I'm a startup founder working full-time, remotely off-grid from a converted Land Rover Defender campervan that I built. Ask me anything!

Where do you poop?

I was waiting for this one to come up! Along with some great (and necessary) public toilet finding apps.. nearly every town I've come across has really nice public toilets. A good spot to always go is train stations - they nearly always have one. And in an emergency: trips to cafes etc.

I've really not found it to be a problem :)

What about showering?

I shower regularly at climbing gyms and a lot of the lakes have outdoor (cold) showers.

Have you tried keeping those toilet bags for those emergencies when/if you get caught out? Or if you get D&V?

No but it seems like I should look into it!

Have you done any upgrades to the campervan for comfort or utility since you started living in it full time? Is there anything you wish you had built in before you set off? It all looks very... non-private with all the windows but I guess that's OK being in the Alps!

Thanks and Good Luck! :)

Hey! Good question, the main thing I've changed is adding some latches to strap down my stuff whilst on the move. When I first set off everything would fly around everywhere! Apart from that, what I built before I set has served be pretty well. Fully sound deadened and insulating the interior was definitely worth the time as it gets pretty cold in the Alps at night. So far I have managed in -6ºC with no heater and just a sleeping bag so it must be working!

Haha, yes there are lots of windows... With my left over insulation I have made a bunch of blinds that sucker-cup to the windows. As well as blocking out all the light, they also help insulate the interior :)

One thing I wish I had made was a pull out kitchen draw that extends out of the back door. This would have a built in hob and sink. At the moment I either have to cook on the floor, picnic bench, or balance a box out of the back door - which isn't the safest thing to be doing! That along with an awning would be great!

Thanks!

You should make a big pop tent out of HAB canvas.

I think eventually I'll get a rooftop mounted tent, but I like how stealthy I am at the minute - just looking like a normal car :)

Not being a dick but how is this off-grid with internet? Isn’t this just mobile living?

You make a solid point - I guess what I mean is that I'm not tied to power, or location. I can last without going to campsites to charge up for weeks. I have a 100w solar panel that powers all my stuff (laptop, phone etc). With some of the places I've worked and stayed, they may have 4G reception - but I'd say they were pretty far remote from any thing.

What do you do if it's cloudy for an extended period of time? Does the solar panel still provide enough power to charge devices? Do you have battery storage with you?

My car has quite a high output on the alternator - I guess as usually expected to power accessories like winches / lights etc. It charges very quickly when I'm on the move. The combination of that and cloudy spots of sun is enough to keep my laptop charged :)

I've only had to go to a cafe once to charge up when I ran out, but that was mainly because the fuse had gone on the recharge circuit.

Have you thought about a second battery install?

Yes definitely, I will do it in the future. This has been half an experiment anyway to see if it was feasible, and I didn't want to make any more permanent changes to my car. Everything I've added so far can just be unscrewed and taken out. Drilling holes for wiring, and permanent solar on the roof scared me a little. But I'd definitely do it when I get chance soon.

How hard was the set up of the car?

I've built a few things before, but it was a total mission to build out the camper interior. Being a Land Rover nothing is square or symmetrical so everything had to be measured by eye and cut by hand. I based myself at a friends workshop and built it all out in a few weekends and lots of evenings. If you have basic woodworking skills, even a bodge job (of which I have plenty) you can still make a liveable interior :)

Having built living quarters in a back of a Defender as well, I can testify that there are way too many nooks and crannies that you have to use. Otherwise you will have very little space inside.

Nice! Yep, plenty of areas that make cutting and measuring the wood interior a nightmare!

Do you come from a wealthy background?

I wouldn't say wealthy - just your average family. I was lucky to get a shot at the work I'm doing and I've worked hard on keeping it up and making this happen. Been on this project for 4 years now.

Whats average? How much of your start up costs did you pay? Did you have your education paid for? Do you have loans?

We worked for free for 1 year on the project before we won some investment. I went to state school. I am still paying off the loan for this car.

How did you afford to work for free?

I was at uni finishing my degree living off my student loans. I also freelanced some design work to keep me going.

Are your parents your primary investors?

I don't think my parents even really know what I'm doing...

Where will you be camping at burning man?

I would first need to get my car across the Atlantic. Could strap some pontoons to it. Once I do, I'll hit you up.

Could you fly it out there or put it on a ship?

A ship would work, its mad expensive though I think and takes a long time.

How hard was the decision to live in a van and how nervous were you when you finally started doing?

