George, your attention to detail is amazing! Critter lights, 👍

The fact that George shares his knowledge and sources of the products he incorporates in his builds makes Humble Roads the best of the best in the KZread build channels.

@girlpowered1696

5 ай бұрын

Yeah cos he’s not some stupid click bate gate keeping influencer! I love my George show 🥰 he’s the best!

Adapt and overcome ! Regards AJ

You're the best craftsperson I've seen in 15 years of fulltiming George. I built my own shower deck, for half what Sportsmobile quoted for their's and like it better. I think your shower is an example of your precise attention to exquisite detail.

Before I constructively criticize, I'd like to let you know I'm going to adopt that critter light idea to my van. Thank you. What color are you using? Now then, I'm not on board with the sump bucket, George. I look forward to future episodes regarding it. IMO, a sump is an unnecessary stop on the way to the gray; another place for smelly crud to build up, especially if its also handling sink drainage. When the sump fails, and it will, where is the back flow going? As an aside, to prevent odors in my van I use HepVo valves instead P-traps - less space & no winterizing issues. There's one under the sink, one before the gray. There's also an inline true union check valve after my shower pan to prevent back flow caused by a full gray and/or level issues. Again, IMO, a sump solution is more electrical, more plumbing, more fail points and more manufacturing. It's going to require frequent maintenance and van lifers complain already about having to sweep the floor everyday. Its one more electromechanical thing to go wrong. A sump system is a complex solution to a simple problem. The simple problem is: adequate drainage at all levels while not making the floorpan awkward to stand on. And the simple, passive, solution is, a better pan design. I have never leveled our van but, I think most people do attempt to level; gimbal mounted cooktops are not a thing in vans, right? In this regard then, shower draining might not even be a problem to solve, most of the time. In reality, I don't think standing on a sloped pan is a real problem either. 10 minutes, 3 times a week and only while boondocking? Allright, once a week for 5 minutes🙂 That said, some people store their toilets in the shower so a flat and level surface is desirable for that, but not for showering. Passive solution: increase the slope of the custom pan, from all sides to wherever a drain opportunity exists. In other words, make the geometry of the pan complex, not the plumbing and electrical systems more so. To accommodate the increased slope of the floorpan, the pan would have a false bottom. In other words, the walls may be 5 inches high but the pan is only 4 inches deep. To minimize labor and maintain structural stability of the van, the only hole in the floor would round, for the drain to the gray; this would not preclude doing a linear drain - which might actually simplify the pan's geometry. From what I was able to see, the shower pan drain holes were small, perhaps as small as an inch. Enlarging to standard residential size will noticeably improve flow. If standing or a flat floor for storage are concerns, modifiy the bottom of the shower grate to accommodate the pan's increased slope. I don't build vans and maybe I think too much. I do have and use one though. I think a sump is going to be a warranty issue for you George, bottom line.

@barrytimm5497

3 ай бұрын

I reluctantly agree. KISS is always better in van life, IMO. A more steeply angled pan with central drain and a nice flat, wooden slatted false floor would be easier, cheaper and less maintenance, IMO.

Good Morning George Always Enjoy Your Sunday Morning Humble Road Videos !!

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Good morning!

What a pair you and Ron are! Bursting with 💡💡💡💡😊

Incredible work with the shower! Thanks for sharing 😊

Wow, wow wow, eres todo un maestro un sensei, a master, thanks for sharing your knowledge.

George the genius! ❤

You’re good!

Critter lights. What a great idea. I need these for my car.😂

Love your attention to detail, quality workmanship and always looking for solutions to annoying problems. My experience with critter lights is they bother other campers and the critters just say thanks for lighting up the easiest ways into your camper.

@lindahardy8713

5 ай бұрын

Agree.

If you were located in Long Island, i would be working for you. Love all your videos and craftsmanship!

Good Morning, George! Great to see you and another video from the Think Tank! Hoping you have a wonderful and blessed Sunday! ~Jim~

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Thanks, Jim! You too!

Good morning, George! Hope all is well.

Love the marine products your bringing into your vans.

George! You’re still A-Mazing! I can’t buy one of your vans right away, so can I put one on layaway? I can pay $50/ month for 30 years. What say you? 😂🤭. Keep up the great work George, God bless.

Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I feel as though a friend is guiding me. You have the soul of an artist & the mind of an engineer.

Great Innovations!

Interesting feature - adding lights under the van for pest control. I have read that blue light is especially effective. We have a promaster and removed the plastic side molding at the rear and put fine mesh screens over the vents. Haven't had any mice since then.

I like that you're an idea person who can also bring the idea to life! Remember- as I know you do- to validate, re-evaluate, and modify as needed! And, get feedback from the people using the vans on the sump-pump. I'd be curious to know if they value the addition or if it causes more trouble than it's worth.

