Hello all, glad to be on!

[masongardner]

Just wanted to stop buy and say hello to everybody. My family and myself, 3 kids from 5-11, started a few years ago with a pop-up, moved to a 5th wheel, then to a motorhome and now onto a travel trailer. We say it took us some time to find what we liked haha. This next week we are taking delivery of our new 2015 Coleman CTS314BH. We just fell in love with the layout and look forward to enjoying it for years to come. Now we just need some warmer weather here in Colorado. Anyways, just wanted to stop by and say hello, and look forward to gaining some knowledge from the forums.

[masongardner]

djgarcia wrote:
Use of toilet in your RV:)
After reading some of he posts on this topic, I am not real clear as to why an RVer would want to self impose usuage rules on the use of a toilet???? Maybe we should have the option of buying RV's with or without toilets and black tanks:):):). IMHO, Your RV is suppose to provide the maximum life of enjoyment with the least amount of restrictions:)

HAHHAHA, I like your thinking about buying one without a toilet and black tanks. But in all seriousness, when really traveling with one I couldn't see not having one and using it.

[masongardner]

Good tips, thanks guys and gals. Suppose we will always keep some water in the black tank. I do understand that you keep water in there all the time when you are using it. The reason I asked that question is, its about a 45 min trip to the lake we stay at all summer, so needing to stop for rest breaks at this point in our lives is not a concern, but later on im sure it will be. Being that we are buying this one brand new, we will for sure be babying it for a little while. The campground we stay in has a restroom about 40 feet from our spot, so that's a nice convenience. Its just new, haha. Its going be a queen for at least a little while.

[BradinOhio]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new TT!

[Sandia_Man]

Nice looking rig and floorplan is perfect for your family. We camped with our 4 kids and didn't have any problem letting them use the toilet, but they would use campground facilities too (when available) if they didn't want to wait for someone else to finish. Most of the initial trips were weekenders and black tank never got full, gray tank was another issue as it was always full by the end of the trip. Have many wonderful memories in your new Coleman.

[MarkTwain]

Use of toilet in your RV:)
After reading some of he posts on this topic, I am not real clear as to why an RVer would want to self impose usuage rules on the use of a toilet???? Maybe we should have the option of buying RV's with or without toilets and black tanks:):):). IMHO, Your RV is suppose to provide the maximum life of enjoyment with the least amount of restrictions:)

[bluie5]

Welcome to the forum. You'll be surprised how easy it is to want to use the bathroom, especially at night. It's nice in the middle of the night. I have told my kids though no number 2 depending on whether we have FHU and how long we're staying before being able to dump. DW of course can use it whenever she wants.

[MarkTwain]

masongardner wrote:
I did think of 1 question. Since this TT we are buying is brand new, and we camp at places that have bathrooms and showers, is there any reason to keep any liquid in the black tank at all? We just make whomever is with us walk to the restroom instead of dirtying our new baby, haha. Is it fine to just leave it dry? Thanks all.

NO! ALWAYS leave about 3 gallons of water in your black tank. This will prevent your black tank from ever developing the infamous fecal "pyramid" at the bottom of your black tank and then plugging up your tank. Having water in your tank will also assist in the breaking down the contents of your tank, thus avoiding the possibility of a plugged up black tank. Another reason is to be able to use your toilet when you are traveling, you can't always assume you will have a restroom available when you need it. It is always nice to have a choice and flexibility to choose between using the bathrooms at a "rest stop" :(:( or your own nice clean bathroom. Women and children really appreciate this option.

[TexasShadow]

no, leave a little water in it for an emergency use. a couple gallons.

[masongardner]

I did think of 1 question. Since this TT we are buying is brand new, and we camp at places that have bathrooms and showers, is there any reason to keep any liquid in the black tank at all? We just make whomever is with us walk to the restroom instead of dirtying our new baby, haha. Is it fine to just leave it dry? Thanks all.

[ScottG]

Welcome and I hope you have many years of great times!

[masongardner]

dream trips? shoot, right now my dream is warm weather. We are in Colorado and all of my kids are full time cheerleaders so trips are weekends at the lake. Dream trips though, I guess Montana, very beautiful, I would love to spend some time there with my kids. Anywhere and everywhere is the dream, we just love to see new areas, just not a whole lot of time with little people. But we will see more as they grow older im sure.

You are correct, I did sign up a while ago, just have been lurking and reading up on posts as we progressed through the phases of pop-up, 5th wheel, motorhome and now travel trailer. I think like anyone can probably attest too, spending time away from the hustle of daily life and with the family without all of the electronics and craziness is just so relaxing.

We do spend most of our summer at the lake, where we get in our camping. But I would like to try to get out in the winter his year in the mountains of Colorado, and having our bed free to haul an atv will be a nice change.

I was looking over the Dodge towing guide and though we are close to the GVWR, it looks like we have about 1000lbs to spare, that's dry weight but with 5 passengers, Luckily the kids are small.

[MarkTwain]

masongardner wrote:
Just wanted to stop buy and say hello to everybody. My family and myself, 3 kids from 5-11, started a few years ago with a pop-up, moved to a 5th wheel, then to a motorhome and now onto a travel trailer. We say it took us some time to find what we liked haha. This next week we are taking delivery of our new 2015 Coleman CTS314BH. We just fell in love with the layout and look forward to enjoying it for years to come. Now we just need some warmer weather here in Colorado. Anyways, just wanted to stop by and say hello, and look forward to gaining some knowledge from the forums.

Tell us about some of your dream trips and places you are planning:)

[kknowlton]

Hello, yourself - and welcome! Looks like you signed up a while back. Perhaps as you get into using your new rig, you'll have more to post about - questions, campsite pictures, etc.

[westend]

Welcome and happy camping ahead!