Reddit mentions: The best camping personal care products
We found 848 Reddit comments discussing the best camping personal care products. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 272 products and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the top 20.
1. Coleman 5-Gallon Solar Shower
- 5 gallon solar shower holds enough water for multiple showers
- Product is manufactured in China
- This product meets customer requirement
Features:
Specs:
Color | Black |
Height | 2.2 Inches |
Length | 8.7 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 0.551155655 Pounds |
Width | 6.5 Inches |
2. Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel, Sky Blue, Size 33" x 13"
- Provides 3 to 4 hours (depending on conditions) of cooling relief while enduring outdoor heat and/or high levels of physical activity
- Wetting the towel in hot or cold water will allow it to activate quickly and cool up to 30 degrees
- Constructed from Frogg Toggs’ exclusive, hyper-evaporative material that retains water while remaining dry to the touch
- Perfect for working in the yard, sporting events, working out, golfing, fishing, camping, hot flashes and more
- Comes in a hard-plastic tube for easy, compact storage
- 33 x 13 inches of cooling, UPF50+ UV Protection
Features:
Specs:
Color | Sky Blue |
Height | 0.04 Inches |
Length | 33 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Size | 33x13 |
Weight | 0.6 Pounds |
Width | 13 Inches |
3. Reliance Products Luggable Loo Portable 5 Gallon Toilet
- Compatible with reliance's standard Double doodle bag
- Weight: 3.00lbs
- Economically priced portable toilet
- 5-gallon (20-liter) capacity
- Simple bucket style design; traditional snap-on lid
- Great for hunting, fishing and camping expeditions
- Also handy to have for disaster preparedness
- Sport type: Camping & Hiking
- Economically priced portable toilet
- 5-gallon (20-liter) capacity
- Simple bucket style design; traditional snap-on lid
- Great for hunting, fishing and camping expeditions
- Also handy to have for disaster preparedness
Features:
Specs:
Color | Gray |
Height | 32.5 Inches |
Length | 34 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Size | 13.5 inch x 13.0 inch x 15.3 inch |
Weight | 3.06 Pounds |
Width | 37 Inches |
4. Ivation Portable Outdoor Shower, Battery Powered - Compact Handheld Rechargeable Camping Showerhead - Pumps Water from Bucket Into Steady, Gentle Shower Stream
WARNING: ONLY CHARGE THIS DEVICE WITH A 5V ADOPTER OR LESS. DO NOT CHARGE IT WITH AN ADAPTOR THAT’S MORE THAN 5 VOLTS! - INDOOR/OUTDOOR HANDHELD SHOWER - Transforms Sink or Bucket of Water Into Instant Shower Stream; Water-Resistant Unit Includes One Touch On/Off SwitchPERFECTLY PLEASING PRESSURE ...
Specs:
Color | Orange |
Height | 2.8 Inches |
Length | 4.33 Inches |
Size | Battery Operated |
Weight | 1.81 Pounds |
Width | 3.27 Inches |
5. Reliance Products 9881-03 Luggable Loo Snap-on Toilet Seat with Lid for 5-Gallon Bucket, Black, 13.0 Inch x 1.5 Inch x 14.0 Inch
- Sport Type: Camping & Hiking
- Toilet seat and cover for use with industrial pails (pail sold separately)
- Converts any standard size five-gallon/19-liter pail into a portable toilet
- Snap on feature secures seat to pail
- Dimensions: 13 by 1.5 by 14 inches (L x W x H); Weight: 1.1 pounds
- Five-year warranty against manufacturer's defects
Features:
Specs:
Color | Black |
Height | 0.004 Inches |
Length | 14 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Size | 13.0 Inch x 1.5 Inch x 14.0 Inch |
Weight | 0.76875 Pounds |
Width | 13 Inches |
6. Jobar International JB5793 P EZ Travel Urinal for Women
- DESIGNED JUST FOR WOMEN: Curved, ergonomic funnel opening fits comfortably against the female body
- EASY-TO-CLEAN: Urinal is flexible and smooth, making it easy to rinse out and wash
- SPLASH PROOF DEVICE: Curved funnel features an outer edge that prevents urine from spilling and making a mess
- SAFE & HYGIENIC: Avoid the need to sit on unsanitary portable toilets or squat over public restrooms with this female urinal
- DISCREET PERSONAL URINAL: Includes a discreet travel pouch that can be kept in a purse, backpack, or in the car
Features:
Specs:
Color | Purple |
Height | 5.905511805 Inches |
Length | 3.93700787 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | September 2018 |
Size | 4in. x 2.25in. x 6in. |
Weight | 5 ounces |
Width | 2.362204722 Inches |
7. Advanced Elements 5 Gallon Summer Shower / Solar Shower,Silver/Black
- Construction - 4-ply construction with reflector panel and insulator panel for optimized heat retention and performance
- Capacity - This summer shower has a large 5-gallon capacity and is designed to heat water fast in the warm sun
- Temperature guage- Easy-to-read temperature gauge to know when your shower is warm. The shower can heat up to 110 degrees in under 3 hours in direct sunlight
- Convenience- Integrated toiletry pouch can hold a razor, mirror or travel shampoo bottles and Velcro straps for wash cloth
Features:
Specs:
Color | Silver/Black |
Height | 2 Inches |
Length | 20 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | January 2007 |
Size | 5 Gallon |
Weight | 1.322773572 Pounds |
Width | 6 Inches |
8. EZ-Towel with New Durable Tube and Packaging, 50 Pieces
The EZ Towel is about the size of a nickel but much thicker... They are made out of a completely 100% Rayon material that is bio-degradableEvery fisherman needs EZ Towel. How many times have you been out on a fishing adventure and you needed a napkin or paper towel to cleanup with? Now you can use...
Specs:
Height | 1 Inches |
Length | 5 Inches |
Release date | August 2011 |
Weight | 0.4 Pounds |
Width | 3 Inches |
9. TravelJohn-Disposable Urinal (6 Pack)
Convenient, unisex, sanitary personal urinals containing patented Liqsorb materialIdeal for motion sickness, potty training, car travel, outdoor activities, and bathroom emergencies of all typesBiodegradable pouch filled with unique polymer substance which absorbs liquid waste and turns it into odor...
Specs:
Color | White |
Height | 2 Inches |
Length | 4.8 Inches |
Number of items | 6 |
Size | 6 disposable bags |
Weight | 0.03 Pounds |
Width | 8.1 Inches |
10. Zodi Outback Gear Hot Tap Travel Shower
Self-contained hot water shower that sets up anytime, anywhereAttaches to 16.4-ounce propane cylinder or 5-gallon propane tank (with kit)6-volt water pump with pushbutton ignition; 8-foot hose with showerhead4-gallon storage case doubles as water tank (holds enough water for 10-minute shower)Tempera...
Specs:
Color | Red |
Height | 10.9 Inches |
Length | 15.1 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | February 2010 |
Weight | 10.35 Pounds |
Width | 11 Inches |
11. pStyle - Clear
- Stand up and pee without removing clothing
- Easy to use
- Reusable and simple to clean
- Eliminates the need for toilet paper
- Lightweight and easy to carry
Features:
Specs:
Height | 1.75 Inches |
Length | 7.75 Inches |
Width | 1.75 Inches |
12. Sea to Summit Drylite Towel
Microfiber with super soft ultra suede finishRemarkably absorbent and fast dryingLighter and more compact than the Tek TowelVery packable Machine washable
Specs:
13. Texsport Instant Portable Outdoor Camping Shower Privacy Shelter Changing Room
5 Gallon Camp Shower Measures 87"H x 4'6" x 4"6" and includes mesh shower rack inside and removable hanging towel bar outsideLarge, zippered D-style door with Heavy Duty polyurethane coated taffeta walls and rainfly and removable rip-stop polyethylene floorRust-resistant 3/4" diameter chain-corded s...
Specs:
Color | Gray |
Height | 8 Inches |
Length | 32 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 3.9 Pounds |
Width | 10 Inches |
14. Simple Shower Portable Camping Shower
Turns Most 1 or 2 Liter Bottles (Including Platypus Collapsible Bottles & Bladders) Into A Portable ShowerLightweight (Only 2oz) - Makes For A Easy Camping ShowerEasy To Use: Simply Hold It Above The Area To Be Washed & Turn Upside Down For A Steady Stream Of WaterMade In The USA From Recycled Mater...
Specs:
Color | Black |
Height | 12 Inches |
Length | 2.5 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 0.13 Pounds |
Width | 2.5 Inches |
15. The Original Cooling Towel for Extreme Heat Relief (Blue) 27" by 17"
BENEFITS OF OUR COOLING TOWELS: Protects The Body From Over Heating, Reduces Stress and Fatigue, Keeps You Cool on Hot Summer Days, Protects Your Neck & Back From Extreme Temperatures, Keeps You Comfortable Throughout The Day, Cool Down and Recover Faster From Workouts, Great For Any Sport or Outdoo...
Specs:
Color | Blue |
Height | 0.2 Inches |
Length | 27.01 Inches |
Size | Large |
Weight | 0.44 Pounds |
Width | 17.01 Inches |
16. Coghlan's Solar Heated Camp Shower, 5-Gallon, Black
- Capacity: 5 gal. (20 L)
Features:
Specs:
Color | Black |
Height | 3 inches |
Length | 10 inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | November 2018 |
Size | 5 gallon |
Weight | 0.75625 Pounds |
Width | 7 inches |
17. Cleanwaste Portable Toilet w/ 1 Waste Kit (D119PET)
Each Includes One portable toilet, 1 GO anywhere toilet kit, Instruction sheetBuilt-in carry handle.Supports up to 500 Lbs.Uses GO anywhere toilet kits
Specs:
Color | Neutral |
Height | 15 Inches |
Length | 19 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Size | Seat Only |
Weight | 7 Pounds |
Width | 4 Inches |
18. P-Mate Female Disposable Urine Director (5 Pack)
- P-Mate is a Disposable Urine Director so females can stand to pee!
- No more squatting over public toilet or portapotty.
- Easy to use: just position, pee and toss.
- Easy to transport, folds to fit in a pocket!
- Great for women with orthopedic problems.
Features:
Specs:
Height | 0.1 inches |
Length | 7.6 inches |
Size | 1 Pack of 5 |
Weight | 0.02 pounds |
Width | 2 inches |
19. Advanced Elements (SS761) Summer Solar Shower - 3 Gallon
Camping shower; ideal for hiking, hunting, fishing, and other outdoor adventures3-gallon capacity; designed to heat water fast in the warm sun; has water temperature gaugeExtra-large filling valve with twist-off cap; wide carrying handles; Velcro straps for soap and shampooExtra-large filling valve ...
Specs:
Color | Silver |
Height | 2 Inches |
Length | 18 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | November 2016 |
Size | 3 gallon |
Weight | 1 Pounds |
Width | 6 Inches |
🎓 Reddit experts on camping personal care products
The comments and opinions expressed on this page are written exclusively by redditors. To provide you with the most relevant data, we sourced opinions from the most knowledgeable Reddit users based the total number of upvotes and downvotes received across comments on subreddits where camping personal care products are discussed. For your reference and for the sake of transparency, here are the specialists whose opinions mattered the most in our ranking.
Maybe.
I'd set up somewhere in a National Forest in my general area (NC/SC/TN) with plenty of water sources, some fish and game, and an escape route if wildfires get too close.
I have enough Boy Scouts and armchair bushcraft experience to work with an axe and cordage to put together a decent enough shelter--it probably wouldn't take more than a month--and I'd try to setup a decent camp latrine away from water sources.
