Hello everyone , I have decided to live in a van I am a single male , I will want a van that i can put quiet brace sound deadening structural insulating sheathing 1/2 in . x 4ft x 8ft pieces so people outside the van can not hear me snoring while im parked being stealth , also i want to add reflex insulation to keep it from getting cold in the winter time , I am thinking of getting solar panels and a deep cycle battery to run an electric blanket at night and I will use a cooler for my food with ice all year round as for cooking i will get a portable cook stove that runs off propane , also i will be putting a bed in the van so i can sleep nice and comfy . okay now the big question is Which Van do I buy , The family style van ? The cargo Van ? or the conversion van ? or the old window van ? also which model and makes should i stay away from because i know the family vans are prone to have transmission problems also I dont care for carburetors I rather have fuel injection , also what is the miles i should look for / stay away from ? I need a reliable van any ideas would be great .. Thank you
Welcome to the forum.
A lot depends on your budget. Personally I would use a conversion or cargo van. They fit in anywhere.
Did you check out Stealth Camper or other related sites?
If I were considering what you're planning, I'd use spray closed cell foam for insulation. It's structural, sound deadening and a terrific insulation. I did in in my RV barn and after monitoring temps I can't wait to get my house done. It is more expensive, about twice as much as fiberglass, but it is well worth it.
-bob
lake_erie_van wrote: Hello everyone , I have decided to live in a van I am a single male , I will want a van that i can put quiet brace sound deadening structural insulating sheathing 1/2 in . x 4ft x 8ft pieces so people outside the van can not hear me snoring while im parked being stealth , also i want to add reflex insulation to keep it from getting cold in the winter time , I am thinking of getting solar panels and a deep cycle battery to run an electric blanket at night and I will use a cooler for my food with ice all year round as for cooking i will get a portable cook stove that runs off propane , also i will be putting a bed in the van so i can sleep nice and comfy . okay now the big question is Which Van do I buy , The family style van ? The cargo Van ? or the conversion van ? or the old window van ? also which model and makes should i stay away from because i know the family vans are prone to have transmission problems also I dont care for carburetors I rather have fuel injection , also what is the miles i should look for / stay away from ? I need a reliable van any ideas would be great .. Thank you
Man, I'll tell ya. I hate being a "naysayer"! But, in all honesty, you've prompted an awful lot of questions in my mind.
That's pretty country around Lake Erie. It's a fine wine growing area around Erie, PA and further into NY. Summers are quite pleasant, as well as early Fall. But winters are brutal. I was even caught in the "October Surprise" 5 years or so back. OCTOBER of all times... lol.
I've traveled up there numerous times on business during the winter. I can tell you that Walmarts are generally RV friendly for one night. I've spent a week to two weeks at a time between Erie and Buffalo. Campgrounds are closed, so dry-camping is all there is, unless you have permission from a business/customer to plug into electric. Still, taking on water and dumping tanks are problematic issues to consider. It can be done, but it's an effort and not very convenient. I've run through a 30# tank of propane in 4 1/2 days keeping warm and running the LP genset to keep the batteries charged. Yeah, I use a 12v heated mattress pad too.
My point is, I've been through this in a four season camper designed for that purpose. While glad for the experience, I wouldn't want to live that way for any longer period of time. And I certainly wouldn't want to endure fewer amenities like on-board plumbing. I like hot showers and at my age, the call of nature occurs in the middle of the night. It's usually a long way between where Walmart wants you to park and their restrooms.
If you want to purchase a modest RV, follow the sun, and earn income on the road, that's doable. On the other hand, if you plan to convert a cargo van for a minimalist's life while stealth camping around Lake Erie year round, then in the words of Rod Sterling... "There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone."
A full size cargo van will give you a blank slate to work with. However if you are buying used, get whatever full size van you find that is in good condition and you can afford. Keep in mind that with anything other than a cargo van you will be taking things out before building what you want.
If you can find one I have thought that a Sprinter would make a great stealth camper.
Unfortunately you will find many on this forum that are closed minded and have their noses in the air. I would consider you welcome here but some others won't.
You might want to check out this site; http://vandwellers.org/ lots of good info on what you are considering. Good luck.
Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.
- Soren Kierkegaard
Regarding the electric blanket and deep cycle battery:
Most electric blankets run off of 120 V AC. You will need an inverter that can handle the maximum wattage requirement of the blanket. Also if the blanket takes, for example, 100 watts, that will leave the battery with about 30 -40 % charge after one night.
