Tag: rv living

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RV Life – Month 2

It’s been 2 months!  Here are some wonderings, lessons learned, and tips.

We wondered:  Water drips through our AC in a heavy rain.  Why?  We have since had the gaskets redone and roof resealed.  No more problems.

We wondered:  Why do we have to defrost our residential fridge every seven to ten days?  The refrigerator would get warmer and warmer until this was done.  Update:  It has been fixed finally.  It never worked right but we had to use our current warranty to get it fixed.

We wondered:  What’s wrong with our poodle, Phoebe?  She’s struggling to breath out of her nose and has a nasal discharge.  She was diagnosed with pneumonia and on meds.  She is 15 years old and such a good old girl.  I hate to see her uncomfortable.

Lesson learned:  Shop around to dump.  We found a cheaper and nicer place to dump open 24 hours a day.  It’s the Petro Truck Stop!

Lesson learned:  Be careful what’s stored in the basements.  Moisture can get to the contents if you life in a humid, moist climate and they are not stored in proper containers.  My backpacking equipment became moldy down below so I rearranged and made room for it in the bedroom.  It works!

Tip:  We tried the GEO method for our black tank.  It helped.  What is the GEO method?  Just google GEO method for RVs and you will find a plethora of articles and You Tube how to videos.  It’s really simple.  You dump 1 cup of Calgon Water Softener and 1 cup of Dawn Dishwashing detergent down the toilet into your black tank after you dump.  You don’t need to do it every dump. It did keep the tank fresher and our sensors worked better.

Tip:  If you have an onboard washer and dryer, do small loads everyday.  They are small and don’t hold much.

Tip:  Buy a grass mat.  Less dirt comes in on little paws and feet.

Tip:  Command strips RULE!  Ruff Road feels so homey with pictures on the walls.

Dog Tip:  If you have a dog that pulls, front hook harnesses work the best.  I’ve also used the Gentle Leader Head Collar.  We also successfully used the Easy Walk Harness.  Both of these tend to cause chafing.  I sewed felt on the Easy Walk and that has helped.  We retired the Gentle Leaders in favor of the harnesses.  We recently ordered Ruffwear harnesses but they are a little big so less effective.  I called the company and they said they should work ok even though a little large.  The girls were still growing so I was hopeful they would fill them out.  They haven’t  The harnesses should have been sent back but we didn’t do it.  That, I suppose, is a lesson learned.

We survived:  Hurricane Irma came right through our area and we sustained no damage.  We were able to provide a place for our youngest son to stay since his home had no electricity.  See how we prepped for this storm in my previous post.

http://ruffroadrvlife.com/2017/12/28/hurricane-prep-and-finding-a-schedule/

Month 2- done.  We are moving on to Month 3!

Phoebe
Easy Walk Harnesses are great with young husky mix dogs.
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The MOVE! Downsizing and Moving in THREE WEEKS!

We knew it was coming, we didn’t know this fast!  We had to downsize and move in THREE WEEKS!

Here was the plan:  My daughter, Michelle, and her family were moving back to Florida and planned to buy our house.  We knew about when they were coming.  My last day to work was June 30th.  Then we get word that they would be here July 22nd.  Yikes!  That gave us about three weeks to downsize plan, box up and move into Ruff Road!  Now I’ve watched many downsizing videos, but none of them started with the amount of stuff that we’ve accumulated after six children, several grandchildren, parents passing, and 34 years!   We are not hoarders by no means but we did have…stuff!  Lots of it!

3 Step Purge System for Over Thinkers

Here is my system for purging which I affectionately call the 3 Step Purge System for Over Thinkers.  It is a multi-step process which probably goes against what the experts would say, but it worked for me.  Let’s start with clothes.  I worked in the professional world and had a walk in closet full of professional clothes, which will no longer be required in my retirement life.

Step 1:  I ask myself:  Do I love it?  Yes or no?  If NO-Box up to donate.  If YES- Then it was hung up to keep.  Of course, there is not much room in an RV so I knew that there would be a second purging.

Step 2:  After a day or two, I returned to my YES clothes and I repeated the process.  Do I love it?  I found that I was able to let go of a little more this second round.  It became easier.

