slide vs no slide

[dave17352]

Here is my question.

We are well into our 60's. We are thinking about getting a class c and the kids will take the truck camper and truck. This class C will be used for lake camping with grand kids and also for travel for just the two of us.

Looking for opinions of pros and cons of slides vs no slides on a newer unit. Probably no more than 2 or 3 years old.

Thanks in advance of any input.

[2_Retired]

Have been RVing for over 45 years, and once we got one with a slide, I understood the appeal. We will NEVER get another rig without at least one! Even had a pop-up with a slide out kitchen area! Other suggestions are spot on about being certain you can access everywhere when slide is in! Some rigs close up and bathroom/bedroom/fridge are no longer in play. We have only twice had a problem with slide not working properly in over 20 years and several different RVs. The extra interior room is wonderful - and would be great for extended family or friends. Very easy to operate, just be certain rig is level before opening or closing.

[bobndot]

Although I hear alot of people who "worry" about kitchen connections in slides, I have seldom if ever read reports of actual problems with them. Ours does indeed house the kitchen sink, stove, microwave and dinette (not the fridge), and we have not had a single issue with water lines, drain lines, gas lines, or electrical lines. Since it is now 16 years old, I assume that it would have had issues with those lines by now if it was prone to them. The slide mechanism itself (HWH Hydraulic, both slides and jacks) has also been trouble free, although it does have a way to manually retract them.

4X4van, Many of the owners like yourself do not have issues with flex connections in slides. 🙂 However, there are some people that have and the info is out there in the owners forums documenting it.

a couple of mechanics and even a salesman steered me away, so I listened. But, like yourself, they work fine for many people.

My close friend used to say to me "if you ever buy one of those, don't bring it to me to fix" So I never bought one. :E
What I have learned while hanging out taking up space in my friends rv repair shop, when we do have issues regarding this , the fixes are normally easy due to inexpensive plastic collars and fittings, you just have to be physically able to crawl down there and do it and not be impaired by an injury. These things always let go when we are camping using it, never when its sitting in the driving, right ? 🙂


there are many posts and videos out there for info:
https://www.forestriverforums.com/forums/f229/propane-lines-and-plumbing-in-the-slideouts-152644.htm...

https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/22394147/print/true.cfm

[pnichols]

4x4van wrote:
31 years, 3 RVs (first 2 no slide, current 1 two slides); I will never go back to a no-slide RV. The "walk around" room that a slide provides is something I will never consider giving up, it really is that significant. I do agree that the RV must be usable with the slide in; ours blocks only the dresser drawers below the closet, nothing else; the RV is fully usable with the slides in or out.

Although I hear alot of people who "worry" about kitchen connections in slides, I have seldom if ever read reports of actual problems with them. Ours does indeed house the kitchen sink, stove, microwave and dinette (not the fridge), and we have not had a single issue with water lines, drain lines, gas lines, or electrical lines. Since it is now 16 years old, I assume that it would have had issues with those lines by now if it was prone to them. The slide mechanism itself (HWH Hydraulic, both slides and jacks) has also been trouble free, although it does have a way to manually retract them.

Also, whether to go with slides or not could depend upon if one wants the maximum flexibility to be able to reliably travel about anywhere in their RV time after time, regardless of short-term roominess when camped.

For instance, I'm glad we don't have to rely on a slide in our Class C deploying and retracting OK after, for whatever interest-driven reasons, traveling on roads like this:

[ppine]

I have owned many different types of RVs with and without slides. One or two good slides are very helpful in creating large living spaces and worth the extra weight and a little maintenance. This is especially true if you have pets, children or more than two people using an RV. Definitely worth it.

[4x4van]

31 years, 3 RVs (first 2 no slide, current 1 two slides); I will never go back to a no-slide RV. The "walk around" room that a slide provides is something I will never consider giving up, it really is that significant. I do agree that the RV must be usable with the slide in; ours blocks only the dresser drawers below the closet, nothing else; the RV is fully usable with the slides in or out.

