White Belt's Military Journey to FI

[mountainFrugal]

Cast iron pans stay hot for a while. If you are just looking to fry a few eggs you could heat up the pan by moving it around at the center of the beam and then remove it from the mirror or further away. The pan should still be able to fry an egg (depending on outside temps). For other more complicated recipes the intermediary could be a good experiment. I am also really curious how well that would work in practice. One additional way I could see using stones would be to heat some up every few hours and switch them out next to (below?) your thermal cooker if you needed less heat transfer for more hours to slow cook something.

Edit: I now understand more from your links about thermal cookers making my idea less realistic.

[white belt]

Because you're building half of a telescope. Possible solution: Put the put somewhat outside the focal point ("out of focus") to spread out the beam (intensity is power per area). This might be 19" or 21" away from the center. The bigger problem is that anything but the smallest pot will block the incoming (parallel) beams from the sun. The system will only be (R/18)^2 percent effective, where R is the radius of the pot.

I think I understand what you're saying.

There is clearly a sweet spot in sizing the parabolic mirror for particular cookware diameter. Fortunately, I discovered another youtube video from the same channel which goes into their recommended sizing based on cookware diameter:

This is a 24" parabolic deep dish designed with a shorter focal length for closer cooking applications. This small pan is a 4 " cast iron skillet that works perfect for individual meals while camping or in your own back yard. This 24" parabolic mirror will support cooking for up to 6" cast iron skillets. Smaller 13" and 17" dishes will cook with the 4" skillet but at a slower rate.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqiTaCgv10Q

With that information, I now think that a 29" mirror would be more appropriate for my purposes. My frying pan is sized for typical burners, which at least at my current house is 8". Therefore, I believe a 29" mirror will be sufficiently sized to mimic performance of a normal sized burner. In fact, I just found a video of them demonstrating that very thing (also shows a simpler rack setup with just bent pipe and grill rack instead of large tripod): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fmw9fWfoaM


The new component list looks something like this:

29" parabolic mirror (~$160): https://greenpowerscience.com/PARABOLIC ... CSALE.html
Grill Tripod Cooker Stand (perhaps substitute bent pipe/post and grill rack)*
5 gallon bucket
30" Christmas wreath case (to store/transport mirror when not in use, perhaps can just use box it comes in)


So my costs are basically doubling due to the larger mirror, but at least I have pretty good conviction that the design will work. I also was able to eliminate the need for any sort of masonry to distribute heat. It is possible to DIY build a parabolic mirror by stretching shiny material over a dish or similar, however you aren't going to be able to get it as reflective as a single piece mirror. Maybe in future iterations I'll try to DIY something. Another cool DIY design I've come across for an evacuated solar tube oven is here if anyone is interested in pursuing that route: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tgi1udA ... 62&index=2

If anyone has any other ideas for what to use as a carrying case that can fit a thin ~30 inch circular object, please let me know. Cursory research reveals that a Christmas wreath case with some foam inserts cut to size could do the job.

I'm actually a bit surprised the guy doesn't offer a kit that includes the mirror, carrying case, and cooking stand/rack. I suspect he'd make some serious money charging $300-400 per kit on Amazon and eBay, although it seems like he's more interested in just selling components and making DIY videos. One of the most popular solar cookers on Amazon is from GoSun, who charges $500 for their evacuated tube design that has a much lower capacity and less convenience than a mirror design. Comparable dish style parabolic cookers go for $250+ and are far less mobile (they can't easily be broken down and stored in a closet or a trunk).

* = One thing I do like about the tripod stand is it can be used on hard surfaces where pounding a post into the ground is not possible. Wind could be an issue, but I'm guessing if winds are really high then I'm probably not going to attempt to cook with solar.

[mountainFrugal]

If anyone has any other ideas for what to use as a carrying case that can fit a thin ~30 inch circular object, please let me know. Cursory research reveals that a Christmas wreath case with some foam inserts cut to size could do the job.

Maybe you could find a cheap padded 29" MTB wheel bag. They will be larger than 29 inches in diameter.

[white belt]

Maybe you could find a cheap padded 29" MTB wheel bag. They will be larger than 29 inches in diameter.

Yes! That's a much better idea. Those cases should be durable and with a double wheel bag I could also put the grill rack and disassembled tripod in the same bag.

