After the engine threw a rod in Texas and needed replaced, I eventually ended up selling my van. It made sense – it was a 1980 model and was not going to get any newer. It was still in Texas. I’d just found out I was pregnant when I sold it and knew that while it was comfortable for solo travel it wasn’t going to be a great family vehicle.

I always missed it though. I sort of wished that I’d just paid to have the engine replaced. I’d browse RV listings, but I never saw the right thing at the right price. I’m unwilling to pay the prices for a newer RV and a lot of the older ones just aren’t in good shape. Plus there are a lot of types of RV that just wouldn’t meet my needs.

So when I heard a family member with a small RV was upgrading to a newer and larger model, I mentioned I’d be interested in the old one… and here we are!

I am now the proud owner of a 1990 18 foot Toyota Sunrader which I’ve nicknamed ‘The Yot’.

I was looking for good pictures of the inside, but I don’t seem to have any. I have lots of weird pictures of it instead. Mostly there are pictures of little things I’ve been working on fixing – the leaky shower faucet, the propane valve that spritzed me with propane when I first tried it, the bathroom cabinet that was falling off.

I do have a few inside pictures from when I first got it two months ago that I’ll share. I’ve been hard at work on it so some things look different now. Maybe at some point I’ll get some good inside pictures of the changes I’ve made.

I got it about 2 months ago and have mostly been at work fixing things, customizing things, etc. Overall it’s in pretty good shape considering it’s age, but it’s spent a lot of it’s recent life just sitting and is in need of some love.

It’s been fun to have a project to work on. Considering the amount of computer work I do it’s a nice change to have a hands-on project.

I’m also really looking forward to taking trips! After the last year (plus) I am antsy to get out.

B is at an age where he’ll like exploring too. Although RV travel with a young child is definitely a bit different than traveling on my own.

So far we’ve taken two trips – the first for one night and the second for two. There is nothing like actually taking an RV out to see what works and what doesn’t.

I’m looking forward to exploring more and (hopefully) sharing more about my travels. Although I don’t want to jinx myself because my blogging record for the last year has been dismal – I was working a TON and just doing the whole parenting a young child during covid thing.

Now things are looking really different. I’m taking the summer off work, at least mostly. My family is all vaccinated except for B who is too young. And I have a new RV to explore in!

The post I finally have a new RV! appeared first on Live Hoppy.

After much deliberation and a bit of procrastination, I’ve finally parted with my beloved van.  As most of you probably know, the engine threw a rod on my last trip with it and the van never made it back from Texas.

It was not an easy decision for me.  My brain tells me it was the right thing, but my heart doesn’t feel the same way.  It’s not so much about the van itself, but the things it signifies to me- travel, exploring, time in nature and freedom.  I’m not, of course, really giving up all of those things.

I loved the van and if I had a much larger supply of time and money, I would have kept it.  Or perhaps if I had a lot more money, I’d buy a newer, nicer van.  The thing is that those resources are limited for me.  Right now, I just have other goals in my life that are the priority for me.

I’ve become more and more aware of how there are only so many things that I can really focus on at one time.  Spreading myself too thin means that I don’t make progress in any areas.  This is a constant battle for me because there are so many things in life that catch my interest that I would like to do.

There’s also a cost to owning things.  While the van was paid off, I still paid insurance, registration and maintenance costs.  Then there’s the time- to drive it on a regular basis, to wash it, to get it ready for trips.  If I was living in it as I’d once planned, these costs would be worth it.  But not living in it, the truth is that it would spend the majority of the time sitting parked in the street in front of my house.

It did make a wonderful vehicle for camping trips and I’ll miss that.  It just wasn’t worth what it would have cost to replace the engine for the occasional camping trip.  And, well, I do have a tent.  I’m a little sad, but also a little relieved that it’s one thing I don’t need to worry about anymore.

Someday, maybe I’ll find a new RV of some sort.  For now, I’ll make use of my tent, my car and the plethora of motel rooms across the country.  Oh, and those cute little cabins they have at state parks in Oklahoma.

The post Sold the van appeared first on Live Hoppy.

I’ve wanted to share in depth about my van for quite a while- including pictures and all of the little things I’ve learned that make traveling in it easier.  This turned into a fairly long post, but I hope it may provide some value to other people with Class B RVs or perhaps be a topic of interest for others.  Some of the things I share are pretty specific to my van, some may be specific to the brand and others may be useful for any Class B or other type of RV.  If you’re just curious about what the van looks like inside, you can just scroll through to see the pictures.

This post does contain links to some products on Amazon.  I am an Amazon Affiliate meaning that if you click through the link and buy something, they pay me a little.  Amazon has a gazillion products and I only link to the few I really love.

I started this post before the engine blew up.  I thought I would finish this post despite the fact that the van is now sitting in Snyder, Texas waiting for me to figure out what to do with it.  I am now back home without it.  (Despite the fact that I adore it, I am honestly leaning towards selling it.)

