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5 things we don't love about our RV

RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
It's been a few months since we made our "5 things we love about our RV" post and now that things are thawing out here in Pennsylvania we've begun thinking again. We'll be prepping our trailer over the next few weeks for the season and have started thinking about things we'd like to change. So, here's our list of 5 things we don't love about our trailer.

1. No slide: This isn't something we can change, but it would be REALLY nice to have a side slideout. We really discovered this when camping for Thanksgiving and squeezed 6 people into the dinette and sofa to eat. We'd like to have some extra space to move around in the kitchen and dinette area for sure.

2. Master bed position: It's great that we can have a bunkhouse and queen bed in a 25' trailer, but because the queen sits in the slide sideways I need to climb over my wife in the middle of the night for any trips to the bathroom. It would be nice to have the bed situated long ways, but this it another limitation we can't change.

3. Rear bumper: This is a small one, but the rear bumper is stamped and cannot hold a sewer hose. We also don't have a receiver to mount bike racks, etc. The bumper is mounted on the frame of the slide, so I'm not sure I want to put extra weight on there. I'm considering a 4x4 bumper and a hitch, but I really need to decide if I want the extra weight back there. This isn't a show stopper and we'll get around to this eventually.

4. Lack of insulation: When we purchased the trailer the water leaking through the roof was retained in the underbelly by the waterproof membrane. When we completed the repairs all the insulation was removed and left off for the time being to air out. When we went out for Thanksgiving you could really feel how cold the floors were and we used throw rugs as a temporary barrier. New insulation is on our list of fixes for this season.

5. Worn decals: The 14 year old vinyl graphics have seen better days. We own a large vinyl cutter and this is on our list of things to do, but it's not a priority. We'll have new graphics at some point when I decide I feel like peeling the old ones off and I think we'll be sticking with the circus theme.

Luckily it was much harder to come up with the list of things we don't like about our trailer. We still love the trailer, but have started looking for our next unit which may be a few years off.

What would you change about your RV?
2000 KZ Sportsman 2505 (overhauled & upgraded 2014)
2016 Chevy Express 3500 15 passanger van
6 humans, 2 cats, and a dog
Visit our blog at www.ROWLESmade.com
Our trailer re-build thread
50 REPLIES 50

mds1
Explorer
Explorer
Following this one. Thanks for starting the thread.

We had a 30 foot travel trailer for six years but sold it in 2001. We used it for weekend trips. Most of this should apply to current trailers.

1. Lack of outside storage for outside stuff like fishing rods

2. Having the reclining chair setup just as you entered the front door. Felt cramped and we could not move the chair to a better location or the door would be blocked.

3. Two steps up to the front door. Banged our shines often.

4. Lack of much outside lighting. Only had one on the awning side and there were times we wanted to flip a switch inside to light up other areas around the camper.

5. Only one battery which is something we could have changed. Lack of battery compartment space.
Mark from Missouri

http://www.ourfutureinanrv.wordpress.com.

2018 Ram 3500 Laramie Dually LB 6.7L HO Diesel Aisin Transmission 4x4 3.73 Gears

Looking to soon purchase Vanleigh Vilano 320GK 35โ€™ fifth wheel 16,000-pound GVWR

RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
rockhillmanor wrote:
When I sat down I could NOT close the bathroom door.
Anyone over 5 foot tall your knees would hit the door!!!


Wow...that's a lesson you can only learn through experience. It's now on my list of things to look out for, so thanks for taking that lump for the team;-)
2000 KZ Sportsman 2505 (overhauled & upgraded 2014)
2016 Chevy Express 3500 15 passanger van
6 humans, 2 cats, and a dog
Visit our blog at www.ROWLESmade.com
Our trailer re-build thread

rockhillmanor
Explorer
Explorer
I can think of of one thing about the first TT I bought which you all might want to take note of! :B

Liked the TT so I bought it.
Packed it up for my first trip.
4 hours on the road stopped at a rest area
to use "MY" bathroom in my TT.

When I sat down I could NOT close the bathroom door.
Anyone over 5 foot tall your knees would hit the door!!!

Ever since that wonderful relation when I look at RV's I push the
salesman aside that's yammering about all the amenities
and go directly to the bathroom to see if you can sit down AND
close the door to comfortably enjoy your moment in privacy! :C

We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us.

Lauren
Explorer
Explorer
As some have said, there is no perfect RV of any kind. You can come very close; but not perfect. We did just that.

But we hated the uncomfortable (to sit on) hide-a- bed in the back - it was a good quality unit - so we got some help and tore it out; no easy job as you have to completely dismantle it to get it out the door. Put in two Lazyboys so now have three - one for DW, one for me and one for our best friend - Sadie, the Aussie Terrier.

We thought it would be a good plan to have double pane windows but found out, that after several years, they fog between panes. And VERY expensive to change out so we live with them.
Barbara-DW 55 years
Sadie-"Aussie" Terrier
06 Mobile Suites 32TK3
06 Chev 3500 4x4 Dmax
20 yrs PT RVing - 190 RV parks; some many times


RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
linnemj wrote:
We are pleased with our purchase and focus on the positive!


We feel the same way. We love our trailer and don't think we could have done better given our situation. We still have a few repairs left over from the rebuild last year, so changes are still fresh in our mind.

