorant; particularly in cold weather.  

That's good to know!

Re the liquids recommended, there is one for the top (water) tank, which supposedly is slimy and helps prevent residue sticking to the bowl, and then there's the one that goes in the bottom (waste) tank which helps decompose and kills smells.

I generally use dry enzyme deodorants rather than formaldehyde-based ones. 

Thanks for sharing!

As far as the shower... well... you're on your own with that!  The gym membership sounds like a good plan.  Here in the US we have public swimming pools, campgrounds, truck stops all that offer public showers... I've no idea what you have in Ireland!

Nope, as far as I know we don't have public campgrounds with facilities

 

[poma]

As someone else just said, you don't need to use the "liquids" in the portable toilet, we have had a few over the years.  If you feel that you need them to mask odor, if you'll read on the bottle/package, for a porta-potti, you are only using maybe a tablespoon full in the tiny tank.   If you don't use liquid additives and odor develops, just rinsing the tank with a little bleach and water will take care of the problem.  

Reflectix, 2 sheets of aluminum with bubble wrap in the middle (more or less) makes a handy insulation.  It is easy to deal with for the backs of cupboards and windows, vents, etc.

Great, I'll limit my consumption of liquids for the portable toilet then

Awesome!! Thanks for the tip on the back of cupboards and vents, hadn't thought about it!! I bought a big roll but was only thinking of using it on windows at night time. (I'll start a new thread with a specific question about another type of cold temperature leak, cheers!)

 

[poma]

Re showers, I just read this sort of solution in the women's section of the forum ))

"A spoonful of baking soda in a quart of warm water will gently clean all skin surfaces, cut through oil and perspiration, deodorize, and you don't have to rinse."

 

[hepcat]

[font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]I wouldn't use any propane heater without both a tip-over switch AND a low-oxygen shutoff.  The [/font][font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Mr. Heater Big Buddy [/font][font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]has both.  It's twice as expensive in the UK as it is here, but it's still worth its weight in gold.   [/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Thanks, let's see if they get back to me with a solution on how to even get their products in Ireland.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]There are also [/font][font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]butane-fired heaters[/font][font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif] that are much less expensive to buy, although are more expensive to use.  I have a butane-heater andstove on my small sailboat.  The advantage to butane on a boat is that it vents to atmosphere rather than dropping to and pooling in the bilge where it becomes a fire/explosion hazard.  But there's no reason that a butane stove wouldn't work for you as well... and at a quarter of the price of a Big Buddy heater.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Yeah... I don't like using disposable stuff and those canisters don't last long! Plus, once I bought one of those heaters and it stopped working after one or two uses 

[/font]

A Big Buddy heater will only run about four hours on the low setting on the standard small propane tank, so unless you go with a 20lb tank and buy the hose and regulator that is necessary to use it with the heater, you'll still be dealing with disposing of used propane bottles regularly.

The link in my original post hyper-linked to the Amazon UK site which has the heaters available, although at almost twice what they sell for in the US.  There must be someone in Europe who manufactures something similar that will be less expensive in Ireland?

ON EDIT...  well, I clicked the Amazon UK link again to make sure it worked, and there are apparently no more $199 Big Buddy heaters available from Amazon.  Sorry...  *sigh*

 

[John61CT]

A set,of refillable 1# bottles and the kit that lets you do so from a 20# are ideal for portability, safety, cost savings and enviro responsibility. Best is Manchester, but Flame King OK and easier to find.

 

[poma]

A Big Buddy heater will only run about four hours on the low setting on the standard small propane tank, so unless you go with a 20lb tank and buy the hose and regulator that is necessary to use it with the heater, you'll still be dealing with disposing of used propane bottles regularly.

The link in my original post hyper-linked to the Amazon UK site which has the heaters available, although at almost twice what they sell for in the US.  There must be someone in Europe who manufactures something similar that will be less expensive in Ireland?

ON EDIT...  well, I clicked the Amazon UK link again to make sure it worked, and there are apparently no more $199 Big Buddy heaters available from Amazon.  Sorry...  *sigh*

Yep, plan to use a hose if I get a Big buddy heater. As far as I can see in the videos, though, the type of tank used is a refillable I used in the US many times. I do not think it's a common size / type here... Afaik, our refillable tanks are typically blue and come in two sizes / shapes that do not coincide with the Big buddy one, so a hose would defo be the way to go.

Thanks for your help! Unfortunately, Ireland is not UK, laws are different and maybe some companies don't want to pay extra for the legal work they'd have to do to sell in Ireland... so way too often it's just not possible to get products here from Amazon UK  

I have sometimes purchased products from US sites but that added import tax is RIDICULOUS. It just doesn't make any sense to do that and I'll avoid it by all means... But maybe I can buy it in Germany or Spain and I could take a short trip to visit friends or family there, buy the heater and bring it back on the plane.. gotta think about it a bit. For now, I'm waiting for a reply from Mr Heater...

 

[poma]

A set,of refillable 1# bottles and the kit that lets you do so from a 20# are ideal for portability, safety, cost savings and enviro responsibility. Best is Manchester, but Flame King OK and easier to find.

Thanks for the reference stores, John!

Sorry, were you recommending a particular set or just suggesting to browse through those two stores catalog? Cheers!

 

[poma]

Oh, I see! I found this for Flame King: https://www.amazon.com/Flame-King-YSN1LBKT-Refillable-Cylinder/dp/B01FLN2NDC

I haven't been able to find whether they sell in Europe... thanks, though!