I'd been dreaming about doing this for years... and kept backing myself into a corner with it to go. First I got the car, then my rent was up in London and I wasn't sure what to do. It was just a lucky time for me, as I hadn't really got many commitments (no mortgage, remote job and a girlfriend willing to let me go for a while)!

I wouldn't say I was nervous. I've travelled a bit before in campers so knew the game a bit. I used to be worried that I would struggle to find somewhere to camp that night or work, and that can be a bit stressful - but it quickly becomes routine and you just end up trusting that you'll find the right spot.

How many girls have you brought back home with you?

Only the ones my girlfriend doesn't know about (kidding).

Is she on the road with you as well? That was kind of a follow up question I had on if it is lonely living that life.

She isn't at the minute! She will join me soon enough though. No its not lonely at all, I've met a lot of people and working with my team all day I'm in constant communication with people :)

Apologies if you've answered this elsewhere, but do you plan on changing your setup to allow for extra living space once that happens?

Yes I will probably need to some rooftop storage or something like that. Maybe in the future even a roof top tent. But there is room for two in here, providing you get a long.

A long what? 😉

That typo can stay! Good spot ;)

Did she come with you?

Nope, she's finishing university back home and its been quite intense. We were already living apart me in London, she was up north, so it didn't really make much difference being the other side of the channel. Flown home to visit etc.

Digital Designer here. Are you hiring?

Not at the minute, I'm afraid :)

Worth a shot, miss out on all the opportunities you don't take! (Not that I was entirely serious!) Best of luck with it! I'm jealous as I'm sat here in an office in Glasgow with a thunder storm on the horizons!

Buy a van and escape it! ... I've had the storms here as well, I got pretty drenched last week.

The plan is to escape at some point! I'm waiting on my other half to finish her nursing qualification and then she can pretty much work anywhere! May I ask how old you are? Any thoughts of settling in one place?

Do it! I'm 26 and the thought of settling scares the crap out of me.

How do you keep yourself motivated to work regular hours? do you think that it is down to personality type? or do you allow yourself a free day of outdoor activities if you don't feel like working and then catch up somehow?

So I've worked remotely for a number of years now. I guess one of the main things is routine. I wanted to be fair to my fellow co-founders and team as well, and promised myself that it would be like nothing changed.

One of the great things about working on a limited amount of mobile data is that you can't just browse youtube and procrastinate on the internet because it just wastes data... I actually think I'm more focused now than when I was working at home, I have no distractions when I'm set up. The occasional dog walker that goes by and gives me a weird look but thats it. Because I built my desk, it's super comfy and a lot of the time I forget where I am and just lose myself in the work.

I get up very early and travel around for a few hours, sometimes even sneaking a hike in. This tends to quench my thirst and then I work all day no problem.

I also hit the weekends as hard as I can!

Does working in the van get really hot? Or do you just always find yourself in places where the climate is comfortable and just keep windows open?

The insulation I've added is doing a decent job at keeping the worst of the sun out of my car. I've been working in 32º and it was pretty hot, but with windows open it was absolutely fine.

Ah, I was going to ask about data limits. I’ve always wanted to work remotely but my work entails really high data usage; guess that’s a no for me

I think in a few years time data contracts will change so much. I'm lucky that most of my programs run natively on my laptop and my main data sap is just being connected to Skype / slack and sharing design files.

How do you manage day to day things like taking a shower or washing your clothes?

Hey! Luckily I'm on my own haha, so the time between showers can be more acceptedly 'adjusted'. I shower regularly at climbing gyms / swimming pools I pass along the way, and occasionally set up at a campsite.

As for washing clothes, I just brought lots with me, so can last a week or two without needing to wash them. Again, usually hit that up when at a campsite as I have space to dry everything without getting super weird looks.

What do you do with 80 mb/s?

So I work full time as a graphic designer. I'm constantly connected to Slack to communicate with my team, regular video conferencing, uploading design files, developing our app etc. But thats the thing, 80mb/s is way more than I need, and especially great when it's half way up a mountain! I've even started syncing dropbox constantly and streaming music because I'm not getting close to using my 40GB data contract.

40gb per month?

Yep

Why do you call doing contracted graphic design a start-up?

Sorry I'll clarify - I'm co-founder of a publishing startup, and my role within that is as the designer of the product/webapp, branding, marketing material etc. I'm not a contractor.

Very interesting, would love to chat. I'm a co-founder of a remote web development agency. We make websites, apps, etc, but no campers working remotely! Just yesterday I was thinking about this concept. So cool to see it today on front page.

It's the future :D

diesel or petrol?

diesel

Do you ever feel lonely? Such an awesome lifestyle, just seems like too much time in my own head.

