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Scott and Jackie's Travels – Thousand Trails Reviews, Campground Reviews, Fulltime RVing, European Travel

Tag: advice

2023 – Italy-Switzerland wrapup

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2023 – Zermatt, Switzerland – the Matterhorn – Scott and Jackie

We arrived back “home” in Manchester a bit weary but more than satisfied with our trip to Italy and Switzerland.  Here are some random thoughts as we wrap up our trip.

It was an all-public transportation trip.  Over the last 10 days we traveled by bus, plane, subway, trolley, boat, Uber, and, of course, train.  It is quite an experience for Americans who are fully immersed in the car culture to travel totally as passengers on public transport.  It certainly is nice to look out the window or read a book while someone else handles the trip!

This journey was, of course, all about the trains.  Jackie and I enjoyed the Italian high-speed trains.  They are big and roomy; smooth and quiet.  Our Swiss trains, of course were all about the view.

The trains we traveled on in Switzerland were all narrow gauge.  That means the tracks and, therefore, the cars are narrower.   Most of the time it didn’t make much difference but, on the Bernina Express it did.  We were in second class where the seats face one another in groups of four.  Jackie and I decided it would be better to spend the four-hour trip looking at one another (and with both of us having window seats).  That meant two other passengers on the full train sat beside of us.  They were nice people, but they didn’t speak much English, so we spent those hours listening to them speaking French to one another and to several other family members on the other side of the train car.  While traveling in second class worked great on all the other journeys we took, I think we’d opt spend the extra money and go for first class if we were ever to take that excursion again.  The first-class cars have two seats on one side and one seat on the other.  Much more room.

I confess that photography on the train was a challenge.  The train keeps moving and there are reflections in the windows.  I just took lots of photos and then deleted most of them, leaving only the ones I thought looked best.

If you ever plan on traveling by train in Europe, check out this web site – I got tons of great information there: https://www.seat61.com/ is a great resource.

Jackie and I were really blessed with the weather.  Not only was it unseasonably warm, but it also didn’t rain or snow on us the entire trip.  We couldn’t have ordered better weather for a January in the Alps!

My biggest budget miss was the cost of food.  Switzerland, in particular, was very expensive.  Just a hamburger and fries were over $20 a person.  When traveling, we generally try to eat one nicer meal each day, and then, in the evening, eat a sandwich, etc.   Even that approach was a challenge.  We often went to a grocery store and bought ready-made sandwiches with chips to take back to the hotel for supper.  Those sandwiches usually ran $7-8 each.  Two of the “best” deals were German Doner Kebab restaurants (lots of meat!) and many pizzerias.  I do like pizza, but not as a daily staple!

I researched hotels on Google, trying to find highly rated ones, for reasonable prices, that were close to train stations.  We were satisfied with all of them.  All but one offered breakfast with the stay.  The breakfasts were pretty good.

I’ll close out my writing with this.  Thanks to all who have read along.  Comments are always welcome and encourage me to keep writing.  All of the posts in this series can be easily found in our travel blog: http://localhost/pastorscott/travel/tag/italy-switzerland/

The job no RVer likes to do: dumping the black water

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“Honey, I think the black water needs to be dumped.” Ah – the fun part of RVing.  Here are my tips.

One key is to always use plenty of water when flushing. That helps liquefy waste. Scott’s single ply toilet paper breaks down immediately (almost too fast if you get my meaning) so it is a good and cheap choice.  Another key is to dump only when you have a half tank or more to dump. You want a good “woosh” when you pull the lever. Generally, I dump black water once a week. Our tank sensors stopped working long ago (it is probably the number one RV part to fail). When flushing we can hear when the tank is getting full – also, right at clear full the toilet will “burp” an air bubble when we flush. That means right now it is time to dump. For us, once a week works out just the same – so for us Friday is dump day. Your mileage will vary.

Note: see this post for my sewer hose security tip pictured above.

Some people like to close the grey water tank the day before they dump black water.  Then, before they pull the black water valve they open the gray tank valve just long enough to be sure all the connections are tight.  This is a good way to avoid doing the infamous “black water dance” and making enemies out of your fellow campers and the campground staff.  Also, if you are breaking camp, having plenty of grey water to dump right after finishing the black water helps clean the hose a bit before you put it in storage.

