9 Hot Water Hacks for Your Campervan (What We Do)

We’ve all been there: craving that hot shower after a long day of hiking, cycling or jogging. But, guess what? You live in a van! And so do I.

That hot shower while living the van life can be elusive. I’ve read stories about people going to bed dirty and crawling in their sheets with dirty feet. Those stories make my skin crawl!

There’s nothing I love more than the feeling of being clean before I hit the sheets.

And guess what? There are several ways to get hot water in your campervan, whether that’s to do dishes or simply wash off at the end of a hard day.

In this post, we’ll go over all the ways you can make hot water in your van, and what we do in our DIY Sprinter van.

How to Get Hot Water in Your Van: The Best Ways

There are several ways to get hot water in your campervan, from the easy and cheap to the more complicated and expensive.

What’s important is this: You WILL get that magical clean feeling, even if you’re living the van life.

Here we go:

1. Boil Water for Your Solar Shower

Seriously, this is the easiest way to get hot water in your campervan, and it’s EXACTLY what we do. Our DIY Sprinter van conversion can carry 27 gallons of water in our spare tire water tank beneath the van. That’s what we use for showering and dishes.

We typically take a full shower every other night, and in between, we are sure to wash dirty feet and legs before bed and do a portable bidet. (If you don’t have a portable bidet yet, please go get one here.)

To make a hot shower, we fill up half of our 8-quart pressure cooker with hot water, and either heat it up on our induction stove or our outdoor propane stove. When the water is piping hot, we add cold water to create the perfect mix for a shower.

Then, we pour the hot water into our Sea to Summit solar shower, and voila, we have a hot shower!

2. Use the Sun to get Hot Water for Your Solar Shower

While we typically heat up water on the stove for our solar shower, another way is to leave your solar shower out in the sun all day. When you get back from your hike or outdoor activity, you’ll have piping hot water at the ready.

There are lots of different solar showers on the market, but our favorite is the Sea to Summit solar shower. It folds up really small and also doubles as a handwashing station when we hang it from our rearview mirror. The Sea to Summit solar shower holds enough water for one shower, or two if you’re just doing a quick body rinse.

3. Try a Tankless Hot Water Heater

If you’re looking for a compact and affordable way to get hot water while camping, the Camplux 5L tankless campervan hot water heater could be the way to go.

The manufacturer has decades of experience in the gas and electricity industry, with an emphasis on products that focus on portability, energy efficiency, and innovation.

This budget-friendly tankless water heater runs off a propane tank, and works with a 12-volt pump. Thanks to its low flow rate, the Camplux 5L is ideal for those with smaller water tanks in their van. Although the unit will only heat water to around 115 degrees Fahrenheit, it should be ideal for quick van life showers!

The Camplux tankless hot water heater comes with everything you’ll need, including hot and cold hoses, a propane hose adapter, and a compact showerhead. More of a portable shower solution than anything else, the Camplux 5L is meant for outdoor use, so you’ll likely use it by hooking it to your van’s rear door when it’s time for a rinse-off.

4. Get a Portable Hot Water Heater

The Rinsekit Plus with a Hot Rod water heater is another excellent hot shower solution for van life. The Rinsekit Plus looks kind of like a cooler with a shower attachment, but there’s plenty of cool stuff going on inside!

If you fill the two-gallon tank with cold water from a campsite faucet, it’ll store the pressure inside. Otherwise, there’s a nifty built-in pressure booster pump for creating the 65 PSI necessary to work the shower.

Of course, you could just use the Rinsekit Plus as a cold shower, but the awesome Hot Rod tool means you can heat the water inside. You simply plug the Hot Rod into a 12-volt socket, then put the stainless steel heating probe into the drain plug.

It’ll take a while to heat the water — you can expect an additional 11 degrees Fahrenheit every 30 minutes — but this is a great portable campervan hot water heater for van lifers with limited space.

5. Use a Diesel Air Heater and Hot Water Combo

If money’s no object and your camper van conversion runs on diesel, the Webasto Dual Top ST 6 is about as good as it gets.

While installing some diesel water heaters can be quite complicated — involving a lot of work and an additional heat exchanger — this model is a combined air and water heater. Plus, its compact design means the Webasto can easily be installed under your van.

The Webasto Dual Top ST 6 uses diesel fuel from your vehicle’s tank, so you won’t have to worry about carrying extra propane gas canisters. As well as functioning as an air heater for the inside of your van, the Webasto has a 2.6-gallon stainless steel water boiler, which can heat water to 158 degrees Fahrenheit.

Additionally, the Dual Top ST 6 performs well up to 7,200 feet above sea level. That means you should be able to take a nice hot shower after a fun day skiing!

6. A Electric Mini Tank Campervan Water Heater

If you’re having a hard time deciding between a tankless water heater for your campervan or a more complicated hot water system, the Bosch Electric Mini-Tank could be something to consider. After all, this camper van water heater is affordable, compact, and works really well. Plus, the Tronic 3000 couldn’t be easier to set up and use, making it ideal for a camper van conversion.

The Bosch Mini-Tank runs on 120 volt AC power, so you don’t have to hardwire it into your van’s electrical setup. Thanks to its glass-walled tank and thick insulation, this 2.5-gallon water heater is really efficient, too.

The main downside to an electric campervan water heater like this is its substantial power draw. If you aren’t hooked up to shore power, the Tronic 3000 will quickly deplete your batteries unless you have a really meaty power setup.

7. A Heated Floor, Air Heater and Hot Water Combination for Your Van

Much more than just a hot water heater, the Columbia Hydronic Heating System is a complete van flooring and heating solution.