It's interesting to see what prople love...and don't love about their current setup.
2000 KZ Sportsman 2505 (overhauled & upgraded 2014)
2016 Chevy Express 3500 15 passanger van
6 humans, 2 cats, and a dog
Visit our blog at www.ROWLESmade.com
Our trailer re-build thread

linnemj
Explorer
Explorer
We have a 30' toy hauler trailer that we have owned since 2010.

We spent a lot of time looking before we bought this one. Forest River changed the murphy bed to a happi-jac bed and switched the location of the rear door and window in the garage/bedroom.

Several things we would change after using the trailer:

1. There is a plug in the front located on the bench seat located under the table. You have to get on your hands and knees to plug it.

2. Low quanity of the foam in couch set cushions.

3. Poor air flow in heat outlets.

We are pleased with our purchase and focus on the positive!
Jim & Nicky
2012 Forest River XLR MBV 29
2010 Dodge Ram 2500 Diesel
Motorcycles!

RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
shum02 wrote:
Since we have a 2505 as well your thoughts are like mine.

I'll add:
Hate the entire bathroom!
The manual bed slide - what a chore it is sometimes.


I agree.

The shower is brutal...especially for a fat guy like me.

The slide is also a bit of a pain, but it the trailer was 2' longer we wouldn't get it in the driveway. I'm annoyed and thankful for this slide at the same time:D
2000 KZ Sportsman 2505 (overhauled & upgraded 2014)
2016 Chevy Express 3500 15 passanger van
6 humans, 2 cats, and a dog
Visit our blog at www.ROWLESmade.com
Our trailer re-build thread

ReadyToGo
Explorer
Explorer
We have a 25ft Minnie. Like a few others have written, it's a life of compromise. Most things could be fixed by getting a larger RV, but that defeats the whole idea.
Usually something has to be moved to get to what you want. So what. The one thing we have is time. So it takes an extra minute to get to something. Big deal.
Six people for dinner, so 2 sit in the aisle and use a tv tray.
Complaints about what could be better only get in the way of having a great time.

RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
Sprink-Fitter wrote:
Why buy a rv if there are five things you don't like about it?

Our shower could be bigger, but it's not bad at all.


Ha...when we bought it there were 105 things we didn't like. This was our first TT, so we weren't 100% sure what we needed or wanted. This was a huge project for us, so I think we came as close to nailing a first trailer as we could and most of our complaints are minor.
2000 KZ Sportsman 2505 (overhauled & upgraded 2014)
2016 Chevy Express 3500 15 passanger van
6 humans, 2 cats, and a dog
Visit our blog at www.ROWLESmade.com
Our trailer re-build thread

Lantley
Nomad
Nomad
I have come to really dislike the additional 1/2 bath.
The bath 1/2 bath and floorplan I like, but the additional holding tanks and dumping associated with the 2nd bath is a pain.
Having to deal with a 2nd set of tanks ruins the convenience of having a 2nd bathroom.
My 1/2 bath is slowly becoming a utility closet. One day I may actually remove the toilet!
19'Duramax w/hips, 2022 Alliance Paradigm 390MP >BD3,r,22" Blackstone
r,RV760 w/BC20,Glow Steps, Enduraplas25,Pedego
BakFlip,RVLock,Prog.50A surge ,Hughes autoformer
Porta Bote 8.0 Nissan, Sailun S637

shutdown
Explorer
Explorer
Bathtub. pretty much everything about it. its a minitub with a seat.

inadequate (for Florida) AC.

pasusan
Explorer
Explorer
Had to really think about this one... Before we bought this trailer I had made a layout drawing of what we wanted. It was based on my aunt and uncle's Airstream, including all our wants and needs, but shorter. We found the perfect one. ๐Ÿ™‚

A lot of the things that others found lacking obviously apply to ours - like a small bathroom! But we knew when we planned this out that there would be compromises, so I can't complain about the bathroom - if it was bigger, the trailer would have to be longer.

Could only come up with 2 things we don't love:

1. Smallish holding tanks (32 gallons each)
2. Smallish fridge (and freezer)

Susan & Ben [2004 Roadtrek 170]
href="https://sites.google.com/view/pasusan-trips/home" target="_blank">Trip Pics

FunnyCamper
Explorer II
Explorer II
only 2 for me

the toyhauler box is hot where kiddo sleeps. wish more air got back there.
but fans help.

no outside fridge. had one with the Wildcat 5er and it was wonderful. miss it!

other than that we bought a floorplan we love!!

shum02
Explorer
Explorer
Sprink-Fitter wrote:
Why buy a rv if there are five things you don't like about it?



Generally speaking unless your resources are unlimited most RV's I have seen are compromises. Some things you really don't find out about a unit till you have had to live with it a while.

My slide was a compromise to storage issues and that brought about the entire layout issue...........but I have a little while longer to live with the things about it I don't like before I get another rig with hopefully less compromises and things I don't like after having lived with it for a while.
2006 F350 Lariat FX4 CC 4x4 PSD
2007 KZ2505QSS-F Outdoorsman

rockhillmanor
Explorer
Explorer
Wow surprised so many with things they don't like.

I guess I really need to count my blessings!

Back when I started out going into RV'ing as newbie not knowing anything about RV's, I put money down on a new coach and after sleeping on it thought better that I should buy used to see if I even liked RV'ing.

Bought a 31 foot used MH and have absolutely NO complaints. I have no desire to go out and buy a new one either!

Been on the road with her 6 years now full time and the Queen Mary never fails to raise to the occasion and make my trips pleasurable. :C

We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us.