Step 3:  This was the final round.  Do I love it?  Yes or no?  To my surprise I was able to let go of a few more.  I did add favorites to a box for my family.  Even though I counted this my final round, as I packed to take my clothes out to Ruff Road, I purged even more.

Bottom line:  My clothes fit into the space I planned for them.  I still have variety in my wardrobe.  My purging system worked for me.  Some may be able to do this in one round or even two.  This worked for me.  For the overthinkers of the world, the three step purge system is recommended.

Sorting to Start

Our home had four bedrooms, three bathrooms, kitchen, laundry room, dining room, living room, and two porches.  Our brother in law was staying with us when this grand purge began so that was one room that he took care of, thankfully.  How do you take all of the items, the books, the paintings, the décor, the STUFF and make a plan?

My plan started with sorting.  I began to gather all like items in the living room. All of the children’s books go here.  All of the photography equipment goes there.  All of the fishing décor goes over there.  Everything in the house was sorted, which began emptying out rooms.  Of course, during this sorting process I was also following my PURGING process.  We began posting items that we could sell on Facebook Marketplace.  One half of our living room became our selling warehouse.  That worked out well and one by one many items were sold.  The rest was boxed for a giant yard sale.  Anything we wanted to keep with us was considered carefully, space is a premium in an RV.  Keepers were boxed up to be taken to Ruff Road.

Oh and the photos!  Scanning for four days straight!

So one of the bedrooms had become a scanning station for photos.  We took down all picture frames and removed the pictures as part of our sorting process.  All boxes of photos and photo albums were sent to this room and there is ALOT!   I fancy myself an amateur photographer so just add that to the many family pics.  I stood in that room for four days, morning to late at night, scanning and there are still boxes and tubs left to do.  I finally had to just stop so I could get the sorting and purging done.

When downsizing, scanning your photos and digitizing your home movies are the two most time consuming things you will do.  There is no fast way to do this unless you pay to have it done.  That wasn’t an option for me.  Later on, after the move, I ordered an Elgato to digitize the home movies we had on hand.  I am sentimental and I love seeing my parents and brother again in the movies.  It’s always fun to see the kids when they were little.  If any of you have suggestions on how to get all of this done quicker, please comment and share!

How I stayed sane during this time?  I kept a running TO DO LIST.

Each day I had a TO DO list to keep us on track.  We’d follow the list, adjusting as needed.  I used a regular spiral notebook to keep my list in.  I’d designate if it was Gary or me, cross off completed items and carry over what didn’t get done.  We had a general timeline of what we wanted done by when so that’s how we prioritized the list.  This was essential to us being ready to leave our house July 22nd.  Anyone downsizing or planning a move, it is amazing what you can get done when you plan it out on paper and look at it every day.

How did we do?  Did we meet our deadline of July 22nd?

Why yes, we did- well the majority!  We spent our first full time night in Ruff Road, with pups, the night of July 22nd.  We handed our house over to our daughter that night and haven’t looked back.  We had sorted, boxed, donated and purged.  We only had a few items left in the office, and closet shelves that I weeded out the following weeks.  We had moved all of the things we were keeping into Ruff Road.  This took several hauls and I organized and put it away each trip to make room for the next haul.  Honestly, I am amazed at what we put in here and I was able to put it away neatly.

Ah, so now we could sit back, sip our coffee and relax in the comfort of our new home.  We still had some selling to do and sheds to work on, but the biggest job was done.

Downsizing Reflections…

Downsizing is what it’s cracked up to be.  It is freeing to rid yourself of “stuff”.  This realization began as I had to go in and clean out my mom’s house after she passed.  She, like many who grew up during the depression years, kept everything.  She lived with me her last few years but didn’t want us to do anything with her “stuff”.  I discovered that all of that “stuff” had deteriorated, molded, it was of no value to anyone.  And then, I felt the overwhelming burden of all of this stuff.  It opened my eyes that at the end of the day, our stuff will not stay new, will get eaten and chewed on by bugs, will fade, will deteriorate.  It weighs us down.  You feel lighter inside with each letting go.   Have any of you gone through a downsizing process?  What system worked for you?  Comment and share.  🙂

 

 

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Why We Chose a Class A Motorhome

Our new home!

