The event tents are up now so a nice central meeting place for those who don’t want to go to the pub.

I parked right across the at the far end of the field as I wanted to run my Genny.  someone came and parked right next to me then asked me if I was going to be running it all night?  I think they were joking but not totally sure.

Oooo  Errrr.  I have only had it a week and already upsetting people   But why park right next to someone when they already have the generator running if you don’t like generators?

The new van is a LWB Fiat Ducato and it only measure 3.5Mtrs in length internally for the living space.

The upside of the small van is I can go anywhere at any time including the supermarket without planning.

The downside is I really really really have to sell everything I own. I can’t carry more than a small handfull of books. The CD’s are out the window along with the DVD’s. The physical photo’s are hard but they have to go as well. The push bike is going as is a bunch of other stuff that is really handy but only gets used once a month at most. There will be no microwave, no toaster and no full power desktop computer for when I am on hookup.

My new lifestyle will be move fast move often. But it means I have my clothes, my ebook, and my laptops and not much else.

It is quite liberating once I commited to it but the process was pretty tough to be honest.

Any way,  don’t expect a cuppa if you call on me,  my other 3 cups have gone in a skip.  I can’t cook a meal as I only have two hobs and two pans.  Well I can cook a meal but you will have to share the plate and knives and forks with me,  The table only seats one so you will have to sit outside.  However, I did this for me…  I can get on my European tour, learn some languages and see some sights.   I may miss out on the very rare occasion when someone wants to visit me but my travels are going to be much smoother and easier to organise.

Tomorrow will be a steady day cutting and mitring the framework and cutting the 5mm ply to size.  At this point all the main cupboards will be covered to prevent stuff flying out when driving.

I am hoping to get my satelite internet system next week so my choice of campsites will dramatically increase.

I am just trying to think about things that I miss from having a house and all I can come up with is flush and forget toilets but even that is no bug bear any more.  It was amazing how quickly I became immune to the cassette smell to be honest.

Moving into the Bus has been hard due to the lack of storage space and having no where to work on it but once the Bus is done this will vanish.

Would I recommend it?  Highly.  The freedom, the reduced outgoings, the peace and quiet and most importantly reduced the amount of hours you need to work just to live.

The layout I had settled on didn’t survive the first cut of wood unfortunately.  I bought some chalk and started marking out the floor with the location of things like gas cylinders, heaters, sinks etc. and most of the items just won’t work in the location I had chosen.  For example the location of the heater won’t work as the exhaust vent hits a structural member that was hidden behind a wall panel.  I can’t move the heater in either direction.The new location for the heater means that it would be under the sink and I don’t want any water above anything that has electrickery in it.

The new location for the sink means that the dinette seating area has to shrink a little which means the water tank won’t fit under it anymore.

The list goes on.

Another piece of bad news is the saw I bought to cut the sheet wood is not up to the job and I either need to spend more money on a new one or buy the wood precut.  I have decided to go with the precut route as it costs nothing to get the wood cut to the right size.  It will also save me quite a bit of time as cutting wood can be quite time consuming in the limited space I have on the bus.

The other bit of bad news is the  location of the shower intrudes into one of the roof windows so I am having a rethink on that.

The top of the side walls where they meet the roof have a 45Degree angle to them.  I drilled one of the panels off to see what was behind and found a nice channel to run cables in.  Unfortunately it was absolutely sodden with condensation.  I will have to find ways of insulating them all without blocking the access to cables.  Another job on the list.

I have disconnected the pneumatic arm to the rear most of the double front entrance doors.  I am building the bottom step up so it is level with the middle step and boxing this in for the gas cylinders.  I will at a later date remove the door and replace it with a metal panel to make it look nice.  The downside is that I have inadvertently caused an air leak somewhere and as this air system also powers the brakes the vehicle is currently immobilised.   I will be pulling the panel back off tomorrow to fix this.

I have fitted the boiler to the floor and run the cold water pipe and hot water pipe in,  the John Guest system is really good and really fast to use.  It’s well worth the money.  I however need to buy a new drill bit to make the hole in the water tank to install the connector.

I am placing the order for the wood tomorrow for the internal walls that will hold the shower and bed.  This one piece of wood is 18mm think and will be screwed to the side of the bed and to the floor.  This will stabilise the bed and provide a solid wall for the shower.  An identical piece of wood but half the width will go at the other end of the shower.  The sink will be mounted to this and will allow access to the shower.  Finally the third piece of wood will be at the far end of the bathroom area which will separate the kitchen area and the bathroom area.  Once this is in I can start running the cabling for the boiler and install the last of the water pipes.

Another decision I have made is that all electrics will be run at roof height and all water systems at floor height.  With the boiler now having moved to the middle of the bus and the gas cylinder to the front the gas lines are now really short which improves safety and makes the job much easier.  I will be getting a plumber in to connect it all up to ensure it is done correctly from day one.

I was going to have the battery bank at the back of the bus but have moved it behind the drivers seat as the water tanks are now at the back.  This  balances out the load and means I don’t have to run 240V cables from the back to the front.  All 240V systems will now be located around where the battery bank is.  The only 12V systems needed at the back now are the water pump and lights.  This drastically cuts down on wiring costs and time.

Anyway that’s enough for now as I need to go and get on with it.

