Hidden Costs of RVing

Gas. The DW hates the fact that my TV drinks the stuff at a much faster rate then when we owned the PUP.

I rationalized it by saying its still cheaper than staying at a decent hotel for a few nights. 25-30 bucks a night at CG and a 2 tanks of gas OR 150-180 and one tank of gas.

Plus, most hotels wont let you build a campfire in the room!

In reading this thread, I find that I am very lucky.
Registration for the motorhome? No problem, paid for one year, then it became 11 years old, and eligible for PERMANENT registration. $253 or so, and I never have to renew it.
The only unexpected expense was replacing the slide awning, which was wind damaged in South Dakota. I just paid it instead of trying for insurance coverage. It wasn't worth the paperwork!
We went on a three thousand + mile trip last fall, and the awning was the only problem. It was great.
Yeah, reading about all the problems people have with their RVs, we are very lucky!

Not exactly unexpected, but when I first got my rig, I called it my "$400 rig".

Transfer titles, get tags, etc. - $400
Get FW hitch mounted in truck - $400
Get reciever hitch built on FW - $400
Linex truck bed - $400
First round of tires (2 plus spare wheel and tire, plus spare mount) ... Well you get it :)

Well ... we do have some unanticpated overall SAVINGS from us owning an RV ... such as :C :

- My DW has a bad back, but fortunately she now finds the RV bed way more comfortable so we are spared from having to buy a new bed for our master bedroom.

- We no longer have to pay motel/hotel bills for vacations.

- Instead of having to buy/build an additional tool shed, I now can store tools in the RV that I need quick access to.

- We can now retreat to the RV and stay comfortable during winter storms that take out power to our all-electric stick-house.

- The DW loves to fish but due to her back can't ride in our pickup to pull the boat ... but now the RV pulls the boat to fishing spots so she can come along to fish while getting there in comfort.

- We can take the dog on vacations because we can now use the outside shower on it to reduce groomer bathing costs when certain things begin to smell on vacations.

- We can now carry up to 2,000 lbs. of rocks back from RV trips instead of ruining the rear suspension on our sedan.

- We can now go potty on the road during vacations as much as we want without having to always buy something the makes us fat(ter) at McDonalds as an excuse.

- We can now carry pizza along on vacations and bake it anytime instead of leaving our tentsite to drive all the way into town to pick up one ready to go and then keep it warm all the way back to camp.

- Etc.

- Etc.

travelnutz wrote:
TOMMY47,

Non-mootorized trailers and RV's have a ONE TIME small license fee in Michigan that's good for as long as you own the unit. All motorized RV's, especially Class A motorhomes have a very costly license renewal each year you own it and yes it does go by a year and model chart. It's a vehicle not a trailer and it's a choice you make when deciding which RV you decide to buy.

I don't feel one bit sorry for et2 as it was his decision to go the high annual price renew route and he gets to pay the freight! Back years ago when we had our big Class A's, the license was over $800/yr and the insurance was nearly $2000/yr. By comparison, our big TC and the 5th wheel costs zero per year for license and each are approx $70/yr for the insurance premium as they are bundled with our vehicles and homes which saves us big bucks and give much better coverage. Some states do not allow this type bundling but Michigan does...

Travelnutz, I don't see in my post where I asked for you or anyone to feel sorry for me. I simply replied to the OP's original post "hidden costs". It wasn't something that we even gave a thought about until the end of the deal and papers were being signed. That's when it became apparent and hit home. It wasn't a deal breaker, just an eye opener. since then it has been brought to my attention that in MI. you can buy tabs every two months saving some big money during the storage months. So I will look into this in the spring.

So I don't quite get the derogatory remark, but if at my humility it prepares someone else while looking for their "first" purchase then so be it.

Unexpected expense? Whooops, got a big one today. The fridge died. It is not just seriously sick. It is dead.

The replacement is on order & costs almost as much as a 2 month road trip.

Yikes!!!! Can't replace this one with one from LOWES.

Unexpected expences? Oh dear...we've camped in the pits at a car race, then there was the crab fest and that bluegrass festival...our sticks-bricks house is paid for and we ate carrying a mortgage on our second home (the one with wheels) so we now have a tax deduction...of course if it was all about the money we could spend our weekends and vacations slaving away on the first house and yard...

Unexpected expences? Oh dear...we've camped in the pits at a car race, then there was the crab fest and that bluegrass festival...our sticks-bricks house is paid for and we ate carrying a mortgage on our second home (the one with wheels) so we now have a tax deduction...of course if it was all about the money we could spend our weekends and vacations slaving away on the first house and yard...

I have had my first and only RV for thirteen years.

(Well, we have a Springdale fiver on a lot in Florida
but we do not consider it an RV)

Unless we crash or burn, I see no reason to trade!

jheppner wrote:

beemerphile1 wrote:
My largest unexpected expense was the purchase of my second RV, third RV, fourth RV, etc. We are shopping again for another one but will also sell one.

Can anyone top this? We've had 29 RVs (of every type) in 41 years and have loved every one of them (for a short time). We truly believe we have kept the RV dealers in business through all these years.

Well, I avoided those expenses by keeping my first and only RV. BUT, I found a way to spend a lot of money upgrading and changing things. Current upgrade is from the gas 440 to an '06 Duramax/Allison diesel transplant.

But what a way to travel!