Transportdwelling: Cheap RV Living Redefined

Van Living Forum

Help Support Van Living Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

debit.servus

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 16, 2012
Messages
730
Reaction score
0
Location
San Jose, CA
Imagine pulling into a truck stop to fuel up and spend the night after a full travel day. It’s Friday and you’re looking forward to the weekend. You check your bank account balance to see how much money is now in the tank, and recalibrate your budget. You find your account has several hundred dollars more than it did yesterday.


At this point you might be thinking “this is fantasy, how can you burn up and road and not pay for fuel?”. But it’s no fantasy.


Right now, hundreds of thousands of people are seeing the country and getting paid to do so. They don’t pay to maintain the vehicle they dwell in and they sleep in a real bed each night. Food and supplies are never more than half a day away, and they dont use propane to heat and cook.


Meet Transportdwelling. Originally known as semidwelling, and then tractordwelling; The word transportdwelling is a portmanteau of transport truck + dwelling, and refers to the act of transporting freight to being able to live & travel inside of a company vehicle, mainly a semi tractor with a sleeper berth. Owner Transportdwelling (or alternatively O/O Transportdwelling) is for Owner Operators that mix business and RV travel. Hotshot Transportdwelling refers to non-Class A Licensed freight transport mixed with mobile dwelling. Transportdwelling is the secret that RV bloggers and vloggers have been searching for. Company Transportdwelling is how to get paid to travel RV-style. 


Transportdwellers have discovered the hidden benefit to becoming a 48-state truck driver in the USA, which is seeing the country while getting paid to do it. Infact, the more they see the country, the more they get paid. While a conventional RVer pays between 22 to 43 cents per mile just for the fuel to drive their RV, the transportdweller that just passed them is getting paid between 22 to 43 cents a mile, with no vehicle expenses.


Here is the catch. You need to hold a Class A CDL with Air Brakes endorsement. Then you need to become a solo company driver for a 48-state Over-The-Road trucking company, who will expect you to drive a bare minimum of 2000 miles a week, and expect you to be on the clock up to 14 hours a day for 6 days in a row. You will be responsible for the truck and loads, and will sometimes need to drive in heavy blizzards and blinding fog. Winter is the hardest season for transportdwellers overall, with summer being the hardest for those in trucks lacking house power and auxillary A/C due to anti-idle regulations.


Still interested? We want you to be a successful and long lived transportdweller, so we’ve compiled the definitive guide to transportdwelling, split into five parts. Part one will be in this weeks article, and subsequent parts will premier Every 2nd Wednesday until the series is complete. 



Without further adiou, here is Part 1: Truck Driving Essentials, Gear to make driving hassle free. 

Truck driving has its set of gadgets and gear designed to make the job hassle free. Unfortunately, some of this gear is not found on the road, neither in truck stops or walmart. So here is a list of things that can be considered a OTR driver starter pack. Things that aren't found in truckstops are noted with an *.

•Large-Screen Truckers GPS. I recommend the top of the line Rand McNally OverDryve Pro tablet GPS with built in dash camera and Bluetooth (more on the need for a dash cam and Bluetooth later) You are going to glance at this while you’re driving, and you don’t want to squint to read words on the screen. If you can’t get the OverDryve Pro, get the best standalone truck GPS unit you can afford or can finance.

•Rand McNally Deluxe Motor Carrier Road Atlas. Costing around $40 in chain truck stops, it’s worth every penny to have if something happens to your truckers GPS. The locations & reference numbers in Rand McNally Atlases correspond to the ones on the Rand McNally GPS units.

•Bone conducting headphones. Compared to on ear Bluetooth headsets sold in truck stops, Bone conducting Bluetooth headphones let you have a phone call while having both ears open while you are driving. They aren’t bulky and unwieldy and they stay comfortable to wear all day long, just like glasses.

•Magnetic charging cables & magnetic mounts. Realizing your phone is dying while you are piloting a 70 foot long tractor trailer solo can become stressful, especially when your company expects you to be reachable at all times. Connect your phone and other devices in a literal snap with magnet USB charging.

•5th wheel extension hook with handle. Get the Chrome handle without any plastic tubing on it.

•Very fine, felt tip pens or markers. Felt tipped pens are the best type of pen for the writer. They write clean and dependably from the first stroke to the last stroke, and they're cheap by the dozens. You can buy a pack of 12 generic felt tipped black pens for less than $10 on Amazon. They're available in dozens of colors, as they're one type of writing utensil used for drawings and art.  

•USB Rechagable Flashlights and USB Rechargable Magnet Mount Worklights*. Better than the flashlights you'll find in truckstops because they require single-use batteries, buy multiple USB rechargable lights at Harbor Freight Tools before going out trucking and save yourself from having to constantly buy batteries for your flashlights. Harbor Freight is your friend here, durable USB rechargable worklights and flashlights you won't regret losing. Use their coupons for unbeatable prices on these lights.

•USB Rechargable Pen Lights*. Don't hassle with batteries! Order a few USB rechargable pen lights from Amazon before leaving for the truck.

•Rubberized fabric work gloves. Great when coupling and uncoupling trailers with greasy, grimy surfaces.


These are the essentials to hassle free load handling, navigation and driving. This concludes Part 1. Come back April 15th, 2020 for Part 2.




Transportdwelling: The Definitive Guide.

Part 1:
•Truck Driving Essentials, Gear to make driving hassle free (Some of it’s not found at Walmart or in truck stops!) 


Part 2:
•Hierachy of the Preferred Transportdweller Truck. Pick these trucks if you have a choice!
•Time-Efficient Eating, Sleeping, Toilet & Laundry (Fast Food Sucks! Eat these meals instead!)
•Best Way to Manage Your Stuff in the Truck (Proven Time-Efficient Organization Practices)


Part 3:
•Nuts and Bolts (List of Great Stuff to make Life in your truck Time-Efficient).
•No BS overriding strategy for a Rapid Unplanned Truck Clean-Out (And it’s not to panic!)


Part 4:
•Get into the groove with the Transportdwelling lifestyle. Ending with an example of bad Transportdwelling.
•Having Friends, Family or Your Spouse ride with you.


Part 5: Liking Transportdwelling? You'll LOVE being a Owner Transportdwelling.


Part 6: Can't or Won't Earn a CDL? Hotshot Transportdwelling is for you!




Copyright 2020 - All Rights Reserved
 
Top