newbie gradually getting into vanlife

[lab_nomad]

I'm a medical lab technician, and I recently started traveling (like nurses do). I'd like to get a minivan (for mileage, stealth, and space for my dogs...otherwise I'd just live out of my car). I'm not going to do a build, at least initially. I'm going to gradually ease my way into vanlife.

Initially, my plan is just to sleep in the van if it takes more than a day to get to a job. I don't want to subject my dogs to harsh temperatures until I figure out all the ins and outs of climate control. But eventually I'd like to live in it while working b/c the company gives me a housing allowance, and I'd love to pocket that whole amount. I'm currently staying in an Airbnb and I will be moving to a short-term furnished rental later this month. I feel like my entire working life I've never been able to save much, and I think it's the ridiculous cost of housing.

My current assignment is in Massachusetts (why did I agree to go to New England in the winter?!?). I think they will want to extend me when my contract is up. I'd be willing to do it, but I'd want to go home for a few weeks, so I can buy a van (and get to work on selling my house). When I come back it'll be March, April and May. Still cold, but not freezing and getting warmer. I think the dogs will be fine in the car while I'm at work.

I'm not worried about evenings and nights. I've already researched and know where I can park within commuting distance of the job (truck stops, Cracker Barrel). My female dog will bark at sounds. Not a problem at night, b/c it's expected that people are in their vehicles sleeping at trucks stops. But my concern would be during the day. The employee lot that I park in isn't heavily used, but I'm worried that if someone walked too close to the van that my dog would bark and then they would know she's there. The weather won't be hot, so they shouldn't be concerned about that, but they could alert the authorities nonetheless. I do plan to park at the far end of the lot.

Also, if I were to ever try to stealth park in the van, she could give me away. What do people do who travel with dogs?

And I'm not there, yet, but what kind of mods would I need to make to the minivan to help with climate control? When I get more experience under my belt with this company, I can refuse jobs that are in extreme temps (e.g. Florida in the summer, Minnesota in the winter), but I'm thinking at the very least a vent fan with a rain cover, yes? Is it hard to install those, and if I'm afraid of messing it up, who could do that (plain old auto mechanic or someone more specialized)?

Thanks in advance for any advice. I've read Bob's book, and I've been watching a ton of his (and others) YouTube videos. I'm super excited to get into this awesome way of life. I'm 51, by the way, and single (female).

 

[lab_nomad]

Thanks.   I will check out the pets section. I'm not a nurse, I'm a lab technician, but most everyone knows that nurses can be "travelers" so I put that in there for context. Doctor's travel, too, but they get a special latin word to describe them...locum tenens. I guess we nurses and lab techs aren't special enough.

 

[RvDreams]

Welcome to the CRVL forums lab_nomad! A vent fan calls for cutting a 14"x14" hole in the roof. If you don't feel up to the task, I would suggest a camper place or a body shop. A regular mechanic should be able to do it too. Butyl tape around the perimeter on the roof before the fan goes in and then self leveling lap sealant like dicor to finish the install for weatherproofing. You may want a separate battery to run it as you don't want to deplete your starting battery and leave you stranded. A continuous duty solenoid connected to your alternator will help keep it charged. Solar too or instead of would work too as long as the sun shines.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[eDJ_]

Welcome to the CRVL Forum 

What you are describing is how a lot of us started out with Van life.  The Van was a means to
avoid motel & restaurant cost while avoiding the high cost of larger RV's at the same time.
It isn't always a perfect solution owing to weather & storms but for a large part of the year it could be. Having a small domicile to travel in can be quite a comfort just the same. 

Below are a couple links if you'd like to look thru them.  The first one on Van Conversion has links at the top, one of which is my own story.  It was  how I used my simple build Van in my job quest and later on the job.

The one below it is a portal of useful information that will make your travels more safe, comfortable, an convenient.

All the best in your travels

 

[lab_nomad]

I did some looking around in the pets section, and it's kinda spooked me off of trying to keep the dogs in the van during work. BUT...

