How to Make an Off Grid Shower

9/25/2020

The first thing I made when I started putting together my portable cabin (that's what I'm calling it now) was the bathroom. I want a hot shower every morning and access to a toilet 24/7.

It took me a little bit before I got everything worked out, but I made an on-demand hot water shower (using rainwater) and composting toilet for probably about $3,000, not counting my time.

Here's how I made mine-

I built an 8'x10' rain collector on my roof. The water goes into a downspout, through a filter and into my water tank. Overflow water can go into a reserve tank.

When I want a shower I just pull a switch which activates the 12 volt electric pump which in turn activates the propane fired hot water heater.

I've got 200 watts of solar and two deep cycle batteries.

Water heater- Camplux 5L 1.32 GPM- $150
Pump- 3 GPM- $60
Shower stall 32"x32"- $250
200 watt solar system- $400
Two 12V batteries- $500
Filter, hoses, pipe, lumber, etc, etc,- $1,000

3 Comments

Elaine

10/4/2020 05:48:29 pm

DUDE! You put a PORCH on a UHAUL! I am SO TOTALLY impressed! The Uhaul is totally fantastic; thanks for all the great info. And even a PORCH!!! WOW! You said the Uhaul was 17 feet. Is that for the bed part only, or does that include the cab part? TOTALLY fantastic idea! the bumpouts totally rock!

Jay

10/4/2020 11:38:47 pm

Thanks for appreciating the porch! I’ll post some pics of how I did it.
They call it a 17’ but that’s the inside of the box, and that includes the ‘Mom’s Attic’. The bed bump out was totally worth it for the added space, light, view and having a bed I don’t have to fold out.

Donald Gamble link

12/13/2020 08:03:34 pm

Good job, Jay. I may be doing the same thing later as I would like to be off the grid.

Jay Craig

jay@craigpipes.com