I’ve put off really posting pictures of it for months because I want everything to look just perfect.  I finally decided that probably nobody cares and I would just take the pictures.  These pictures were all taken during the middle of a two week trip with the van, so this is what it really looks like when I’m on the road.  For reference my van is an Xplorer 228 built on a 1984 Dodge B350 base.  You can check out the floor plan and pictures from the day I bought it in my post about my van.

It is fairly tidy in the pictures, and it doesn’t stay that way all the time.  It’s easy for a few things to make it look like one giant mess since there isn’t much space.  That is one of the reasons that I tidy up a few times a day.  Another is just so that things don’t go flying, sliding or falling when I drive down the road.  My number one tip is probably to keep things clean and to have a spot for everything.  Bringing along a minimum amount of stuff helps a lot too.  This is something I’ve gotten better at over the years.  There’s not a lot of space to really store extra stuff, and when I have brought too much, I end up sleeping next to it. 

Parking

When I park the van at an RV spot, I like to aim for the best views out the front window and side door.  I also consider the privacy aspect of being able to keep the side door open if I want to.  I don’t feel like I have to utilize the spot as intended.  The van doesn’t have any fancy auto-leveling system, so I did buy leveling blocks but never actually used them.  After a while, I developed a very good sense for when it was parked level.  Of course, it’s not a challenge at a spot with a flat concrete pad, but some of the places I go in the woods are different.

Hook-Ups

Some of these things are probably obvious (or should have been).  Some things I’ve learned the hard way.

Water

The van has two options for water- hooking it directly to a water hose that pressurizes the system, or filling the water tank and running the water pump.  I always preferred just to fill the tank and run the water pump.  I once read a post on a RV forum about somebody with a brand new, very expensive RV that flooded on their way home from picking up the RV when a connection came loose under the sink.  They were driving with the water pump on, so it continued spewing water out and they didn’t notice until the whole thing was flooded and very damaged.  So, I always try to make sure and turn the pump off when I’m not using water, especially when driving since the vibrations going down the road make a connection coming loose more likely.

I like to travel with the water tank at least partly filled up.  Often, I don’t know if I will be making it into an RV park for the night where I will have water, parking in the National Forest or where I will end up.  So I like to be prepared with enough water to make it through a day.  The down side of this is that it means extra weight.

I also added a small accumulator tank to the water system when I had to replace the water pump.  It did help to keep the pump from cycling quite as much when running and also had the added benefit of keeping just enough water under pressure that I could wash my hands without turning the pump on.

One last thing regarding water is to screw the ends of the water hose together when putting it away since this keeps out dirt and keeps the water left in the hose from getting the storage area wet.

Electric

Plug the end of the power cord that goes into the van in FIRST.  I only made the mistake of doing it the other way once because after plugging the cord in, I shocked the heck out of myself with the end that plugs into the van.  Certainly not my brightest moment, although one of the more electrifying.

Sewer

Make all sewer connections TIGHT.  This includes the fittings that go on the sewer hose.  Even if you’re only putting the fitting on the sewer hose to dump the toilet once and then planning on buying a new hose.  Trust me.  And when you go to put the sewer hose in it’s storage compartment, no matter how much you’ve held it up to let it drain, stand back a little.  As it compresses, a little more ‘water’ will always squeeze out.

There is one standard size for fittings for RV sewer hoses.  My van was graced with fittings on the end of the drain pipes that are not that size.  It took me some time to figure out that it is only compatible with Thetford brand fittings, which are always more expensive.  I was just glad when I finally found the ones that would fit.  It would be possible to change out the fittings on the end and everything would be standard, but I haven’t done that.

Pre-Driving Checklist

There are an annoying number of things that need to be done to make sure the van is ready to go.  It seems to start growing the roots the second I park and it becomes increasingly harder to actually go someplace in it.  I have kind of a mental pre-driving checklist, but it seems that I frequently forget to do something on it like making sure the closet doors are latched.  Then I’ll be driving down the road and the closet doors will be swinging since I forgot to latch them.  They’ll make an annoying noise and block what little visibility I had out the rear-view mirror.  Perhaps actually putting my checklist on a very visible place by the driver’s seat would help.  Anyway, the mental checklist is as follows:

• Close AND LATCH closet doors.
• Turn off water pump.
• Check that caps are on black and grey water outlet tubes & valves are closed.  Caps should NOT be loose on running board where they will fall off, I’ll drive over them loudly breaking the tabs that hold them closed and have to replace or repair them.  (If little wires that hold caps on so they don’t end up loose on the running boards are broken, make note to self to repair.)
• Check that bike is secure.
• Walk around van and make sure everything is unplugged, latched, attached, inside, etc.
• Check area to plan escape plan…er… how to back up.
• Open curtains, even the side ones I don’t look out very often because once in a while that visibility makes a difference.
• Make sure fridge is set to the right setting.
• Make sure vent in bedroom and all windows are closed if heading down dirt road to keep out dust.
• Make sure everything is put away in a secure spot.

Driving

Annoyingly, the van didn’t come with any cup-holders.  It does have two round divets in the center console thing that make one think it’s a good place to put a cup, but any beverage set there will go flying.  I did find a couple of cup holders on Amazon that I velcroed on that work surprisingly well.

