gjhunter01

There is always a reason not to do something. When I was forced retired in 2008, the housing market was way down and the stock market was tanking. The best thing I did was go FT, sell off the house and leave my stocks in tack to live off the land. Now at age 65, the stock market has bounced back enough to build a new house just from the profits. The point is, you just never know how things will turn out.

Tires are considered expendable components and eventually they need to be replaced, just like brake pads do. We have had good results with our 16" Sailun G tires, but they need to be regularly inspected and they too will meet their life span limit by design, either through wear or time.

If you tow alot of miles (10k a year), you are bound to have tire problems eventually. It is best to be prepared with the proper tools and to practice changing the tires when you do your annual bearing inspection/grease job. Changing a tire on a busy interstate is not the time to stumble through changing a tire and relying on a tow service can be nerve racking. My wife and I can change a tire in 20 minutes and be back on the road, BTDT over 6 times in our 10 years of FT. I have found that once tires exceed 5 years of age, the blowout risk increases, but there is always that unexpected nail or pot hole to be prepared for.

Do your home work of claims of products that chemically change rust back to a solid surface. These products are just sealers (like paint) to keep the metal from being exposed to water which promotes rusting of metal. That being said, some trailers are stored in grassy lots which also traps moisture under them and that will result in excessive undercarriage rusting. I talked to a beach camp host in FL that showed me excessive undercarriage rust on the frame of his 1 year old Ford truck. I explained that being parked in salty beach sand for over 3 months will do that to any vehicle.

It looks like surface rust which is no big deal from a structure standpoint. A $20 quart of oil based satin black paint, a wire brush and a handy rag to wipe off splatters would do the job. I brush painted the frame and springs on my 34' fifth wheel in about 4 hours or less.

We also have full timed for 10 years and volunteered in 31 states for a month or longer. This was our plan all along and we are now building a house in Mich to settle down and start farming with our son. Full timing was a great adventure, but it was never our plan to be a permanent lifestyle. I've already planted a large garden, got 4 ducks and looking forward to starting a hobby farm.

I can service my 2018 Chevy DRW and portable generator for about $50 DIYS. I have a petcock on the oil drain plug and can drain the oil in any campground after a long pull. No cg has ever questioned me, the oil change is so fast they don't even know it happened (usually worked in while unhooking and doing camp set up). I've even change oil in a Walmart parking lot before the wife gets her shopping done. All it takes is a little planning ahead and being discrete about it. Been doing it that way for 10 years now, 5k oil changes almost to the mile. We always thought we would graduate from our fifth wheel to a class A. But after researching the "potential" cost impacts, we decided it's more practical to just update our pickup truck as needed.

It should not matter if the OP ever responds to this or any forum. The post alone has been beneficial and provided info to it's many readers.

To Dave, glad it worked out for you, we too have had good experiences and have high respect for Dr. Portillo. He will accept Delta insurance, but his prices are so reasonable that we just pay cash. Another thing is that he does not demand x-rays for every visit which I believe is just a $$ grab for a dentist to charge your insurance.

Any brand is good to have, just don't abuse them. Just by nature of competition, they will all go through upgrades every couple of years making todays models outdated. I use a 20V Dewalt 1/4" impact for all my work, again the key is to use a breaker bar to break loose and for final tightening of bolts. As noted earlier in this post, ACE Hardware can still replace broken Craftsmen hand tools.

We started out the first year w/o a W/D and then realized that was not the way for us to go. We then got a Haire 1600 which the wife wore out and now have a Splendide combo. Both units have been the ventless type and we have not noticed any moisture in our fifth wheel from the W/D. We do tend to hang dry (vs using the dryer) our clothes on a portable wood clothes rack, outside if the weather is good or inside at night while sleeping. I have been lucky to find both units on Craig's List for about $400 each.

Wasn't crude oil a negative $40/barrel just a year or so ago? With fluctuating prices as we have seen, it's no wonder oil companies are not interested in long term drilling/piping investments. These wild price swings are just an indicator that oil's future is waning, oil companies and auto companies all know that! GM will be all electric by 2035. The great energy transition is well under way.

If you do it your self, just back the camper under a tree and using a cheap block and tackle tied to a sturdy branch, hoist it up and drive out from under it. Do the same in reverse for getting the new unit up there. That's the hardest part in changing a AC unit, the rest is just a few screws and hooking up the wires.

As full timers we also started out using a relatives address in Texas, but that soon became a PITA (opened financial statements). We then joined Escapees and it was well worth it. Also from Michigan, we had to pay sales tax again on our transferred vehicles and trailer when we registered to Texas. Since then we just fill out the "out of state form" to get out of the yearly inspection. The form is available during the on-line vehicle yearly registration. For the last 4 winters we have even spent 4-5 months in Texas and have never been check for not having inspections for the motorcycle or truck. I understand the first stop is just a warning. I transferred my MI CDL to Tx and it was pretty easy, no testing required. Recently I added a "S" endorsement to drive a school bus and that required taking the entire CDL test over again along with the written test and driving test. It really was not too bad, just read the test manuals and watch the driving videos a couple of times. I passed it the first try. Each test is 20 questions long, CDL, Air Brake, Double Trailers, Tanker, P for passenger, and S for school bus, I took them all just in case I need them. I do need a medical physical every 2 years to keep the CDL.

