Looking for feedback

[JustSmiths]

Hey all,

We are soon to be full timers and looking for some feedback from folks that are out there doing it.
Just got back from South Dakota with our brand new Drivers Licenses. So we have the residency issues covered.

We seem to keep going back and forth between RV and Toy Hauler. Both seem to have their pros and cons.

Currently we have had our heart set on a Winnebago Destination (http://winnebagoind.com/products/fifth-wheel/2016/destination/overview)

These are some of the features we really like and wondering how important they really are.

• 2 bathrooms(1 master suit bathroom with dual sinks)
• dishwasher (how important?)
• Big living area
• Big kitchen

We really like the idea of 2 bathrooms and 1 isolated to the master suit so if we have people dropping in, they don't have to go to our bedroom. Not to mention there have been times when we both needed to use the restroom at the same time 🙂 Not sure how big of an issue this is.

The Destination doesn't have a lot of extra space for others, and again not sure how big of a deal this is.

The toy haulers give us the garage area where I could have my tool boxes and such. Destination doesn't have a good spot for big tool box. Maybe I need to downsize and get rid of my roll around tool chest?

We know we will have washer/dryer in either set up as we do not want to be reliant on public laundry. Dishwasher is a toss up. It's a nice to have I'm guessing, but maybe our habits change a bit....paper plates, reuse glasses, etc

Anyhow, would love to hear some feedback from all you full timers. We have already downsized and could easily fit everything we have in either setup. We downsized from a 1800 sq/ft house to a 1000 sq/ft apartment. Once we ditch our couches and beds, we are down to cloths and kitchen stuff....Speaking of kitchen, and other appliances. Is it worth replacing our AC appliances for 12V DC?

Thanks,
The Smiths

[Old-Biscuit]

GO WEIGH that 2010 F250.......

Income taxes will be due/payable to the state you earn income from

[2gypsies1]

Everyone full-times differently so you'll have to figure out how you want to do it.

We used public parks or boondocked 90% of our 16 years of full-timing. We had a 40' motorhome towing a Jeep which gave us lots of fun on the backroads. We had no problems fitting into national parks or forest service campgrounds. . . also state, county and city parks. We had no qualms taking it on well maintained gravel roads for boondocking.

We had solar, big holding tanks (could last 12 days or so before dumping), no dishwasher, no washer dryer (went to the laundry in town every 10-14 days and got it done in 1-1/2 hours and did our errands at the same time), only one bathroom and only a small canvas bag of tools.

It was an easy, uncomplicated lifestyle. Good luck to you!

[Naio]

You can always rent tools very cheaply, when you need a big saw or grinder.

You are not going to run a washer and dryer off solar. So you will only be doing laundry when at FHU sites. And those all have laundry facilities. I see no point in having onboard W/D unless you have little kids and a lot of diapers :).

I think you are doing a terrific job of thinking things through and asking questions.

[JustSmiths]

rekoj71,

Thanks for the info...Yeah, the toolbox is going away. With the cordless drill/driver and my one tool kit I can handle most smaller jobs. Just did the Serpentine belt and tensioner on the Ford F250 last week. 80k miles on it before the tensioner split and started shredding the belt. Was able to do it with minimal tools in a couple hours. Guess I'll have to get use to letting someone else do any of the bigger jobs that may come up.

The one we are looking at now has only 1 bathroom and is a bit smaller than the Destination. Though the Destination is super nice, I believe a TH is better for us at this time.

[rekoj71]

I agree with the other posters that 1-1/2 baths isn't really needed unless you are a family with kids (that's a lot of bathroom in the rig you linked to). Toy Hauler is probably the way to go if you have toys, but as much as my wife thought she would be spending outside sitting around, she ended up hating the bugs and ops for inside if not being active, so the larger indoor living space would be better in our case.
Rollaway Toolbox? Only if you intend on using the tools elsewhere for making a living. As mentioned most campgrounds won't let you do much maintenance that would require a garage worth of tools, just the basics. I kept a large Top Box for hand tools and of course the Cordless Drill/Driver. I just have to except the fact that I am not going to be able to have the space or tools to be able to change an engine on the truck by myself anymore. Others see my tool stash and still think I am carrying too much weight in tools. Hard to let go of being the mechanic I guess.

[JustSmiths]

Old-Biscuit,

Good stuff on the insurance. We will certainly check with them. Literally we just got back from SD 3 days ago so that is on the list for this week.

