Planning to RV full-time this spring

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by heyduke Okay, here is the situation my DW and I will retire in very early 2012 and we had been studying places we wanted to move to as well. And then all of the sudden I say to her last week what about not having a house and RV'ing it for several years to get a lot of quality traveling in while investigating places to live at the same time. .. and she says Great Idea! so now I am also investigating this life style. We too currently live in Texas at the other schools location but are ready to move on...

Yeah if you want to move from where you currently have a house and you don't really know where you want to move to, and you want to spend a bunch of time traveling anyway (moving would definitely cut into traveling time!), then living in an RV is a great transition plan.

That was definitely part of our motivation!

BTW - if you suggest it, and spouse says "Great Idea" then you guys have got it made. My husband had the same reaction - "That's It!" when I pointed out that we really didn't need a house.

Of course he had also been griping for years about the house and yard maintenance chores that always awaited us upon return from one of our trips, so he had a lot of incentive to get rid of the house too!

Audrey

[Gone4Good]

We just got back from a large RV show in PA, and this model (but not this specific RV) is sitting atop a very short list of potential candidates . . .

2010 WINNEBAGO Sightseer 33C for sale in Forest City, Iowa - RVTraderOnline.com

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go We just got back from a large RV show in PA, and this model (but not this specific RV) is sitting atop a very short list of potential candidates . . . 2010 WINNEBAGO Sightseer 33C for sale in Forest City, Iowa - RVTraderOnline.com

We own a 2009 Itaska (Winnebago) Suncruiser. It's great and ample at 36'.

Most full-timers have > 33 feet. Space contracts with time, so research that carefully. I am impressed with the quality of our rig so far.

[IndependentlyPoor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa We own a 2009 Itaska (Winnebago) Suncruiser. It's great and ample at 36'. Most full-timers have > 33 feet. Space contracts with time, so research that carefully. I am impressed with the quality of our rig so far.

We have never owned an RV, but we lived for a couple of years in a 39' sailboat. Talk about itty-bitty spaces. These pics from the maker's website.



Despite the Lilliputian living areas, we never felt cramped. I think there are two reasons for this. Really good design, including closing doors that allow the sleeping areas to be isolated from the living areas; and a large covered cockpit that functioned as and outside living and dining room.

I'd want to walk around in it first, but a 33' or 36' sound good to me.

As they say, it's not the size of the deck, it's how you sit on it.

[brewer12345]

Looks nice. Have enough storage space? Cargo carrying capacity?

[retire@40]

RVing full-time intrigues me and maybe I will do it some day. I will need to test the waters first by renting an RV and doing a lot of research.

I've been reading Tioga and George for a while which has helped take away some of the fear of RVing.

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa Most full-timers have > 33 feet. Space contracts with time, so research that carefully. I am impressed with the quality of our rig so far.

Looks like the dealer site has the specs wrong. It's 34' 3" according to Winnebago. So a little bigger than 33', but not much.

This is actually the largest rig we seriously considered, and one of the best layouts we've seen. We really like that the TV sits at eye level directly across from the couch, creating a real living room. It makes the whole space feel bigger. At the RV show, they had about 10 people pretty much camped out in the thing watching the tube.

At the moment I feel like I'd actually deep six one of the living room slides in exchange for more storage space. That feeling might change once I start living in the thing, but right now I think we'll have more than enough living space for just the two of us.

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewer12345 Looks nice. Have enough storage space? Cargo carrying capacity?

CCC is about 4,100 lbs. which I think will be enough. Interior storage space is pretty decent, exterior storage space is a little lean. Ironically, in a lot of the models we looked at, exterior storage space was inversely proportional to the cargo carrying capacity. Pretty much whenever we'd find a model with a big basement, the CCC was so low that you couldn't actually fill all that space with anything other than balloon animals and packing peanuts. Seems like an issue with gas models and a good argument for stepping up to a pusher.

I can see storage space being an issue, but at the same time, we don't have a lot of large stuff we'll be taking with us. Besides, the motor home is about 1/3 the size of the place we live in now . . . and most of the additional space in our condo is a guest room. It's not like we're downsizing from a palatial estate.

The only way to find out, though, is to do it. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go At the moment I feel like I'd actually deep six one of the living room slides in exchange for more storage space. That feeling might change once I start living in the thing, but right now I think we'll have more than enough living space for just the two of us.

That's the trade-off we made. It was a tough call but I think we made the right choice for us as we really needed the extra storage bins. And more slides = more weight, more mechanical things that can break.

However, I've been in a lot of other Alpines with two living room slides and they seem much larger inside.

Audrey

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go CCC is about 4,100 lbs. which I think will be enough. Interior storage space is pretty decent, exterior storage space is a little lean. Ironically, in a lot of the models we looked at, exterior storage space was inversely proportional to the cargo carrying capacity. Pretty much whenever we'd find a model with a big basement, the CCC was so low that you couldn't actually fill all that space with anything other than balloon animals and packing peanuts. Seems like an issue with gas models and a good argument for stepping up to a pusher.

4100 lbs is a pretty good number for a gas model. Our CCC was 4400.

I had read that fulltimers usually add around 2000 lbs of their personal stuff to an RV. It looks like we added around 1500 lbs.

After about 6 months we used a truck scale. Fully loaded our coach weighed in just under 30,000 lbs. With a GVWR of 33,000 we are nicely under any safety limit.

