Van Life Warmth and Cool More Than Temperature Control

Temperature ain’t even hardly all that matters to feelin’ warm or cool. Think “WGBT” when you gear your van or choose your van life camps.

What Is WGBT?

WGBT initializes “Wet-bulb Globe Temperature.” It considers how temperature, wind speed, humidity, and infrared radiation (usually sunlight) affect your body to create a perceived temperature. In a way, you already know this shit. It’s common sense, really.

Temperature

Thermostats in houses got folks thinkin’ about temp only, like it’s the most important thing. Then when they move into vans and RVs, they can focus too much on heatin’, coolin’, and what the thermometer and weather report say. Gotta think bigger!

Wind Speed

A breeze generally cools ya down. Unless ya just came out from AC and hit a hot wind. The same is true for your van.

Wanna keep the van feelin’ cooler on a hot day? Look for a breezy spot. Cold day? Park outta the wind.

Then of course, think on roof vent fans. If ya wanna get cooler, get fans blowin’ the air around. That’s what they’re for!

Humidity

Moist air makes the hot feel hotter and the cold feel colder. Vanholio’s walked around in dry, Colorado air at 20 F, comfy in just a sweatshirt. Same temps in Maine such that he can’t seem ta get enough clothes on!

Here’s where them roof vent fans, open windows, and anything that improves air circulation helps keep comfy. They’ll keep your own breath an’ cookin’ moisture from buildin’ up inside the van. Plus, if ya pull in extra moisture, say by gettin’ in the van all wet, fans’n such’ll dry things out and blow the wet outside.

Flip side is that if you’re in hot, dry places, ya can add moisture – spritz yourself with water, wet your sheets, hang a wet towel by the fan – to suck in extra heat from the air. It’s like a cheap swamp cooler.

Infrared Radiation (Sunlight)

Ya got enough brains to sit in the shade on a hot day? Good! Do the same with your van.

Put up reflectors, awnings, and tarps. If ya can park under a tree or in the shade of a cliff or buildin’ on a hot day, awesome. Go north in summer to where the sun is less strong, if ya can. Camp on the east side of a mountain so the sun disappears earlier.

In winter, go to sunny places if ya can. Park in the open. Point your van’s nose south so that the front windows are like a greenhouse. Park on the south side of a buildin’ or cliff where you’ll get sun and the wall behind’ ya gets all warmed up.

Let’s Think Bigger Yet!

Now that you’ve dipped your toe, check out some a these articles on low-tech, old-fashioned ways folks kept warm and cool – without throwin’ energy-intensive heaters and AC at it. Then apply their lessons to your van life.

• Restoring the Old Way of Warming: Heating People, Not Places (Low-Tech Magazine)
• Insulation: First the Body, Then the Home (Low Tech Magazine)
• The Revenge of the Circulating Fan (Low Tech Magazine)
• A Passively Cooled House in the Tropics (No Tech Magazine)
• Movable Shading Structures (No Tech Magazine)
• 20 Ways to Stay Cool Without Power (Urban Survival Site)
• How Homes Kept Cool Before the Age of AC (Solar City)
• Stay-cool Strategies from the Old School — and a Few New Ones, Too (Washington Post)

Hey, Beer Vanholio! He works hard on this blog.

Also See ...

Why You Need 2 Roof Vent Fans on Your Van
Greenhouse for Winter Van Life Warmth
Reflectix Insulation in Vans Done Right

Read More »

Verizon Ending Prepaid 3G Unlimited Data?

Have one of those shady Verizon $5 per month unlimited 3G data Mifi's? Looks like that angle's comin' to an end. I ain't absolutely sure, mind you, but signs point that way.

Here's How It Worked

If ya don't know what I'm talkin' about, here's the deal. Third-party sellers would buy an old Verizon mobile with a grandfathered $5 per month prepaid unlimited 3G data. Then they'd extract the code and flash it onto a Mifi. That way, the Verizon network *thinks* the Mifi is the old phone with the grandfathered plan. These they sold online, many on eBay.

The end user of a flashed Mifi would then buy $5 Verizon data cards – often from Walmart online – and call in to a Verizon toll-free number to prepay each month. Some have been doin' this for years.

Yeah, that's definitely against the user agreement and maybe illegal. But dammit, it was cheap, and it worked! Verizon didn't seem in too much hurry to ferret out the abusers. But now it looks like we're gettin' cut off.

What Just Changed

Verizon is disconnectin' heavy data users in rural areas. That's been covered in the press. But there's another wrinkle to the story. They're makin' hard to refill those grandfathered $5 unlimited plans, too.

Today, I went to Walmart's website per usual to buy my monthly Verizon $5 data card. Suddenly, they no longer sell 'em. Neither does Best Buy. Shit!

I did manage to buy some on eBay – marked up to $6.29 each. But it definitely looks like the jig is up!

This's Been Comin'

Mind you, Verizon announced years ago that they was phasing out 3G by 2021. I noticed already that 3G networks are gone from some bigger cities.

On the other hand, 4G LTE ain't in some rural and wilder areas Vanholio roams. It's only 3G or, worse, 2G or 1X. But that ain't many places, really.

Now, I suspect Verizon is still gonna support legit 3G users with monthly accounts till 2021. At least thems that don't use crazy amounts a data. But prepaid? It looks like they're cuttin' us loose.

Probably ain't too many legitimate users left anyway. And Verizon'll likely offer the few mad ones a deal.

But for scammers like ol' Vanholio? After the leftover data cards sell out, we're SOL.

Hey, Beer Vanholio! He works hard on this blog.

Also See ...

