Showers - are they worth the space?

Loo and shower takes up aprox 3 ft 6 ins -with a bit of thinking/planing it's easy enough to get into a small panel van -HBs van is only 8 ft long behind front seats and I managed to fit loo/shower wardrobe bed sink cooker into it without using the front seats as part of the bed, so for me the shower is a must.If more w/top is needed then a simple lift up one across the doorway can easy be fitted -it's your home and as such I WOULD EXPECT a loo and washing to be had in it.(y)
terry
 
Techno100 said:
Why? it dries itself. Do you dry it at home? Just shut the door and like magic next time you open it is all dry :LOL:
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Yes I do . Have one of those squigy things for the glass . And wipe out the base. I do the van one to stop the dampness evaporating inside the van .
 
we built without a shower we had one in the last panel van and never used it ok if you have a larger motor home but with space at a premium in a pvc we decided it was one thing we could do without remember you canuse the water you put in and then you have to get rid of the waste. being frugal we can go five days wilding if we had a shower this would halve
 
If you have room for a loo and basin, you would, more than likely, have room for the shower tray to form the floor of the cubicle. A pull out tap forms the shower head. If you need a shower and there aren't other suitable facilities available, you can have one. You don't have to use it all of the time and may only use it rarely, but it is available. The shower tray is also a good place to put wet and muddy boots and water proofs.

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We bought our van and liked having the seperate shower. But have not used it yet, stayed on sites so far that have great facilities. We tend to hang towels, store laundry basket and other stuff in there. Also not sure how our shower would work as the head seems to be point directly out and can't get it to point down :-( probably doing something stupid!
 
Life without a shower is existing. We mostly wild and love ours and use it all the time. I am more than happy to hunt and haul water, its part of the lifestyle. Sometimes we use the solar shower when in warmer climes (which we usually are) just don a pair of trunks and hold the nozzle for each other.. Luverly !! I couldn't get intimate with a lady who wasn't
'squeeky clean'... Oooooooh no.. :D
 
Yes, you do need to wipe out a shower after use but when it is a separate shower its an easy wipe of 3 walls and a door. On some vans 9and caravans) that I've seen where the toilet is in the same compartment you are then also trying to dry out the various nooks and crevices around the toilet, often whilst a clingy plastic sheet is sticking itself to your back. That is simply not for me!

I agree that a decent shower almost inevitably (not always) comes with a bigger van but hey, this is all a matter of personal choice. high on my "must have" list is a good shower, if I have to compromise a little over in town parking and some accessibility issue then that is something I am prepared to work around. Other will have different priorities and that is why there are s many different vans around. I knew a guy who had a little two berth van based on a Citroen van (was it a Romahome?) and that was a fantastic little van for what he wanted - highly manoueverable, VERY economical, park it anywhere but not for me as it had no shower.

I like to get up in the morning, shower, dress, breakfast, out. To traipse across the park in yesterdays clothes to shower and then change into todays clothes is not something I would enjoy (and you do not want to see me in one of those dressing gown thingies!
 
mpdcymru said:
Yes, you do need to wipe out a shower after use but when it is a separate shower its an easy wipe of 3 walls and a door. On some vans 9and caravans) that I've seen where the toilet is in the same compartment you are then also trying to dry out the various nooks and crevices around the toilet, often whilst a clingy plastic sheet is sticking itself to your back. That is simply not for me!
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When it is a self contained shower why do you need to wipe it?
 
I would assume that wiping it depends on the hardness of the water. We live in a hard water area and if we did't wipe the water off doors or tiles the scale builds up quickly. Also makes it easier to clean if there are no water marks :-)
 
ScotJimland said:
Van without shower = Tent = Site shower = Verrucas

I though that was only me.. :LOL:
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Having played football for over 20 years and shared communal showers with many men :Eeek: I never once got a verruca or indeed any other "disease" ( another :Eeek:):rofl::rofl:. A good pair of flip flops work well (y).
 
In direct answer to the OP's question. NO provided you don't mind stinking to high heaven

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spitfire said:
But surely you still have to dry out a separate shower when finished ?
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We were loathe to use the shower in our PVC when we first got it because we thought it would take ages to dry out afterwards - but it doesn't even in soggy UK weather. We use a J cloth to wipe down all the vertical surfaces and then a rubber bladed thing like you use on windows to dry the shower tray. Exactly the same regime as we use in the shower at home which we also dry after use as it prevents water marks.

We were also surprised by how little water the shower uses and our other fear of running out of water was also groundless.

