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Re: Leaving Trailer Unattended on a Piece of Property
mtofell1 wrote: ... If we did own a lot it would be very convenient to just leave my 5th wheel there sometimes. Has anyone done this? What about security? The lots I'm looking at are just on residential streets in average neighborhoods. There is a mixture of site built houses and some manufactured homes. I've done it in 3 locations in 3 different states, on 5 to 40 acre parcels in remote locations. It would be highly unlikely that an empty lot on a residential street in an average neighborhood would allow this. Its mostly allowed in very rural undeveloped areas. Most residential areas would require some other approved habitable structure be on the property before allowing a parked RV. Security depends on the location, the distance to neighbors, local police and such. At my rural homebases I use fences, locked gates, security cameras, trusted neighbors and local sheriff patrols when I'm gone. Regardless of your security precautions and preparations, you always need good insurance to cover losses that can happen anywhere. You need to be sure your insurance policy terms allow for the RV to be left unattended. Its only property that can be easily replaced, as long as its insured properly.563Views0likes0CommentsRe: Vehicle Weight Info
Sounds like you want the "UVW" unloaded vehicle weight. Its usually not included in the published specs. But can usually be found on a Mfg weight sheet somewhere on the actual unit, inside a cabinet door, on the wall panel next to the drivers seat or an external plate. UVW is supposed to include the operating fluids like fuel, coolant & oil; but not any RV tank fluids like water, waste, propane. Those are part of your cargo carrying capacity. Note that the UVW is not an actual weight, but a calculated weight based on a typical unit; and usually excludes any optional equipment. So you always need to confirm it with an actual scale weighing to confirm you don't exceed GVWR or either axle rating. wredman wrote: Where can the curb weight (full fluids) be found for coaches? All I see listed is the GVWR but they never mention the starting weight of the vehicle before the owner gets in and brings gear.227Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where does one find out the wet weight of an RV?
Chowan wrote: Thanks for the explanation. So the big question is where does one find the UVW? Not in the brochure or on line. Call a Winnie sales person and ask for it, or visit a dealer that has one of these in stock and look for the label inside one of the interior cabinets that lists the UVW and CCC.658Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where does one find out the wet weight of an RV?
Chowan wrote: I am not saying we are going to purchase this rv, but this is what we looked at yesterday. No matter what we get I need to know and understand how much I can load and pull with any DP. Winnebago Solei. GCWR 33,000 GVWR 27,910 GAWR 10,410 GAWR 17,500 So if I a understanding these numbers correctly I have approximately 5900 lb to play with which will have to include my toad? No, you're not understanding it correctly. You can not calculate "how much you can carry" without knowing the UVW unloaded vehicle weight. From the above you know that the max weight of the motorhome and all its contents & passengers may never exceed 27,910 lbs. Next you need to subtract the UVW. Just to have a number, lets say the UVW is 23,500 lbs. Then using that example, 27910 - 23500 = 4,410 would be your cargo carrying capacity; including all passengers, contents of tanks & all your on board stuff. Also note that, even if you're under the 27910 with all your stuff loaded, you still must not exceed either the 10410 on the front axle or the 17500 on the rear axle. You may have to shift some contents to keep the overall balance within the axle limits. Depending on the location of your water tank, sometimes traveling with a near full water tank may put you over the front axle limit, even though you're under the overall GVWR. As far as your allowed towed weight behind the MH, thats 33000 - 27910 = 5090 lbs (or more if you're under the GVWR) But the hitch on that MH is probably rated for only 5000 lbs. So your real toad limit is 5000654Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where does one find out the wet weight of an RV?