In addition to my BOB gear*, I'd spend some of the money on a used wheelbarrow, shovel, axe, splitting wedge, $50 worth of cheap cordage/bungee cords/carabiners/tarps/duct tape from Harbor Freight, $10 worth of BIC lighters (can still be used as firestarters once the fuel is gone to supplement the fire gear in my BOB), a gallon of bleach (santize the latrine, backup water purification), a decent cheap WalMart fishing rod/tackle (plus the license). Let's estimate $200 for all that.
Can I scrounge? I'd get a dozen or so free 5-gallon buckets from food service operations and several Arizona tea jugs out of recycling bins. I'd hit up the bulk Goodwill office to grab extra clothes/blankets/bandanas/towel for $.80/lb. I could probably even score a decent pot/pan and plate/flatware/coffee mug to go with the minimal cooking gear in my BOB, maybe even a grate from an old rusted grill. If you're going to be there a year, it's probably worth the couple of bucks.
I don't know much about trapping, but a handful of connibears and steel wire snares aren't too expensive and I'll be there a while so it might be worthwhile to spend $25 on those and a cheap bottle of musk. While I'm at it, let's get a couple of spring-loaded rat traps while we're at Harbor Freight to nail to trees and try get some tree-rats for dinner. At this point, I'm probably going to have to get a hunting license so let's upgrade to the annual premium fishing + hunting license for $50 as it has more privileges.
Let's add some speed-fishing hooks for $11 as well, assuming they're legal in the area.
Oh, I'd better total up what we have so far - $200 for misc tools, $75 for licenses/trapping stuff, and let's drop $25 on a basic cheap slingbow, $5 for an extra band, and $25 for a few cheap arrows from Walmart. Let's guesstimate we're at $300 at this point on tools and food procurement.
I don't plan on catching a lot of meals this way, but I need something to do with the time and if I can catch one critter a month it'll be great for the fresh food to supplement the beans and rice. Another guy in this thread did a cost analysis for a year's supply of rice/beans/oil for $227.88. Let's add a few iodized salt containers and cheap multivitamins from Dollar Tree and then go hit the salvage grocery store for cheap spices/teas. Say $250 for my food supply.
That leaves around $450 left. At this point, I feel like I have some of the basics covered and can start spending money/effort on a few things to make that year go by easier. I love coffee, but it's an expensive habit on a tight budget. Since I'll have an abundance of time, I'll get my coffee fix by buying green unroasted coffee beans - the cheapest bulk bag of green beans from Sweet Maria's is $5.50/lb but is $87.70 for a 20 lb sack and they have a 15% coupon code so let's estimate $90 shipped for 20 lbs. That gives me just under an ounce a day so it's a splurge but I'm willing to spend $100 to get the beans and a $10 french press from Ikea and I'm pretty sure it won't take me too long to find a couple of river rocks that would work as an impromptu mortar/pestle.
I also like to smoke a pipe maybe once a day which is maybe an ounce a week. I already have a spare pipe and tobacco in my EDC bag so this would go with me, but I'll make do with the cheap drugstore pipe tobacco marketed for RYO cigs at $14/lb shipped. We'll grab 3 of those 1 lb packs for $42 to keep me in my daily smoke.
I have a handcrank radio in my BOB and I could kinda cheat and say I already have that folding solar charger I plan on buying someday, but let's not and I'll cough up the $38 for this one. I'll have my battery bank and flashlight that's in my BOB plus my iPhone in my pocket and my Kindle I keep in my EDC backpack. The plan will be that I'll find a nice sunny spot to permanently mount the charger and I can go plug in the battery bank each day to keep my phone topped off. That way I have a radio for news and I can load a lot of music/audiobooks/ebooks/games to help keep me sane. I'm also going to buy an extra pair of earbuds from DollarTree as well as a few bars of Ivory soap a $9 Solar Shower from Amazon. Gotta stay clean and having a shower is a huge morale boost.
Speaking of books, I'm probably going to hit the library on my way out of town and check out a few survival/homesteading books. I'll have plenty of money to pay the late fines after I win the boatload of money from my uncle.
At this point, I've spent:
$350 on Tools/Food Procurement
$250 for boring basic calories food supply
$100 on coffee (important)
$50 in tobacco (likewise important)
$50 for electronics
So $700 total. Do the rules state I have stay in the woods, or can I walk into town from time to time? If so, I'll keep the rest of the money for a weekly walk into town to spend my $3.85 allowance and visit the library. If I can't, I'm going to probably spend the rest on a cheap used rifle and as many rounds as I can buy. I'll have my 9mm Glock and a few clips of ammo from my BOB, but that's no fun to hunt with. I'd also try to figure out a way to get a cheap guitar from somewhere if possible - I could probably figure out a song or two in a year.
Let's say the above plan is approved, and I'm going to the woods for a year. Hoo-rah! That's a lot of sacks of beans and rice - I'm glad I bought a used wheelbarrow! Once I get to a campsite I like, I'll start divying out enough rice/beans/salt into empty 5-gallon bucks and dig a pit to bury them in--probably two or three to make sure it's not all in one place if I didn't bury it deep enough and a bear smells it. The next order of business would be setting up a semi-permanent lean-to glamping shelter, cooking pit, latrine, a sand filter for pre-filtering water before adding into my Sawyer and storing it away in the Arizona tea containers.
I'd spend my days playing around with the hunting/trapping/fishing gear, reading, playing guitar badly, and writing in my journal. Once a week or so, I'd shower, put on my best shirt, and hike to town for a visit to the library and to buy a beer or some other treat. If could access Wi-Fi it'd be great to set up a blog--I could take pictures and write on my phone and upload to a free WordPress site whenever I'm in town. I'm pretty sure I could get a book deal out of this as well.
Definitely get hooked up with the good folks at accessibility if you have not already.
Keeping cool and hydrated are also going to be of major concern...obviously. Outside of the obvious things like wide brim hat, high SPF sunscreen (and plenty of it!), and a camelbak a few things come to mind:
Of course, having a good friend along to help carry stuff and keep an eye on you is also important. I assume you won't partake in any partyfavors, but, I'd feel bad if I didn't drop a reminder not to.
Other random thoughts:
I've never been in accessibility, but, from everything I understand they take extremely good care of everyone. A good friend of mine has gone that way with his brother 3 times and they love it.
This is everything I can think of off the top of my head. I'm sure you've done it, but, definitely talk to your doctors about certain things you should be mindful of while there. I'm sure accesibility is different, but, average Bonnaroovian spends a TON of time on their feet and in the sun. It can be exhausting even for healthy individuals. Partying from noon (or earlier) until 3AM (or later) takes it out of anyone. Just know yourself, your limitations, and priority shows and pace the weekend accordingly.
Feel free to PM if you have additional questions.
Thanks for the encouragement! I get flak for being so wordy sometimes. That said, there's a lot I didn't really cover.
House battery choices are plentiful. My personal preference is to just use the biggest 12v deep cycle I can afford, for simplicity. You definitely want a deep cycle battery for that task, as draining it below halfway over and over again will wear regular batteries out with a quickness. Now, consensus actually dictates 2x 6volt batteries wired in series (making the output 12v) is better for longevity, but I don't see the benefit to that living in Florida, where I'm lucky if any battery sees longer than a couple years' worth of regular usage. If I weren't primarily in Florida, I'd consider it, but anywhere you see "battery" in my little diagram there can be replaced with 2 6-volts wired in series, and everything will work exactly the same. To add capacity, you can also wire in additional 12v batteries (or pairs of 6v batteries) in parallel. "Connected in series" means connecting the positive of one to the negative of the other, and the two remaining posts become the positive and negative pictured. Parallel means positive-to-positive, negative-to-negative, like jump-starting a car. There's longevity considerations in having different sized batteries or different length cables between them, too - make them the same if you can.
I'll take a moment to suggest you research how to run wires on a vehicle, particularly when it comes to running them through the body. Hopefully, the electrician that did your van up the way it is did it well, and you can take a lot of his work as an example, but without seeing it myself end-to-end, I can't make much of a judgement on that. Most of the hate from people like me in low volt and comms towards 'actual' electricians comes from electricians misunderstanding how communications wiring works, as there's more to it than just making the connections. They do just fine, if not better, running power wires for power purposes.
Figuring consumption is simply working out each device's current, and adding it up. Many devices tell you how much energy they use. You want to work towards finding out how much current (in amps) each device uses, and use generous estimates of how long you'll use it for in a day, in hours. Multiply them together, and you have the amp-hours, a common consumption figure found on batteries. Electronics devices sold in the US have figures on them somewhere, though they may tell you watts instead of amps. Use a calculator like this to convert. If it's not obvious, you want more storage than consumption, and be able to regenerate your storage before you'll consume it.
I'll also make a special mention of your prized inverter - try not to use it. You take an efficiency hit on everything you run through it, and add a couple steps when figuring out consumption. Additionally, if it's a "modified-sine" inverter, some gear might not work correctly or have a reduced life from using it through an inverter. Try to find 12v power supplies or non-electric alternatives for anything you think you want to plug into that. That said, it's likely a huge benefit to have that already installed, especially if you can locate your house battery real close by. Its hookup is almost identical to a house battery and all components you'd attach to the battery, making the whole ordeal much simpler on a novice.
Finally and again, reducing your power needs is the biggest step you can take, and continue to take, in making this all simpler. I go farther in this direction than I think most of the subreddit does, too, so you may want to make separate posts for specific topics to get a better feel, but I'll let you in on some of my tricks:
Between my geo, energy diversions, habits, and amenity choices, I don't even have a use for solar unless I'm off work for like a week, and even then, I'm surely driving somewhere far away, probably a few places. Between consumption-reduction being a major viability factor to solar, and the cost vs. warranty on the panels, I don't know how the hell anyone in a house actually sees a benefit to buying them, even with a government grant.
Well, here's what I've got so far.
In the spring I'm building a super simple cheap cabin. Should cost me under $1500 to get the frame, roof and walls up. Simple 4x4 pole barn like frame with an A frame roof, roughly 24x24. Metal roof with a rain water collection system.
For the walls, I'll dig a footer, put in a french drainage system(I think that's the right term), and build a short foundation over that and build an 18-24" thick cob wall around that.
An earthern clay floor sealed with linseed oil.
Inside I'll have a woodstove surrounded by cob (a cob oven at this point) with a second stove on top of it also surrounded by cob to cook in. Picture this but made with woodstoves and cobbed around.
The idea is the stove heats up the cob and that acts like a giant thermal battery/radiator.
The idea for the cabin is a 20x20 interior design with 10' ceilings and extremely space efficient usage. Everything built into the walls. Every inch of wall space used for shelving, bunk bed, storage, cabinets, counter top etc. Even the shower/bathroom built into the wall cabinet style.
I've been studying high efficiency, no-till, intensive gardening methods this year. The first step is compost, compost, compost and also vermiposting. All organic waste matter produced must be composted, vermiposted or burned and used in the garden eventually.
Wood ashes are 25% lime(calcium) by weight so it's good to recycle that back into your garden as well.
Table scraps, cardboard and so on get fed to worms and become worm castings (worm poop) which are extremely beneficial to gardens. Also quite valuable as well. The worms themselves sell for up to $30/lb as well.
Anything else gets composted, including human waste. Termed "Humanure".
Long story short, your bathroom is this. After using you cover/bury with sawdust or similar material. Once it's full it gets empty into the center of a compost bin and covered/buried with something like straw, old hay, more sawdust, weeds, shredded leaves etc. Once the bin is full (which takes forever) you build a new one and let the old one age for a long time to allow any potential pathogens time to die (they don't live forever).