Now, the black water:

I start the tank rinse, and immediately open the valve and dump. Then, leaving the rinse on, I close the valve for about 7 minutes (how long depends on the size of your tank, water flow, etc. – again you want a half tank or more), then open it again. Warning: if you get distracted and forget you left the water running the results will be a real mess!  I set a quick alarm timer on my phone.  Once the tank empties, repeat the process. Now, close the valve, let the rinse run one more minute to get some water back in the bottom of the tank, turn the water off and call it good for another week.

Some people wear disposable gloves.  Since I’m not putting my fingers into the hose, I just wash my hands afterwards.  I also keep hand sanitizer in the wet bay so I can use it as I clean up.

A bonus tip is to get a clear sewer hose fitting that lets you see what is going on when you dump. Once the water runs clear you know you have cleaned the tank as good as you are going to get it.

I’ve often seen people suggest putting ice cubes down the toilet to “scrub” it as you drive.  However, you are probably wasting good ice that could be used in your tea.  The ice in the black tank doesn’t last very long and unless you drive like the Dukes of Hazard it doesn’t do much scrubbing at all.  You might enjoy this great video on the topic.

Some people put strong perfume treatments in the tank. Not only do we think that causes a “stink” of its own, we have found that using lots of water works just fine. If you want to put a treatment in try Happy Campers – not a perfume, but an enzyme treatment that actually helps break down the solids. Some people report that it also cleaned their tank sensors – didn’t work for us but I think it does break down solids.

One more tip: don’t run the exhaust when flushing the toilet. The fan will pull smells up out of the black tank and into the camper! Flush first, then turn on the fan as needed!

Dumping the black water is no one’s favorite part of camping, but it’s not all that bad either.

Why we mark a RV Park off our campground list

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Here are seven reasons we mark a campground or RV Park off our list as a potential camping location.  These are listed in decreasing order of importance to us:

  1. We feel unsafe: Uncared for trailers with lots of people hanging around them, late night yelling and roaring car engines, etc. We’ll leave ASAP and not be back.  BTW, in all our years of travels we’ve only experienced this once.
  2. Flakey electricity: We run an electric monitoring system all the time.  It monitors and protects the RV from damaging voltages (high or low) plus other electrical issues.  If the campground electric is flakey we might try moving to a different spot, but if the problem persists we’ll likely give up on that campground for good.  I’ll add that the same kind of thinking to some extent applies to all utilities.  Of course, we sometimes stay in places with limited utilities, most of the time, though we have full hookups that we expect to work as they should.
  3. Unlevel campsites: We have a leveling system and also carry a variety of leveling blocks with us. I’d say it is more common than not that we have to do some minor leveling.  However, if we have to do some major leveling effort we will try a different site if possible.  If a significant number of sites are the same we will camp elsewhere in the future.
  4. Too expensive: Again, location matters. Nice parks in popular areas can charge more and we will pay it. However, we have found that paying more doesn’t necessarily mean getting more.  If we think a place is overpriced we shop around.
  5. Hard to navigate: Our rig is big enough that we sometimes have trouble driving it through a campground with narrow, twisting roads. We also need room to back in to a site without having other RVs, trees, etc. complicating the process.  We’ve owned all kinds of camping gear – from tents up to our current motorhome and I know how to park a RV.  At the same time, I don’t like having to fight my way into a spot.  In some cases this is campsite specific, if not, I’ll mark that RV Park off my list.
  6. Neighbors too close: I know that urban, private RV Parks tend to pack people in as close as possible. It may be that, because of location I’ll put up with tight quarters for a week or so.  However, we generally avoid “parking lot campgrounds.”
  7. Noisy location: For some reason RV Parks seem to end up near active railroad tracks or nestled up against busy Interstates and Freeways. Again, for shorter stays we will grin and bear it.  For longer stays, no thanks.

By and large, we are happy campers who love the RV lifestyle.  We don’t need to stay in high dollar resorts to be happy and we generally roll with the punches.  Still, we’ve stayed in a few places that we aren’t likely to visit again.

How about you?  What would you add to this list?

