Paintergirl asked me some questions so time to share;
Yes, I live in my Truck full time, it has windows, vents and roof vent, the drawback is the roll up door in the back, in the future, I will look for the barn door style. In the spring will be operating my business storage out of it as well. I am downsizing everything. Too many types of services, so just paring it down to two.
Carpets; Commercial
Windows; Restoration and Resi - Commercial
I am getting rid of everything really. Take gear to the property, have a separate back up Van for bug out vehicle/storage and a small utility trailer. In the downsizing situation, right now I have a small office and storage set-up. The landlord is a real jackass, and in Two months, I will not have to deal with him ever again. In separating myself from the equation, I took almost 2 weeks to deliberate and look at where I want to go, what I want to do and how to go about doing it.
Most things I do now, I will not do soon. Window Cleaning and Window Restoration will be the main focus and Commercial Carpet cleaning will be the 3rd service. I will be able to keep everything in the back of the Truck-Camper as well as in the utility trailer. My spare Van, I hope to bring to my buddies place and use it for Prepper/Survivalist storage, use as a genset, yes, large one that gets good economy and is quieter than a Honda genset. Cost, just a bigger inverter!
Storage; you can use big plastic totes, yes, though right now I am sort of stealthy parking so can not have stuff that looks like I live there under the vehicle or beside it. Do not keep valuables in it though, mice will chew through them and thieves will take them! I can not stress that enough! I do have some metal locker/storage totes, that I will be filling up with stuff and putting in the back or in the spare van, mice! arrggggg..
Just get rid of stuff, we have way too much stuff, stuff stuff stuff! In the old days, people moved about with a Trunck that was it. Some cloths, some tools and knew how to make their own tools. I am downsizing, I went from a 3 bedroom house with a den and garage to my camper, back up van, work van and utility trailer, and my soon to be gone office storage. I am just selling off the equipment there, get rid of it, do not need to have heated space anymore and will save about $200+ a month.
I live off grid, stealthy in the back of a Farm. Providing Security, that is what I tell everyone who asks, or comes to the locked gate. The property has lots of machines and scrap metal there. Since I have been there, he has had no thefts at all. If you do not live stealthy by all means but skirting and cover the tires, it will save you tons on heating, and the floor will be much warmer. Right now, on top of the wood floor I have a basement rated under pad, and now about 5 layers of rugs and carpeting. If and when I do it again, I will not use resi carpeting, just carpets, and make sure they fit better, screw them down so they do not move about. Geezz do they ever float around if not tacked down!
Solar for the battery charging, and I am trying to build a wind generator, but might just break down and buy one, ready made. I do have the little survival genset in the back of my Van right now, little dude old, bullet proof design 300 watts. The other is an 800 watt, Chicago Genset. This wattage it a bit low, so the upgrade will be 1500 or 2500 watts. The advantage is this 800 watter is light and can be moved very easily is fairly quite and starts great.
My little utility trailer fits on the back no problem pulling it, with my 7.3 ltr Diesel engine Ford 1988 Box Truck with Ambulance package. Now do not ask me what the package is, the only thing that was left of it, was the Vents and windows. The truck does need some work, that I am slowly getting around too. It does drive nice, gets better fuel mileage than my older Astros did, and rode nicer as well. It is a little loud when you drive, so will be putting in some more sound proofing in the cab.
The back is now separated into the front being the living area, and the back 1/3 is a workshop and storage area. Soon to house my genset, with a rubber mat to sit on, a muffler to make it quieter and to run the exhaust out the bottom. Air intake is by way of the non sealed rear roll up doors, way lots of air let me tell you.