For the long story read the Humanure Handbook or snag it off bittorrent.
Instead of buying expensive, synthetic fertilizers for your garden/farm, recycle your own home made fertilizers instead of wasting it.
Read this, this, and this.
By producing your own compost, fertilizer and worm castings you have no need to buy fertilizers, soil amendments or pesticides.
To avoid having your crops ruined by pests you don't plan a ton of one thing. You plant a large variety and rotate them each year. There's also companion planting to help them grow bigger, better, faster, healthier and to protect them from pests. Certain plants will either draw away pests or attract beneficial insects that eat pests.
The whole point of this is to grow large amounts of high quality food in a small space without a ton of work or money. All you need are some heirloom seeds and then you can propagate them on your own after that.
So after my cabin is built my next step will be to extend the walls out to the south by about 20 feet and then build a very simple frame over top of that and cover with heavy duty long lasting greenhouse roofing panels.
It'll be direct connected to the cabin and I'll be able to keep it warm in the winter via the woodstove + heat from the sun. In there I'll expand my worm farming and grow some year round vegetable and herb crops and include a small scale (under 2000 gallon) aquaponics system.
Aquaponics combines hydroponics with fish farming. I can get 300 gallon potable water tanks for $65 each. So I'll set up a series of those in line, remove the tops and connect them in a series so as one gets full to empties into the next one. Then above these have a flat shelf with a long but shallow water tank.
In the top tank I'll produce duckweed.. This stuff can double in mass every 48-72 hours and makes excellent feed for fish (herbivore or omnivore species) as well as chickens, ducks or other animals. Chickens fed a diet including duckweed have shown to have more nutritious eggs.
In the bottom tanks I'll have various aquatic creatures that will be occasionally harvested as a food source. As the animals poop and pee in the tanks, this provides nutrients for the duckweed to grow, providing a circular sustainable cycle. I'll just need to harvest half of the duck weed once every 2-3 days and feed that to the fish and crayfish and supplement that with worms as well as some types of table scraps.
As of now I've narrowed it down to marbled crayfish and Tilapia. I looked at all kinds of animals and looked for quality of meat, ease of reproduction, hardiness and variety of diet. Both critters reproduce like rabbits without needing special water temps or salinity or other bullshit. I also looked at what my local neighborhood produces as well and looked for something unique and different so I could trade what I produce for what they produce.
So by having a self sustaining cycle and producing my own feed for the animals my costs will remain low and I'll save a ton of money on my own food as well as being able to sell or trade in the local economy (neighborhood scale).
Once that is built and running my next step would be to work on a solar system to eventually go off grid in terms of electricity.
I have more info but I need to get ready, going horse back riding today :-)
This girl (blog is no longer active) set up a pretty smart way for either gender to pee through her plumbing. If you go this route, just be sure you won't get in trouble or ruin anything when you use it.
Do a bunch of research on vehicles. Sprinters typically cost a fortune if they need a lot of maintenance and some years are better than others. However, some come stock with standing room and are much easier to build out. Chevy's are easier to build out than Fords due to the walls and Chevy's get better gas mileage than Fords, but I've heard Fords are more reliable. You'll hear many contradictions, but do your best to weed through all of the information for a general consensus. There sure is a lot of info on this subreddit alone, and then you've got that web that is world wide too :)
Hope to see you on the road!
Edit: I suppose there is more that goes in to deciding to build your own. Time is probably the biggest. Time is money, as they say. Do you have someone who can help you and would want to? That has been the most frustrating part for me. My friends are flaky and unreliable. Fuckers they are! If you're willing to absorb all of the information at your disposal, (youtube, blogs, general webpages about building & 12v electricity/solar) the other person doesn't have to know much, but, man, it helps to have another set of hands. For some projects, two hands aren't enough.
And back to the toilet, I have an emergency toilet that I hope to never use, but it's a luggable loo on a 3 gallon bucket
Do you have the regular planet fitness membership or the black one?
http://www.planetfitness.com/membership-types
If you have the black one you're golden ;)
Other than that, get a good portable stove so you can make some food and boil water for tea or coffee.
Buy a jerrycan for water with a little tap on it, fill it up regularly, it also means you can wash yourself even if you don't have access to showers etc.
A small camping spade is good for number 2s in the woods :)
Get a mosquito net hammock, and maybe a cheap tent it means you can sleep outside or on campsites on hot nights.
Your biggest expense will be gas for the car.
Planet fitness is a good idea, but it's urban areas, I would do some (wild) camping more often.
I have no idea what campsites cost in the US per night, but if you do that every other night, or even once in 3 nights, it beats sleeping in a car park, and is cheaper than a hotel.
Have a look at some of the national parks, some of them have basic (cheap) camp grounds too. Campgrounds are really cool places to meet people, much better than a Walmart car park ;)
Shopping list:
Solar shower
Water carrier
Folding spade
Hammock
Cookware
Camping canister stoves are cheap, between $10 and $50
Cheap tent is around $50
Total expenses before hand, around $150-200 max.
I just went for the first items I found on amazon, there are probably cheaper or better products out there.
Source, I did a 6 month trip by bicycle through Europe, so not the same, but the basics are the same. You have the advantage of not being restricted by weight or size of items, which makes it cheaper.
If you need more ideas, packing tips or anything else, I'll gladly help ;)
Have fun, explore and enjoy, it's fun!
Elevated camping is just a hilarious concept to me. As if one person in a planning committee was like "I want to do everything identical to regular camping, but sleep 2 feet higher", and since they were a generally nice person, everyone else politely nodded their head.
Like I'm legitimately confused as to its merits over an air mattress in a regular tent. Feel like it just dramatically increases the probability of accidentally falling onto the ground during a groggy morning or drunk night.
That being said, I'm confident that whatever camping option you have, you're going to have a BLAST! Firefly is an awesome experience- great people, great music, and great vibes all around. In addition to what other people have suggested, I'd highly recommend a reusable water bottle to bring into the festival, as well as a handkerchief in case it's dry and dusty. Also a cheap camp shower works wonders if you don't want to wait on line for a shower!
It just so happened that a lot of Eureka stuff was on sale at the time I was shopping, so I look like something of a fanboy.
Copied and pasted from my reply in a related thread a few weeks ago about camping showers. This is a bit more involved than most people probably use, but it doubles as a both a camping shower and a misting setup for your canopy to provide cooling all weekend.
 
>We buy gallon jugs and a flat of water bottles for drinking, but our "utility" water comes from the water fill stations, or melted ice, depending on the use.
>Our shower is different than most camping showers you'll see people bring. We use a pump action garden sprayer like this one connected to a misting hose like this one that is clipped around our EZ-Up for general cooling purposes. When someone wants to shower, they disconnect the pump tank from misting hose and take it in to a small camping shower enclosure like this one to take a quick wash with the sprayer. The enclosure is lightweight and pops up so it's very quick to throw out and fold down as needed. It's a great combination system to get clean without the wait/walk, and also to keep your campsite refreshingly cool with the misting hose. Neighbors are generally impressed by the mist.
>More commonly, you will see people use bag showers like this one hung within something like this. Take down and set up as needed, or leave it up all weekend if you find yourself with a corner spot. Enclosures that are stable enough to hold the water bag can be expensive, though, so that's why I think our system is a little better and more versatile.
Here is my secret list shhhhhh... It's not cheap options that's for sure but I like being comfortable I guess, and it's stuff that will last for years of festival fun!
Lots of questions here about headsets, etc. Dad here, have researched this, info incoming!
Age of children - if you can put them in a back seat and have another adult back there with them, it depends on how soon they can wear a headset. Every baby is different.
Headsets. For the little babies, this is the toughest. We couldn't find any true headset, and looked into simple sound-blocking earmuffs. We tried several brands before landing on small Peltor Sport Earmuffs from https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015V1VX8/ . For babies with larger heads, you can probably start them on short flights at 4 months. For smaller heads, they may need to be 6-12 months for their head to be big enough for a proper seal.
For the older kids, get one of the Sigtronics Youth headsets https://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/catalogsearch/result/?q=sigtronics+youth . Durable, and they're not $1000 if they misuse them. I have the S-58Y and they've worked fine. The headbands swap out for adult headbands too, so they can grow with them.
Ages - if you've got an adult to sit with them in back (especially if your audio panel has a pilot isolate button), you can take them at just about any age. My wife rides in back with my little one. I am much more selective about who can ride in front. My own older kids, whom I know real well, I let. EAA wants kids to be at least 8 for Young Eagles, and that's probably as good a guideline as any for other kids.
Get them excited about it before you take them up. My little one likes to watch 5-minute segments from One Six Right with me. We put on our headsets and watch them, and she jabbers about the airplanes. I started her out just letting her hold and feel the headset. I'd show her how I always wore one and waited for her to ask for one too. It only stayed on a few seconds at first, but she wanted to try it briefly every time. With the real little ones, your life will be easier if they are used to thinking about wearing headsets and thinking of planes as exciting things.
The older ones love to watch the GPS. They are interested in how fast we are going, how high up we are, etc.
Keep your climbs and descents shallow. Kids don't know how to clear their ears. I aim for 500FPM max. You don't want them screaming in agony. For the infant/toddler crowd, have them munching on or drinking something during the climbs and descents to help with the ear popping.
Don't be that person that insists "we've gotta make time." When the family wants to stop for a break, you stop for a break. Especially if someone needs to use the bathroom. I bring Travel Johns on longer flights for the males on board. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NV878S My wife has looked at everything on Sporty's and didn't want to try any of their products that claim to work for women, so I got nothin for you there.
Finally, the best compliment you can get as a pilot is when they stay asleep during the landing.
USE SUNSCREEN. Wear a hat. Wear sunglasses, bring extras. Bring several pairs of comfortable shoes, flip flops or worn out shoes are going to be a bad time. Carry extra socks with you, amazing how refreshing it is to change your socks in the middle of the day.
Earplugs are a must, for loud music areas and for trying to sleep.
Bring a larger tent than you think you need. Room is nice. also bring a luggage lock - a small combo lock that can fit through your zippers and make it a bit more secure (but lock real valuables in your car.)
In addition to your tent, bring a 10x10 canopy like this to shade your tent or the area in front of your tent. It will keep the sun off of your skin while chilling, and if used over your tent can cool it off inside.
Get some solar powered lights to put in or around your camp. Find a way to put the solar charger outside, outside lights can help you find your tent, light the interior on under the canopy I suggested, and makes it look pretty cool.
If you are worried about juicing your phone, clip one of these to your backpack as you walk around all day. A good one can keep your phone topped off pretty well. Get one per phone, they aren't that heavy. Beats having to visit charging stations.
I posted elsewhere about using a camping stove, these are really good - make sure to get some JetFuel for each one. Bring old pots and pans, a kettle to make hot water, and butter cooking spray is the bomb to keep things fairly non-stick. To make coffee, use a simple pour over device with cone shaped paper filters. Bring reusable cups for each person.
Bring bags for garbage. Try to reduce the amount of plastic you throw away.
If you don't want to pay for showers, bring one of these camp showers. I also bring another 5-gallon container to refill your bag and for washing dishes etc, and a folding wagon to carry it in because I'm too old to struggle.
Hey! I read your first sentence and did a double-take to make sure I hadn't written it... I'm also a 26 year old female graduate student planning on traveling around for a while (one of the beautiful things about the technological age in which we live is that so much education is online, and we're free to go where we please).