Another Bonus of being a fulltimer without a house

The down sides to this is that I may not be able to get everything in that I wanted to on my initial plans, but the upside is that it will be cheaper to build, smaller and cheaper to run.

I won’t be able to carry a months worth of fresh water or waste and the washing machine may be out of plans.  However due to its smaller size I will be able to get it to places I couldn’t take the truck.

I am starting to price it up and plan the layout to see if I could fit everything in and be comfortable with it.  I also need to do research on the base vehicle to find what the common faults are and how long I can reasonably expect the vehicle to last for me.

Here is a list of probably the most important questions I have been asking myself.

1) Do I need it?

Every extra KG of junk that you carry around adds to your running costs and reduces space and payload for more essential items. Before buying anything think do I need it and will I use it?

2) Will I be safe here?

When WildCamping, Before parking up anywhere for the night check the area out. Trust your feelings, if it feels hinkey move on. Always park facing the exist and leave enough space behind and in front to allow you some manouvering space just in case you need to ‘escape’ in the night. Don’t use external Silver Screens on your windscreen. Have you van in a ready to go state and have your clothes handy to put on in an emergency. Don’t drink alcohol when wildcamping.

3) How much fuel do I have left and where is the nearest place to get more.

This is not so much a problem in this country, but I ran out of Diesel once in France because the automated fuel stations didn’t accept my debit cards. I now fill up when I hit half a tank left as walking 7KM in 38C temperatures was not fun.

4) Should I sell my house or rent it.

For me personally after much humming and ahhing I decided to sell. What I did was find out how much rent I could get for the house. I then substracted 10% for agency fees and an additional 10% for repairs and maintenance. I then looked at the difference between the income and the mortgage + Insurance and I would end up paying to keep the house. If you can rent and get enough to cover the mortgage, can afford the house to be empty for up to two months a year and can afford to pay for any repairs then it may be worth considering renting it out. But if you will be out of pocket I reckon you would either need to sell or give up the idea of fulltiming.

5) How self sufficient do I want to be?

This will dictate what type of van you need.  I have seen a couple using a VW panel van un-converted and they toured round Europe following the sun and staying on sites with all facilities.  However if you want to wildcamp almost 100% you will need much larger tanks, gas cylinders and payload capacity.

6) Contingencies?

If you are fulltiming you have to have some sort of a plan for if your van suffers a serious mechanical breakdown,  gets in an accident or even worst case scenario gets stolen.  Have enough money saved to one side to put these plans into action.

7) If I lose my job/work what will I do while fulltiming?

Not really an issue as your costs will be much lower than if you were in a bricks and mortar house.  However some employers I am sure will require a fixed address to be able to offer you work.

Can you think of any other questions?  Please let me know and I will do my best to answer them for you….

I am loving the lifestyle so much and have started to settle into a few routines now.  When I lived in a bricks and mortar house I used to have to dedicate around 4 hours to keeping it clean per week excluding any gardening or other maintenance that needed doing.  I have got a full van clean down to 20 minutes on average and I do this once a week on a sunday.  Yes you heard me correctly,  I clean my entire house top to bottom in only 20 minutes and I do it every week.  It takes 5 minutes to wash the shower/toilet and sink,  After each shower though I use the damp towel to wipe down the shower area.  I do this to prevent mildew or anything else growing so this makes things easier on the weekly clean.  Hoovering the carpets takes me 5 minutes also.  Washing up, cleaning the cooker and oven and putting everthing away takes another 5 minutes.  Then it is a quick whiz round the van with Mr Sheen impregnated cloths.  All cabinets are dusted including the tops which you can’t actually see.

After the cleaning has been done,  I empty the tanks and refill with fresh water  this does take around 20 minutes all in.  I then head to the laundrette put a large washload in (£5.00) and while this is going wander round to the local supermarket to stock up on weekly supplies.  I get back to the Laundrette in time to spend another £3 on the tumble dryer and 40 minutes later they are all away.  The van is now looking good, I have a full set of clean clothes and towels etc.

All in all it takes me 3 hours from start to finish to do ALL my domestic chores for the week and that includes travelling time, shopping, cleaning and laundering.

I haven’t yet come up against any major downsides to full timing that I haven’t experienced in my (ex) normal life.   The things that I thought would get old and tedious fast such as emptying the toilet cassette have just become one of those things I need to do and doesn’t actually bother me in the slighest.

All in all I love full fulltiming in my van and cannot forsee this every changing.  However I am writing this in the summer so my views may change come winter time…  We shall just have to wait and see.

The £200 is overkill as I have been enjoying myself, eating out and going to pub but have still had £20-£50 left at the end of each week.  Once I have bought a few more things for the van I will be cutting back on my wages and leaving more to my savings.  I think £150 per week is more than enough for me to live happily on in the van.  I am spending around £40 per week on food and drink for consumption in the van which I think is stable.  The laundrette costs me £5.50 per week.  I was buying a gas cyclinder every 7-9 days until the weather turned.  The gas was costing me £22 each change.  This cylinder however has lasted me 2 weeks so far and is still going strong.

I am down to half a tank of Diesel so each tank will last me around 2 months.  This is better than I expected considering I am doing lots of little moves each day rather than long dashes cross country.  I am averaging about 10 miles a day currently.