Not really, because I work full time with my team who are usually online the same time as me, I'm speaking with people and friends all day. I've also met a load of people whilst travelling that I hang out with at the weekends and keep regularly in touch with :) - Also, some friends from home keep coming out to see me, which is great and keeps me sane.

1.Which network are you using? 2.How much are you able to save with this type of living?

1. Vodaphone UK
2. Loads... rent in London is ridiculous... My only real outgoings are food and fuel. It varies though as sometimes I spend more on doing stuff in the mountains, but rather that than rent! If I lived this way for a year or so the car would easily pay for itself.

*Vodafone

I'd love to blame autocorrect but thank you, it appears I am just an idiot :D

Something I've been kind of curious about: How are things like taxes and voting handled when you're not tied to any location, and even when you're outside your home state much of the time?

So I think it only becomes a problem when you are out of your country for more than 6 months... and if you keep paying your taxes in your home country, from what I gather, they don't care. It's the counties that you are staying in that start to care. So if you keep moving through places and pay your home taxes, I don' think its a problem. I've only been 2 months so far, ask me again in a few more!

It's pretty impressive that you work off what I can only imagine to be a 15inch laptop. I'm a developer with two 24inch monitors and I'm considering a 3rd. I have a love for the outdoors but my skill is in programming. I'd love to do what you do. Exactly what sort of work do you do (get technical as possible) and how does being on the move impact this?

It's totally possible, the constraint is battery power... Being only a small campervan I am limited to the amount of solar I can fit on my roof, and the amount of batteries I can lug around. I will eventually stick another panel on the roof, and I'd easily be able to run a second monitor. But if you had something bigger you could easily power everything you needed, even three screens if you could sacrifice stuff like heating or a fridge :)

So I am primarily product and graphic design, using tools like photoshop and sketch to mockup our product and marketing materials.

I am also heavily involved in the front end web developments, recently we just launched a new MVP developed in rails with a SASS and vue.js front end. Being on the move doesn't impact this at all for me, I have enough data to run the development environments and collaborate with my team so it's really no different to being at home (apart from I have BETTER internet here than home...) I hope this helps :)

yeah cheers mate that was helpful. You just showed me that my two passions don't have to be mutually exclusive. Ah I was secretly reverse interviewing myself to see if I could work for Reedsy. Unfortunately, I'm an angular, .NET guy myself. Rails has been a recurring theme lately, maybe it's time to pick it up.

haha, we are hiring for a node.js and angular.js position..

How bad do you smell?

The mountains don't care (but not that bad, I showered last night)

Are you sponsored by Land Rover?

You only have 600 Instagram followers and their official account is one of them. And they only follow 180 people.

I had no idea, Pretty cool! I mean, they can if they want to...

Is that... a map book in the back pocket of the front seat ?

Yeah, they still exist! My dad gave it me as a token which probably meant, "don't get lost". Needless to say. I've not used it. :D

Cool setup! Can you share a rough idea of costs? The cost of getting the campervan all setup and the regular monthly living costs while on the road?

Thanks! Of course :) - These cost don't account for buying the car, and maintaining it, more focusing on the build conversion.

Build ~£1,250

There isn't really that much too what I've done. It's a simple plywood interior all cut with basic power tools and screwed together. And my solar requirements are more than probably most people as I need to power my laptop for like 8-9 hours a day.

• Labour - I did it all myself and was lucky to have a friends workshop I could use which had a bunch of tools.
• Wood: ~£250
  • I used 4 sheets of decent quality plywood to create the interior.
• Fixings: ~£50
  • Coffee table hinges for desk: £20
  • Screws'n'stuff to fix furniture together.
• Solar: £200
  • Renogy 100w solar panel
  • Specialist cables
• Battery: £350
  • RIVER portable battery pack (I was an early backer on kickstarted, its not more expensive)
• Insulation: £200
  • 2 layers of 10mm closed cell foam insulation.
• Sound deadening: £200
  • (Necessary for a Land Rover, its loud af in here when the engine is going)

Living costs

This is very dependent on country.. Switzerland for example I spent more money on food than fuel. But as a rough idea...

• £200 a month on fuel / toll roads etc.
• £220 groceries (I don't have a fridge so I tend to have to buy a lot of fresh stuff)
• £50 on eating out at places occasionally
• £20 on camping gas fuel...
• Doing stuff, skiing was expensive, hiking is now free! So it evens out :D

Hope this helps

How much did you spend on sleeping bag / emergency supplies / if your car breaks down in middle of woods how long can you survive with water, food, and no heat in car?