5 Chrome Extensions to Accelerate Your Web Browsing

10 Trims for Lean, Low-Bandwidth Web Surfing

Verizon’s 2G and 3G CDMA Networks to be Phased Out by 2021 (Android Authority)

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This article was originally posted at Steemit.com.

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Why You Need 2 Roof Vent Fans on Your Van

If most got a roof vent fan on their van, RV, or other rig, it's usually just the one. Why? It's plain dumb. I'll tell ya why two is way better for van life.

2 Roof Vent Fans Gives Best Van Life Ventilation

With two reversible Fan-tastic Vent or Maxxair roof vent fans on your rig, you got airflow options for all kinds a situations.

Situation 1 – Hot Outside, Closed-Up Van

Fan-Tastic Vent Fan
@ Amazon.com

Like the picture, get one fan blowin' in and one blowin' out. At high speed, that's a lotta air movin'. If ya got reflectors or shades up in the windows, that means a good breeze and no radiant heat. That'll keep ya cool most days, makin' for a more pleasant van life.

When Vanholio leaves the dog in the van, he sets up like this. Ms. Barkley's been comfy in +100 temps, at least in low humidity.

Situation 2 – Hot Outside, Opened-Up Van

Campin' out in the desert, I'll set up awnings and tarps to shade the van's sides like an old wraparound porch. Then I'll open up all the doors and windows, then get both my Fan-tastic fans blowin' out. Add a spray bottle to mist myself with water, and I been damn comfy in +100 desert days. In humid places, I'm good up to about 90.

Situation 3 – Sleeping When Warm

When it's warm outside, or at least in the van, – but not what you'd call hot – I'll open both vents, but just get the front fan blowin' out. With the doors and windows closed, the air displaced by the front fan will get replaced by air sucking in the back fan's vent. Way my bed's set up, that cooler air drops right on my face! Damned pleasant.

Situation 4 – Sleeping When Cool

Maxxaire Roof Top Fan/Vent
@ Amazon.com

When it's too cool to use the setup in Situation 3, but I still want some airflow to keep from getting stuffy, I'll open both vents. Then I'll get the back fan blowing out on a low setting. The replacement air comes in from the front vent atop my feet, which are covered by the blanket anyway. It's enough air to keep it fresh without chillin' me.

Situation 5 – Wet or Damp Inside the Van

Dependin' on the amount of wet and damp inside the van, Use the setups from Situations 1, 3, or 4.

One time, a thunderstorm broke when walkin' the dog. We got back both soaked. After changin', I had wet clothes and wet towels draped inside. And the bed and everythin' else was damp to wet. Temps were in the 50s, so we was chilled.

I set up like Situation 1 – one fan blowin' in, one blowin' out – and in maybe 30 minutes, me and the dog, and all the bed linens and blankets, was dry. After that, we was comfy all night.

Another time, it was a warm, humid spring day. Then at night, a cold front blowed in and dropped temps into the 30s. The dew dropped fast. I woke up shivering with my blankets and clothes damp, and my skin feelin' clammy.

So I set up like Situation 4 – back Fan-Tastic Vent fan blowin' out, front vent pullin' in fresh air. After about 20 shivering minutes, me and the bed was dried up enough to get toasty and back to sleep.

2 Roof Vent Fans Better Than Cracking Windows

I hear ya. You say, "But Vanholio, I can do a lotta that with just one Fan-tastic or Maxxair vent fan by crackin' my windows. Why should I do two roof vent fans instead?"

The Advantages of 2 Roof Fans vs. Cracked Windows for Van Life

• No mosquitoes, flies, or other bugs
• More privacy
• More security
• Less hot sunlight

When keep your windows open, you let in all kinds of unpleasantness. Think how much more safe, secure, and comfy your van life will be with two Fan-tastic or Maxx Air roof fans!

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Gettin' mail on the road? Traveling Mailbox! (review)

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Also See ...

• Reflectix Insulation in Vans Done Right
• Greenhouse for Winter Van Life Warmth
• A Passively Cooled House in the Tropics (No Tech Magazine)

Read More »

People and ATVs Ruined This View!

I was fuckin' horrified to find the place crawlin' with people. Their camps was huge, and their quads sounded like Hellspawn. Half of 'em was Texans! Holy shit!



Well, Vanholio called this one wrong. See, he'd gone by La Junta Canyon (near Taos, NM) about a month ago on a weekday. The place were nearly empty of people. Perfect for a van-travelling hermit.

But then I returned on a June Saturday expectin' the same. Nope. The public was EVERYWHERE, packin' the campsites and stinkin' the place up.

Hopeful, I kept drivin' up Forest Road 76, higher and higher into the mountains, lookin' for a dispersed campsite without no neighbors. After 8 miles and at over 10,000 feet altitude, I give up and pulled off.

Well, my back view was that shot you see at top. Pretty. But the front view was an intersection of two forest roads.

All afternoon, till after 7 p.m., folks went tearin' by in their pickups and on their quads, tossin' out Bud Light beer cans as they went. Fuck!

So I left and drove down to Taos. More people there, true, but at least I expect them in their natural territory.

I shoulda known. Lesson learned. Where good weather, beautiful scenery, and a fishin' creek are side by side, you're gonna find Vanholio's No. 1 enemy – Joe Public.

Hey, Beer Vanholio! He works hard on this blog.

Also See ...

Yeah, I'll Piss on Your Damned Bonfire

Shit in Woods Goes Gross to Nightmare

La Junta Canyon-Carson National Forest (Southern New Mexico Explorer)

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"People and ATVs Ruined This View!" first published at Steemit.com.

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