Building a 1 Room Retirement Home

[reeves99]

2 adults
3 months
9,000 km (5,600 mi)
no bathroom
zero murders

[RogerDat]

I am not 100% sure on this but I think you can go a few days on a porta potti rather than daily, essentially it has a tank just not a big tank. and there may be some advantage to allowing the chemicals to "work" on the contents before dumping.

For full time I would tend to favor a bathroom, just because having "my own" would be convenient. But not sure I would pass on an otherwise nice camper for not having a bathroom.

[Jim Bennett]

Could I RV camp without a bathroom and still have lots of fun. You bet!

If I could have a bathroom without too much compromise, would I. You bet!

Would my wife come along without a bathroom, especially on long trips. Not a chance!

A permanent bed and a pot to pee in, were her only requirements.

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

....

Would my wife come along without a bathroom, especially on long trips. Not a chance!

A permanent bed and a pot to pee in, were here only requirements.

I think my DW and yours had a conference at some point to set minimum standards. Mine will still "consider" a "couple of days" of boondock camping without a pot to pee in, but said consideration has yet to actually yield a trip.

[David Schroeder]

Bonnie considers making up and breaking down the bed a bonding experience.
Maybe not so much the toilet. But she is an adventurous spirit.

[David Schroeder]

I'm not so sure about that
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ler-27868.html

[accrete]

In our van conversion, that now tows our Parkliner, the First item of the design after the permenant bed with storage for all the DW's gold prospecting gear was a bathroom area. We use that simple bathroom closet all the time even when just driving from point A to B...and we are happy & healthy...no holding for a rest stop for us

The Parkliner was chosen over some other small units because we liked the shower/bath area out of the way up front. We do plan on retireing in our adventure rig, and a bathroom is something we enjoy in the floor plan.

P.S. Most places we camp have no facilities...they also have bears and big kitty cats.

Cheers,
Thom

[Vivian L]

As former tenters, a bathroom is what????? Our 13' boler has no bathroom, but we have privacy and facilities at all times. We utilize a "lugga-loo" rather than a porta poti. It's higher (bad old knees you know) to sit on, it's easier to dump and clean and it's cheaper to replace. We carry a pop-up cabana and if we are parked for awhile it goes outside the door for the lugga-loo. And I have used it to have a standing bath if no showers are available. I am quite happy out there splashing water all over the place. As for privacy - they are called shower curtains. We hang a nice cotton eyelet one on one of those spring loaded shower curtains popped up between the kitchen and closet and voila! - a two room boler. We have taken my single girl friend with us and she sleeps on the front couch/cot having her own bedroom! Another curtain & rod and we now have a three-room boler!
When we first got our boler we immediately converted the couch into a three way dining table/couch/bunk beds so the big (Ha Ha) bed stays made up at all times. Works wonders and after all if I want all the comforts of home, guess where I'll be.
We chose not to spend our money on a bigger tow vehicle to get a bigger trailer, to have a bigger space to clean etc. We regularily spend four or five weeks at a time in our boler up in Northern Ontario where there are no facilities and we are quite comfortable. In early spring we often get hit with snow but we still have our own space. Paul reads at the little front table and I do crosswords on the bed.
Oh, and by the way I am somebody's wife, so please don't blame all the bathroomitis on the women!!
We have friends who spent a year in their little boler, travelling Canada and the US, following the sun and with a easy-up dining tent stored under the cover of their little truck, a pop-up cabana and a big dog, they came home still married and really rested and happy.
But, if you need a bathroom just go ahead and get one. Comfort too, is in the eye of the beholder.

[reeves99]

Here here Vivian. A little creativity is all it takes. And a little cooperation if you are more than one.
We don't use the porta potty at all if we are moving from place to place. (Old Tide detergent bottle comes in handy.)
Don't like the porta potty (too low and a pain to empty) and will be investing in a luggable loo this season. I guess that could be called a luxury upgrade!
I didn't plan to get to the Ont rally this year but it's on my must do list for next year.

[kootenaigirl]

Vivian, love your description of the rooms in your Boler. Great attitude.

