George, did you ever think that 6 years later you are up there as one of the best van builders and Utuber ? Keep it up and giving us ideas and entertainment 👍🏻👍🏻

Loved the video. From the ’film noir’ sink scene to all the following bits, your humor, knowledge, photography, videography, and editing skills are wonderful. So happy this has been a successful journey for you and may it continue. I think I’m safe in saying we’ll all happily be here to enjoy your productions. Safe travels sir.

Absolutely loved it! The retrospective was awesome! Very enjoyable and filled with lots of good humor (and amazing green-screen work). Thanks for the memories. Ah yes, the "fun" early days. Quite the journey! Fun to see your many visions become reality. You pioneered the large sink and now look, "everyone's doing it." Thanks for the years of Sunday videos!

So “B” it, George! Look at what you have created. You had a vision and went with it. I love the Gary Hannan segment and so many more. So glad you decided to combine your talents and to share with us.

Dear George... Over quite a few years of following your humble journey and although we have never physically met, you feel like family to me!! Fawgeddabouditt!! I can imagine that I am not alone with this feeling! It is wonderful seeing your passion, sincerity, talent, and of course humbleness as you continue your trek forward to always create the most innovative vans and entertaining videos in the Class B world. Thank you for sharing your journey with us and wish you and your loved ones a Holiday Season of only peace and joy!! Cheers to yet another year for your continued success in 2024 and beyond!! -Perry

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Thank you, Perry. I feel the same way all the way back when your daughter inquired about me building a van for you!

I have that Hamilton Beach mixer! My grandparents had a candy store on South Road in Jamaica Queens in the late 1940s and it stayed in the family.

I smiled from 9:06 on. You are the man George. Merry Christmas!

WOW ❗ The elegance of genius through SIMPLICTY... 💪❤ = Reliability 😊

Hallo from Bavaria Germany, I love your sense of humor! Please use more of it in your videos! Greetings from a big fan and merry Christmas and a happy new year from Maria and Jeroen from Bavaria Germany!

Watching all those re-edited clips prior to- they are brillant

I love the story telling and all your choices of animations and music, KEPT ME REALLY ENTERTAINED 😅.

Thanks for sharing. I remember all of these, the music man van, you were suppose to drive the country together! I don't remember the seafood casserole wasn't the cooking show a frittata!

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

I did a few cooking shows!

Good Morning George Always Enjoy Your Sunday Morning Humble Road Videos !! Merry Christmas !!🎄☃️🎅

I often wondered about how to keep the bugs out without any screens. This custom build was the best!❤

One of your all-time best videos, love the retrospectives. Keep it up...

That video was GREAT loved it!

Memories🎼🎼🎼,,, I remember every one of those scenes and loved seeing them again. It’s truly remarkable how you’ve been able to manifest your vision into a bonafide successful business. Of course it’s been a lot of hard work on your end but as you’ve learned you’ve shared and educated countless others in the process. Your generous sharing I’m sure has contributed to many beautiful vans built by others. Ive seen you credited on several KZread videos I’ve watched. Although I’ll never build a van myself I love watching your process and beautiful vans. Always wishing you continued success with your projects.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Thank you to a long time Humble Roader! You've been here since the beginning!

Enjoyed the trip down memory lane, George. Happy holidays from OBX

Delightful.

I can't believe how easy that is!!! I live your videos!! ❤❤❤

Brilliant!

It's nice to see someone put all the components into one neat package but not for $6K. A Webasto Thermo top coolant heater is about $1500, copper plate heat exchangers are about $200 and universal heater cores with 12v fans are around $200 each from places like Jegs or Summit Racing. Add in the some mixing valves, fittings and a glycol reservoir/expansion tank the same thing can be DIY'd(with 3 heater cores) for well under $4K. In the average home van build that doesn't need 3 zones... maybe $2500 on the high end.

Lots of good memories, George! Merry Christmas!