 

Researching, planning, reserving

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I’ve always mostly enjoyed the planning part of fulltiming. If others prefer free lancing it is fine with me, but that’s not my thing. I get a kick out of searching the web for the best campgrounds in interesting places and within our budget. As has been reported on many fronts, one unexpected impact of Covid has been a surge in the popularity of RVing. Sales reached record highs and campgrounds began to experience record occupancy.

Our 2021 Adventure has been delayed a bit as we prepare to celebrate a family event but we are looking forward to getting underway in a bit over a month. Knowing that campgrounds are filling up, I have spent time researching campgrounds and destinations, planning our route, and then reserving camp sites.

I’ve written before about planning: here and here.

For instance, this coming winter we want to spend some time in Arizona. There are an amazing number of places there that cater to winter RVers. I spent considerable time checking the information on websites and reading reviews. Once I narrowed my choice down and actually called about vacancies (still 7-8 months out!) I found that many places I had marked as good possibilities reported no room in the inn! Now, if I wanted to spend $1000 a month I would have no problem finding a spot (well, probably not, since our rig isn’t new enough), but trying to stay within a reasonable budget puts us in competition with lots of other RVing retirees.

We finally settled on a spot and made our deposit. As of right now, we are booked up for practically every night the rest of the year. For even me this level of planning is a bit over the top, but it sure beats landing in an area for a week or two and being told that there are no vacancies.

Personally, I think this is just how it is going to be from now on. Not only are many discovering RVing but many campgrounds are selling sites for long term use. Like it or lump it planning is going to be a part of the fulltime RV lifestyle.

Comparing a 5th Wheel and a Diesel Pusher Motorhome

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In early 2019, after 6 years in a 2007 34′ 5th wheel we moved to a 2005 39′ Diesel Pusher. Since the two rigs are from the same general time frame I think they make for good comparisons. However, please understand that some observations are specific to these rigs – because of that our experience might be different than that of others. Both rigs were gently used by their previous owners. The motorhome only had 34,000 miles on it and the 5th wheel had been garaged and well cared for. The 5th wheel was a Hitchhiker II LS – a mid-level unit from a first class manufacturer. The motorhome is a Safari Cheetah, basically an industrial twin to a Monaco Knight – another mid-level unit. The 5th wheel was pulled by a 2008 Ford F350 with a 6.4 engine. As you read, remember that I am comparing our experience in these two specific rigs. Here are some observations on the two rigs.

Liveability: 5th Wheel
The 5th wheel has more storage and a better living layout. We did move the motorhome TV from over the driver’s area to over a couch on the side. It helped a lot. There is more inside cabinet storage inside the 5th wheel. Things like heating and cooling are pretty much the same with either one.

On the road: tie
The motorhome is more comfortable and the big window up front offers the best view. When towing the car the motorhome can’t be backed up. Generally, this isn’t a problem, but if you make the wrong turn somewhere the car has to be disconnected, the motorhome moved, and then the car reconnected. Not a huge deal, but a negative when it happens. Some people said that the ride would be much smoother, but we haven’t found that to be true with this motorhome, even with new shocks. Getting fuel was better with the pickup simply because it could be filled up when not towing the camper.

Landing in a campground: tie
The motorhome is easy to park. The backup camera makes backing into a site a snap. Also, since the motorhome doesn’t bend in the middle it is easier to situate. However, in an unlevel site the 5th wheel wins. It doesn’t care how high you have to crank the landing gear. With the motorhome, you can easily end up with the front wheels off the ground. Some people say that doesn’t matter, but in the manual that came with our rig it clearly says not to do that. Most of the time sites are “level enough” but the longer the motorhome the bigger the problem with a sloping campsite.

Local Transportation: Motorhome
With the 5th wheel, the daily driver is a big pickup – poor mileage and challenging to park in tighter spaces. We now pull a small car with the motorhome. A much better daily driver.  Not only that, it can be a real plus to scout a campground in the smaller car before driving the rig to the campsite – especially in pick-your-own-site situations.