[Vivian L]

Originally Posted by reeves99

Here here Vivian. A little creativity is all it takes. And a little cooperation if you are more than one.
We don't use the porta potty at all if we are moving from place to place. (Old Tide detergent bottle comes in handy.)
Don't like the porta potty (too low and a pain to empty) and will be investing in a luggable loo this season. I guess that could be called a luxury upgrade!
I didn't plan to get to the Ont rally this year but it's on my must do list for next year.

Merci Philip. yes the luggable loo is so much easier. Very simple idea but works well.
You can just keep an eye on our blog for next year and we'd love to have you come. We have 3 or 4 couples each year from Quebec, as we are fairly close to the western border and we try to get to Quebec bolerama in September as often as we can. Hopefully we will make it to this years event near Drummondville.
We don't travel too much in July and August as it's just way too busy for us and too, too hot. But spring and fall we are out of here. We had to cancel our April trip to Algonquin Park however, this year as everything is still frozen over up there. But we are off to the Bay of Quinte in a couple of weeks.
Hope to see you somelwhere down the road, or at EggFest2015 next May.

[Timber Wolf]

It appears there are at least two kinds of folks on this thread. Those that have a bathroom, and those that make excuses trying to convince themselves and others that they don't need one.

[sokhapkin]

Originally Posted by Timber Wolf

It appears there are at least two kinds of folks on this thread. Those that have a bathroom, and those that make excuses trying to convince themselves and others that they don't need one.

Well said.

[RRJR]

To solve the TOO low port-a potty I took a plastic (store) milk crate.
cut off 6 inches from the bottom.
At night I place the port a potty on it. In day time the port-a-potty goes under the front storage and the base can be used for storage and other things.
It's just the right height and make the venture much easier.

RRJR

[accrete]

behind the closed doors of that bathroom closet i linked to in my upper post is our version of a "lug-gable loo". . . my wife found a 2 gallon bucket that fits the standard 5 gallon loo-lid (found in many outdoor stores). She likes the lower height as it still allows for our preferred (warning...To Much Info may follow squatting posture.

Bath closet in van open:



and yes, we can even shower in the same area if we choose to if the Parkliner is back at camp and we're all muddied up from playing gold-prospectors

I agree with all the posters who said to-each-his-own/matter-of-choice. The pros/cons are all valid. For us? It was super easy to incorporate something that was convenient and handy.

Happy Trails,
Thom

[kirkman]

Here is another option to the standerd toilet or port-a potty.
Nature's Head Composting Toilets: Saving Our Water for Tomorrow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1tNBQkxC84

[accrete]

The nature's head and (competing) air head, separating composting toilets are, IMO, the future of off-grid RV bath design. Though we have a lug-gable loo, it is actually, in use, a separating-toilet as the solids are kept separate from the liquids.

I was pleasantly surprised to see such an excellent van conversion up-fitter as OutsideVan utilizing the concept in their bathroom.

[Vivian L]

Originally Posted by Timber Wolf

It appears there are at least two kinds of folks on this thread. Those that have a bathroom, and those that make excuses trying to convince themselves and others that they don't need one.

Yep there are two kinds, but I prefer to call them Adventurers and Comforters - ha ha.
As someone else said, there are valid points to each preference and no I don't make excuses for my choices and certainly I don't expect anyone else to make excuses for theirs.

If we stayed close to home we would probably go the fancy route, but our tow vehicle is just too small to carry more weight like water, and waste water etc. I also prefer to have the extra room inside, such as it is in a thirteen.

If we could afford a bigger tow, we still hate hauling a bigger or heavier unit through cities especially in places where we are in unfamiliar territory. We are too old for that. Getting through Montreal scares me enough as it is.

[Lynn Musgrave]

Originally Posted by David Schroeder

I'm not so sure about that
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ler-27868.html

Thanks for bringing this topic to light I had forgotten about it and sure did enjoy reading it again.

Happy Camping

[deryk]

My 2nd little gypsy caravan I built really got me thinking about a cabinet for a porta pottie and the headroom to sit on it. I was so thrilled when I found my ParkLiner, and that it was the "bachelor's special"....(porta pottie) not a flushing toilet into the grey water tank. Makes my life more comfortable