I did a bunch of searching online... looked at a class B camper in person, felt like there was too much there (fridge, heater, AC, shower... felt bulky and unnecessary). I found a great deal on a gutted 1993 Dodge van and I'm starting work on it now. I got it three days ago, and I'm diving into flooring and insulation now. I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but you never really know until you start getting your hands dirty. It's truly a lot of work. And, depending on how you want it to look in the end, a big investment and a lot of trips to Home Depot. If you're strapped for time, I'd recommend paying a bit extra for a van that's already set up.
Peeing might turn out to be an issue. Actually, maybe far more than that other order of business (see: http://www.amazon.com/Cleanwaste-GO-anywhere-Portable-Toilet/dp/B001TKGAKO/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1426742586&sr=8-13&keywords=portable+toilet). I was just talking to my father about this very thing, and there was no conclusion reached. When I'm camping, peeing in the trees is no big deal. Very different story at 10 pm downtown Denver, Seattle, Chicago... I have no idea, but I'm hoping to glean some wisdom from your question :)
Regarding the coffee... Before I bought anything else, actually, I bought a french press designed for camping. I'm dedicated to coffee. I also got a Coleman single burner propane camp stove which I plan on maybe bolting to a counter. I'll heat up some water in the morning and always have pre-ground coffee on hand. This will also be my method for oatmeal, Ramen (if things get desperate), etc. I plan on eating a lot of fruit and granola.
I use coffee shops and libraries a lot for school/work as it is, so those will be my charging areas for my laptop and phone. I like your McDonald's idea for wifi! I'll keep that in mind.
You can also just get one of these. Its a solar shower bag.
https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Elements-Summer-Solar-Shower/dp/B000J2Q0SU/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1496935682&sr=8-5&keywords=solar+shower+bag
I never used them myself but last year I went with friends who brought one, they said it worked pretty well in conjunction with dry shampoo.
While I wouldn't say firefly is specifically an LGBT friendly festival, its basically like all the others in the north east area. In my experience I've never seen any homophobia or transphobia at these festivals. Even times when I saw gay couples who were all over each other I never noticed anyone harassing them, even saw a rainbow/LGBT totem some group carried around last year. I think she should be okay standing in lines for the showers but a portable shower/shower bag would be a good way around running into potential assholes.
I bought a solar shower like this for my first year. I never used it. All the girls in my camp would use up all the water before I got a chance. I don't really like it anyway. It's fucking heavy when it's full and a bitch to carry, especially if you're far from water. I wouldn't recommend it.
I've seen some people hook up showers like mine in little tents like this, which is probably nice for privacy's sake, but if you're gonna spend all that money, you may as well just buy a shower pass and use the showers at Roo.
Someone at our camp bought a garden sprayer like this, which I thought was genius. It works great, you just need a buddy to spray you down.
In all honesty, I just use water jugs and pour them over my head in the mornings. Two gallons is exactly how much I need and it's simple and cheap. Plus, you never really want hot water anyway. It's so fucking hot out all the time that cold/room temperature water feels fucking great.
My solar shower is seriously the best investment I've ever made for festivals. It paid for itself in 2 days ($25 total vs $10/person/day) and honestly, I prefer it to the shower trucks (although I haven't tried the permanent ones). One of my very favorite parts of the day is standing on the grass in the warm Bonnaroo sunshine with a beer in one hand taking a cool shower and thinking of all the awesome stuff I'm gonna see and do that night.
It's big enough for 2 people to use back-to-back but small enough that I can easily carry it back from the water station. Plus it's great for brushing your teeth or washing your hands during the day. 10/10 totally recommend.
I am stationary RV living right now. It has it's challenges but is workable.
We buy 5 gallon jugs of water from Walmart (at the refill area) since we don't have running water. I wash dishes in the sink using REALLY hot water, tongs, and a washcloth.
For the bathroom, we can use a bathroom in a house here on the property we are at but when we move to my property, we'll use a composting toilet. We can empty the tank about weekly otherwise. Shower, we have a camping shower bag because our shower doesn't have water. Works well. Set in the sun, the water gets hot. Although, I am okay with cold water also.
To help with heat... well that is the hardest issue. We use fans a lot and parked in the shade which helped. If we had power hook up, I could run a small window A/C. If you are in a dry climate, a mister sprayer with ice water in it is very nice. To keep the heat out of the RV, we are looking into grills for cooking outside. I also cover the front window to keep it from heating the cabin area.
To help with cold... we bundle up. We also talked about putting up RV skirting next winter to help with insulation. We used a small Mr Heater to help warm up the place. For sleeping, I have a heavy duty sleeping bag and a mummy bag. I can sleep in -50F weather (not that I am going to... but I could if I wanted to).
You can make it work. The hardest part for us is water when money is tight and emptying the tanks once a week.
I don't use disposable dishes because I am too poor. We have cats and a dog. I worry about them overheating but I am working on a plan to build an outdoor animal area for the cats too.
Also, /r/vandwellers and /r/GoRVing are good resources for ideas and help.
1.) This [Workout DVD]
(http://www.amazon.com/Tracy-Anderson-Method-Post-Pregnancy-Workout/dp/B008DL4IZQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=39MD4F4AQ4MXM&coliid=IBHX7FVYXEOG0) would help me sweat to get rid of baby weight.
2.) [ICE CREAM] (http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-ICE-21-Frozen-Yogurt-Ice-Sorbet/dp/B003KYSLMW/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=3S72V8PR4PYO1&coliid=IUHB38XALOEBE)
3.) No picnic would be complete without [a picnic basket] (http://www.amazon.com/Household-Essentials-Willow-Picnic-Service/dp/B000P4UUQK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376949246&sr=8-1&keywords=picnic+basket).
4.) I desperately want to go to the [Aran Islands] (http://www.amazon.com/Muckross-Button-Cardigan-Medium-Heather/dp/B008B5VD2K/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1376949608&sr=8-12&keywords=aran+sweater).
5.) We had an awesome squiggly sprinkler like this one
6.) [This] (http://www.amazon.com/Lady-Elegance-EZ-Female-Urinal/dp/B004ANM6C8/ref=sr_1_79?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1376950560&sr=1-79&keywords=camping) because peeing in the woods is the worst.
7.) Nothing is better than [fun shaped pancakes] (http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Nonstick-Bear-Pancake-Pan/dp/B001LUMNJO/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1376950868&sr=8-12&keywords=bear), especially cute bear shaped pancakes.
8.) [This] (http://www.amazon.com/Im-Gonna-Be-500-Miles/dp/B000T1EJ0W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376950942&s=dmusic&sr=1-1) is on every road trip mix I've ever made.
9.) I have had to throw away so many of these because I always forget I have it!
10.) [BABY COWS!!!] (http://www.amazon.com/Beanie-Boos-Daisy-The-Cow/dp/B005SSA798/ref=reg_hu-rd_add_1_dp)
BONUS #1 – Mickey says [Happy Birthday] (http://www.amazon.com/Lenox-Mickeys-Happy-Birthday-You-/dp/B0019FEC7C/ref=sr_1_43?ie=UTF8&qid=1376952067&sr=8-43&keywords=june+birthday)
BONUS #2 - [Total wild guess] (http://www.amazon.com/Gemma-Gymnastics-Fairy-Rainbow-Magic/dp/0545202582/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1376952611&sr=8-4&keywords=gemma)
Some of the best memories are made in flip flops.
Thanks for the fun contest!!
I'm in the process of slowing converting a Ford E150 into a stealth camper. We basically used it like a metal tent initially, but I'm slowly customizing it. The toilet is this: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0000B13MT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It fits on a Rona bucket, with a double bagged garbage bag. Almost never need to use it. We'll eventually upgrade to a composter or something like what you linked, but for now it meets our needs.
We find that anything within a few hours drive of our city is pretty booked months in advance, but this way we can leave on a camping, hiking or fishing trip any time we like with basically no notice. When we camp on old fire roads we find that firewood is so easy to find we're thinking about putting in a small RV woodstove to extend the camping season. I wouldn't want to live this way but it's lots of fun in short stints, we'll go for 10 days or so at a time. To be honest, we often park in a hotel parking lot and when you get up in the morning and walk in the staff will just point you at a free breakfast, they assume you're staying there.
What is your plan for going to the bathroom if there is no running water/toilets/privacy? At the least get a bucket toilet so that you have some place to put it all.
If you plan on doing some clean up, get face masks/respirators and protective eyewear appropriate for that. If you are wearing work gloves, put latex/nitrile gloves under that. There are gloves that are a bit longer than the usual wrist length. Any cut/wound becomes an opportunity for infection. Make sure you have enough first aid supplies to both thoroughly clean and bandage any cut/wound.
Have good "hand awareness" -that is be mindful of not touching your face. All the gloves and ppe in the world won't do any good if you rub your gloved hand over your eyes/nose/mouth and directly administer cooties to yourself. That is another reason for some sort of mask/eyewear -so that you don't rub gunk in places you don't want gunk.
Be careful! Stay safe! I hope your house is ok.
edit: formatting fail
Bring rain boots just in case. Last year's mud fest turned into a shoe graveyard and I ruined several shoes that I brought.
Also Walmart /camping stores have solar powered shower bags for real cheap (like under $20) bring a big jug of water and dedicate that jug solely to shower water, its not the cleanest feeling (if you don't have a shower tent you can wear a bathing suit and wash up outside of your car) but i certainly hope youre not going to a camping festival thinking you're going to be clean anyway, its definitely better than waiting in a long line and paying for a shower
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0009PUT20/ref=mp_s_a_1_sc_1?qid=1452773074&sr=8-1-spell&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&keywords=solar+powerd+showe+bag
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B010GSU294/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1452773182&sr=8-3&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=shower+tent&dpPl=1&dpID=41VMyC7Bm0L&ref=plSrch
*sorry about the links I'm on mobile
My inside-of-my-tent setup is as follows:
Hanging LED tent light, that baby lights my whole tent brightly making it easy to find anything I need, and it has a push-button on switch so it's easy to reach up and turn it on in the dark. (something that looks almost exactly like this: http://www.batteriesinaflash.com/survival-gear/accessories/se-professional-fl8824-camping-tent-light-24-white-led-bulbs?gclid=CIz0zY600b0CFVKDfgodh6oAJA)
Pee jug (I use an empty laundry detergent container because it smells nice and there's no confusing it for water/juice/etc.)
Pee funnel since I'm a lady (I use this one http://www.amazon.com/Jobar-International-Ez-Travel-Urinal/dp/B004ANM6C8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1396978030&sr=8-2&keywords=pee+funnel)
A package of ear plugs, a sleep mask, and a package of baby wipes sit in the little hanging tent cargo pocket thing. I like to baby wipe my arms and legs before getting into my sleeping bag.
A large sheet to cover my bed when I'm gone.
A battery operated tent fan.
Water bottle full of water.
A good, fluffy pillow!! I find that no matter what I'm sleeping on, if I have a comfortable pillow I sleep SO much better. When camping, for me, the pillow is the number one most important part of the bed.
Get a PO Box immediately so youhave a place for your mail to go. Don't check "commercial or business use" or the post office will be obligated to give out your contact info for anyone who asks. They are about $30 for six months.
Buy a little urinal jug for $5 or pack of disposable ones for $12.
(You have to pee when in a car a lot more than your tire goes flat so why do you have a spare tire and no pee jug in your trunk?)
Here is one with a female adapter for $5. everyone should have one of these in their car trunk anyway.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000M3DCHI?ie=UTF8&tag=reddit0e-20
here are some disposable cardboard paper ones 6 for $12 if you want something smaller.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NV878S?ie=UTF8&tag=reddit0e-20
You don't want to exit a car at night to walk the woods or city streets to find privacy. Aircraft supply stores came up with these women's pee jugs which are used in small airplanes flying for several hours when no one wants to land just to pee.
