Second Chance

Our son and daughter-in-law are both veterinarians (internal medicine and oncology, respectively) in Cincinnati. Their hospital has started doing the same thing (a vet tech in full PPE takes the animal from the owner outside). They are also starting some tele-medicine visits. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 antibodies have been identified in at least one dog somewhere, indicating that dogs can react to and, therefore, possibly transmit the virus. Not enough data, yet, to tell.

Rob

My wife and I have cut/trimmed each others hair for years. What the pandemic has caused me to do is to spend a LOT of money to install a washer and dryer in the rig so we don't have to go to a public laundromat (we would feel differently if we were stuck long-term in an Escapees park...).

Rob

1 hour ago, Barbaraok said:

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

X2!

Rob

3 minutes ago, sandsys said:

What is NIRVC? I don't follow IRV2 so was reluctant to let them download to my computer as your link required.

Linda

It's just a PDF file to save to your desktop... safe. It's a letter from "National Indoor RV Center." Apparently, they have a property they previously operated out of in Phoenix that has 30 RV sites they no longer use (moved to a different location) that they're making available to displaced full-timers.

Rob

If you use the search function on the forums, there are quite a few threads on this topic. That said, we are domiciled in Texas but our providers are all in the Augusta, GA, area (GA and SC) from whence we launched. We route back through the area once a year for our regular appointments and will sometimes get a 6-month dental cleaning and checkup wherever we happen to be. Our situation is simpler than many with Medicare and Tricare For Life as the secondary (retired military). You'll get almost as many answers to this question, though, as there are members on the forum - everyone's situation is different.

Rob

8 minutes ago, KevinS said:

Thanks for the hint .. just crawled under camper seen outside of drum  oily black  looking, so probably a seal is leaking.. 

That would be a good place to start - especially if your 2017 unit (built in 2016, probably) has the Lippert axles and hubs. They developed a reputation for seal failures and greased brakes. Haven't heard of that happening so much with the new Dexter axles and hubs.

Rob

3 minutes ago, KevinS said:

Thanks.. we only travelled about 30 miles from where we purchased the camper.. we will just head back there tomorrow to have them fix it.. what are some of the mods. You did on your 337? 

Forum hint: If you use the "Quote" function to reply to something, people will know to whom you are responding and they will also get a notice. 

On our Reflection, we had MORryde install their independent suspension system with disc brakes. We also installed a cushioned/dampened pinbox (Demco Glide Ride) and Sailun load range G tires. There were other smaller (and less expensive) mods - mostly in the convenience category.

Rob 

16 hours ago, KevinS said:

Thanks  we are in it now.. we think we are going to like it..while leaving the dealer, my integratred brake controller flashed warning... the manual override wouldn’t stop us only going about 5 mph....their tech.. thought grand design and Montana brakes won’t really work until about 30 mph... anyone hear this..?

NOT TRUE!!! Brake application is totally dependent on the brake controller in the tow vehicle. The trailer brakes only follow commands. Electric drum brakes (like on your stock Reflection) have no intelligent circuitry. They only apply force proportional to the power sent by the brake controller.

I'm sorry I didn't see your post earlier. We spent 4 yrs, 9 mos full-time in a Reflection 337RLS (significantly modified). We just sold it and moved in to our new Solitude 310GK-R. Very pleased with both units and Grand Design's customer service. The Reflection 337 is one of their best floor plans. You'll enjoy it.

Rob

2 hours ago, Ray,IN said:

A side note to this is, China has re-opened factories and nearly all business's, and getting back to a normal lifestyle. It's been 8 weeks since they announced the virus. Hopefully we will see the same time-frame.

That was on CNBC radio today.

The US has not, nor are we likely to, institute the draconian measures that were taken by the Chinese government. Those measures likely had a significant impact on stopping the spread of the virus. We still have young people flocking to the beaches for spring break and certainly not practicing "social distancing."

Rob

Yep. We were scheduled for JB Charleston (Foster Creek) starting 14 April. They just called to tell us they were going to have to cancel our reservation and refund our money. I'm working on checking out what this all means for the rest of the summer - Kings Creek in VA and APG in Maryland. It's a roller-coaster these days.

Rob

What each insurance company can/will cover is, at least partially, regulated by each state's insurance regulatory commission. Check with a couple of insurance providers who write policies for the state in which you are domiciled. As stated above, our USAA renter's policy covers the stuff in our climate controlled storage unit (didn't even have to add coverage - it was part of the package). We are domiciled in Texas and the storage unit is in South Carolina... no problems. There may be a company out there who does the same for your state.