One thing about the van is that it likes to road-walk.  It’s also very hard to control in the wind.  It helps to look further down the road and aim to make very minor steering adjustments rather than look too close in front of it.  The steering is just slow to respond, which makes it easy to over-correct causing more problems.

Bluetooth headphones.  OK, so probably I shouldn’t be on the phone ever when driving.  Sometimes, I just am.  One day, I’d like to upgrade the stereo to something that is Bluetooth enabled, but until then, my Bluetooth headphones make a big difference.

The gas gauge on the van is weird.  I think it actually had a larger gas tank put on it when it was converted into and RV (to help the range on it since it’s heavier with the RV mods).  Once G had it completely empty and we took it to the gas station and recorded what the gas gauge read as we put gas in it.  I later lost the paper we wrote it on, which I have always kicked myself for.  Anyway, I do remember that it stays at ‘E’ for the first 8-10 gallons.  From driving it, I know that I get about 100 miles on the top half of the gas gauge and about 40 on the bottom half of the gauge.

The Bedroom

The bedroom is one of the things I love about the design of my van.  It seems like the other Class B RVs I’ve been in don’t have a dedicated bed, but rather dining booths that turn into a bed or a similar convertible situation.  The back of my van was extended slightly, allowing for the bed to go in the back.

There is also a little storage space on each side of the van above the bed.  This is were I like to keep extra towels, a couple of books, Hoppy’s travel bag and toiletries that don’t live in the bathroom.

I like to take my sleeping bag with me and plenty of warm blankets.  If I have trouble with either the auxiliary battery that powers the RV things in the van or with the propane system, I can’t run the heater.  So, I like to know that I am prepared and can stay cozy if need be.

I love having the thermostat right next to the bed.  No having to get up in the cold mornings, simply turn the heater on and wait a few minutes. 

There are also speakers by the bed.  I always wanted to get the radio hooked up to the auxiliary battery rather than the other battery for the van so I could listen to music without any worries about draining the battery.  (I have no idea how long I could listen to the radio before this would be a problem anyway.)

I recently added a hook to the wall so that I had a place to hang a jacket or two.  (Ironically, I broke the clothes hanger I had with me in the process of putting the hook up.)

Under one side of the bed next to the water tank is the water pump. Under the other side is a little space that I found was just big enough to stash the smallest Shop Vac I could find. It has sometimes been useful, but I think I also love it because it is so adorable and just a perfect fit.

The Closet

The closet in the van had a clothes rod in it when I got it.  But it is too narrow for clothes hangers.  For a while, I did buy kid’s hangers to put in there, which worked OK, but still didn’t make the best use of the space.  Eventually I put shelves in there instead which have worked a lot better.  They were always intended to be kind of temporary since they don’t actually attach to the van.  My idea is (was?) to replace the shelves I put in them with permanent shelves that are actually mounted to the van.  The ones I have in there work, but don’t quite take full advantage of the space since the back wall of the closet is not straight up and down but rather rounded.

The ‘shoe’ thingies on the doors are not large enough for even my shoes and I have pretty small feet.  And they are very ugly.  I always meant to take them off, but haven’t yet.

The Bathroom

The bathroom in my van is pretty much miniature.  I can’t stand in it, and sitting in there, my head is a couple inches from the ceiling.  It’s also very hard to get pictures of it, because it’s impossible to stand far enough back to get a very wide view of anything.

The Shower

I found these little wire baskets with suction cups at Wal-Mart not long after buying the van.  They have been one of the most useful things to have to hold all of the shower/bathroom stuff that I don’t want sliding all over.  Of course, I only put things there that can get wet since everything does indeed get wet during shower time.

In the upper right hand corner of the picture, you can also see one of the bolts used to attach the monitor to the other side of the wall.  It’s also got a washer and a bit of silicone.

I always light the water heater a while before I want to shower and then turn it off before I actually get in the shower.  The tank holds enough hot water to last through a quick shower and I don’t want to use up propane heating up more water once I’m out.  One cool feature about the van is that the coolant from the engine circulates through a heat exchanger in the water heater to heat up the water when driving down the road.  This make for hot water upon arrival at a destination without ever having to light the water heater.

When I First bought the van, I found that water would leak from the bottom of the door into the hallway when I’d shower.  So I bought the shortest shower curtain rod I could find and cut a shower curtain to size.  The shower curtain is wider than needed, so I can also wrap it around my hand-towel to keep it dry too.  The shower curtain also has the benefit of keeping the things that hang on the door dry- my towel, TP and very fancy trash can.

Also, the shower drain kept getting clogged with hair.  At one point my needle-nosed pliers lived in the bathroom for cleaning out the drain.  Eventually, I found a little cover for the drain to prevent this problem and it has worked great.

Another thing I have found helpful is that when I turn the shower off, I will pull up on the little pull thing on the sink and put the shower head on the floor to let any remaining water drain out of the hose for the shower head.  This makes it so that when I turn the sink on later water doesn’t drip out of the shower head onto my feet.

