Life in a low top van or suv

[TMooney]

Ok people I've been everywhere I can look except maybe threads that dont show looking for the standing up problem. I know yall have the answers in your bag of tricks. There's too many of you . What say you????

 

[nature lover]

TMooney - I am not sure what your question is. Are you asking about how to live with a low van? My first rig was a GMC Safari with standard "low" roof. I was younger then and more fit (I am rather heavy -- to put it nicely) I did things like pull on my pants laying down in bed and had to adjust the height of my bed to so that I could sit on it comfortably. Other than that it was live with it. I could not do it today as I am dealing with several handicaps. The best thing for me is what others say - I lived out of my van not in in. The van was only a place to sleep and shelter from bad weather when there was no other place. When I was in a camp for long term I had a 10 x 20 canopy set up. Now I have a conversion van with a high top - not as high as some but much easier to move around even though I still have to keep my neck slightly bent.

 

[TMooney]

I'm asking what comes to mind like you just did. I ran  hot  shot in a one ton truck. My trick was to find the spot I would not be viewed on drivers side. Just in case I faced the wheel standing out side and went pee in a large McDonalds plastic cup. I had a five gallon bucket and kitchen trash bags to sit down. I bought cases of water from Walmart. I would put 6 over Heater on dash. Put on a loose pair of gym shorts and take a bath beside truck wearing plastic sandles. Then get dressed there. That's all I know.

 

[TMooney]

Ok I got one more but keep in mind I was traveling on interstates. Every Walmart Supercenter gas pumps has a restroom single hole. A sink and a mop sink on floor that makes a good shower pan. Carry bag in on shoulder. Use the 6 hot water bottles. Just walk in there with your sandles. Towel and clean clothes come out . Dirty v
Clothes and wet towel empty bottles goes back in. Put on sunglasses and act cool back to truck. Lool

 

[jacqueg]

Ok people I've been everywhere I can look except maybe threads that dont show looking for the standing up problem. I know yall have the answers in your bag of tricks. There's too many of you . What say you????

I'm short!

Even so, I have to keep my knees bent and my head down. This is not a major problem for me. Most tents I ever owned were like this too. 

I think part of it is mindset. As a house substitute, my van is a bust. As a tent, it's great.

But if I were 6'2' instead of 5'3", I probably would feel very differently. And I know I would feel greater urgency about getting some kind of canopy/shelter that I could stand up in.

 

[TMooney]

Well l learned on here you can do everything outside in a large rain poncho. That's for that!!!! So do the low roof vehicles pack a shower tent or other kinds of tents? I've heard about taking stuff out in totes for over night? On here I learned about using tarp across back doors. What all do you do?

 

[MrNoodly]

I'm in a standard top van and can do almost everything sitting down. I cook sitting, I sponge bathe sitting, I get dressed sitting, and so on. My bed runs lengthwise and is the right height for sitting. I scoot from one end to the other as needed and can reach all my stuff. About the only thing I can't do sitting is tuck in my shirt, and I don't need to do that very often.

 

[TMooney]

I wanna say again thanks to everyone that takes their time on all these posts. Also I
feel gratitude for what I'm learning and I've got experience but I never had anyone to mentor . So with that said and the way I size up this forum with out all you people that help others this would not work. Yall really are paying it forward. Thank You!!! Im sure that's not said enough.

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

When I put my pants on in a regular room, I sit on my bed, put my feet in each leg of the pants, then stand up and pull my pants up. When I am in my minivan, I do the same thing except that I bend over as I stand up. So, I just don't unbend at the waist as I stand up. To pee, I pull down my pants and sit on the edge of my bed. I push the covers back so I am just sitting on the sheet covered mattress, so the blankets don't get in the way. Then I get my bottle and pee in it. I have a dirty napkin ready to dab off all the extra pee so there isn't any left in my urethra. Then I pull my pants back up. 

Most of us spend all day sitting down, so I don't really miss being able to stand up in my vehicle. If I want to stretch out, I lay back on my bed (which is my chair for my desk) or I go outside.

 

[MrNoodly]

...I do the same thing except that I bend over as I stand up. So, I just don't unbend at the waist as I stand up....

I do the same. It's surprising, though, how many people (mostly old farts like me) have trouble doing that. Back problems, hip problems, knee problems... I feel lucky I don't have those issues. Yet.

