We are seniors and we are part time van lifers. One time at a park we met this lady of similar age with two little dogs. As soon as she arrived, she set out her table, two chairs and a pair of large old hiking boots and two coffee mugs on the table. She also had a cap and large gloves on the dash. I thought it was very smart.
Thank you!! 🙏🏻 Building my dream home with my dad AND mom (my mom used power tools for the first time in her life 🥹) was nothing short of life changing. ❤️
What a free spirit! For those who don't need a close knit community, this looks like an adventurous life! I'm sure she has plenty of great stories to tell! 😊
Hi there!! It might surprise a lot of people, but the van-life community is super close and supportive. There are *huge* van gatherings where we connect with amazing people, then we break off and travel around in smaller groups between gatherings. The culture is beyond inspiring out here 🤗
That's a very nice van build. You and your dad did a wonderful job and a great conversion. I really wanted to acquire one of those but I couldn't find one at the time and ended up buying a camper van with a few feet longer and over 6 ft of headroom. Is that the 6. 5 turbo diesel engine in that? I don't think the military had anything built like that with a gas engine. If it is the 6. 5 diesel they have a few issues that you can make better with a few retrofits. The newer ones like the one you have the better engine block. I really don't want to alarm you but the 6. 5 is a very good motor with a few modifications. It gets very good fuel mileage which it was designed for. I'm really sorry if I alarmed you but I hope you get better acquainted with the engine because it'll save you tons of money and grief on the road and keep you from getting taken advantage of by Shady mechanics or people that you really don't know what they're doing.
Your van is lovely Heather. Although the outside has a Masculine look the colour of your van outside compliments the colour of the roof. The inside is cosy especially your bed/lounge area. I like the colours you have chosen as well. Enjoy your journey in this lovely van and stay safe xx
@@heatherkuhnheim2493 Box Van Dee also has basically the same box van, I forget which model year, from an Air Force base. I'm the guy who removed its pocket door in order to extend her flooring over the step well, add folding stairs that store in the stepwell under the floor, and replaced the pocket door with a conventional door. Well, almost conventional. The door is split into a main upper door, and a small lower door to lock up the stair-stowage compartment, so that the stairs can be kept extended at camp, while still allowing the door into the living space to be locked. All while providing no path for mice or people to worm their way in, lol. It was a bit of an exercise in mechanical design to figure out how to make it all work, fit, and provide flooring all the way to the door so she'd stop having her chair leg dump her into the step well. Videos of the door/floor/stair changes we made in July 2021 are on the Box Van Dee channel. A very recent tour of her rig is on her friend's channel, Van Life Voyages.
I also bought the exact same style van from an auction. I painted it black and turned it into a coffee truck! Now it's a great money-maker and I'm self-employed 🙂
Thank you for your kind words! The composter is a GAME CHANGER. It keeps scraps out of my trash can (and prevents critters from sniffing their way to my house 🐭)!
Love your channel, you do such a good job tracking down these tiny home owners. It’s good to see people willing to try anything, some by necessity others by adventure. Keep up your great work, greetings from Southern California, this is Alan
I'm seeing a lot of lady vanners lately. This is a lovely, well thought out build! The fact you built it with your parents is absolutely precious. You have a great background to do your zoom meetings with. Picturesque and well decorated. I do believe that was an Air Force van because of the color. We ran those on the flightline, so I kind of "lived" in one for many years.
With the price of houses and mortgages on the climb, alternative abodes appears to be common at the moment. Not to mention, this post modern life is making folks rethink their lifestyles and seek out what's truly important.
@@heatherkuhnheim2493I was wondering how you dealt with showers... and how you deal with goings to the garage to deal with mechanical issues? Thanks for the inspiration! Wonderful ❤ Keep following your intuition😊
Beautiful and amazing home, and what a lovely person she is!!! My only suggestion would be having some kind of back support when she's sitting at her desk (although I know it might be tricky to think of sthing, cos she's sitting on a bench-type thing). But yeah, as the daughter of a physiotherapist, I just wanted to suggest having back support when you're on those Zoom calls. All the best for all your future amazing travels!!!😊
Thank you so much!!! I’ve never been more proud to do anything else in my life. Building with my dad, and having this video to document the story, is life changing to say the least! 😌❤️
Such excellent planning with the solar panels, your security precautions for the outside and the dashboard, the sprayer Life Hack, and the mini-composter for your fruits and veggie trash! I just love all of this!!
I bet that was an old Air Force van. We called them bread vans. We used them mainly on the flight line to carry people and tool boxes out to the aircraft we needed to work on. I bet it likes being in your hands much more😂
Free Range Kids-PERFECT way to describe our childhoods! Those forts we all made helped me be able to create an outside cat-run, so never doubt that kids playing equals kids learning.
You have got THE BEST attitude/outlook on life!! You will go far in life because of it - as you already have! Enjoy every moment of every day ~ sending you light, love, peace, joy and abundance always. I love you.
Doing solo female travel smartly! Definitely listen to your gut! Btw, batteries should be within 1 months age of each other. CBreaze on the road with teen Dghtr then solo for 10 yrs! Now off grid acreage! Roots planted. 😉
9:20 Just had to pause to comment on the composting unit. Congratulations and well done 😊 you have to be the only vanlifer I've seen who enhances their environment. I've seen so many who chuck their crap (fecal and daily detritus) into plastic bags, and dump in bins or dumpsters along the way - out of sight out of mind. ( one woman said that her human waste goes in sturdy courier bags, as they don't leak) as it's no different from dumping babies diapers 😮
I love the idea of a secure feeling, good thinking. A mans Hat here mans gloves there great idea. You and your Dad did an amazing Job🎉. Thanks Jenna 😊! JO JO IN VT 💞
Yes! Almost all van lifers have a planet fitness membership, so we stay fit and can shower after our workouts. There are other east ways to shower too, but this is the most common 😊
i have a Chevy hicube! I did a double take when I saw this one. very similar format with the side door. my truck was an air force vehicle in the 90s for moving 463L pallets
The (homemade?) hammock chair swinging on its stand, with her sitting in it reading, was my favorite scene. I'd like to know how she made it (the hammock part). Nice job.
From what I’ve learned, these vehicles were used on Air Force and Army bases. My paperwork says Army, and had seats and heating installed in the back for commuters.
Almost all van lifers have memberships to planet fitness so we can stay fit and shower after our workouts. There are other east ways to shower, but this is the most common 😊
I love everything about this space the size the set up the decorations it looks so cozy and comfortable and functional beautifully done. Congratulations.
Thunderf00t did a whole RU-vid video on the Lomi and proved you could get the same results putting your food scraps into a bread maker - and bread makers are a quarter of the price of the Lomi
That’s such a great question 🙌🏻The compost from the Lomi smells particularly fruity, whereas the coconut coir has almost no scent. I’m very careful with smells because they attract little friends 🐭 If it weren’t for that, I’d probably try!!
Love your build, especially the floors. I'm sad though that you didn't tell what type of flooring it is. It looks like wood, but the attributes of it you described aren't necessarily what you would ascribe to wood. Do share. Inquiring minds want to know. The other thing you didn't mention was a shower. Happy trails. Namaste