[macg]

Cymbal bags might also work, not sure how available they are for cheap though

[white belt]

Cymbal bags might also work, not sure how available they are for cheap though

That was the original plan but I couldn’t find ones that could accommodate a 29 inch diameter mirror. They would work if I was going with a smaller sized mirror though.

[macg]

Yeah, it's probably too niche and therefore custom and expensive.

I once hacked a giant tote bag to haul a 26" bass drum on a bike rack attached to the back of a small car, worked great for years, but ultimately a pain. I like the MTB wheel bag idea.

[white belt]

Since I've been thinking a lot about energy use for this solar cooker project, I was curious about how my state produces electricity. It turns out that 61% is from natural gas and 29% from nuclear, with the rest coal and renewables. So there's a very good chance that most of my cooking electricity when using the conventional electric coil stove is coming from natural gas. As you can imagine, burning natural gas to produce heat for electricity in order to convert that electricity back into heat for cooking is quite convoluted and inefficient.

In the immediate term, I will keep using my existing cooking implements like the stove and microwave, while trying to incorporate thermal and solar cooking when possible. I'm considering getting a propane camping stove and/or a small rocket stove as alternatives. Another option could be to get a induction hot plate, but I think at that point I might as well just use the existing electric stove. The downside of the propane camping stove and rocket stove is that they still require relatively good weather because I'm using them outside. I don't have a covered outdoor area that would allow me to use those in rain, so basically that would mean I'd be using them mostly on cloudy days or at night (sunny days would be for the solar cooker and inclement weather would be for me using the electric stove).

I'm renting a bedroom inside of a shared house, so infrastructure changes aren't really possible.

[white belt]

Now that my back wheel is finally fixed, I rode my bike to work today for the first time in months. The metal toe clips made a huge difference with my pedaling efficiency, particularly when on hills. The ride felt great and I look forward to biking whenever possible. It's a bit over 6 miles roundtrip. Now I just have to figure out if I can manage listening to my podcasts with one earbud in while riding or if that will be too much of a distraction.

I've settled on getting a propane camp stove/grill to act as an alternative cooking method when the sun isn't shining. It'll also be handy to take to DGF's house or on outdoor activities so we can grill there. It has a single burner and a small grill area, which is the best of both worlds because I can use it as a stovetop or as a grill. The only other grill we have at my house is a small charcoal grill, which isn't practical to use when I'm only cooking for myself and trying to do it in a reasonable amount of time.

[white belt]

First attempt at using the solar cooker was somewhat successful. The weather was mostly sunny in the mid 40's with a slight breeze. Here are pics of the initial setup:



I later added bungee cords to further stabilize the cooking grate because having to keep the pot perfectly centered to stay level is impractical (this was a failed attempt to use a non-cast iron pan for frying):



I was able to boil water without issues, although it took longer because I didn't have a pot with a dark/matte bottom (shiny bottom cookware is still usable, but it significantly slows down the cooking process). I was also able to fry an egg in my cast iron pan, but it took longer than I would've liked. I think my ~10" inch pan is just a tad too big to be able to fry things as quickly as conventional methods with this size mirror. I think a 5-7" pan would be more effective, but I don't have one of those with a dark bottom at the moment. I am using the 24" parabolic mirror because they were sold out of the 29" mirror.

Everything packs up nicely in the wheel bag with one side for the mirror and a piece of cardboard to provide some rigidity, while the other side has all the metal pieces for the cooking tripod. The mirror seems like it will be durable since it is made of plastic instead of glass. Everything is very lightweight and portable, so it would be easy to take this set up camping or to a friend's BBQ.

The next issue I'm wrestling with is how to get the bottom of my cooking surfaces dark to improve efficiency. Here are some ideas:

1. Use black baking sheet under regular pot (this is the cheapest method so I will probably test it shortly)
2. Use black BBQ paint on the bottom of some cookware (also cheap, but I have concerns about durability)
3. Get dedicated black bottom pots to use for water boiling
4. Use special matte black aluminum foil to wrap pots (not cheap/green if I have to use a fresh piece every time)
5. Use some other matte black material that is thin, won't melt, and will quickly transfer heat

My goal is to be able to pair the solar cooker with my thermal cooker, but the thermal cooker interior pot is shiny metal so that's why I'm exploring multiple solutions. I want to be able to boil the inner pot with water and food contents for ~5 minutes, then drop it directly into the thermal cooker to finish cooking for things like beans, grains, yogurt, stews, etc. If I'm just boiling water for something other than the thermal cooker, then the easiest solution is probably just 3.

