How to Live in Your Car (for the Survialist & 99% types!)

HINT:

If you don't have enough room in your car GET A TRAILER!

For those who find themselves homeless (unwillingly) in their car: go to any police station and ask for the list of PADS sites. At least when I was longterm homeless 10 years ago, from October to May, annualy, I took advantage of the PADS sites. They are many various churches which arrange many mattress pads in their basement areas for the homeless. From 7pm until 7am. Every night. When you first enter, they have many tables with your hot supper ready, and mostly, it was the best food ever. And showers.

Originally posted by TDawgRex
reply to post by unityemissions

 

Hiding in a cubby hole to sleep is no use if you snore...which you don't know you're doing while sleeping.

Just sayin'.

I don't know about you, but I've had more than a few girlfriends who would let me know if I ever snored.

I've even asked a few, curiously.

Nope, good there.

Originally posted by anon72
Makes me want to give up my job and go for it....

Maybe it would be an education experience beyond imagination.

I doubt the wife would go for it though.

"Honey,.... yes-I quit. Let's sell everything-put in the bank and go live out of the car for a few years. yes, our car. No I am not kidding. No Hotels baby.... We gonna rough it...but, with my recently accquired book of knowledge as our guide....."

That wouldn't go over too well, I am afraid. I hear you folks on the one person living in/out of the car but what about two, three, dogs/pets etc. I see a lot when I drive around.

edit on 3/5/2012 by anon72 because: (no reason given)

One other person could work ok if you are very close to each other. I saw plenty of women doing it. I got pretty friendly with a couple of them. One lady had a story very much like min and we would often commiserate together. I would not recommend pets. The smell alone will tell people what you are doing. Cats might be less of an issue than dogs, but I would not do that to either one. Dogs are also generally to noisy for the stealth you need. I have seen families living in there cars, and it is getting more common. A family from Las Vegas sticks in my memory most. The husband and wife had worked at the Bellagio until they had gotten laid off. They lived in an old Jeep Cherokee with 2 young children.

how would you possibly pay for gas im thinking run it off moonshine but that would be one hell of a setup!

I haven't had to live in my car but I have sheltered and slept in it when a storm near Scarborough UK threatened to blow our big tent down. The tent was lifting off the ground and we hadn't thought it would get that cold
(5 degrees in Oct with windchill!) I nearly got hypothermia. It was much warmer in the Land rover.

Fortunately I had made our 110 Landrover into a bed so me, my hubby and two kids (they are now teenagers) could sleep in the equivalent of a kingsize bed.
I made the bed with bed slats over the back footwell, resting on two long 5 inch deep cupboards, under the benches. One of them holds the slats. The middle car seats are put down, with a board that slides forward for our pillow area. I made curtains for all the windows too.
I even have a wooden cupboard that holds the airtight potty. The potty is a 4" deep 9" diameter mincemeat container. So it was only energy used, not money.

I have made it into my BOB - car sized.

I can cook in it, we even have a sink and a brew kit on the back metal grid. I have made a wooden 3 story cupboard that holds enough food for two weeks for 4 people, all your kitchen needs and solar battery rechargers. And a side awning that we can make into a tent, if needed.
We have even bought a solar powered fridge which works surprisingly well on UK cloudy days.

So if we have to go on the run we are prepared. Entertainment is a still a problem.

I made the wooden cupboards so I can take them out at anytime, and can be fitted to any 110 Land rover. And I used second hand wood so it didn't cost me much.

All I need now is a place to escape to, I haven't researched that yet. There aren't that many places in UK that are truly wild, so I know it is going to be hard.

I would love to know how to post photos on here so I could show you. Or make a Youtube video.

Stay safe.

I am glad, and somewhat surprised of the responses.

The more I look over the list/details, the more I appreciate the work put into it.

Add the great info ATSers added and it is sounding and looking pretty doable. More so than now then when I first posted the thread.

Printing off a copy for the wife as she wants to read over it and keep a copy. You never know.

Peace

reply to post by Danbones


My wife and I have been living on a boat for years and no plans of going back to the dirt. We started in a 30FT sail to a 40FT sail. finding work is easy detailing boats, working at ship yards etc. I want to give you a little good advice. learn electrical and diesel engines ( they are in demand) changing oil etc. and installing nav units etc. a lot of people just can't stand the rocking. I have had guest come over and lever left the dock that got seasick.

reply to post by SkipperJohn


Now you're talking. A Boat.

Now that sounds fun... at least for a while.

I would think I would have to be a partial land-luber...

But, boating does open up a lot of possibilities. Good One.

This post brings back old memories when I had to live in my truck for a while. It had a large bench seat and was pretty comfortable. I found a few safe places to park by trial and error. I didn't have any real problems or safety issues. I was told I couldn't park there by security guards or police officers at a couple of places. I hit pay dirt at a 24 hour grocery store. I was awaken by a security guard tapping on my window. He asked me what I was doing there and I explained my situation as I was thinking where I could go next. He told me had also gone homeless for a while and understood. He cleared it with the store manager and gave me my own designated parking space on the side of the building where the employees parked. I now had a safe, relatively quiet place to sleep. I started sleeping in the truck bed on rain less nights in a sleeping bag which was more comfortable. I did construction work during the day and took cold showers under a hose pipe on warm days, found a place to get a warm shower on cold days. Washed my clothes at a laundry mat and tried to keep a clean appearance. After a while I paid off my debts and saved enough money to rent a small house. I know a lot of people that have had to do the same thing. It's amazing how easy it is to adapt when you have to.