How did we end up actually purchasing, moving in and living in a class A motorhome?  Did you know it was last on our list of favorites? Well, if you are planning on plunging into this lifestyle and are shopping for an RV, here’s our story of what worked for us.

We made the decision to move forward into RV living in December, 2016.  I was in love with Class C motorhomes.  That was my focus.  We looked at several, several times, different places.  I kept “trying it on”  by sitting in the driver’s seat, passenger seat, any and all areas of the motorhome.  No matter when or where I tried, it just didn’t feel right to me…or Gary.  Then I stumbled onto a 5th Wheel and wow!  Tall ceilings…fireplaces…real furniture…ahhhh.  I learned though that many were not functional with the slides in and that in order to pull a 5th wheel, we would need to purchase a 3500 series pick up truck.  The cost of the 5th wheel plus the truck now was in the Class A price range.  Another 5th wheel con for me was I wanted access to the bathroom and kitchen while traveling.  So slowly, the possibility of a Class A was born.  We even looked at a couple of Class Bs but they just wouldn’t do with the size of our family.  If you think of it as a race, Class C was in first place then was edged out by 5th Wheels because of the claustrophobic feeling I felt in the cab area and layouts.  Many people are perfectly happy and love their Class Cs and we tried to, but it wasn’t for us.  5th Wheels were slowly edged out as the possibility of Class As came into focus.  Again, this is personal preference and I would love to have a 5th Wheel in the future, but for now, that wasn’t the one for us.  So Class A took the finish line and we love, love, love our class A.  We wrote our pros and cons for each RV type, that helped.

Did you know that many RVers end up in a different RV than they started with?  Once you get moved in and really live in one, your perspective of what you need changes and that’s ok.

Our Process for RV Shopping

Step One: is to RESEARCH and learn about the different RV types and what they have to offer.  As part of this research, go try them on.  You learn so much by physically seeing and sitting in different RVs.  Talk to people.  Check out the wealth of information about used and new RVs on You Tube and the various blogs available.  You will also get a general idea of how much money is needed for different units.

Step Two:  It was with all of this research and studying that we came up with a set list of criteria that we expected in our RV, including what we were willing (and able) to pay for it.

Our criteria list:

  • 35′ or less for flexibility in campgrounds – especially for state parks, forests
  • No carpeting – We have dogs.
  • Separate bedroom – meaning not just a bed but floor space, storage
  • Bathroom and shower together and large enough to maneuver
  • Storage
  • Diesel -we were flexible on this one but really preferred diesel
  • No dinette- We aren’t the handy couple who can just remove it like so many can.
  • Double slide out- Or large slide, we wanted roominess.
  •  Less than ten years old -We later learned that financing may be difficult for older units.
  • Lower mileage
  • Ability to use the unit when the slide(s) were in
  • Kitchen with work space
  • Fit for our budget
  • One that would feel like home

This list will be different for everyone but it helps to know exactly what you are looking for.  Be prepared for this criteria to change and evolve as you become more knowledgeable.  Ours did.  Be flexible.  We didn’t get our double slide out but the space available with our one super slide works.  Our unit met all the other criteria.

Final Thoughts

Some might say we purchased our RV quickly.  I’ve read that it takes some people years to find what they want, others months, and we took just a few weeks.  The truth is, we planned to take much longer.  We were in no hurry, but we found the one that just felt right sooner rather than later.  Our advice, follow your gut.  When you find your RV, you’ll know it.

What was your RV shopping experience?  How did you or would you choose your RV?