[take2]

I would suggest getting a cast iron, non-enamelled Dutch oven that can be hung. Something like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fallen-Fruits- ... B006YIQBY6

(Note: I just picked the first image, no idea if this specific model is good)

Depending on where you live you may be able to find a used one for dirt cheap at a garage sale or similar. If you modify the setup to hang it you can likely adjust a bit easier than setting it on the tripod. Also great for traditional camp fires.

[white belt]

I would suggest getting a cast iron, non-enamelled Dutch oven that can be hung.

I actually do have one of those in a box upstairs. I haven't used it in years, but agree it would be good for cooking things directly with the solar cooker. The cast iron helps to disperse the heat of the focal point and even things out, just like it does when cooking over open fires.

However, using cast iron as an in-between to boil something will likely just slow down the whole process because of how much heat the cast iron can absorb. For boiling, I'd rather have something that transfers heat really well than something that retains heat. My goal is to transfer as much heat as possible directly to the water as quickly as possible.

My reasoning for using the grate setup is that I'm trying to mimic the convenience of a regular stovetop. In an ideal world, I can use any cookware on it just like I would a regular stove (although as I'm learning there might need to be some kind of in-between).

[Slevin]

I want the black sheet underneath to work but I think there will be a pretty big loss because you now need to heat both the surfaces and there will be losses due to the transfer and heat going to the extra regions of the pan if it is oversized.

The black krylon enamel for cars and bbqs is some tough stuff, I would imagine it will hold up for a while, but I’m slightly skeptical of putting it near my food (I know it’s the bottom of the pot, so it might be ok). Though the spray paint is also quite cheap, maybe grab some thrift store cookware while you are out and try it on those before you sprat your nice pots and pans?

[white belt]

I think I may have finally figured out a solution to my gym membership puzzle. The discussion here gave me some ideas: viewtopic.php?p=255325#p255325

The issue for me up to this point is that providing appropriate lower body stimulus at home is quite difficult. Of course there are exercises like lunges, pistol squats, and so on, however they are difficult to add enough resistance to for someone like me who already has a very strong lower body. Upper body exercises at home are much easier. Overuse injuries can occur using only bodyweight exercises because there isn't as much exercise variety. I don't have the space to go all out with a home squat rack, platform, weights, and so on.

I think I could make the same strength and hypertrophy gains at home with the following equipment:

1. flywheel platform (DIY: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om5VSJdQ0Gc)
2. adjustable dumbbell set up to 100 lbs
3. flywheel that can adjust on wall/vertical post so that I can do horizontal pulling motions
4. ceiling hook or pull up bar that I can attach flywheel pulley to in order to allow pull down motions
5. adjustable bench
6. universal machine converted to run on flywheels (nice to have but takes up a lot of space; would give me a wider variety of possible exercises)

1-5 would be the essentials, while 6 is a nice to have if I can have a dedicated gym space. I think they other equipment is small and portable enough to allow me to store it off to the side or move outside depending on the situation.

That setup isn't ideal for someone trying to compete in the sports of powerlifting or weightlifting, but I think it would be sufficient to get someone very strong and muscular for day to day life and other athletic purposes. I'm starting to move away from the olympic lifting training and now I'm trying to figure out what my next move will be. I'm still interested in building muscle so maybe I will shift more towards bodybuilding or powerbuilding. Olympic lifting just doesn't really seem to fit into my web of goals without a lot of friction.

Another bonus that is covered extensively in the bicycle generator thread is that I could at some point adapt the flywheels to power a small motor for charging electronics. That would help to mitigate the cognitive dissonance I feel at times expending all this energy to move things up and down for no reason from an energy perspective (although I obviously enjoy the lifting activity and it has health benefits). At least I could in theory be charging a battery bank or powering some electronics I use at home, which better jives with my resilience and impact reduction efforts.

I'm not sure on the implementation timeline of this is because I have a gym at work that I can use. The only reason I have a separate gym membership is because of my rotating shift schedule and because the work gym had limited hours during COVID, but hopefully I can move to normal hours by this summer and then I'll be able to cancel the membership. If I wasn't working FT then the situation would be different.

[Scott 2]

Making a small initial investment, so you can try training at home, seems worthwhile. Does it work for you mentally?

Over the past 20 years, I've put around $10k into my basement gym. There are a lot of fun toys. I still like to use a commercial gym, at least 50% of the time. Lifting alone, setting up and tearing down for most exercises - it's a trade off. There's something to pursuing a common activity in a common space, even if you aren't directly training with the other gym members.