My sleeping bag is pretty decent, I think it was around £100 but I bought it a number of years ago. I also have duvets and throws as well to keep the cold air off my bag. If I broke down I could easily last a week with what I've got in my car right now. Then I'd need to get some food as I don't have a fridge... There is fresh water all over the places, so I think I could manage with that. It's summertime in the alps pretty much, so it's not that cold any more. I've woken up to people sleeping in bivvy bags in the grass on the side of the mountain just up the road from me before.

Thanks for the details, seems quite reasonable and certainly cheaper than renting in London.

From all the places you've been traveling through while living in the van, do you think they'd suit a larger campervan, like a purpose built one? I'm interested in trying something similar but in a bigger vehicle that has a toilet/shower room too. My worry is you'd miss out on some of the cool places if it was too big.

for 90% of the places you'd be absolutely fine - there are a lot of rules around where you can drive and lots of places are illegal. It's that last 10% that you need to decide if they are worth it. To me they are because they are the quitter spots that are harder to reach. If you don't travel in peak seasons, you will have no problem going around in a larger vehicle. I also find having a smaller car super convenient for cities, can just park normally and not have to worry about it. Lastly, my car doesn't look like a cmapervan so I can get away with parking in places you might not get away with.

But like I said, you'd have no problem. Europe is so kitted out for campervan travel it is almost effortless.

What are you missing most from home? What are the biggest struggles from living in a Land Rover? Is your living style as good as you hoped?

Love the camper van conversion!

I obviously miss my friends and family... but like... I love this place too much, waking up in these locations is still blowing my mind and I feel super grateful. The biggest struggle is that I brought too much stuff with me... I went travelling on my own and brought a frisbee, which kind of sums it up... In the future I'm going to remove a lot of the tools I brought, and add some roof mounted storage boxes which will help a lot!

Thanks!

Do you worry about theft or police checking up on you in big cities? Have you ever had any run ins with this sort of thing?

Where I live in Vancouver, a lot of people have taken this up and they park in certain areas of the city because of the outrageous living costs associated with living here. I know there are lots of issues with break-ins and petrol theft so I was curious how you got around that if it's something you've come across

I've had no issues so far. I'm with my car a lot of the time and have taken a few measures to secure my stuff. I tend to carry most valuables in my backpack when I leave the car unattended somewhere busy. You could practically lean on my car to unlock... My car doesn't look like a campervan as well... so I think I get away with a lot as people just don't suspect me. It's so quiet here in the Alps I've not felt unsafe at any point. I move each day as well and usually park in the middle of absolutely no where.

What do you do for personal hygiene? I guess you just heat up some water in a bucket/bowel and flannel wash. But god, you must yearn for a shower sometimes!

I regularly shower at climbing gyms and pools and lots of lakes have free (cold) showers :)

How do you feel about sharks?

I guess I'm a fan, they don't tend to feature much in my day-to-day. Aside from watching Sharknado I'm not too clued up on them. I'm a pretty amateur surfer, I'm sure if I saw one out while surfing, I'd feel pretty different about them.

Do you always work out of your van, or do you occasionally hit up a cafe or some other locations in the towns you're passing through?

Also do you just drive wherever you feel like going next or are you driving along a planned path, and how often do you end up moving to a new location?

I didn't think I would when I stated. But it's so comfortable in here that I prefer to these days... Yeah I just drive around aimlessly :D - I have had some structure, friends have come to visit intermittently so I have to be at some airport by some date, which has given some sort of structure :)

Your website is really nice! What drives the most leads for you?

Thank you! Glad you like it :) - We find that providing genuinely valuable information through our blog (content marketing) and having it rank well in terms of SEO is the best way to grow sustainable leads, for us.

Why?

Because rent sucks and mountains are great.

a) Don’t you ever feel really claustrophobic? b) how much did it cost to convert (if u don’t mind me asking)? c) why a landrover? d) why thisinstead of a campervan or alternatives?

Hey! No not really, I focus on my work and forget where I am sometimes. I regularly get out and take in the place I'm staying. Every day is a different location and you just get fixated on that and the minor issues don't tend to really matter.

I answered above rough estimates - about £1,250 to convert car :)

I'm just obsessed with them... I love the defender, and it seemed like the perfect car to travel in. I've been up some crazy roads that I wouldn't trust a normal campervan on. I also don't look like a typical campervan... which is amazing and I think it's definitely helped me sleep in places where I probably shouldn't have done.