The only limitation we have found is the water is a bit slow to drain away unless the waste tank is almost empty. I think this is a peculiarity of some PVC conversions as they don't have the space underneath them which more conventional MHs have and thus arranging the right fall in the waste pipes is a bit problematic. It isn't a major problem - muggins is just sent to empty the waste tank before Mrs DBK has a shower. :)
 
Definite yes. We have a separate shower which we do wipe down after as there is a wooden duck board that goes back in ( the sink and mirror are in the same compartment) It works well and the temperature is great but I do use site facilities if they are available and always wear flip flops or dare I mention them...........Crocs !!!!!
 
mpdcymru said:
Yes, you do need to wipe out a shower after use but when it is a separate shower its an easy wipe of 3 walls and a door. On some vans 9and caravans) that I've seen where the toilet is in the same compartment you are then also trying to dry out the various nooks and crevices around the toilet, often whilst a clingy plastic sheet is sticking itself to your back. That is simply not for me!

I agree that a decent shower almost inevitably (not always) comes with a bigger van but hey, this is all a matter of personal choice. high on my "must have" list is a good shower, if I have to compromise a little over in town parking and some accessibility issue then that is something I am prepared to work around. Other will have different priorities and that is why there are s many different vans around. I knew a guy who had a little two berth van based on a Citroen van (was it a Romahome?) and that was a fantastic little van for what he wanted - highly manoueverable, VERY economical, park it anywhere but not for me as it had no shower.

I like to get up in the morning, shower, dress, breakfast, out. To traipse across the park in yesterdays clothes to shower and then change into todays clothes is not something I would enjoy (and you do not want to see me in one of those dressing gown thingies!
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Agree completely. And you don't need a huge van to have a shower that's separated from the basin & toilet. Our Hymer B584 is 6 & a bit metres long and has a shower with folding door. I had six requirements for purchase: Under 22 feet, A class, no fixed bed, front lounge, entrance near the rear, and a shower. Given the choice of fixed bed or decent bathroom I'd go for the latter every time.

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We NEVER have a problem with waste water draining out How's that? I hear you say cos we NEVER EVER close the bleeding tap
 
Use ours quite a bit. This lot all used it after our fancy dress effort at a music festival a couple of years back, topped up the tank with our watering can.
 

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OK, a shower it is. Any idea how much water you use in such a shower? What is the minimum size tanks should be?

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Most folks when using a van shower tend to wet themselves down, knock the tap off, soap everything up, switch the tap back on and rinse. Not sure of quantities but I left the plug in the shower tray once and it only half filled it (y)
 
Some people feel the need to have a shower every single morning, this is a modern phenomenon because water is readily available at home and they can affort the energy to heat it, in the past this was not the case and many got used to having a shower once a week, or a bath usually, and good washes in the interim, this didn't mean that people were dirtier then, just as it doesn't now.

Having a shower, bath or a good strip wash, is immaterial ... it is how well you clean yourself when doing so that matters, so can we get off the "you are dirtier because you don't shower" sniping digs please! I then won't start to make comments like "you HAVE to shower every day because you are mucky smell pups" ... :D
 
jockaneezer said:
Most folks when using a van shower tend to wet themselves down, knock the tap off, soap everything up, switch the tap back on and rinse. Not sure of quantities but I left the plug in the shower tray once and it only half filled it (y)
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Yup, that's exactly what we did when we had showers in previous vans occasionally. All have had combo showers/toilets except our Rimor which had a separate shower cubicle but we still dried it off to stop the damp air remaning in the van, even with the window/roof vent open it did not get rid of it all. We also used to use it to store bits and bobs so it needed to be dried of to put them back anyway.
 
jockaneezer said:
Most folks when using a van shower tend to wet themselves down, knock the tap off, soap everything up, switch the tap back on and rinse. Not sure of quantities but I left the plug in the shower tray once and it only half filled it (y)
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That's how we do it .. and when we had a caravan, we managed 3 or 4 showers from one 30 lt Aquaroll. and a 2 gal Carver water heater.. (y)

Showering every day is not a new thing.. I've been doing that as an adult all my life .

I do recall washing in a tin bath in front of a coal fire.. but that was in the early 50s... things have moved on a pace since then.. and so has camping..

I also remember poor kids coming to school with 'tide' marks around their neck and wrists... ewwwwwww
 
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Yep for us definitely,we wouldn't have a van without a shower or toilet.we always use our on board facilities.motorhomes cost a lot so it seems a waste if they are not used(y)
Brian & Jo

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