Enjoyed the tutorial on the Agua Hot, but the retrospective made my day. Every day that I can make someone laugh or smile is a good day. Today you made mine good. Thanks George (And June, I’m buying a squirt bottle).

@HumbleRoad

4 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

This is a really great video and I thank you for it.

From fashioning a wine holder in your Pleasureway to the Humble Road of today. Only a genius could accomplish that. Merry Christmas Mr. Road. 😊

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Same to you!

And the Oscar goes to.....Humble Road for the best short film in the van builder category! 🎥🎬👑🏆

The retrospective was great fun to watch, George. Your homey little lamp, Skippy and your Dad, Radiohead RV, your own Pleasureway van mods, the first Appliance Garage, and so many firsts. You have reinvented US van builds and to me, you are the quintessential 'can do' American inventor. You are mechanical and spatial genius and definitely a direct descendant from the Da Vinci line. Even your pronunciation of 'radiator' sounds Italian 😂. You feel like family and I have great affection and regard for you and yours. I have never been a fan of any celebrity, but I am a devoted fan of your work. You are a national treasure and you must have a very high IQ to switch from one line of work to another effortlessly and highly successfully. Aqua Hot Hydronic Systems, uh huh, the word of the year, eh? Is it gold plated? Rhodium? Platinum? Diamond dusted? I'm just trying to figure out how a furnace/water heater can be priced at $6085.47 (don't forget the 47 cents which is icing on the cake of incredulity!) and still have customers and people raving about it. A Catalytic Converter with rhodium plating costs less. There is zero reason to charge $6K for a combo device that produces hot water and heat. A top of the line home water heater costs $400 - $600. A furnace for a house costs $881 - $1450. Even if you combined both, it costs under $2K. So how does a tiny gizmo like this run over $6000? Does it take you to the moon and back? Even if it did, not worth $6K - ever. Even components coming from Germany costs less than this! In fact, their RVs are priced at $70K for similar vans. This includes all the systems. So how can one component run 9% of the total cost? This reminds me of the Nature's Head (NH) toilet pricing at $1000 for a shi*t box essentially. Along comes Trelino, flown in from Italy, which runs $300 - $500. Half of that and less bulky. NH does not have any competition, that is the issue. They have price gouged us for how many years now? A plastic toilet, with a $5 computer fan, and a crank handle sells for over $1000. And people buy it!!!! This proves without question, that most of the human race is in a deep state of denial over reality. As they say in martial arts: Adjust to Reality. This is a box that holds your waste. A trash can for human waste. It should never cost $1000! Just think, if you give in to this extortionary pricing, what will tomorrow bring? A $10K hydronic system? $15K? I can buy a European trailer for $10K, fitted out with hot water and heating. Buying a $6K tiny heating system normalizes extortion pricing rates. I hope Air Excel is reading this. I will NEVER buy their system because I don't like being ripped off. I don't care how many bells and whistles you put on it, and how efficiently it runs, and how compact it is. I'm not building a NASA rocket where every gram of weight counts. Even the Mafia extortion racket is less ambitious in pricing. Thank you for the demo, George! This is a fine component, but at this pricing, they should sell it to the Pentagon which likes to waste our money.

@asnormal1362

7 ай бұрын

Just to keep this real, no one is forced to buy & use this system. It's not "bad" just because it's pricey . . . it's simply an option. Cheap ain't always good either of course. What did you use in your van for floor & cabin heating & hot water. What was the final cost & long term functionality?

that was awesome. and very funny. loved every minute of it. do more of these please!

George, George, George... There is NO WAY that your lovely wife is letting you get your crazy deliveries at home any more (reference to video 10:15). I do not see her cleaning up the bubble wrap strewn across her living room floor 😦, I don't see her cutting down boxes with her HumbleVan utility knife🤕, and she is definitely not loading up her car with pallets of 80/20 rails and connectors to drive them over to your shop to drop them off😠. I don't see it sir, nope, not happening! Happy Sunday sir, thanks for the content!😁

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Ha! Nope! You're correct, no more packages delivered to the house. UPS, Fed Ex and Amazon are daily visitors to the Humble Road shop

George, I just watched someone talking about the aquahot system yesterday and wondered what your take on them were! Absolutely super video!!!! 🎉

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ thank you for the walk down memory lane. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

You’re welcome!

