shower/toilet

Get a twine unit or something similar and then you only have to worry about finding water and setting up the little tent

Boys 4-11 don't like showering every day, and probably don't need to. Number ones is also pretty easy for them!

Go the cheaper option and just use facilities when you find them.

I think you need to worry more about where to store the water for the 7 of you LOL Jeeez. The one thing that my wife wont leave home with out when we go away is the porta loo even for yourself if your inclined to go in the middle of the night especially if not in a caravan park or the like. In regards to the shower we just have what they call is the "ensuite" which can be shower set up one side toilet the other and takes about 5 mins to set up but we only have the two of us. I know what my wifes decision would be if there was 7 of us !!!! Shower and toilet on board and I would imagine a lot less time to set up etc when having to tell 4 kids time for a shower althou kids seem to love all that goes with it. If you have the $$$ why not make it easier for yourselves and enjoy. Just my opinion and as said we dont any children let alone 5. All the best on your decision and hope you fully enjoy your trip. Regards Steve

Felicity, we have motor home with shower & toilet & when we are travelling on longer trips the toilet was only used for emergencies & the shower not at all as we had to conserve water 'cause you never know when your going to fill up next. The wife used baby wipes i think they were & i had a wash from the kitchen sink.This worked well in the outer areas & when near a town after 3/4 or 5 days into the c/park for shower, washing & top up with water.You don't need much more than a wash unless you sweat in the heat of the day or rolling in the dirt.Lol
Cheers Bob.

Take lots of loo paper and a couple of packets of huggies baby wipes.

AHHH bush camping!!! Just like the good old days.

I repaired Caravans for over 20 Years and have seen very few who actually use the showers in the Caravan. Most of them got converted into storage space.
We travel a lot and always find showers and toilets somewhere.
But we do carry a bush shower with a 12 volt pump as back-up.
It really depends if you are camping or caravan people.

Reiner

We ordered our Trakmaster with a shower/toilet and SWMBO says it is THE BEST.

Mind you, with 5 kids you will probably not ever get thanked in a way that requires a shower both before and after.

But when it's just 2 for the road !!

Mrs K ,

I am just about to order a 15 ft Phoenix van . It will have an outside shower to save space and no toilet . We use a very comfy folding toilet which we call our "Delux Crapper" and a shovel . We burn our paper and enjoy moments of great solitude in the bush !

When our two boys were young , we used the same type of toilet with great success .

Cheers ,

Willie .

Hi there,
There are car showers on the market as well as 12volt units you can run from a ciggie lighter or portable battery etc.

Also this site may be useful, http://www.toiletmap.gov.au/default.aspx

Cheers

Hi Felicity (and husband of),
We have a CT that we take on long trips otherwise we tent it. No shower or toilet.
Shower: We use those big car sponges. with hot water in a bucket and small blow up kids' paddle pool - inside the tent - the pool collects the amazingly small amount of water used. Yet you still get a surprisingly good soak. Another popular one is one of those pump-up pressure garden spray units, like Hills Spraygen, with the spray nozzle replaced by a small shower head. Fill it with warm water and bingo. Again, a good way to control water useage. And on a trip around Oz, that will become a major issue. Funny how you suddenly get waterwise when it's not on tap. You'll find yourself resenting washing in perfectly good drinking water, especially when you find yourself buying it by the litre.
Toilet: You won't travel far without finding a toilet these days. Having said that, I was amazed that my wife condecended to use the shovel. Really no big deal. A good protocol though is to also take matches with you and burn the toilet paper before burying. Chemical toilets are a pain, they need to be emptied fairly regularly in appropriate facilities. There are also camp toilets on the market, basically just mobile seats to accompany the shovel.
Switching subjects, if you don't already have it, buy "Camps Australia Wide 4", it's got all the campsite that you'll be looking for - including the freebies - It is the travellers' bible, worth every cent and a bit. Enjoy the trip.

