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Old 04-16-2008, 05:31 PM   #1
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Recommendations for Sportsmobile Living

So My wife and I are tentitively planning on living in a sportsmobile for the summer and I was wondering if there are any recomendations for floor plan. It seems to me that the EB 50 is the most popular but I am wondering if something like the EB 44 would be a little better for living space. That is, the bench running longways (EB 44) vs the standard bench (EB50). Also sould you please let me know of any other thoughts you may have about living on one?

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Old 04-16-2008, 05:41 PM   #2
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I've often said, the "50" is nature's perfect camping layout. Glad to hear you're considering it.

As for living in a sportsmobile, based on my own long weekend excursions, I'd say spend as much time outside the vehicle as you can. It gets awful cramped in there day in day out. I've often considered picking up one of those huge multi-room tents for $99 at Costco just to have some "away time" away from the wife and kid while they nap or nurse or whatever. A private place where I can sit and watch movies on my laptop or surf the net or plan my next day's activities without being disturbed or disturbing anyone else.

Also try to do as much cooking as you can outside the vehicle. The less clean up the better, unless you got the secret SMB dishwasher option. Paper plates and disposable cups are the way to go. Paper so you can use 'em for kindling.

Finally do not, I repeat do not, use the portapotty inside the van to perform "number 2" while anyone is in the van, including yourself. You will gas out all occupants including yourself and may cause permanent brain damage due to temporary asphixiation. Voice of experience here. Look into getting one of those portable potty shelters that sits outside the van, or crap in the forest like the animals do.

Definitely check out the badger's website, they lived in their van for I think a couple years. Link: www.badgertrek.com .
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Old 04-16-2008, 08:07 PM   #3
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Well said lowracer....

I would add that the EB44 is better for a Voyager top than a PH. I have the shower in back of my PH, the little kids fit, but mt 11YO and us adults find it barely usable. The curve of the van body and the roof reinforcing drastically reduces the opening.

Note also how narrow the space is between the shower and the cabinet.



If you are stationary, the shower/potty tent is best. If you plan to move around a lot, consider an EB45 will have more room and still have privacy.

Quote:
Originally Posted by lowracer
I've often said, the "50" is nature's perfect camping layout. Glad to hear you're considering it.

As for living in a sportsmobile, based on my own long weekend excursions, I'd say spend as much time outside the vehicle as you can. It gets awful cramped in there day in day out. I've often considered picking up one of those huge multi-room tents for $99 at Costco just to have some "away time" away from the wife and kid while they nap or nurse or whatever. A private place where I can sit and watch movies on my laptop or surf the net or plan my next day's activities without being disturbed or disturbing anyone else.

Also try to do as much cooking as you can outside the vehicle. The less clean up the better, unless you got the secret SMB dishwasher option. Paper plates and disposable cups are the way to go. Paper so you can use 'em for kindling.

Finally do not, I repeat do not, use the portapotty inside the van to perform "number 2" while anyone is in the van, including yourself. You will gas out all occupants including yourself and may cause permanent brain damage due to temporary asphixiation. Voice of experience here. Look into getting one of those portable potty shelters that sits outside the van, or crap in the forest like the animals do.

Definitely check out the badger's website, they lived in their van for I think a couple years. Link: www.badgertrek.com .
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Old 04-16-2008, 08:43 PM   #4
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i hate to have the dissenting opinion, but having owned a eurovan camper which has the eb-50 layout and my current smb's floorplan, i have to say i'm not a fan of the "50". i have a gaucho immediately behind the drivers seat. i like the fact that i can spin the two fornt seats and create a seating are for guests to hang out while the rear of the van is used for utilities. i also have two base cabinets immediately across from the gaucho and that countertop makes it easy to prepare food/eat while seated on the gaucho. i didn't like the rear closet access on the "50" either i have full height closets and a slide pantry going all the way to the rear of the van and access is never a problem.

if you want a shower, i would highly recommend the porta-shower with a recessed floorpan-simple to set up, convenient, and out of the way when you don't need it. my shower is in the rear of the van and the hose length allows me to use it indoors or out.