The van does have a control panel that allows one to check fresh water and propane levels, the battery charge and turn on the water pump.  It also has a button for checking the grey water level, but it always reads ‘E’.  I’m pretty sure it was never hooked up to the holding tank.  I discovered this early on in my van ownership days when the kitchen sink wouldn’t drain and I found water had come up the drain in the shower and was covering the bathroom floor.  So, I set out to dump the tank for the first time in the dark with no idea what I was doing.  I now know that the holding tank will hold a day or two’s worth of water and approximately the same amount of water that the fresh water tank holds.  I try to always dump the grey water before driving the van anywhere as it just means less weight for the van to haul around.

There is also a little under-the-sink cabinet where I can store a few extra things.

The Toilet

I know WAY too much about the toilet in here.  I have taken it out of the van and taken it completely apart, replacing many of the parts.  One thing I can say is that the bolts that attach it DO NOT work as specified in the owner’s manual for the toilet.  I spent a considerable amount of time trying to follow those instructions to remove it, only to discover later that the parts I was trying to get apart had been welded together.  (Those instruction probably are right for most installations of this type of toilet, but on the van, there are two nuts on two bolts under the van that must be taken off and then the whole toilet lifts right out.)

The plastic has yellowed with age and looks kinda gross, but RV toilets are expensive.  I did replace the lid and seat which was also insanely pricey.  The new one was obviously not as well built because the lid cracked a little when I was showering a day or two after taking the above picture.  I’m not pleased about it, but not sure I’ll do anything about it.  Another replacement would probably just have the same thing happen.

The clear plastic on the back is on there because otherwise water from the shower runs into the toilet, which means the black water has to be dumped more frequently which is a  pain.  It’s not a very clean-looking solution, but it works.

I did find that it’s best to use the harsh chemicals for the toilet with the warnings about cancer, birth defects and reduced sperm count.  They make ‘natural, biodegradable’ versions that sound nicer, but don’t work well.

I have had trouble with the toilet flushing on a couple of occasions, probably due to a loose connection.  The easy hack on that is to use the shower to ‘flush’ it.  Also, it wants an initial charge of water before use, but one can forgo that and use the shower to flush when needed until the liquid level hits the minimum to run the pump.  This has the advantage of making it so that it’s longer before the black water needs dumped.

The Kitchen

There is an extension to the counter top by the sink that folds down.  (You can’t get out the door with it up.)  It doubles as a counter-top and a table for when the passenger seat is swiveled around to face the back of the van.

A lot of times I don’t bother to turn the passenger seat around, but when I do I remember how much more comfortable it is than the dining booth.

The kitchen in the van has everything one could need- a stove, fridge, sink, microwave, a little storage and even a vent fan for the stove.  The vent fan over the sink never quite sealed right, so I added some of the bubbly aluminum coated stuff that I used to make window covers to the ‘door’ on it.  That helped a lot.

I can’t talk about the kitchen without talking about coffee.  I have a metal french press that I take with me in the van.  I ordered the metal one after having a glass one smash on the floor of the van.  Plus it’s insulated.  That way when I’m parked off-grid, I can heat water in a pan on the stove and still make coffee.  Actually, I use the french press at home too just because it makes good coffee.  I did try buying a hand-crank coffee grinder for fresh ground coffee when I was off grid, but the thing didn’t work that well.  Now I go for either buying ground coffee or grinding it when I do have the van plugged in somewhere and storing it in a container.

The thingies that go on the burners for the stove rattle when going down the road, so when I remember, I’ll take them off so I don’t have to listen to them.  At one point, I had a little bit of hot glue on the points where they contact the stove top and that helped, but eventually the hot glue fell off.  I would maybe replace the hot glue if I end up keeping the van post engine catastrophe.

There isn’t a lot of space in the van, so it’s pretty essential to just do the dishes right away.  Early on, I bought the cutest little RV dish drainer.  There wasn’t really a place to put it though, so it was soon ditched.   Now, I just put a towel on the table and set the dishes on there and then dry them as soon as I’m done washing them.  Speaking of dishes, I keep them to a minimum- a couple plates, bowls and cups, some silverware, a can opener, a frying pan, a sauce pan and a few containers that nest inside each other.

I rarely use the microwave and have thought about taking it out.  It is a hazard for bonking my head.  Speaking of which, there are many things that are hazards for smashing my head in the van including the lights and most especially the doors on the overhead storage areas when they are open.  The microwave is however a good place to hang a Daily Motivator that I liked with a magnet I got at a yoga retreat.

The Fridge

The fridge is a 3-way fridge that will run off of propane, 12-volt, or AC power.  I have occasionally had problems with it staying lit on propane.  Mostly these problems were fixed by taking it apart and cleaning some of the pieces.  Sometimes it will still blow out on extremely windy days.  It does have a vent on the outside of the van above the access panel for the fridge and a quick way to check if the fridge is still lit is to feel if that vent is warm.

The fridge is pretty tiny, but it’s enough to keep a few things. I found it hard to fit normal egg cartons in there, but found a plastic egg container for camping that has a 3×4 dimension rather than the standard 2×6 of normal cartons that fits a lot better.