 

 

 

 

 

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Hello all who wander…or want to! The beginning…

 

Have you ever wondered what’s around the bend, over the mountain, through the trees?  We did so we set off on a retirement adventure in our RV, Ruff Road, and our three dogs.  This has been a journey already and we want to share our journey with you, just in case you ever wandered what’s around the bend, over the mountain, and through the trees…

Retirement…

This all started as we were nearing retirement age.  Gary had recently retired and retirement was in sight for me.  Like so many others, we had worked long hours in demanding jobs for years while raising our children, being there for others when needed as much as our jobs would allow, and helping my mom and Gary’s aunt as they aged.  Like so many others, we had a large house and yard to maintain and of course, our animals- We’ve always had dogs, but sometimes we had fish, cats, and even chickens.  I am the wanderer and Gary is the fisherman so we had to squeeze in these recreational preferences as best we could over the years.  I’m overwhelmed just thinking about how busy our lives were for  so many years.  Also, we had several passings within our family and with each loss came the realization that life is precious and we should make the most it.   Gary was able to retire early in 2016.   I wanted to join him.  But what could we do?  I wasn’t quite retirement age yet. Fortunately, we had financially planned for retirement and with some number crunching and MUCH discussion, I decided to take the plunge.  My wish is that we had been more frugal and started REALLY planning much earlier.  Life happens.  Word to the wise:  Start now to plan for your future.

Tiny House Living, RV Living, Travel?

I knew I wanted to retire but we had no set plans on what we would do once we retired.  Our original retirement plans were all over the place:  stay in our house of 34+ years, buy property and build, buy a house in the mountains or on the river…But, what about what’s around the bend, over the mountain, through the trees?  Would we be happy looking at the same view for the …rest …of …our …lives?  In all of my researching for houses, cabins, property, I stumbled across tiny house living and that appealed to me.  I watched video after video of living in tiny houses or even on a houseboat.  The truth is, we had a large house and only really lived in a fraction of it.  Living in a smaller space was a doable possibility.  That still left the problem of where and how.  Then, in all of YOU TUBE’S wisdom, videos started popping up about RV living.  Hmmm…I was interested.  I wanted to learn more.  Could we afford it?  What were the pros and the cons?  Would Gary like this idea?  I listened to more RV living videos.  I shared the videos with Gary.  He liked it!  We both loved this idea of living and traveling in our own RV.  So the decision was made in December 2016 to just start looking for our RV.

Shopping for an RV…

We could just start looking, right?  We knew I had 6 months, one year, or heaven forbid, four years before I retired- no set retirement decisions had been made at this time.  So I set my preferences in my RV Trader App:   https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.DWS.rvtrader&hl=en

Gary and I started visiting RV dealerships in our area.  We educated ourselves on the different types of RVs and the pros and cons of each.  I really wanted a Class C RV which is the box type RV built on a truck chassis with an overhang over the cab, like a UHaul.  Then we fell in love with Fifth Wheels.  Fifth Wheels connect to a receiver in the back of a truck and are more roomy and maneuverable than a travel trailer.  Some even have kitchen islands and ceiling fans.  Class Bs, extended vans, raised roof vans, conversion vans, were just too small for the two of us and three dogs.  Class As, motor homes that are larger, rectangular units were ruled out thinking they were too expensive to even consider.  The more we looked, the more confused we became.  Each class of RV had something to love and something that we didn’t like.  Within a class we found the same like this but not that situation.  But it’s ok.  After all, we were just looking, doing our research- no hurry.

Then, one day during our looking blitz, we headed to see RVs at Tampa RV after talking to the owners at an RV show.  They were great people but we never made it to their lot.  On the way, we stopped off at Lazy Days in Tampa.  I’m pretty sure I heard an angel choir.  Gary says the same.  I had that feeling that “this is it!”.  How could that be?  After all, we were just looking.  We met with our salesman, Anthony, who created a list of units to view based on our criteria- cost, preferences, fuel type…  Now most RV lots will take you around in a golf cart but here you had to have a golf cart because the site is over one hundred acres!  The inventory was huge.  It is a great place to just look.

I love how we found Ruff Road!  We had just looked at a unit that we liked a lot, but I wouldn’t say loved.  Anthony had to move the cart further away to make room for other golf carts.  This caused us to have to walk past several RVs that were not on our list.  As we were walking, we both stopped at the same time.  One RV caught our eye.  The price was over our budget, but we asked to view it anyway.  We heard the angel choir the second time that day.  THIS unit had everything on our list.  We were able to negotiate a price that was more in our ballpark and that day we put a down payment on our Class A Fleetwood Excursion, Ruff Road.  There is no harm in looking, but beware of just looking.  You just might find the one that calls your name.  And so it began…

We were just walking to the golf cart…