Maintenance – Repairs (engine/chassis side): 5th Wheel
If the pickup needed work, we could take it to most any shop that worked on diesel pickups while the 5th wheel remained parked in a campground. When the motorhome needs work, we have to find a shop that works on big trucks that will also work on a motorhome. You see, some truck and trailer shops will work on motorhomes, some won’t. Then, while the work is being done the house is in the shop too. If that work includes an overnight stay arraignments have to be made for accommodations (although it should be noted that depending on the type of work, many shops will let you stay in the motorhome overnight in their parking lot). In addition: work on the motorhome is almost always more costly than on the pickup.

Maintenance – Repairs (camper side): tie
Getting camper stuff worked on (or doing it yourself) is about the same on either one. Refrigerators, water heaters, awnings, etc. are pretty much the same. It is much easier to get work done by mobile techs on the camper side of the motorhome than on the engine side.

Cost of routine operation: motorhome
The motorhome gets about the same mileage as did the pickup when towing the camper. However, once in the campground, we drive a small car that gets much better mileage. Oil changes, etc. cost a lot more on the motorhome, but only have to be done yearly, making the annual cost about the same. Also, remember, the motorhome is only run when actually changing campsites, keeping mileage low compared to the pickup which is also a daily driver.

Storage accessibility: 5th wheel
The 5th wheel bay is easier to use. All the bays of the motorhome are under the 4 slide outs. Depending on how my back feels I sometimes wear knee pads and have to get down on my knees to reach into the bays. It is harder to get things in and out of the motorhome bays.

Propane: tie
The 5th wheel had two big removable propane tanks. A bit heavy, but taking them out and getting them filled was a reasonable amount of effort. On the motorhome the tank is built in. You either have to take the rig to a station and have it filled or you have to see if anyone is delivering (not all that uncommon in larger parks with long term residents).

Dry camping: motorhome
This is only about our specific rigs but I have the idea is it more common than not. The motorhome has a big diesel generator, an inverter, and 4 6-volt house batteries. It has larger holding tanks too. There are ways to do all the above with a 5th wheel, but the motorhome is pretty much ready to go without any special add-ons (neither has solar of any kind).  Also during the big Texas freeze of 2020 our generator was worth it’s weight in gold, keeping the motorhome and us from freezing when much of the state lost power for a couple of days.

In-motion convenience: motorhome (but not as much as you might think)
Prior to getting the motorhome we were told how great it would be for the passenger to be able to get up and move around while in motion. We haven’t found that to be the case. It is downright dangerous for anyone to be up and moving around while on the road. Sometimes we take advantage of a stoplight or a nice straight stretch of open interstate to get up and do something, but most of the time the passenger needs to stay strapped in.

Getting in and out: 5th wheel (but not as much as you might think)
There are more steps getting into the motorhome and they have to be navigated every time you go in or out whether on the road and traveling or stationary in the campground. On the other hand getting in and out of the pickup is just a bit harder than getting in and out of a car. Then, in the campground, there are fewer steps coming and going from the 5th wheel. However, this advantage is somewhat diminished by the additional steps going up to the bedroom and bathroom. I’m giving the 5th wheel the win here, but not by much.

Cost: 5th Wheel
Bear in mind that I’m talking about used rigs here. The cost of a big late model diesel pickup plus good 5th wheel is at least in the same neighborhood as a used low mileage diesel pusher motorhome of similar vintage. However, you have to then add in the cost of a small towed vehicle. Then, chassis-engine repairs will cost more on the motorhome. The results are mixed – but I give a slight plus to the 5th wheel. Frankly, the startup on our motorhome has been very expensive for us as we found issues that had to be fixed. I’m counting those costs in with the purchase price – hopefully, these expenses will come to an end very soon.

Prestige: Motorhome
If you like compliments on your rig (and who doesn’t) the motorhome is, in general, the winner. I say that carefully because we’ve seen some absolutely beautiful 5th wheel/pickup combinations. Still, it seems to me that a class A, diesel pusher, is most often the more impressive rig.