I even have a miniature freezer.  (The ice cube tray is completely frozen to the cooling element.)  My Ice Cream Snickers bar on the other hand was in good shape. 

Dining Area

The benches for the table also lie flat to turn into a twin bed.  Since the two seats are designed to also convert into a twin bed, I bought two fitted twin sheets and folded them in half to make my seat covers.  The front seat will also rotate around to face forward so that passengers can ride there (two to a bench means that the van has seatbelts for six.)  My trashcan also lives here.  It’s really a collapsible laundry hamper that I put a trash bag in.  I loop it over the armrest for the driver’s seat so that it doesn’t go sliding around when I’m driving.  This way I can reach it easily when I’m cooking or when I’m driving down the road.

I prefer drinking filtered water to drinking the water from the RV tank.  One reason for this is that I can be lazier about disinfecting the water tank.  The other is that tap water can vary in taste widely across the country.  I found a little hand pump that attaches to the bottle to make it easy to dispense.  It happens to fit perfectly behind the dining booth with a second water jug, my yoga mat and a folding camp chair.  The camp chair used to live in the storage area that’s accessible from outside, but I found it so much nicer to have it handy.

There isn’t much room behind the other seat, but there is just enough to store the window coverings I have.  They are made out of reflective foil insulation that velcros to the inside of the windows for extra insulation in really hot and cold months.

Both seats lift up, but there isn’t much space under the rear one since that is where the heater is.  The other seat has a little space under it where I keep a few tools.  (I try to pack light, but tools is not a place where I skimp.  I have a second toolbox that I carry in the back storage area.)  It also houses the water heater and auxiliary battery.

Outside

My bike goes on the back of the van.  It’s really just attached with two straps that go around the mount for the spare tire.  Plus I lock it on so nobody steals it.  The spare tire swings out to give access to a storage compartment that is under the bed.  The storage compartment is home to my water hose, electrical cords, extra tools and some other miscellaneous things.  There is a second access to this compartment on the side of the van.

The van also has a little porch light by the door.  I have found it handy at times when bugs get in the van that are attracted to light.  I’ll turn off the lights in the van and turn on the porch light to try to draw them out.

The van also has a great awning.  While I haven’t used it very often, it has been really nice once or twice, especially when it’s raining and I want to chill outside.

This post has come out to be longer than I expected, but I wanted to share all that I’ve learned over the years with my van.  While I am now contemplating selling it, I’ve had a ton of fun with it and am so grateful that I had it.

The post Everything I’ve learned about traveling in a Class B (van) RV (Plus pictures!!) appeared first on Live Hoppy.

The engine on my van basically exploded while I had the van out in Texas.  “Exploded” is not the technical term for it.  I’m too tired to care about the technical term.  I was set to start driving back home later that day.

It has been a long couple of days since it happened.  Tonight, I am tired.  Or more accurately, totally exhausted.  Tomorrow will be another long day, but I will get home tomorrow.

The tow truck took me to an RV park, although not an exciting one.  (A dirt lot by the train tracks with a few other old trailers a bit of trash and some plants with stickers on them.)  But I have RV hook-ups and have had a little time to make a plan which at this point mostly involves heading home in the rental car I picked up today with everything out of the van and then finding a way to transport the van home later.

I feel kind of sad and nostalgic.  At this point, I don’t know if I will replace the engine in the van or just sell it or what.  This could be my last night in it.  I’ve already packed some stuff in the car and the van has that feel like I’m moving out of a house.  Chaos, small bits of clutter and miscellaneous things out of place and empty spots where things used to go.

In a lot of ways, it’s been a major bummer.  The van needs major repairs and I’ve had to deal with being stranded.  Although, I do have a plan now and I feel better now that I have the rental car.

I keep thinking that I have a lot to be thankful for. On the side of the road after it happened, several people stopped to ask if I needed help.  The tow truck driver was super nice and helpful- taking me first to a shop to get a quick diagnosis and quote, then to one RV park that wouldn’t answer their phone and let me know if I could park and then to another RV park, getting out with me to help me check that the spot had hook-ups and taking time to position the van well.  The people I know here have really helped me out- driving me an hour and a half to the nearest rental car place to get a rental, offering a place to park my van when I leave town and just being generally great.  Lots of people have offered advice and support, helping me to figure out the best plan.  While the van needs repaired, I didn’t wreck it- I am safe and Hoppy is safe too.  It’s a bummer, but it’s not my only vehicle.  I have a reliable car to go home to.  I have enough money to handle a tow bill and rental car.

It just makes me realize how much my habits of gratitude have sunken in very deeply.  Something major can go wrong in my life and I still have so much that I find to be grateful for.  And it’s not like I’m working to feel that way.  All these things that I’m thankful for just spring to mind unbidden.

The post Van engine blew up appeared first on Live Hoppy.