I use the back as a shower area as well in the summer and in the winter, I make do in the front area, or just go to the gym. For the shower I use tap water that I get from the local gas station, very nice attendant lets me fill up a 7 gallon plastic pail. I then put some water, about a gallon into a pump up sprayer. Get in a plastic tub, pull the plastic sheet around me and use the spray pump as shower head. I use less than a Gallon normally, sometimes as little as 2 ltrs and come out smelling nice and fresh. Just ask my Dog, whom by the way needs a bath herself, thanks for reminding me. The grey water is emptied into a depression/hole in the ground and covered up. Dishes are cleaned using two hand held sprayers from the Dollar Store. One with soap already in it, I use Dove as it is more Eco friendly. By using the hand held sprayers, I save so much water it is great. You haul water in plastic totes or pails, you conserve water. The Gray water is disposed of the same way. For number 2 dodo, I use a porta potty and use kitty litter, waste is disposed of a few times a week. This way I do not have to worry about dumping and in the winter kitty litter does not freeze. This also does not use water, so saving water is great for me, in all aspects of living here. If it was permanent and not stealth I would utilize the rain water, which is very pure after the first 2 minutes of raining. (yes, lots of research and data to support it, also used my water tester to verify)
Well that is about all for now,
Cheers
Sorry I didn't reply here, WildernessReturn, I really appreciate your post on the prepper RV way of life. Sometimes it's hard to keep track of all the posts, there are so many now. CPN has gotten really busy the last month, don't you think?
My week off is over now, off to "work for the man", so I probably won't be posting so often, for good or bad. 😆
Awesome post Wilderness, thank you!!
We have been researching/ surveying claim areas about 40+ kms away and would like to move up there altogether and work it, the area involves 8+ hectares or so... the trick- your dwelling must be non-permanent in nature when you are on crown land. An RV would make a great home base. Strangely enough, we were told by everyone that it had to be non-permanent, but after crawling through the mineral and miners act, there is no actual reference to it being non-permanent other then within a year of leaving, everything must be restored. We cannot seem to get a clear and concise answer on this even from the powers-that-be ... if the option was there to build a small cabin/shed as well, we would be all over that but it is turning out to be quite difficult in getting a clear answer. So ... RV it is!
Funny that you had mentioned cat litter, that was something I had pondered in the past because of the absorbancy - glad to hear it works!
There is no shortage of mountain rivers and several rivers and creeks that criss-cross the claim there - so efficient water treatment/storage has been one of my obsessions. I literally just bought/ ordered the goods for eco home cleansers, dish washing, clothes soap, shampoo and handsoap so I can make my own. Waaaaaay cheaper in the long run( I was astonished at how cheap it is when based on per unit price) and friendlier gray water. I just found a place that sells big jugs of the castile soap base and have some coming but they are gouging me good on postage ...
The skirting idea came from bulky items like pots and pans that might not fit well inside and potential dried food storage in their own containers and then put into a tote.... I wasn't sure if that was feasible or not, Claims are spread out there and we have chosen a spot north of a smattering of other claims so I don't know how much traffic we would actually get beyond the forestry people. We are viewing this as a longer term residence though the amount of snow might force us down for winter due to the logging roads being impassible unless you use a snow mobile. There are a few old guys that have lived in those hills for years so I hope to track one of them down at some point so I can learn more about wintering there and the obstacles. IF we decided to winter it there, then winterizing/adapting the RV and food storage is a definite obstacle that I need to figure out.
I am big about downsizing, made my last 2 provincial moves with only personal effects and any small household items that fit in totes. The only personal stuff I am really passionate about taking is my book collection, a good rotation of clothes and painting supplies,anything else can go into storage or be given away.
We are still in discussion about gen sets... what kind of solar set up have you gone with? It appears we might need at least a 1500 to do what we need but I still have a big learning curve in this area. Due to the nature of where we would be I don't want to depend on fuel based equipment but would like to know we have a back up too- so I crawl the internet trying to learn more about this...
We have a lot of tools making this trip, so once again, storage ... though your metal lockers sound like a great way to go!
I guess food storage is my biggest concern. It is remote enough that you want to have what you need with you so I have been doing a crazy amount of reading on root cellars and the like. Lots of wildlife there so food/disposal is a concern due to our furry thieves and not wanting the bigger ones to deem our little camp a hang-out!
You could build a very quick and decent underground, root cellar to store a lot of your food in. Line it with rocks and or bricks. If you search out the old timers, take a pouch of tobbac with you and possibly a little brown jug/mickey. Snow Mobiles can go for as low at $200 for an old one that still runs good.
Store stuff with friends and family, keep away from the storage depots, they will suck the money from you in no time. Skirting can be as little as plastic/tarps and use some 2x2's to make a frame, to keep the wind out.