 

[GypsyJan]

I dress in the drive's seat of the RAV4. The camping potty is on the passenger seat on the driver's side. The cot is between the front passenger seat and the rear hatch door. There is room for my feet on the floor by the cot and the potty. I usually only am inside during the night, except to dress and make breakfast in the driver's seat in the morning and when I am driving.

 

[jacqueg]

Well l learned on here you can do everything outside in a large rain poncho. That's for that!!!! So do the low roof vehicles pack a shower tent or other kinds of tents? I've heard about taking stuff out in totes for over night? On here I learned about using tarp across back doors. What all do you do?

I don't shower in my van. I use wipes daily, and pay for a shower when my hair needs it, usually every four days or so.

I do have a sprayer to use outside when it gets warmer, and will also heat up water to wash my hair when it gets warmer. Just not into freezing to death for the sake of cleanliness.

I have both a regular tent and a shower tent, but am currently not using either one.

 

[TMooney]

I had heard people say over and over they take a shower to warm themselves up. When I was running hotshot in a one ton truck I did my first drinking bottle shower in winter. The bottles were hot.i learned as long as the water is hot the out door degrees dont bother me until the water runs out. Lol. Then i have sbout one minute to get back in heated truck ready or not.
It does not work at all if water is not hot.

 

[maki2]

Recently while searching for some theraputic exercises to help me regain my full movement after breaking my wrist I came across a great youtube channel. It has all kinds of simple movement to regain full mobility for various areas of the body. None of them are difficult to do even for a van dweller although sometimes things such as standing against a wall have to be translated into lying down on a flat surface. There are exercises for relieving a stiff neck, keeping the spine in good shape despite being bent over a lot. How to treat degenerative disk disease issues and prevent them. The desk worker exercises have a lot of relevance for someone who is driving a lot or spending time sitting a lot inside a van. So these "precision movement" exercises can keep you feeling better even if you don't have a high top van.

Here is the link to the youtube channel " Precision Movement by Eric Wong".
https://www.youtube.com/user/ericwongmma

You can use the search function to find targeted exercises for things such as neck, back, knees, shoulders or in my case it was my wrist and shoulder that need to get the full motion regained. It is well presented without being annoying to listen to and it would be easy to create a rotating exercise routine to improve overall movement and help prevent pain from a lot of bending. In just two days my wrist muscles and shoulder movements feel much better without a trip to the physical therapist. But I have lots of work ahead of me to get my back stronger, my knees tuned up, loosen up my neck, get those ham strings looser, etc. I am just grateful I found such a good youtube channel to help with all of it. Yoga routines are OK but I find this more useful for now.

 

[TMooney]

You cook out side or inside or hot outside and cold inside?

 

[DannyB1954]

When in my van for showers I have side barn doors. I open them straight out Then I hang a tarp between them and stand between the doors. One can't shower in a Walmart lot this way, but there are lots of places you can go. I have used car washes before, ( The coin operated type, not the automated kind with brushes).
At one point I considered attaching a row boat to the top of my van upside down and then cutting a hole in the roof of the van. from the outside it would look like I was a fisherman.

 

[TMooney]

Good stuff that's for real. I didnt have as many options in a truck cab alone. So thus my hunger for van knowledge.

 

[user 423]

My Ford van has a mid-high top with about 5'-4" of interior height. I can't fully stand in it but bending my neck a little makes moving around in it tolerable.

The mid-high conversions would be perfect for people 5'-3" or under.

 

[TMooney]

I bought a battery operated shower. Pump goes in 5 gallon bucket in my case. Comes with two batteries rechargeable. Bob tried to do a review on it but made a mistake. The batteries are out of water on a cord to pump. He thought battery would be under water. Verification. Battery will do three full showers for sure. I went a step further and bought a five gallon water cooler that keeps ice for three days. Heat shower water when I'm cooking and it will keep for later. I've had four showers with it . The water isnt as strong as a normal shower but it is sufficient. This will be used. I think it's enough water to do a woman's hair in a regular van over a 5 gallon bucket or larger catch basin mouth. One of those plastic dish pans should be perfect from dollar store.

 

[VanFan]

5'2" and 6'3" in a low top, with no real issues.