Thank you George, I always enjoy watching your video.

7 years, this month! What a blast!

George, was I hearing things or does June call you Jim? Two thumbs and a couple of big toes UP for the hot water/heat and the surprise bonus replays.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

My family knows me as Chip.

Really enjoyed your introduction to Aqua hot. Looking forward to your installation video

Nice trip down memory lane :)

seriously George. You are SUCH an epic geek. Electric carving knife to open your boxes... 🤣🤣🤣

Thank You for all of your videos, your time and your expertise. Love the screen door.

What a treat! (after that bit about the $6k+ water/air heater...) I hope you enjoyed going down memory road to put together that "best of" as much as I enjoyed watching it. You have created a fine business over these past years all the while taking time to entertain, inform, and cultivate a customer base with your photo/video/acting? skills. I'm still waiting on you to "hit the road" again (at least for a long vacation).

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Thank you, Baron! Yes, I will be modifying that little travel trailer and I will hit the road in the early spring. I will be doing some test camping this winter. I’ll bring you all along for the ride.

I love this information/demonstration of how to construct this. Great teaching and explanation of how to do this. You are amazing!!!! Have a great week! Merry Christmas to you and your family! ❤🙏🎄Jane in SC. I loved the Retrospective!!! So cool and so much fun! Thank you!!!!

Great video.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

Good morning George Everything I've heard about on demand water heaters is that minerals in the water is the leading cause of failure. How will you check this during the annual tighten up visits? I know that you'll change out the element when necessary.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

The Mineral deposits will take years to build up to the point where it chokes flow.

Keep on rocking it george👍❤

Love you, George. It’s been a hell of a ride! Thanks for the memories. Let’s lift a glass to the New Year and many many more wonderful memories yet to be made.❤❤❤

Brilliant 🎉

Enjoyed your clips and your photography. Love your creativity with building vans. Soon I’ll have to write to you sharing my desire for a build. I think it will be a challenge. I’ve not seen one like it yet. I also love, want, the screen door as I have a loving cat. Blessings

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

I’m ready

Fun George merry Christmas. Just about to start my buildout of a 144. I’ll be channeling you LOL. Thanks so much sir and team for the hard work

George, tee it off coming out of the module to run a direct line to each heater and a tee on the returns and one line back. This way you won’t loose and heat from one heater to the next. Just a thought.

So glad I found your channel, I'm working on a utility trailer build and the knowledge you are sharing is Awesome! I'm working on a modular design where different components lock into the e-rail system depending on the requirement. I use the trailer to haul my dirt bikes or camp or both. Then other days I may use it as a on site production office. I have been using metro racks as my base but now going with 80/20 ... looking forward to working out my new design ideas. Keep up the great content George, Cheers, Blair

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Welcome to Humble Road!

Love the enthusiasm

Just found your channel and glad I did yes I subscribed and looking forward to your upcoming build

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Awesome, thank you! Welcome to Humble Road!

George, you have come a long way. The highlights were amazing. How about a 4K video camera please? You are just about to get your 100K subscribers plaque, congrats!

Very nice! I did use a Isotherm tank, which has the advantage I can use Solar power to heat it up most of summer.The diesel furnace is only for winter. But it does mean I'm carrying 25L of extra water around at all times...

@CJ30123

7 ай бұрын

proven. reliable. Holds hot water for many many hours. No internal connection points that can leak. that will always be my preference.