Thanks for finally teaching me how to have a shower and toilet in a van. Building a useless walls and doors or opening a hatch in the floor has been completed eliminated from my mind. Thank you again I saw the video of someone reviewing your van build this morning. I really liked everything infront of the bed. Now I know you thought this all out so in the end I’ll probably have to adopt your plan but, I don’t want to hop up onto the bed.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

There’s no hopping into the bed! We build deployable steps

Critter Lights is an incredible idea. (Better jump on that as a trademarked idea, HumbleRoad!)

@CJ30123

5 ай бұрын

lights under RVs has been a thing for decades. At least for people who camp in the southwest with an regularity.

@TenTenorioArt

5 ай бұрын

@@CJ30123 I had no idea. Every once in a while, I watch an RV video and they're talking about rodents getting up in the cabin or chewing on wires. Plus, I've never seen a video with an RV that has undercarriage lights before. But very cool to know! thanks!

Perfect in each detail. 👍

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Thanks! 👍

Thank you so much for sharing this information with us, George. Please don't gatekeep anything, because I want to know ALL the latest and the greatest innovations in van building.

Dr. Who's got nothing on you, you clever boy! TARDIS: Travel And Ride, Driving In Style : )

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Yes, ALL my full sized van builds will enjoy the new innovations we come up with!

Just when I'm almost fully asleep from watching videos of cookie cutter vans with suspect build quality George releases a new video.....and wow....now all I need is another home mortgage to have one built. Stay well George, you are a great asset to the world.

Trials and tribulations - its the details!

Oh, those Rock lights come in Amber too... Very tempted to see if I can replace my side marker lights on the Transit with those!

Always a pleasure to watch. Looks like you still get great enjoyment out of creating these van projects.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Yes I do!

As always, friend! ❤️😊

George, what a great idea for critters lights, so did you see anything you liked at the Tampa RV show???. Take care and enjoy your day.

Sumps, bilges & critter lights, oh my…. Another info-packed episode from Humble Road. Thank you,

For someone with long thick hair that sheds like crazy, I’m concerned the pump would clog up quite soon. I do like the idea though. Thank you for all the informative videos!

I combined your rock and spreader lights on my Sprinter but I have them mounted on the roof rack. No osprey nesting on my van!

Hi George, love your videos. I am looking forward to more videos on your diesel powered water heater and central radiant heat. I loved the recirculation shower in this video. Sometime in the future I would like to remove my Atwood hot water tank and propane heater in my Winnebago View 24J and install your system as well as to use it to heat my 10Kwatt battery and wet locker for cold weather camping. I know you don't mention costs since you are selling a turn key RV unit, but this system of parts would be helpful to budget a system.

Roxy ROCKS ❤❤❤ Luxury Van life.

More genius ideas 💡. I’ve used solar motion detector lights for the critters, but on a cloudy day, I didn’t always get enough sun to activate them. The shower system water saving feature is brilliant. I so look forward to seeing what you come up with next. Can’t wait for another tour of one of your masterpieces ❤

George, as plumber myself my first inclination would be to make the shower drain larger. I can totally see those small drain sizes you use clogging up over time. Standard size is 2” drain on a home. I know it won’t be easy to plumb on a van but I bet it would solve your problem.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

That is precisely our problem we do not have room for larger drains

A huge paradigm shift in the shower pan design. Amazing! Great to see you, George! Happy Sunday.

George, you could make a video about worms mating and I'd watch it. Then, I would probably watch it again. Thank you for what you do.

Hi George! Great innovations. The drain solution....awsome! And hot air in the shower! What's next? Gyro shower, same as cooking in a boat. Just saying.....

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Great idea! 😉

Really like the shower pan. My van came with a shower miser and it does save a lot of water. My OEM shower valve was a POS. I added a MISSMIN Thermostatic RV Shower Faucet Valve. On She to Me's shower it looked like it was a Missmin shower valve on the mock up. Is the shower valve today a thermostatic valve? My MISSMIN Thermostatic RV Shower Valve was a game changer for us using the shower in the van.

Im not sure about this one. You have taken a passive element and made it another maintenance item and point of failure. bilge pumps will always have issues with hair if not using a fine strainer before the pump. Adds another place for water to sit, just out of sight. I wonder if this is going too far in the direction of complexity over practicality. On a boat theres no choice but to do a bilge pump. But we can use gravity on vans.

Best builder out there! Someone who really cares about the experience. I'm going to have a Humble Road van someday! ❤

I love your attention to detail, and thanks for sharing.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

Oh my! That shower miser is incredible! Will you please show a bit closer how you plumbed it? How does the warm and the cold water mix?

Professor George with Humble Road University provides a better education than anyone else on KZread. You explain everything in detail so everyone can understand it. Thank you!

I love how thoughtful you are with all your builds George 🥰

Dang it, George, by constant innovation, you start the thinking maybe I should wait, because...😅. The only thing that is constant is change. Keep up the good work George.

Aircraft quality...minus the plug door with missing bolts of course. 😅

Hmm, instead of multiple drains, what about a trough leading to the well where the sump pump is located? Oh, George, I almost forgot, thank you for the video on the Maxxfan voltage reducer. I installed a lithium battery in my travel trailer and performed the mod that you recommended.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

There’s no way to put a trough under the shower pan. I explained that those two drain spots were the only place we could put them.

