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Step 1
Park your van in a different location every few days. You'll want to keep away from law enforcement that might tend to view your domestic situation as vagrancy.
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Step 2
Save as much money as you can by shopping at discount food markets. You may be surprised to find that deep discounts are available at these venues, giving you the extra income to improve your current van living situation.
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Step 3
Park your van in a shady area whenever possible to elude sun damage throughout the day. A van can get rather hot in the summer months.
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Step 4
Park near a body of swiftly moving water if at all possible. This provides you with a ready source to wash cooking and eating utensils.
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Step 5
Find inexpensive campgrounds that provide water and electricity. This money saver can allow you to live in your van and not feel depressed by unattractive physical surroundings.
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Step 6
Remember to remain optimistic throughout this period and try to not worry about plush living accommodations. This is merely a temporary step to give you a chance to get back on your feet.
Comments
mountainfresh50 said
on 6/8/2009 VanDweller: I agree with you. There is absolutely nothing wrong about living a simpler lifestyle out of your van. Society teaches you that if you don�t aspire to acquire material goods and possessions than you must be lazy or you've fallen on hard times. What about those of us who want to get back down to our roots. Experience nature and life without the constant debt and consumerism that is encouraged in modern society. I say LIVE PROUD and never be ashamed no matter what silly e-article insinuates that you should. All you need is music, friends, good food, your health and a warm place to sleep. THAT is true happiness and that is something to be very proud of.
Kathymcbain said
on 1/8/2009 errrr, if someone is homeless and living in a van, what are the chances they are online reading ehow?
VanDweller said
on 5/28/2008 Please, for the sake of eHow's reputation, and out of respect to vandweller community, either write a *real* article about how to live in a van, or delete this article entirely.
(sorry for the confusion of multiple posts, you really should also consider making your comments field larger)
VanDweller said
on 5/28/2008 This article *could* be a great resource about how to convert an old van or bus into a real living space, including options and ideas for overcoming some of the most noticable challenges (lack of plumbing, options to effectively block light going both directions, wiring in any media like a computer, or television, satellite tv/internet options, making the van/bus more economically friendly by changing the fuel system or in other ways, etc).
Instead, the article in its current state is nearly useless, and insulting to boot. The length and content-depth afforded this article makes eHow look lazy and cheap, and further, makes eHow's editors look bad because of the fact that it is titled "How To Live In a Van" but is an article mostly about how to save money and not feel bad about yourself while you wait for a time when your luck has changed so that you can *not* live in a van.
Please,
VanDweller said
on 5/28/2008 This article is absolutely terrible, and should be removed from your site. eHow is already known for rather brief articles, but this one doesn't even address the subject. This is a collection of random tips for people that are living out of their vehicles while waiting for a change in fortune, nothing more.
There is a whole community of people (the new politically correct term being 'vandwellers') that are actively *trying* to make vans and buses into real homes, albeit nontraditional homes. People do this for financial reasons as you've implied (no money spent on a mortgage or rent), for convenience (vagrant lifestyle, a need to travel for work, etc), and many other reasons, including just personal preference.
This article *could* be a great resource about how to convert an old van or bus into a real living space, including options and ideas for overcoming some of the most noticab