Investigating the RV life

[MKOwen]

Hi!
My husband and I are not yet RV owners but have done a lot of camping over the years. He will be retiring in a about a year and a half and so we have been figuring out our plan for the future. We visited New Mexico in October to see if we might want to settle there, we stopped at the Grand Canyon and met a worker who told us about seasonal work and living n RV 's. That got us interested in what we came to find out is Full timing. For the past several years i have been an avid fan of the tiny house movement. I love the idea of getting rid of stuff and living a simpler life. My husband is not a fan of tiny houses but does like the idea of a camper trailer which is pretty much the same thing, I guess. I've been doing lots of googling and reading and starting to downsize our belongings in preparation. We have a LOT to learn! I am sure to ask a lot of questions. My first main concern is driving a big vehicle around! As it is I keep my eyes closed when my husband drives :-) It works for me but I think of winding down some mountain road in an RV and it kind of freaks me out! I am thinking we will need to take some fifth wheel driving lessons and, of course, we have a year and a half to do some trial trips, etc. This is kind of long. I will post another post later with a clear list of some of the things that I am considering and I'm hoping that all of you can lead us in the right direction! My husband does know the Lowes Travels guy who has given us some good information already. He referred us here, however I don't know what his actual name is on the forums. I hope that, if you read this, you will forgive me for that but I do want to thank you for your e-mail and great information. Look forward to learning more about the RV life! I'll try to keep further posts a bit shorter . Thanks for reading all of this! We are kind of excited about this new chapter ahead. Oh! I am more interested in traveling and he is more interested in work camping so we have to figure that out. Anyone else with that same situation? Thanks again.

[RV Wizard]

Hello and We are glad to have you join us here and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. I am sure you will enjoy our website and forums. Good luck, stay safe and keep us posted.

Glad to see you are doing your homework. Let us know how we can be of any help.

[Stripe34]

Welcome aboard! Sit down, read the current and past posts - you'll learn more, quickly.

Lots of threads about starting full timing, etc. give yourself a couple of weeks, and run searches on all the questions you can think of - they've probably all been asked before & answered pretty thoroughly :-)

Have fun!

[HavingABlast]

You've come to the perfect place to do your research. Plenty of helpful folks.

I've not work camped yet, but have been looking into it. We retired not that long ago and are enjoying spontaneous travel. So work camping is on hold for now. However, I try and strike up conversations about it with campground hosts during our travels. It will be in our future, we just have to burn off some career driven pent up energy!

Best of luck in your future.

[noeldale]

Welcome to the RV world. As you read all the comments try to remember that many are traveling and enjoying the lifestyle and never post on the forums.

Don't let the problems some of us have discourage you from enjoying what you want to try.

Good luck in all your decisions

[okmunky]

I found IRV2 just days after I decided to buy an RV, retire and start traveling. That was almost 6 years ago. The forums here have been invaluable. Read as many as interest you and never be afraid to ask questions. I have saved so much money by asking here before buying.

Jump on in! The waters are friendly! I'm having the time of my life on MY terms.

[Hit_the_Rhod]

Lots of decisions to consider. For example:

Keep your current S & B (Stick and Brick) home while you test the waters for RV'ing?
Fifth Wheel, Travel Trailer, or Motor Home?
If Motor Home, will you pull a Toad? (car or truck that you pull behind, either on a tow dolly, or "4 wheel down"
Where do you register your vehicles?
Medical insurance that will cover you while traveling.
Are you hand with repairs, or do you have to pay someone to do work on rig.
New or used?
Diesel or Gas?

Lots of options out there. For us, we had owned a class C motorhome (van style front with big box behind) previously, but we were looking for something to use and live in while we traveled to Art Shows.

We already had an F-350, so we had our tow vehicle. We needed the pickup bed, so the fifth wheel was out, and we weren't ready yet to step up to a Class A, so for us the initial decision was to go with a travel trailer. That way we could load all our Art stuff up in the truck bed with cover, and tow a trailer. We initially bought an older used travel trailer, 27' long. Well maintained, and of medium quality for a travel trailer. We looked for some time and found one local, well maintained, old enough to be very reasonably priced, but not so large as to be intimidating. We bought it, used it for two years, fixed some things, made lists of what we liked, and what we didn't like. Some of the big things we learned from this were:

We wanted our new rig to be 100% usable with the slide (s) in. In our travel trailer, we couldn't pass from the bedroom to the main room with the slide in!

We wanted more than one slide.

We liked the idea of a motor home or coach, as I have a 4 hour bladder, and my wife has a 2 hour bladder, so when nature calls, and assuming we aren't in heavy traffic, she can get and "go" and be back in her seat in no time.

We also liked the idea of a Coach because we can drive down the road with the cab AC or Heat on which will cool or heat the living space so we don't bake or freeze when we first get in the "living space" after we stop for the night.