Trade in value: 5th Wheel
Note: this is written after the sale of our motorhome. We felt we didn’t get good prices when we sold both the 5th wheel and the motorhome. However, the motorhome sale was the worst. We had several unexpected expenses the first year we owned it, then there were other fixes along the way. We also spent money on upgrades. However, that was all out the window when we sold it. Not only that, but we had some unexpected issues when it was inspected that cut into money from the sale. It is also fair to note that we sold during a time of very high diesel fuel costs; that certainly didn’t help any. In other words, we didn’t think we got enough money for either the 5th wheel or the motorhome, but we did worse on the motorhome. The 5th wheel wins this one by default. It goes without saying that RVs don’t make good investments, something we proved with both of our fulltiming rigs.

So the results are mixed
As you can see, there are pluses and minuses to both. At times we have missed our 5th wheel. I think the thing we like best about the motorhome is the small car we tow – making it a pleasure to go sightseeing or just to run to the store. The thing we like least is how much more difficult it is to get work done on the chassis side of it. It is a much more difficult thing to find a shop to work on it and then to take it there as opposed to taking the pickup into the Ford dealer. Once again I’ll mention that I’m just comparing the two rigs we’ve fulltimed in. There are other approaches (towing with a medium or heavy duty truck – think 18 wheeler – comes to mind) that change the dynamics quite a bit.

So there is no “good or bad” choice here
There are lots of people who passionately say one or the other is the best. If you are trying to decide on one or the other you aren’t looking at a “good or bad” choice, but just the one that suits you best.

Note: this article is a work in progress. I’ll likely be back to add/edit items as things become apparent to me.

Just thinking: Make every day count

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As we’ve enjoyed the fulltime lifestyle we’ve met some interesting people. Many fulltimers tell me they have a blog, and if they do, I bookmark their site intending to keep up with them. To be honest, I tend to forget those bookmarked sites and seldom look at them.

Tonight, something brought those blogs to mind and I decided to check in on those folks we’ve meet along the way.

To my surprise many of them have left the road. As far as I can tell, the lifestyle changes were pretty much voluntary although I know of a few folks who have had health issues that forced a change of lifestyle (I wrote about that here). The others, I think, just came to a “been there done that” time in life and decided to find a place to land and start a new chapter in their lives.

While I was surprised at the number of fulltime RVers we’ve met that are no longer traveling it comes as no surprise that things change. In fact, as someone has wisely said, change is the one constant in life.

It is, though, good to be reminded that as enjoyable as fulltiming is, for most of us it’s an all too brief passage of life. Hopefully, for us, the adventure will end because we done all we wanted to do and are ready for a different sort of adventure. There’s a pretty good chance though, that it will involve something less voluntary.

I guess the point of this philosophic rambling is a reminder that the fulltime lifestyle, as enjoyable as it is, is a temporary passage in life. We don’t want to take this blessing for granted and we don’t want to get sidetracked from it by anything that doesn’t measure up, although it is reasonable to be reminded that some things do measure up and can make an unexpected appearance at any time (we’ve had that happen once). As it is, though, this chapter will end soon enough. Whether we have a short or long time to go in this adventure we want to make every day count.

2016 – The more things change the more they stay the same

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camping

It goes without saying that moving to fulltiming from a traditional “stix and brix” life is a major transition. We made the move and have never looked back. While the many changes are obvious, I’ve concluded that more stays the same than some might think. In spite of the downsizing involved, I think most people morph to a life that is similar to what they lived before. Now, let me hurry to say that if the move to fulltiming is connected to retirement or a new livelihood lots of major changes are baked in, RV lifestyle or not.

I see people on forums debating whether or not to have a washer/dryer in their RV. The answer is actually pretty easy: if you had a washer/dryer in your house you’ll probably want one in your RV. If you enjoyed going to a laundromat before, you’ll probably want to keep going to one. Admittedly, this approach has its limits – for instance, while dish washers are available, they aren’t all that common so you might have to surrender to dish washing in the RV even though you always used a dish washer in your old life.

Without doubt, living as a fulltimer means that some things will be more challenging than they were in your pre-fulltiming days. There will be times when you won’t be able to get the satellite signal or when you are camping without a sewer connect, thus limiting your use of the on-board washer. It’s all part of the adventure and you will have to find ways to accommodate such things.

