Our First Motorhome

[rjjr]

We purchased our first motorhome about one month ago and I wanted to relay our experience to help other first timers make a better decisions and get advice from seasoned RV'ers.

We wanted an RV to go to motorcycle racing events around the country. We pull a small cargo trailer with the bikes. We normally travel one or two days to an event, stay two days then drive two days back home.

We began looking for an RV about 10 months ago. We were looking exclusively at gas powered motorhomes primarily because of cost and depreciation. Despite our best efforts the units we found were either way overpriced or were in very poor condition. As luck would have it, after being frustrated by the selection at our local dealer I decided to wander over and take a look at diesel pushers. To my surprise, the first one we looked at was slightly outside of our budget but we immediately fell in love with the coach.

The decision. On this particular day the wind was howling about 35 mph across the interstate we normally do our test rides on. We had driven a couple gas powered units that day and found that they were extremely difficult to handle and would not maintain speed even on the slightest of grades. When we test drove the DP it was immediately apparent that we were driving an entirely different type of motor home. Power was much better and the handling was night and day different. The heavier duty Freightliner chassis made all the difference in the world. I immediately realized the only option for us was a DP.

The next day the dealer accepted our offer and we became the owners our our first ever RV. In retrospect, I'm so glad I took that stroll over to the DP. It's a pleasure to drive, has plenty of power for us and is very comfortable driving for long distances.

Our first trip.

We were heading to central Wisconsin for a motorcycle race, then down to Lake of the Ozarks in MO then back to Nebraska. About 1,700 miles round trip. We left on a Tuesday and returned the next Monday.

The first leg of our trip went well, we only drove about 300 miles and pulled over in a rest area. Note to self, Walmart is a much better place to park rather than between two tractors running their APU's. Co2 detector continued to alert until we found the right combination of windows to open and close.

The next day did not start off well. We learned the necessity of carrying an extension length of hose to dump our holding tanks. Despite repositioning the RV numerous times our hose would just barely reach the dumping station. Needless to say this didn't turn out to be a very sanitary endeavour. After we cleaned up some friends met up with us at the rest area and we headed out for our first destination.
Along the way we stopped at a truck stop for a bite to eat and decided to fuel up. We had plenty of fuel but I wanted to get an idea of MPG. Turns out we got 8.8 MPG which I was quite pleased with. I had set the cruise control about 64 mph which seemed like a comfortable pace.

We arrived at our destination about 8pm and that's when trouble started happening. The only power available was a 15 amp outlet and we had to run a 100' extension cord to reach the RV. Despite turning everything off in the coach every time we plugged in the power the GFI on the pole immediately tripped the breaker. Despite all efforts we could not get 110 power anywhere. No biggie, it was cool at night and we'd only run the generator when necessary. This is when I realized my first big mistake in my decision to buy this unit, the generator runs on propane. The unit has a 50 gallon propane tank but after running it most of the way to Wisconsin and then the next day our propane was getting critically low. By the time we left the track on Friday the propane tank was nearly empty. No biggie, we'd stop at the nearest truck stop and fill up, right? WRONG, we stopped at several truck stops on the second leg of our journey and realized most of them don't sell bulk propane. We lucked out and found a little truck stop in a rural area that did have propane.

The second and third leg of our trip were pretty uneventful. We used the generator only when really needed and didn't have to dump the tanks again. Every time a sat down behind the wheel I realized how fortunate I was to end up with a DP. I never felt fatigued and the thing drives like a Cadilac.

Lessons learned.

-Don't park at an over crowed rest area.
-Bring an extension hose to dump the holding tanks.
-Plan propane refueling in advance for any long distance trips.
-Add a large supplemental propane tank to limit refueling.
-Purchase a small gas generator to limit use of the RV generator.
-Don't buy an RV with a propane generator.

Overall this purchase has been a great experience. It's added a new dimension to our lives which we really enjoy. While the purchase was intended only for sporting events we're already planning our trips to the mountains and ocean just for pleasure.

[bob_b1]

rjjr wrote:
The first clue on the generator was it's low hours. After 11 years it only had 151 hours. Whoever bought this coach didn't intend to the use the gen very much.

Thats funny that you should say that. Our motorhome was 11 years old when we bought it. Our generator had 150 hours on the clock too. We added another 1000 hours before it quit on us.

[tinkerer]

Looking back they should make a book called "RVing for Dummies" After 10 years of a motorhome owner I am still learning. I always tell new owners that I will help anyone with questions are there are no such thing as a stupid question. This site is excellent source of information,:)

[dverstra]

rjjr wrote:

dverstra wrote:
Congrats on the new to you DP. What one did you end up with??

