The wonders of living in a caravan...

[MdB]

I know a number of PP people have lived in caravans whilst building work goes on (somebody for 11 years if I remember correctly!?!). Any advise on what to get, does and don'ts etc?

Our plan is to put a 3m x 6m (10' by 20') static caravan, maybe larger, at the end of the garden whilst building work goes on over the winter. I'm worried it will be cold though we do have a large gas tank to use up so that shouldn't be a problem. Stuff we can't store in the house will be going into a container (shortly to be bought) also in the garden. The caravan will kept for use by guests once we are back in the main house.

 

[biffvernon]

Get one of these.

 

[Maris]

How long will you be living in it? We bought a 10m x 3m one, which is just about right for 2 people. Over the first 6 months we: gutted most of the interior bar the kitchen and bathroom; had the gas cooker and fire removed and the connections capped; got the Paloma gas boiler serviced and installed a wood-burner; put up 2 smoke alarms and a carbon monoxide detector. We also attached a wooden shed to the front door to act as a porch. Mould was more of a problem than the cold, hence the wood-burner; we also removed the doors from most of the cupboards and the only internal room that still has a door is the bathroom! Its our second year living in it- it was fun at first but I really, really won't miss it. Could we have had a yurt? I thought they needed full planning permission and building regs applied.

 

[MdB]

I'm hoping that we will be in the caravan for only 2 to 3 months but this will be over the winter and doubling the amount of time you think the work is going to take is probably a good idea. Condensation and mould is something I'm worrying about but we have a large tank of gas we need to empty so I'm not worried about having the fire on whilst also having the windows open a bit. Our garden is also very sheltered and frost / snow isn't a problem in this part of the world so it shouldn't be too bad.

We had a guy from the caravan shop come around yesterday to see the difficulties in getting one into position. If we demolish a gate post and part of the hedge (not a great loss) we should be able to get a 10m x 3.5m (35' x 12') caravan in so it really comes down to budget.

We have applied for planning permission for it as we will want to fit services to it. If it wasn't plumbed in, I don't believe we will need permission. Yurts could be argued to be temporary structures (if not plumbed in) so would probably be outside the planning regs. Very interesting idea though. Has made me think.

 

[biffvernon]

I can't think of any Building Regs that could be applied to a yurt

 

[Maris]

We're thinking about having a yurt at the bottom of the garden for guests, some time in the future, but didn't consider one when we were looking for temporary accommodation- not sure what the cats would have made of it. Caravan is going asap..
I do vaguely recall though, that on the Grand Designs with Ben Law's woodland house that he needed, and was refused, planning permission for his bender, and had to get a caravan. I'm not sure why this was though.

2 to 3 months in a caravan is nothing- I'm quite jealous!

 

[Tom]

11 years.....it's me, it's me!!!! We're about to have our 11th Christmas in here

Using LPG as your heating will cause huge amounts of condensation. We use electric and stil get condensation, naturally, but we use a dehumidifier to combat it and it works very well. One of the best things you can do is to insulate it underneath. Ours is done quite well but all you need to do istack up some loft insulation type stuff and then cover it with polythene sheet....or something similar to that. If you don't, you'll feel the cold striking through the floor!!! We also have 2 layers of carpet and thick rugs

If you're not too bothered about seeing out of the windows, you can put bubble wrap on the glass to keep some of the heat in. Or use thick curtains.

An electric blanket is something we couldn't live without in the winter.

Make it a rule that dirty clothes are taken off and left OUTSIDE and that NO shoes are worn indoors. You'll have so much dirt outside that you'll appreciate somewhere clean to live and sleep in. Even our cats have got used to waiting on the mat while we wrap them in a towel and dry their feet Our dogs are NEVER allowed in....but we live on a farm, so circumstances are slightly different.

Don't site your Sky dish on the van...you'll lose your signal every time the wind blows!!! Put it on something firm and run the wire across.

I can't really think of any other tips at the moment but if you have any questions you'd like to ask...fire away

Jaqy

 

[rog and gina]

Oh, how the memories come flooding back! We lived in ours for three and a half years, with a new born baby, no running water(for the first six months anyway!) no money and a house that looked like it should have been condemned!

The few things that come to mind are try and clean the inside window drain things, if they get blocked the condensation water wont run away properly and then you end up with soggy carpets and furniture, if you can completely empty the caravan try and put another layer of ply/osb/whatever sheets of wood type material you can get your hands on, onto the floor as this will stop your shoes freezing to the carpets on cold frosty mornings!!!!!

Another top tip! you can smear a thin layer of washing up liquid on to the windows, this helps to prevent the condensation, this should last about a week, depending on the amount of time you spend cooking etc.


It really wasn't a very pleasant experience to be completely honest, but without living in ours there is no way we could have got this far living and working in our house, but it really does make you appreciate luxuries like hot running water, central heating, windows that really close properly, and walls that dont rattle in the storms!

To be fair though, our caravan was from the sixties or possibly earlier, so it wasn't really designed for year round living, it still had the gas wall lights in it!!

Good luck!

 

[MdB]

The current caravan (1950s vintage we have been told). Used by the previous owners when they rebuilt the house. Pity they didn't make a good job of it as we are having to redo most of the work they did then. Unfortunately the current caravan is completely shot with most of the internals already removed so it will be scraped. I'll keep the insulation from it though to put underneath the new caravan. We have also been advised to build a skirt around its base as this helps reduce heat loss too.

