My Wife dropped a bomb on me.

[grizz272]

We have been camping for over 20 yrs. My wife has never had a interest in a fifth wheel or snow birding. Now how ever I am retiring in less than a year and she brings up fifthwheels and snow birding. So in a year or two it looks like this is going to happen. Right now I have a 2014 2500 HD Duramax short box 4x4. My questions are.
1 What is a comfortable size fithwheel to live in for 3-4 months?
2. What kind of safe for papers valuables?
3. What kind of parking fees in Texas, Louisiana am I looking at?
4. Anything else I should look at, at this stage of the game?

[Kenc_AL]

Veebyes wrote:
Better to put same money into a slightly used high end unit than a new mid or low market unit. The high end unit will have taken its biggest depereciation hit & all the new unit bugs, if any, will have been worked out. The new one could be a fix this fix that nighmare never mind depreciation that you can almost hear.

X2

Personal opinion you have better off with a shorter 30-33' triple slide than a longer 36' double slide.

My wife did not think she wanted a clothes washer, until I bought her one. She now loves it. We have a solar powered clothes dryer.

Whatever you do, get a 4 season unit. Remember the extra insulation is also very valuable for hot summer cooling.

To save cost, look at work camping. We find it very rewarding to volunteer and you get free camping. Sitting around doing nothing all day is not my cup of tea. We still have plenty of time to do tourist stuff.

[ol_Bombero-JC]

grizz272 wrote:
We have been camping for over 20 yrs. My wife has never had a interest in a fifth wheel or snow birding. Now how ever I am retiring in less than a year and she brings up fifthwheels and snow birding. So in a year or two it looks like this is going to happen. Right now I have a 2014 2500 HD Duramax short box 4x4. My questions are.
1 What is a comfortable size fithwheel to live in for 3-4 months?
2. What kind of safe for papers valuables?
3. What kind of parking fees in Texas, Louisiana am I looking at?
4. Anything else I should look at, at this stage of the game?

1. It's what is comfortable for *you*.
Some folks do that with small Class C and TTs to 5th wheels & MHs.

Even though what you want to do is part time, suggest you go to the
full time forum here, as well as on the - Escapees Forums.
their forum list (the link will take you there) is just what you need
(BTW - HQ'd in Texas w/TX campground & lots of TX members)

2. With exception of "routine" paperwork, store important stuff you might need (medical info, etc.) online.
No matter what posters say, a safe in an RV is not safe..:(

3. Get a campground guide, check rates. Go to campground internet sites for - private, national, state, county parks - and do same.

4. You bet! - Game ON!..:B
Get out and *look* at RV shows, dealers, etc.
Make notes, save the brochures & floor plans, etc.

Have fun...:C

~

[RVcrazy]

If I were you, I'd consider trying it the first several months with the trailer you already have. It will let you see what things look like before you commit to payments. Your 2500 will limit you to light fifth wheels. I suggest that you should consider staying at about 1500 dry pin weight. The truck is listed for more, but by the time you have a full tank of gas, hitch & the wife in the truck, that number goes way down! Although it is short on closet space, take a look at the Fox Mountain 235 fifth wheel. Built by Northwood & they don't use Lippert frames. Dry hitch is 1375. It is nicely put together and is higher quality than many of the others you will find.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

I could be perfectly happy spending a winter in our 2003 Keystone Laredo 28re with one super-slide; compared to our 28' no-slide Class C, the 5er seems immense....LOL! But then again - our "real" house is fairly small, too.

[kennethwooster]

We live in a 31 ft. Cameo in the summer, and of and on during the wither.It's a good design with plant of room in the living area. The bedroom is a little tight, but we are use to it. It is heavy but very well made. Carriage went out of business, but Lifestyle now builds these troubles.

[GoPackGo]

I am just starting to full time. I wanted a rig that was no longer then 35 ft so it could fit into the National Parks campgrounds out west.

All of us here will most likely recommend what we have, me included - Heartland Bighorn 3010RE.

A few options I recommend -

- 2 AC units

- automatic leveling

- winterization package - Bighorn calls theirs a 'Yeti Package'.

- Big fridge

- washer/dryer

I believe you should first determine what your truck is rated to pull and also, most important, how much pin weight the truck will be able to handle.

A built-in safe is an option on Bighorns.

Tim

[goducks10]

IMO you can't have too big of tanks in the 5'er. Also you can't have too much cargo capacity and I mean weight carrying. Avoid 5'ers with small fresh and grey tanks and look for ones with the ability to carry 3000lbs or more.

Open Range has some well insulated units, large tanks and good CCC. Also a 2 year warranty.

Keep an eye on your trucks CCC when figuring pin weight.

[AUWing]

We plan on extended stays in our Eagle Premier 331RETS. Our 2500 DuraMax equipped with the 10k suspension package easily handles it within weights. It is all about what you feel comfortable in so go looking and don't stop until you find 4 that appeal to you ( don't buy till you've seen a lot of options)

[lenr]

Let’s be clear about what others have hinted->you will run out of pin weight capacity before trailer tow weight capacity with a 2500. Do not trust trailer salesmen to tell you what you can haul. The dry pin weight will go up quickly with personal possessions because most store between the trailer axles and the pin. You still have many very good choices, and I’m very jealous of being able to spend months in the south.

[Veebyes]

Better to put same money into a slightly used high end unit than a new mid or low market unit. The high end unit will have taken its biggest depereciation hit & all the new unit bugs, if any, will have been worked out. The new one could be a fix this fix that nighmare never mind depreciation that you can almost hear.

[JEBar]

the Jayco Eagle Premier 321RLTS has a great, very comfortable floorplan and mates up really well with your truck .... if offers space for separate washer & dryer, is certified by Dometic from 0 - 100 degrees, a very good warranty, good support from its dealer network, and offers auto leveling .... there are several other Eagle/Eagle Primer floorplans that are really nice

Jim

[shadoow]

In Tx we've found the cheapest parks are the Corp of Engineer (COE) parks (federal parks) that are administrated thru www.recreation.gov. With a Senior Pass for National Parks (you're eligible to get one if over 62) you'll get 50% off the normal rate which is already pretty cheap. We normally pay $12-15/nite. Your limited to 14 days at a time, but you may be able to find another COE park in the same area & just bounce back & forth between the 2 for however long you wish to stay in the area. Waco, Tx. is an example of an area that has 2 or 3 COE parks in the area.
Tx. State parks are pretty cheap also. There's a Tx State Parks Pass you get for a year at a time. Can't remember the cost, but somewhere around $75. It allows you access to the parks for free, but you still have to pay the normal daily rate for a camping site. We like the COE parks better cause they're not only cheaper, but you can reserve a specific site in them whereas in the State Parks you just reserve a site in general based on size of your rig then get what's available when you show up. I think you're also limited to 14 day stays at the state parks, but not sure.

[rhagfo]

We plan n full timing in our 05 Copper Canyon 293 FWSLS, it is 32' long with two slides a supre slide for Table and Couch, and a quine bed slide in the upper portion. We were looking for something with some storage.
We have a full width hanging closet in the and a full dresser at the foot of the bed.
The only place that lacks storage is the large kitchen, this is due to shorted cabinets for a great view.

[hmar1]

I would recommend a Keystone Montana 3900 FB it has two bathrooms, three slides and lots of room. We really love ours