How much do your basics weigh?

[Myddrin]

Hello there, i'm new-ish here and I just had a couple of questions but figured I would introduce myself first, names Myddrin and this will be just me going into this lifestyle, I am more experienced with long term tent camping then any-sort of rving but that is not what i'm interested in really, i'm actually looking at different vans or car/teardrop combos. I have been researching for a while about both and rving just because things do seem to overlap and have got most of what I wanted to know down but something that I couldn't really find a answer on is weight of "things", and I do know of course that everyone is different and had different things but I was wondering what would you guesstimate that your very basic basics weight? and I know of tearjerkers and the teardrops and tiny travel trailers forum but does anyone have any more they know of that could be useful? or really any tips you could think of? thank you guys so much for your time

[Kirk W]

Welcome to the Escapee forums. We will do our best to assist you. On the weight issue, most people who live in the RV as their only home will carry somewhere around 1000# in personal items, hobbies, clothing, etc. It is true that it can vary quite widely and I'm sure that some get below that but it is difficult to do. 

[Chris-n-Dennis]

The single or combination with the most weight is going to be consumables. Water is 8 lbs/gallon, propane 4 1/4 lbs/gallon, battery 40-60lbs each.  As a tenter, you probably already have an idea of food stores but since RV'ing tends to be less weight friendly, take what you are used to for weight and times by 1.5 to 2. Clothing will depend on the area/climate and lifestyle so the variance could be considerable. A very conservative estimate, 100-150 lbs for all clothes, shoes, bedding, and toiletries.

A suggestion would be to find a few people that are already living the lifestyle you are considering and ask them. From your description, Becky at Interstellar Orchard may be of assistance. Another avenue is to go a park/campground or two and simply ask the occupants of those rigs you are interested in. Be sensitive to their privacy wishes but if you lead with a complement and one thought out question you are probably going to be immediately on their good side. (Sort of the  way you intro'd here.)

Oh yea, and welcome to the forum.

[sandsys]

Welcome. In our first rig we had 800# for the two of us but we had to make a lot of compromises to get that low. I'd say for most people that 800# would barely be enough for one person. Most, I believe, take somewhere between 1000# and 1500# per person. 

Linda Sand

[Yarome]

I would say Kirk and Linda are pretty much on the money for full time living. About 1k-1.5k lbs for a single and ~500lbs per person additional. Much of the single persons weight allowance are "shared" items. Ie., pots/pans, dishes, appliances, bedding, etc.

For a weekend get-a-way you would probably want to budget around 500-700lbs for a single and 250-300lbs per additional.

[ms60ocb]

I travel in a Fifth Wheel with the trips up to 6 months before parking. My load for 2 people 2,500 to 3,000 pounds. For my hobbies I may have 250 pounds of tools and support equipment.. If I take a bicycle than there is a bike rack. My RV is my year round storage for many seasonal items so some weight a younger person  may not carry. If you looking to save weight you can use paper plates and such. 

Welcome to the Forums and happy Travels

Clay

[Dan & Jen Nevada]

I'm guessing it depends on you more than anything.  Everyone is different.  Different needs, different hobbies, different ideas about what "basics" means, etc.  You've already got quite a range in just the few answers above.  What an older, wealthy couple in a 45 foot diesel pusher carries, for instance, and a couple of 20-somethings living in a 14 foot travel trailer carries are wildly different.  Heck, our son lives in a 1977 Ford Van and we know a kid that lives in a 1994 Jeep Wrangler.  What they consider basic would fit in one storage compartment in most motorhomes.

Better to figure out what you consider basic and then start weighing it.  I bet you can get by on a few hundred pounds of stuff.  And honestly, basic or essential items change depending on how much room you have to store it. 

[sandsys]

13 hours ago, Dan & Jen Nevada said:

Better to figure out what you consider basic and then start weighing it.  I bet you can get by on a few hundred pounds of stuff.  And honestly, basic or essential items change depending on how much room you have to store it. 

True. We weighed every single thing we considered for our first rig that had such low capacity. But we brought a lot more stuff than we hauled when we were backpacking.

Linda Sand

[Myddrin]

thank you everyone who responded! yes I know it was a wide range but it helped to get a jist of what most seem to have. the next step I have is to weigh my things myself, I think I do know around what it will be but I am having to add a bit of stuff too, I'll probably have more questions in the future but right now I think that i'm good. this is a really helpful place and I hope you all have a good day!

