scouserl41

My previous post about replacing bulbs with LED's was popular and I just updated it to include halogens.

Hope it helps

http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2015/03/learning-every-day-leds.html

1 hour ago, millertime said:

Husband thinks they are terrible to us because we dont use them at our S & Bs. Whatever the case, they are on our short list.

We are set up exactly the same as you. The app has worked everywhere in the country perfectly. Customer service/tech support have always been outstanding.

BnB

I just us the app. Failing that call the Tech Assistance. It's simple and the Tech guys are really great.

BnB

Both gas and groceries are competitive in the places we've shopped. Of course that varies week to week so we don't shop there exclusively.  Where we winter the choices are Safeway, Fry's and Walmart. Walmart is clear across town.

Their "Membership" is free so why would that be different? Walmart offered us a credit card that would give us 3% off when used in their stores but when we applied they didn't like our address. We shop there too when it suits us.

I'm not familiar with HEB? 

BnB

We shop at Kroger stores all the time for the gas discounts. their prices are very competitive.  Smiths is just a part of the Kroger group as is Fred Myers. We got their credit card as well which gives us online coupons and bonus gas points for Kroger brands plus for the first year an additional 25C a gallon off fuel. We find for the most part that their gas stations are built so we can get the MH and toad in and out although some Smiths stores in MT we couldn't get into.

We carry several CC's as there are still odd restrictions here and there but shop with our debit cards in the main and we've had no problems doing that.

BnB

We just drove 93 from Kalispell MT to Prescott Valley AZ in our MH! Generally a great road especially thru MT and ID. From Vegas to Prescott it can be a little rough in places but no more than I40. We enjoyed the trip immensely but then again we aren't in a rush to get anywhere and enjoy staying off the Interstates.

BnB

We are Thousand Trails (TT) members but not TT fans. We are currently in the NW and have found that any of the "Reasonable" TT parks are booked up a long time in advance. The ones that aren't booked up are in our experience pretty run down.

Be aware that having a pass or a membership does not guarantee you a site or even get you a reserved spot. You may end up in  a dry camping spot or find the only one left is too small for your rig.

You don't have to pay the full price for membership either. You can buy a "Used" membership on Craigslist or thru a number of resellers online. A membership that may cost $7000 at the sales office in the park may be $3000 or less "Used". There is a transfer fee when you buy a used membership around $750 so be aware of that if you go that route.

Our experiences with TT is here: https://banbrv.blogspot.com/2017/11/thousand-trails-good-and-bad.html

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22 hours ago, Barbaraok said:

Seversl of the Fords can be towed 4-down.   

For goodness sakes DON'T BUY A FIESTA!! There are several HUGE lawsuits against Ford for the lousy transmissions. Google "Ford Fiesta Transmission  issues". Nothing to do with towing them it's just a lousy transmission and they have now admitted it but they are selling off the last of them after ceasing production.

BnB

 

Don't forget the basics. Check the oil level. If it's low the generator will stop. I assume you have more than a 1/4 tank of fuel in the rig?

Once those 2 basics are checked then move on to fuel filter. I seem to remember there is a fuel flow test measuring how much fuel the pump passes in a set time. That will tell you if the pump is bad.

We stumbled across the cause of the bad taste in our water a while back. We carry 2 fresh water hoses for those odd occasions where the water spigot is on the wrong side of the site or the fill point is far away. Our spare hose sat in the storage locker for the winter while we stayed in a park for 5 months. Once on the road we were low on water and needed to fill from a tough to reach spigot and used both hoses. The water tasted funky but we got by using bottled water for cooking and drinking them dumped the tank the first opportunity we had and filled up again. The water was fine.

We discovered that the hose that sat for 5 months caused the bas taste! No I try and use both hoses in rotation to avoid a repeat of the problem.

BnB

The link is to an article I did about controlling camping costs. The $25 a night is easier to achieve AS AN AVERAGE over a full year but some of the tricks and tips can still be used to lower the AVERAGE costs.

http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2016/06/camping-for-25-night.html

Brian

We visited Crater Lake yesterday, the campground is under construction and only 25% of it is open. We got there at 11am and there was a long line waiting for camp sites. They don't open the desk for camping until 12 noon! We parked the RV at Mazama Village and drove the toad round the part of the lake that was open (East loop closed due to snow) by the time we got back around 2pm there was still a line for campsites.

You can make online reservations starting July 1st. Personally I'd stay in Klamath Falls and commute to the park. Unless you intend on hiking there you probably will have seen what you need in a day.

If you are around that area Mount Shasta and the lakes around there are beautiful. The Oregon Coast is nice but busy, Consider McMinneville and the Spruce Goose at the Evergreen Aviation Museum. Mount Hood and the Bennet Pass East of Portland and the Columbia River Gorge. Watch our blog as we will be visiting them all in the next couple of months I'll post our Crater Lake experiences in the next couple of days.

