Here are some FAQs about tent living. Please post more questions if you have them!
Why do you live this way?
Well, that's sort of a long story.
Do you have electricity?
I don't have electrical service, but I do have a few battery operated devices like a flashlight and a beard trimmer. I also have a battery operated CD player. I really don't miss electricity.
How do you light your tent at night?
I mainly use candles for lighting, especially in the warmer months. I also use kerosene lamps sometimes, like when I have guests, or when I cook or read.
Do you have refrigeration?
No, I don't have refrigeration. I have a cooler that I pack with ice when I have guests sometimes, mainly for beverages. As a consequence, I have no way to preserve my leftover food during the warmer months so I plan my meals accordingly. And I can't keep refrigerated foods like fresh meats and dairy on hand, so I shop accordingly by buying fresh foods on my way home from work, to be cooked and eaten that evening for dinner. The only thing that I miss is cold beer! I just can't get used to warm beer.
How do you cook?
I have a fully-functional kitchen featuring a two-burner gas camp stove and a camp oven. The oven doesn't work very well though. I can't really bake anything. It only gets up to around 250 degrees. Great for warming things, and okay for nachos and pizza. The stove operates on LP, and I have a 20 lbs tank outside connected to the stove by a 10' adaptor hose.
Where do you get your water?
I get all of my water from an outside source and carry to my tent using seven-gallon containers. I consume about three gallons a day for bathing, cooking, and cleaning (note that my toilet doesn't use water). Before I moved to Brandy Station, I filled my containers at a nearby convenience store for $1 per container. Now, I get my water for free from my landlord from an outside spigot on his guest house.
What about bathing?
I take sponge baths using wash clothes and a wash basin. Since I carry in my water, it's precious to me and this type of bathing helps me conserve water. I can bathe my entire body using only about 1 1/2 gallons of water. And I don't need a tub or shower, which occupy space and consume a lot of water. I have a dedicated eight-quart pot for hot water. I fill it with cold water and heat it on my gas cook stove. It heats to bathing temperature in about 10 minutes.
How do you wash dishes?
I wash and rinse my dishes by hand using a plastic dish pan. As with bathing, I heat my water on the stove using the hot water pot. I get water a little hotter for dishes so it takes a bit longer to heat, but it's the same idea as bathing. I dump the wash and rinse water down the dump sink when I'm finished, and I stack the dishes in a dish drainer to air dry.
How do you wash your clothes?
I usually go to the laundromat. Sometimes my friends invite me to do laundry at their house while I hang out and visit.
What is your toilet like?
I use my dump sink as a urinal. It's plumbed to a dry well outside. The dump sink handles all of my grey water, including urine. For solid waste I use an earth closet that I built from plywood and five-gallon buckets. I use sawdust instead of earth to cover the waste, and periodically dump it to a tree bog. This system doesn't use any water and doesn't require any sort of underground septic system.
Do you get cold in the winter?
Yes, I get cold in the winter, but only for short periods. Like when I get up in the morning. The inside temperature in the morning is nearly the same as the outside because my wood stove, which is my main heating source, only keeps the tent comfortable for maybe six hours or so. After that, the cold starts creeping in pretty quickly. So my winter mornings consist of me running out to my front stoop to quickly light my kerosene heater, then throwing some wood in the stove, then quickly jumping back into bed for a 10-minute snooze! My bed is plenty warm since I pile on blankets, sleeping bags, a down comforters, and so on. And I sleep in long underwear so it's actually all pretty tolerable. But it'll wake you up in the morning!
The other cold period is when I get home from work in the evenings and the wood stove is once again down to just coals. Again, I have to get the stove going, and that takes about 15 minutes or so. I just leave my coat on and huddle around the stove pipe for a bit until things warm up.
Other than that, it's actually very warm and cozy in the winter. In fact, I've probably had more challenges keeping the space cool enough. It's difficult to regulate the wood stove in such a small space and I've often seen the temperature creep up to 90 degrees plus. I've even had to open the front door and let some cold winter air in to cool things down at times.
Do you get hot in the summer?
Yes, I get hot in the summer. Very hot! My first summer in a tent was the summer of 2012. I had just moved to a new location that April so I was still a bit disorganized as the summer began heating up. By August, I had finally gotten things figured out, and my body had acclimated to the heat by then. I found four things that helped me fight the summer heat: a rain fly that helped shade my tent, an outdoor living area where I could sit in the shade, plenty of cold baths, and very few clothes. By the end of summer, I had acclimated to where 95 degrees felt like "room temperature" to me.