That doesn't mean I can't be mobile on weekends! It'll be a nice low-risk trial run, and then naturally questions will pop up and i can ask them in the proper forum.

 

[jacqueg]

This is exactly the best approach. Baby steps...

What I did as I was starting out was to evaluate each trip I took, and notice the ONE thing that was the largest problem for me on that trip, and then address that problem in the simplest way possible. Lather, rinse, repeat. This lays the groundwork for future, more expensive and complex solutions later on, if you wish. More often than not, I realized that I preferred the simpler solution anyway. 

But I'd never know that if I had started out with the most expensive/complex solution first.

 

[maki2]

When you evaluate job offers do a search for nearby doggie daycare business. Let that be part of your job evaluation criteria.

 

[LERCA]

About 3 weeks ago I took my dog for a walk at the shopping center (high prey drive so we often walk in pet stores then around the strip mall) It was 70F I have a Pocket Pit who weighs 67 lbs and doesn’t do what she doesn’t want to do so I had to run back alone to the store to use the restroom (I had a UTI) and left her in the car about 8 minutes. I come back to the car to a young woman hysterical screaming that I’m a f*****g b**** and she’s called the sheriff on me for animal abuse. Apparently 70F is too hot to leave a dog for 8 minutes in a locked car. Somehow I’ve managed to keep 9+ dogs alive. So be careful. My best friend now has a criminal record for leaving her dog in the car for a few minutes. She had to go to court and do community service and everything.

 

[lab_nomad]

When you evaluate job offers do a search for nearby doggie daycare business. Let that be part of your job evaluation criteria.

That's something to think about, thanks.

 

[lab_nomad]

About 3 weeks ago I took my dog for a walk at the shopping center (high prey drive so we often walk in pet stores then around the strip mall) It was 70F I have a Pocket Pit who weighs 67 lbs and doesn’t do what she doesn’t want to do so I had to run back alone to the store to use the restroom (I had a UTI) and left her in the car about 8 minutes. I come back to the car to a young woman hysterical screaming that I’m a f*****g b**** and she’s called the sheriff on me for animal abuse. Apparently 70F is too hot to leave a dog for 8 minutes in a locked car. Somehow I’ve managed to keep 9+ dogs alive. So be careful. My best friend now has a criminal record for leaving her dog in the car for a few minutes. She had to go to court and do community service and everything.

 
I know. People have completely lost the plot. I was at the animal shelter adopting my second dog and I had my first dog in the car so I could have her meet the new dog to make sure they got along. I was parked in the shade, and the window was down. I had already gone and gotten her out and had her inside the shelter when this cop came over to me about having my dog in the car. She's trying to tell me the window wasn't down enough and it was too hot. I just let her say her piece, b/c I didn't think getting into it with a cop was a good idea. But people have completely lost their minds. They don't even understand how it works, that the car needs to be in the sun, etc.

 

[GypsyJan]

"the car needs to be in the sun, etc."

Not here in Florida...not a year goes by that a baby dies in a hot car...even in the shade.

 

[lab_nomad]

This is exactly the best approach. Baby steps...

What I did as I was starting out was to evaluate each trip I took, and notice the ONE thing that was the largest problem for me on that trip, and then address that problem in the simplest way possible. Lather, rinse, repeat. This lays the groundwork for future, more expensive and complex solutions later on, if you wish. More often than not, I realized that I preferred the simpler solution anyway. 

But I'd never know that if I had started out with the most expensive/complex solution first.

That is soooo smart. Thanks for that wisdom.

 

[lab_nomad]

"the car needs to be in the sun, etc."

Not here in Florida...not a year goes by that a baby dies in a hot car...even in the shade.

But are the windows up? Because that would be the etc.

 

[Uncle Todo]

FL can get pretty darn hot, even with the windows down I don't know if a dog could keep cool enough.
I know I wouldn't want to be in a car in FL with the windows down in the shade w/o the AC running!