The all encompassing RV thread

[dingleberryswitzer 2724]

To me it always made sense they should make the shitter flush water to be pumped from the grey tank.  There's really no reason to flush with drinking water.  What's the worst that happens, the toilet smells slightly of shampoo?  But of course that adds another $50 pump. 

[davidg 4036]

I told myself we weren’t going to go looking this weekend but we spent 5 hrs at 3 different RV dealers today. Can’t find one in stock anywhere but we really like the floorplan layout of the Grand Design Imagine 2800BH. Based on the finish of others models in the family we could look at, makes the 2800BH the current leader.

[troph 24781]

I told myself we weren’t going to go looking this weekend but we spent 5 hrs at 3 different RV dealers today. Can’t find one in stock anywhere but we really like the floorplan layout of the Grand Design Imagine 2800BH. Based on the finish of others models in the family we could look at, makes the 2800BH the current leader.

Glad I could help out.

[davidg 4036]

Glad I could help out.

Lulz

[Pato del Muerto 52484]

Well I solved my “can’t tow anything big” issue 

[troph 24781]

Well I solved my “can’t tow anything big” issue 

Rumor is you bought a new truck....

[troph 24781]

Pics or GTFO

 

You too davidg.

[davidg 4036]

Pics or GTFO
 
You too davidg.

[Pato del Muerto 52484]

Exactly the setup we are looking for. That or a toy hauler with a 10 foot garage that converts to bunks. 

[troph 24781]

That’s a killer design especially for young kids. Those bunks tucked away are fantastic. Slide out looks larger in the video than it looks on the floor plan.

[davidg 4036]

My son responded back to a text of that video in less than a minute calling dibs on the top bunk. He’s 20.

[troph 24781]

Hot damn! davidg is IN!!

[Chewbacca 7765]

@troph is going to keep the RV industry solvent through 2020.

[Pescado_Rojo 19412]

On 5/31/2020 at 1:20 PM, BurntEyes said:

I appreciate this info, but, being me and you know that means..., I feel compelled to point out beyond these there are some niche manufacturers. Obviously, the production numbers are even lower and being niche the possibility of issues and lack of quality support are quite higher.

Some here know I was looking at a Sportsmobile. It had to go on hold after submitting a deposit, because life is a bitch. The idea still permeates a lot a time in my budget planning and I keep looking different directions but coming back to the same place.

Sportsmobile Classic..... Hmmmm yep..... Still want one 

Edit - But I want to be clear, it is NOT a vehicle for everyone or even most. You compromise a TON, for the off road capabilities. (Life enjoyment electronics, living comfort, actual kitchen, etc)... Niche, very niche.

I spend a few hours a week lusting over the EarthRoamer website and their Instagram feed. 

[Pato del Muerto 52484]

I see sports mobiles and earth roam era around here occasionally. Yeah it’d be fun to have one. 
 

@troph how does the 5th wheel feel compared to your bumper pull boat trailer? Used 5er rvs seem cheaper, probably due to fewer people able to pull them. How about hooking up and unhooking?

Edited June 2, 2020 by Pato del Muerto

[troph 24781]

Hard to compare because different truck too. It responds more slowly compared to a boat trailer but when you get it wrong you’ve got it wrong and it’s hard to correct without a restart. I guess it’s harder but really it’s just different.

I can see how a truck with less power would be awful. At least I’m driving the truck instead of the trailer pushing it.

The hookup and unhooking is super easy. You can actually see the hitch when you back up so there’s no guessing, watch your rear view and click it in.

[davidg 4036]

How are you watching in your rear view mirror when it’s laying in the back seat?

[fattyflattie 4639]

1 hour ago, davidg said:

How are you watching in your rear view mirror when it’s laying in the back seat?

Camera mirror upgrade up thread. Troph getting that truck nice and ready for me when they decide to upgrade to a triple axle toy hauler. 

[HOOKEM4 5036]

That back seat full of wires looks like my high school truck after I tried to install screens in headrests.

[troph 24781]

Jesus what a nightmare today getting it back from our friends ranch. All is good, no property damage, no injuries, no lives lost. But still.

[Texaus 377]

Jesus what a nightmare today getting it back from our friends ranch. All is good, no property damage, no injuries, no lives lost. But still.