in addition to the gross weight sticker items you mentioned, motorhome mfgs also provide a CCC cargo carrying capacity, and UVW unloaded vehicle weight(includes fuel, coolant, oil). Many times those are on a separate label glued inside one of the interior cabinet doors. So the only other "wet" load is how many gals you decide to carry in your water, waste & propane tanks. that's controlled by you, not the mfg and should be calculated as part of your "cargo load". most liquids weigh about 8 lbs per gal, and propane weighs about 4 lbs per gal. Since the published CCC and UVW are based on avg assumptions and usually exclude any vehicle options, its always required to weigh your rig at a certified truck scale to confirm. as for your toad size limit, that's usually controlled by the MH hitch rating. I've never seen a MH hitch rated high enough to allow you to exceed the GCVWR.323Views0likes0CommentsRe: Highway 58, San Luis Obispo to Barstow
Desert Captain wrote: .... My only regret was that I had left my Harley at home as 58 has got to be one of the ultimate motorcycle roads in America and I promised myself I would be back, next time on two wheels. :B If you ever come back with your Harley be sure to try hiway 33 a bit further south. It runs from the 101 near Ventura up and over the Las Padres National Forest Mountains and down to Maricopa, south of Bakersfield. When I was working in Bakersfield the local motorcycle & sports car groups would have frequent informal races over that twisty section of road.525Views0likes0CommentsRe: Durango to Flagstaff-hwy 160
I'd pick 160 any day over I-40. sure it may take a few hours for road service to show up out there, but it may take just as long for them to show up on I-40. You didn't say, but 160 is going to end where it hits 89 and you'll be on 89 for the last bit into Flagstaff.791Views0likes0CommentsRe: Was retirement for you a good or not so good choice?
Only you can say which is the best choice for yourself. For me early retirement was a good choice that continues to pay off. I had a well paying career that I enjoyed most of the time, but as soon as I felt comfortable with my nest egg, I cashed in and retired at 60. Since I had been working 60, 70, 80 hours a week, I didn't have a lot of hobbies either. I spent my first 4 yrs of retirement as a fulltimer, traveling all over the country. As my travels began to slow down, I bought summer & winter properties and spent the next few years as a snow bird and built homes myself on each property. I still travel in my RV's year round, but no longer live in the RV fulltime. I bought myself a Harley and do part time road trips on the Harley in between RV trips. I got into ATV'ing and spend days exploring the back country on my ATV. I never had much interest in fishing, but my summer home is within walking distance of a prime fly fishing section of the Rio Grande and I enjoy an occasional day at the river. I always had an interest in firearms from my years in the USMC. But now I had time to enjoy target shooting and built my own backyard range at my winter ranch where I have no close neighbors. I occasionally take part in competitive shooting matches. My latest project is an ocean going live aboard sailboat that I keep at a marina on the east coast and use during the winter cruising season to sail around the Bahama & Caribbean islands. Then put it back in storage for the summer hurricane season and head back to the RV and my summer home in the mountains. The only limitation in exploring new things is yourself. There are endless options for new activities. Its your choice to get out there and try some new things or sit at home. Whether home is a stick & brick or an RV doesn't change that situation much. But traveling around in an RV exposes you to more opportunities to expand your horizons. That's my take on the subject.211Views0likes0CommentsRe: Can I convert a auto searching tv dome type set up
Lets see if I understood, you're not willing to spend 10 mins getting your dome Sat antenna pointed at the right Sat, but you're willing to spend hours up on the roof covering it with tin foil and tying a string of soup cans from one end to the other? It doesn't take a rocket scientist, I'm sure there is an example on YouTube or Google. But your question reminds me of that redneck rocket scientist that used to do things like convert a perfectly good pickup engine to run on cow manure. made for some entertaining TV but not very practical. If you're more interested in a cell antenna & amp than getting your TV antenna to work, just go buy one; they're almost as cheap as tin foil & soup cans and much more effective. PS: Most of the Sat dish related homemade cell or wifi amplifier experiments I've read about use a discarded full size open face Sat antenna dish with LNB arm, not the small rotating type hidden inside your dome.214Views0likes0CommentsRe: Colorado 91 Copper Mounain to Leadville
Yes, its as doable as any other road going over an 11,000 ft pass in Colorado. its a good 2 lane road with shoulders and a few passing sections with truck lane for slow moving rigs. that's assuming we're talking about summer/fall and not middle of winter.247Views0likes0Comments
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