Of course, there have been a few bumps along the way.  My fridge won’t stay lit.  Odd as it may sound to those unfamiliar with RV refrigerators, it runs off of propane through some sort of complicated process.  My dad who is brilliant tried explaining it to me one day, but I half-understood at best.  To me, it’s still kind of magic that a little flame keeps my food cold.  At least, it keeps my food cold when I can keep the flame lit.  Also, my auxiliary battery doesn’t seem to have enough power for what I need for a night out.  There’s always something to keep things interesting.

Honestly, I’m not too worried about any of the little things that aren’t working.  Part of the idea of doing some short trips away from home is to start to figure out what I need to fix and what stuff I really need to have with me while I can still return to the resources of my house to work on the problems.  My excitement at finally being in the van out-weights any little issues.  Taking the van out for a night really reminded me exactly why I am working so hard to sell the house and travel around.

The post First night out with the van appeared first on Live Hoppy.

Tint, shelves, tires & curtain rods

I also had the windows tinted to help keep the van cooler and provide some extra privacy.  The tires still had good tread, but they were several years old so I had new ones put on to be safe.  The improvement in handling and the smoother ride from the new tires made me glad I did.  Then I put some temporary shelves in the closet so I could fit more stuff in there in an organized fashion. I also installed new “curtain rods” (basically some wire with a white plastic coating and some nice looking hooks to attach it).  You can see from the picture of the curtains below that I still need to re-do the window screens in a couple of the windows.

Installing a new fan

I had a leak in the vent/fan over the bed and I didn’t want water dripping on my when it rained.  So, I replaced the vent fan with a better one.  I have to say that the new fan was one of the best things I’ve done for the RV.  I only put it in because the old one was leaking, but the new one has been amazing!  It move an incredible amount of air, is remote controlled, has a thermostat option, a reverse option, and a rain-sensor that will automatically close the lid if it rains.  My favorite thing is just the amount of air it moves, making it comfortable in my van at times when I otherwise would have needed the air conditioner.

Here’s links for everything I used for installing the fan on Amazon: Fan-tastic 807350 vent with digital wireless remote,  universal vent installation kit, dicor lap sealant.

(Note:I participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I only link to the few products that I would recommend anyway. I am very selective since I hate ads, thus the lack of any other form of ads on here.)

The toilet

I did a lot of maintenance on the toilet.  I completely took it out of the van and cleaned everything.  It has two gate valves that drain it, one directly under the toilet and the other at the end of the drain pipe.  Both of them leaked, which created some real problems.  I replaced both valves and several other parts on the toilet.  It was not the most glorious job, but it’s worked a lot better since then.

The dream list

There is a lot more that I want to do to the van and an endless list of cool things that I’d like to buy for it.  I just wanted to start with the most important things before I actually moved in.  The other stuff is stuff I can work on while I’m living in the van.  Plus, some things that I think I want I may find out that I don’t really need.  My dream list includes a 12-volt monitor, solar panels, an extra battery, a back-up camera, a stereo with a built-in GPS and a screen to see the back-up video feed, a generator, new carpet, new upholstery on the seats, re-wiring the stereo so it runs off of the auxiliary battery so I can use it for watching videos, adding an extra shelf in the back, and the list goes on and on.  The truth is that I know that a lot of that stuff probably wouldn’t really even increase the quality of my time on the road.  For now, I’m happy with having things fixed up and ready for me to move in!

The post Preparing the RV appeared first on Live Hoppy.

My van is built on a 1984 Dodge B350 base.  The modification process involved cutting off the top and back and replacing it with a fiberglass piece.  The back end is extended slightly beyond the length of the original van body.  It’s an Xplorer van, and the modifications to turn it into an RV were done by a company called Frank Industries.

It includes pretty much everything except a generator (although the same company made models that did have generators).

Included in my van:

• A bathroom- albeit a very small one.  (You have to sit on the toilet when showering because there is no room to stand.)
• Kitchen- a 3-way fridge (propane, 12v or 120v), a 2 burner propane stove, an exhaust fan over the stove, a sink, a microwave (not original), and a couple of cupboards and drawers for storage.
• Dinette- a dinette booth that also folds into a twin bed as well as having seat belts and converting to be seats for passengers.  There is also a small amount of storage available under the benches.
• Appliances- an AC, heater, and a water heater (the engine coolant also circulates through the hot water heater, serving both to heat the water when you’re driving and to keep the engine cooler).
• Storage- a small closet, overhead storage compartments and a storage compartment under the bed that is accessible from outside
• A bed in the back
• Propane tank, fresh water tank, grey-water holding tank and self-contained toilet that doubles as the black-water tank
• An awning
• Front seats that swivel to double as recliners

Pictures from the day I bought it:

I’ll update this with some more recent pictures once I finish moving into my van and I’m settled in.

The post About my van appeared first on Live Hoppy.

As I’ve been going through this process of reducing clutter, there are a few resources that have really resonated with me.  Marie Kondo’s book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying up and The Minimalists have both become popular lately.  Some things become popular because they’re really awesome things and I think both of those fall into this category.  They share many of the same basic principles and I know I’m not the only one that is becoming aware that all this stuff doesn’t make me happy.