Still, though, thinking that one is going fulltime and that once you are “out there” that everything will be different is probably mistaken. Lots of things will be different – hopefully, in great ways. However, you will still be the same person who wants oatmeal for breakfast most mornings, wants to do your laundry “at home,” and wants to watch the evening news on TV. Knowing this will help you make decisions about stuff like whether or not to sign up for a big data cell plan or buy a combo washer/dryer or get a fancy satellite setup.

2016 – Downsizing in preparation for fulltiming

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garagesaleA lot of people ask for advice on downsizing in preparation for fulltiming.  Given that everyone’s specific circumstances are unique, there’s no one size fits all approach to this but I can tell you what we did.

Related post: What does it cost to start full time RVing?

Early on in the process we just did a more thorough than usual spring cleaning.  It’s amazing how much stuff we accumulate through the years that just needs to be put on the curb.  For us the focus was on the shed and the garage.

As we moved forward, we picked a little used room in the house and emptied it out.  It became our “sorting room” where we began to put things we knew we didn’t intend on keeping.  We also cleared a wall in the garage for stuff we didn’t want in the house, but intended to get rid of.  We worked through each room of the house, moving items into the sorting room, more or less putting them into boxes with similar things.  That room got surprisingly full.  One key to this process is, I think, at first, if you don’t know what to do with an item, just leave it and move to something you do know you don’t want.  That stops you from getting constantly sidetracked.  It’s kind of interesting, but as the house began to empty, some things that froze us in our tracks were much easier to deal with when they were all that was left in a closet or room.

We also invited family to put their claim on items they wanted.  Those items stayed in place, but we knew they were spoken for.

As we got to a more serious level, we began to put larger items on Craigslist.  I also created a custom group of local friends on Facebook and posted those items there.  Being in a metro area probably helped, but a lot of stuff went out the door.  Usually, items sold for about half what they would have cost new.  We were much more interested in downsizing than we were in making money.  Our bicycles, couches, and dinette made some people quite happy.  Selling them made us happy too.

At that point we took another room, now empty, and made it our “holding room.”  Items we knew we were going to keep (plus those promised to family) were moved into that room.  The house was starting to feel pretty empty.

It was now time for the big garage sale.  All the items in the “sorting room” were priced at yard sale prices and we staged everything for the sale.  A LOT of stuff walked out the door over those two days.  We concluded the sale by loading all that was left and heading for Goodwill.

Family was given a deadline for getting their stuff, a few items (winter clothes, photo albums, and the like) went to a family member’s attic. We moved into the 5th wheel and our new, less-cluttered-with-belongings life began.

2016 – Advice: getting Internet while RVing

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A lot of people are interested in being able to get on the Internet as they RV. While campgrounds may advertise the availability of WIFI your internet experience will be iffy at best. We’ve found decent WIFI to be the exception rather than the rule – although I will add that we’re seeing some improvements to campground WiFi, especially if it is a paid add-on. Often, though, places that advertise WIFI only provide it if you go to a specific location. At that point you’ll generally be competing with other RVers who are on the same Internet connect. Evenings and weekends can be brutal for even the most basic internet operations. If you want to do Netflix – sorry, but it will be practically impossible to do on WIFI at most of the campgrounds you visit. So, the bottom line on WIFI is this: for the occasional user; for the person who just wants to check email once a day – campground WIFI will probably be sufficient. Paid WiFi may be a bit better. For Facebook addicts, for people who like to surf the web, and especially for people who “need” internet for business or home schooling – you’ll often need a different solution. Many people get WIFI boosters to extend their reach to the campground WIFI (we have a WIFI Ranger). Just know this: reaching out farther to connect to a pitiful campground WIFI won’t make the connect speed any faster, it will only save your walking to the Activity center, etc. to access that same poor connection.

The alternative is cell data. Companies like Verizon will happily sell you big buckets of data for a price. If (and that’s a big “if”) you are staying in an area with decent cell coverage for your carrier, you can do okay using your cell phone as a hot spot or, even better, using a dedicated hot spot device. One big caution here is that you do have to be in range of a cell tower for your carrier. Verizon is the undisputed leader in coverage but for the RVer who truly wants to get away from it all there’s the real possibility that you’ll get away from cell coverage too. Second, it’s going to cost you and it may come with the potential of periodic slow-downs. The best deal at this time is a prepaid Jetpack plan from Verizon. You can read about it here. Also, even as there are WIFI signal boosters there are cell signal boosters. Our Weboost Drive can make a real difference in internet connectivity. Just remember that you have to have a signal to boost. If you have, say 2 bars of 4G a booster can give you a boost of a bar or maybe even two. Sometimes that is a noticeable difference in connect speed.