@stuartstuart866

5 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad Sorry, should have explained better; a shallow trough built in to the shower pan itself not under it

Great idea, you always have to innovate. However I wonder what could happen if the pump stops working. I always try to think the worst if something happens. For my part, I opted for the folding shower designed by Tetravan and it suits me very well. I also understand that everyone wants a different type of shower depending on their needs and that's fine. Keep innovating, your innovations are really interesting and well thought out.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

We will incorporate a manual gate valve in the event the pump fails

@Phil-wr4hr

5 ай бұрын

Excellent idea, thanks for the clarification🙂

It needs to take into account the weight of the person and generally the centre circle where the person taking the shower will be the lowest part of the basin… a decent pump and appropriate size pipe is the only way… sump is the right format

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Very grateful for your videos, George! I'm converting an ambulance and have incorporated a lot of ideas that you inspired. Thank you!

George, I love most of your innovations but I don't believe that hot air vent in the shower will not work. I believe even a 120 degree air flow on a wet body will seem cold. The critter lights is a great idea.

Two questions that I have about the bilge pump setup: is the box for the bilge cut through the van floor, and since there would always be some moisture in the bottom of the bilge (since the pump can’t 100% evacuate the water) how would you maintain the bilge pump area to avoid mold/mildew? Love the innovation!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Do you think the pump will need to be winterized? Love the lights and especially the critter light.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

If you're to remain in freezing temps, just add a dose of rv antifreeze after each shower.

Your brain never shuts down, amazing innovation ❤

🎶Rocking-n-Roxie, Ain't no combat shower going on, Humble Road takes it to the limit, one more time. Put me on the highway, and show me a good time. 🎶

Lots of food for thought in this video. Thanks for sharing. What about freezing temps effecting the pump and sump box??

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Marine and RV Antifreeze

@paulzeiller2807

5 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad What would you do to make this work for subfreezing temps?

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

When you’re done with your shower, you need to empty the gray tag as soon as possible then you can just put a dollop of RV antifreeze in the shower pan and let it pumped through then you safe

Perhaps it is the camera angle or an optical illusion but the black light switch box appears out of level with the darker wood level below at the bed.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

Peter! How long have you been watching my videos?

I hope you patent that.

George, can you share the names of the products for the recirculation valve and the color change temperature indicator? That’s a great idea.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

shower miser

Hi, how are you addressing cold weather with those external drains and the risk of lines freezing?

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

The gray tank is mounted under the van in freezing temperatures. When you are finished with your shower, just pour a dollop of marine RV antifreeze down into that compartment that will take care of the rest of the system.

critter lights

What about a continuous shower? Like one with a filter, pump, and 12v inline heater to maintain temperature. Then my wife can shower for 20 min and still only use a gallon of water.

@HumbleRoad

4 ай бұрын

Im not a fan. I have a video on this subject.

@rnordquest

4 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad Thanks. I'll look for it and check it out.

How high off the bottom of the box is the inlet. What happens to the water in the pan if it isn't deep enough to trigger the pump?

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

The inlets are positioned as high into the box as possible given the framework under the van. The water that would remain under the flow switch is minimal.

Also how does this solve the draining issue. If the water finds its way to the bottom of the box isn't that the same as going to a gray tank? Also what happens when the pump fails how do you drain the water in the pan to get at the pump. I think this is a very expensive and complicated way to solve a miner problem. When my shower pan isn't level enough to drain I don't take a shower until it is.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

In most cases when building a van the gray water must travel a distance under the van to get to the gray tank. Gravity does not help when you have to wrap the hose up an over drivetrain for example

I have been trying to contact you guys to get in your build schedule..how do I hire you?

@HumbleRoad

2 ай бұрын

Tanya, email me to start a discussion georgemauro@humbleroad.tv

Your design and ingenuity is impressive. Whats the depreciation amount,, of all this crap in a van the second you drive off. But then again, if people are ok buying a 200k work van then they probably don’t care. Why not just get an auto leveling system? You kill 2-3 mice with 1 stone.

@HumbleRoad

5 ай бұрын

It's not so much a matter of keeping the van level as it is being able to PUSH the waste water all the way to the grey tank. The waste line isn't always positioned for gravity to work its magic.

I don't think it is a good idea to pump once heated water back to the fresh water tanks. Having pipes with stale warm water going back to fresh is even worse.

@HumbleRoad

3 ай бұрын

Explain why warm water is bad.

@JGnLAU8OAWF6

3 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad there is risk of legionella growth in water in the range of 77 to 113 °F.

@HumbleRoad

3 ай бұрын

On any given summer day, I would imagine the freshwater tank would hold a temperature within that range

@JGnLAU8OAWF6

2 ай бұрын

@@HumbleRoad and that is bad as well. Ideal growth range is 90 to 108 °F though.

Over engineered!

@HumbleRoad

Ай бұрын

Ha!