Allstays has an app that shows where to get propane. I use it to find campgrounds, truck stops, propane, Corps of Engineer campgrounds, etc..

Thanks for the tip. Allstays is just what I was looking for to help locate propane dealers.

Most, if not all, Flying J Travel Plazas have propane. That way you can get propane at the same place as fuel. Here is a link to their locations.
Flying J Locations

[AllegroD]

Put plenty of water in first. 3-5 gals. Do you have a tank flush in your wet bay? If so, use it to finish filling the tank. Once it reaches full and the wife yells it out the window to you), leave it on when you pull the black valve and wait ffor the water to get clear. Close the black valve and let the flush run for a couple minutes to add water for the next trip.

At the end of the season, after the last dump, I use calgon liquid water softener to clean the tank. I add 6 OZ and fill the tank with the flush. This helps free deposits and clean the tank.

[Executive45]

The reason you tripped the breaker was most likely the size of your extension cord. A 100' run is quite a bit for a 14ga cord. Upgrade to at least a 10ga cord and many of those issues will disappear..

No you know why we say "Never drive a diesel unless you have your checkbook"....:W.....Dennis

[Mr_Mark1]

rjjr, congrats on the new DP! And yes, black tanks like a lot of water. You might want to buy a tool that you can use to clean out the black tank every now and then. I think it's like one of those wands that you would use to clean out your house gutters.

Put it up the exit pipe and spray away. We have the built-in Sanicon system for the black and grey and I use it often to keep the tanks clean and the sensors 'sensoring' correctly.

Safe travels,
MM.

[rjjr]

The first clue on the generator was it's low hours. After 11 years it only had 151 hours. Whoever bought this coach didn't intend to the use the gen very much. We've already doubled that.

Is there anything special we should do when dumping the black water tank? Should we dump a bunch of water into it first to help clean it out?

[bshpilot]

Congrats & welcome ! In the end all's well that ends well ! You'll learn to adapt to your coach a little (we all do).

I always tell folks to take a shake down "cruise"....find a campground CLOSE to home for a weekend....that way you can you're not stuck if you forgot anything, you're in familiar territory & you can start building your list of things you want or need for future trips.

Its strange that a diesel pusher would have a propane generator - but then again anything is possible.

the OP (original poster) might be better off w/ a Haulmark, Renegade or Showhauler conversion truck with a garage (6-12 feet) for their motorcycles. Its still a buyers market if you're willing to consider used.

[AllegroD]

rjjr wrote:
Our rig is a 2003 Coachman Cross Country Elite. It's 36'6" and seems to fit us well. In retrospect a bedroom slide would have been nice but not mandatory.

Nice rig. Sounds like you have a good handle on what you are doing.

rjjr wrote:
. . . and didn't have to dump the tanks again.

I would not let a sludge sit in the black tank for long. We dump after every trip.

[rjjr]

dverstra wrote:
Congrats on the new to you DP. What one did you end up with??

Allstays has an app that shows where to get propane. I use it to find campgrounds, truck stops, propane, Corps of Engineer campgrounds, etc..

Thanks for the tip. Allstays is just what I was looking for to help locate propane dealers.

[rjjr]

Our rig is a 2003 Coachman Cross Country Elite. It's 36'6" and seems to fit us well. In retrospect a bedroom slide would have been nice but not mandatory.

[dverstra]

Congrats on the new to you DP. What one did you end up with??

Allstays has an app that shows where to get propane. I use it to find campgrounds, truck stops, propane, Corps of Engineer campgrounds, etc..

[JimM68]

Congrats. Sounds like you had fun, and learned a lot.

The only "no-joy" lesson is the propane genny. Propane is the most valued of all our resources. The easiest to use, the hardest to resupply.
Gawd I love my 8k Onan Quiet diesel genny.
It will run for days on even the tiniest sips of fuel, and when they are gone, the furnace and fridge will still work.

[bob_b1]

It has been 11 years since the purchase of our first diesel motorhome. We had the same experience. I drove a few gas models and then the diesel. What a difference. We put 1000 more hours on our propane generator over that period of time and it does make you think ahead about procuring more propane. Our propane generator finally broke down for good, so I bought a Honda generator that I mount on the back. It is way more fuel efficient, more quiet and easier to find fuel for it.

You are learning the Ins and Outs of these wonderful machines, so you'll be a pro in no time.

Tip: It doesn't matter if an RV is new or old, they will always have something in need of attention. Usually there are no show-stoppers, but small problems can add up to a big problem fast. Have a Fix List handy. Write down everything that needs fixed when you get home. Fix it before the next trip. Resist the urge to pay a mechanic it or you'll go broke fast. A slightly handy person can usually fix most things using the search on this forum.

Happy Camping.