Old RV's are dirt cheap, mine is a box truck, diesel engine. Stay away from the 6 ltr and 6.2/3 ltrs they are crap. Any 6.7 or better yet, 7 ltr is much better. 7.3 ltr engines and drive trains are all the same, all Internationl and all used by every school bus in Canada.
Plastic totes are good for the dry goods that do not have any smells to them. That way the little furry feet will stay away. Another deterrent is a dog, they help keep mice away, teach it to hunt mice, cats are too lazy, look I got a mouse, lets have a 2 day nap time! Dogs, will hunt them until they fall down exhausted, 3-4 hrs later, great fun.
Cleaning; Tea Tree Oil and GSE (grape seed extract) natural disinfectants that are good enough to kill Norwal virus, but I can not say that legally in Canada. 1ltr bottle 25 drops of Tea Tree and 35 drops of GSE, voila, great cleaner. It does not take off soap though.
Rethink priorities, I never watch TV, ever. Download stuff yes, movies yes, documentaries yes, TV NO...
My power consumption is low, except when I am recharging batteries in the winter. Make sure you get an automated battery charger, it will not over charge the batteries, you can top off in about 2-4 yrs in winter.
Solar, Princess Auto and Canadian Tire sell the Sunforce brand, there are better out there for similar money. Go to the spring / winter trade show in Vancouver, they will have lots of stuff to look at. Refrigerator, buy a normal sized apartment, propane/electric, they are awesome on Propane, even a small bottle will power it for a week or more.
Rv's are colder in winter, they have thinner walls, but the inside is done up and storage under the unit. I need to add in everything, read bare shell. Take up 2 or 3, 100 pnd propane tanks. Repeat in Spring or summer, never in winter, too heavy. Even a small 4x4 with a trailer, that is high up, can go up and down the mountains with provisions, do it with that and not your RV. You move it, you lose your spot and everything there! Seen it in BC, while I lived there. Make sure the RV wheels are on plywood or 2x4's get off the ground, also jack stands to get the weight up off the springs and make it more stable.
Remember, Rain water after the first 2-3 minutes is pure water, get a rain water catchment going. Buy the rain water downspouts and you have to filter much less.
You could build a very quick and decent underground, root cellar to store a lot of your food in. Line it with rocks and or bricks. If you search out the old timers, take a pouch of tobbac with you and possibly a little brown jug/mickey. Snow Mobiles can go for as low at $200 for an old one that still runs good.
Store stuff with friends and family, keep away from the storage depots, they will suck the money from you in no time. Skirting can be as little as plastic/tarps and use some 2x2's to make a frame, to keep the wind out.Old RV's are dirt cheap, mine is a box truck, diesel engine. Stay away from the 6 ltr and 6.2/3 ltrs they are crap. Any 6.7 or better yet, 7 ltr is much better. 7.3 ltr engines and drive trains are all the same, all Internationl and all used by every school bus in Canada.
Plastic totes are good for the dry goods that do not have any smells to them. That way the little furry feet will stay away. Another deterrent is a dog, they help keep mice away, teach it to hunt mice, cats are too lazy, look I got a mouse, lets have a 2 day nap time! Dogs, will hunt them until they fall down exhausted, 3-4 hrs later, great fun.
Cleaning; Tea Tree Oil and GSE (grape seed extract) natural disinfectants that are good enough to kill Norwal virus, but I can not say that legally in Canada. 1ltr bottle 25 drops of Tea Tree and 35 drops of GSE, voila, great cleaner. It does not take off soap though.
Rethink priorities, I never watch TV, ever. Download stuff yes, movies yes, documentaries yes, TV NO...
My power consumption is low, except when I am recharging batteries in the winter. Make sure you get an automated battery charger, it will not over charge the batteries, you can top off in about 2-4 yrs in winter.Solar, Princess Auto and Canadian Tire sell the Sunforce brand, there are better out there for similar money. Go to the spring / winter trade show in Vancouver, they will have lots of stuff to look at. Refrigerator, buy a normal sized apartment, propane/electric, they are awesome on Propane, even a small bottle will power it for a week or more.
