My Top 3 Rules for Living in My Car

1. Safety first.

As with any activity, safety always comes first. I made it a priority to find a place to sleep, hang out and park where I felt the most safe. Sometimes it’s just a gut feeling that made me worry about a place I parked, but I also had a checklist of sorts to ensure that I was in a safe place.

First, try to find a place that is relatively dark and quiet. You don’t want to be in a very public space where people will be walking by all night (near universities or popular nightlife destinations). You also won’t want to be somewhere completely isolated from society, because if you have an emergency, you’ll want to be able to find help quickly.

Second, make sure your windows are covered. When I began my car-dwelling adventure, I didn’t think to keep my windows covered, and quickly realized that it was too easy to peer into my car if I didn’t have “blinds”. So I installed blackout curtains on my windows. This helped block out the light from outside and blocked others from being able to peer into my car while I was sleeping.

Third, think about the worst scenario. It’s not something we ever want to worry about, but you’re always going to be in public spaces and you are very vulnerable now. So it’s important to think about the worst case scenario. If someone were to break in to try to take your belongings or cause harm to you, are you prepared? I made sure to keep a knife within arm’s reach when I was sleeping. If in the middle of the night, someone were to break into my car, I would be prepared to defend myself if necessary. Luckily, I never had to use it (besides cutting open the occasional avocado), but I made sure to check that it was there every night before bed.

There are a hundred things you can do to keep yourself safe, and we all have different ways to mitigate our fear. So do whatever you need to do to ease your mind at night.

2. There’s a place for everything

Organization is very important. With a small amount of space, you need to know where your belongings are, so you don’t have to tear up your entire car looking for a specific item. As you get comfortable with your space, you’ll find different organizational tools to help you keep everything squared away.

Knowing exactly where everything is will also help you at night when you’re trying to find something in the dark. It’s generally not a good idea to turn on the lights in your car at night because it will attract unwanted attention, so knowing exactly where your things are will help you navigate your belongings while maintaining your stealth.

Storing valuables in your car becomes a bit of a challenge too. I used to keep my camera, laptops, and passports in my car so I had to ensure all of these items were kept well hidden amongst my belongings. I kept my backpacks and camera bag hidden in the footwell of the back row passenger seat and always kept them covered by my pillows. I kept everything that resembled a purse or bag hidden in my baskets under jackets or blankets. In addition to parking in safer neighborhoods where break-ins were uncommon, these extra precautions helped keep my valuables safe while I was away from my car.

3. Stay clean

You’re in a much smaller space now, which means the dirt and dust gets trapped pretty quickly. It’s a good idea to keep your space clean by vacuuming often, wiping down surfaces, and washing your car when it gets too dirty.  It’s also important to keep your belongings clean as well. Keeping up with your laundry, and making sure to be hygienic is all important in staying as healthy as you can in this unique lifestyle.

I was lucky enough to work in an office building that had a fantastic gym and locker room I could use. I made it a habit to workout everyday during my lunch break and shower after my workout was complete. This let me worry less about appearing disheveled and dirty in my daily life, and helped me build a routine.

I became a regular at my local laundromat and would visit every 2 weeks to clean my clothes. I kept a bag of dirty clothes in my car, and though I would often wear the same article of clothing multiple times before washing it, if I had any doubt about the cleanliness of an article of clothing, I wouldn’t hesitate to wash it.