Van Qualities For All Season Living

[awilder]

Hi there, I am researching what type of van would be best for sleeping in all seasons (mostly in New England). 

Would it be true that a van with less windows would be best, to keep heat in? I see passenger vans but many have windows all around. Would one of those be a mistake? Conversion vans have a fair number of windows too. 
I do need to accommodate 5 people (5 seats for driving, will only have one full bed) so may need to add a bench to a cargo.

Are there any other qualities to look for in a van you want to sleep in during the winter and summer? 

Thank you in advance.

 

[highdesertranger]

you need a school bus with a couple seats left in. you said only one bed. 5 people in one bed? highdesertranger

 

[awilder]

Thanks. Not sure about parking a school bus in Brooklyn where our home base is. Also, all the windows in the winter?
Only two of us plan to sleep in the van.

 

[bandaidqueen]

You could go with an extended cargo van and and install one bench seat behind the driver and passenger seats. Or get a passenger fan and leave the first bench seat in and remove the others. You won't have as much room for a kitchen and closet and stuff like that, but the bench seat would have 3 seatbelts for 3 additional passengers, and the van would be easier than a school bus to maneuver and park. But, a school bus would be pretty awesome and you'd have a lot more space for your buildout.

 

[awilder]

Thanks. It would be easier to get a passenger van than add seats to a cargo, I think, but my question is will all the windows in a passenger make it tough to sleep in during the winter?

 

[maki2]

Thanks. Not sure about parking a school bus in Brooklyn where our home base is. Also, all the windows in the winter?
Only two of us plan to sleep in the van.

How often do you need to transport 5 people?  If it is somewhat rare then maybe you can use a service such as Uber.  If the 5 people contains other adults then maybe one of them can be responsible for the transportation.

 

[maki2]

Some people just put insulation and wall coverings right over the window areas. You can buy rolls of black EVA fun craft foam at stores such as Joanns or from the internet. That would go as the first layer over the glass. Or you can get rolls of foam with a metalized surface from places such as Home Depot in the section where they sell flooring materials. That is used to sound deaden and insulate under the click together floor board material. It too will make a great first layer to put directly against the windows.

 

[awilder]

Thank you, that is great information!

As for the number of regular travelers, it will usually be myself and my toddler daughter. My husband when he can. And my two stepsons when they can. I feel like we have to have a vehicle that seats all of our family so no one feels left out even if some seats aren’t often used if that makes sense.

 

[blueridge]

This article is about a family of six using a Chevy Express Extended passenger van to travel around the US visiting national parks, 13,000 miles, and sleeping in the van.

A how to article with material list,  I think they spent less than $500 on the conversion.  It's a good layout for a large family.

If they can do it ...

http://roadtriptheworld.com/2017/01/buliding-bunk-beds-in-the-camper-van/

 

[maki2]

Thank you, that is great information!

As for the number of regular travelers, it will usually be myself and my toddler daughter. My husband when he can. And my two stepsons when they can. I feel like we have to have a vehicle that seats all of our family so no one feels left out even if some seats aren’t often used if that makes sense.

Then I would suggest a regular passenger van. A long one where you can remove the third row seat and leave the mid row seat in place. There will be room for a bed in the rear section and you can create some supports and turn the mid row seat into a bed. Then for a small person the front two seats can have a platform that fits across them with a mattress. The front seat will be just fine for a toddler but be sure you "safety" controls so they can't be turned, pulled, etc. Or use the middle seat for a toddler bed.

As to insulating the windows you can make removable insulated panels that fit into them. There are a lot of threads in this forum for making removable insulated black out panels to fit into van windows.

 

[blueridge]

RE:  All seasons in a passenger van


In a different article, a guy used an infrared camera to test how well homemade quilted window covers worked in a passenger van.  

He was able to measure actual temperatures on insulated walls, versus window glass and exposed metal frames.

Summary, the homemade quilted window covers worked surprisingly well.  

Good enough to convince him to use a passenger van with window covers, instead of a cargo van for family travel.

(sorry, couldn't find the link)

 

[maki2]

I was curious about van windows in winter and what works best for holding the heat inside so I found a youtube video.