Do you stay dry when it rains?
Yes, I stay very dry even during heavy rains. That's because I have a very large rain fly with plenty of overhang all around my tent, and the tent is up on a wooden platform, well off the ground. High and dry!
What did it cost?
The whole thing cost less than $3000. I didn't keep very good records, but I have a breakdown that's pretty close.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Installing My Front Door and "Porch"
I finally got around to installing my front door and "porch" the other day following my move to Brandy Station.
The front door is easy. I just set it in place, screw the threshold down to the platform, and tighten down the inside clamps that grab the canvas. It makes a pretty good seal, keeping out insects and the wind.
The rectangular portion in the center of the door assembly is the hinged portion that you walk through. The triangles to either side and on top are fixed Plexiglas windows.
I also installed the front "porch", which is just a 3' x 4' platform in front of the door. I cut two 4x4s to the proper length to level out the porch.
The front door is easy. I just set it in place, screw the threshold down to the platform, and tighten down the inside clamps that grab the canvas. It makes a pretty good seal, keeping out insects and the wind.
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| Front door installed |
I also installed the front "porch", which is just a 3' x 4' platform in front of the door. I cut two 4x4s to the proper length to level out the porch.
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| Front "porch" |
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
On Being "Homeless"
I rented a U-Haul truck the other day, and the clerk handed me a stack of forms to fill out . The forms asked for the usual information. Name...check. Phone number...check. Address....hmmm. I put in my post office box number (which is how I get my mail these days), then continued filling out the remaining forms. I handed the papers back to the clerk. She looked them over and said, "We need your physical address here." I said, "I'm currently homeless." She gave me an empathetic look of concern and said, "Oh, I'm sorry", and moved on to the next page.
Homeless? Well, sort of I guess. I don't have a physical address. And I don't live in what most people would considered a home. But strangely, I feel more secure with this life style then I did when I lived in a house! For the first time in my life, I actually *own* my "home". And in a pinch, I can pack it all up and put it in a 5' x 10' storage unit where it will wait for me until I'm ready to set it up again. I actually feel like I will *never* be without a home now. I can lose my job or run into other financial hardship without having to worry about losing my home.
And since I am renting land from individuals, I can rely upon the goodness in people's hearts instead of the corporate policies of bankers. And that's a good feeling!
I'm still not sure whether I'm "homeless", but if I am, well, that's okay!
Homeless? Well, sort of I guess. I don't have a physical address. And I don't live in what most people would considered a home. But strangely, I feel more secure with this life style then I did when I lived in a house! For the first time in my life, I actually *own* my "home". And in a pinch, I can pack it all up and put it in a 5' x 10' storage unit where it will wait for me until I'm ready to set it up again. I actually feel like I will *never* be without a home now. I can lose my job or run into other financial hardship without having to worry about losing my home.
And since I am renting land from individuals, I can rely upon the goodness in people's hearts instead of the corporate policies of bankers. And that's a good feeling!
I'm still not sure whether I'm "homeless", but if I am, well, that's okay!
Path to the Tent Site
My tent site is tucked in the woods about 30 yards from where I park my truck. I followed an existing game trail from the parking area down to the tent site, and I used a wheel barrow to haul stuff in. The single wheel of the wheel barrow carrying 100+ lbs loads, together with rainy weather, turned the game trail into a muddy mess by the time I was done moving my stuff!
To make the trail more pleasant, I brought in five bags of pine bark mulch, which helped to build up the muddier areas. Then I covered the entire trail with pine needles from nearby trees. As a final touch, I placed a tiki torches every six or eight yards along the path. Sure is nice to be out of that mud!
To make the trail more pleasant, I brought in five bags of pine bark mulch, which helped to build up the muddier areas. Then I covered the entire trail with pine needles from nearby trees. As a final touch, I placed a tiki torches every six or eight yards along the path. Sure is nice to be out of that mud!
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| Path to my tent site |
Installing the Dry Well
One of the most convenient fixtures in my tent is a dump sink, which is simply a plastic bucket with a drain in the bottom. The sink drains to a dry well outside, which is just a hole filled with rocks. Here's how I installed the dump sink and dry well at my new location in Brandy Station.
The project starts by placing the dump sink at the proper location inside the tent (not shown), then running 1 1/4" PVC pipe down the tent wall to the outside. From there, I run two 10' lengths of pipe downhill, away from the tent.
