Toilets in Bongos or other small motorhomes

Janeyjane

Guest
Hi

It's a delicate subject, but, here goes....

I decided to ditch my Romahome Hytop a couple of months ago, one of the main problems being that, with the bed out, there was no room to use a porta potti. Having to take the bed apart to use the loo in the middle of the night was not a good compromise for me, nor was not making up the bed properly and only using a single bed.

After looking around for some time, and having seen some excellent conversions, I decided to go for a Japanese import conversion. A local caravan company that has just started doing motorhome conversions said they could build something for me based on a Bongo. As the conversion is progressing it's looking like there isn't going to be enough space to use the loo again, when the bed is out! Does anybody else have a Bongo? Can you use a porta potti with the bed out? Who did the conversion? What style of bed do you have? (It looks like their decision to go for the better quality metal frame bed has been the problem, as it seems to be longer than the MDF based ones).

Although I'm not losing money on the deal, as they want a demo model anyway, I've lost precious time. What do other small motorhomes do for toilet facilities when they are wild camping? Being a grrrrl, I'm rather 'precious' about having privacy and appropriate toileting facilities so using a bush is not really something I'm going to entertain, sorry! And as I want to wild camp, setting up an awning for the toilet probably isn't workable either.

Any thoughts/suggestions/innovative solutions??

Jane
 
Sorry I cant help Janey cos I,m not familiar with the night time layout of the Bongo but I assume you mean that there is no floorspace when the bed is out.
But not to worry cos I,m sure someone here will have the answer:rolleyes::cool:
 
Mmmm! Thought it was just us menopausal males that got up in the middle of the night. Maybe you'll just have to cut back on the beer. ;)
 
Janeyjane said:
Hi

It's a delicate subject, but, here goes....

I decided to ditch my Romahome Hytop a couple of months ago, one of the main problems being that, with the bed out, there was no room to use a porta potti. Having to take the bed apart to use the loo in the middle of the night was not a good compromise for me, nor was not making up the bed properly and only using a single bed.

After looking around for some time, and having seen some excellent conversions, I decided to go for a Japanese import conversion. A local caravan company that has just started doing motorhome conversions said they could build something for me based on a Bongo. As the conversion is progressing it's looking like there isn't going to be enough space to use the loo again, when the bed is out! Does anybody else have a Bongo? Can you use a porta potti with the bed out? Who did the conversion? What style of bed do you have? (It looks like their decision to go for the better quality metal frame bed has been the problem, as it seems to be longer than the MDF based ones).

Although I'm not losing money on the deal, as they want a demo model anyway, I've lost precious time. What do other small motorhomes do for toilet facilities when they are wild camping? Being a grrrrl, I'm rather 'precious' about having privacy and appropriate toileting facilities so using a bush is not really something I'm going to entertain, sorry! And as I want to wild camp, setting up an awning for the toilet probably isn't workable either.

Any thoughts/suggestions/innovative solutions??

Jane
Click to expand...

Hi Jane

I had a Bongo once :D
but an unconverted one. We used it for camping on sites with a freestanding awning for cooking & storage, but never wildcamping - pity as being as most of them are 4wd they would make a brill camper for wilding...:D if you can sort your problem.
With ours, we removed the 3rd row of seats and for sleeping that meant laying flat the driver/passenger seats then sliding the 2nd row bench seat upto the front (actually quite comfortable with a self inflating matteress on the top even for me at 6'1" tall ! That left an area at the back that would accomodate a porta-potti - but no privacy i'm afraid :eek:

This dooesnt help much I know if your having a conversion done... presumably with side/end? kitchen with "rock 'n' roll" bed? (I'm guessing here:( )

However there must be others with the same querey/needs, if you havent already, have a look on the BongoFury website/forum, they even have a "converting Bongo's to Campervans" section, try asking same question there... (I'm sure they'll help)
Also on same web site are links to lots of other Bongo converters... might help with some layout ideas ???
Keep us informed on the progress - I miss my bongo, great vehicle to drive!
Unfortunately at the time it was my only vehicle and I couldnt afford the 22mpg with a 40 mile daily commute to work :mad:

HTH & Good Luck ;)

awc
 
Before buying my Kangoo Roo, I did a partial basic conversion of a standard Kangoo van. I made the bed (2m x 75cm) on the passenger side and behind the driver's seat is a cupboard with a sink and pumped tap to the top housing a porta-potti loo beneath. The loo is on runners and can be pulled out from the cupboard while the bed is assembled. It probably won't help you much but that's how I got around the issue.

Re the Kangoo Roo camper, the porta potti is beneath the bunk on the driver's side, so to use it the cushion has to be lifted off and the loo slid out. It's not a major hassle but I have a well-trained bladder for camping trips!! ;o)
 
I hope your Bongo is more economical than ours... and by all accounts ours was a good one at 24-25mpg!!! And that was on a 2WD!!

The Bongo owners club is full of info, have a search for 'Bongofury', the van is very narrow so the only conversions that leave a bit of floor space... and it IS only a bit is to sleep one in the roof and one down the side of the van by using single beds there's a bit of floor left.
 
A bit small

Hi Jane,

I know a few peeps who have bongos and IMHO they are a bit on the small side for 2 people.

Some vans such as the citroen relay are not much longer but are wider and give you much more scope. They are also much more economical.

I drive a medium wheelbase citroen relay which is only 16 feet long but wide enough to sleep across.
It is a 2.2 litre HDI Diesel and returns 33 mpg on average.

Another plus is that you can access the rear of the van from the front seats without going outside, a great plus when it's raining. You can't do that in a bongo.

Anyhow, check out the link below and you'll see. It's got a separate (but small) toilet compartment and you sleep across the van using the 'sofa' and seat shown in the photos, just adding an additional panel. There is also room to access both the kitchen and toilet when the bed is made up.

Hope you find what you need, happy camping:D

Picasa Web Albums - Bill - Campervan
 
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