VanFan's Once and Future Vans

[VanFan]

^^^ put them on Facebook Market place and find something else that fits the space. Maybe the adapter you bought will fit a different jug.

Interesting information, and explains why I've been able to borrow bits and pieces from this and that.

There's been a whole lot of sloshin' going on this morning! Noise varies considerably across containers. The jug I have is the worst--not just sloshing, but also a drum-like "boom" with water movement.

Rectangular one-gallon bottles of Crystal Geyser brand water ($1.38 at Walmart) are better. Two can be set in a plastic shoe box to contain a leak. They also fit in an old paper shredder bin for more coverage. Either goes in the space I have. (Standard gallon jugs also fit, but are louder.) A ring of caulk backer helps the pump adapter fit. A large rubber band probably would work, too.

That reduces the under counter water volume by 1 gallon, but I'm okay with that. The 3 gallon jug can be filled to capacity and placed in the rear where I had planned to put the second one. It will service as a back-up supply and shouldn't be as noisy when full. Or, as you pointed out, it can be sold or used for water storage at home. More Crystal Geyser containers would also be fine (and easier to switch out), but again, less volume.

In any event, the second jug can be returned. So... I'm back in the game, with $35 back in the kitty soon (and feeling like a kid with all that water play).

 

[maki2]

^^^ I use the gallon jugs from Arizona tea for my daily water needs. They are sturdy and I like the tea snd had been buying it before I went nomad. I h as r lifting restrictions so no 5 gallon jugs for me. When I did my trailer renovation I put in a small sink into the countertop. Under the counter I put in a 5 gallon rectangular fresh water tank that has fittings on it for RV and Food Truck use.

I am a resource person, I did a lot of thinking and researching about what to put into my travel trailer and what would work best. There is making things do in an often marginal with “stuff” and there is using resources from the RV, marine and food truck industry where reliability matters and items are purpose designed. I am not against “repurposing” but sometimes it is a lot more trouble to find and modify objects and frequently they do not perform as hoped. So I shopped around and found a pair of new 5 gallon tanks with fittings on Amazon. The tanks had threaded openings already put into them for air vents and drains as well fill tubes. They are installed inside my kitchen counter at the sink area.

Another solution to adapting DIYb containers, even 5 gallon bucket’s for use for fresh water supplies or waste water containers are special rubber grommets called “Uniseal”. They have openings in the grommet center to fit standard pipe/tube sizes. Here is a quick to watch video that shows one being put into a bucket. But do not forget, thanks need to have a vent in them as when you fill them up the displaced air has to escape and when you empty them air has to come back in to displace the liquids.

 

[LargeMarge]

...I actually...actually...that the jug... I wish I [did] it sooner, because [I am] going to be very hard to go back to the drawing board...

.
For anybody contemplating converting a vehicle to a live-aboard, my suggestion:
1 -- acquire a suitable candidate
2 -- toss in some car-camping gear
3 -- go have fun.
Allow the conversion to evolve organically.
.
Designing a first rig tends to follow a standardized predictable pattern:
'I saw something with the cool kids in a video, so I want it, too!',
...or
'I plan to duplicate familiar stand-still house furniture in my forever rig!'.
Most second conversions are simpler, with predictably fewer Holes! In! The! Roof!.
.
I think the vehicle is a lovely blank slate, available to create anything you can imagine.
Sticking with the comfortable or the coveted tends to waste time and money.
I can always get more money...

 

[LargeMarge]

^^^ I use the gallon jugs from Arizona tea...sturdy...I h as r lifting restrictions so no 5 gallon jugs...

.
We use Arizona Tea gallon jugs, too.
During a visit to a chain burger-joint, they are simple to re-fill with filtered water from the soda-pops dispensary.
.
I imagine trudging in with a five-gallon jug would get impatient glares from the paying customers.
The staff probably don't give a flying fig... minimum wage tends to begat minimum effort.

 

[VanFan]

I am a resource person, I did a lot of thinking and researching about what to put into my travel trailer and what would work best. There is making things do in an often marginal with “stuff” and there is using resources from the RV, marine and food truck industry where reliability matters and items are purpose designed. I am not against “repurposing” but sometimes it is a lot more trouble to find and modify objects and frequently they do not perform as hoped.

There is a lot of wisdom in that, and I am sure you are no stranger to repurposing, either. Personally, I thrive on "making things from other things". It's fun, and sometimes there's no viable alternative from any source, at any price. On the other hand, a lot of solutions are out there, if you know where to look.

 

[VanFan]

.
For anybody contemplating converting a vehicle to a live-aboard, my suggestion:
1 -- acquire a suitable candidate
2 -- toss in some car-camping gear
3 -- go have fun.
Allow the conversion to evolve organically.
.
Sticking with the comfortable or the coveted tends to waste time and money.
I can always get more money...

I couldn't agree more. Our first van conversion evolved over 15 years. BTW: We are solidly in the "No Holes in the Roof" camp--one of many reasons we don't have an RV.

 

[VanFan]

My husband encouraged a test drive with the partially filled 3 gallon jug in the van (vs. Prius) "just to see if it's a problem." (A First World problem, in any event, as in "Oh my! My fresh, clean water in an overpriced container is noisy!") The verdict: not a problem!

I don't get it. It was incredibly loud in the Prius. When I rocked it back and forth and from side to side manually, it was awful. In the van, I heard the water slap the side once, and it wasn't that loud. We drove over some rough road, varied speeds, and made a few (don't tell) Bat turns.

The van has upgraded suspension and the Prius needs struts, but still... The jug fits snugly in place, versus just sitting behind the seat in the Prius, but still... I don't get it.

In any event, Plan A lives, and I have a solid Plan B (which could include Arizona Tea jugs now).

 

[LargeMarge]

I couldn't agree more. Our first van conversion evolved over 15 years. BTW: We are solidly in the "No Holes in the Roof" camp--one of many reasons we don't have an RV.

.
Yesterday, we swang by to see our friends Bill and Keara and their new baby.
For a couple decades, Bill and Keara do van conversions in their shop 'Earthtribe Creations'.
.
Bill was on the roof of a very early conversion -- a hundred twenty thousand miles ago -- dealing with roof leaks.
They tore apart the interior to trace the problem...
... but each re-seal failed the 'Firehose Test'.
.
I remain convinced anybody contemplating chopping Holes! In! The! Roof! needs a thirty-day psych eval.
.
If they are still wavering -- "...a skylight over the bed so we can watch the stars as we sleep..." -- we need to get serious.
A hundred and eighty days wandering the Safety And Self-Harm Ward should do it...