Camper / RV Megathread - We like our wheels to be our man caves

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Automotive Insanity > Camper / RV Megathread - We like our wheels to be our man caves

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Damnit, this is more making me want to get a pop-up trailer for behind the "new" truck. I love camping, and really miss rocking out to weird spots, but my spine is hosed from an old hockey injury so more than one night on the ground in a tent and I'm a cripple.

I really wish I'd taken pictures of the tent-type-thing I had in the back of my Tacoma. Some square steel tubing welded to an old bed frame that functioned as a canoe rack/lumber hauler/excellent canopy to hang some sewn-together tent bits on and call it a place to sleep. It was fantastic for a single guy who liked camping. But not so much for more than one person.

# ¿ May 22, 2014 18:47

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 14:08

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Throatwarbler posted:

I don't know much about this topic but one thing that always sort of turned me off camping is that it...gets pretty cold outside, or hot. Heat isn't such a big problem, since in most places you probably won't die from it and you can do things such as open the windows and/or just go the gently caress somewhere else where it's not so hot, but the cold bit is a bit harder especially since most mobile abodes aren't so well insulated and even mild hospitable locations can get uncomfortably cold at night. Running the vehicle's engine or a fossil fuel generator is sort of unappealing, but has anyone considered using some kind of wood burning stove? I just have this sort of hazy idea in my mind after seeing this thing

https://practicalpreppers.com/about-us/product-reviews/item/201-30-watt-thermoelectric-generator

which gives me all kinds of neat thoughts about going out and living in the woods and using up all that firewood just lying around. I have even more crazy ideas like a pop-out wood burning stove on an RV that will serve to do any number of things, like heat up a cooling circuit that can heat the interior, have a cooking surface, and also provide electricity via the thermocouple.

Inconjuction with this, now that EVs and hybrid vehicles with their big ol batteries are more common, it seems like the perfect sort of tow-behind vehicle to have with a camper, supposing the technical details can be worked out that allow you to actually use the vehicle's battery for stuff other than moving.

Most firewood lying around is too wet to be a reliable heating source, and greatly increases the buildup of creosote in the chimney, which can cause fires. As previously mentioned as well, many parks/wilderness areas have bans/restrictions on bringing in outside wood, or on burning at all. And most RV's/Camper's I've seen are insulated enough that as long as your not trying to survive in winter, you won't be too bad. I've spent many a night warm and toasty inside a trailer when it was hovering around freezing outside, with only a small electric heater keeping it warm.

Fossil fuels are a very efficient, compact source of heat, and work very well. A wood burning stove needs to be large, heavy, and retain a lot of the excess heat energy created by the not-as-controllable burning of solid fuels. Don't get me wrong, I see the romance of the idea, but it just would not be viable.

# ¿ Jun 17, 2014 15:03

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Throatwarbler posted:

Fair enough on the legal limtations, but with respect to the smoke, creosote issue, the wood stove in my house does not fill the kitchen with smoke when I use it, all the smoke is quite effectively evacuated through the chimney. A chimney on an RV isn't going to be nearly as big as the one on a house and doesn't need to snake through a brick wall, only exit the relatively thin body of the camper, and as such should be easy enough to remove and clean.

And there is part of the crux of it. Longer chimney = more draft = less chance of back-drafting smoke and less creosote deposit. People around here do a TON of ice fishing, and a lot will put woodstoves in their shacks - they work well. But its not mobile except twice a year, and the guys with short chimneys end up starting fires. Ashes also usually have legal reg's for disposal.

It could work, it would just be inefficient and potentially more dangerous than other alternatives.

# ¿ Jun 17, 2014 16:23

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Jonny 290 posted:

We are sneaking up on one calendar month of RV living.
We love this life, a lot. We're living very green....minimizing water waste, power usage, trash, all that. My job is very good and very stable, however, so we are considering renting an apartment next month, and letting Hausbus be a weekend warrior vehicle. My work schedule will be 4x10's after training, so we will have 3-day weekends every week, and that's RV bait for sure.

Just going to say I'm jealous as poo poo. Keep us updated, I'm living my dreams of travelling north america in an RV through you.

# ¿ Aug 22, 2014 03:53

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Slack3r posted:

My 1975 Dodge Travco "DodgeMahal 2+2".. 440V8, 727 "LoadFlite" trans, 6KW Onan, Fully self-contained. Slowly been updating as I get time and $. Been out a few times camping. This upcoming 4th of July weekend will be the longest by far.

Just posting to say that is sexy as gently caress - nice, nice ride.

# ¿ Jun 29, 2016 00:29

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Jonny 290 posted:

Well, we made it over two years!

The park has been slowly edging out the RV dwellers, and we're like one of the last five left. Rather than leave our fate up to their hands, we decided to get a little place for the winter, and found a cute little 500 square foot + 200 sf shed cottage in a very convenient part of Denver for a song. Tomorrow we get keys and start uh, i guess buying some Ikea furniture? Heh.

We'd keep it up but it's time for a break. Wife wants unlimited hot water and a good heater. I want to play radio not cramped up in the front seat of the bus all the time. If it weren't for that and the park situation in denver (real estate bubble means mobile/rv parks are turning into mobile only parks, and mobile only parks are being bought and razed for apartment blocks) is DIRE. We simply can't find another long-term place within an hour of our jobs.

Plan is to get outdoor storage for the bus, tarp it over the winter, when the snow starts to melt we'll shine it up a bit and then phase 2 starts - buying a few acres in the foothills to park Hausbus in her final resting spot and serve as our starter cabin. Holding out to make sure she has a good view.

That's pretty awesome man. I'm impressed that you've made it 2 years - really well done! Anything else you've run into that you'll like in a "real" place, or has it mostly been good?

# ¿ Oct 17, 2016 12:06

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

My jealousy runs so strongly right now.

# ¿ Oct 20, 2016 00:52

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 14:08

Siochain: May 24, 2005; "can they get rid of any humans who are fans of shitheads like Kanye West, 50 Cent, or any other piece of crap "artist" who thinks they're all that?

And also get rid of anyone who has posted retarded shit on the internet."

Jonny 290 posted:

We decided that Hausbus was too clapped out to keep living in without some big rehab (fuckin wall delamination) so we sold it to a homeless family for $1 currently living in a popup camper.

You are, once again, proven to be good people. That's loving awesome.

# ¿ Jan 18, 2017 12:57

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Automotive Insanity > Camper / RV Megathread - We like our wheels to be our man caves