Rv's are colder in winter, they have thinner walls, but the inside is done up and storage under the unit. I need to add in everything, read bare shell. Take up 2 or 3, 100 pnd propane tanks. Repeat in Spring or summer, never in winter, too heavy. Even a small 4x4 with a trailer, that is high up, can go up and down the mountains with provisions, do it with that and not your RV. You move it, you lose your spot and everything there! Seen it in BC, while I lived there. Make sure the RV wheels are on plywood or 2x4's get off the ground, also jack stands to get the weight up off the springs and make it more stable.
Remember, Rain water after the first 2-3 minutes is pure water, get a rain water catchment going. Buy the rain water downspouts and you have to filter much less.
He he, I like the 'come bearing gifts' for the old timers. Reminds me of some of the old timers I knew years ago when I was living up Island.
I was reading up on tea tree recently for medicinal purposes but hadn't even considered it for cleaning solutions, good to know!
I think the possessions can be whittled down to small enough for my daughter's garage. I would just give away the furniture, I am liking life with less stuff the last 5-6 years and hope to keep it that way. I am not much of a TV watcher at all beyond documentaries, CBC's The Passionate Eye, Nova, most doc's I like to watch are on the computer these days ...that and I am a ferocious reader, both hardcopy and on my kindle etc. I like listening to the radio more then staring at a TV any day as I'd rather be busy with my hands. My bad addiction is audio books, love listening to my books while I work ... but if I can charge my kindle semi- regularly, I will be good to go. There's a chance my crank radio might charge it if I can get the right adapter... wanting to test that out as the radio will charge a cell. Kindles don;t suck the power as bad as IPads etc so I am hoping this works...
I miss having a dog, my old pups aged out and passed on a while ago. I wasn't even thinking along the lines of a dog being mousers but you are absolutely right. I remember my grandpa's old lab "Gal" , he would get critters in his compost... Grandpa would go quietly to the compost, flip up the lid and Gal would catch the critters as they tried to get away, she was a better mouse/rat dog then any cat I have ever had....lol
I wasn't even thinking of rainwater collection with all the rivers/creeks but you are right, quicker to purify... water is my fetish, I want to know I always have some good water on hand.
Solar;
I have the 5.5watt solar panel right now, the next time I have excess money, I will be setting it aside for the 15watt panel. The 5.5 will charge your reader easily. It will also charge a deep cycle battery in 3 days. The 15 watt probably will do it in 1 day, so on over cast days, it might take 2-3 days. You can then plug in your radio, kindle etc.
Forge the crank radio, I have one, it is great using batteries, in fact I have the same set of batteries in since the spring and it is going fine. Another battery radio I have has dual cassettes and the 4 D sized batteries lasted 2 years, with me using it alot for radio and sometimes for cassettes.
Get a solar battery charger, AAA and AA from Radio Shack or from Canadian Tire. This will take care of your battery needs, in the recharging department. Even if you have to run the car/4x4 with a 800watt inverter every week, it is good for the engine as well as recharging the vehicle batteries and the extra batteries.
Tea Tree Oil shampoo, gets rid of dandruff, use it whenever you wash your hair, the best solution to buying it is to go to Presidents Choice and get the Lice Kit, shampoo and Tea Tree Oil bottle in one package.
My Genset is only 800 watt, advantage small lightweight. Now for only a bit more money and size, I would really like to get the 1800 or 2500 watt model. Uses about the same fuel, puts out so much more power. Look at making it quieter before you leave! Go to the Auto Parts store near you, rig up a metal pipe/pipes/flexible pipe from the exhaust to the new muffler you will put on it, then get another pipe out of it, then a flex pipe to divert the fumes away. Now you have quieter and safer genset, nothing gives you away like a genset in the woods. Now, if you can get a working, so so working, engine good minivan, station wagon or a 4x4 just use it for a genset. It is way better on fuel, you can move it around by getting a temp permit, take it to the woods with you. Now you have way more power, quieter (make sure the muffler system is good or pick up another) all this might cost you only slightly more than a regular generator. Slap the 800-1200 watt inverter on it. Voila, much better and a storage area to boot.
http://www.jobsite-generators.com/power_calculators.html
I was trying to charge up my battery using my landlords big charger, found out it was drawing way more power than the little genset could put out.