another benefit of the "hallway" layout is the ability to load long objects down the length of van and get in and out of the back doors easily. anyhow that's just my opinion. i'm building my 2nd SMB right now and will stick with a similar layout. each owner has to decide what their own needs are a build the floorplan accordingly.
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Old 04-16-2008, 09:22 PM   #5
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We have an EB-50 and really like the layout, especially for two people. It gives you some space to cook, sit and read, etc. It is a very open floor plan which is great for taking advantage of the space. What we have found is that your motions and how you move around become second nature...we can wake up in the morning, stow our bedding, get dressed, have breakfast, get ready for the day, etc. and be on the road within an hour without thinking about moving around the other person. Likewise for preparing meals, you just develop rituals about taking advantage of the space and keeping out of the way of the other person.
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Old 04-16-2008, 09:54 PM   #6
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We have a EB-50 an love the layout! Our crew consists of me, my wife, and our two 50+ lbs dogs and we usually keep the rear bench down as the large sleeping platform. Even when we're both in the "galley" cooking or dressing, we can have the dogs jump up onto the bed and they are out of the way. Also, with the penthouse raised and the upper bed lowered, its like having bunkbeds! My wife sleeps below with the 2 dogs and I sleep upstairs. We have a drop down DVD screen and can both enjoy a movie in the comfort of our beds!

We considered the long hallway layout, but for dog owners, we felt the larger open space of the 50 worked much better for us.

Good luck!

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Old 04-17-2008, 11:27 AM   #7
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Had a Westy and liked the plan (similar to a 50), but there was a fair amount of lost space/limited use behind the rear seat (its a bed or temp storage). Our Sporty is a semi-custom job. Its very similar to the EB42 layout. It has more cabinet space than we are likely to use (but we aren't living in it for long term), seats 6 and sleeps four. 4CU fridge, micro, sink and two-burner stove. Originally came with a porta poti in the rear but that has long disappeared, leaving even more storage room. Not saying the layout is better than a 50, but different. My wife preferred the layout of our Westy (forward seating). I prefer the layout of our Sporty (walk-through front-to-back with cabinets and appliances on both sides). Tall cabinets means less windows, which I prefer, but you may not. You might get an idea of our layout by checking my gallery, but you may fail to grasp of the size of the cabinets just by looking at the photo(s). They are substantial. If you like, I have a copy of the build sheet which better shows the layout. I'd be happy to fax it to you. The prior owner lived in the Sporty for six months (solo I believe). No, that was not a selling point, but interesting nonetheless. Frankly, all SMB's layouts seem very well thought out. Don't think you could go wrong with any of them.

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Old 04-18-2008, 05:29 PM   #8
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We have an EB50 with a standard (RB?) layout, which means there's a space between the seat/bed and the rear door. The original owner used that space to store his recreational (climbing, hiking, biking, etc) gear.

We have not yet done any trips, so we shall see how this works. There are just the two of us, but we are also climbers, hikers, bikers etc so tend to have a lot of gear.
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Old 04-20-2008, 05:20 PM   #9
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Sportsmobile living

I probably would have gotten the RB33 except i wanted the storage area in back under the bed for telescope equipment, so I went with the RB50. Plus it reminded me of my first rv, a 1970 VW camper. It was a not a westfalia and didn't have a poptop. had it for 10 yrs. I got the RB simply because I thought it was enough space for one person, although it has been a learning experience after having larger motorhomes for the last 14 yrs. I love to drive it (on pavement) and it gets much better gas milage than any of my motorhomes ever did. I stay mostly in state & federal C.G. and park near the restrooms. so far it's worked out ok, but I haven't made any long trips yet. I got the 16 gal. F.W. tank, but if you don't have a flush toilet, don't have a shower & don't like to cook, you don't need the extra water. If I had it to do over again I would do without the propane furnace and try to install a wall mount catylic heater. The furnace seems to be over kill for me anyway. Overall, it's a great rv!

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Old 04-30-2008, 09:36 AM   #10
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We humans are adaptable, and most any floorplan can be made to work for a short term (summer for instance). We've met couples full timing in a Sportsmobile for years.

That said, I don't like the 50 floorplan. The rear storage is hard to access when you don't want the doors open (try camping in some parts of Alaska, Canada or Northern Minn. with nasty mosquitos). We have a custom floorplan with all storage available from inside, a dinette that will sleep two and the PH bed. I've used the full length hall to carry long objects for work when not camping.

We've lived in it for 2 months a couple of times and we took our grandson to Alaska in it with no real living issues.

Mike
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