Thank you for the detailed educational + entertainment video. Did you ever think stacking kitchen sink on top of a movable composite toilet, all sit inside a half height stainless steel shower box with walk-in door openable from both inside and outside the van. The sink is anchored in the middle of the door with one weight support leg on tracks on the floor. It can swing to the entry opening when you take shower, using toilet, or cooking that needs more countertop room. (You can wash dog from outside. ) This design requires only 1 faucets in a van which means less maintenance) ( my dream van would be windows around, sleeping 4, one happy jack may sit on top of the counter in the evening)

@mjremy2605

7 ай бұрын

Why do that? Have a fold down sink like a diaper table in airplanes. In fact, he has built the movable toilet in one of his earlier van builds. Check it out. He also had a swing out wardrobe and set of drawers in the shower box. As far as the Happy Jack, check out the Affinity Kabe Duo Van, and also the Euro Loft beds on top of the cab area that swing down manually. Pretty cool hinge mechanism. The Affinity Kabe Duo has a lift bed on a vertical linear actuator, and a double passenger seat that transforms into two single bunk beds - a unique system - designed by a Polish guy and built in Sweden. That is the most innovative thing I have seen ever, in a van build.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Building vans for more than two people is not something I am willing to do. Too crowded. Consider a cutaway. You can increase your living space without adding length to the vehicle.

Like a vision she dances acroos the porch.. Went to Asbury Park high school, hung at the Pony and Mrs Jay's

@mikesakas

3 ай бұрын

Ha the road past Braedonton to Ft Myers..

I think I prefer the Webasto system that ties into the engine because you get free hot water after driving and you also have the ability to preheat your engine in cold climates.

HOORAYYYY I AM THRILLED YOU USED MY FAVORITE SCENE!! Thanks George 😂😅❤ 😉 🎬

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

What is your favorite scene?

At 21.15 you look like Tiger Waititi haha

Hi George - very interesting video today! With so many Nomads traveling/living in their SUV’s and Trucks these days, have you given any thought to creating heating systems for installation into SUV’s and Trucks? Could be an excellent side business aligned to your main custom van business … just my crazy thought for the day!

My biggest problem with the AquaHot is the price…..$6085. Is a lot of money. And if it breaks you lose heat and hot water, so much for redundancy.

@CJ30123

7 ай бұрын

nikki delventhal has had a nightmare with hers. Filled the entire van with steam once. And nobody in the country services them.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Not true. There are over 300 authorized service centers across the country and growing. I would not select a system without adequate service support. And the steam in the van is most likely operator error, or installation error. The system is not complex.

@mjremy2605

7 ай бұрын

Yup. I have a huge problem with the pricing. Don't forget the 47 cents. That irks me so much. At $6K do they really need to add $85.47 extra at the tail end? Mafia pricing racket.

@CJ30123

7 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad I suppose we will find out together. With hers the builder, OVP, sent her to 3 different service centers and none could fix it. Aquahot refused to send a new unit. Only a new control screen which didnt work. In the end she had to travel all the way back across country to the builder who paid out of pocket for a full unit swap. Turns out the unit she had had multiple internal leaks that kept springing up as well as a short in the internal electronics which caused it to shut down randomly. I guess my tiny monkey brain can't understand the need for complexity to make hot water in a van that only needs small amounts at any given time. Especially when something like Isotemp is so proven in the marine industry for decades problem free.

@asnormal1362

7 ай бұрын

​​@@mjremy2605No one system works for every situation. For some this is the answer to their needs. The cost likely is a trade off somewhere. It's not bad because it's pricey, it's simply an option to consider. Cheap ain't always good either. What did you use in your van for less waste?

Oh no!! Did that really happen? I lost a bike wheel once. That was terrible.

Even the ductman had ducts to balance by a professional.

Hi George. We’re putting a shower in our van. I’d like to run a vent to blow hot air to the shower area to help dry towels. But that heater is too big & I figure it shouldn’t get wet. Could a air duct get hooked to the hot heat fan unit? And/or Got any suggestions? Ps. Your our #1 van builder.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

we will build a plenum with a drip hood.

sorry for me this is not a KIS system and the investment for this system is hi, i use a webasto air heater with a 2gl electric water heater with a 12v element this sistem is working fine for me and les expensive with less component to maintain or break. great video

On-demand hot water in an environment with limited water supply (the van) seems less than ideal. I live with on-demand hot water in my house. I love it, but it does use a not-insignificant amount of running water before it actually reaches temperature. In a van with only a few gallons of water on-board, I'm not sure that waste makes sense. Thouoghts?

