How did you choose?

[IrishIroamed]

Thanks for the toad feedback Laura & Beth, which is why I made sure to say 'I don't know' . I only know what I've observed with no real hands on experience. This place is soooooo knowledgeable!

psst Mickie - check you spam

[Queen]

Got it Cheryl, thanks!


And a big thanks for the folks who mentioned insurance/tag/title, totally slipped my mind to add in those costs, a MH is much more expensive here with those costs added in.

Our truck can tow 6100 pounds, but doesn't have enough carry capacity for a truck camper. I found one place in TX that makes them light enough but it was TINY inside to meet the weight requirement.

[gingerK]

Our truck can tow 6100 pounds, but doesn't have enough carry capacity for a truck camper. I found one place in TX that makes them light enough but it was TINY inside to meet the weight requirement.

Mickie, I've camped in just about everything from army tents to big class A's. I went from my second truck camper to my current small motorhome. Unless you go with a tc something along the size of Anita's, you don't want one. I realized that as I was getting older and the tc had no bathroom, that I wanted to be able to stop and use my OWN potty if need be. It's been really nice to be able to just pull off the road at a wayside park, fix lunch, use the bathroom and rest, then go on my way without bothering to have to leave the camper. Now, you can (and I have) do this with a tt, but it's just so much easier in my mh. Yes, insurance and plates are more expensive than a tt and I have more maintainence in that I have an engine. I also don't pull a toad-yet. But my small mh actually fits in regular parking spaces so I'm pretty mobile. And I've seen gals that do pull a toad unhitch theirs before backing into a site and it didn't look all that hard to do. I don't think there's any one perfect rv; each one has it's pros and cons. I know you are just looking to find what "fits" you gals best. For me, it's a small class c, but as I said, I've camped in other rv's so I know what works for me right now. When I first got my tc it was a perfect fit. Now I'm much happier to go in my little mh.

[MelissaD]

There are pro's and Con's to each type or RV (motorhome (A,C or B) or trailer (TT or 5th wheel)) They each fill a need or market of their own and since all these markets overlap its really confusing.

Due to your needs (and in this case your partners), have certain physical and mental requirements. Example door sizes, headroom and not getting on your knees to dump tanks. These are things your RV needs to accommodate. You also need to roughly figure out how you wish to travel. Do you plan to travel 100 miles and sit a couple of days or move daily? The more you move, the less you will want to set up and a motorhome maybe more to your liking.

When we went shopping for our unit, we made a list of things that were important to us and a list of things we did not want. Nightstands with outlets for CPAP machines, as an example, were import item on our list. I actually gave my list to the salesman and told him to find me a 5th wheel than met my requirement and he found us our unit. We have made some tweaks over the years but it has served us well. We have a list of tweaks for the nest trailer if and when we replace this one.

Bottom line is the unit needs to match your and our partners needs and only you know what they are.

If you need me to I can run some numbers for your truck. If you message me with you trucks vin number I can probably pull up all your towing specs. The salesman well probably lie to you about how much your truck will tow since they want to see the trailer.

Melissa

[Queen]

...The salesman well probably lie to you about how much your truck will tow since they want to see the trailer.

Melissa

Funny you should post this, just now I was going back and forth with the salesman about a specific TT, I asked him this:

So, I was wondering what you thought about the 2250DS? It looks to have a larger floorplan overall, but it weighs in 4800 lbs. I have a 2016 Nissan Frontier 4x4 with a tow rating of 6100 lbs... would this be pushing the towing capacity too far once the TT was loaded?

He replied:

The average camping family adds 400lbs worth of weight to the trailer so you would be roughly about 1000lbs under the rating. I highly suggest a weight distribution/sway control hitch no matter what you decide to do.

Not exactly a lie, but a very poor answer. I've learned a lot here and a bunch from you Melissa, last time I was asking about weights. So I've done my research, and he is being almost maliciously obtuse. He didn't bother to ask about what we carried in the truck, does it have a topper (it does to the tune of 200 lbs), or how many passengers. Add in another person, things we carry in the truck and his mythical 400 lbs and we'd be over our limit very quickly, not taking into account the 80% idea.

Seems sales people feel no compulsion to get you into the RIGHT rig, only the more expensive one.

[Wanderer2]

You saw what I chose. After starting out thinking that I wanted a Class B like the platinum(or C as they are sometimes classified), I changed my mind thinking that I wanted a TT so that I would have the car to get around in. Then, I looked at class C, but decided that I didn't want to tow a vehicle and maintain both. Budget demands sent me back to a used Class B . This didn't break the bank, and I felt like I got a pretty good deal. There are things that I don't like about it, but found that to be true in 99% of the ones that I looked at.
I am going to be fulltiming in this and it will be a little tight. If in the future, I want to stay on the road, I will have gained more experience and knowledge for the next time around.
I drove this 1000 miles home and drove through downtown Asheville NC with no problem. I like the maneuverability and easy parking.
So it is an experience for sure. Have fun looking and you will find what you want.