One strategy people use is to have service from two different providers. You might be in range of one but not the other. Again, though, you are buying that capability.

This is, of course a very general overview. There are websites and books on the topic that get into the weeds of this subject. Depending on your needs, you may want to spend some time researching this topic using these resources. One of these best is Technomadia’s RV Mobile Internet site.

2016 – Budget: Second Wave Expenses

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Dollar-signMany fulltimers are in it for the long run. We’re not just out seeing the country for a year or two before returning to “real life.” Rather, this is our preferred lifestyle and we intend to enjoy it as long as possible. We’re now well into our 4th year of fulltiming which is longer than many, but barely getting started when compared to some fulltime “pros.” We spent quite a bit of money getting started in this lifestyle. That included several upgrades to our used 5th wheel, a couple of camping memberships, and other related items. Now, we’re starting to run into secondary costs more and more often.

For instance, our air conditioner was laboring and not keeping up. When we had it checked out the tech said it was mostly just showing its age. He recommended replacing it rather than spending money trying to get it to hobble through the summer. If we were RV weekenders and vacationers it would have lasted longer, but, as fulltimers we wore it out sooner than would have happened otherwise. Even major appliances have a lifespan so it’s wise to keep some reserve budget money around.

Aside from the biggies some things we bought new for our RVing adventure have begun showing their wear. At the beginning of our adventure I bought a nice Wilson Sleek cell signal booster for use when we were out on the fringes of cell coverage. It died a few months ago and had to be replaced with the new version. When we started out we got a couple of nice chairs. The thing is, in a RV there are few sitting choices so the same chairs get a lot more use than they would in a house. We recently decided to treat ourselves to a couple of small recliners. Hopefully, they will give us another 3-4 years of good use. This is a “second wave” expense that everyone will have after a few years of fulltiming in the same RV.

Another thing to think about is camping, etc. memberships. We got multiyear Passport America and Escapees memberships. In a year or so they will have to be renewed. Our Coachnet vehicle policy (happily never used) has expired and needs to be renewed. This sort of thing is predictable, but it eats into the budget every so many years.

Having said all that, there are more common expenses that everyone faces but tend to come around more often for retired fulltimers than they do for other people. We often tell people that we don’t need as many clothes in our closet as we used to. However, that means that we wear the same sets of comfortable clothes quite often. This summer, for instance, I’ve had to replace a couple of pairs of jeans. I only own two pairs and wear one or the other most every day. So, while I only own two pairs of jeans, they do need to be replaced a bit more often than they would otherwise. Most of our clothes are the same: comfortable and worn a lot. It’s a sneaky expense that shows up surprisingly often.

Of course, beyond all these kinds of budget hits lurks the major one. Most fulltimers upgrade their RV at least once. Depending on what you buy, you can spend a year’s (or even more) budget in one purchase. Since RV’s are generally repairable (aside from something catastrophic happening) you may avoid this expense altogether. Still, sooner or later, most people end up replacing the motorhome, 5th wheel, truck, and/or towed at some point.

So, while you are running the expense numbers for the fulltime RV lifestyle you might be wise to look beyond initial costs, nightly camping fees, and the cost of fuel. You might want to think, for instance, about more than what the purchase of a nice RVer specific GPS costs and consider what it will cost when that one stops working or becomes obsolete.

I won’t spend time on it here, but there are ways to combat some of this. Fulltimers who have been hit with unexpected expenses will slow down their travel and save on camping fees by paying the discounted monthly rate or they will take on a work camping gig for a few months to save money or even make a few bucks.

Still, as you work on your fulltiming budget you might want to be careful that you aren’t bumping up against 100% of your expendable income. In a few years, you’ll face a “second wave” of expenses as things wear out, break, or just need upgrading. Sorry, but that’s life.