Yea, gonna need some more details. Whatever it was, dont let it discourage you. Learning experience that you will be able to look back on and laugh about.

[Hawndoh 2386]

I'm on a trip at the moment with my own RV. We do things on a much smaller scale than most of this thread, though 

I have a 20 foot bunk model. KZ Sportsmen Classic 181BH. The table is on a slide so it still seats 4 full size people. Two bunks for my girls and a standard RV-queen for us. 

I upgraded the original painfully small 15 gallon grey and black tanks to 32 gallons each, I added curtains on the bunks so the kids can go to bed before we do, and I replaced all the mini blinds with curtains with blackout liners, which makes it darker at night and cooler in the day.

It's easy to tow with my Expedition, dry weight is around 3000 pounds.

It's wood frame and metal skin construction so it's easy to work on and repair minor things. I cut a hole and built a box that took some of the under-bed storage and made it accessible inside for a shoe spot. 

Has worked great for us. It's small enough to get in and out of smaller gas stations pretty easily, which is good because the Expedition gets horrible mileage while towing. There are campgrounds and campsites we've found where a larger unit wouldn't be able to set up.

It's big enough inside that the whole family can play a game or something if it's raining, but it's small enough that the kids want to be outside most of the time and not just hide out in the camper.

The other upside of this camper is I was able to get it new for around 12 grand.

Edit: oh yeah, it's also a 7ft wide trailer so I can see around it just fine with the standard mirrors on my vehicle, no need for extended mirrors.

Edited June 3, 2020 by Hawndoh

[troph 24781]

3 hours ago, Texaus said:

Yea, gonna need some more details. Whatever it was, dont let it discourage you. Learning experience that you will be able to look back on and laugh about.

It won't get us down but the only thing that kept it from being a grade A cluster fuck was avoiding personal injury and damage to personal property.  and we are not new to this, she's been an airstreamer for over 10 years and I've done fifth wheel and RV camping before.  I've camped before many times in tents, so dry camping with amenities is no big deal. I know things take longer and bad things can appear and you have to problem solve.  that's not to say we aren't novices in a lot of ways, of course we are (and you fellas and this thread are super helpful) but we aren't delusional about the challenges and we both enjoy the challenge and overcoming them especially in the handy outdoor kind of way that I think you guys get what I'm saying. what's completely brand new is the scale and size of the F-350 and this trailer.  which is really needed for 5 people including two people over 6' tall.  so knowing what happened was likely headed our way, even without the surprise we had quite the doozy of a night.

 

when we were taking the trailer out to his ranch we knew it was gonna be a shit show in and out.  there's about a mile of a road that's unimproved county road and it's narrow as can be and when they say unimproved, look out.  wow.  I've got a video of running up and down these roads in a can-am - tons of fun.  but hell for a 35 foot fifth wheel.  there's one low water crossing that's improved with a concrete crossing and one that's not.  the one that's not is seasonal and right now it's wet.  as with any crossing the water is in the low spot and the road in and out is angled.  well the angles are too steep.  so we have boards and rocks and levelers and can do it but it's painstakingly slow.  and I type this with a dispassionate tone but at 11pm last night when we were supposed to be sleeping I was 6 inches buried in mud, using wood in a stream (wood floats, wtf) to try and get the trailer through this mess.  ended up using rocks - keep in mind I'm recovering from tennis elbow (from last summer ugh) and so moving a 40 pound rock can set me back 3 months if I tweak my elbow and I'm only just now getting back to playing again.  anyway, we made it through that mess after about an hour.  but I ruined a favorite pair of old allbirds and nearly ripped a hole in my clothes which weren't exactly get dirty don't care work clothes.  but as I alluded to at first, no personal injury.  that would have devastated me. thank god I didn't tweak it.

 

we also got jammed up earlier in what is essentially an "S" turn that should have been an "L" turn had we taken the first turn correctly.  problem was that was at the gate and fences everywhere and uneven road, we almost tipped the trailer before we realized we had to back up and undo the "S" turn halfway through it.  We spent 2 hours see-sawing back and forth but finally did get that undone and then we were good. 

