I plan on living in an RV and have questions

[LancasterGod]

Hello I'm new to this forum, My name's Richard. I'm 23 years old and plan on buying for a 30 feet RV and than I'm going to drive it around and live in it at random areas in town. I live in Modesto, CA. My only issue is I've been told living in an RV is practically impossible because it has tanks that fill up for your water. 100 gallon water for the fresh water tank, the toilet black water tank is 50 gallons and the grey water tank is 50 gallons. So with all those expenses alone how does anybody even come close to saving money living in an RV? Is there way to make this cheaper? I'd like to shower, piss, dump in it every day and wash my hands? Is it all going to cost me a huge amount of money? Thanks a lot I appreciate any feedback I can get.

[Dtwallace]

Well for the activities you've noted, it's not the cost that you need to be concerned with, it's the where.


Where are you getting your fresh water?


Where will you be emptying your tanks (black and gray) when or hopefully before they get full.


Water can be attained for free, where dumping your wastes tanks may cost you for the use of the service if straight into the sewer dumping is illegal where you are.


Look into these issues first and I'm sure you'll be back with more questions on other topics later.


Good luck


DTW

[Stripe34]

...and often times, it's NOT the cheapest way to live in comfort similar to a house. There are threads here and elsewhere about increasing campground costs and overcrowding.

YMMV

[stepside454]

Stripe , I don't think he plans on staying in campgrounds .

[TeJay]

Everything will cost you money. Very little out there is really free. You will either pay for the conveniences of living or be off the grid. If you are off the grid you will need fuel for a generator to provide electricity. Your batteries will work your stuff including a pump to give you water to wash. The batteries won;t last for ever so you'll need fuel to run the generator.

Running the genny will also cause you some issues. Most CG's don't like the genny running all the time because of noise. So you will be limited unless you are alone which is not easy to find those places. If you are less than 1/4 tank on your fuel your genny usually won't run. The manufacturers do that so you won't run yourself out of fuel to move the MH while running your genny.

Camping will cost some almost everywhere you camp. The state and National parks are cheaper but somewhat limited. Not all have full hook ups. A full hook up gives you water, electricity and a continuous dump. That means for between $30 and $50 a day you have all you'll need. Not on a full hook up means no dump. So you are limited as to how long you can stay and take showers without dumping. Most CG's that are not full hook ups allow you to dump on your way out. That means that every few days you have to unhook and dump. Then relocate. Many CG's also have limitations as to how long you can stay. Usually the State parks do but not the private CG's.

The private ones also have many, many rules that you might find difficult living with and they are usually more expensive. Even some private CG's won't allow some MH's older than 10 years old to stay in the places. It's a beauty issue for them.

All of this is up to you but there are no free rides. Surely you know this even if you are only 23.

TeJay

[mel s]

Originally Posted by LancasterGod

Hello I'm new to this forum, My name's Richard. I'm 23 years old and plan on buying for a 30 feet RV and than I'm going to drive it around and live in it at random areas in town. I live in Modesto, CA. My only issue is I've been told living in an RV is practically impossible because it has tanks that fill up for your water. 100 gallon water for the fresh water tank, the toilet black water tank is 50 gallons and the grey water tank is 50 gallons. So with all those expenses alone how does anybody even come close to saving money living in an RV? Is there way to make this cheaper? I'd like to shower, piss, dump in it every day and wash my hands? Is it all going to cost me a huge amount of money? Thanks a lot I appreciate any feedback I can get.

LancasterGod
If you plan on LIVING in your RV you will have to also plan on PAYING to dump the waste tanks, get fresh water, buy RV and generator fuel, and buy propane whenever necessary.

[pasdad1]

Just one guy should be able to stretch your water for two weeks if you are very frugal. Turn on the shower to get wet, then turn it off. Soap up. Then turn it in again to rinse. While waiting for the water to get hot, catch it in a bucket. Then use that bucket water for flushing toilets, or washing dishes.

Use this website to find places to dump your tanks and fill back up with fresh water.

www.rvdumpsites.net

[pasdad1]

[nothermark]

Living in your RV while moving around town is neither simple nor cheap, will probably get you hassled by the police and will make many parts of your life difficult because you do not have a permanent address. It is not a smart thing to do. Folks who do it usually slide into it and find out the hard way.

[computerguy]

Originally Posted by nothermark

Living in your RV while moving around town is neither simple nor cheap, will probably get you hassled by the police and will make many parts of your life difficult because you do not have a permanent address. It is not a smart thing to do. Folks who do it usually slide into it and find out the hard way.

Can't agree more. Sure you read about people trying to do this but that is not the basis of this forum.
If I understand the OP he is trying to "stay in town" aka Stealth Camping. Living in an RV in Modesto CA I bet dollars to donuts is not legal. It is not legal in most built up populated areas.
You would have to go find some BLM land or NF land and even then there are time limits in and then time you must be out.
Full timing in an RV is not necessarily cheaper than a owning or renting. It depends where you are staying. More so it is about a "way of life". If I were to stay in and around a stationary place of work I would not live in an rv.

[mel s]

Originally Posted by computerguy

Can't agree more. Sure you read about people trying to do this but that is not the basis of this forum.
If I understand the OP he is trying to "stay in town" aka Stealth Camping. Living in an RV in Modesto CA I bet dollars to donuts is not legal. It is not legal in most built up populated areas.
You would have to go find some BLM land or NF land and even then there are time limits in and then time you must be out.
Full timing in an RV is not necessarily cheaper than a owning or renting. It depends where you are staying. More so it is about a "way of life". If I were to stay in and around a stationary place of work I would not live in an rv.

computerguy
??
What then IS "the basis of this forum"?
Wondering

[computerguy]

Originally Posted by mel s

computerguy
??
What then IS "the basis of this forum"?
Wondering

I would like to believe it is to foster the way to live full time in an RV legally.

[lanerd]

This is his first post and with nothing but negative replies, I doubt if he will be back Just saying.

Ron

[TeJay]

More like some good, "Wake Up reality comments."

TeJay