You might consider a backpacking type sleeping bag for the coldest nights - they can easily handle any temperature NE Ohio has to offer.
For what you want to do I think a standard cargo van would be the easiest to modify and would probably cost less than a conversion van or a passenger van.
I would buy a box truck from U-Haul and do the conversion in it. There would be more room to play with, better head room, and it would be easier to install "basement storage" bins or a generator box.
You can choose between truck or van based rigs, and cutting the access between the cab and box would not be a problem for somebody handy with tools.
Good luck.
CM1, USN (RET)
2002 Fleetwood Southwind 32V, Ford V10
Toad: 2006 Jeep Rubicon LJ
Other toad: '06 PT Cruiser, Kar Kaddy dolly
Toy: 1977 Dodge W100 CC SWB, 3/4 ton axles & springs
"When seconds count, help is only minutes away!"
If you want to be stealthy, the commercial van. Leave the plumber's sign on it. The passenger van is going to be harder to insulate, and once you put curtains on it, people know what is going on.
A conversion van is just a commercial van with furnishings already installed, some insulation and sound deadening already applied. Depending on the price and condition, and how useful to you the furnishings, it can be a good deal if in your price range. But if you want to strip down to bare van, insulate and panel your own way, it is just a bunch of stuff to rip out and throw away. Most do have a sofa that jack knifes to a bed, that can be useful, but you find those in real cheap in Goodwill stores and yard sales anyway. My kids got one for $25, I got it for free when they left it behind.
I don't think Ford vs Chevy vs Dodge really matters, what is available at what age depends on the price you are willing to pay. I would look for at least 3/4 ton, to get the heavier suspension and drivetrain components, and usually a more robust cooling system.
Here's going to be your problem, buying used. Commercial vans tend to come out of service, even off lease, at 3 to 7 years, with 100,000 to 200,000 miles. That's all about how the tax rules work for the businesses that use them.
Used passenger vans come out of rental fleets, and short term lease (hotel shuttles) at 1-2 years, 20,000 to 50,000 miles, priced at about 60-80% of what they were new. They sell fast, churches and youth groups buy them at this age (they also buy new) but they hang on to the things for 10 years of more, usually accumulating mileage slowly; totally different tax treatment if you are a non-profit. When they finally get tired of the things, they'll sell real cheap to a less well funded group that needs to drive it only occasionally. So finding one at a good price is a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
Conversion vans either sell at 3 to 7 years, like a lot of family cars, or the owner really likes it and drives it until it is no longer reliable (or worth any significant amount of money) then donates it to a group that can make some occasional use of it, as a small capacity alternative to a passenger vans. A lot of conversions were done on the 1/2 ton version of the van, customers were going to be carrying only passengers and it saves a couple thousand dollars up front. If you want to add some living accommodations to a 1/2 ton conversion van, you might be needing to get rid of some of the original trim and furnishings to shed weight.
You can probably park a conversion van on a residential street without drawing too much attention to yourself. If it has a cap, you'll also have more headroom.
I've been looking at, looking for used Sprinter vans because of the diesel drive train and most are factory high-tops. Not for stealth camping, but starting point for my own custom conversion. The few I find coming onto the market are about the same mileage as the Express and Econoline vans, but asking price almost twice as much.
Hey, Western - I'm with you. This is the third one in the last two days, the second one today. All joined up, posted the question and disappeared. I'm thinking our legs are being pulled.
Retired and visiting as much of this beautiful country as I can.
Are you planning on capping the roof of the van? If not, you are going to want a conversion van so that you will not have to walk crouched over all of the time inside. If you put solar panels on the roof you are not going to be very stealth.
There are also other options to consider. A small school bus or an out of service ambulance - which already has a power source built in. There was someone on one of the forums on this list a couple of years back- I think in the Class B forum - that bought an ambulance at auction and converted it. You could also just go out looking for a used Class B and have it all there for you without your having to add anything.
I am sure that this idea all sounds very good to you, but it can get very cold inside a van in the winter - no matter what insulation you have applied to the walls. This all works in a house because there is a heat source in the house to generate the heat to be kept in by the insulation. You have no heat source in your planning as listed in your post - and one will take power that you are not figuring into your plans.
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