[JudyJB]

Here is some homework for you: write a story about a one or two month trip you want to take someday. Pretend this is a journal. Start off with Day One - we started off and drove 200 miles to ???. Stopped at ???? Type of campground etc.

How you want to use an Rv is really critical. So tell us about where you wNt to go and how long you want to stay And what type of campground you prefer--rustic and scenic or full hookups with a pool and hot tub????

What do you plan to do all day? Sit outside or in? Will you really want to cook outside or be inside baking cookies?

Now this may seem silly and a lot if work but I think it will help you better realize what kind on f Rv you need. You already made a big decision about a bed you can walk around. That was critical to me also.

Also, you do NOT necessarily have to tow a vehicle with a motorhome so the choice is not necessarily between trailer and truck to tow it or motorhome and toad! I have a large C and have driven 92,000 miles without a towed vehicle.

[Queen]

Hey Judy, thanks so for the homework!

It's so funny that you suggest the homework assignment, we did something similar on our last road trip. We kept a journal of "okay, we'll be stopping in a few hours, if we were in the camper, where would we stop. Would we have groceries or need to stop and get some. Should we stay a couple of nights or is there someplace we need to be?" And I just read this to Mary and she wants us to do the assignment separately and see if we're on the same page. LOL

We realized we're more outdoorsy type people, we like state/national parks but we also seek out any museum or cultural opportunity on our travels, we don't cook much at home (not that we eat out, we just make simple things) so won't really do that on the road either. Rustic is fine for us, but we do want electric, not going without AC when I'm having a hot flash. We could do a generator but I don't really want to mess with it if we get a TT.

I would like auto levelers, but most of the coaches I see with those are out of our price range, and TT's don't have them. So I'll bring my drill and suck it up.

Wow, just talking it through here and I made more questions for myself!

[IrishIroamed]

...I would like auto levelers, but most of the coaches I see with those are out of our price range, and TT's don't have them. So I'll bring my drill and suck it up.

Mickie - just remember on TTs they are stabilizers, not levelers. You may need to carry some blocks to put under the tires to get it level ~~~and bring a carpenters level (or app)

[JudyJB]

You travel a lot like I do--state and national parks but with electric.

Good idea to do homework separately.

[SoCalGalcas]

I have enjoyed following this thread, altho I have made my final decisions. I am now in a small (15 foot) TT pulled with a Colorado (V6) with the weight limit of 7,000 lbs. For me, traveling alone I figured I will add 1000 lbs to the weight of both units. That is is my WIG (wild eye guess).

I got rid of my beloved truck camper because of my sore knees. Too much going up and down stairs for this old broad. I have a Honda generator which I will be selling as I do not want to put more weight into the truck. That means more going into camp grounds with electricity in hot weather to use their electricity for air conditioning.

Yes, many trade offs to buying a camping unit. Everything adds up to the gross weight, even our body weight! Casey alone adds 60 lbs!!!

Good luck with your search, and, hoping to "see you down the road".

Lyn

[Queen]

I truly appreciate all the replies, you gals are the best!!

[JudyJB]

Here is another decision you need to make that will help you with your final choice: Are you willing to use campground showers or do you really want to use your own facilities entirely?

This is really a big one because whatever you buy, you will have limited grey water tank size. This means that if you want to use your own shower, with two of you, you will need to be very careful with water and even then will need to dump your tank every other day.

With traveling solo and my 35 gallon grey water tank, I can go 3-5 days taking one short shower per day and washing dishes once a day. If I stay somewhere more than 3-5 days, and I need to dump my tanks, I just put in my slides by pushing a button, unhooking my electric and maybe water, and then just driving to the dump station. The quick hookup and unhook of utilities with a motorhome makes this pretty quick. Also, since I don't tow a car, I am often going exploring or shopping or whatever, so I dump tanks on my way out to run errands, etc.

However, with a trailer, you will need to either use a portable tank called a Blue Boy, or hook up your trailer to your truck and haul it to the dump station--a 20-30 minute hook and unhook job, instead of the 5 minutes it takes with my motorhome.

One of the reasons people buy small Class As rather than Class Cs is that they tend to have larger grey water tanks and can go longer.

And having to dump tanks is one reason why you see so many people using campground showers even though they have one in their RVs!

[Queen]

So funny you brought that up, Judy. Just today I was explaining to my wife that having full hookups does not mean unlimited hot showers (she's the smart on, I'm the handy one). One I equated the 40 gallon hot water tank to the six gallon one in the little TT we were looking at I saw the light bulb go off... followed by "we better be ready to use campground showers then".

[JudyJB]

I don't like to use campground showers, but occasionally I have a tall son or tall nephew visit me, and they cannot fit in my shower, which is for little short people like me. So I went to Bed Bath and Beyond and bought a plastic mesh shower mat. You stick it in the campground shower and it means you have something clean to stand on.

By the way, the little hot water heaters really do heat water HOT, so it lasts longer than you might think. It also reheats very fast.

But now you know that you are willing to use campground showers, so grey water tank size is not such a concern. You are on your way!