Other practical things from a friend of mine who has camped across the country:
If you have a car to sleep in find the neighborhoods with lots of apartments becuase they usually have a lot of apartment dwellers who park overnight on the streets so your car won't get hassled.
IF you live near a swimming pool park, beach or lake a lot of them have open showers.
If you have a sportsclub membership you can usually shower and change clothes there (might be worth the monthly purchase for national shower privileges alone.) If you go to a 24 hr one in work out sweats no one will think anything of it if you "accidentally fall asleep" on a floor mat "doing your exercises".
Buy a small wind up or battery powered alarm clock.
A plastic jar of peanut butter, a half gallon jug of spring water, a multivitamin and aspirin bottle, cold cans of chicken based Progresso soups with rice or veggies (which taste like high end gazpacho cold) and a spoon or fork and a can opener a wash cloth, deodorant, hairspray, toilet paper are wonderful things to have in a car at all times whether or not you are homeless/camping whatever.
A wool blanket is a wonderful thing for warmth and window privacy. A Sunday newspaper and tape makes great car window privacy (but also alerts police you might be sleeping in your car which is illegal some places.) An alternative is some of those sun reflectors for car windows which you can get at the 99cents store. Lots of people leave those on windows when they aren't sleeping in a car.
Even an out of service (with canceled monthly bill etc) cell phone can be used for emergency 911 calls if you keep it charged.
Get a thing that plugs into your cigarettes lighter that lets you pull in regular electrical plug devices to do things like run your cell phone and small laptop.here's one for $25
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000157TNA?ie=UTF8&tag=reddit0e-20
WARNING they CANNOT BE USED WITH HAIRDRYERS or HEATING THINGS becuase those use to much electricity.
for that you need a heavy duty one 1500 watt one which will be a few hundred like this
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00126IDDC?ie=UTF8&tag=reddit0e-20
no 2000 watt hairdryers if it's 1500 watts! (you should really not use a hairdryer in your car)
Even the smaller ones for cell phones and laptops will run down your car battery within an hour if the car isn't running and the larger one may even run it down when the car IS running becuase they pull so much electric juice.
If you are ever sleeping in your car, the easiest way to stay warm is to get a 2 liter soda bottle and empty it and fill it to the top (no air) with the hottest tap water you can find from a public sink, screw the plastic lid back on tight, and then put that bottle in a blanket or sleeping bag with you. You will stay very warm all night. You probably will need to wrap the hot water bottle in a pants leg or blanket becuase it will be hot on your skin otherwise. Don't leave air in there or it will expand and pressurize the bottle as soon as the hot water gets shaken. got o an aquarium store and buy two clear hoses like in aquariums.
One small diameter and one larger.
The small one can fill jugs from sinks etc when you can't get the jug under the sink faucet.
The large one can be used to route fluids outside your car without opening the door or to help fill radiators etc.
Get a $5 led flashlight and bunches of batteries for 99 cents
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000LIQQ7M?ie=UTF8&tag=reddit0e-20
Those are all good things to have in your car anyway.
Hey, I was in a very very similar situation. I don't know how intense you want to go with it, but here are some things that I've done at various points:
I know there are water filters out there, but idk if an affordable system would fix the issues you're describing.
Not a thru hiker. But I'm also a female. I love my wind pants from amazon. I wear a medium and they are 95g. Not as light as other options but affordable.
Instead of wipes, you could mail yourself some compressed towels. I have some from daiso that are individually packaged like little candies. But there's also some on amazon. Definitely useful for that time of the month!
Also a PCT 2020 hopeful!
Do you have game on your land? Maybe check reddit, craigslist, the bulletin board in town, and see if anyone would be willing to help you for a few hours in exchange for a place to hunt? I saw that offer on AirBnB a while back, you could camp for free for a week, with 2 hours of help per day.
Maybe empty out the qounset hut and make that more habitable, so you aren't all cramped together in one room all the time? Make it a simple retreat, just somewhere that you can decompress, sit in a chair and drink a beer, maybe take a solar shower out back and spend a few minutes naked in nature? Maybe she could read a book for an hour, or listen to the birds? Smoke a doobie and listen to Adele? Yall need to carve out some space for your emotional state and have a retreat from EVERYTHING - or else you're going to get so snappish and short with each other as all the stress is piling on. Good luck man, you're long on heart and grit, and you'll handle stuff. Baby steps. You're learning.
>You have to be frugal to get an adult clean on one tank
We used to use a garden sprayer camping too, but then discovered this incredibly simply little gadget and found we got more thoroughly rinsed and cleaner "feeling" on even less water than we used with the sprayer. That plus one of these = the most efficient camping shower that actually gets you feeling as clean as your regular shower at home can, the garden sprayer just never had enough pressure or volume to make you feel like the soap and grime is actually off your body, you know? :)
Great discussion! I could definitely use one of those. I have to pump about 15 times to fill a glass of water with my hand pump.
I bought this shower two years ago and it was worth every penny and is still working great. Besides showeing, I have used it for many purposes like transferring rainwater from one conainer to another rinsing dishes and watering my garden. I have a bad back and this little beauty is by far my favorite off grid purchase.
https://www.amazon.ca/Ivation-Battery-Powered-Waterproof-Handheld-Portable/dp/B00IFHFJXI
You can build a van with underbody tanks and a shower, but that's much more involved. You also need a heating system to keep those from freezing, etc.
But there are any number of ways you can keep clean between showers, and in the states Planet Fitness (as has been mentioned) lets you both work out and shower almost everywhere.
Washcloths and basins of water would be plenty to get clean, if not as luxuriously as a shower.
Put room temperature water in a bucket, pour in a pot of boiling water to get it lukewarm, and use this: https://www.amazon.com/Ivation-Portable-Outdoor-Battery-Powered/dp/B00IFHFJXI (drop the pump into the bucket and shower away. If you get a wider basin you could even stand in it and let the water circulate a couple of times and extend the shower time.) Or combine with a drop-in bucket heater, to shower in hot water. Just have to get creative.
People have kept clean for centuries without showers. It's not as nice but it's doable.
The Porta makes a good seat but emptying it is a nono. Use plastic bags and paper towels to create a virtual absorbant diaper. The end product will be about the same size as a diaper and is easily disposable with ur daily trash.
Having said that, the Porta potti is going to take up permenant space in your vehicle. It may be best to go with a handicap assist seat like this one. Or just go completely minimal with a space saving bucket that can also hold extra bags, tp, and paper towels while remaining completely innocuous.
Although, looking at it now, I don't feel comfortable with a permenant toilet seat in my rig (that I have to look at). Or anyone else for that matter. So it may be just as beneficial to go with a home depot 5gal bucket and possibly modify it with a pool noodle lol
I think , for emergencies, this is the way to go
Intotheam.com - They have some pretty sweet festival gear.
It's really whatever you're most comfortable in. Just remember during the day, it's going to be HOT. I usually just rock a tank and a bathing suit and a large brimmed hat. I can't stress enough about the large brimmed hat. Some may look ridiculous but it will save you from the sun.
Also get a cooling towel/rag, it will be a LIFE saver -https://www.amazon.com/Original-Cooling-Towel-Extreme-Relief/dp/B00VSH7LEM
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Happy Roo!!
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Right. The shower is the killer. Showers make the burn soooo much more tolerable, but logistically it doesn't scale well. Evaporator systems clearly have limited effectiveness. They can evaporate enough water for a small camp, but there's no system that effectively evaporates the shower water for 50 people. (if somebody else has a different experience, I'm always happy to be contradicted). But with 50 people the need to evaporate is greater.
Here are my two solutions to the problem:
I team drive with my lady and she uses
https://www.amazon.com/Jobar-International-Travel-Urinal-Reusable/dp/B004ANM6C8
when in a pinch lol. Right into a bottle like a man Hahaha.
Good job on getting rolling in this line of work. Sounds like you got the bug good!
My parents were surf hippies, and we spent literally months camped out at surf beaches with no power or running water. Solar showers are brilliant, and make a big difference to hygiene. Admittedly no good if you are in the Canadian winter, but for most of the year in temperate zones, they can provide a hot to lukewarm shower after a few hours in the sun.
MSR make a shower attachment for their Hydromedary water bags (a good compact option vs jerry cans). Dedicated solar showers are cheap, or you can go for a deluxe model like this one from Amazon
I love my Cooling towel If I'm out in hot weather it'll keep cool for a good 3 hours. And this Silicone Popcorn Maker makes great popcorn in the microwave. Threw out our old air popcorn maker that didn't work all that well.
My gf says the best gift she got in this heat was the "frog togs cooling towel"
https://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Toggs-Chilly-Cooling-Towel/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=asc_df_B003YF7W22/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312111913661&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=18434605617787160366&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033822&hvtargid=pla-449602261639&psc=1
Or Frozen water/electrolytes (Think enduralites)
My partner thanks you and says she loves that you are thinking of carriers!
I've tried those, but have had...less-than desirable results. Apparently I lack the sort of coordination needed to use one without peeing all over myself. 😆
So I did the next best thing and created my very own Whiz Palace! It's essentially a large bucket with a toilet seat on top; I secure a small trash bag inside and fill with cedar shavings (like you'd put in a small pet cage), to mitigate any noise or smell. The toilet is then placed inside a pop-up shower tent and voila! I also include toilet paper and other accouterments. I change the bag and cedar daily. It's not pretty, but it beats the heck out of stumbling to a porta-potty at 5am.
6 changes of clothespair of shorts, pair of pants, 2 t-shirts, light jacket, sweatshirt/sweater, 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of underwear. You should be wearing about half of this going out. Just air out the clothes you aren't wearing, even better is to wash them in a stream.toiletriesBar of soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, toilet paper, deodorant if you mustwarm hat and glovesnot sure what the weather will be like but I reserve these for when it may snowlots of sockslounging shoes, hiking shoesrunning shoes are good for hiking if your pack isn't heavy >30lbspillowuse your clothesfew1 bowlgoodcalorie dense snacks such as nuts, jerky, dried fruit.rain jacket$1 ponchoMy additions:
Bonus:
All in all I think you should keep your pack under 30lbs, especially if you are going to be doing some hiking.
Our experience:
We bought a collapsible toilet for emergencies. Like this one. Easier to fit.
We didn't use it one single time for the first 6 months of travel, so we ditched it a long time ago. Not a second glance. Toilets for #2 are easy to come by. A caveat is that we're on public lands and campsites most of the time. I think a collapsible toilet would be more helpful for stealth city dwellers... But even then I've seen plenty of people go without.
Unless you have medical issues, then adjust as you see fit!
You can still do GA and have flushable toilets, but it depends where you camp. There’s a “Jon condo” between the amp and meadow stages at the heart of the venue, for when you’re enjoying the shows. If you (arrive early enough to) camp near the bath house by Spirit Lake or the Grand Hall you can have access to flushing toilets, but there will be lines at peak times.
I fest and camp with my 8 year old daughter and we have one of these for just in case. Dudes piss innawoods but that’s not always possible for womenfolk, so we travel with one of these. #1 only.
A mister is a good call. I had one of those pocket fans with a misting spray bottle attached, picked it up for super cheap at a dollar store and it came in handy but I didn't end up using it all that much.
Last year, my friend's girlfriend brought these things called Frog Toggs, it's like a hand towel made of a weird fabric that gets cold when it gets wet. I kept one around the back of my neck and then just wet it again whenever I went to get water. Came in really handy and I was surprised how well it worked.
/u/SpartanUp247 , I'm breaking this up so it's not a mega post.
Insofar as other as other supplies go... well, I could write on that for way longer than I'm going to tonight. I'll try to give a short essential list though.