[white belt]

I'm nearing a year at my location and one of my roommates is moving out, so I'm thinking again about housing.

DGF and I talked about trying car camping sometime, so I've been watching a range of videos on car camping/living conversions. As it turns out, there are quite a few people living full-time in compact cars similar to mine. Here are 2 setups that I thought were clever:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxkFDU6lV8A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0iY23LX1Y0


Just for fun, I wargamed if I could possibly live in my car. First a few notes:

-My current month-to-month lease is $800 a month
-I work an irregular 6 days on, 4 days off schedule with rotating shifts
-I already spend one 4 day break a month visiting DGF and one typically visiting friends/family in my hometown
-I spend one 4 day break a month actually in my work location, although I could spend that break staying with DGF or friends/family as well
-I try to bike to work, but due to work requirements and the above travel, I can't sell my car until I leave FT employment
-I'm ~18 months from being able to transition to remote work and 24 months from being able to leave FT employment

We're basically out of the winter, so I'm not too worried about cold. Heat could be an issue in the summer, but my theory is that with a few battery powered fans I could cool myself off enough to sleep at night. The exception is when I work night shifts because then I am sleeping from 6AM to 2PM, so I budgeted to just spend the $10-15 a night to stay at a nearby campground for those ~5 nights a month. That would allow me to be much less stealth, park in green/shaded areas, and give me some more space to range for the ~5 hours I'd be spending not at work or the gym during the that shift.

How would I live?

Schedule - I drive in and stay in the area for 5-6 days when I work, then I drive back and stay with friends/family on my 4 days off.

Sleep - pretty straightforward to do in a car if I take the appropriate measures.

Cooking - I could cook all my meals during my 4 day breaks in a regular kitchen to last me through the workweek, then I could store them in a cooler and only have to reheat them on a small stove or in the breakroom at work. Work breakroom also has a full kitchen, although I probably wouldn't want to draw too much attention to myself by storing a week's worth of prepared food in the communal fridge or cooking something elaborate, it is a nice backup option.

Hygiene - Work has showers and gym, and I'd also keep a cheapo commercial gym membership to give me further hygiene and exercise flexibility.

Parking - Stealth street parking would be my primary choice, with alternatives like campgrounds, Walmart parking lots, and a nearby highway rest stop that allows overnight parking. My work also has 24 hour parking and constant vehicle traffic due to shift work, but I don't want to draw attention to myself if I can avoid it. My car is small and I won't be cooking, so I don't anticipate having any issues as long as I scout out appropriate parking places.

Electricity - Charge devices at work or library. Utilize battery powered lights and fans inside the vehicle. Maybe have a foldable solar panel for times when I'm on campgrounds.

Entertainment - Library, hang out with friends, parks, gym, etc. A typical workday would be something like 8 hours working, 1 hour commuting and work prep, 2-3 hours gym/hygiene, and 1 hour eating, which would only leave ~3 hours that I need to figure out how to entertain myself other than sleep.

Laundry - Do on my 4 days off when staying in regular house.

Extra expenses - I ran the numbers and I'd pay a worst case $150 extra a month in gas compared to current gas spending, assuming I need to drive ~30 min each way to commute if I can't stealth camp closer to work. Add ~$100 extra if I have to pay for campgrounds for my week of night shifts. Add $50 if I end up having to put my extra stuff in storage instead of storing it with DGF or friends/family.

Savings - Even in my worst case expense scenario, I'd be saving $500 a month on housing. I think the hit to my quality of life would be relatively minimal because I can still have a normal life on my 4 days off and I don't really do a whole lot outside of work on my workdays anyway.


Why should I do it?

The savings are obvious, although that's not my only reason. I am growing more interested in living off grid and alternative living situations, so I think this would be an interesting experience to distill down exactly the bare minimum of shelter/possessions I need to live a rich life. It would likely bring me even closer to friends/family, since I'd be forced to interact with them more with more frequent visits. It would also allow me to develop my social network at my retirement location in preparation for my move there after I leave FT work.

The reality is, I don't really have much of a social life at my current location beyond a couple of friends. The rotating shifts make it very hard to facilitate that as I'm discovering (e.g. this week I'm off from Monday to Friday night). In this HCOL area, everyone is a salaryman stiff because high wages are the only thing that justifies living in this area. I haven't really found any bohemians or alternative lifestyle types that are off during normal working hours.


