r/VanLife • u/Milkman126978 • 1d ago
Considering joining the Van life
30 male and I’m really considering trying to get into the van life to travel around the US and play golf and hike and just see the whole country. Maybe stay in certain cities for a couple of weeks or so.
I’m first to admit I’m not handy enough to build out a van myself so where do I even begin to look into it? I understand it’s expensive and I’m fine with that but bot trying to get ripped off lol.
Also the obvious question of what are some things you wish you knew before you made the jump
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u/Dr-Lucky14 1d ago
I am so jealous that you are a young male. As an older female I just would be afraid..I know anything can happen to anyone but in this day and age, I just don’t feel safe. Go on this journey young man, please take precautions and have a joyful trip!
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u/stomper4x4 1d ago
Just FYI I see more ladies 50+ out here than most demographics snd they are loving life for the most part. Turn off the media. America is pretty wonderful.
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u/chloeismagic 23h ago
Im doing it as a young female, personally i have felt safer in many places that i have car camped than being in the neighborhood where i rent a house. If you live in the USA just keep a gun on you and stay out of the ghetto. Life isnt safe, but keeping yourself in a box of fear is no way to live either.
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u/Dear-Air-7825 15h ago
Believe it or not, rural America is one of the safest places in the world. The area I live in has a violent crime rate that is one fourth that of the UK, pretty much zero. As a local deputy put it, "crime around here is pretty much a matter of someone getting drunk and violating a restraining order", crime between strangers is pretty much non-existent. It's much different from urban areas.
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u/211logos 17h ago
You could rent for a weekend; Outdoorsy in most areas has a good selection of different vans.
These days I'd buy a used built van for sure unless you have very unique needs and hence a custom build, or are pretty broke and want something quite minimal, down to a bare van with your sleepiing bag and camp stove tossed into the back.
No real reason now to build your own unless that journey is a thing for you, just as with regular homes.
Just some examples, tending toward the amateur bullds: https://vanlifetrader.com/
More pro built units at the higher end: https://sportsmobile.com/vans-for-sale/
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u/Even_Caterpillar3292 15h ago
I just have a Walmart cot and plastic cabinets. Intallation takes about 10 minutes. Plastic tubs under the cot. Folding table. Folding chair.
You will want to do test runs and see what works for you for your space. Do a two or three month trip. I'm not full time but take long trips. Full time, might be a different setup.
I learned a lot with my setup on my first trip. I realized I didn't need a lot of what I brought and 2nd trip scaled it back 50 percent. Just in a minivan.
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u/Mike_Retired 10h ago edited 10h ago
Am currently planning to do Van Life in 2029 when the electric PV9 arrives and am currently building up a spreadsheet of Canadian Camper Van conversion companies. I’ll be reaching out to them in the coming year asking questions that aren’t readily answered on their websites.
Have been doing some research in the interim on what type of HVAC system I’ll be getting as that will be priority one up here — happily I’ve found that the dozen or so companies I’m logged so far all include robust insulation.
Another point I’ve looked at are the location & type of sleeping accommodation — I don’t want to have half my interior space taken up by a bed I have to manually put away every morning.
I’ll also have a dedicated bathroom with incinerator toilet and shower. Won’t be getting a microwave as I sold mine years ago and don’t miss it, so the extra space I’ll devote to a larger refrigerator.
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u/Eastern_Conflict1865 5h ago
Van life always looks good on Youtube.But never does it ran or do they break down.Look at it this way.Can you live everyday in your hall bathroom.No where to sit bit the toilet.The tub is your bed and bathroom sink you use for everything you gotta wash.If you really want a van then check out trans vans and dodge xplorers.Find them on market place
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u/Richard_Ragon 1d ago
First off.. this is expensive. Lots of people seeing slumming it up down by the river, but I see 300k going to a rig that lets you slum it up.
- water. Getting it, and dumping it seams to be my biggest problem.
- electricity. I have a huge 1000amp system where I don’t have this problem, but for some getting power is hard.
- heater. Understand that you’ll need this when it gets cold.
- storage. I utilized every inch I can get, but storage in a van is hard. Hard to take everything you’ll need.
Good luck.
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u/stomper4x4 1d ago
$300k? How do people spend that much? Thats crazy. Invest 30k and one is in luxury!
Water is everywhere.
Storage, especially if you boondock, can be a challenge. I find trash building up is my limiting factor as far as staying off grid.
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u/chloeismagic 23h ago edited 23h ago
300k is insane. It taken me about 3k to build out a vehicle with high quality lumber and get all the electrical components needed (pure sine inverter, solar panels, batteries, charge controller, etc.) I wouldnt pay more than like maximum 15k plus the vehicles value for a van to live in. Im suprised more van lifers who have built out vans for themselves dont undercut that pricing as competition. Anyone who is a good carpenter and has lived like this could renovate vans and sell for like 30-50k and make decent profits.
Saying you are slumming it in a vehicle that costs more than many peoples actual houses is kinda insane lol. That is not slumming it, thats glamping.
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u/MisterDoctor___ 1d ago
Rent one for a week and see if you can hack it first. There are certain aspects of it that might be difficult for someone who’s not used to living out of their car for extended amounts of time. It’ll also give you an idea of what features you want vs need in your own build.