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Bug out bags are cool and a good idea/place to get started, but realistically if you are forced to sincerely grab that bag and run out of the door with nothing else because things are just that screwed, you are likely pretty hosed. Chances are you'll have time to pack the car in most situations, so the best way to go is to plan on bugging in first and foremost. No point in turning yourself into a refugee if you don't need to. If you're still wanting to start with a bugout bag... see the next post for my recommendation for a cheap startup kit.
I think I may be in the minority on this, but the shower bag never really did it for me. I brought one like this and it was really lack luster. Im 6 feet tall and after hanging the bag, the nozzle was below my waist. That would have been fine, if not for the fact that the shower head just barely dripped, Placing the bag on the roof of the car got the water nice and hot within an hour or two. But if you want to get clean I might go with one of these with some kind of wash basin, or a kiddie pool and a bucket work really well for a quick cleanup
Great tips! As an alt to the fan with the spray, you can also get one of those towels that get cool when you wet them. There are a ton of these on Amazon — here's one brand.
I'd also download the Disneyland app which has estimated wait times and all the info on the park map in a more manageable package :)
Something like this. There are reusable versions that are great for camping but i feel the disposable is better in the festival setting.
Shower for your campsite - This attaches to any water bottle and creates a shower like flow to help you keep... relatively cleaner than you were before. It's been a huge help the last two years for me and I highly suggest it.
http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Camping-Shower-Simple/dp/B00DVXXIQQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452119392&sr=8-1&keywords=water+bottle+shower
The pStyle seems to be the most univerally beloved. Super cheap and very easy to use.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000ITVSSQ/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_FaDYCbBMY7BRN
That's the shower tent I have. It's super sturdy and can hold a 5 gallon bag no problem. The bladder that comes with this tent sucks. Intex solar bags are about $7 each on Amazon and much higher quality so we ordered 8 of them so we have 40 gallons of usable hot water, not only for showering, but also for washing dishes and whatnot. There is nothing like having the freedom to shower at a camping festival.
I know this is a little pricey, but it was well worth it for me.. I use a ZODI instant hot water shower, comes with a carrying case which can also be used to hold the shower water, a pump, propane heating unit, and shower head/hose... I bought one that was barely used off eBay and I'm soo happy I did. Who can beat instant hot water??
http://amzn.com/B000X4IAMS
We have this one and it is amazing!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IFHFJXI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and get a collapsible bucket to put the one end in.
​
But honestly last year I saw a girl taking a shower using a small watering can. That actually seemed even easier than my shower set up.
That's all I got. See you on the farm!
Week 2! Sorry, haha. I'm actually gonna bring portable urinals (which sounds gross, but apparently more people use them at festivals than you'd think) and offer them to my fellow GNR campers around me so no one feels like they need to leave. Since you're gonna be camping, here's the link if you're interested.
TravelJohn-Disposable Urinal (6 pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NV878S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_fPvxDb15AQ0NA
The trash bags are essential! I forgot to mention that, you are more prepared than me though I should really put some TP back in my stash. I need to add a bottle of water or two and hand sanitizer though for sure. Great tips. It's unfortunate we even need these things but it's better to be prepared. When I was pregnant I got these and I carry them with me too: https://www.amazon.com/Travel-John-66911-TravelJohn-Disposable-Urinal/dp/B000NV878S/ - I don't know if they'd hold a poop but they give me comfort in knowing if I was really really desperate and could find a secluded place I didn't want to leave a trace behind in then I might try.
I have the RinseKit, as its gaining popularity down here in SoCal. I love it for its purpose - I keep it in the trunk of my car to hose off diving/surfing gear. But debating whether to make space for it in the van. Like others have said, after a quick few minutes, its just a waste of space until you find another spigot.
I've also seen this which is intriguing.
Not only soldiers, but anyone who enjoys camping. I got one for my GF.
Well, actually I bought her a better version with a longer stem to make it easier for her to use without pissing on herself.
I suppose you can blame it on this 'summer reddit' I keep hearing about.
http://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1452901857&sr=8-2&keywords=solar+shower
For $10 these are so fucking money. They heat up in the sun in an hour or two, although cold isn't too bad. 1 bag is good for about 2-3 showers. We brought two for a campsite of 9 last year and it was perfect. Highly recommended
Although I think 6+ months is unlikely, but here is what I would do.
Well we PC guys sometimes have to just make do with what we have on hand while we save up money for what we need, but, if you really want to get efficient I'd suggest one of these maybe on some sort of custom wooden platform. Desk height and all that.
I understand. My girlfriend and I brought a portable shower to Coachella this year to use for our hair. Other than that, we really just didn't want to waste valuable sleeping, eating, partying festival time on waiting in line at the showers. If it is the first world amenities you need, then a hotel is your way to go.
I have a pstyle and LOVE it. Use it for hiking and backpacking. Keeps me from peeing on my boots or mooning the world. When I first got it, I hopped in the shower for a practice run. Peeing standing up was the hardest thing in the world! Totally against all my instincts, haha. May have to try snow-writing this winter.
I know lot of people use these or similar brands between baby and themselves when baby wearing - might be useful in the stroller if needed :)
https://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Toggs-Chilly-Evaporative-Cooling/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1466217553&sr=8-1&keywords=froggs+toggs
Or a stroller fan too - I'm in Alabama so I feel you on the heat!!
http://t.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=56492836&gclid=CLamo6jGsM0CFdgKgQodIhYNww&camp=PLAPPCG-_-PID20467096:BRUS&cagpspn=plab_20467096&eESource=CAPLA_DF:56492836:TRUS
I'll copy paste something I wrote elsewhere just now. What do you think?
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My plan is to use a shower pump like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Ivation-Portable-Outdoor-Battery-Powered/dp/B00IFHFJXI/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=Ivation+shower+head&qid=1567661650&s=gateway&sr=8-3#
Then boil some water on the stove, and mix it with room temp water and put enough in the floor of this to cover the pump:
https://www.amazon.com/Happy-Life-Portable-Plastic-Bathtub/dp/B008XSXQIO/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?keywords=Portable+deep+tub&qid=1567661792&s=gateway&sr=8-6
... set up underneath the roof fan, with some velcro holding up a hula hoop holding up the shower curtain tucked inside the tub. Get a thing to stand on so my feet aren't soaking, attach the shower head to the hula hoop, put a cloth bag over the pump as a rudimentary filter... Voila, recirculating, hot shower, for as long as I want, for just a few gallons of water.
Bonus, the shower water can be used to wash your clothes if you separate it from your regular gray water.
something like this
paired with this
and you're set for like 30 bucks
or you could just bring a black 5 gal bucket, fill it up in the morning and let it sit in the sun to warm up and just dunk a washcloth in there to wipe down and use wet wipes on the naughty bits. that would cost you like 4 dollars.
or, you could skip the tent part all together and just plop that bag on the roof of your car and spray yourself down in your underwear/swimsuit or naked if that's your thing...
edit: never tried the shower trailers, heard they aren't too bad though.
You can replace toothpaste, dry shampoo, and camp suds by taking Dr Bronners Peppermint.
You can also replace biowipes with EZ Towels. Combine them with some water and Dr Bronners and your butthole will be minty fresh.
https://www.amazon.com/Towel-Durable-Tube-Packaging-Pieces/dp/B005JWQY40
As far as footprint - I find them to be pointless extra weight, just ensure your site doesn't have pointy things and you should be fine.
http://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Toggs-Chilly-Evaporative-Cooling/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1452153765&sr=8-2&keywords=frogg+toggs
These are so amazing when its super hot outside. I had one when everyone had to wait in that awful line through the front gates on the first day. Total lifesaver considering my friend and I were waiting for ,i kid you not, four hours to get in.
Tip: Bring earplugs for getting rest at the end of the night/morning. We Foresters can be a rowdy bunch.
Trick: A couple car batteries and a power inverter works wonders for charging small electronics throughout the weekend.
Tip: make note of the cleaning schedule for the porta-johns near your campsite. (Hint: early morning seems like prime time.) Nothing like getting an early morning shit out of the way in a freshly cleaned john. Also, they wont have hot-boxed in the sun yet.
Trick: I bought one of these electric shower heads last year and brought a 5-gal bucket for water. Thing worked like a charm! It's less than $50 and rechargeable. Could easily split the cost among your group. Everyone in my camp loved it.
Reusable Zippo hand warmers for cold nights/mornings and those compressed towel coins to wipe your face/ass/tears are life savers in the field.
Links for reference:
Zippo Hand Warmer
Towel Coins
I know you said sposie diapers, but I do grovia hybrids, so that's what I would use with the biosoaker and cover. But here is another option to wipes that you wouldn't have to keep waking! EZ Towel with New Durable Tube and Packaging, 50 Pieces by EZ-Towel http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005JWQY40/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_dmGgtb0G977WQ saw these at a green fair and lived them.
http://www.amazon.com/pStyle-Clear/dp/B002AA8GDQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412425177&sr=8-1&keywords=pstyle I hear that one's better, easier to clean.
I bought a thetford curve for my van, tho i did the bucket too. The curve is the most like a regular toilet. It isn't hard to empty but it isn't exactly pleasant either but that goes for all rvs really. Thee bucket is easier to empty, you just toss in a trash can somewhere.
I shower by truckstop or in warmer weather solar shower (black bag). They make propane hot camp showers. If i need privacy, i make a tent with my tarp off my van, but normal sized people can get these cool little shower tents.
Consider getting one of these Frogg Togg Chilly Pads. I used one last summer riding through the arizona desert, and they make ALL the difference in the world, I promise. Also, the Frogg Togg brand towels are vastly superior to the knock-off brands. My dad and brother each had some no-name brand cooling towels, and theirs were always bone dry while mine was still moist and cool.
Got a Frogg Toggs version of this two years ago for 'Roo and it helped. It wasn't the be-all-end-all (nothing short of an AC'ed RV is going to be anyway), but it made the difference between suffering and surviving. I can only vouch for Frogg Toggs' version of these towels but it did help to keep me a bit more comfortable in the peak heat.
I can't recommend anything higher than the cooling towels:
https://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Toggs-Chilly-Evaporative-Cooling/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484083513&sr=8-1&keywords=frog+togg+towel
Stays cool until it evaporates which is about an hour or 2 in the hot coachella sun. Saved my life the first year i went. Keep it on your shoulders or head when youre out in the sun or take a nap in the shade with it over your face. heaven
https://www.amazon.com/Go-Girl-Female-Urination-Lavender/dp/B003BEDUS6
https://www.amazon.com/pStyle-Clear/dp/B002AA8GDQ/ref=sr_1_1_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1468181217&sr=1-1&keywords=pstyle
Sure you can say it's one more thing to carry, but it's a tiny item and goes to show that women could very well stay in the vehicle and 'pee like a man.'
here's the product on amazon, there's a video icon along the left hand side where the photos are.
basically its a small bag (starts small, then you unroll it) with a rim that you pee into, and magically your pee turns into gel and doesn't smell. works multiple times until it's full. no joke, depending on where your campsite is compared to the porta potties, these could be useful.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NV878S/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2I2ECZCUY3ZZV
The shower builds I've seen in smaller places usually consist of a metal basin you can stand in, with a hole drilled down through the floor for a drain, with basically a shower curtain however you want to hang it (hula hoops work nicely) and then using some sort of pump (electric or manual) for the shower.
I don't have a shower IN my van, but I do use this - https://www.amazon.com/Ivation-Portable-Outdoor-Battery-Powered/dp/B00IFHFJXI - With a 5 gallon bucket and it works great
I want (seriously) a shewee!!! $4.29 it’s laughable but I’m in nature a lot and it would be highly convenient!