I dig a trench for the pipe, being careful to remove the top layer of sod first so that I can replace it later.
Once the trench is finished, I place the pipe in the trench and see where it ends. That's where the dry well goes!
The dry well is just a hole in the ground large enough to accommodate around five gallons of water. I only use the dump sink for grey water (such as dish water, bathing water, urine, and so on) so five gallons is plenty of capacity.
With the pipe in place and the dry well dug, I can bury the pipe and replace the sod.
The last step is to fill the dry well with large rocks. This keeps the grey water below the surface where it can safely seep into the soil.
To finish the job, I soften the edges of the dry well with soil and sod. It gives the well a more natural look.
The project starts by placing the dump sink at the proper location inside the tent (not shown), then running 1 1/4" PVC pipe down the tent wall to the outside. From there, I run two 10' lengths of pipe downhill, away from the tent.
I dig a trench for the pipe, being careful to remove the top layer of sod first so that I can replace it later.
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| 1 1/4" PVC pipe running downhill from the dump sink inside the tent (not shown) |
The dry well is just a hole in the ground large enough to accommodate around five gallons of water. I only use the dump sink for grey water (such as dish water, bathing water, urine, and so on) so five gallons is plenty of capacity.
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| Five-gallon hole for the dry well |
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| Pipe buried and sod replaced |
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| Filling the dry well with rocks |
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| The finished dry well |
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
The 20-hour Work Week
Most anthropologists agree that stone age people worked around 20 hours per week for their basic food, shelter, and clothing needs. And that's with stone age technology. Give a caveman a chain saw and a poly tarp and watch out!
So how does this figure match up with the modern tent lifestyle?
The caveman had to hunt and gather their food. Let's modernize that a bit and give him a $15 per hour job and a grocery store instead. And let's take him out of the cave and put him into...hmmm...a canvas wall tent! :) Now, his 20 hours at $15 per hour brings in around $1200 per month, or about $1000 after taxes. Shelter (in the form of rent, propane, kerosene, firewood, and water) is about $200 per month. That leaves $800 for food and clothing.
Now, let's keep him eating like a caveman. That means cooking from scratch using basic ingredients like fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, fish, poultry, a few meats, nuts and seeds, and so on. (By the way, there are some great caveman recipes out there!) This style of eating is very economical, so let's say $10 per day, or around $300 per month.
That leaves $500 per month for clothing! So what you end up with is a very healthy, well-dressed caveman working only 20 hours per week! :)
So how does this figure match up with the modern tent lifestyle?
The caveman had to hunt and gather their food. Let's modernize that a bit and give him a $15 per hour job and a grocery store instead. And let's take him out of the cave and put him into...hmmm...a canvas wall tent! :) Now, his 20 hours at $15 per hour brings in around $1200 per month, or about $1000 after taxes. Shelter (in the form of rent, propane, kerosene, firewood, and water) is about $200 per month. That leaves $800 for food and clothing.
Now, let's keep him eating like a caveman. That means cooking from scratch using basic ingredients like fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, fish, poultry, a few meats, nuts and seeds, and so on. (By the way, there are some great caveman recipes out there!) This style of eating is very economical, so let's say $10 per day, or around $300 per month.
That leaves $500 per month for clothing! So what you end up with is a very healthy, well-dressed caveman working only 20 hours per week! :)
My First Night in Brandy Station
Last night I spent my first night at my new location near Brandy Station, Virginia. It's such a peaceful spot, right in the middle of a patch of evergreens.
My place is currently a disaster! You know how it is on moving day.
That's my front door in the photo, above, leaning against the tree. And the rainfly is just draped over the tent. Didn't even bother to stake it down, so I hope we don't get any strong winds for a while. I did tie the tent to the platform, but that's about it for now. I need to re-construct my rainfly support, then I'll stake out the tent at the same time I install the rainfly.
A thunderstorm came through about 4:30am this morning. Strongest rain I've experienced so far. Usually the rain will lull me to sleep, but these raindrops were so loud they kept me awake. I couldn't fully close the tent opening either, so there was a small puddle on the floor this morning.
The inside of my tent is even more disorganized than the outside. I've got work to do!
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| My "front yard" |
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A thunderstorm came through about 4:30am this morning. Strongest rain I've experienced so far. Usually the rain will lull me to sleep, but these raindrops were so loud they kept me awake. I couldn't fully close the tent opening either, so there was a small puddle on the floor this morning.
The inside of my tent is even more disorganized than the outside. I've got work to do!
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