If you ask somebody if stuff makes them happy, they’re sure to say ‘no’, but there are so many thoughts and beliefs below the surface that we have about things that don’t align with that.  The desire to have the newest phone, or a better looking jacket.

I certainly don’t think that everybody needs to become a minimalist, but I think that most people can benefit from becoming more intentional in their purchases and clearing out at least a little unused clutter.  Seeing my own stance echoed back from these sources has been re-affirming and inspiring.  I’ve also used a lot of great tips and ideas about how to de-clutter from these sources.

Resources on minimalism and de-cluttering

The Minimalists

The Minimalists have great articles not only about getting rid of things, but also living a more intentional life in other ways.  They talk a lot about what values are important to them and where they want to go with their lives now that they have cleared out the clutter.

Life-Changing Magic

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo is a very motivating book.  The principle is simple: getting rid of anything that doesn’t ‘spark joy’.  It does a great job of going into detail about how to actually accomplish this.  It has tips on where to start and how to tackle different areas of the house and categories of stuff.  The concept is simple, but this book really made me want to start right in on ditching the excess and living with just the things I truly care about.

(Note:I participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I only link to the few products that I would recommend anyway. I am very selective since I hate ads, thus the lack of any other form of ads on here.)

Zen Habits

Leo Babauta has some great articles on his site Zen Habits.  Here’s his Guide to Creating a Minimalist Home.  I highly recommend exploring around and checking out more of his stuff as well.

The ten-item wardrobe

This is a great TED talk on having fewer clothes.  It’s been great inspiration for me while I’ve been in the process of cleaning out my closet.

The post Resources on minimalism appeared first on Live Hoppy.

Thoughts on things

Getting rid of extra stuff feels good- I have been going through the process of donating, throwing away, or giving away a lot of my stuff for the last three months, with a lot more to go.  At first, I was worried that it was going to be hard to part with my beloved possessions.  So far at least, that has not been the case.  I decided to start with getting rid of the things that were easy to part with.  If I had second thoughts, I would just wait on that item.  This policy certainly made it easier to start the process.  Everything I get rid of feels like a weight lifted that I didn’t even realize I was carrying.  The space and diminishing clutter made me want to get rid of more things.  It felt motivating and exciting.  It may have felt even better than acquiring the stuff in the first place did.

Things all come with a price- And I don’t just mean the price we pay to buy them.  Even free things come with a price: they need to be taken care of, dusted, organized, stored and looked-at.  It seems silly to say that you have to look at something.  It’s not like that is a hard task or anything.  The things we see influence our thoughts and moods even though we may not be aware of it.  It makes a difference whether I see clean, organized shelves in the garage when I get in my car or if I see piles of clutter on the shelves.  This isn’t even a space I live in, but it matters.  Somewhere in my mind these things register and weigh on my brain.  Even when I’m not in the garage, somewhere in my brain is the memory of the clutter.

“Just in case”- One of the things that The Minimalists talk about a lot is things we have “just in case” and how dangerous this is.  I have been guilty of having a ton of things “just in case” and these things rarely or never are actually used.  I recently donated boxes of clothes that no longer fit me.  I kept them for years “just in case” they fit again some day.  Some of them were nice clothes, but the truth is that if I’m ever a size zero again, I probably won’t want to be dressing like a freshman in college now that I’m in my late twenties anyway.

Storage- I spent a summer cleaning out storage units that people had defaulted on.  Most of the stuff was just junk.  I’m pretty sure some of them paid more to store the stuff than it would have cost to replace everything in there several times over.  Stuff in storage really doesn’t provide value to anyone’s life.  In general, I am completely against the idea of storing anything.  That said, there are a few things I plan to store with family while I’m living in the van.  I have a few musical instruments, a couple of antique pieces of furniture from my grandma, a few things from my childhood like (don’t laugh) my Lion King sheets and blanket, a ton of artwork I made and some other things that are important to me.  These are all things that can’t just be replaced some day with a quick trip to the mall.

What I really need- I travel for work and I can spend two weeks on the road with only what fits in the trunk of my car.  Granted, I do stay at hotels that provide a lot of the basics: a bed, a shower, and a roof over my head.  Really, I never feel like I am lacking for stuff on these trips.  I actually enjoy the uncluttered feel of a motel room without extra junk cluttering it up.  If I can get by without a bunch of crap for two weeks, I’m pretty sure I don’t really need it at all.

I have also thought about the stuff I actually use or touch in a given day at my house.  Sometimes people think the van doesn’t have enough, but if I go through my routine, it has all I need.  So much of my stuff in my house just sits there untouched and unused day in and day out.

Less is more- I don’t plan to get rid of anything that is really useful to me.  I’m not looking to see how little I can survive on.  And I actually really like some things that I own: my favorite jacket, my computer, my insanely expensive kitchen knives, and the list could go on for some time.  My goal is to get down to having quality things that I really enjoy and use and to get rid of the excess that just takes up space.