Although I hear alot of people who "worry" about kitchen connections in slides, I have seldom if ever read reports of actual problems with them. Ours does indeed house the kitchen sink, stove, microwave and dinette (not the fridge), and we have not had a single issue with water lines, drain lines, gas lines, or electrical lines. Since it is now 16 years old, I assume that it would have had issues with those lines by now if it was prone to them. The slide mechanism itself (HWH Hydraulic, both slides and jacks) has also been trouble free, although it does have a way to manually retract them.

[RambleOnNW]

Prior to buying our class C we rented various class c’s for 10 years. The units were slide and no-slide and ranged in length from 24 - 32 feet. Models included Sunseeker, Safari, Tioga, Coachmen, others.

When we were looking to buy we were aiming for a 26 foot 1-slide model as the best trade-off between space and maneuverability. We ended up with a 28-foot dual-slide model. The unit has been great with few issues. With 2 slides we have the square footage of a 32 foot no-slide model.

The 2 slides each have slide awnings that protrude beyond the ends of each slideout by 6-8 inches. This keeps all rain and debris off the top of the slide-out. If there is tree debris on top of the awnings I will “pop” the awnings from the underside with a broom to knock the debris off before sliding in. The rear slide blocks 2 drawers of the wardrobe cabinet. Other than that the RV is fully useable with the slides in. Below the rear slideout there is full width pass-through storage. This storage is great for holding a folding 6’ stepladder.

Powergear slide rails are on the bottom of the slideouts. I have seen RVs with slide rails on the sides of the slideout. I don’t know how the slideout seals can seal effectively over those slide rails.

Slideouts add weight. Just like people add performance parts to cars to improve the handling we have added thicker anti-sway bars, Bilstein shocks, and all-steel cased commercial tires to our “C”. With these performance parts our rig does not lean much through the curves and handles much like a large SUV.

I have not noticed significant air-leaks. There are inner and outer seals on both slide-outs. We have taken the rig up to ski areas in the spring and had cold weather and some snow. Would move the slides in after a couple of inches of snow accumulated to dump the snow off the slide awnings. Could also just operate with the slides in if necessary. Then the rig effectively becomes a no-slide unit.

[samsontdog]

I will never buy another RV without a slide out, I prefer two or more for the extra room. I have had RVs with slide outs for yrs and very little problems

[Gjac]

valhalla360 wrote:
Nobody posts about their slides unless there is an issue, so you get a biased understanding reading thru the forums. They really are pretty reliable unless you do something stupid.

Generally they work fine and the difference in space and feel is MASSIVE. Add in the difficulty in finding a non-slide unit, you would likely have to special order (with little or no discount off the MSRP) to get one.

My MH is 24 years old and out of all the systems in the MH it has been the most trouble free. It also has a hand crank to go in and out but I only used it once to see how it worked. Mine is electric with cables. The only real issue with a slide is making sure you have enough room in the drivers seat to slide your seat back to a comfortable position before hitting the slide out, especially if you have knee arthritis. The other thing to look for is a slide without the refer in it, they need fans to properly vent and if dry camping will use battery power, not a major issue for most campers. Slides add weight not only for the weight of the slide but the reinforcement to compensate for the cutout in the side wall. Again not an issue for most campers unless you have limited CCC. slides add much more living space especially with more than two people. Lastly most campers want slides and resale value will be higher with them.

[ron_dittmer]

We special ordered our rig in the spring of 2007. CLICK HERE TO SEE IT, a 2007 Phoenix Cruiser 2350. It is small by motor home standards. It is only 9'-10" to the top of the a/c unit, and is 23'-8" long. My point here is that it is small, yet we absolutely "Love" our rig without a slide out. We have no regrets with that decision. But our rig was selected with just the two of us in-mind for the majority of it's use, and we do plan to own it for a total of 35 years, hopefully more if we are safe enough to drive anything at the age of 85.

We looked at the negatives that just one slide out can introduce, especially with age. Here are the things I think about.