I seem to get a jury summons yearly, of which I call the Polk County Clerk 936-327-6805 and give them the summons number and tell them I am out of the area. Sometimes I have done this 2 months after the jury date due to delayed mail and they don't have a problem with that. They do ask if I am a escapee member and they accept that excuse.

We use Dr. Arnoldo Portillo for our dentist (956) 532-4900. His fees are $35 for a cleaning and they were $80 for a filling and $300 for a crown, all cash of course. When you cross the walking bridge into Progreso and you come to the first cross road, he is on the Left side of main street the 2nd or 3rd door down. The waiting room is small, but the operating rooms are typical of any you find in the US. They have a couple of dental techs working there and they were taught in US universities. We have Delta insurance and 3 years ago our Michigan dentist told me I needed a crown replaced along with 4 cavities and maybe a root canal TBD. I took my x-rays to Dr. Portillo for a second opinion during our annual winter cleaning appt and he said the existing crown was good and he could not find any sign of 4 cavities. That was 3 years ago and again Dr Portillo said my teeth still look good at last months cleaning!!

I would not be too concerned about hiding cash in your RV, just put it in a drawer. When was the last time you had cash unexpectingly taken from you? Besides, someone taking your cash or having a fire burn up cash usually doesn't happen too many times in one's life span. Just keeping things in perspective. If keeping cash in your RV makes you uncomfortable than don't do it. We all have different acceptable levels of risk taking and being w/o cash is high on my uncomfortable risk level. If I were to lose $5k in cash, it would irritate me but not ruin my life. Whenever I need cash for whatever reason, it's nice to know I have that option available.

If you needed the water bottle bad enough then just pay the $20 and tell him to keep the change. As long as you have cash you have options and depending on the situation you can decide how bad you want the purchase. No cash means you have limited options!

As full timers we usually carry $3-5k cash in our RV. The thought is if we ever needed to abandon or repair the RV, we would have the option to pay cash for a used vehicle to get on down the road. I have considered having a bar of gold on board for a desperate negotiating backup plan if I ever needed to buy the last tank of fuel left in a given area from some real bad disaster. These would just be for worst case situations and if the cash were to get lost or stolen, it would not change my life any, but it might be a life saver if I ever need it!! About 10 years ago, I needed a tow from a mud hole and the tow operator wanted $150 cash before he would hook up. Be prepared!

My son had a 2005 Freightliner with a mercedes engine and that motor was a pain for getting parts. Do some research and call some dealers for prices & timing for some typical repairs.

Earlier this week I filled up my 100 gal aux in S. Texas with diesel fuel at $3.65 before the prices went way up (4 days later seen $4.35). That fuel should get me back home to Mich in mid April and will save me a bunch of $$. My last fill up was in mid Dec in N. Texas for $2.85. You won't regret having a aux tank available. We average about 10k miles a year which requires about 8 fuel stops in a year.

As soon as the cat uses the litter box the wife will clean it, there will be no stale cat mess in our trailer. Now our cat will only drink water from the running faucet and will slap at us if we ignore her as we walk past the sink. We have created a spoiled monster!

I have a 100 gallon aux tank with a transfer pump and can get 1400 miles on a full tank. I estimate the fuel needed for our next trip and carry at least that much fuel which removes the getting fuel stop during a trip. This lets us stop when and where we want to and not being dictated by fuel needs. We also save $$ by filling up at cheaper places and/or before holidays. The fuel tank cost about a grand, but they can be found used for about half price and then I figure I can always sell it and recoup some of my investment when I don't need it any longer. The extra fuel capability was a factor in buying a diesel truck vs a gas. With a tonneau cover over the truck 8' bed, its out of sight.

We have volunteered in 31 states so far and are shooting for all lower 48. Your best bet is to pick an area you want to be in and start calling the local State Parks or NWR's. Even private CG's are open to volunteers for a free site. Don't be timid about negotiating the job requirements that fit your skill and desire along with the time requirement spent there. If the place won't negotiate, then move on, no problem. This is about our adventure, we are not trying to become connected to a particular park and if we can help along the way, then great. We usually try for 4-6 weeks and usually the less popular SP's are very accommodating. We don't mind bathroom checking but will shy away from being stuck behind a visitor center counter. For instance, Table Rock Dam wanted volunteers for a 3 month gig which was just too long for us. A month later they called and had a spot for 1 month due to an unplanned opening. It didn't work out since we had already moved on and had found another park.

Spending our 3rd winter in Mission, Tx. It's a nice area and no crime observed here, even though its close to the border. Progresso, Mx is a great tourist town to shop and visit.