Rob

Responded to your post on the other forum... a quick Google search produced this:

Link

Rob

If you're eligible (retired military/veteran, parent who was a veteran, etc.) USAA can't be beat. They refund all ATM fees, all banking is done over the internet on the computer or by phone app (including depositing checks, etc.). All of our direct deposits go directly to our USAA accounts and we have USAA BillPay automatically pay any regular bills. I've been with them going on 40 years and they've treated me very well.

Rob

Google Maps for planning (setting parameters) and Garmin RV760 in the truck (with parameters set for the rig). I particularly like the fact that I can give the Garmin voice commands and find the distance to truck stops up ahead (to compare to the fuel range in the instrument cluster), rest stops, etc. The combo works very well for us.

Rob

We've been full-time in a Grand Design Reflection for 4-1/2 years and like it. The thing that sets Grand Design apart is the customer service (Grand Design - NOT the dealers). We've experienced that first-hand. We've been happy enough that, deciding this past year to stay on the road for the foreseeable future, we have a new Solitude waiting for us when we get to Georgia in two weeks.

Rob 

2 hours ago, Tim and Peggy said:

as regards the comment we don't know where we want to end up...meant when we are no longer "on the road."

Thanks to everyone for your advice, comments, etc.

We don't know either - nor when that will be. That didn't make any difference in where we decided to establish domicile. We chose Texas because:

1. We have both lived in various parts of Texas in the past,
2. I have family in Texas,
3. We have family in the southeast and in New Mexico and California... we traverse Texas at least once a year,
4. Escapees provides all the services we need with the Livingston address with no state income taxes and reasonable registration costs for the vehicles,
5. And, finally, it will be no more difficult to change our domicile to a different state if and when we come off the road than it was to establish our Texas domicile.

 Rob

15 minutes ago, OGMer said:

Has anyone seen any Aldi stores west of the Mississippi?  

There are 74 in California, now, and a bunch in Texas. You can use the Aldi store locator on-line to check anywhere in the US.

Rob

4 hours ago, docj said:

I loaded it yesterday without difficulty.  I added a few extensions from the Microsoft Store and it, of course, acquired all my bookmarks.  After a while I thought "feels pretty much like Chrome".  Next thought I had was "if you don't have issues with Chrome, why change?" So I closed the program!  😁

Did the same - and I'm with you. There's also less user control in the Edge Chromium browser... for instance: I'm having a lot of difficulty getting a new tab to open up to anything but Bing. I can get the startup page to do what I want, but not a new tab once the browser is open. I'm back to chrome. A British water engineer I worked with in Somalia in the early '80s would put on his best John Wayne imitation and say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" Pretty good philosophy.

Rob

3 hours ago, Kirk W said:

I am not familiar with the term "TSB"...

In "Auto World" it stands for technical service bulletin. It's below the level of a recall, but something that should be addressed when the vehicle is serviced.

Rob

Start here to get a little better understanding:

ChangingGears.com weights

Rob

1 hour ago, sandsys said:

If you have military history, USAA is a great bank! We deposit the rare check by taking a photo of it and sending it electronically. We also move our money between accounts electronically. They only have one physical location, San Antonio, but they reimburse ATM fees including those in Europe since their members tend to get stationed all across the globe.  We just bought a car using their wire transfer system. We've been banking with them for years and years and have never found something we couldn't do through them.

Linda Sand

I'll second this.

Rob

2 hours ago, Mark Coleman said:

Thanks for the heads up on hitch weight. So far I haven't had to much of an issue finding trailers that are in the length range I'm looking for that fall below the 2500 hitch range. I may not, as you both have suggested, be able to buy one with the Z frame, but I'll keep looking. SWharton, thanks for the ideas. Those are all good suggestions to keep in mind.

Mark,

Those "hitch" weights (referred to as pin weight with a fifth wheel) advertised by the manufacturers are empty weights - NOT loaded weights. Use the math provided by me and others in this thread (20 - 25% of the trailer's GVWR) and don't be fooled into a false sense of security.

Rob

7 minutes ago, mptjelgin said:

Wow. Second Chance and i wrote the same thing at about the same time. Spoookkkky!

In our family, we used to say, "Great minds run in the same gutter..." 😉

Rob

A 3/4-ton truck may be your first issue. A 2,495 payload capacity is not much and isn't going to get you anywhere near your 19,500 combined weight rating (that's not your max towing capacity, I'm certain). Fifth wheels typically put about 23% of their loaded weight on the pin. If you have only 2,495 lbs. payload (and that's after fuel, occupants, the weight of the hitch, etc.), you are limited to a fifth wheel with a GVWR of about 10,800 lbs. You are not going to find a drop-frame fifth wheel with a lot of amenities in that weight range. Diesel 3/4-tons are notorious for having low payload ratings.

Rob

Inexpensive?...

Rob