Home

Greetings!

Your site is very difficult to read with so many ads (50+)!  It's also just plain too busy with side bars on both sides.  Enlarging it enough to make the text readable causes readers to scroll right and left for each line.  On most sites, my browser will handle everything automatically to enlarge the text with proper word wrapping to make it easily readable, but your site is so busy my browser seems unable to do  it's job.

Why not copy and paste your content here, you can get honest feedback about your ideas and make it easier for everyone, then you can add a link to your site at the bottom as the source.

Cheers!

Hi there. I appreciate this feedback. Are you viewing my site on a smartphone or desktop?

They're not adverts but my own links to my videos or my online shop....apart from the LED lights ad. I'll take your advice though and re-design the layout.

Thanks 

Hi there,

I've just got back from an eighteen month campervan tour of the south of Spain having lived in Spain for over a decade.

I have lots of vanlife tips here... https://www.bohemivan.com/2019/06/vanlife-tips.html

They might seem like insignificant things but, trust me, when you're living fulltime vanlife, these little things can be massive irritations if you don't get them right. I learnt from trial and error.

Hi there , you've done a lovely job of that , I hope you have lovely times on your travels , chris 👍😉

Hi there. I was away for eighteen months. I got back to the UK last November and bought a house. I still have the van and I'm now working hard on my Bohemivan website plus my new online vintage shop.

'Loves times'.....not sure about that. It was an experience! The south of Spain is nothing to get excited about so it was quite disappointing. I'm really looking forward to vanlife in the UK.

Greetings!

You might want to add solar film to all of your back windows, it will help out even more with the sun, and not obstruct your view from the inside during the day, but looks like a mirror from the outside.

A cheap but effective trick I learned, is that those el cheapo mylar emergency blankets are actually not opaque, but see through.  They will stick to your windows  with just a spritz of water.  With a spatula, it is super easy to get any air bubbles out.  From the inside, it just like the windows are tinted.  At night, if you have lights on at night, people can still see in, so you'll want to use your curtains too, but during the day it can make a huge difference in your indoor temperatures.

I am really concerned with your rooftop water plan.  Baffles are good, but even just 5 gallons of water is going to add 40 pounds of weight up there.  I can't remember the exact equation, but that much weight up high, translates into much more weight, during turns etc.  Baffles can combat the moving water syndrome, but doesn't improve on the sheer high weight or the pendulum effect it can cause.  Vans can tend to be a little top heavy to begin with, and the best way to make them handle better is to keep all of weight low in the vehicle.  On a previous van, adding solar panels to my van had a very negative effect in the van's handling.

I am a firm believer in not needing batteries or power of any kind for water delivery.  Being frugal with both power and water, is always a wise choice, and not even an inconvenience once you get used to it.

Best Wishes, always!

Hi there. Been a long time! Are you still here?

I've recently moved back to the UK after living in Spain and then traveling in my van for a year and a half.

In the end, I got a water tank fitted to the underneath of my van with a pump and accumulated underneath too. It works really well and, even when the tank is full, I don't notice any weight difference when driving.

While we were traveling, having hot water wasn't a big issue. I would often stand in the wash basin outside of the van and just pour a bottle of water over myself. We swam in the sea most days too. During the winter, it was hard having to wash my hair in cold water...I must admit! Luckily, there were plenty of swimming pools we could use every few days.

We're in Spain so the privacy screens on the windows are there to block out a lot of sunlight as well as provide a private side to the van. We can see out of the van if we want to on that side by opening the sliding window.

If I get a water tank for the roof it will have anti-surge baffles.

Right now, I use a large water jug at the sink. Pouring out of a jug is a lot faster than any tap I have ever seen used in a campervan and no batteries are needed. Until I get a roof tank, this will do well enough.

I have a camp stove already 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6zhYmIKpJ0

We did everything ourselves apart from making the curtains and fitting the radio. We made new wall and ceiling cards, installed insulation material, did some re-spraying, built an overhead locker, built a kitchen unit, fitted a subfloor, squared off the raised back area to form a seat and most of the bed platform, laid vinyl, fitted Silent Gliss curtain track, installed a 30w solar system for the lights, installed LED touch sensitive spotlights and sourced soft furnishings.

We've had one sleepover in it so far and the mattress stayed inflated all night and was very comfortable.

We have some more things to do....fit a roof rack, fit a water tank onto the roof rack to feed sink and outside shower, make a table to eat at, equip the kitchen better.

Hope you like it.

Hannah & Lottie.