- One slide out adds roughly 500 extra pounds to what is typically a heavy rig to begin with.
- One slide out would have costed us an extra $4000.
- There is a massive hole in the wall, weakening the over-all structure. The wider the slide out, the greater the risk of the roof sagging in the middle of the hole, especially if the heavy a/c unit is in the right spot.
- The rig is especially sensitive to being level to work the slide out with care.
- Wind driven rain can puddle on top of the box. When you retract, in comes the water. You won't know it's there until you brake real hard.
- Then there is the water on the two sides. In comes wet dirty walls.
- The same goes for bugs. They too come in for the ride.
- Slide outs leak in cold when it's cold, and heat when it's hot.
- There is more volume of air to heat and cool efficiently, a common complaint in the RV industry when conditions get "testy".
- Slide outs are not as well insulated as the main wall
- A slide out reduces the size of the window in that position.
- A slide out reduces wall space by roughly 8" that would otherwise make a roomier dinette or wider couch.
- Slide outs like to rattle when the rig is being driven.
- You get significantly less storage with a slide out, from smaller over-head cabinets, to exterior compartments.
- If having a dinette in a slide out, head room can be an issue if the ceiling is lower like we have.
- There is the maintenance factor required to keep a slide out working well.
- Finally, there is the driving experience. Driving our a house without a massive box inside, it simply feels better.

[F1bNorm]

We have a 24' B+ with a small dinette slide. We really like the added room but we have had issues with it. My take- I wouldn't get a slide unless in an emergency, you can manually crank it in, which on ours, I had to crawl underneath the MH and turn the shaft with a wrench. We just left it in for the rest of the trip and fixed it when we got home. I definitely would not get a slide that blocks access to the bathroom or any area..
I would be leery of a slide that contains appliances, stove, fridge etc. Too many connections to go wrong.

[winniman]

x2 on not having plumbing, electrical, or gas in the slide. I have had two motorhomes with the couch and dinette in the slide. Both were Hwh hydraulic powered slides. Both rvs were 2000s, and neither has had a single bit of trouble in 20 years. My previous rv was sold to a friend, so I still know whats happening with it. Resale value is better, and easier with a slide. My brother had a TT for sale a few years ago with no slide. Almost every caller asked if it had a slide. They weren't interested in one without one. Some people will say they wont buy one with one, but I think they are in the smallest minority. I prefer slides. They make the whole rv more useable and spacious.

[dave17352]

Lots of great opinions here. Thanks

[pnichols]

A slide or no-slide depends on if you view an RV as a mobile motel room or a mobile backpack.

We view our small Class C as the latter ... hence it does not have a slide. This provides for maximum coach wall strength year after year and overall coach reliability year after year ... on or off smooth roads and close to civilization or not.

We actually got a great deal when we bought our short but heavily optioned Class C due to what I think was this reason -> the dealer had it on their lot for over a year and probably couldn't sell it because it didn't have any slides!

It's large enough inside for the DW to have a lounge chair, me to have a dinette or cab seat, and our dog-person to play short-range fetch in.

[bobndot]

Having a slide in a TT, TC or fiver is a different ball game. I do not like them in class C's where there is no room for a header like there is in a fiver and some A's.
I would only get a slide if I absolutely needed to have more room for living space, period.
I only owned slide models that were seasonal site rvs not used over the road.
I never had a slide issue in the few I owned.
IMO, the idea is to limit issues in the field when you are going to experience a lot of downtime waiting for rv repairs and parts while on vacation. You are better off with less. If you do buy a slide model make sure you can fully use the rv in the 'IN' position.

Because normal rv things do not get done at the factory level you need to rely on a good dealer to do them.
If your dealer is not willing to take the time to tweak things up when a unit arrives at his dealership or prior to your walkthrough then you might have more problems with things in general.
A good dealer can lessen future problems, especially involving things that go in and out, have to seal, have fused motors with electrical wiring and have to align on adjustable tracks in order to function properly.



What I have seen with slides:
Some slides had wiring issues where the electrical wires became frayed.
Some slide motors are very difficult to replace , I would learn how its done before I bought one. 12v slide motors are inexpensive motors and have a tendency to quit performing on some models. There are different slide manufacturers.

I, as well as many other owners that have had them, would stay away from a slide that houses a kitchen. I do not like gas and electrical flex lines that connect things in a kitchen. Many owners had issues there.
Some slides tend to wear carpets and floors and those need to be replaced at times.

Best advice...listen to the mechanics that repair them not the salesman selling them. Doing that saved me thousands of dollars and a lot of potential down time.