Hi Felicity and Dan,
We are goinhg throught he same dilema but we are only 2 but in respect to independant camping go for it you will find some great places where the kids can run and swim and it is so good to sit around the fire. Our kids have grown up 25-18 and they are all keen on camping.
Think about getting an external shower and a pop up shower tent or similar just using a 5 gallon bucket. There is plenty of independent camps with shower facilities, but I am so pleased you are taking your kids I wish we had. Hindsight is so good.
happy travelling
Barb

We travel in a CT, often for 3 or 4 months at a time.
I'm easy to please so had no real interest in a toilet or shower, but SWMBO had a different view. Guess what, we carry both.
Carry both a Porta Pottie and a Jimmy's Thunderbox for toilets. Use Jimmy whenever possible, otherwise the Porta Pottie.

For the shower, we have a small ensuite extension on the side of the CT with H&C water taps to a disconnectable shower plumbed to a small HWS in the CT.

I think you need a toilet at least, but it can just as easily be Porta Pottie style that you put in a fold up 'ensuite' tent. The tent takes up no space. Even if the toilet is only for the wife (boys to look after themselves), it is worth while. In my experience a happy wife equals a happy trip.

For shower, an outside one should be fine. One plumbed from the van with taps on outside is a good idea I reckon. Your biggest issue with a shower will be carrying enough water.

All this assumes you will do a fair bit of free / bush camping.

Felicity,
We take our 4 grandkids, 2 daughters plus partners, plus ourselves, away camping quite regularly. We have a 23' van with a seperate shower and toilet and find it suits our needs. We can carry 240 litres in the tanks or just pump from any other source. Even when there is just the two of us in the van we never use facilities at van parks etc. We have found, speaking to a number of vanners, that those with combined shower/toilet tend not to use the shower much because of the need to wipe down the floor etc each time they have a shower. We found when camping in Ballaarat in winter last year (average morning temperatures around zero and daytime temps between 6 and 10 degrees), that having our own shower and toilet was a real convenience. If you're only camping in the tropics that may not be an issue. Good luck with you choice
Peter

The thing that has not been discussed much in this thread is your water supply. It is considered that the average shower in a van consumes 9 ltrs of water, or in your case 63 ltrs per round. Caravan tanks come in two common sizes, 60 & 80 ltrs (approx.) There are larger size tanks but larger capacities are commonly provided by installing multiples of these common sizes. Also remember that you can not pump the last 15% out of these tanks because they have a flat bottom and the top of the supply pipe is about 15-25mm above the floor.

In addition to your shower water you need a fair amount for drinking, cooking, washing up and other cleaning purposes.

With the standard load allowance that van manufacturers provide you will be only be able to carry enough water for one round of showers. Remember water weighs 1kg per ltr and this comes out of your 400kg load allowance. Some manufacturers will build to your specifications and you can ask for a larger load allowance – but remember, you have to tow this larger weight and will probably end up with a tri-axle van. Even with an increased load allowance you will only carry for water for 2 or 3 nights showers, so if you and relying on the vans shower for your ablutions, you will limit your number of nights you can spend off power in the bush. If you are are going to spend most of your time in caravan parks then the ensuite is probably a waste of space. We have around 450kg of load (including 80ltrs of water) for long time touring, you will probably need more.

Space consideration is another thing to consider. With five boys you will need plenty of space for dining and sitting. If have an ensuite this will add one metre to the length of your van. A shower/toilet will take up about 40% of that space. Vans with a combined shower/toilet generally have cramped kitchens, ask the cook if she needs plenty of bench space to feed the tribe.

If you are going to bush camp then you are probably better off with washing out of a dish in the annex or shower tent. Occasionally you can allow showers from a black plastic shower bag, you soap them up from water in a dish and they rinse from the shower standing over the same dish – the wife and I can get a shower each out of about 8ltrs of water, others I have talked to do better using this method.

If I were in your position I would maximise the living space in the van and do without the shower/toilet.

PeterD