The Not-So-Glamorous Chores Of Vanlife

Vanlife isn’t always sunshine and rainbows like you might see on social media. Despite its perks, there are distinct drawbacks to this lifestyle.

While the reduced living space and simpler chore list might seem appealing, certain vanlife tasks can be more cumbersome compared to those in a traditional home. Let’s delve into the not-so-glamorous side of vanlife and explore the chores that demand attention in this unique lifestyle.

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Fill Up Fresh Water:

When living in a van full-time off-grid, there isn’t a fresh pipe that just keeps bringing fresh water into the van. One not-so-glamorous chores of vanlife is filling up the fresh water tanks.

Our van can only hold 11 gallons of water at one time, but this amount differs between each van build. See the list below of where to fill up your water tanks.

Where To Fill Fresh Water Tanks?

Family/friends:

Obviously, one of the best options for filling up water is at a family or friends house. They usually have a hose you can fill up from out in their yard or if you have smaller water jugs, you can most likely fill it up in their sink.

Campgrounds:

A lot of times, campgrounds will have potable water that you can fill up from. But you sometimes have to pay for filling up, so we always double check. We also always like to taste the quality of the water first, even though we have a filter, we like to make sure it doesn’t have a funky taste.

Water Fill Stations:

Jake and I primarily utilize water fill stations, finding them to be the most convenient, especially when we’re already on the go. These stations are commonly located at grocery stores or gas stations. However, it’s important to note that their cleanliness may not always be up to par.

A reliable option for us is Whole Foods, where we consistently find a well-maintained water fill station. We appreciate their commitment to cleanliness and adherence to regulations, making it one of our preferred places to refill.

The cost typically hovers around $0.30 per gallon. All you need to do is bring your own containers, fill up, and inform the cashier of the quantity you’ve dispensed.

National Parks:

A lot of National Park Visitor Centers have a free water fill station somewhere outside the building. You can either call ahead to check or you can sometimes find a review on iOverlander.

iOverlander:

Another great resource for finding water fill-up stations is to check the app iOverlander. It’s a crowdsourced app, so fellow vanlifers and RV’ers will let you know where they have found water sources along their road trips. It can be super helpful in smaller towns when resources are a little more scarce.

Emptying The Toilet:

Jake sitting in the van on the bathroom toilet reading a magazine

Unfortunately, there is no magical tube that takes away all your waste in a campervan like it does in a home. But, we still have a toilet, and the waste has to go somewhere. Jake and I have a little cassette toilet that we use for #1, when we are not near a public restroom, not camped out in the middle of nowhere, or for use in the middle of the night.

This not so glamorous chores of vanlife unfortunately has to be done every few days because our specific model only holds 3 gallons. We usually dispose of the holding tank at a trailhead or public restroom.

If you decide to go with a composting toilet, then another chore would be disposing of solid waste. You can learn more about the proper disposal of this from Live Small Ride Free.

Empty Grey Tank:

One annoying not-so-glamorous chores of vanlife is emptying the grey tank which is all your leftover water from dishes, brushing your teeth, washing your hands, etc. And often it can get smelly because it can sit in the tank for a week or two. Unlike many RV’s where they just have a black water tank that they hook up and it sucks it all away, in vanlife you usually have to dispose of it in a toilet or down a drain.

We usually find a drop toilet or public restroom where we can dispose of the grey water. But Jake and I have learned to use minimal water whenever we brush our teeth or wash dishes, so the grey tank only needs to be disposed of about every 2 weeks.

Fill Propane:

Jake and I decided to go with the small 3oz canisters for propane, which unfortunately can’t be refilled. But a common vanlife chore is refilling your propane canister. If you get one of the big 5 gallon propane cans then you can usually fill up your canister at a gas station or grocery store. Using the app iOverlander can also be useful for finding a propane filling station near you.

Jake and I always make sure we have a little green propane canister ready as backup, but with the 5 gallon tanks, it can usually last you multiple months.

Dump Trash:

Just like in a normal home, you create trash and it needs to be disposed of. Fortunately, we don’t create too much trash in the van, but about every couple weeks, we have to dispose of our trash. We usually just find public trash cans where we can properly dispose of our trash. You do have the option of finding a waste management facility, but we found them to usually be placed way out of the way and if you only have a small amount of trash, it’s a waste of time.

But it is usually pretty easy to find a public trash can when you are filling up gas or heading to your local grocery store. We’ve never really had a problem disposing of our trash easily.

Find Recycling:

Recycling has actually been a hassle in the van. I would say we create more recycling in the van than trash. But, finding a place to recycle is not that easy in most cities and towns. Depending on the place you are traveling, you might be able to find recycling easier. For example, we lived in Sedona, AZ for a few months and they actually had FREE public recycling canisters where you could get rid of your recycling.