Income isn't really tied to a state. Not sure how that works if I am in a new state every month? We will plan on setting roots 30 days at a time. I have a full time position that I work 40+ hours a week with a boss that's fully onboard with me being a full time RV guy. Also have some consulting I do (20+ hours a month) for a company out of Canada. I'm a computer engineer/programmer so everything I do can be done remote, as long as I have internet.

We plan on doing our own internet and not rely on the CG's. More than a few people say they are slow and jammed up. Our thoughts are to have a phone on AT&T and Verizon so we are always covered. Data usage will be a concern, so not sure if we can get an unlimited on any of the carriers. T-Mobile is good for unlimited, but the coverage is lousy when you head up to say South Dakota 🙂 However, in major areas it's nice and the international coverage is good in Mexico...We may do some time in Cholla Bay during the winter.

Lastly, the truck is a 2010 F250 6.4 Diesel. No air bags installed in the rear ... but will be adding them and possibly change the gearing.

Thanks for all the info! We've ruled out dishwasher...Still up in the air on laundry, though think once a week laundry would be fine by me 🙂

[JustSmiths]

arhayes wrote:
You mention a 5verToy Hauler but never mentioned a toy. We have a 43' TH which has a 10' garage and haul a Goldwing. We have full timed for almost 14 months now and put 12,000 towing miles on in that time, plus 6,000 additional on the truck and 6,000 on the motorcycle. Using the bike for touring reduces our fuel costs.

We don't normally boondock and primarily reside in FHU parks. Because of our length, and wanting be be able to use the back porch feature, we avoid state and national parks. Most couldn't accommodate us anyway. If there's a park nearby we want to see, we take the bike and ride through.

I got rid of my rolling tool chests and most power tools and kept 2 smaller chests that live in the basement. I also kept a sawzall, sabre saw, solder gun, cordless drill along with all the hand tools that'd fit in the 2 boxes. That's been enough for any rig repairs or little jobs we've needed to do, bike oil changes, etc.

We still cannot imagine a class A meeting our needs since we still want to ride the bike. Once we get the bike off, the garage is converted into living space, has heat and AC, its own TV, did, etc. All that gives us much more space than a MH would afford and has worked out great thus far.

We have one restroom, though there are models avbl with 2, but that has not been an issue this far. I'm retired and we do dishes together by hand. No dishwasher needed. Same with the washer/dryer. Our rig is plumbed and prepped, but the majority of comments we've seen indicate that the RV models are slow and inefficient. Every RVpark we've been in has had an adequate laundry and it has worked fine. We've discussed adding them several times and always decide "no".

Good luck.

Funny. We just got back from a local dealer here and fell in love with the Momentum 380! Just noticed in your tag line that it is the one you have too.
LOVE the sliding glass door to the garage. Makes it feel so much bigger. And honestly, with the patio extended, gives us much more usable space. We both like being outside.

This is now at the top of our list and are no longer looking at a MH. TH gives us way more options.

As for toys, none yet. Though we are looking at a touring bike and maybe a couple dirt bikes.

You mentioned rig repairs...Have you had anything major? All of the 5ers we've looked at seem to have some trim that has popped off here and there. I imagine thats with any of them and just the nature of the beast. By no means anything that scares us.

We would like to get solar on the top and the model we just looked at already has the solar hookups. Any info on solar? Good or bad investment? Will it augment the generator usage enough to warrant the upfront cost?

Thanks!

[Old-Biscuit]

What truck do you have?

Do not fall in 'love' with an RV any RV unless you have the truck to properly tow it.

Weight is the issue.........lots of things you have now will need to go (or store which is not the best idea IMO)

Load that truck up 'camp ready' (you, fuel, passengers, stuff inside truck, stuff in bed of truck etc. and go to CAT scales and get weighed.
Front axle/rear axle/total weights.....then compare them to your trucks ratings GVWR. F/R AWRs, GCWR, Actual payload (GVWR-Total) and Rear tire load rating.

THEN you can MATCH a trailer to your trucks ratings.

Don't assume/guess.......find out by weighing


*Dishwasher......takes up too much storage/cabinet space which is limited to start with.
*2 bathrooms----nice but 7 yrs of FT we never needed
*washer/drier...OK IF you are at FHU camp sites. We found laundry mats good for us. Do all laundry once a week in couple hours..DONE
PLUS we liked the 'linen/towel' cabinet vs losing that space to washer/drier
*TOOLS..just the basics. Most campgrounds don't allow 'maintenance' on vehicles etc. SO bunch of tools/tool boxes really not needed
*We used some paper plates but mostly Corelle Dishware...even had a full 4 place setting of Noritake China. Wash/dry/put away
*Internet...provide your own connection. CG WiFi sucks/un-reliable/not for work

Debt Free.........good for you. That really helps!