Why shouldn't I do it?

My work situation is a bit in flux. The above scenario makes sense if I'm going to stay on this rotating shift schedule, however I'm desperately trying every avenue to move off of shift work. If I was working a normal M-F, the above plan could still be feasible but I might rather just have an apartment. There is no traffic during my current commute times, but if I was working normal hours I would be significantly more limited on commute distances due to traffic.

There's also the social aspect of stealth camping. I'd likely have to keep quiet about it but DGF would know and she doesn't seem to be a big fan of the idea. Maybe I'd just tell friends and family that I'm living at a campground in a #microvan to spend more time outdoors and embrace #minimalism, which would help to explain why I'm doing laundry and cooking when crashing at their places.

There are multiple risks, one of which is that DGF and I break up (I think this is unlikely, but I still should account for it). In that case, I likely would just find another apartment to rent. That's inconvenient but not a huge deal, especially if I have my stuff in storage near my work location. There are a variety of short term leases (furnished or unfurnished) in the area as well so I should be able to find another living situation without too many issues. Another risk is that I find out I don't like it, but I guess that solution is also similar to the first risk, and I think I could mitigate it a bit by doing some test runs with stealth camping prior to committing to it.

I don't think there are very many people stealth vehicle living in this area, although I haven't exactly been on the lookout for such things. Unlike California, summer highs here can be in the upper 90s or 100s with humidity and winter lows can be in the single digits or teens, although the shoulder seasons are quite pleasant. Maybe the fact that this area isn't known for stealth camping should be a warning sign that it's not a viable option.


Lots to think about. I know we have a lot of current and former vehicle dwellers on the forums, so I'd be glad to hear your thoughts.

[mountainFrugal]

Even with a full bed and space I find it much harder to get a consistent good nights sleep when staying in my van in (semi) urban settings. There is always something that always ends up waking me up multiple times per night. Something to consider in your discount function. Maybe @C40 has additional insights? I would highly recommend protoyping to make sure your quality of sleep will allow you to do the other things you want during the day with an arrangement like this.

[white belt]

Things overall are going well as I head into the holidays.

One thing I am struggling with as I think about a transition from WL5 to 6 is the concept of social capital. I understand social capital and the value of it. However, my current lifestyle is really split into 3 geographical areas (my current city, DGF's city, and my retirement city), which makes developing/incorporating social capital particularly difficult. A breakdown of the number of days I spend on average per month in each location is probably something like 20, 4, 6 but the first category includes an 8 hour shift and the other locations are usually free of job responsibilities.

I have the most social capital in my retirement city, however I am only there 1-2 weekends a month. I have few friends in my current city other than my roommates and work colleagues. I have none of my own social capital in DGF's city but can at least rely on some of DGF's.

I've been thinking a lot more about the housing situation. I think I'm ready to trial a different approach compared to what I've been doing. Basically my solution for the past year has been the traditional market rental solution. I followed a common ERE model which is live close to work, bicycle commute, and live with roommates. At the time of selecting the housing situation, I was unsure about specifics of my new job and new location, along with the fact that I was single. This meant I required some stability and housing infrastructure to have romantic partners visit. Additionally, it meant I thought I'd be dedicating a lot more to developing social connections in my current town. I also was really focused on Olympic weightlifting, which meant I had to be walking distance from a gym that offers that specialized capability.

Now, my situation has changed quite a bit. I'm comfortable at work and if my boss says I'll be staying on shift work for another year, I can live with it. I am no longer single, which means I'm not going out to meet girls or having them come over. I have struggled with finding social activities and making new friends with my rotating schedule, especially because on weekends off I'm usually headed out of town. Therefore, since I'm very certain I will me moving back home after I leave full-time employment in the next ~2 years, I'm going to go all-in on nurturing my social capital in that location. This means that every 4 day break off I will spend there, with the exception of the once a month I'm visiting DGF at her house. DGF has already visited me in that location as well so that's not an issue. I'm still lifting regularly, but transitioning to more bodybuilding and powerlifting-focused training.