Living out of your car because you have to must be a lot different than doing it because you want to. Although the way I look at it in a way it was kind of a necessity for me too because it was the only way I could afford to travel the country and windsurf. Car camping is the way to go! Campers are so out right now with the price of gas! When I did it I rented out my house. I'd have never come back except for the fact that my renters destroyed the house and quit paying rent. It was back to the grind for me. Was supposed to be for just a short time till I put the house back together but that was over 15 years ago!

reply to post by surfstev


I would think today that Solar charging would be the way to go for most of your power needs.

I jus saw an add for a Solar power Stove. Of course, if you can afford that, you most likely wouldn't be living out of you car/vehicle.

reply to post by anon72


I did this also when I was a teenager. Only for a few weeks when I moved out of my house, but I was working at Firestone, I closed the store at night, and then I could hang out in the lobby, watch cable TV, drink coffee, use the restroom, whatever. I also joined a gym, as others have said, and I got up early, worked out, took a shower and got ready for school in the morning. I went to high school, played sports, worked, and really it wasn't uncomfortable at all to stay in my car for a few weeks.

Although, I'm sure it gets exponentionally more difficult for couples, and families, and such. For a young, single fella, it was a breeze.

My wife and I have been kicking around the idea of buying a decent motorhome. I've seen very nice used motorhomes for $7k to $14k, and of course they also go up and up from there.

Our thought process is this. If we have one, and we keep it up, and we use it at least one weekend per month or so, and it is fully stocked and ready to go. Then, the kids will be comfortable with it, and if we were to ever lose the house, the motorhome would be a seemless transition. It is a ready made bugout vehicle. If it is paid for, then we can park it in the woods, park it in a Walmart of Mall parking lot. We could park it at family or friends without being much of a burden. We could eventually buy land, park it, and slowly build a new home. The possibilities are endless, and it seems like the easiest and most comfortable way to protect the kids if we should ever have to lose our regular home.

**Double Post**

When I slept in my car I always slept with my feet towards the front seat and my head towards the trunk. Since my feet were covered with a blanket I wasn't really visible. It was pretty much impossible to tell I was sleeping in the car this way and I parked my car anywhere I wanted. Never once was I ever detected and asked to leave in my entire two years of car camping.

Most trunks can easily be opened and closed from the inside with very little modification or practice. I normally slept with the trunk wide open. If I heard another car coming I would normally just reach up and pull it down or closed. Of course it would be foolish to sleep with the trunk wide open in the middle of a parking lot but even in congested areas I could usually find a place to sleep with the trunk wide open and not be noticed. It is very easy to remove the back seat and build a straight solid platform to sleep on in the back of most cars.

reply to post by SkipperJohn


I worked with a guy who lived on a sail boat. His docking fees were 150 a month and included electricty, water, and cable. lol
When he went on vacation, he would pick up and go somewhere.
He docked near the inner harbor which had all the bars and stores you could want. My other coworkers would say it was interesting to go drinking with him and then try to walk back onto the boat.
Only downfall was that he would have to call out during any hurricane warnings to tie things down.

Great post OP, flag.
I found this blog awhile back and it relates here.

You have a right to live. You have a right to be. You have these rights regardless of money, health, social status, or class. You have these rights, man, woman, or child. These rights can never be taken away from you, they can only be infringed. When someone violates your rights, remember, it is not your fault.

guide 2 homelessness

I have read this and found it very informative. Just in case ya know?

Originally posted by surfstev
Living out of your car because you have to must be a lot different than doing it because you want to. Although the way I look at it in a way it was kind of a necessity for me too because it was the only way I could afford to travel the country and windsurf. Car camping is the way to go! Campers are so out right now with the price of gas! When I did it I rented out my house. I'd have never come back except for the fact that my renters destroyed the house and quit paying rent. It was back to the grind for me. Was supposed to be for just a short time till I put the house back together but that was over 15 years ago!

Holy Cr*p!
What the heck did they do? Start up a bomb factory?!
Good luck on getting it running again dude.

I've got my land rover pretty much how I want it. I want to add solar panels to the roof but it's good for long-term living for the most part. No plumbed toilet or water tank but I get by ok if I hit the road.

If you save all your grocery bags to line a plastic bucket you don't need to worry about a toilet. You can just tie off the bags and put them into another bag and put all that into another bag and throw the whole mess away when you get to a trash can. I often use the plastic bag method when I move into and work on a house that has no water yet. Just line the toilet with it and throw it into an air tight can or one that is outside afterwards and you're done... Don't forget to wash your hands...

Originally posted by AriesJedi
It was much warmer in the Land rover.
Fortunately I had made our 110 Landrover into a bed ....

gave up that idea with a swb lightweight. opted for a serious tent instead. still great to live out of when freestyley.

no2's can be an issue in the heaviest snowdown/nasty weather so when the big pots of a nice brand yoghurt became popular, i always made sure i enjoyed one before sensing the urge to p*o. stream nearby or buried with paper set alight (follow safety precautions and step away from the smoke,it's nasty, i know. furthermore don't urinate on rocks around a hot campfire unless you want occasional passers-by rolphing in ones presence). great news! if done carefully, the pot can be used multiple times without stench. toilet roll with core pulled out and roll squashed, placed inside two lock bags.top tips imo.
f.