Is a toad necessary with a small motor home?

Oops, duplicate. I wish I had a way to delete this.

valhalla360 wrote:

siremike wrote:
I do have a question concerning the fridge. While breaking down the Rv and going somewhere is not a problem what are the chances of finding a level parking place to keep the fridge level within limits.

I do travel with pets so I am not sure leaving them in an RV while visiting a location would make me feel comfortable.

The fridge is the big concern. I sometimes wish I had pushed to have a compressor fridge installed instead of the 3 way.

I live in Florida and my trips always stress me some concerning the fridge temp.

Thanks

I'd say most parking lots are level enough, that a propane fridge will be fine.

Going down the road, the jostling eliminates most of the out of level concerns.

I totally agree with valhalla360.

We have a 2019 "23'" no-slide class C which measures 24'10" bumper to bumper. We are just weekenders and still work full-time, but we did 39 nights last year and over 10k mi. We have been over Snoqualmie pass twice TODAY for a doc appt in Everett (we live in eastern WA.) So we went through some big cities and ~700 mi within last 24 hrs. I'm gonna say no toad for us, we can explore any town or big city basically the same as if we were driving a Surburban or similar. This is our third RV and all were similar sized, we stick with this size range because it works well for us. But as was said, everyone travels very different.

We have a 26 ft Minnie Winnie and we now use the toad. I believe it depends on if you are a traveler, destination camper, or just relax in the campground campers. We started out as travelers,rarely staying more than one night in the same location. We have involved more into destination campers, staying in one location and exploring the area in the toad. Now if we going to a campground for a couple of days to just relax, we load everything we need into the MH and leave the toad at home.

The normal limit for absorption reefers in about 3°

3 degrees, as you are looking at the fridge ,
I feel comfortable with it being a little off north/south but not so much east/west. The tubes on the rear of the fridge run east/west being more critical to be level .

siremike wrote:
I do have a question concerning the fridge. While breaking down the Rv and going somewhere is not a problem what are the chances of finding a level parking place to keep the fridge level within limits.

I do travel with pets so I am not sure leaving them in an RV while visiting a location would make me feel comfortable.

The fridge is the big concern. I sometimes wish I had pushed to have a compressor fridge installed instead of the 3 way.

I live in Florida and my trips always stress me some concerning the fridge temp.

Thanks

For temporary seriously off-level parking spots when away from a campsite shopping, sight-seeing, etc. - you can just shut off the refrig for a few hours so as to keep it from not-cooling and/or otherwise damaging itself.

Have you considered electric bikes as an alternative. Even if you aren't a bicycler they will do most all of the work for you. If you need to shop, or have littles you can bring along a bike trailer, but realistically getting a good cargo system and/or some bungees would likely be sufficient.

Our family was too big to carry bikes for everyone, but we found that even just having one e-bike, allowed for grocery or laundry runs by one parent without moving the motorhome. It was a great in between.

I literally used a diy electric bike and double bike trailer as our second vehicle in rural Appalachia for 5 years. When I had 100lbs of kids and trailer going up a steep hill I had to pedal hard, but without the kids or only moderate hills I could ride like it was nothing if I wanted to.

WE spent many years with a truck with a slide-in camper that was 22 feet in length and 7.5 feet in width, or about the same as our new Class C motorhome. The big difference is that the pickup had a foot more ground clearance and so I neverr worried about taking it anywhere. With the motorhome I do have to be more careful not to drag the rear, even when exiting a parking lot.

It is quite restrictive to have a toad and if one has a Class A motorhome it is a necessary evil, so to speak. Lots of work arounds for dealing with fuel stops but if you are driving along and want to pull off to see the view or stop for a bit to eat then you need a lot more space and also have concerns about getting back on the road.

With the toad you pretty much have to find a place to park the motorhome and then detach the vehicle and run your errands or explorations and that affects how one travels. If you don't mind planning stops and staying in one location for days at a time then the toad works well, much as would having a tow vehicle and a travel trailer.

We wanted the simpler mode of travel with the motorhome and no trailer or towed vehicle to worry about. No issues with making tight turns or backing up or finding a place to park or going into a restaurant or grocery store while in route to our next location.

The advantage of the toad is in part having a 4 passenger vehicle and room for attaching kayaks or bicycles or e-bikes and other recreational equipment. But it entails a $20,000 or more investment in the toad purchase and insurance and the hitch and brake controller.

For our motorhome I have been looking at cargo carrying e-bikes that could be carried on a special bike rack on the motorhome. At this time these racks cannot be bought as they have been sold out eeverywhere for many months.

To goufgators first,

We have a small A. We had a towed and it was way more trouble than it was worth. Most of the time, we have carried a pair of folding bicycles (I often refer to as inflatable) that are inside the coach when we travel and they stay safe and clean.

To siremike,

The normal limit for absorption reefers in about 3°. Get a calibrated level or use your phone and you will find that the 3° is a serious slant. Most parking areas are way flatter than that.

Matt

I came from a class A. Since you have the toad try both ways. My first class C was 28’. I did a tour of Michigan’s UP without a toad. Also went to Lambeau Field without one. I missed things doing that. Ever since then I continue to tow. The one thing about a toad is you always have a second set of wheels, if needed.