Following on from my YouTube Q&A video (below) I have decided to add more detail in this blog post. I will update over the next few days as things are pretty busy at the moment.
How much money are you saving by living full time in your van?
I’m saving approximately £1100 per month with the largest bulk coming from not having any rent to pay. My energy bills were £150 per month then there was my Council Tax, water rates, insurance, tv & broadband. My diesel bill has gone up slightly though as I seem to have been doing lots more driving when trying to find stealthy parking spots.
What is your biggest bugbear about van life so far?
I’ve not had any major problems yet but it is very noticeable how much longer simple things take to do, such as cooking breakfast and having a wash. As my van is rather small, everything has to have it’s place and I need to be very methodical when going about everyday tasks.
Another thing that ‘winds me up’ is noise pollution from stupid boy racer car exhausts. I’ve been woken at unearthly hours frequently as they go whizzing past in their Subaru’s or whatever they call them!!
How much did your van build cost?
This is a really difficult question to answer as the process was over several months and I never thought I’d be making a YouTube channel or Blog. I also made quite a few mistakes along the way so probably wasted quite a bit of money. I’ve really racked my brains and gone through all my old Amazon payments etc to try and get a more accurate figure than I gave in the video –
Wall Carpet Lining & Adhesive – £60.00
Sound Deadening Mats – £26.00
Insulation – £60.00
Split Charge Relay Kit – £66.00
115Ah Leisure Battery – £120.00
Electric Switch Panel – £23.00
Electric Cables & Extras – £30.00
Wood – approx. £300.0 (I did waste quite a bit though!)
Tinted Opening Window – £180.00
Flooring – £50.00 (off cut from local carpet shop)
Curtain – £25.00 (on sale in Dunelm)
Flip Up Table Hinges – £12.00
Thermometer – £10.00
LED Lighting – £18.00
Battery Powered Lights – £17.00
Sink – £6.00 (stainless steel bowl from Dunelm)
Waste Plug – £9.50
Waste Pipe – £4.50
300w Inverter – £37.00
Heated Blanket – £35.00
Tube Heater – £27.00
Total – £1110.00
This is substantially less than I said in the video when I was working things out quickly although I did waste rather a bit of money when making mistakes.
N.B – Prices are correct at the time of my van build / Some of the links above are affiliate links (this costs you nothing but I may get a commission if you made a purchase through my link)
How do you find places to park?
My method of finding stealthy parking spaces is evolving all the time. I like to stay on the outskirts of small rural villages parked up along with other vehicles, sort of hiding in ‘plain sight’. I never park directly outside someone’s home as this could raise suspicion, I like to get to my spot late and leave early. I’ve found along the sides of graveyards usually quite good. At the edge of a street by a high wall or hedgerow. Layby’s on the edge of villages with nearby houses are also a favourite of mine.