The 30 amp charger = 3600 watts not the little 800 that I have
There are also some other power charts there, some genset pages etc, neat site
Ahh ...great site! I am blank when it comes to calculations and just learning now, thank you!
WHAT AN INCREDIBLY ENLIGHTENING POST THANK-YOU. WE ARE FORTUNATE TO LIVE IN A SEMI REMOTE AREA ON THE WEST COAST, VERY REMOTE TO CITY DWELLERS. WE DO NOT OWN OUR OWN LAND BUT CARE TAKE A 150 ACRE PARK. WE HAVE A 50' FULLY SELF CONTAINED LIVE ABOARD THAT IS MOSTLY OUTFITTED AND READY TO LEAVE AT A MOMENTS NOTICE TO FURTHER REMOTE AREAS. WE HAVE AN OUT POST THAT WE ARE SETTING UP WITH GARDENS, WATER SUPPLY ETC. PROBLEM, I STILL FEEL LIKE A SQUIRREL WITH A BAG FULL OF NUTS AND NO WHERE TO HIDE THEM. WITH ALL THE CROWN LAND AROUND US AND THE ABILITY TO PICK ANY PLACE TO GO THIS IS STILL UNSETTLING TO ME. I GUESS MY QUESTION IS HOW AND WHAT ARE THE PEOPLE LIVING IN LARGE CITIES GOING TO DO IF THEY NEED TO LEAVE AND WHERE DO YOU GO? I ALSO HAVING LIVED REMOTE ON THE WEST COAST BEING THE OFF SPRING OF A FARMING FAMILY HAVE SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT TO EAT FROM THE LOCAL AREA AND FORESTS AND HOW TO GROW MY OWN FOOD. WHAT ARE THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE LIVED REMOVED FROM THE LAND IN APARTMENTS WITHOUT THE OPPORTUNITY TO GROW FOOD GOING TO DO?
WE, AS YOU ARE DOING NOW, WE DID NOT WATCH THE NEWS FOR 3 YEARS. LIVING IN AN AREA WHERE WE CAN NOT GET CABLE VISION OR SATELLITE SERVICE HAVE JUST RECENTLY CONNECTED WITH NETFLIX. BOY WERE WE SURPRISED TO FIND OUT WHAT WAS REALLY GOING ON IN THE WORLD. WE HAD ALWAYS FELT THINGS WERE OFF BUT WOW!. THE REAL HIT HOME MOMENT FOR US WAS WATCHING CBC'S MELT DOWN THE SECRET FINANCIAL CRISIS.' IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS IT IS A MUST WATCH! WE ARE NOW JUST GETTING UP TO SPEED WITH PREPPING. DO YOU THINK IT IS WISE NOT TO KEEP UP TO DATE ON THE WORLD CRISIS TO KNOW WHEN IT IS TIME TO FLEE. I GUESS THIS WILL ALL BE VERY CLEAR WHEN THE SHIT HITS THE FAN.
Hello HeathenWench,
could you not post in all caps please, it is a bit hard to read and considered Shouting in the Internet.
I listen to the Radio daily while on route to working at a job, sometimes I listen at night time as well. Coast to Coast with Charles is always a good option, although not every program I listen too, if you know what I mean. Netflix on a Rocket stick is not practical, way to many Gigs to download and too expensive then.
For about 10 yrs I lived in BC, loved it there, but boy o boy they just do not like people from Ontario anywhere out of Vancouver or Whistler areas. You could go and secretly seed some areas in the Crown Land, use a big mixture, you will be helping out the critters and yourselves as well. Make sure you plant a few types of lettuce, as mice and deer love that more than Corn or other veggies. Eating naturally is a lot easier in BC than here as the amount of natural food there is greater than here. I am learning more and more though and just love Nettles, they are just great. Thinking you could seed some areas with Nettles as well, natural and very very good for you.
The boat is the way to go in BC, there are so many coves you could just live in one of them and never be spotted if you camouflage the boat in one of the many millions of small coves and tributaries on the coast.
Currently I am re-thinking my current living situation and will be finding a cheaper place to park my 'Camper' and spare van, one that I can grow some veggies and stuff right here, also looking for another long term situation I think, not sure, thinking, thinking...