Vanlife Adventure Tips – Live Like Pete

Propane Firebowl: We May Never Go Back to Using Firewood!

Pete — Mon, 07 Sep 2020 15:32:47 +0000

Over the years of camping out in our Sprinter van, we’ve often faced the challenge of having a campfire each night. Finding firewood can often be difficult, not to mention it gets pretty expensive at some gas stations or grocery stores that carry it. Then if we do find and buy some firewood, where the heck are we gonna put it? We definitely don’t want it inside our van and we have no way of...

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Sprinter Van Indoor Shower 2.0- Portable and Easy

Pete — Wed, 03 Jun 2020 19:41:31 +0000

Having a warm shower available in our van has, without a doubt, been a game-changer! We use it quite often on our adventures and the investment has paid off. There’s no better feeling than being able to shower and go to bed clean at the end of a sweaty day. The beauty of this setup is that it sets up in minutes, yet takes up very minimal spaces when stowed away. We’ve been using it for about two...

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Quick & Easy Van Coffee: CHULUX Coffee Brewer Review

Pete — Tue, 07 Jan 2020 02:57:03 +0000

Coffee is an important part of my mornings. Many times when camping I don’t mind using our JetBoil & French Press to brew up some great coffee. This method uses no power from our batteries and is usually produces the best coffee. The only drawbacks are the mess it makes when disposing of the grounds and the time/ counter space required to brew a single cup. When we just want to get up and hit the...

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Touch Screen Camera System for Our Sprinter: Dash Cam and Backup Mirror

Pete — Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:36:06 +0000

Anna and I recently had the idea of adding a dash cam to our Sprinter van. With all the places we go, I thought it would be nice to capture some traveling shots as well as have the camera always rolling just in case. Throughout my Amazon searches, I came across a mirror that has an integrated front camera as well as a remote rearview camera that you can mount wherever you’d like.

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Our Sprinter Van Total Build Cost & What We Learned Along the Way

Pete — Sat, 21 Dec 2019 22:12:53 +0000

Getting ready to build a Sprinter campervan? Has the “vanlife” bug bit you and you can’t stop thinking about building your own? Having your own campervan opens up a whole new world of possibilities for travel and adventure. This is the reason we decided to invest in a Sprinter van and build our very own rig that is tailored to our needs. Once you acquire a van it seems pretty easy. Build a bed...

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Gear Hammocks- Awesome Hanging Storage for the Van

Pete — Sun, 09 Jun 2019 16:46:52 +0000

Storage is always a challenge in a van. If you are like us, your constantly finding places and ways to hang things because floor or counter space is almost non-existent. A good source for van storage solutions is in the marine world! Boats are very similar in the sense that space is limited and everything needs to be light and efficient. Sometimes the most difficult part of a van build is figuring...

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Cooking Gear Review: Gas One Butane Stove

Pete — Thu, 30 May 2019 01:54:24 +0000

We don’t cook very often inside our van, but there are times we want a hot meal and don’t feel like blowing money in a restaurant. Many people install an induction cooktop or burner built into their countertop taking up valuable space. Those units require a lot of battery power to run and although there are propane burners available, then you need to plumb propane into your van plus worry about...

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The Best Hammock for the Money: The Kootek Double Hammock

Pete — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 04:24:44 +0000

There are many hammocks out there that do a great job, however, I cannot justify what most companies charge. The Double Hammock by Kootek Sports is our go-to hammock. We’ve used and tested it on several trips and it passes in all categories. It actually works better than our fancy Eno. It’s big enough and strong enough to hold two people up to 500lbs. (size is 118″x78″) The hammock comes with two...

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Tips for Urban Stealth Camping in a Van

Pete — Sun, 04 Nov 2018 20:21:15 +0000

One of the biggest reasons we built a van was to have the freedom and flexibility to camp wherever we park for the night. We prefer to camp out in the wilderness, far away from cities, but when traveling, sometimes we are forced to stay in a more urban area. Hotels are expensive, a hassle, and often times aren’t up to our standards of cleanliness. Finding a place to park and stay for the night can...

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DIY Exterior Van Light: Solar, Magnetic & Motion Detected!

Pete — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 17:41:18 +0000

When building a van, certain little things never even cross your mind…things you never even think of until you actually go out and use it. The first camping trip in our Sprinter van was on a very dark night and it made me realize we would have to add some sort of exterior light. The biggest problem was the installation? I didn’t want to run more wires after already completing the walls...

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