This is interesting because he has some double pane windows but also many single pane windows.
On the single pane windows he put thin curtains over some, others had no coverings and then on some he put Reflextic. He started with the outside temperature below freezing and then began heating the van.

The results were the double pane were of course better at heat retention than single pane. Single pane with curtains were better than single pane without curtains. But the best of all were the single pane windows with Reflectix.

The video is well done but do remember it is just a regular person who is using basic testing in a real world situation. He does a good summary of the results at the end of the video.
The youtube channel is "van tourist" he is located where winters are pretty cold, Russia! He does use English in the videos. Just remember this test was being done in a diesel heated van to see what was the best choice for preventing heat loss through the windows.

 

[Mizmozy]

Couple of years ago I bought a 15 passenger Chevy Express van.  Drove to a junk yard and gave them the three back seats, keeping the bench seat behind the driver's seat.  Did nothing else to it--meaning it's stock with the carpet and factory molding.  Cut reflectix to fit all those lovely windows and headed out on an adventure to Colorado.  At a campground at about 11,000 feet, it started raining, then hailing, sleeting, and finally snowing. I woke up with three inches of snow on the van, ice on the outside and inside of all those lovely windows.  I have three little dogs and it was colder than a three dog night.  If I worried about my little dogs freezing with them cuddled next to me, imagine worrying about your toddler.  I had it easy.  I started the engine and got the hell off that mountain. You won't be able to do that, so if you decide to live in a van, please make sure you're prepared for inclement weather. As for all those lovely windows in sweltering heat, only the front two windows open fully.  As a disclaimer, I don't live in my van full time, but I can offer some insight on what not to do.

 

[awilder]

you need a school bus with a couple seats left in.  you said only one bed.  5 people in one bed?  highdesertranger

I have thought about a cargo van and step van and am now coming around to a shorter school bus, maybe you were right highdesertranger! Mainly I am imagining us being out there and it being a rainy evening....where do you go when it’s rainy and you have kids in a van??  I know a short school bus isn’t huge but seems more livable especially for those hours you just can’t be outside.

 

[bullfrog]

I'm a little confused, only two you and your daughter will be sleeping in the van, how large a sleeping space do you need? Two can sleep across the back if you are less than 5' 8" comfortably I would think. So there will sometimes be 5 traveling in the van but not sleeping in the van? So one bench seat and two front seats work. Rainy days, get a gym or YMCA membership, go see a movie, visit the library or just get rain gear you won't melt and as prone as today's kids are to play video games only do that on rainy days. Your biggest concern is heat and condensation. Proper sleeping bags to keep you warm without external heat and with plenty of ventilation. I would highly recommend you look closely at vented propane heat without an electric fan like they use in ice fishing huts in cold climates. We traveled with 3 kids in a VW camper bus for weeks at a time but avoided cities and usually used a tent at night but with the pop top we slept one up there. We used a hammock above the front seats for two smaller toddlers one on the pop top cot and my wife and I in the fold down back seat bed. You might consider a custom fold down rear seat that converts to a bed if you fit.

 

[ckelly78z]

I would want a window van to start with so I could pick, and choose which windows I wanted to remain visible. You can always tint the windows to all look black, and cover un-needed windows with insulation board that would be removable on a dim day for more natural light. I don't believe I would be happy in a cargo van with no windows.

 

[skyl4rk]

I would find an extended high top passenger van and remove all the seats except the drivers, front passengers and first row bench seat. That gives you 5 person passenger capacity. Leave the windows from the bench seat forward open, but close in the back area with foam insulation, ceiling, roof and walls, including covering the windows. Put a thick curtain behind the bench seat. One inch foam is adequate, one and a half inch is sturdier but harder to bend. Add a forced air heating system with a thermostat, which could be a diesel parking heater or RV furnace. Build your sleeping area in back. You will need enough charging capacity to keep the heater going so try for 400W of solar and 400 Ah of batteries or more and carry a small generator to charge your batteries in the dark, cloudy, snowy season. Or plug in to 120V if you have the opportunity.

For hot weather, install two rooftop vents and interior fans blowing at the bed.

That covers comfort in heat and cold, the rest is finding a way to do daily activities in a small space, such as dressing, washing up, toilet, cooking, lounging, etc.