Tips on discarding stuff

Getting started- Chances are, you don’t want to get rid of 97% of your stuff like I need to.  But you probably have things that you don’t need, don’t like or don’t use.  The best way to get started on clearing out a few of these things is to get an empty cardboard box or a trash bag and start filling it up with things that you don’t want anymore.  You don’t have to do this all at once.  You can let the box sit there and just put things in it as you notice things throughout the day that you could part with.  When the box or bag is full, take it to the thrift store.  (And don’t be afraid to use your trash can!)

Donating- Most items can be simply donated to the thrift store.  Some items can also be donated to homeless shelters or the humane society. (I’m an animal lover and I felt really good dropping off a few bags of towels and blankets at the local animal shelter.  They are always looking for these items for the animals as well as pet toys, food and water bowls, etc.  You can call and inquire about what items these places need.)  While it can be tempting to want to save things for a garage sale or to sell on Ebay, unless you’re really strapped for cash, it’s best to just donate it and be done with it.  Plus, you can feel good about your donation since most thrift stores support really great causes.

Duplicates- It’s amazing how many items we can have duplicates of.  I had duplicates of everything from extra bedding in case I have guests to bug spray.  I do have guests just frequently enough that it makes sense to keep an extra set of sheets and a blanket that can go on the futon in the living room.  My house only has one bathroom though, so I am unlikely to need enough bedding for 12.  (Of course, once I’m in the RV, I won’t need guest bedding at all.)  Unless we’re talking about underwear, you don’t need more than one of the same item.  OK, clearly there are more exceptions to this than just underwear, but you get my point.  Duplicate items can be a good thing to start with because you know you have another one in case you actually need the item.

Clothes- Clothes can be particularly hard to part with- even when they don’t fit right.  After donating all of the clothes that I knew were way too small for me or just not my style, things got more difficult.  My approach was to take everything out of my closet except what I knew I wore frequently.  I put this stuff in a second closet, but you could put it in a box or some where else.  In order for something to make it back into my closet, I had to wear it for at least a few hours or a day and see if it really fit me well and I enjoyed wearing it.  Some items fit me when I first put them on and actually looked really good on me.  Then within a few hours, I would find that I’d be constantly adjusting them or that the bottom of a shirt would lift up if I raised my arms and I’d be pulling it down to meet my pants again.  Clothes that fit don’t need to be adjusted constantly so these thing would go in the donate box.

Scanning– Some stuff like photos and important papers really can’t be ditched entirely, but I’ve come to love scanning things and then discarding the hard copies.

Photos– Old photos can be scanned and then thrown away.  Sort through the photos first and only scan the good ones that you really want to keep.  While it’s possible to reduce physical clutter by scanning everything, digital clutter is it’s own battle.  Plus you’ll have less to scan if you only do the ones you really want to keep.  While you may think you’ll go back and delete the ones you don’t want later, the time to do it is now while you’re going through them all anyway.

Documents- Like photos, sort through to see what you really need to keep and what you can do away with entirely.  Scan the things you need to keep.  I have found that my paper shredder is the perfect companion to my scanner.  I shred the sensitive stuff that I’ve scanned- which means pretty much everything.  That stuff I throw in the trash doesn’t really disappear and I don’t like to think of some guy that works at the dump seeing pictures of me from when I was in high school.  OK, maybe the chances of that happening aren’t that high, but I still like to shred things I don’t really want other people to see.

Books- Books are not trophies.  Having a shelf full of them won’t make anybody think you’re smart. OK, maybe they will make some people think that you’re smart, but that’s besides the point.  If you’ve already read it, you’re probably not going to read it again.  And they collect dust.  Pass them on to somebody who hasn’t read them yet and enjoy the extra space you have.

Recommended Resources- I have drawn a lot of inspiration and ideas from a few different resources on minimalism as I have been doing all of this.  I think any time there is something that we are working for it’s beneficial to read and learn about the topic.  This provides ideas as well as motivation.

The post Discarding stuff appeared first on Live Hoppy.

I’d like to think I’d be doing this even if I wasn’t moving into the van so that I could reduce the clutter around the house.  I’ve been clearing out a lot of stuff in preparation to move into my van and sell the house.   It’s amazing to me though how much more enjoyable my house is without the stuff!

I was inspired by The Minimalists to start scanning everything that I could.  I probably would have done this a whole lot sooner, except I never had a good scanner.  I had a three-in-one printer-copier-scanner that was a real pain in the bottom to use as a scanner: it takes forever and is a hassle putting in each page and closing the lid.  I recently purchased a new scanner that I simply love.

The scanner I use

I recently purchased a Doxie Go Plus.  It’s everything I could ever want in a scanner: portable, easy-to-use, battery-powered, small and quick.  It also has simple, yet powerful software that makes it easy to adjust scans and save them as either a JPEG or PDF.  It also has a great option for OCR (optical character recognition) that can ‘read’ the text to make searchable PDFs.  I love it because it will run off of battery power and has an internal memory so I can scan stuff on the go and then download the scans to my computer later.  It also has an option to use a USB flash drive or an SD card to store and transport the scans.

(Note:I participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I only link to the few products that I would recommend anyway. I am very selective since I hate ads, thus the lack of any other form of ads on here.)

Doxie Go Plus Photos

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