Slide or not to slide

ron.dittmer wrote:
This sure is a never ending debate, slide out or no slide out. I find it entertaining.

I love this forum.

One more thought on it.......

I would think that people who are on the move a lot would be less interested in a slide out compared to people who stay in one place for multiple nights at a time.

Also, if you find yourself often in places where there is traffic, like say parking lots and such (tail gating), I would think you wouldn't want the house expanded to avoid another vehicle colliding into it.

I wonder if that is a reason, that Europeans have been slow or resisted having Slides, their weather?

Slides don't add as much weight as you would think. All you're adding, weight-wise, is the mechanism and side walls, roof and floor that extend into the coach when in, the exterior wall is going to be there anyway. Since most slides are between the axles, a couple of hundred pounds isn't a huge deal for most motorhomes. Adding 4' to the coach is likely more weight than most slides, and the unit with the slide will still feel bigger.

Let me address two points you made in your original post. You plan to use the RV for long cross country trips. As you know from your TT, the slides are no benefit while driving down the road. Only when stopped. Even then, they add some time to set-up and take-down at CGs, and you need to check out the site for trees and other obstructions. No biggie, but still requires the extra steps.

You asked about structural issues. Other than failures to extend or retract (not frequent, but do occur), the issue with slides are their added weight to the chassis. Later model Ford Chassis like the E450, have a GVWR of 14500 pounds. All manufacturers get this much weight to work with when constructing a RV. Generally speaking, the longer the RV, options like leveling jacks and slide outs add weight and take away from the OCCC (Occupant and Cargo Carrying Capacity). So, how much weight you plan to carry may be affected by the slide out. How you plan to use the RV will have some impact on this. For example, going to the same campground only on weekends will require less "stuff" (food, clothes, gear) than spending weeks traveling across the country. So, OCCC may be a consideration.

So, think about how you will use the RV most of the time. Think about the weight of the RV you are considering. Make sure to find out the OCCC of the unit under consideration (do not depend on the sales rep for this info., look for a sticker in the RV). This will help you decide slide or no slide.

Best wishes.

We currently have a 28' C with 2 slide-outs and would not have it any other way. Before buying, for a number of years we rented a variety of Class Cs from 24 to 32 feet long, with and without slide-outs. Based on that experience we definitely wanted one with a slide-out.

A motorhome with slide-outs is effectively a non slide-out unit when the slides are in. So if the weather is bad, say snowing and below freezing we can keep the slides in to prevent icing on the slide awnings. We have had up to 2" of snow on the awnings without a problem, and when above freezing slid the slide-outs in then back out to dump the snow. The slide awnings prevent debris and water from being slid inside. When out, the slide awnings and double slide seals prevent any water from entering in the highest winds and torrential rains.

We don't slide out the slide-outs when in transit so there are no issues parking in parking lots, etc. We usually park well away from other vehicles and park in a number of spots. I have also crammed it in a few places but like our cars tend to avoid issues with other people opening their car doors.

When we are on the go we still will slide-out even for a 1 night stay. After leveling it takes just a couple more minutes to take a quick look outside to verify clearances, then slide them out. If we were really tired we could skip the slide-out step. We have taken some day trips and do not slide out the rear slide in that case. When drycamping we have the engine running while sliding out or in to not discharge the batteries.

Our rear slide-out blocks 2 of the lower drawers in the large wardrobe unit back there. We handle that by appropriate loading of items so that when on the go we do not need access to those items. Other than the 2 drawers everything is functional. Our storage space is never full so we could actually not use those 2 drawers if necessary.

I look at it as the floor space of a 32' MH (non-slide) in a 28' length.

This sure is a never ending debate, slide out or no slide out. I find it entertaining.

I love this forum.

One more thought on it.......

I would think that people who are on the move a lot would be less interested in a slide out compared to people who stay in one place for multiple nights at a time.

Also, if you find yourself often in places where there is traffic, like say parking lots and such (tail gating), I would think you wouldn't want the house expanded to avoid another vehicle colliding into it.

I've had both.
Think of this question like you might when buying a cake to eat. No icing--like a rv w/o slide (still good, but not as good as one w/icing); cake w/icing--a rv with a slide (I consider this better set up).
Also on resale, slides add value.
Just my opinion.

I travel in a 'C' without a slide for a three reasons.
1. Since I'm single, I don't need the extra space.
2. If a slide out failed to slide back in, I'd be stuck until I got somebody to fix it. I'm not "handy". My tool box has a hammer, a couple of screwdrivers and a credit card in it.
3. It was cheaper.

I think you will find those that have a slide will vote for a slide and those that don't will vote for no slide.

Maybe a better question would be to ask slide owners if they would get one, again.

We purchased a small C recently with a slide and are not the least bit concerned with having problems. Ours also functions without extending the slide. We travel light so the added weight is not a concern.

Most everything on rvs requires some kind of maintenance and has the potential for failure so that doesn't concern us either.

These is really a personal preference issue as we all have different needs and travel styles. I would buy the floor plan that suits you and your wife with or without a slide.

For his first RV, my brother bought a Class C without a slide. After using it on several trips, he traded it for a slightly longer C WITH a slide. Although it is technically not that many square feet added, for me it is a "psychological" feeling of much more space added when a slide is included.

As others have stated, you will probably sacrifice some storage as far as weight is concerned. However, that may actually be a good thing. It is very easy to cram most everything you think you MIGHT need into any kind of RV. After several years of short term RVing, my wife and I found out that we carried way too much "stuff" in the RV. Once you put it in there, you are basically just hauling it around and probably don't even remember it is in there.

Regardless of what you choose, travel as light as possible.

One other possibility is to rent an RV without a slide for a few days and see how it feels. The only one who can make the choice is you and what suits your needs. Good luck with your search.

The popularity of a slide out in a class C speaks volume.

With that said, my wife and I special ordered our shorter 23'-8" rig HERE without a slide out for we plan to own our rig for more than 30 years and didn't want to deal with developing issues as those years go by. We are 8 years in so far with over 22 years to go and we are still very happy with our choice NOT to have a slide out. We load our rig on trips to near the load rating of the chassis as it is. Adding one 500 pound slide out would tip the scales over.

Listed here are the benefits in having a slide out.
- resale value
- more open floor space
- some floor plans require a slide out to function right

Listed here are short and long term benefits NOT to have a slide out.
- around 500 pounds lighter (per slide out)
- no wind-driven rain penetration
- no cold air penetration
- no hot air penetration
- no humidity penetration
- no dust penetration
- no generator exhaust fumes penetration
- no rattles or wind noise when driving
- no bugs brought inside
- more quiet inside when sleeping at night
- bigger cabinets along the wall
- less things to break or fail
- less to get damaged by you and even other vehicles
- a stronger over-all house structure
- if on right side, a slide out takes up precious canopy space
- a slide out requires regular maintenance to work it's best
- a slide out as an option costs a lot of money

You determine your own priorities and go from there.