Living on the 'road' in the bus has a certain number of issues that need to be addressed on a regular basis. We are fully self-contained in regards to fresh water, waste water and electricity but they all need to be monitored closely.
We carry about 140 litres of fresh water and it will last a couple of days if we are careful. We have both got a shower down to a fine art and if really careful can use not much more than 10 litres each if we aren't washing our hair. I have heard of a shower like this being referred to as a bird bath. I prefer to think of it being more like a Greek shower. You wet yourself down, turn off the water, soap up and then turn the water back on to rinse off. This type of shower is more than adequate but best practised in a warm environment.
Getting a supply of fresh water can sometimes be an issue as not all our campsites have a supply.
Most of the dump stations for our black water waste also have potable water but not all. Fortunately most of the NZMCA site do. Failing this Caltex Service stations all provide fresh water for NZMCA customers.
Our black and grey water tanks last about a week though we try to get rid of this every 3-4 days. The public dump stations are listed in our Travel Directory and there is usually one in every town and are very clean and accessible.
The bonus at these sites are those that provide potable, fresh water and a rubbish bin for our kitchen waste. We find our kitchen waste can be a real issue as most towns don't supply receptacles for this. Litter bins are just that are not suppose to be used for household waste. We have found that if we put out small amounts these are what works best even if we aren't all that comfortable with it. Some areas have large recycling bins (which we do like to use if possible) but unless they are well signposted they can be difficult to access.
Keeping the power up to our batteries is a daily chore. We have three solar panels on the roof and provided the sun shines our house batteries are full. Of course Stephen has developed more than one system for providing our power and I do struggle to understand how it all works. All I know that we do have to be careful or by bedtime we have to resort to using the 24 volt system which can then mean the bus engine won't start in the morning!! Keeping our electronic devices charged up and running also takes careful management. The iBook doesn't like the 12volt system so charging it while we are driving is the best option. Our next purchase is going to be a solar charger that will work with the iPad, iPod and the mobile phones.
Condensation at this time of the year can be a problem in the mornings, even up here in the north of NZ. My 'Scoopy' that collects it off the windows is proving to be an essential 'bus' item and I can collect up to 200ml of water some mornings.
Laundromats can be found in most towns with some of them listed in our Travel Directory and others on 'Camper Mate.'
We find we can manage by doing a wash about once a week, and the costs vary depending on the business. The laundromat close to us here in Henderson is very good value for money. They charge $5 for a large machine load, and then another $5 to dry it.
We like to keep the fuel tanks in both the car and bus well topped up but even a simple exercise like this takes some thought. We can't believe how much the price of fuel can vary from one service station to the next. At the moment Mobil fuel is $2.08 for 91 petrol, and $1.38 for diesel. At the Z station only but metres away it is $2.21 and $1.47 for diesel. And then there is a range within this.
We are always on the lookout for firewood for our wood-burner. We are always keen to collect fire cones when we can, but failing this we purchase fire logs from the Warehouse. These logs are very compact and give off a great heat.
Even up here in the north, we find we are lighting the fire most nights. It keeps everything nice and dry, as well as giving us a cosy feeling. It is also very good for cooking on or boiling the kettle.
We carry about 140 litres of fresh water and it will last a couple of days if we are careful. We have both got a shower down to a fine art and if really careful can use not much more than 10 litres each if we aren't washing our hair. I have heard of a shower like this being referred to as a bird bath. I prefer to think of it being more like a Greek shower. You wet yourself down, turn off the water, soap up and then turn the water back on to rinse off. This type of shower is more than adequate but best practised in a warm environment.
Getting a supply of fresh water can sometimes be an issue as not all our campsites have a supply.
Most of the dump stations for our black water waste also have potable water but not all. Fortunately most of the NZMCA site do. Failing this Caltex Service stations all provide fresh water for NZMCA customers.
Our black and grey water tanks last about a week though we try to get rid of this every 3-4 days. The public dump stations are listed in our Travel Directory and there is usually one in every town and are very clean and accessible.
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| The national symbol indicating a waste dump. |
The bonus at these sites are those that provide potable, fresh water and a rubbish bin for our kitchen waste. We find our kitchen waste can be a real issue as most towns don't supply receptacles for this. Litter bins are just that are not suppose to be used for household waste. We have found that if we put out small amounts these are what works best even if we aren't all that comfortable with it. Some areas have large recycling bins (which we do like to use if possible) but unless they are well signposted they can be difficult to access.
Keeping the power up to our batteries is a daily chore. We have three solar panels on the roof and provided the sun shines our house batteries are full. Of course Stephen has developed more than one system for providing our power and I do struggle to understand how it all works. All I know that we do have to be careful or by bedtime we have to resort to using the 24 volt system which can then mean the bus engine won't start in the morning!! Keeping our electronic devices charged up and running also takes careful management. The iBook doesn't like the 12volt system so charging it while we are driving is the best option. Our next purchase is going to be a solar charger that will work with the iPad, iPod and the mobile phones.
Condensation at this time of the year can be a problem in the mornings, even up here in the north of NZ. My 'Scoopy' that collects it off the windows is proving to be an essential 'bus' item and I can collect up to 200ml of water some mornings.
Laundromats can be found in most towns with some of them listed in our Travel Directory and others on 'Camper Mate.'
We find we can manage by doing a wash about once a week, and the costs vary depending on the business. The laundromat close to us here in Henderson is very good value for money. They charge $5 for a large machine load, and then another $5 to dry it.
We like to keep the fuel tanks in both the car and bus well topped up but even a simple exercise like this takes some thought. We can't believe how much the price of fuel can vary from one service station to the next. At the moment Mobil fuel is $2.08 for 91 petrol, and $1.38 for diesel. At the Z station only but metres away it is $2.21 and $1.47 for diesel. And then there is a range within this.
We are always on the lookout for firewood for our wood-burner. We are always keen to collect fire cones when we can, but failing this we purchase fire logs from the Warehouse. These logs are very compact and give off a great heat.
Even up here in the north, we find we are lighting the fire most nights. It keeps everything nice and dry, as well as giving us a cosy feeling. It is also very good for cooking on or boiling the kettle.
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