I wanted something I could build myself and have real ownership over it. I had quite specific requirements for the desk area and wanted to build it myself. The defender is a basic metal box that can be outfitted to do pretty much anything. I just decided that was going to be a campervan haha

Well it looks amazing thanks for taking ur time to answer my questions

You are welcome dude!

1. What do you do about your security? I live in a country (Brasil) where the crime rates at the roads are very high. I've been dreaming with #vanlife in the past months because I do administrative office work, but it's unworkable because the dangerous chances of being robbed.

2. Do you have a plan for food? What do you do about vegetables and fresh food?

3. I think it's a very lonely life. So what's the frequency of your contact with the people you love?

1. It's quite safe to travel around the alps and I am in my car a lot of the time its parked. I'm usually in the middle of no where as well, so I feel quite safe. In big cities I take most of my valuables out to my backpack, and secure my car with a clutch-clamp.
2. I go to a shop most days to get fresh food for lunch and breakfast (they are very common in most towns and villages around here).
3. I don't feel lonely at all! I speak with my friends all the time, meet lots of people along the way and am constantly looking forward to the next day!

How are you heating it? looks like it must get freezing in there.

It's full insulated, and I have insulated panels on the windows. With a decent sleeping bag, and a few duvets I've been sleeping for 8 hours at -6ºC.. dont get me wrong, a heater would be great!

Am I wrong or do you sit on the bed working everyday, with no backrest? My back is hurting just thinking about it! Really cool project and liftstyle though! Makes me wish I could work remotely.

Nah, it drops down into a proper seated area that replaces where the middle row of seats used to be. I'm in a real seated position don't worry!

If you're connecting to 4g, can you consider that off grid? Also, how is there 4g in remote areas?

I'm as surprised as you are how much reception there is... From what I can figure, the alps have a lot of ski resorts... and they tend to put the 4G antennas at the top of the mountains which just showers the neighbouring valleys in 4G reception.

Concerning your vehicle; If you could only spend 10% of the money you used to modify it (excluding initial cost) what would you have purchased to modify your rig? Essentially I’m curious about what you find to be the most important additions. Thanks!

My suspension is on its last legs. I need to uprate that for sure soon... For 10% of the cost, I would probably spend it on making this thing watertight... They came out of the factory leaking... That would require new hinges... new seals around etc... Thats worth its weight in gold as it stops the car from deteriorating.

What year is your Land Rover and was it difficult to find? My grandpa just sold his Land Rover that he had for 50 years to an auto museum in New York. I may have shed a tear or two when he sold it. I’m hoping to purchase one of my own eventually.

What location has been your favorite so far?

2004 - They are everywhere in Europe. I see a few each day I travel. Switzerland was incredible but expensive. The dolomites are currently blowing my mind. Totally worth a visit.

How do you get electricity for your laptop and phone?

I have a 100watt solar panel mounted to the roof that is trickle charging my battery throughout the day. My car also charges the battery when it's running.

How the VOIP latency? This is a dream for me but as a dev consultant I need VOIP and screen share.

My latency is usually between 69ms and 90ms - I've not seen it ever above that. I've not noticed any difference to what I had back home... apart from the download speeds are 5-10x better (which makes no sense)...

What has been your favorite location you've camped at in the rover so far? and why?

Damn, I have no idea. Currently in the Dolomites every time I round a corner it just keeps getting better... My favourite places are where the road has ended and I can keep climbing higher until the snow has to stop me - then I stay there.

Couldn't get a 70 series Cruiser, eh?

Haha, the rivalry is real. What can I say. I'm British, I'd get burnt at the stake otherwise.

Has anyone tried to break in? It looks like you have a lot of expensive stuff on there. Would definitely fit GPS if it’s your livelihood.

No not yet, fingers crossed! My expensive stuff consist of really just my laptop and phone which both can fit into my backpack. I have a few security measures for the car, like a clutch clamp / alarm etc. Most of the time I'm with the car, and its so quiet around here I feel pretty safe.

Why tho?

Because rent sucks and mountains are great.

How tall are you?

I’m 1,92 m and I don’t think I could ever do what you do!

183, I only just fit!

Fellow defender owner.

Has it broken down yet?

It has not, yet. It is making wayyyyy more noises than before though!

How do you justify the free spirit lifestyle of roaming in the face of your increased carbon foot print just through your basic operation?

Or do you think it equates to the normal amount of output you would produce if you went to a regular office?

I have no home to heat or power. No office to heat. No kettle to use. Not boiler to work. My work day is totally powered by solar. I have not done the calculations but I wouldn't say I'm increasing my carbon footprint dramatically.