Am I completely crazy?
Looking for some advice... But first, a little background information. My wife and I have been married 10 years, are in our early 30's, and just had our first baby in August. We have 3 medium si...
Forum Discussion
7 days work, 7 days RVing,
Old Mark Twain axiom "All RVers are different in their life on the RV road and so what works for some RVers, will not work for other RVers" or Mark Twain said " there is no right or wrong answer to your question, in the end only you and more importantly, your whole family can determine the level of sanity or insanity of your RV dream."
Thoughts you might consider:
1. The size and type of your RV should be considered in terms of, various types of weather conditions you will located at. i.e. rain and cold weather conditions will mean that you, the family will tend to be restricted to inside your RV. The family and 3 dogs couped up indoors for days could be stressful and testy(:. Who takes the dog out to poop when it is cold and raining?
I would suggest you look at the largest size of an RV your budget will allow.
2. At the raising the hair on the necks of animal lovers, tending to the needs of animals requires more accommodations and time on the RVing family. Each RV park has it's own set of rules/limitations allowing dogs i.e. most RV parks do not permit dogs to left alone in the RV so that the RVer can go out and visit or explore. Some parks require that the dog be on a leash at all times when outside of the RV. Some RV parks only the dog to "poop" in a area segregated just for that purpose. IMHO, I am not sure that restricting dogs to life in an RV does not
necessary meet the needs of dogs but rather tends to meet the needs of people.
3. The cost of maintenance of an RV should be evaluated and projected carefully. i.e. to replace 4 tires on my 5th. wheel cost $2000. Class A rigs cost more. Do you want Diesel or Gas? Cost of insurance, Emergency road side service, Extended warranty. Without a warranty to repair your rig, how much can you afford to put away in an emergency piggy bank in an emergency when you are on the road and you can't fix it your self. i.e. a water leak in the basement of my 5th. wheel cost me $3000. The leak was a small leak in the plumbing lines in the basement but had been leaking for a long period of time but visually did not show until the whole basement was water logged and had to be totally replaced. My rig is 2 years old.
4. I would really try to get a actual/realistic and not just conceptual or ideal dream picture of what your 7 day work and 7 day RV schedule will look like and feel like on a week to week and month to month and year to year basis. While giving you and your family a real opportunity to see the country and collect positive experiences, the 7 off and 7 on schedule feels stressful and work like for any length of period of time, IMHO. Setting up and tearing down an RV every 7 days could become more of a job. I might suggest that you find a home base RV park near your work (assuming you are going to rent out your home) even if you decide to sell your home. This would allow you a little flexibility in your life schedule of choosing or not choosing to hit the RV road every 7 days. Suggest you visit all the surrounding RV parks in your area to compare and contrast the costs , amities and location.
5. Have you given thought to how you will take care of medical needs for the family while on the road? Are you ok with having to use "Quack in the Boxes" AKA Emergency Care centers when you are traveling.
6. Keep us informed on what your dream ultimately looks like:)
Old Mark Twain axiom "All RVers are different in their life on the RV road and so what works for some RVers, will not work for other RVers" or Mark Twain said " there is no right or wrong answer to your question, in the end only you and more importantly, your whole family can determine the level of sanity or insanity of your RV dream."
Thoughts you might consider:
1. The size and type of your RV should be considered in terms of, various types of weather conditions you will located at. i.e. rain and cold weather conditions will mean that you, the family will tend to be restricted to inside your RV. The family and 3 dogs couped up indoors for days could be stressful and testy(:. Who takes the dog out to poop when it is cold and raining?
I would suggest you look at the largest size of an RV your budget will allow.
2. At the raising the hair on the necks of animal lovers, tending to the needs of animals requires more accommodations and time on the RVing family. Each RV park has it's own set of rules/limitations allowing dogs i.e. most RV parks do not permit dogs to left alone in the RV so that the RVer can go out and visit or explore. Some parks require that the dog be on a leash at all times when outside of the RV. Some RV parks only the dog to "poop" in a area segregated just for that purpose. IMHO, I am not sure that restricting dogs to life in an RV does not
necessary meet the needs of dogs but rather tends to meet the needs of people.
3. The cost of maintenance of an RV should be evaluated and projected carefully. i.e. to replace 4 tires on my 5th. wheel cost $2000. Class A rigs cost more. Do you want Diesel or Gas? Cost of insurance, Emergency road side service, Extended warranty. Without a warranty to repair your rig, how much can you afford to put away in an emergency piggy bank in an emergency when you are on the road and you can't fix it your self. i.e. a water leak in the basement of my 5th. wheel cost me $3000. The leak was a small leak in the plumbing lines in the basement but had been leaking for a long period of time but visually did not show until the whole basement was water logged and had to be totally replaced. My rig is 2 years old.
4. I would really try to get a actual/realistic and not just conceptual or ideal dream picture of what your 7 day work and 7 day RV schedule will look like and feel like on a week to week and month to month and year to year basis. While giving you and your family a real opportunity to see the country and collect positive experiences, the 7 off and 7 on schedule feels stressful and work like for any length of period of time, IMHO. Setting up and tearing down an RV every 7 days could become more of a job. I might suggest that you find a home base RV park near your work (assuming you are going to rent out your home) even if you decide to sell your home. This would allow you a little flexibility in your life schedule of choosing or not choosing to hit the RV road every 7 days. Suggest you visit all the surrounding RV parks in your area to compare and contrast the costs , amities and location.
5. Have you given thought to how you will take care of medical needs for the family while on the road? Are you ok with having to use "Quack in the Boxes" AKA Emergency Care centers when you are traveling.
6. Keep us informed on what your dream ultimately looks like:)