Jobar International JB5793 P EZ Travel Urinal for Women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ANM6C8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_mev3DbX0B6T3Y
You could invest in a solar shower, 5gal is enough for ~2 quick showers, heats up in the sun in an hour to very warm water (~98 degrees).
I have this one: https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Elements-Gallon-Summer-Shower/dp/B000J2Q0T4/ref=sr_1_3?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1511274152&sr=1-3&keywords=solar+shower&dpID=41IIRjP0y1L&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
and I love it!
They're usually hot. Sometimes, the hot water runs out and they are... er... mountain fresh. Quite cold, but it's exhilarating. There are also times when the showers are shut down because the water table is low.
If you're one of those, "I must shower every day" people (I certainly am!) then you should invest in a solar shower. These bad boys are super cheap, hold about 10L of water and can... kind of substitute for a shower. You'll need a tree or something tall too strap it to.
I love my sea to summit travel towel. It is microfiber but gets an A in fakespot. I have long thick hair and it soaks it all up and dries within in hours. I got the suggestion from a small rec store. Highly recommend! https://www.amazon.com/Sea-to-Summit-DryLite-Towel/dp/B000OPPAQK
Last year there were girls passing out these awesome 1 time use funnels in the womens porta potties. Peed standing up! it was so cool and I think you can buy them on amazon and carry a few around a day. I def plan on it. I am a little too short to do a proper hover. TRY THESE
Hanging solar showers and drugs will make your musical festival much more festive.
https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Elements-SS761-Summer-Shower/dp/B000J2Q0SU
https://goo.gl/images/njNUv6
I have an electric one that plugs into my ac adapter or can use batteries similar to this: ($39) https://www.amazon.com/Ivation-Portable-Outdoor-Battery-Powered/dp/B00IFHFJXI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495650013&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=portable+shower&psc=1
I bought one of those big blue camping jugs and I fill it once every couple weeks. Works great for rinsing off my kids after a day at the beach too. I leave it in my car all the time and it's like a hot water shower.
pstyle all the way you guys! I love it so much. I used it on a backpacking/camping trip and it was so flipping easy.
I didn't leak once, even on my first try at home. BUY IT!
I bought an extra small of this It worked quite well as a multi-purpose towel. I used it as a sweat band during hot days, a pre-filter in mucky water, and as an actual towel. It's super small so it'll fit really anywhere, even in your pocket if you had to.
There should be a lot more discussion on this topic. Bullets and beans don't mean anything if you can't dispose of waste in safe manner. My solution / thoughts below, and I live in a rural area but on a municipal system so this may or may not be as applicable.
For urine, pee in something like a bucket , or build a urinal that drains into a french drain. In general urine can be disposed of fairly easily. Gallons and gallons can go into a rather small area which you can cover later with dirt. Except for the fertilizer burn there's really no issues here. As others have noted keep the urine and solids separate.
For solid waste, relatively easy is:
Regarding the municipal system, eventually it will back up, it's a question of time. Where I live it's a straight downhill shot to the municipal waste treatment center, no lift pumps required. The waste treatment facility has backup generators and overflow ponds so provided they can still operate things will work. Shit flows downhill, as it was.
In an extremely prolonged sort of situation where the crews weren't out doing maintenance or a large earthquake actually ruptured the pipes, things will back up. The folks at the bottom will experience it first.
You can install a backup prevention device. It has regular maintenance and the install could be easy (in the crawlspace) or terrible (you have to dig). If you're preparing for generalized disruptions it's probably overkill but if you're on a municipal system and want to isolate yourself, it's a good idea. /u/parametrek 's PDF post is terrific, that's something every prepper should have.
OMG i started to look online for these cups and i found something even better. these must be made in Australia
or if you want a reusable.
or one in your favorite color
Cooling Towel
This saved us 2019! It was so effective, all of our new Forest Friends wanted to know where we got it.
Get one of these! I get straight up purple, too. Mostly I just stopped caring, but when I wear this, it really helps:
http://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Togg-Chilly-Pad-Blue/dp/B003YF7W22
Is it better than usual? You have to be right next to your vehicle.
$70 is pretty expensive compared to simple 5 gallon bucket seat.
Buy one of these. Fill it up stick it on the roof of your car and you should be good to go. We bought two and filled them once and it was enough for 4 guys to make it through the festival washing every morning.
So, my fiancée and I had to cave and get a 1 bath (no kids any time soon). Been pretty good the last 3 years.
But...flair is starting...very much considering one of these.
Absolutely! We bring something along the lines of this: https://amzn.com/B0009PUT20
Just have to fill it up with water, let it sit on your car in the sun and in a few minutes it warms up and you can use the spigot to hose yourself down. It was perfect last year
Buy http://www.amazon.com/Jobar-International-Ez-Travel-Urinal/dp/B004ANM6C8 some duct tape and a dildo. Hollow out the dildo so it'll fit on the spout (make sure to cut out a urethra) and then glue them together. Tape that thing to your bits and Boom! You've got yourself a homemade strapon with urination capability. It could be mass produced pretty easily actually...
Well, unless you get like a travel towel, quick dry towels are not even close to BIFL.
One thing I have heard is that using too much soap helps mildew grow, so next wash wash them alone, and use half the recommended amount of soap listed on the bottle. A lot of laundry soaps are very concentrated and often too much gets used.
THIS. Except I've used it a couple of time. Cat litter is your friend, too. A couple of tuna fish cans of cat litter in the bottom of the plastic bag helps.
https://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Products-9881-03-Luggable-Toilet/dp/B0000B13MT/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1IPNUFKE8O24U&keywords=5+gallon+bucket+toilet+seat+lid&qid=1554736998&s=gateway&sprefix=5-gallon+bucket+toilet+lid%2Caps%2C189&sr=8-3
You'll definitely be roughing it in GA. Portapotties only and $10 a shower. My friends and I brought a portable camp shower this year and it helped tremendously https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20
ah...pretty easy. I've done some extreme camping/festivals and had to pack out everything.
Either a compostable toilet, or simply a honey bucket. Luggable loo lid on 5 gallon buckets. Place in biodegradable bag, then a cup of absorbent kitty litter. Do your business, and each time give it a pump of orange citrus freshener and a cup of kitty litter. Ue until bucket is 1/3 full and tie off bat and toss in garbage or a hole.
Repeat. The luggable loo lids actually snap tight down when not in use, sealing off all odors, etc. Feels just like using a regular toilet.
https://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Products-9881-03-Luggable-Toilet/dp/B0000B13MT/ref=sr_1_2?hvadid=178131274494&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9031550&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15145053386159400452&hvtargid=kwd-1915328318&keywords=luggable+loo&qid=1555353004&s=gateway&sr=8-2
You should put a biodegradable plastic bag with/without kitty litter inside that plastic? bucket. Then you can throw the plastic bard over board, save the bucket, and won't litter anything.
Edit.
Something like this http://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Products-Luggable-Portable-Gallon/dp/B000FIAPXO
Agreed. Those propane units are awesome.
You could also use a camp shower bag. Hang outside during the day to warm. Now, those aren't going to be very long showers, but enough to get a person clean. I suspect you'd need a bag per person.
Another option is this added to this. Again, it's going to be a short shower, but it will work.
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A five gallon bucket with a snap-on toilet seat is a good idea. Wag-Bags are a compostable liner for the bucket that comes with the neutralizing powder to treat about four uses before needing to be replaced.
https://www.amazon.com/Ivation-Portable-Outdoor-Battery-Powered/dp/B00IFHFJXI/
Cheap, work perfect, and I just bring a 5 gallon water cooler of hot water that stays warm all day.
I'm hoping to snag This soon, with This for camping out this summer. I know my teenager is grumbling already but this should at least provide some comfort while we're camped out in the middle of nowhere.
I have a camp toilet. It’s a 5 gallon bucket, lined with a compactor bag (those are pretty much unbreakable and no leaks). Add a handful of the blue crystal kitty litter (no clay or clumping, just blue crystals). Top with a toilet seat (made to fit 5 gallon buckets), and you’re good. Change it once a day. You shouldn’t get any smell with the compactor bag/crystal litter combo.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000B13MT/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523845278&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=reliance+toilet+seat&dpPl=1&dpID=31QH7j4%2BX1L&ref=plSrch
I’d also have some formula, just in case you get injured.
Check these out: http://www.amazon.com/ProActive-Frogg-Togg-Chilly-Blue/dp/B003YF7W22
They stay wet and cool for pretty much forever, very refreshing to rest on your neck/head...
Stepped up the game this past June in my buddy's boat...
50gal fresh water tank, but it's cold, and the wet bath is mostly for storage.
Fill a blue 5gal Lowe's bucket with water and it's hot tub temp by noon in the sun. Bought a rechargeable nozzle for $35 and it was a game changer.
Ivation Portable Outdoor Shower, Battery Powered - Compact Handheld Rechargeable Camping Showerhead - Pumps Water from Bucket Into Steady, Gentle Shower Stream https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IFHFJXI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_IFvjDbN0A5VRN
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00IFHFJXI/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525918208&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=battery+portable+shower&psc=1
This shower is the best thing ever! I just bring two 5 gallon containers of water and it gets two people through two showers daily with extra.
I've been reading up on purchasing a cooling towel to help make falling asleep easier. Anyone have any experience with either of these? http://www.amazon.com/Chill-Its-6602-Cooling-Towel-Blue/dp/B001B5I57I/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=1URYWNUI347QZ&coliid=IG89AE3J0FC3E & http://www.amazon.com/ProActive-Frogg-Togg-Chilly-Blue/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=1URYWNUI347QZ&coliid=I3MTVBT26U1R98&psc=1
Maybe bring a camp shower. They roll up really small and they heat up great! https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_2?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1500651092&sr=1-2&keywords=camp+shower
Get one of the camping things, like the pstyle, it would probably fit through the spanx slit?
Square-plastic-bag + lots-of-water + gravity = spherical-blob + stress-points = fun-for-audience = safety-requirement-for-self (steam explosions are 'not funny').
You can try one of these (example) to experiment with.
Even with a simple 'flat plate' collector it is possible to reach 200⁰C+ temperatures, a pressure relief valve is mandatory (in my opinion), having some way to control to about 90⁰C maximum is a lot smarter.
In case anyone else couldn't figure it out, it's like a homemade Jane.
Edit: Maybe more like a non portable P EZ.
All my time in the pit has prepared me for this moment!!
One of my best purchases ever. Limitless showers
Coleman 5-Gallon Solar Shower https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_jFJlxb3FDCW8T
Pro tip: Buy a camp shower. They work like a charm.
I'm from the south, and we're already hitting the upper 90s :( Fortunately my power bill is included in my monthly rent, so I can crank the AC as low as I want. I would recommend one of these towels. Wrap it around your neck, and it will cool your whole body down. They're awesome.
this one has worked well for us. it's a pain to dry out, but for $9, it does the trick. it's easy to fill up, put on top of your car, and wash from there. I don't know about the tent set up though.
https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_3?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1526669441&sr=1-3&keywords=solar+shower
I highly doubt anyone is going be creeping on you, they generally have better things to do. But I still recommend bringing a portable shower like this. My group has been using it for the past 6 years and its a savior.
A sun shower. It’s like a huge bag of water with a hose, that you hang in a tree and the sun heats it up. Or, if you’re a redneck like me, just sling it onto the roof of your car and give yourself a quick morning rinse 🤓 in my opinion it beat the $10 shower and you don’t gotta wait in line.
we have this one
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B005JWQY40?pc_redir=1408082107&robot_redir=1 these plus a tiny bit of water make great TP and wipes. They are made of bamboo fibers. Keep them dry.