 

we arrived at 8pm thinking we would hook up and go and get through the low water crossing by 9pm just as it got dark.  nope.  we made it out on to the highway at about 12:15pm.  took us over 4 hours to hook up and get on the highway.  trees are cut back from the road by the landowners often but it has been 2 weeks so lots of overgrown brush and we were constantly brushing the trailer through the freaking Texas forest.  nutso.   bonus points for potshots from the peanut gallery and my girlfriend for thinking walkie talkies were over kill.  she told me at least 3 times those would come in handy because she couldn't hear me behind the trailer and cell phones were dying and didn't have reception anyway.

 

and it started when we arrived and the trailer smelled like something had died.  I opened the bathroom and noticed the shower pan through the opaque shower door was dark yellow.  freaking grey water tank backed up.  black water was not involved even though it smelled horrid.  we had not emptied it because our friend told us he would prefer we not.  problem was now we couldn't haul it without dumping.  so we had no choice but to dump the grey water.  I think that will be okay and there was no damage.  but remember when I explained earlier I did not change habits to see how much the two tanks would hold?  I think it's one tank for some drains and one tank for others.  my hunch is the kitchen sink and shower are on one and the bathroom sink is on the other.  so two tanks isn't really that at all.  one tank was completely full and I know how much water that is - 3 showers and 3 sinks of dishes.  fine, I can control that (lots of talk above about it) but we didn't know that last weekend.  in the end we got it taken care of - remember no property damage - but what a disaster.  

 

for the most part the relationship is intact.  we did fantastic until we got home and then we had to back it into the driveway. she didn't see my buddy back it up 5 times wrongly before nailing it the 6th time.  I tried to explain how he did it and she felt insulted.  look I get it some folk need to figure it out themselves and others need to be the knowledgeable one that proves she once had a man card.  let me be kinda clear here, we can both be really "butch" at times (though we are cute and not cargo shorts wearing buzz cut types) and when we are both in that mode it's a disaster.  She wanted to do it her way which included fucking up 10 times before she nailed it and I wanted to say "look, here's how you do it".  cops showed up and tried to help.  blue and red lights flashing. not helpful.  he saw the internal squabble brewing and left.  cop stopped to provide cover for safety but freaking left to avoid the domestic disturbance cat fight, that was funny to me.

 

we ended up in a rather loud fight at 2am in the house.  she screamed "I was asking for help and you weren't giving me help" and I was screaming "you lashed out at me when you were frustrated" and she screamed "I almost ran in to the mailbox and you wouldn't stand over there and watch" and I screamed "if you would have listened to me you would know I told you to be behind the mailbox so you didn't have to turn into it and you'd be free and clear all the way as you backed in" and we went round and round.  sleeping in other beds was on the table.  that didn't happen.  I relented into super apology mode which I learned from a prior life (y'all know this well I'm sure) and they were heart felt but I had to dig deep to get there.  I really was thinking "well, some folks don't respond well to being told what to do in a pressure situation, I can see that, maybe I did do it wrong for her.  yeah she lashed out and acted like a dick but I still didn't meet her where she needed me.  ok I can apologize." so I did, that seemed to sort of neutralize the situation. we fell asleep mad but woke up good when I brought coffee she grabbed my hand, she said she was sorry, I cried and we hugged and that was that.  she did really well.

 

I wouldn't say this was one of those memories we will look back and laugh at, it's actually a pattern of having a really hard time as a couple anytime we do something new that's difficult.  I could see it coming. once we get past the first cluster fuck of ineptitude we then turn the corner and are a really great team.  

 

it's fine, it's over, now it's time to own this puma bitch and get our asses to Colorado.  t-minus 36 hours and counting.

 

Edited June 3, 2020 by troph

[Pato del Muerto 52484]

Might be too late for Colorado, but is your rv such that you can flip the axles to give it more ground clearance?  We did that with ours for about a thousand bucks. Axles go under the leaf springs so the whole thing raises a few inches. 

[fattyflattie 4639]

Don't want to long cat, but reminds me of the time I let my wife try to put the boat on the trailer.  Think we both would have welcomed some police oversight.

[troph 24781]

34 minutes ago, fattyflattie said:

Don't want to long cat, but reminds me of the time I let my wife try to put the boat on the trailer.  Think we both would have welcomed some police oversight.

if I can long cat you can too.  together we make for one capable dude albeit one that hears voices in his head and fights with himself.  maybe a little schizoid or something.  but we don't have the benefit of that one guy that's always around, though we don't get mansplained to all the time either (no reference to any of you, really).  