[Kirk W]

3 hours ago, Myddrin said:

I'll probably have more questions in the future but right now I think that i'm good.

You haven't said if you are planning to live in the RV as your only home for years, plan to travel seasonally like a snowbird, or just want to take trips of a month or two? The amount you need to take with you is very much influenced by those choices as you probably won't carry nearly as much for a month or two as you would for an entire season and when fulltime you carry pretty much everything that you own. We now travel for a few months only and we carry somewhere around 1000# in total for the two of us. When we lived in our motorhome fulltime and were carrying everything we owned, that weight for two of us was more on the order of 2500#.

By all means, do come back with more questions at any time as new folks with questions are the thing which keeps our forums alive and useful. While some things do get asked more than once, that is not a bad thing because the best answers for most questions do change over time, or have new choices available. 

[Legendsk]

3 hours ago, Myddrin said:

thank you everyone who responded! yes I know it was a wide range but it helped to get a jist of what most seem to have. the next step I have is to weigh my things myself, I think I do know around what it will be but I am having to add a bit of stuff too, I'll probably have more questions in the future but right now I think that i'm good. this is a really helpful place and I hope you all have a good day!

When I went from a stick house to a 5th wheeler, I made a spreadsheet of everything I thought I would want to take with estimated weights.  That might remind you of things to include, although I'm sure your list will be different.  I'll be happy to send you a copy if you like.  As I recall, I set an arbitrary limit at 900# and when finished it was 748#.  When estimating weight some items might be a little more or less, but the average was correct enough that the final weight was spot on.  Since then I have maintained a policy that if I add something new, then I have to give up something old of about the same size and weight.

[Myddrin]

1 minute ago, Legendsk said:

When I went from a stick house to a 5th wheeler, I made a spreadsheet of everything I thought I would want to take with estimated weights.  That might remind you of things to include, although I'm sure your list will be different.  I'll be happy to send you a copy if you like.  As I recall, I set an arbitrary limit at 900# and when finished it was 748#.  When estimating weight some items might be a little more or less, but the average was correct enough that the final weight was spot on.  Since then I have maintained a policy that if I add something new, then I have to give something old of about the same size and weight.

I would be delighted to read your list, I've started my own list an keep adding and taking things off right now. and that's a good policy, along with trying to find things with two uses. 

[Myddrin]

22 minutes ago, Kirk Wood said:

You haven't said if you are planning to live in the RV as your only home for years, plan to travel seasonally like a snowbird, or just want to take trips of a month or two? The amount you need to take with you is very much influenced by those choices as you probably won't carry nearly as much for a month or two as you would for an entire season and when fulltime you carry pretty much everything that you own. We now travel for a few months only and we carry somewhere around 1000# in total for the two of us. When we lived in our motorhome fulltime and were carrying everything we owned, that weight for two of us was more on the order of 2500#.

By all means, do come back with more questions at any time as new folks with questions are the thing which keeps our forums alive and useful. While some things do get asked more than once, that is not a bad thing because the best answers for most questions do change over time, or have new choices available. 

I plan to live in it for years to come, though instead of snow-birding i'm probably going towards the colder climates , thanks for the advice!

[MikeS]

Welcome to the forum.  As said before, it can vary tremendously from person to person.  When I was on my motorcycle pulling a small trailer it was almost nothing.  I carried mostly backpacking items and a small amount of clothing.  The larger my unit became the more I carried.  It seems we always fill whatever space we have.  Decide on the unit you want and go from there.  Staying in colder climates heavier clothing and more of it is a necessity, but you may not need a place setting for 8 of plates, silverware, and glasses.  My wife discovered she didn't need 4 different brushes and 3 curling irons.  I figured out that I didn't really need 4 different frying pans, 2 slow cookers, etc.  You get the idea.  Many of the things we think we "need" to have will rarely be missed.  

[sandsys]

4 hours ago, MikeS said:

Many of the things we think we "need" to have will rarely be missed.  

And those can be jettisoned along the way to make room for things you didn't know you would want.

Linda Sand

[Legendsk]

Sorry, I missed that someone wanted a copy of my take leave list.   Here tis. . . .

Take & Leave Items.xlsx