The innovative design includes air heating, floor heating, and hot water from your van’s fresh water tank. The Columbia Hydronic Heating System is available for Mercedes Sprinter, Ford Transit, and Ram ProMaster vans.

First of all there’s a subfloor which has a system of tubes running throughout. Heated coolant from your vehicle’s engine is pumped through the tubes, via a hydronic heating system. This means your van floor stays nice and toasty, and you can also connect the system to your water tank.

Once the subfloor is installed, you can choose from a wide selection of durable RV flooring options.

The Columbia Hydronic Heating System is super-efficient and draws very little power, making it ideal for off-grid adventures during cold weather!

8. Use Your Van’s Engine to Heat Water

The Incline Water Heater is another camper van hot water solution that uses excess heat from the vehicle’s engine. This process rapidly heats water inside the unit’s 4.2-gallon fresh water tank.

Thanks to its well-insulated design, the water tank should keep water hot for at least 12 hours. Still, there’s a 12-volt element inside that’ll help maintain temperature when you aren’t driving. You can just attach the Incline heater to your batteries, set a minimum temperature, and you’ll be good to go.

The Incline Water Heater was designed to fit under the sliding door of a Sprinter van, and its super durable build means it’s pretty much indestructible. Plus, everything you’ll need to install this hot water heater comes in the package.

9. A Black PVC Pipe on Top of Your Campervan

This black PVC pipe idea, or road shower, is a pressurized awning shower, which is either DIY or purchased from a company like Yakima.

All you have to do is park your campervan in the sun and wait for the water to heat up. It even comes with a stick-on thermometer so you can tell how hot the water is.

If you don’t want to spend the money, you may want to consider building a DIY version of this van life shower. You can see an REI tutorial here.

This is a great way to get hot water in your campervan using the sun. Use it for a shower or dishes!

How to Power Your Campervan Hot Water Heater

If you’re dead set on installing a campervan hot water heater you’ll need to decide how it’s going to be powered. It’s really important to make sure you settle on the appropriate type of power source for your heater, or else you may find yourself having cold showers more often than you’d like! Let’s take a look at the most common options.

Propane Water Heaters

Also called tankless water heaters, propane water heaters are probably the most popular option. Even though you’ll need a source of propane on hand, these heaters are affordable, portable, and easy to use.

A propane water heater can be used by connecting your van water supply to the unit, which can easily be stored when not in use. Seeing as a tankless water heater creates hot water instantly, it’s ideal for van life. Plus, the low flow rate means you won’t need a huge water tank. Bear in mind you’ll need plenty of ventilation to use this kind of heater and not all units create enough pressure for a good shower.

Diesel/Gasoline Water Heaters

Although a diesel or gasoline-powered water heater will be on the expensive side, using this type of water heater in your van can be a fantastic solution. Not only will you have an efficient air heater, the same unit can heat your water.

You will need to install a water tank to use a diesel heater, and there’s a fair amount of installation to deal with. Still, a diesel or gasoline water heater is an efficient option in the long run. In fact, this type of heater uses a surprisingly small amount of fuel to run.

Calorifier Water Heaters

Also known as heat exchangers, calorifier water heaters work by using your engine’s excess heat. Once you’ve connected the unit to your van’s coolant system, the heated coolant is circulated between the engine and the coils in the insulated water tank. However, bear in mind this can only happen when you’re driving.

Although some models have an internal element to maintain water temperature, it’ll usually draw a lot of power. So, if you plan on boondocking for an extended period, you’ll need a huge amount of solar and a monster battery bank to use a heat exchanger water heater.

Electric Water Heaters

Most of us are familiar with electric water heaters — they have an internal tank and heat water via an electric element. Even though this type of van water heater is affordable and compact, it’s going to draw a lot of power. That’s definitely fine if you’ll be plugged into shore power. Otherwise, you’ll need a pretty awesome electrical setup to power one of these units off-grid.

How Big of a Hot Water Tank Do You Need?

Deciding on the size of your hot water tank really comes down to how much hot water you’ll be using. If you just plan on using hot water for the odd shower, you should be fine with a smaller tank. However, bear in mind the average shower uses around a gallon of water per minute, so you’ll have to be quick!

Of course, a tankless water heater might be a better option if you’re tight on space. Seeing as water from your van’s tank just passes through this kind of heater, an extra tank isn’t necessary.

Do you Really Need Hot Water in a Van?

Deciding whether or not you really need hot water in your van comes down to personal preference. Many folks do just fine without, whereas others find that hot water is a must. It also comes down to whether or not you’ll be living full time in your van conversion or just using it for weekend trips. There are plenty of ways to find hot showers while out on the road, including gyms and truck stops. That said, having access to a shower in your home-on-wheels can feel really luxurious!

Will a Van Hot Water Heater Work in Winter?

Most van water heaters will work just fine during the winter. For example, the Webasto heater on our list has an antifreeze function, so you won’t need to worry about water freezing in the tank.

However, if you’re using a tankless water heater you’ll need to be more careful. This is particularly important if you’ll be using your water heater outdoors. The coils tend to be very fragile and can quickly freeze during cold weather. Plus, if it’s raining or snowing you won’t be able to use the unit.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, deciding on the best hot water heater for your van conversion depends on a number of factors. If you aren’t going to install a shower in your van, a water heater might seem like overkill. Also, the type of heater you can buy will depend on your budget and how much extra space you have for installation.

Don’t forget that there are simple and effective ways to get hot water — if you’ll be traveling in sunny places, a solar water heater might be your best bet!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this article on the best hot water heaters for van life. Feel free to leave any questions in the comments section below!