 

[grays85]

hi.
We would advise spending as much as you can afford to and buy the most modern caravan available, we are in the in-laws back garden, we'd also advise to hardcore the area and if possible to fence the area off to keep the animals out!! good idea about strippin off outside..it does help. good job the inlaws are short sighted :lol:
having somewhere livable will keep you sane, whilst dealing with all that goes around you.. we finally got planning consent on the monday after 10 months in the caravan, i duly phoned job no1 the wood stripping to begin, he broke his collar bone and cant do it til next year!! the electrician has now gone on holiday and the builder hasn't got time to do the worknow.. and ps our mortgage is with Northern rock :roll:

 

[Tom]

I wouldn't advise building a skirt of any kind around the vans base. At best, you'll be creating a great home for rats and, at worst, depending on your situation you could make it more unstable in high winds, as you'll be creating a solid mass for the wind to batter against. Oh and DON'T for God's sake chain it to the ground....in high winds you'll be asking the top to be ripped off the chassis!!!!! Ours is very exposed and catches the side winds quite badly. In the highest of winds we can't have more than half a cup of coffee otherwise it slops over the sides! Having a gap under the van for some of the wind to pass through helps. When it gets really, really bad we just get all the vehicles and tractors together and line them up in barrier fashion...it helps deflect the gusts up and over the top

We're in a 1986 2 bedroomed caravan. It's quite cosy really. Yes, it gets cold but only takes 5 minutes to warm up It's no different to living in a 2 bedroomed flat really. As there's only the 2 of us, the second bedroom is used for clothes storage. All our other belonging are in a 40' artic on-site

Buying the best van you can afford is good advice. It's highly likely to take longer than you think, so having somewhere decent to live will be a God-send.

My shed doubles up as my utility room. It houses the freezer, washer and drier as well as all my horse rugs, boots, shoes, outside coats and all my lambing gear as well as animal medicines and the like. It's all very organised My husband's shed is full of cr@p and totally disorganised :roll: So, there's another top tip.....get your own shed

More tips to come as I think of them

Jaqy

 

[MdB]

grays85 - Thanks for the comments and I commiserate re all the problems.

DWB / Jaqy - Very interested in your comments, they are almost the exact opposite of what we were told by the guy we were thinking of buying one from. He has been in the business for 50 years and is just about to buy 180 caravans from a site in one go so should know what he is talking about. You have been living in one for 11 years so should also know what you are talking about.

Re skirts - You say don't because of rats and wind - He says do to help heat loss and to reduce the chance of the wind getting up underneath - I say I probably will fit a skirt for insulation reasons. Wind just won't be a problem as it is one of the most sheltered positions possible. Rats are an issue I hadn't thought about. I was thinking of laying a concrete base for it to fit onto so hopefully I will be able to sort something which is rat proof. Thanks for the heads up though.

Re chains - You say don't - He says do as insurance companies love it - I say tight chains are probably a good idea, loose chains will cause problems in high winds as you suggest. As wind isn't a problem, I probably will fit chains if the insurance company asks about it. I'll certainly fit some eyes into the concrete so the option is available.

Re sheds - You say sheds are great - I say sheds are great - he says that shed over there will have to go as otherwise we can't get the caravan into position..... (fortunately it's a shed that is already got a falling down)

 

[Nemesis]

I love that period van!

 

[MdB]

I love that period van!

Yours if you want to come and pick it up.

It will be destroyed shortly which is a pity but it really is beyond repair (and moving for that matter). A bit of heating oil and a match will probably do the job but the neighbours may complain due to the two oil tanks, a gas tank and their house being right next to it.... Its also got a couple of hundred quid of aluminium in it so that will be recycled.

 

[Nemesis]

I have something similar but smaller ... the OH swears he will repair it all one day, but ...

 

[Nemesis]

Someone might be interested though:

http://www.period-classic-caravan-club.co.uk/

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-Classic-Period-caravans-disc_W0QQitemZ300154327100QQihZ020QQcategoryZ32633QQcmdZViewItem

 

[Jane Smith]

MdB, I was told just this week that the aluminium from old caravan sides is perfect for using as the collector for a solar hot water thingy. Don't scrap that caravan: paint it black and wind copper piping all round it and you'll never need to pay for hot water again.

And please don't suggest this near my husband, as he will do it. Oh, god.

 

[Nemesis]

Have you seen the cost of copper piping now?

 

[Lady_Mari]

Oh the memories!
We used 2 28ft oldish mobile homes with a shed between which we used as utility/boot room & dog housing. One was for the kids & their paraphernalia (they loved it) the other was for us. We used a wood burner for heat , wouldn't recommend anything other than dry heating as condensation is a problem.
We used our own iron bedstead as it was heavy & had more room under for storage, kids had bunks. We made it as heavy as poss, thank God, as we were in it the year of the hurricane. It didn't blow away but the end opposite our bed lifted up & crashed down several times that night.
We fitted a skirt, insulated pipes (also where they entered) It was like living in a drum when it rained.
We were definitely slumming it but needed to keep costs on temporary housing down whilst friends had a modern centrally heated one that was pure luxury compared to ours.
We only paid a few hundred for our set up whilst theirs was a whole lot more. Still, one of those experiences best looked back on.

 

[charlie-ia]

i would look for a model with bookshelves. might not be important to everyone, but many caravans i looked at didnt even have space for paperbacks.
i also agree an electric blanket is a must, though it can make getting out of bed in the morning difficult!

make sure storage is accessable, my caravan had vast amounts of space under the seats, but you couldnt get into it without removing all the cushions.tv top shelf was cheap but very usefull too.

i miss the weather now. hail on the roof, gentle rocking in the breeze, excitement in a storm.