BnB

We stopped going to all KOA's after a series of overpriced rundown experiences. In all organizations there are always good and bad but in our personal experience the KOA CG's are mainly bad.

BnB

We went to Europe for4 months. We searched for the cheapest airfares which happened to be Orlando to London England. We arranged out trip for that year to end in Orlando and being Thousand Trails members we got a deal storing the rig there and got Uber to drop us at the airport.  http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2017/05/when-time-slowed-down.html

Unfortunately we arrived back as Hurricane Irma was arriving too and beat a hasty retreat up to Alabama!

We closed the rig tight and left a large bowl of kitty litter in the living room and a big box of Damp Rid in the kitchen. We had made reflectix shades for the windows and were pleased that we had no mold or mildew anywhere. We did get what are politely called "Palmetto Bugs" in the rig and had to use Black Flag bug bombs a couple of times before we got rid of them totally (Ugh}.

We are considering doing it again in a year or so and may search for flights out of Phoenix of LA this time, and covered storage.

BnB

Don't forget there is a "Home Resort" requirement for RPI. In other words you have to own in a resort somewhere and pay their annual dues as well as RPI's.

TT is expensive if you pay for it at a resort it's much better to buy one online "Used" and to pay the transfer fee.

https://banbrv.blogspot.com/2017/11/thousand-trails-good-and-bad.html

BnB

Try this. Pick a campground that appeals to you. Camp half the week with hookups. Unplug from the hookups for the other half of the week. That way you can always plug back in if something goes wrong. Enjoy!!

BnB

One of the essential steps to fulltiming is making a budget. You have to know what your income is going to be in order to decide if it's going to be achievable.

That being said there are things you can do to make up shortfalls such as work camping, boondocking etc.

For us the major decision was that we would be debt free when we set off. That influenced what RV we bought, what we towed and our daily camping cost average target.

Also we don't have to have the latest ad greatest things to enjoy what we are doing. Lithium batteries are high tech but lead acid can and will suffice if you aren't planning on being out boondocking as much as humanly possible. We don't find the need for solar when we only drycamp for about 4 days, what's wrong with running the generator now and then?

We shop at thrift stores for DVD's rather than spend big money on satellite TV. Out cell phones provide us with internet and some limited streaming.

The old saying is "Cut your cloth according to your means". You can and will enjoy fulltiming even without all the bells and whistles.. We stopped getting magazines and newspapers before we retired after we realized that all they are there for is to sell you things you don't need.

http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-top-10.html

But have fun and we'll see you out o n the road somewhere.

BnB

There are several good resorts in CG to chose from. There is also the Rovers Roost SKP park not too far out.

Shop around and you should find what you need. We like Sundance 1 and they hive Passport America discounts.

BnB

We winter in AZ and Phoenix Library system gave us free cards. They did require us to go and renew them this year though with a confirmation of the address we use at the RV park.

Three years ago Leesburg FL charged $20 for a visitors library card that lasted a year.

BnB

On ‎5‎/‎6‎/‎2019 at 9:21 PM, 2gypsies said:

From Casa Grande take I-8 west to Hwy 85 at Gila Bend then north to I-10 at Buckeye. Go west on I-10 to exit 45 taking your to 72 to AZ 95 at Parker, AZ.  Then north on 95 to Lake Havasu to  I-40 then either west to 95 or east to 93 into Las Vegas.

This completely avoids Phoenix and CA95.

X2 by far the best way. We avoid Interstates wherever possible. America isn't visible from the Interstate.

BnB

We had 10 rigs there before Escapades in March and we all had dinner there during the week of Escapades. Food was good, service slow when we showed up with 40 people! New owners were very welcoming. Don't see how you can complain about them returning calls when you get FREE CAMPING. Try the Hot Rod Garage restaurant place just down the road, there where people boondocking there when we went for dinner.

BnB

I did the same thing but when I called Dish the tech set it up at no charge, I used a Seagate 2TB solid state EHD so I don't think they are fussy about the specs.

BnB

The most important thing to do when you are thinking about buying that full time rig is SHOP AROUND! Go out with an open mind but not an open wallet.

Boot camp is great BEFORE you buy, We did it that way and it saved us 10's of thousands of dollars. The big thing we learned is that the average Rv'er buys THREE RV's before they get the one they really want. That's a lot of money to loose. You WILL likely lose when you come too sell!!

We are astonished by the number of people we've met in the last 3 years of full timing who have bought a brand new rig and found within a month that they don't like the arrangement etc., 

Our search went better because we shopped around. http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2014/11/you-can-get-there-from-here.html

Our Coleman Roadtrip 2 burner has a grease trap and does the job for us. Folds up pretty good too. We bought the adapter hose to run it from a big 20lb cylinder rather than the 1lb ones that get really expensive.

BnB

Our Rand McNally RV GPS has the ability to connect via WIFI and also has Gas Buddy on it. It can find gas stations along your route and display current prices. To be honest I don't use that feature much as we usually plan our fuel stops around our overnight stops and use gas buddy on our phones to find the best prices.  

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