Two days later, going back to hotel

[maki2]

Senior centers are another option for a hangout. they have couches and are very used to people hanging out for the afternoon and dozing off. It won't shock or phase them and they will just ignore you unless they need the space to hold an activity. I am not of course suggesting you lie down on the couch, just lean into a corner and get comfy.

I would also suggest putting a reclining lounge chair in your car and heading to a shady park. Put on your sunglasses and get comfy and snooze. With your purse protected of course. Find a favorite park where you feel secure and relaxed. Make it your hang out space, home away from home.

 

[ladysawfan]

Senior centers are another option for a hangout. they have couches and are very used to people hanging out for the afternoon and dozing off.

You guys are so full of great ideas! i can think of a few senior or community centers i have been to over the years of living in this area, i have acquired some gray hair now so i will fit right in, plus the many college campuses i have attended in this area i remember i used to nap on couches in the student center all the time i was in college in my thirties.

 

[Zmann]

BB's are first thing I check my bed and before that  a website that people reported encounters with bed bugs at local hotels. I was amazed at how many times hotel rooms have them!

 

[jonyjoe303]

If you plan on staying in your van during the day, you need massive amounts of insulation. Several inches thick all around the back of your van, cover the windows, separate the driver compartment from the back of the van.

Then get a swamp cooler, swamp cooler doesnt work great in humid conditions but its better then just a fan. Hot outside passing through an evaporator pad will cool down. On hot humid days when I don't think I'm getting any cooling if I turn off the water pump, air going through a dry evaporator pad will feel like a hot furnace. I can't spend even 10 minutes in the back of my van without the swampcooler running, I always have spare fans/water pumps to make quick repairs if the cooler stops working. Swampcooler even in florida will take the edge off the heat, and the foam insulation will do the rest.

You can build your own swampcooler, a 120mm case fan, a water pump, plastic container, pvc pipe and evaporator pad. Use the celdek evaporator pad, I found that works the best in all conditions. You can find most parts at home depot. Depending how many fans you use it can use less the 2 amps of power to keep you cool.

I park in the sun every day, no matter the weather, and stay in my van all day with just the swampcooler running. 

rtech foam insulation, straight ahead is the driver area behind the foam insulation. Every inch of the back of the van has several layers of rtech foam insulation, the roof and windows have up to 3 inches of foam.


temp difference between front uninsulated section of van and back of insulated van. 94 is high but livable, its cooler right next to swamp cooler. I made improvements since this picture, I been able to get overall temp down to the 90's. Without the swampcooler the back temperature can get as high as 110 degrees. with no insulation, it would be 148 degrees in both sides. 

 

[flying kurbmaster]

If you insulate and have a cross breeze, 80 degrees should be bearable and any hotter find a shady place to park, in my opinion windows are nescessary at least one on each side in the back of a van, and a vent in the roof would even be better.

 

[ladysawfan]

If you plan on staying in your van during the day, you need massive amounts of insulation. Several inches thick all around the back of your van, cover the windows, separate the driver compartment from the back of the van
I park in the sun every day, no matter the weather, and stay in my van all day with just the swampcooler running. 

Well, all I can say is, Wow!  I may try some of these ideas. It is actually going to be quite cold in Florida today. I realize i have much work to do to make the van more stealth, including black curtains. with the knowledge I gained from all of you, i have been able to stretch out my hotel budget.  Although i probably wont go all the way with this insulation plan, it is good to know, just in case.