First off... Welcome to the forums! Keep reading, and keep posting questions. And don't feel shy to read from all the forums on this site. There is good information on all of them. You may pick up some good information on the truck camper forum when you are actually a travel trailer owner. Many things posted are common for everyone. Good info on all of them.
About length. We went from an 18 foot travel trailer pulled with a 1500 Chevy Suburban, worked our way up to a 41 foot Fifth Wheel pulled by a 3500 diesel 1 ton dualy. Each step up, 18 feet, to 31, to 35 to 41 presented its own challenges. But nothing prepared me going from a 35 foot travel trailer to a 41 foot fifth wheel.
What were the problems with the 41 foot fifth wheel? First, the height. Adding about 2 feet taller created more wind resistance when driving. My fuel mileage dropped some. Second, I have no problems with overpasses or fuel stations, but low hanging trees in campgrounds was not something I experienced with a travel trailer. No need to. They weren't that tall. Now, after several encounters with low hanging branches, I'm finally fully aware ... to look up!
Second, is the length. I wasn't prepared for the extra 5 feet of length. Not that the extra length makes it hard backing into campsites. What I wasn't prepared for was the trailer swing. I've clipped the drivers side rear twice now. First time was near the roof (yea, low hanging tree), and the second time was near the bottom, and knocked of the corner trim. Fortunate, neither incident created any serious damage that couldn't be patched up. Oh, I have a dent and some scratches now, but nothing got broken, except some trim I was able to replace.
The trailer swing is no issue on the road or even gas stations. I'm aware of my surroundings. But in campgrounds, navigating through trees and tight turns, well, you can't always tell what's going on. However, just 2 days ago I installed a rear observation camera so maybe this will help a bit seeing what's actually going on behind the camper.
The third thing I wasn't prepared for was shoddy craftsmanship. Spending a fortune on a new camper, one one expect it to be bullet proof. Ha! Fat chance. The closet shelf holding the clothes bar along the back wall completely broke off. I just finished rebuilding the closet from my patch work I did about 6 months ago. I used real wood and did some real remodeling in there.
Which brings up another issues, I wasn't aware of with longer trailers... the rear end bounce! The king pin may bounce up and down only an inch, but the pivot point on the axles can make the rear end move a foot up and down, and with a lot more force, causing .... yea ... the closet along the back wall to break.
Well, not only the closet, but the door to the bedroom broke, paneling staples popped out, and the underbelly of the camper broke out. All because of the extreme force from the long rear overhang. Well, each item was fixed (by me), strengthened, modified, and made rock solid now!
Which brings up item 4: Be prepared to fix thing yourself. I've always done my own repairs and fixes on all my campers in the past, except those items I could not do because of time or lack of availability of tools... like new tires, ect. But I wasn't prepared for the constant upkeep of this trailer. Again, I think it's because of the length, it just takes a greater beating than any of my shorter travel trailers.... And we travel a lot. We are on the road almost every week-end. We got the camper September 2018 and we've probably put 15,000 miles on it already. So, it's taking a beating. Be prepared for unending fixes. It will happen.
Well, hopefully, I gave you something else to think about. Maybe this is not the best news you wanted to hear, but it is reality! Good luck in your choices.