@TeutonicNordwind

7 ай бұрын

"A few" gallons on board?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

My vans have at least 30 gallons of fresh, and generally have 45 gallons. With such a short pipe distance from heater to fixture, there is very little waste. And it's not like water is scarce. It's just one of the things in van life that you have to tend to. When I was traveling, I was ALWAYS on the hunt for good fresh water. Even if I didn't need it.

@daversj

7 ай бұрын

Use 3/8” PE tubing to supply the shower not 1/2”. It will provide more flow than necessary and reduce wasted water to less than a pint before its hot.

@asnormal1362

7 ай бұрын

Wait . . . isn't less wait & less waste the point of near source "on demand" hot water vs a distant tank heater? From what I understand, one can plumb a diverter for brief recirculation for zero water waste but with such minimal waste, I'm not sure that would even be warranted.

I loved the microwave. Where is “skippy” now?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Skippy is on the top shelf of my rolling desk in the shop. We brought him on our maiden voyage with our new little travel trailer. He seem to like it.

@BelindaTOV

7 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad awe, thats good. Ill never forget about him. :)

So to get the on demand water does the diesel heater have to cycle on and off to keep up the glycol temp? If so I'm curious what the power draw is on the entire system. I suppose if you have a big enough battery bank it doesn't really matter much.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Like anything else in van life, you must anticipate your hot water needs and turn on the furnace a few several minutes prior to needing the hot water. Or, just leave the system on. Set it and forget it. If you are considering this system, I think you are also considering some pretty big battery capacity.

Honey!! I shrunk the kids...

Don't run those heat exchangers in series like that; they need to be in a parallel setup otherwise you're sending the cold (colder) glycol from the first unit to to the second zone.

@HumbleRoad

6 ай бұрын

You are 100% correct. Colder is a relative term. The glycol is moving at 180 degrees Fahrenheit. We are putting the last blower in the shower

George IS "Humble Road", .... And Humble Road IS "QUALITY" !!!!!!!

Wow George that was a great video! Hate to say it but I thought some of your others were a little slow but you hit this one out of the park. I’m just starting my build so I will be watching way too many videos. I will be doing a moto van with an elevator bed. Bought the 170 ext 4x4 single axle. Do you think I made a mistake and should have went duelly

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

If you plan on doing harsh off road travel, then the dually would present some issues. The single is better for that. If weight is the issue, then the dually can carry more weight.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Yes I am aware of the decline in entertainment value of my efforts. Humble Road is a very different animal now as compared to years gone by. Back then, I was building one van. Now we have eight vans in the shop with a few waiting in the wings! So my attention must be focused on the builds. And I am STILL not willing to give up the video production, as I enjoy it! But I am angry with myself with regard to the piss poor videos I have produced and I thank you for hanging on.

@asnormal1362

7 ай бұрын

​​​@@HumbleRoadNone were ever "piss poor" George. I know you strive for excellence but there is value in being real too. Personally I especially enjoy those. I get tired of all the "perfect" videos & presentations on social media. B-o-r-i-n-g & so far from reality. You being just you George makes us happy 😁

@edfranklin2

6 ай бұрын

Oh yeah George you’ve nothing to apologize for. All videos great to watch. Some more entertaining than others, for sure, but all watchable. Also, I am pretty sure I learned something from every single episode.

Is there the constant "ticking" sound of the fuel pump?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

Every fuel pump makes the ticking sound. We all know that! It is mounted under the van and barely audible. And the furnace emits a whirring sound as well. You may want to consider an oil filled radiator for heat, stay tethered to shore power.