Speaking of "baking" it is also nice to throw a lasagna or such in the oven an hour or so out from our destination so dinner is ready when we stop.

We also like to travel with pets, generally two cats, sometimes a dog as well. We prefer to have them in the coach instead of in the TT (travel trailer) where we can monitor them as we travel.

We ended up looking for a Class A Diesel Pusher and found our current coach which coincidentally is the same model year as our TT was, but is WAY better built! Much more attention to detail, and better materials to boot, like double pane windows, better insulation, real wood cabinets, etc.

We spent around 105 days in it last year, and about 95 or so this year and really love it. We have averaged about 12k miles a year and couldn't be happier!

Back on track, this forum is a GREAT place to research the lifestyle, look into specific coaches, get advice on the age old questions like Diesel or Gas, New or Used, Fifth Wheel, TT, or Coach. There are NO WRONG answers, just what will work on not work FOR YOU. Everyone's situation is different, and only you can truly decide what will work for you.

Welcome to the forum, and I hope to see you again!

[TonyDi]

Glad to have you here in the forum with us.

Just let us know what you need help with. There are plenty of folks in here that will hop in with input for you

Happy Trails!!!

[Just For Fun]

MKOwen

We were all new-bies at one time.

If you and your husband (SO = Significant Other) love camping, then welcome to your next adventure!!!!! RVing is Camping on Steroids!!!!!

As others have said, do your research first - hit the "search" tab and look up whatever product, RV type, destinations, nuances you feel is important to help you better understand what you will be getting in to. A TIP: If you've first searched but can't find the answer, simply ask something like "Does anyone know where the treads on XYZ is?"

The positive responses will amaze you!!!!!!!!

WELCOME TO OUR WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[irishguy]

Originally Posted by Hit_the_Rhod

Lots of decisions to consider. For example:

Keep your current S & B (Stick and Brick) home while you test the waters for RV'ing?
Fifth Wheel, Travel Trailer, or Motor Home?
If Motor Home, will you pull a Toad? (car or truck that you pull behind, either on a tow dolly, or "4 wheel down"
Where do you register your vehicles?
Medical insurance that will cover you while traveling.
Are you hand with repairs, or do you have to pay someone to do work on rig.
New or used?
Diesel or Gas?

Lots of options out there. For us, we had owned a class C motorhome (van style front with big box behind) previously, but we were looking for something to use and live in while we traveled to Art Shows.

We already had an F-350, so we had our tow vehicle. We needed the pickup bed, so the fifth wheel was out, and we weren't ready yet to step up to a Class A, so for us the initial decision was to go with a travel trailer. That way we could load all our Art stuff up in the truck bed with cover, and tow a trailer. We initially bought an older used travel trailer, 27' long. Well maintained, and of medium quality for a travel trailer. We looked for some time and found one local, well maintained, old enough to be very reasonably priced, but not so large as to be intimidating. We bought it, used it for two years, fixed some things, made lists of what we liked, and what we didn't like. Some of the big things we learned from this were:

We wanted our new rig to be 100% usable with the slide (s) in. In our travel trailer, we couldn't pass from the bedroom to the main room with the slide in!

We wanted more than one slide.

We liked the idea of a motor home or coach, as I have a 4 hour bladder, and my wife has a 2 hour bladder, so when nature calls, and assuming we aren't in heavy traffic, she can get and "go" and be back in her seat in no time.

We also liked the idea of a Coach because we can drive down the road with the cab AC or Heat on which will cool or heat the living space so we don't bake or freeze when we first get in the "living space" after we stop for the night.

Speaking of "baking" it is also nice to throw a lasagna or such in the oven an hour or so out from our destination so dinner is ready when we stop.

We also like to travel with pets, generally two cats, sometimes a dog as well. We prefer to have them in the coach instead of in the TT (travel trailer) where we can monitor them as we travel.

We ended up looking for a Class A Diesel Pusher and found our current coach which coincidentally is the same model year as our TT was, but is WAY better built! Much more attention to detail, and better materials to boot, like double pane windows, better insulation, real wood cabinets, etc.

We spent around 105 days in it last year, and about 95 or so this year and really love it. We have averaged about 12k miles a year and couldn't be happier!

Back on track, this forum is a GREAT place to research the lifestyle, look into specific coaches, get advice on the age old questions like Diesel or Gas, New or Used, Fifth Wheel, TT, or Coach. There are NO WRONG answers, just what will work on not work FOR YOU. Everyone's situation is different, and only you can truly decide what will work for you.

Welcome to the forum, and I hope to see you again!

I agree...we have owned a camper trailer, a 5th wheel and a small gas class A mh but when it comes to travel enjoyment and comfort they don't compare to our 40' diesel pusher mh we bought last spring.

[MSHappyCampers]

Hi ! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined the gang!

Hope you find the perfect rig for your needs!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

[rvethereyet]

Welcome to IRV2