Reddit reviews Gerber ComplEAT, Camp Cooking Tool, Burnt Bronze [31-003465]

Okay, cool. A few things to start off with:

• first and foremost, read the FAQs. Good primer in there, and search/read the subreddit itself for more specific stuff. We've covered a lot around here, and multiple times. Soak it in, digest it a bit, then apply the best option to suit your situation.
  
  
• good job coming back around to reply directly to my and Independent's comments; that gives us a notification on our next login, so we know you were talking back, and links us back here to read and reply. You have no idea how many people new to this site don't figure that out for months, and it displays that you have the initiative and problem solving skills to get by. Breathe a bit easier, you're not doin' too bad.
  
  
• Your back/neck issues probably aren't as restrictive as you (we?) may have thought; I'm missing some small portions of my back (with no idea where they went), I have nerve damage in my neck, back, and arms, and several other vertebrae/disks are generally pretty pissed off about what I've done to them. I get around pretty well, though I'm a bit vocal when I do it, grunting and groaning my way about most days. There's plenty more like us, too, and it's good fortune that your physical issues aren't as oppressive as they could be. That'll come in handy later as well.
  
  
• You may well be able to skip out on a roof fan. I've never had a roof fan in any of my own vans (though a couple had unpowered vents), and have gotten along fine. I historically buy the $13 clip-on 12v fan from WalMart once or twice a year (they wear out, but are cheap enough to consider disposable), and run them off an extra battery I install. Times are changing, though, and I've recently found USB-rechargeable battery-operated fans by Holmes at Target - $15, but claims a 6-hour battery life on low. One fan blowing in and on you will help you feel cool enough to sleep, while cycling out air to remove the moisture you put off, so you don't have condensation forming and leading to hidden mold issues. You can recharge these, little USB power-packs, and some other key items while running the van through regular course, then unplug them for use during van-off time, so you don't drain your starter battery. I'm not a fan of those O2Breeze guys, because I hate swapping batteries constantly, which would be a considerable expenditure for a full-timer.
  
  
• For showering, I'll suggest first that you look into Planet Fitness Black Card. It's $20/month, and gives you unlimited showers, filtered water, massage chairs, WiFi, restrooms, and some other minor perks at any of their locations. If you'll be near any major metro area, this covers daily hygeine. When I stuck more around-town, I'd often visit twice per day - once for hygeine needs, and again just to relax, use the wifi, and work on me. If you can find some secluded enough spots to do it, you can clip your tarp to your opened van door(s) to make a temporary shower stall, then use something like a pump-pressure garden sprayer to hose yourself down and wash up. For a bit less workout to accomplish that, you can also score a rechargeable shower pump that simply drops into a jug with a wide-enough mouth. My similar model does ~20 showers per charge.
  
  
• Cooking is its own can of worms, but I'm a cheap bastard thrifty individual, and have built a poor-man's portable kitchen setup a few times over. I usually start with some basics from Dollar Tree to get me started - tongs, a grill grate, paperware, food containers, etc can get you by until you can "spend" on something better, and most of their food doesn't need refrigeration. Here's what my current everyday-use kitchen setup consists of:
  
  

1. Gerber ComplEAT - this really has everything you need-need except a knife, and I just use my everyday-carry pocket knife most often to complement it. Long-handled fork and spoon, spatula, veggie peeler, package/can/bottle opener, and tongs all in one very-portable set. I mostly use it just for cooking. Again, I'm cheap, so I eyed it for a long time before splurging on it (the $20-something version), and I can't complain.
   
   
2. Backpacker pot/stove kit - half the cost of my previous 3-pot kit, and comes with the stove! Perfect size for soloers, and under $25. The stove, can of gas, a couple paper towel layers between to avoid scratches and rattling, and another small item or two all fit inside the can. It comes with a mesh bag, and the Gerber set slides down in alongside it, just barely poking out the top. The $5 can of gas lasts me a whole month, at one or two uses per day, often just to boil water or warm something up.
   
   
3. Magellan Camp Cooking Knife - $8, and this is what I use as my tableware. TWO of these will fit inside the above pot/stove kit, with the stove, gas, and paper towel layers between.
   
   
4. A bag of charcoal - This and those dollar-store tongs enables you to utilize any park or campsite grill you come across, which you can totally use the linked pot kit on while grilling food, adding flavor, and enjoying the outdoors. I try to do dinner most days like this, weather-permitting.
   
   
5. Cheap camp shovel and/or machete - either can be used to dig a Dakota Fire Pit (if your back can handle it; it's pretty minor labor), which observes Leave No Trace rules, is low-key, and super-efficient. The main hole can be a single shovel-head wide, and the air hole needn't be wider than the shovel handle. Ignore the "direction of wind" arrow in the linked diagram; it makes its own draft by design. Another excellent application of the above pot kit, and the fuel is free.
   
   
6. Stainless steel camp mugs - I have an older Marlboro branded set that was given to me, but these can be had for as little as $2 each. They serve as my own cups/bowls, and my dog's water dish.
   
   
7. THE DOG! - I've yet to find a better dishwasher. Especially with stainless or anodized aluminum, this cuts cleanup down to sanitization, and they're happy to do it. My dog is quite small, and so I just chuck a handful of kibble into a recently-dirtied pot, and set 'er down.
   
   
8. Wilderness Wash - This is actually my everything-soap. I use it to wash dishes, my belongings, and myself. Rinses clean, is as environmentally-safe as it gets (though still don't put it on the ground within a few hundred feet of a water source or rain gutter) and super-portable, and is the only product I've found yet that can cut diesel grime (from my day job), yet doesn't make my skin break out. A dime-sized drop does all the dishes, quarter-size does me, and a 3oz bottle lasts me all month.
   
   
9. Viva brand paper towels - another one-product wonder. They're really similar to the blue "shop towels" you find at the auto parts store, but are white, soft, super-sturdy, and hella-absorbent. They're a little expensive as paper towels go, but I use them as paper plates, automotive rags, for cleaning, sweat towels, and even toilet paper (when the toilet isn't of the flush variety).
   
   All this (except the dog) fits in a 5-gallon bucket if you put it all together, but I keep the machete, shovel, grill grate, charcoal, and a small BBQ in the back, and the kitchen-y stuff altogether amidships where I usually am.