Edited June 3, 2020 by troph

[fattyflattie 4639]

Mine was simple.  Hey honey, can you kick it into gear and ease up 5' or so until I stop you?  Sure!   Binnacle smashed from 0 to 11.  250 angry hp tries to bury me between 1500# of fiberglass and a bow stop.  We got married 2 years later and have 3 beautiful children.  Fin.  

*boat suffered absolutely 0 damage.  I suffered 0 damage (aside from potential heart attack, and simultaneous stroke)  It was an accident and I shouldn't have assumed she would be comfortable with it.  

[troph 24781]

@Hawndoh rules.

[Texaus 377]

Wowza. One lesson to take from that is to give yourself plenty of time before dark. Maybe also have a Xanax ready to go

[Hawndoh 2386]

Well these are pics from their website. I haven't bothered to find a good hosting site that works with Surly. And I don't use tapa.

[Hawndoh 2386]

Mine looks exactly like that, but I cut a big hole under the queen bed and built a box to hold shoes. Then I have simple curtains to close off the bunks.

[Hawndoh 2386]

And you can't see it in the pics but the best feature of this little camper is the fridge. It's much larger than many campers of similar size. It's got a separate freezer door instead of a little freezer compartment in the fridge. So we can get a lot in the fridge for a camper this size.

You can see it in this one.

 

I wish it had a vent hood over the stove, sometimes you can smoke up the camper while cooking. But we usually do messy stuff like bacon outside on a camp griddle and mostly reheat things and do stuff like eggs inside.

[troph 24781]

36 minutes ago, Hawndoh said:

Mine looks exactly like that, but I cut a big hole under the queen bed and built a box to hold shoes. Then I have simple curtains to close off the bunks.

pretty darn good use of space.  that's a full size RV fridge/freezer, that's awesome.

Edited June 3, 2020 by troph

[utee94 15797]

1 hour ago, Hawndoh said:

Mine looks exactly like that, but I cut a big hole under the queen bed and built a box to hold shoes. Then I have simple curtains to close off the bunks.

Good call on the hole.

Ours has a hinged section of the platform that raises and grants access to that storage compartment, that also has access from either side of the exterior of the RV. That's where dirty laundry goes, into a couple of large plastic storage bins.  That's also where the booze travels, all snug in the "booze box" that I built from a large crate and is lined with felt to keep the bottles from rattling.

 

[utee94 15797]

Oh, and my wife does all of the driving the boat onto and off the trailer, while I drive the truck and trailer.  She's great at it.  At this point, I'm sure she's way better than I am, since I've only done it a handful of times over the past 20 years.

[davidg 4036]

6 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Oh, and my wife does all of the driving the boat onto and off the trailer, while I drive the truck and trailer.  She's great at it.  At this point, I'm sure she's way better than I am, since I've only done it a handful of times over the past 20 years.

This here unless I'm going fishing with the guys.  We we first got our boat, I figured driving it on a trailer was much easier learned that backing down a narrow, steep ramp.  Worst that could happen with her in the boat is maybe some scuffed gel coat and/or a nicked prop vs watching my truck submerge from her leaving it in reverse and hopping out.  Although once he turned about 12 or 13 my son has handled boat loading duties.

 

And troph, maybe get some cones or other markers and spend an hour in an empty parking lot backing into a spot defined by the cones.  Work on backing skills and communication  skills so you are where she needs you to spot from and what you need to say to get her lined up correctly.  

[Hawndoh 2386]

Our bed also has a hinged part you can access that area but it isn't strutted or anything and the mattress hits the blinds/curtains and it just isn't easy to use. So we never bothered with it.

[Hawndoh 2386]

Communication while backing in between driver and spotter is key.

We've found that hand signals work way better than verbal. Between the "my right or your right" issues as well as looking in the mirror while doing it as well my wife's tendency to say things like "that way" instead of an actual clear direction lead us to mostly use gestures and hand signals.

[davidg 4036]

Let's talk RV storage.  Where are you keeping yours?  At the house?  Storage lot?  Open, covered or enclosed?  I keep my boats in a covered storage place about 10 mins from the house and am thinking about keeping the RV at the same place.  Current facility doesn't have covered spots  which is what I would prefer.  Open, 13 x 40 gravel spots are $74 and fully enclosed with concrete floor is $195.   Is the extra $$ worth it to extend the life of the roof? 