Already have SD DL's..........
So you have set up your Medical Coverage? Have you found routine coverage outside of SD?
Income....from AZ? Taxes?
Full Timers Insurance??...............check with National Interstate. We had FTs Policy with them for 7 yrs. Same kind of policy as homeowners PLUS and they covered truck also. Very reasonable rates/ Great customer service/Claims Dept.

Good Luck.......new lifestyle.....GREAT Adventure!

[Bumpyroad]

don't they still make Class A toy haulers?
bumpy

[arhayes]

You mention a 5verToy Hauler but never mentioned a toy. We have a 43' TH which has a 10' garage and haul a Goldwing. We have full timed for almost 14 months now and put 12,000 towing miles on in that time, plus 6,000 additional on the truck and 6,000 on the motorcycle. Using the bike for touring reduces our fuel costs.

We don't normally boondock and primarily reside in FHU parks. Because of our length, and wanting be be able to use the back porch feature, we avoid state and national parks. Most couldn't accommodate us anyway. If there's a park nearby we want to see, we take the bike and ride through.

I got rid of my rolling tool chests and most power tools and kept 2 smaller chests that live in the basement. I also kept a sawzall, sabre saw, solder gun, cordless drill along with all the hand tools that'd fit in the 2 boxes. That's been enough for any rig repairs or little jobs we've needed to do, bike oil changes, etc.

We still cannot imagine a class A meeting our needs since we still want to ride the bike. Once we get the bike off, the garage is converted into living space, has heat and AC, its own TV, did, etc. All that gives us much more space than a MH would afford and has worked out great thus far.

We have one restroom, though there are models avbl with 2, but that has not been an issue this far. I'm retired and we do dishes together by hand. No dishwasher needed. Same with the washer/dryer. Our rig is plumbed and prepped, but the majority of comments we've seen indicate that the RV models are slow and inefficient. Every RVpark we've been in has had an adequate laundry and it has worked fine. We've discussed adding them several times and always decide "no".

Good luck.

[JustSmiths]

All good stuff so far. Didn't think about the consumption and ultimate storage of water before we dump. Guess we should look at the paper plate route. We already plan on grilling a lot more.

Length wise, how much trouble would we have with a 40' vs say a 32'. We really like the 40' Destination. It has a huge living area, 2 bathrooms and a master suite, pantry etc. Basically all the rooms we use the most in our 2 bedroom apartment now.

[sdianel_-acct_c]

we full time in a 33' Class A with 2 slides and one bathroom and have never had a problem. We have plenty of room. We have found that when people visit (except family of course) they don't use your bathroom. They either use their bathroom in their own RV or use the campground bathhouse. It's just my preference, but I wouldn't use a dishwasher. Although they use very little water, remember everything you wash has to go in the holding tank. If you want to camp where there are no hookups you need to be able to conserve water and electricity and what goes in the black and grey tanks so you don't have to dump as often. I do use my washer-dryer sometimes. Big living area more important than big kitchen. We cook less in the RV. We eat more simply prepared meals or grill out. We use paper plates to conserve dishwashing. As far as tools go, he only has one tool box of necessary tools. Remember that weight is also important.

[JustSmiths]

lanerd wrote:

What in the world do you need a roll around tool chest for?

I agree ... Honestly, most of the tools I use are in the mechanics tool box that sits behind my rear seat in the truck. Few other items in the big chest....torque wrench, grinder, cutoff wheel, etc....They could easily be stored elsewhere and certainly not used as much.

Thanks for the info. Will certainly do some more searching. We've already scoured the forums, but lots more to read and learn.

Thanks,
The Smiths!

[lanerd]

A lot depends upon the questions asked above. If you're gonna travel a lot, probably a mh is the better way to go.

What in the world do you need a roll around tool chest for? I do carry a good assortment of tools with me, but all can easily fit into a small chest that I can pick up. It's a common error for people to want to take much more with them than is really necessary. Most items, when needed, can be purchased.

Another food for thought is the type of vehicle you want to drive when not in your rv. Most times, driving a 1-ton dually around in a crowded city can be a little uncomfortable.

There have been many posts regarding mh v.s. 5er. Do a search and I'm sure you'll find most of your questions answered already.


Good luck in your decision.

Ron