JimK

There are all sorts of misunderstandings about vagrancy laws and the ability to park and sleep in an RV in populated areas. I tried to give a brief explanation of the legalities...without any sort of political overtunes...but it appears a moderator did not approve and deleted the post. It seems to me this is an important issue for anyone parking an RV in populated areas but apparently I cannot help. I suggest you try to research this issue using other sources.

The original issue was about buying an RV for extended use and then reselling that same RV and returning home. A great many foreign visits do this even for relatively short trips. It can be way cheaper to buy and sell as opposed to the high rental costs. Some RV rental companies, such as Cruise America, handle the logistics and make this easy for a foreign visitor. You might pay a bit more but the logistics will be easy for both buying and reselling.

I took a look at the Keystone manual. I think it is excellent and covers all of the basic operation, upkeep and maintenance issues thoroughly. You don't need a more specific manual just read the manual and ignore any items that do not pertain to your model. You should be able to read the manual in a couple of hours and have a good idea of what needs to be done and how to do it and there is a summary to make it easy.

My wife and I bought an RV. It sat in our driveway for months while we downsized, sold the house and I retired. When all the plans were done, we got in it and drove off as full timers for the next couple of years. We had no issues. YouTube can help with virtually any issue or repair and what is needed for full time RV living. This is not rocket science. If you are jumping into full time, then the biggest issues are about getting a mailing address, reestablishing residency in that State, changing insurances and transitioning as much as possible away from any snail mail to electronic. A couple of hours of Google searching should clarify the choices and procedures.

There are lots and lots of choices for quality, cost, size, features. This is even worse than asking what car to buy. You really need to be more specific, narrow your choices and then look at each of those choices. If you ask others, they will typically promote what they bought and often have little experience with different choices.

Could we also say that taking a hike and getting lost could also earn a Darwin Award?

I think you mean triple slide camper. They are heavy and usually not useable without the slides extended which means you cannot park anywhere, certainly not in a regular parking spot or street side parking and they are certainly not stealthy. On top of that you need a seriously heavy duty truck, certainly at least a 1 ton or greater dually.

Casinos have varied ways of dealing with RVs. Some charge and operate RV parks. Others allow free parking in the lot. Some will not permit overnight RV parking. In one case I had to go into the casino get free chips and an overnight parking pass. I guess they expected me to play since I was given a few dollars of free chips.

And the National Parks cover some of the most scenic and interesting areas of the United States. They also include over 5000 miles of paved roads and 10000 plus miles of improved trails including many that are paved or consist of boardways. How much more development in the National Parks do we really need before they cease to be special places?

Do we really need a lot of improved facilities? Our parks are heavily used and crowded already. Let us leave at least some natural, wild and undeveloped areas or at least try to minimize the impact of the crowds.

My older RV has a single stage charger fixed at 13.4 volts. Whether I used shore power or a generator, that was way less than recommended. It shortened the life of my batteries, but even worse it took hours upon hours to charge the batteries. I also had a solar system with a fixed 13.6 volts of charging. Again this was too low for optimum battery life and prolonged with length of time needed to charge. Replacing the solar controller was quick and easy with just simple electrical connections. Finally I realized I needed to replace the built in 110 v charger. That was built into my electrical system and seemed to be a bigger job than I wanted. Instead I just added an additional charger capable of maintaining 14.4 volts. I use it for my generator instead of the built in charger. As I remember each of the charger upgrades was about $200 or less. Again, I recommend you download and review the manual for your batteries. You will be able to verify 2 key points. First you do not want to routine draw your batteries down to less than 50% of capacity. Routine operation in the 50-70% range will greatly extend battery life. Second it is important to properly charge your batteries and to do so at roughly 14.3 volts for an extended period of time until the rate of charging (amperage) drops to a level equivalent to 0.5% of the battery bank rated amp hours. Once you have made the upgrades, I would recommend upgrading your batteries. Consider deep cycle AGM batteries that will need no maintenance and are likely to last at least 7-10 years if properly maintained.

By your argument, perhaps it would make sense to pave the hiking trail so others unable to hike could enjoy the area. If not a highway, then for sure an improvement trail, preferably paved and available to those with wheel chairs.

Full timing in cities is easy if you have a truck camper, conversion van, or other small RV. Ideally you want a rig that will fit into a standard parking spot and is inconspicuous. You want appear as just a parked vehicle otherwise known as stealth mode. Some people see this as illegal activity. Actually that is not the case. What is illegal are the vagrancy laws that were struck down by the courts decades ago. That does not stop local governments from passing illegal ordinances or for police overstepping especially if neighbors complain. All it takes is usually some common sense in picking safe locations, where you are not a nuisance and especially where you avoid taking parking spaces used by residents. For extended stays I have even checked on the local parking ordinances. When doing so you ask about overnight parking and do not mention an RV or camping.

I have seen plenty of trails where the markers, signs and cable grips have been removed to help restore some semblance of undisturbed nature. I am all for that approach. The other approach has been all too common and has included rows of markers, even painted footprints, lots of fences and cables, and avoidance of any major hazards. Stay on the improved, paved, wheel chair access sidewalks if that is what you want. Personally I do not see the need to protect people from nature, rather it is past time to protect nature from the people.