 

 

[Texaus 377]

Boats are in enclosed pole barn on my land. Never covered the rv when I had it. Was either parked in open on my property or left in rv park at the coast.

[Hawndoh 2386]

I store mine at a self storage place. Uncovered, no power, gravel/dirt surface for 50 per month.

It can be a bit annoying when it rains a lot because it sinks in the mud a little.

I've started taking a jack stand with me because sometimes I have to put the jack stand under the trailer tongue to raise the support out of the dirt hole, then kick more dirt and rocks under it, so I can then get the tongue high enough to hook up.

But it's the cheapest I could find and it's 10 minutes from my house. It's gated with cameras and such.

I remove the battery and propane tank and store those at home.

[utee94 15797]

My boat stays in covered storage, the vinyl just wears too fast if you don't keep it covered and the gelcoat fades and chalks up too, even under a cover.

My RV is in open storage, just a gravel/grass lot with coded gate access. $70/month but it's about 3 minutes from the house.   I worry some about the effects of exposure on the roof (and vents and AC shroud).  My old Airstream's body had no issues in the sun, but after ten years outdoors the shroud of the A/C did yellow out some, and get fairly brittle.  But, I guess I haven't worried about it enough to pay the delta to move it into covered storage.

Edited June 3, 2020 by utee94

[Hawndoh 2386]

Those plastic vent shrouds are relatively cheap. Cheap enough that replacing them every so often is still overall cheaper than covered RV storage.

[troph 24781]

We are $50 per month at camper clinic right now but will move it closer to us so we can pack and go. Not sure where yet. Not covered. Would like it covered but not sure I want the price for it.

[fattyflattie 4639]

I pay 160/mo for 38’ of covered storage for my boat.  Had it covered for free it’s entire life in 30x40 lean to I built when I bought it but brought it closer to home.  The entire place is full of RV’s, with about 10 boats.  No open or enclosed storage; facility is new.    It was $200 at next place for fully enclosed 45’, which if I could have used it, I would have thought harder about.  Boat is 23’, but entire rig is about 30’ so it’s tucked back deep and between a class A and a bumper pull. No sun, no rain, no dust, awesome.   Trying to figure a way to put an RV under cover at deer lease and that’ll go a long way to speeding one up for me. 

[Texaus 377]

Since camper was always exposed, I did cover tires when it was put up.

Tires, brakes, wheel hubs. Three most important components to maintain.

Do you know how to set trailer brake controller to road conditions? So many people just guess on it, but it’s super important to set it right depending on road conditions.... get trailer on flat surface going about 5 mph, let truck coast and slide lever on controller all the way to simulate a panic stop, trailer should slow truck down, just before locking up trailer tires, adjust it to number right before they lock up and then go down one more number. If roads are at all slick, notch controller waaaay down. Most dangerous situation is locking up trailer brakes on slick road and jackknife.

[troph 24781]

Gentlemens!!! We have POWER!

 

Bitches win!!

 

 

 

Ran all the lights, fridge and an AC for a good while no probs.

 

Yes a little under powered but we will manage it and won’t boondock when we really need two ACs - we don’t camp with hair dryers and microwave will be off limits. should be fine for Colorado summers. Best part we can manage their weight and some redundancy.

[Texaus 377]

That is very slick. I prefer two inverters in parallel too. You can always just run one if a/c is not needed(if you have the dogbone to plug into 120).

This what I have

[troph 24781]

We have the same power set up just different brands. That’s cool. Not sure your power needs versus mine but we feel good about it. Surprisingly quiet especially if we move them to the non-living side but definitely a nuisance if you want perfect quiet or are in close quarters with others. Hope to not need them that often, maybe a few hours in the morning and then in the evening.

[troph 24781]

 

And troph, maybe get some cones or other markers and spend an hour in an empty parking lot backing into a spot defined by the cones.  Work on backing skills and communication  skills so you are where she needs you to spot from and what you need to say to get her lined up correctly.  

 

We will definitely get better. We talked through it a lot today all is good. A lot of “stay in your lane” kinda talk. That’s a fair point. She wants to drive it in tight quarters that’s fine. Doesn’t mean I can’t just that’s the role.

 

We will use my 2 ways next time too. 40+ feet away no cell coverage and a loud truck you can’t hear crap and at night it’s even worse.