I’m curious why you did a 360. I remember you saying it was a waste to fire up a boiler to wash your face in the morning. Rixens thought I was a bit nuts to be using a water heater and tank but that’s why I did it. If I’m driving I use electric to heat it and if I’m parked I run the boiler to heat the water and it lasts a day without having to run the boiler. I see on KZread rixens losing business to other builders who are switching over and using this. I wouldn’t be surprised if they start building a system in a box like this to compete. Whose boiler is aqua hot using? Is it Chinese?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

That is exactly how you may run this system. There is a 120VAC heating element that will wire through the inverter. While driving, turn it on and you will have hot water upon arrival, similar to my closed loop glycol system. The advantage with the Aqua-hot is using the furnace for hot water if camped for an extended period, instead of running the engine or using that 120VAC element at such a power cost. I see it as the best of both worlds. Affords more options! The furnace is a Webasto.

Since hot water is needed throughout the year, would the hot glycol be circulating through the heat exchangers and floor whenever the system is turned on for hot water? Might this be undesirable during the hot summer months? Or is there a way to close off the unwanted loops?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

No. There is a summer valve that keeps the glycol in the water heat exchanger only.

How much does this unit cost? I've been following Van life for a long long time!

How do you heat without the engine running to run the furnace?

Hmmm. Here’s the thing I don’t like: Making hot water means heating the zones, even in the summer. Even if fans aren’t on, there is still passive heat exchange occurring with the air inside the van, and it’s happening at an efficient rate across multiple high-surface-area, uninsulated heat exchangers. It won’t matter that the fans aren’t on, it’s going to warm the van interior significantly. Not a problem in the winter perhaps, but it seems to me to be a massive problem for the summer. Am I missing something?

@HumbleRoad

2 ай бұрын

Yes, you are missing something. There’s a summer valve that you turn which causes the hot glycol to pass through the heat exchanger for the hot water only. the rest of the system lays dormant.

@PickledShark

2 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad Ah, very nice!!!! Thanks!

clearly you market to high income folks.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

No, I build high quality vans that come at a certain price. Most of my clients are middle of the road people who have made this acquisition a priority in their lives. Some of them have sold their houses and most of their possessions to make this lifestyle move.

why do you have a milkshake mixer in your office?

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

I like antiques. My grandmother used to make me milk shakes with that Hamilton Beach Mixer

@asnormal1362

7 ай бұрын

Doesn't everyone??? Yummmmy 😁

What about summer when you just want hot water on demand

@HumbleRoad

6 ай бұрын

There is a bypass valve included in the system, referred to as a summer valve. This valve blocks the glycol from the air heat exchangers and only directed towards the heat exchanger that makes a hot water.

Oh i LIKE YOUYR MUSIC FIRST OFF; THEN YOUR ARTISTIC-WORKMANSHIP I THINK YOU NEED ANOTHER LIFE, AND THEN COME TO SOUTH AFRICA

What happens in the summer time when its 95 degrees outside, the last thing I want is to have circulating hot glycol when all I want is hot water to take a shower. I do not want hot glycol running through the lines even if the fans are off and I certainly do not want hot glycol running through the radiant floor tubing.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

No Aquahot for you!

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

The system has a heater bypass for the summer months where the hot glycol that’s in the Reservoir only passes through a heat exchanger that makes the hot water within the box so it does not travel throughout the van. That is the summer bypass. They thought of everything.

"I've long been a believer in 'keep it simple stupid'". What I have not understood is why that phrase has an insult built in and *people still say it* -- it's an aphorism for assholes.

@HumbleRoad

Ай бұрын

Agreed. But who has the last laugh!

What just happened?

I don’t like those measurements they do for fans. It super disappointing if you put a fan in an enclosure, it’s always a lot louder. Those “whisper” quiet measurements are in free space. Not in an enclosed space.

@HumbleRoad

7 ай бұрын

OK don’t use the measurements as absolutes. Just use them as relative comparisons and the bottom line is how the system sounds in the van when it’s completed and operational we shall see.

Nice unit ..... for someone that loves Cadillacs .... $6K for hot water .. no thanks