You make it sound like a fisherman's tale. The hike to the Wave is 3 miles each way on pretty open, flat terrain and the second way is merely a few hundred yards from the first. It hardly seems like a GPS would be needed but I guess that helped. I went in 2012. I don't know if the photocopied pictures were any better at that time.

Or they could take out all of the signage. Quite often the NPS has been removing trail markers and signs and leaving trails and travel up to the individual. Otherwise nothing is ever good enough. Someone will always want better signs and markings and safety ropes and warnings and ideally a paved walk suitable for wheel chairs.

My wife and I and the two cats spent a couple of years as full timers in a mid sized truck camper without slides. The space was adequate and we only stopped because my wife could not stay away from the new grandkids. Personally I would never want an RV any bigger. We had all the comforts: full queen bed, 3 burner stove, refrigerator, hw, furnace, solar, A/c, microwave, wet bath, 4 person dinette, and plenty of storage. The relatively small size and solar meant we almost never paid for RV parks or expensive campgrounds with hookups. Instead we pulled into Walmart or equivalent when highway traveling. We visited friends and relatives and were able to park on the street. A small RV like a truck camper is ideal for those who want to travel as opposed to sitting in the same location for days, weeks or longer. Our travel was really inexpensive. Camping fees averaged $7/night; propane about $10/month. Fuel, insurance and maintenance can add up but nothing like the cost of living in a house and also maintaining a car. BTW, I started at age 64. This year I will be 75 and an planning a 15,000 mile trip of several months.

For roughly $100, you can replace the whole pump and motor assembly. If you are determined to replace on the actual pump, contact Flojet, Shurflo or whoever made your pump. You might be able to get a rebuild kit. Personally for the cost and effort, I would not bother. When it comes to true NLA parts, I have had good luck with Tweety's. The have knowledgeable staff that can often help with compatible replacement parts.

I am 75 years old and not in especially great shape. I have hiked many of the trails mentioned and some that are much more difficult. If you head out on remote trails, consider your physical condition, the weather and especially the temperature. You need appropriate clothing for swings in temperature and you need to take sufficient water. People who complain about these trails need to look at themselves. A mile or two with a few hundred feet change in elevation is typically going to be considered easy or at worst moderate. If that is too much for the individual, whose fault is that? The Wave Trail is a good example of people taking on more than they should. The Park Service is aggressive in discussing the "difficulties" of the hike. They require everyone to sit through a presentation and discussion of temperature and the need to carry at least a gallon of water per person. Aside from the heat if hiked in the Summer, this is an easy, 3 mile walk over relatively flat open terrain. Most of the trail is beaten down and it is impossible to get lost. The last open section across a relatively flat rocky area is not marked. Instead the NPS provides several photos showing the route. You can actually see the destination clearly from the start of the open area. This is an easy trail!! But not for some. They ignore the recommendations and do not carry a water and a snack. They may not be able to walk a total of 6 miles and spend additional time looking at the rock formations. Every few years someone dies or gets lost. I do not consider that to be the fault of the NPS just because they provide the opportunity to see a small piece of semi-wilderness country. The Swamp Trail is another example of people being out of shape or unprepared. The NPS warns about having navigation and trail skills, staying on the trail and traveling in a clockwise direction: Swamp Canyon Trail - Bryce Canyon National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov). They even warn about bees, bears and mountain lions, even if those risks are extremely minimal. Should they also tell you to stay home if you cannot walk a few miles without getting lost or fatigued?

As you know, Phoenix gets well over 110 degrees for a substantial number of the summer days. The inside of an RV exposed to full sun is likely to hit 130 or more. That is tough on plastic and rubber parts especially. My car batteries never made it through 2 full summers so you can expect a strain on your batteries. At the very minimum I would pay for covered storage. A/C would be too expensive to run, but if you can swing an electrical hook up you could keep vents open and run a fan.

As I understand it you are not into RVing except for the need to travel between Colorado and Vermont. A truck camper sounds like a poor choice. They are quite expensive for the amount of space you will have. Trailers are much less expensive and can provide considerably more space. Also you can get by with a much less capable truck. Dealing with winter cold will be an issue no matter what type of RV you get. Most are just not insulated or built to handle winter weather.

If you are piping your RO waste water back into the fresh water tank, you have accomplished nothing except for a waste of electricity. RO systems generate a lot of waste water which contains the minerals and other contaminates the system is designed to remove.

Absolutely. Look at the chart above. If your battery voltage has dropped into the yellow zone, you have way overdone it and shortened the battery life. If you dropped the voltage into the red zone, there is no fix. The batteries will have a greatly shortened lifespan and a reduced load rating. It is time to replace them and not try to rely on them for RV use.

Check the manual for your batteries. Mine came with a chart that show approximate depth of charge based on voltage AND specified loads. I can get a fairly accurate estimate with lights and small loads on the battery bank. BTW, my alert point is 12.2v with a light load. Keeping above that greatly prolongs the life of the batteries. Next you will need to learn about the proper way to charge your batteries. It is a long process to get to completely charged which is also important for battery life. You should be able to find a manual for your battery online. Quality batteries can be quite expensive. You will want to learn how to take care of them.