In bigger cities, it can be a little easier to recycle, such as looking up a recycling center and disposing of your products there. Also, National Parks and State Parks often have recycling bins, but they obviously don’t want you to dump half a canister’s worth of recycling in there. And we try not to dispose of both our recycling and trash in places where it might be harder for trash/recycling removal. But, sometimes it can be our only option.

We have found it extremely difficult when we are traveling through remote areas that don’t recycle. So are best advice is try to break down recycling and try to condense it so it doesn’t take up space and try to wait for the next recycling center!

Grocery Shop More Often/less storage:

If you are living in a campervan, then you will most likely have a small fridge and not enough storage to keep a whole pantry’s worth of food. We find ourselves having to go grocery shopping at least once a week to stock up on fresh foods because we simply don’t have the space to store a ton of extra food.

Of course if we are going off-grid for a while, then we can store dry foods easier, but to keep a good diet, we have to stock up on fresh fruits and veggies much more often.

Also not to mention, you most likely don’t have a freezer or it is very small. So you can’t have much fruit, veggies or back up items ready to go from the freezer like most homes.

Grocery stores are located all over, so it’s not usually difficult to find grocery stores, it’s just that you might find some where the prices are very high. If we find a pretty expensive grocery store, we will likely just grab a few items to get us by and when we are in a bigger city, stock up on everything else.

Laundry:

Another not-so-glamorous chore of vanlife is laundry. Almost all campervans don’t have a laundry machine in their van, therefore you now have to add a trip to the local laundromat. We have had pretty decent luck with finding well priced laundry machines and dryers. Plus they usually work pretty fast and you can have fresh clothes in under 2 hours.

How often you have to do laundry really just depends on the amount of clothes you bring with you in your campervan. Jake and I can usually wait to do laundry about every 3 weeks.

Sweeping/mopping:

Sweeping and mopping is one chore in your campervan that is much easier then a normal home. But sand and dirt does roll in much faster. Most van builds have one little strip of floor showing where you need to sweep and mop. And we sometimes do it more than once a day. But, the nice part about this no-so-glamorous chores of vanlife, it can be done in less than 5 minutes!

And of course we don’t actually carry a mop in the van, we just wet a paper towel and quickly wipe up the floor after we sweep most of the dirt out. You might we surprised by how dirty the floor can actually get in such a short time.

Dishes:

Jake and I have always been an advocate for doing your dishes right after eating a meal. And it is especially important in vanlife, so you don’t have food caked on extra hard to certain dishes.

Plus with limited water supply, you have to get a little creative with how you wash your dishes. We usually run the water a little faster then a “drip, drip” stream, and try to reuse water from each dish.

Doing dishes this way has allowed us to keep our water resupply down where we only have to fill up about every week or so. It also helps with disposal of the grey tank to be less often.

Showering:

Showering in vanlife becomes a chore, and not so much a luxury anymore. Whether you have a shower or have to find a shower on the road, it’s not as easy as taking a rinse every day.

Jake and I have a portable solar shower, but it requires time to heat up and we try to choose days where the weather is nice and the sun is shining so it’s more enjoyable. So we have to time out our showers pretty well so it is when the water gets properly warm and later in the afternoon.

If you want to look into great portable shower options for vanlife, check out our post:

Best Showers For Vanlife

Or if you don’t have a shower, then you have to find a facility with a shower. Such as a gym, campground, truck stop, etc. Therefore, you need to find a place that is open during the time you want to shower and drive to the facility. Most public showers are coin-operated, require a fee or you need a membership to shower at the facility.

For more information on finding showers on the road, check out our post:

How To Find Showers On The Road

Getting A Car Wash Often:

Your vehicle is now your home, so keeping it clean and tidy on the outside matters too. Not only for looks, but if you travel near places that have salt, it can lead to rust.

We try to keep “Delphie” (our van) clean on the outside as much as possible. And our van cannot fit in automatic carwashes so we always need to find the self-serve ones.

Most self-serve car washes are timed, and it usually takes between $5 and $10 to get our van clean. And we average between 1-3 carwashes per month.

Clean Off Solar Panel:

We have to make sure that our solar panel stays relatively clean. If it gets dirty, then it doesn’t collect solar energy as efficiently. This requires getting out our ladder and wiping it down periodically.

Takeaway:

After all these chores, I still think vanlife is 100% worth it. The chores just become the new “normal” and a trade in for the freedom of this lifestyle! Just like living in a normal home, there will be annoying chores that you don’t necessarily enjoy doing.

And if you pile up most of the not so glamorous chores of vanlife on this list and do them in one day, it can take less then half a day if you do multiple at one time!

For example, you might get lucky and have a laundromat boarder a grocery store, so you can put your laundry in, do your grocery shopping, dispose of you trash, fill up propane and get your fresh water all in one trip. And all those chores can be done in less then 2 hours!

These not so glamorous chores are a part of life when living in a van, but Jake and I have learned how to do them quick, and get back on the road. We do it so we have the freedom to travel full-time and travel to cool places. Which if you ask me, is “living the dream”!