New from SD - 24 yr old camping with family

[adehaan86]

Hello forum. My name is Anthony. I am new to camping and only done it a few times. I bought a RV to hopefully connect family again and just have fun and get away from the tv's and just the fast pace life. I live in South dakota and by the weekend they are talking a high of 18 degrees so I wont be camping any time soon.

Otherwise just wanted to say hello. I will try not to fill forums with too many questions.

[travelgirl]

Welcoem to our family here at irv2. What kind of coach or rig do you have. Feel free to post and we as a family will do our best to asst. if we can. Happy Holidays and trouble free trips to come

[ChrisNiemann]

where at in SD? i use to live in Rapid City when i was stationed at ellsworth. Dont worry about the questions! the folks here have so much freakin knowledge that someone has to ask questions or their heads would pop by not releasing it!!

I'm in Nebraska right now, they are talkn bad weather here this weekend too, I've been her since September 28th, had the A/C on for 3 days then nothin but windows for about 5 weeks, and ever since it's been furnace. been below freezing here for the past 3 weeks til today and friday they are saying 50 then saturday Old Man Winter makes a little visit with freezing rain, slush, snow, wind, etc.... don't be afraid to use your rig in cold weather. just don't expect to stay a comfy 70 degrees inside, it can get chilli but as long as you are prepared for it, it really ain't to bad!

Good luck with your travels, it's been a blast with mine. Glad to see someone on here in the younger age! LOL I'm 26 and the wife is 24 and the dog is going on 2. Fill us in on your rig though...

[adehaan86]

I love in Sioux falls I got my rig Monday and like it but to cold to use right. I would spend the night but wife would think I'm crazy plus we got kids. I would love to go full time but I don't want kids to live in a camper. I have attached pics of my rig.

[Chickadee]

Anthony (adehaan86):

Hi from Casa Grande, AZ, and a big WELCOME to iRV2. Geeze, 18 degrees by this weekend?.....Brrrrrrrr

Nice to see someone else here from good ol South Dakota. My wife (Lynette) and I are out of the Mitchell area, actually Mill Town just NE of Parkston (20 mi. S. of Mitchell) where she grew up. We retired back in 2005 out of Duluth, Minnesota, sold our house and ALL the "stuff", returned to S.D. residency, bought our first rig (an 06 MH), and have been on the road full time ever since. We're often in Sioux Falls (at least during the summer ) since our mail forwarding svc. (Alternative Resources) is located there and we've got relatives ALL over the Mitchell, Sioux Falls region.

So what do ya pull your rig with? Should be a good outfit for your family. It'd be great for visiting the Black Hills, one of our favorite haunts, but, again, in the summertime. We avoid doing anymore winters up North. Had enough cold and snow shoveling when we lived in Duluth, and S. Dakota ain't much warmer!!

Anyway, again, WELCOME and don't hesitate asking questions. Hope to meet ya down the road sometime.

Steve & Lynette

[dsbike]

Really nice looking TT. Welcome to iRV2. If you have questions feel free to ask away. I have been camping as long as I can remember & I am 52. I still learn new things about this lifestyle. It is great to get away from the hurry up world & just relax with the family. My kids are all grown & don't travel with us anymore. Although my 23 year old son stills takes my 2 man tent out a few weekends each year. Glad to see I may have planted a seed in one of them.
Don't let the cold scare you off, we have had some of are best trips in below freezing weather, although I try to avoid rainy days if back packing or tent camping which we still do even though we have a MH.

[adehaan86]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chickadee Anthony (adehaan86): Hi from Casa Grande, AZ, and a big WELCOME to iRV2. Geeze, 18 degrees by this weekend?.....Brrrrrrrr Nice to see someone else here from good ol South Dakota. My wife (Lynette) and I are out of the Mitchell area, actually Mill Town just NE of Parkston (20 mi. S. of Mitchell) where she grew up. We retired back in 2005 out of Duluth, Minnesota, sold our house and ALL the "stuff", returned to S.D. residency, bought our first rig (an 06 MH), and have been on the road full time ever since. We're often in Sioux Falls (at least during the summer ) since our mail forwarding svc. (Alternative Resources) is located there and we've got relatives ALL over the Mitchell, Sioux Falls region. So what do ya pull your rig with? Should be a good outfit for your family. It'd be great for visiting the Black Hills, one of our favorite haunts, but, again, in the summertime. We avoid doing anymore winters up North. Had enough cold and snow shoveling when we lived in Duluth, and S. Dakota ain't much warmer!! Anyway, again, WELCOME and don't hesitate asking questions. Hope to meet ya down the road sometime. Steve & Lynette

I tow with a 2005 GMC sierra 1500 I'm hoping to upgrade soon since truck lacks power on long drives. Some day though

[adehaan86]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dsbike Really nice looking TT. Welcome to iRV2. If you have questions feel free to ask away. I have been camping as long as I can remember & I am 52. I still learn new things about this lifestyle. It is great to get away from the hurry up world & just relax with the family. My kids are all grown & don't travel with us anymore. Although my 23 year old son stills takes my 2 man tent out a few weekends each year. Glad to see I may have planted a seed in one of them. Don't let the cold scare you off, we have had some of are best trips in below freezing weather, although I try to avoid rainy days if back packing or tent camping which we still do even though we have a MH.