TravelJohn for the win!
Disposable Urinal (6 pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NV878S/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_i_8qFvDbR8XZY08
Buy these pill towels! If you keep certain areas clean, you'll be thanking yourself by day 14.
Avoid fragrant deodorant, certain insects are drawn to the sweet smell, furthermore axe, ass, and body odor is a terrible combo.
Pack more water than you want, you'll never regret it.
Field dress your MREs prior to line work.
Keep your feet dry and pack extra socks. Dry feet = less chance of blisters.
EDIT: Just realized I sound like a MEDL now.
I have this one and it's worked fine. Just take care of the nozzle, it's fragile. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000J2Q0T4?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf
To add to this, I use a Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad like this one and it stays cool a lot longer. Can also be used as a shammy of sorts to dry dishes, dry off a wet rain fly, etc. Just make sure to rinse it after use and let dry completely to prevent mold.
The best way I have come up with to heat water for a shower is warming water on a portable induction cooktop, then drop in a battery powered shower head Any ideas out there to heat water when wood campfire is not available? Without propane. Thanks!
There are showers there. I think they cost $10 and they're usually not the warmest.
I don't think I've ever taken a shower at fest (gross I know). What a lot of people do is buy solar showers and use those. Yeah, they're not quite as thorough but they do the trick.
I'm basically married at this point so I have nobody to impress.
Yep, heated.
You can have:
Look at the "related products" too.
I haven't decided what I will use yet.
here hope this can help a little bit. Get two, one for on your head under a hat and one for around your neck. This will help keep your brain from over heating.
Drink lots of water, and eat LIGHT, think salads, but do have protein. One of my favorites is a tuna cucumber salad sandwich. It’s light and makes me feel better
Also wear moisture wicking fabrics and put anti monkey butt(or just corn starch) on your butt crack to avoid swamp ass. Depending on your gender apply in other places (balls, inner thighs, under boobs, pits) this will prevent chafing.
Have you talked to your employer about your working conditions? If they refuse to improve it I’m sure they can be reported for unsafe work conditions.
I spend a lot of time peeing outside, and this is a lifesaver. (link is to a device that lets you pee standing up)
A very important thing people forget about when prepping. Especially if you are hunkered down/bugging in, you're going to need a place to do your business. Multiply that if you have family.
I got this, although I'm sure there are plenty others just as good. A rigged up 5 gallon bucket could probably do the trick, as well.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FIAPXO?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Alternatively, for those who are more interested in a bit of comfort I recommend the Luggable Loo. Combine that bad boy with a trash bag and some kitty litter and you're set!
Dude showers. A friend brought some to middlelands a few weeks ago and they were clutch. Basically a wet wipe but it's enormous. I used 2 and was completly clean head to toe. Also purchased and used this solar shower. Was hot enough to not even care if it heated up so we never had it in the sun. Held enough for 4-5 showers if you use it sparingly.
I use one of the ones that retains the water longer. forgot the brand name, but they sell them in the camping gear. I highly recommend that. below is an example but there are other options. https://www.amazon.com/Original-Cooling-Towel-Extreme-Relief/dp/B00VSH7LEM
Understood. You should be fine using that method/setup.
I use mine for both, it’s the tallest most durable I’ve found.
Clean Solar Water
This kind of Funnel? or are you actually using like, a fully round cooking funnel?
I'm a little concerned
They're a little pricey, but a solar shower always did me well. They're like $15-$20 at dicks or target. It's a black vinyl bag with a hose that you fill with water and leave in the sun. It's not a perfect replacement, but for rinsing off the grungy bits, it beats 10 bucks a day
https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_bmwZDbPWFTDW8
Unless you wanna pay whatever money it is for showers then i suggest you get one of these bad boys! http://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1451936963&sr=8-3&keywords=camping+shower Partner it with some bio degradable soap or whatever and you can shower at your camp. While it wont be the best it'll definitely help get you clean and feeling fresh.
I always bring my own toilet. I have this one: http://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Products-Luggable-Portable-Gallon/dp/B000FIAPXO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368218018&sr=8-1&keywords=luggable+loo
Nothing is nicer than to use the bathroom at your own camp. We have a huge tent, so we can set up the bathroom in there. We've also brought a pop-up shower and used it to set up a bathroom, kinda like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Changing-Camping-Privacy-Outdoor/dp/B007ZJ99HE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368218091&sr=8-1&keywords=pop+up+camping+shower
Travel John and a blanket....just make sure he doesn't shake it off more than 3 times.... otherwise he's playing with himself.
TravelJohn-Disposable Urinal (6 pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NV878S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_zJKfzbVBTPN82
that looks pretty cool - just stick the inlet in a bucket of water, and no plumbing required (well other than a drain for the used water).
Pooping in the woods tho is so liberating! There are some portable toilet options and they make little pop up tent style bathrooms that you can also use to shower in.
Tent - WolfWise Pop-up Shower Tent Green https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AT3T0GC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_5WXmDbGHCSTYH
Toilet - Reliance Products Luggable Loo Portable 5 Gallon Toilet https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FIAPXO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_aYXmDbGPG18AJ
While trailer might be super comfy, you might end up limited in exploring back roads while you are out.
Amateurs. This is what you bring to a festival: TravelJohn-Disposable Urinal (6 pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NV878S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_RXAxxb48H172N
I got this Cooling Towel
I wrung it out with ice water and it was good for a few hours! Then I poured more ice water on it from my water bottle and it was very cold. I don't have air conditioning in my car and just put this on my lap/arms etc.
I like your organization on those shelves! I need to do something similar.
What's your sanitation plan? I see Lots of people with > 72hrs of food / water but no way to handle 72 hrs of human waste.
Can I recommend you throw a cheap 12-pack of toilet paper and some disinfecting wipes in there? maybe store a portable toilet & supplies or ensure you have a shovel & knowledge to dig a latrine ?
We've used a pump up garden sprayer with an extended hose and it worked great.
We eventually changed to this "Simple Shower" due to its compactness. It screws onto a 1 or 2 liter water or soda bottle.
https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Shower-Portable-Camping/dp/B00DVXXIQQ/
I know this post is 3 months old now. But I find myself in need of a shower now too and figured this could help others who might be looking in the future.
Zodi Hot Tap Portable Instant Hot Shower
I still like the Eccotemp L5 better since it seems more durable and like it will provide hotter water easier. But, you'd need a water hose or a separate water pump. Plus somewhere to hook it up IE wooden post.
I also really hate those small bottles but apparently there's an adapter for a normal propane tank. Which the L5 comes with standard.
EDIT: Also @dangerousdave2244 I haven't been yet but the SCA has camping events that go for a week see Gulfwars or Pennsic. So that's one reason for a "shower". But, the hot water can also be used for cleaning your dishes and other things.
It is a bag that you fill with water and leave out in the sun. It's designed to heat the water pretty quickly, and it has a little nozzle and can be hung so you can take a hot shower... or at least be dripped on with hot water, anyways. I just used mine to heat water for my bucket bath.
Example: https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1481853223&sr=8-4&keywords=solar+shower
Better off buying these.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DVXXIQQ/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_59?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A1B7M9EQGNCLQA
-Small Nalgene bottles for re-packaging other consumables
-Disposable towels
-Toe socks for wearing with sandals in camp
-Anker battery for charging devices on longer trips
-Folding chopsticks
-Snowpeak double wall stacking mug
-Tiny bluetooth speaker for camp. I have this one at 3 oz I always feel it's worth the weight, there may be newer models out now
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000NV878S/ref=pd_aw_sims_1?pi=SS115&simLd=1
I actually think this would be better for you, since it provides more information on how it works and has reviews you can draw from.
But in regards to your back pain, that may or may not be connected to your urinary problem so ask your doctor if there might be any correlation. Since one poster said in the other post that it may be due to a pinched nerve, they may possibly be connected. I think finding a neurologist is a good idea along with using a product like the one described above so you don't have to worry about your conditon.
You don't need some crazy Ranma 1/2 events to occur to be able to pee standing up.
I present to you, you go girl! (it comes in Khaki
as well as a disposable urine director
or the Freshette
or even the pStyle
or the P EZ
They make nice seats for buckets https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FIAPXO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_yK3NDbRGWBFZD
I recently bought one of these portable showers, and i fill up a soft sided ice chest with warm water. The water seems to stay fairly warm when I get back to my truck after dawn patrol sessions
These cool towels! You just get the towel wet, wring it out, and wear it. I usually wear it around my neck or draped over me like a blanket (if its hot inside).
We buy one of these $9 portable showers fill them up and throw them on top of our cars. It gets so hot the water is plenty warm and you don't have to wait in lines.
Terrible idea, unless your idea of a good idea is getting diarrhea spatters all over your tires, legs and shoes.
A 5 gallon bucket with a toilet seat lid and a biodegradable plastic liner would be a much better idea for a road trip.
that's an interesting take on your own shower, i had only seen people using these
I'm definitely gonna get this one.http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000J2Q0T4/ref=s9_wish_gw_d50_g468_i6?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=1HCHRNW84859VH797X99&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1970559082&pf_rd_i=desktop
Lots of people here have obviously never gone camping, hunting or working in the wilderness for long periods away from sanitary facilities in a leave-no-trace environment. Pooping/peeing in bags is easy, private, and not the slightest bit degrading. Check out these products (you might even want to pop them in your car or van for long road trips -- especially with kids):
https://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Products-Luggable-Portable-Gallon/dp/B000FIAPXO
https://www.amazon.com/Travel-John-66892-TravelJohn-Disposable-Urinal/dp/B000NVBYD8/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1472974399&sr=1-1&keywords=travel+john
https://www.amazon.com/GigaTent-Pop-Pod-Changing-Room/dp/B00CP8SJVW/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1472974194&sr=1-2&keywords=privacy+tent
If this is what the employer is supplying, it's all good.
I have a Misty Mate and a Frogg Toggs Towel. I can't handle Bonnaroo heat so I arm myself to the teeth with ways to cool down.
https://www.amazon.com/Frogg-Toggs-Chilly-Evaporative-Cooling/dp/B003YF7W22/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1466454315&sr=8-3&keywords=frogg+toggs
Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad. This is my go-to item on the few occasions I actually visit during the summer. Just run it under water and wrap it around your neck. It helps SO much.
Solar shower! But I'm sure you already knew that.
So ya dont get too too wookie on weekend 2!! 😛 Advanced Elements 5 Gallon Summer Shower / Solar Shower https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000J2Q0T4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_1QF1vrMCpkNLP
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00IFHFJXI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I'm in the UK. It needs a bucket. I typically boil a kettle & mix that with a bucket of 'cold' water to make it not freezing. Works... OK :)
You could get (or build) something like this - https://smile.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1509528443&sr=8-8&keywords=shower+bag
Use the hot water from your dispenser to fill up the bag and then use the bag to shower with.
Like these: https://smile.amazon.com/Coleman-2000014865-5-Gallon-Solar-Shower/dp/B0009PUT20/ref=sr_1_3?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1494949213&sr=1-3&keywords=solar+shower
Search on "solar shower."
This seems like it would stow in a smaller space. It's also US$30.
http://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Elements-Gallon-Summer-Shower/dp/B000J2Q0T4
Maybe you'd like these: http://www.amazon.com/P-Mate-Female-Disposable-Urine-Director/dp/B000R8YAH4/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1427738064&sr=8-14&keywords=pee+standing+up
Challenge accepted, with one if these http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000R8YAH4