With that in mind, I've begun identifying steps I need to take to validate that this approach will work. Car living is one extreme end of the spectrum, although that's not my only possible solution. I may very well to decide to still rent an apartment and just move to a place further out with reduced rent. Or I may decide to stay in my same apartment. The point is I'm going to trial run everything before making any irreversible decisions. Steps I've identified:

1. Figure out how to use creature comforts and routines to maintain stability even when traveling. Sleeping in the same bed every night is nice and having a home base can be comforting. However, I want to explore if I can create that sense of stability in other ways. For example, I've noticed that if I can cook and eat my typical meals while traveling, the entire experience is much less de-stabilizing. Ditto with going to a gym and getting my workout in. I noticed on a recent ski trip that just bringing my typical pillows and blanket led to a better quality sleep even though it was a full size bed shared with DGF in a shared bedroom with another couple. My bidet at home is also another great comfort that I haven't been able to replicate while traveling, so I just ordered a travel bidet to try out. I also ordered a travel size white noise machine to see if it will enable me to sleep without ear plugs while in a new space. A further iteration of this might involve finding a camping mattress setup that can provide me with a good night's sleep in the event that a space has an uncomfortable mattress or if I'm camping (I'm open to recommendations for side sleepers).

2. Figure out out my meal plans and cook my 6 days of food during the 4 day break. The idea is to prepare all my food in a normal kitchen during my 4 days off, so that I can then just keep it in a cooler and reheat it for consumption on workdays. I plan on testing this next weekend by prepping all my food at DGF's house. I already cook most of my own meals, but I haven't gone to the level of individually packaging meals for a whole week before. A further iteration of this would be figuring out how to reheat food without using a microwave (although my office has an oven and microwave, so this wouldn't be necessary for most meals). I'm thinking a jet boil/small camping stove and my thermal cooker could be very useful for this. I don't have a large cooler but DGF may have one I can borrow for testing.

3. Identify the things I will be missing out on and see if there are any mitigations I can take. For example, I know that living a more transient lifestyle will mean I can't grow plants myself, however I know that I could easily still grow things at DGF's house and she will enjoy taking care of them. So I can still pursue various permaculture experiments there. To an extent, I can also do the same at my parents' house. I'm sure there are many others.

4. Trial run sleeping in my car. The previous steps will all be useful regardless of my living situation, but it's no surprise they would also make car living more feasible. The first order of business is to make some stealth window covers. Once I have those, I can test just spending a night in the car with existing bedding. From there I can tweak and scale up as needed. I'm trying to avoid spending money towards modifications/gear until I proof that basic concept. Some reddit research and basic scouting reveals that stealth camping is not impossible in my region (it is also technically legal as long as one isn't parked on private property, although I imagine an RV would draw a lot of attention). My first approach will probably be to utilize street parking as long as I choose spots that aren't adjacent to NIMBY housing.

[white belt]

Making a small initial investment, so you can try training at home, seems worthwhile. Does it work for you mentally?

Over the past 20 years, I've put around $10k into my basement gym. There are a lot of fun toys. I still like to use a commercial gym, at least 50% of the time. Lifting alone, setting up and tearing down for most exercises - it's a trade off. There's something to pursuing a common activity in a common space, even if you aren't directly training with the other gym members.

I think that's a good question. Right now, through USAA I've figured out a way to get nationwide membership to most big gym chains for $25 a month, so I will definitely still go to a gym for the foreseeable future. I agree there are definitely social benefits associated with going to a gym, however I think that's not as big of a deal with me as long as I'm getting sufficient socialization in other areas of my life. My first exposure to lifting was Starting Strength in my basement, so I've always been pretty internally focused when lifting anyway.

[white belt]

Even with a full bed and space I find it much harder to get a consistent good nights sleep when staying in my van in (semi) urban settings. There is always something that always ends up waking me up multiple times per night. Something to consider in your discount function. Maybe @C40 has additional insights? I would highly recommend protoyping to make sure your quality of sleep will allow you to do the other things you want during the day with an arrangement like this.

Thanks for the advice about prototyping. As you can see from my above post, that's the approach I will be taking.

I have a few ideas for maximizing sleep quality and minimizing disruptions. One is to use a basic white noise machine, but I'm not sure if that will cut it in the suburban areas I inhabit. I like a dark sleep environment, so the black window covers should facilitate that pretty well.

One issue I can already identify with street parking is bed-leveling. I wonder if I could build a basic plywood platform with an adjustable capability to allow me to level the platform even if the car is not level? I can park on flat terrain, but I'm primarily concerned with streets that slope towards the curb for drainage, since I plan on mostly doing street side parking. Another fix could be sleeping perpendicularly in my car so my feet are on the lower side, but I don't think I have the space to do that. I haven't seen any van builds with a bed leveling feature, but I also haven't looked that hard.