We may go south in April to enjoy first camping trip otherwise right now all the campgrounds are closed and wife is not excited about camping in driveway lol.

[bdpreece]

Welcome. Nice looking rig. Hopefully it is winterized. Just take the winter to dream and also to load up on all the neat little items you think you will need in order to enjoy it.

[dsbike]

"We may go south in April to enjoy first camping trip otherwise right now all the campgrounds are closed and wife is not excited about camping in driveway lol. "

I hear that. Come spring time I am sure you will be ready to go. Some people say staying in the driveway a few nights with a new rig lets them get a feel for anything they may have forgotten to put in the camper. I never did that either. Just didn't make much sense to me. I can camp very minalist or with as much luxury as I can load. If I forget something I just make do. Part of the experience.
Happy winter dreams and research ahead for you.

[adehaan86]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdpreece Welcome. Nice looking rig. Hopefully it is winterized. Just take the winter to dream and also to load up on all the neat little items you think you will need in order to enjoy it.

Can you send link of proper way to winterizebthe dealership believes in just compressed air which I do not believe in

[longdog2]

Welcome to the forum. Hopefully you got a book with your RV. Each RV winterizes slightly differently. Lots of people do the compressed air and find it works fine as long as you have the lines open and don't use too much pressure. Make sure the water is drained from the water heater and you by-pass it if you are using anti-freeze instead of compressed air. Also, be sure you use RV anti-freeze. Hopefully the dealer had it winterized when you bought it.

[bdpreece]

Winterizing is something we each seem to have our own preferences for. Being from the NW where we rarely see extreme cold for extended periods of time I just drain the water heater let the water lines drain out the low point drains then I use a fitting that lets me blow air through the lines. I start by opening the faucit closest to the input and blow air through it then shut it off and move to the next faucit. When I am through I then open the low point drains again and blow it out one more time. I personally believe that if you do it correctly compressed air works and is cheaper and better than using anti freeze. The trick is to make sure you get all the water out. No water nothing to freeze. I then use about one gallon of anti freeze in my traps and in my case the washer dryer. I also have an ice maker on the refigerator that I have to winterize. A word of caution; even after having done this for more years than I care to admit to last spring due to the fact that the light showing that the water heater was on 110 volts was burned out I plugged in and since there was no water in the tank burned out the element in about 30 seconds. Leave the refrigerator doors open and if you have battery disconnects use them or remove the negative cable so as to not drain the batteries with phantom draws. A small trickle charger on the batteries is always nice if you have power available. I also prefer to store my coach off level so as to keep water from pooling on the roof. In your case you may want to check periodically to make sure you don't get too much weight from snow on the roof. Good luck and remember between now and next spring you can just refer to it as the man cave. Sit in it and dream.

BD

[ChrisNiemann]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdpreece Winterizing is something we each seem to have our own preferences for. . Good luck and remember between now and next spring you can just refer to it as the man cave. Sit in it and dream. BD

agreed 100%

also, i would definately spend a "long weekend" in it, don't use the house for anything for a long weekend. in doing so you will find all the "stupid things" that aren't right for "you" or for your family that you will have plenty of time to work on, fix, move, rearrange, or just plain get rid of. when we bought our 93 MH we had it for a week before i had to take off to Nebraska where I lived in it for 3 months straight.... NOT THE GREATEST! furniture wasn't in the "best" place, hated the location of the tv's, furnace heated the middle of the rv 50 times better than front or back, etc. etc. etc. had i spent time in it before we hit the road i could have changed a lot. so instead of enjoying this last summer, it sat next to the shop for 6 months getting "renovated/updated". now this year in nebraska i'm in it for another 3+ months and it's more comfortable than a few TT's with slide outs!

on the other note, that is one big bumper puller!! very nice looking, feel free to post inside pics too............ PLLLEEAASSEEE i'm always looking for new ideas to do to this old girl, different fabric, flooring, faucet, countertop.... you name, i do all the work myself and love making it "personal"

speaking of personal, don't be afraid to make it yours! look at your fridge and freezer doors, the outside covering that you see, that can be removed and ANYTHING can be made to fit in there. I took my freezer door covering out and made my own! looks good and i'm more happy that it's "mine" lol