Audrey

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go This is actually the largest rig we seriously considered, and one of the best layouts we've seen. We really like that the TV sits at eye level directly across from the couch, creating a real living room. It makes the whole space feel bigger. At the RV show, they had about 10 people pretty much camped out in the thing watching the tube. At the moment I feel like I'd actually deep six one of the living room slides in exchange for more storage space. That feeling might change once I start living in the thing, but right now I think we'll have more than enough living space for just the two of us.

I've seen it and it is a great layout. IIRC it does not have basement air like many other Winnies so if that's important, be sure to ask -- noise factor during conversation. The sliding doors are great - you might appreciate it if you ever travel with kids, grandkids, etc.

[brewer12345]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go CCC is about 4,100 lbs. which I think will be enough. Interior storage space is pretty decent, exterior storage space is a little lean. Ironically, in a lot of the models we looked at, exterior storage space was inversely proportional to the cargo carrying capacity. Pretty much whenever we'd find a model with a big basement, the CCC was so low that you couldn't actually fill all that space with anything other than balloon animals and packing peanuts. Seems like an issue with gas models and a good argument for stepping up to a pusher. I can see storage space being an issue, but at the same time, we don't have a lot of large stuff we'll be taking with us. Besides, the motor home is about 1/3 the size of the place we live in now . . . and most of the additional space in our condo is a guest room. It's not like we're downsizing from a palatial estate. The only way to find out, though, is to do it. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Sounds decent. We lived in a 775 sq ft condo BC (before children) and a fair chunk of that was guest room, so I could pretty easily see it not being much of a challenge to get used to the small space. After cramming 4 people and two dogs into our 16 ft trailer, I think that DW and I could get away with extended trips in a class B if we were by ourselves.

[heyduke]

Well after several days of discussion with the DW about the possibility of full time RV'ing she seems totally intrigued and excited about the possibilities. So we now have a plan that in the spring of 2011 (my daughter's last year in college) we will fly out to North Carolina and rent an RV for a month. My DD plays softball for a university and we will use the RV to travel to all the cities she plays in thus, killing two birds with one stone. We get to see all of her games in her last season and we get to practice retirement in an RV to see what it is all about... now if only 2011 would hurry up and get here...

I have a lot to learn before then...

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa IIRC it does not have basement air like many other Winnies so if that's important, be sure to ask -- noise factor during conversation. The sliding doors are great - you might appreciate it if you ever travel with kids, grandkids, etc.

You recall correctly . . . no basement air. I've heard mixed things about it. Some people claim its better, others not so much. In either event, it's not a big enough factor to be a decision maker for us.

But I gather you have it and prefer it to the rooftop units?

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by audreyh1 And more slides = more weight, more mechanical things that can break.

Heh-heh-heh-heh. We originally thought "no slides". Turns out, we'll likely have three. The extra one in the living room seems gratuitous, but it's the only option with that floor plan, and everything else fits us nicely.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by heyduke Well after several days of discussion with the DW about the possibility of full time RV'ing she seems totally intrigued and excited about the possibilities. So we now have a plan that in the spring of 2011 (my daughter's last year in college) we will fly out to North Carolina and rent an RV for a month. My DD plays softball for a university and we will use the RV to travel to all the cities she plays in thus, killing two birds with one stone. We get to see all of her games in her last season and we get to practice retirement in an RV to see what it is all about... now if only 2011 would hurry up and get here... I have a lot to learn before then...

The first book I read was "RVing for Dummies". It told me enough that I was confident in using our first RV (a trailer). Something like that would probably help significantly reduce the confusion and hassles of that RV rent experiment. Of course, you can also always ask your camping neighbors - they're usually happy to help.

Audrey

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by audreyh1 4100 lbs is a pretty good number for a gas model. Our CCC was 4400.

We're probably comparing apples and oranges. My 4,100 is dry. If I fill it with water, propane and the two of us, its more like 3,100 . . . which is probably still plenty considering our more limited basement space.

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go You recall correctly . . . no basement air. I've heard mixed things about it. Some people claim its better, others not so much. In either event, it's not a big enough factor to be a decision maker for us. But I gather you have it and prefer it to the rooftop units?

DW is sensitive to the noise at night and during conversation. As you know most units have roof air and depending on how it is ducted it could be just fine or quite noisy - didn't bother at first but after sitting and talking with the salesman for 30 minutes it became noticeable and a bit annoying. The basement air is the quietest I've seen (inside, that is).

Easy enough to try out, just give it more than 5 minutes before deciding. Of course where we live it's always on for 6 months a year.

[Gone4Good]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa DW is sensitive to the noise at night and during conversation. As you know most units have roof air and depending on how it is ducted it could be just fine or quite noisy - didn't bother at first but after sitting and talking with the salesman for 30 minutes it became noticeable and a bit annoying. The basement air is the quietest I've seen (inside, that is). Easy enough to try out, just give it more than 5 minutes before deciding. Of course where we live it's always on for 6 months a year.

I did notice the Winne air on the 33C was noisier than the Tiffin we were also looking at (also a roof top design). But both were quieter than the wall units we have in our place now . . . so its all a mater of perspective.

I guess living modestly is paying off in more ways than I originally expected.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by . . . Yrs to Go We're probably comparing apples and oranges. My 4,100 is dry. If I fill it with water, propane and the two of us, its more like 3,100 . . . which is probably still plenty considering our more limited basement space.

Yeah - our CCC was with full fuel, water, propane, and two adults. That's normally how CCC is quoted.

But 3100 is still a good number for a gasser.

Audrey