Would like some help deciding what kind of RV to purchase and how to find?

[Charlie918]

Hello. My name is Charlie. I am a traveling nurse. I am interested in experiencing the RV lifestyle and seeing the country from the ground. I need help with deciding on something used, dependable, fairly small as I will be traveling lite. Nothing I need to tow is my option. Lastly, something I can get into without alot of fuss. Im just trying to simplify my life and connect with some much needed nature first hand. If I can get useful information from experienced RVers to help me get into something small and reliable that I can use for the next 10 yrs or so I would be GREATLY appreciate any help. Thanks for listening. I hope to hear from everyone/anyone. Any and all suggestions welcome as I am totally new to this. Thanks.............Charlie

[Kirk W]

Welcome to the Escapee forums, Charlie! I saw your post in another forum and responded there, but will reiterate that I really think that you should start with a membership in the RV Consumer Group before you begin your search. 

[sandsys]

Wanting not to tow limits your options to a motorhome. Since you will likely still need transportation to work I suggest you look at vans--also known as Class B motorhomes.  Here are some popular ones so you can see what they offer:

https://www.winnebago.com

https://roadtrek.com

https://leisurevans.com

There are more but that will give you a start to see if this is something that might work for you.

Linda Sand

[TXiceman]

First is do you want a travel trailer, a 5th wheel trailer or a motorhome.  In motorhomes you have the choice off class A (diesel or gas), class C, super C or class B.

Next what is your budget?  

For long term living and not moving often, we prefer a 5th wheel.  It generally has more storage than a motorhome.

Next issue is where you will be located.  Even with a 4-season RV, harsh winter living can be difficult. and summer extremes will be hot.  Most lower line RVs are not well insulated and are a bear to keep warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

When you get into a true 4-season RV, they are heavier and depending on the size, may require a dual rear wheel diesel truck.  A lot of manufacturers will throw on a sticker claiming,....Polar or Arctic Package.  The sticker alone does not make it 4-season.  

With a trailer, you will need to have a truck of suitable size to tow the trailer and probably a daily driver. m With a motorhome, you will need a dinghy that can be towed 4 wheels down or on a dolly.  With a dolly, you will need to have a place to park it.

With a motorhome, you loose the front part of the RV to the driving compartment.  Also, with a motorhome, if you have a chassis problem, you home goes into the shop.  With a trailer, you can always get towed to a RV park and still have a place to live if the truck has problems.  You rent a car for a day or more.

With motorhomes, you have a huge heat gain or loss in the big windshield.

Living in an RV full time will require you to have enough space for your clothes, food and storage for outdoor items like chairs or BBQ equipment.  Any RV that is over 28 feet should have TWO A/C units.

If there is any way, you should rent a RV for a week and see how you like living in it.  You will find things you love and things you hate.

For a first RV, I recommend a higher end used unit over a lower end new unit.  But get it inspected by a professional RV inspector that you hire before buying the unit.  Also, have a new unit inspected.  If the seller balks at an inspection at your cost, move on to the next deal.

Also, make sure the dealer/seller knows that when you pick the unit up, it will be 100% correct and no promises to fix at a later date.

Have fun shopping.

Ken

[Kirk W]

36 minutes ago, TXiceman said:

With motorhomes,

And with motorhomes, you do not have to drive the big truck needed for a fifth wheel every time you go to work or the grocery store. With a motorhome, you can choose a small, fuel efficient car to drive and save the wear and tear of daily driving from the big engine moving the RV. With a motorhome when there are traffic problems you can just stop in the nearest parking area and with things out in comfort. 

In short, you will find that most RV owners believe that whatever type they like is what you should want also. I really think that you should spend some time at the biggest RV show that you can find and spend time pretending to live in several versions of every type RV available. For most people, one type will just seem to fit better than any of the others and that is what will be right for you. As a single male who doesn't want to tow a big trailer, I would suggest that you take a hard look at the class C market and think about one of those and then plan to tow a small car of some sort. Take your time and don't be overly influenced by what any of us think is best. Keep in mind that if you do not choose either some type of trailer or plan to tow a car you will need to connect the utilities each day after work and then disconnect when you are ready to go to work. 

[sandsys]

45 minutes ago, TXiceman said:

First is do you want a travel trailer, a 5th wheel trailer or a motorhome.  In motorhomes you have the choice off class A (diesel or gas), class C, super C or class B.

Did you read the post to which you are responding? He said nothing he needs to tow.

2 minutes ago, Kirk W said:

And with motorhomes, you do not have to drive the big truck needed for a fifth wheel every time you go to work or the grocery store. With a motorhome, you can choose a small, fuel efficient car to drive and save the wear and tear of daily driving from the big engine moving the RV.

See above answer.

Linda, grumpy today

[TXiceman]

6 hours ago, sandsys said:

Did you read the post to which you are responding? He said nothing he needs to tow.

See above answer.

Linda, grumpy today

Linda, I read it and as he is just starting out, he needs to evaluate all avenues and understand the differences.   Even with a motorhome, he winds up towing a dinghy and no one mentioned the braking requirements  and towing equipment for the dinghy.

Ken

Edited September 14, 2021 by TXiceman

[DavidH]

rent first could potentially be a learning option to test out expectations, assumptions, and narrow down the choices.... Outdoorsy and RVShare are a couple of sites

[sandsys]

1 hour ago, TXiceman said:

with a motorhome, he winds up towing a dinghy and no one mentioned the braking requirements  and towing equipment for the dinghy.

Ken

Not if he gets a Class B or small Class C. We didn't tow a car behind any of those we had.

Linda

[2gypsies]

13 hours ago, Charlie918 said:

fairly small as I will be traveling lite. ....... Nothing I need to tow is my option. ...... help me get into something small and reliable that I can use for the next 10 yrs or so I would be GREATLY appreciate any help. 

What you want to look into is a Class B (looks like a small cargo van).  You don't need to tow a car with it and it can fit in small parking spots.  New are expensive but if you can find a used one - great.  Perfect for one person.  Good luck!  Sounds like a great idea for you!!

Examples:  https://www.rvtrader.com/Used-Class-B/rvs-for-sale?type=Class B|198068&condition=U

Edited September 14, 2021 by 2gypsies

[JimK]

You will quickly find this is not the forum for small and light.  

Small, light to me means a van conversion or truck camper.  I am partial to truck campers for a couple of reasons.  One is simply resale.  Pickup trucks have really good resale value especially compared with the high depreciation of an RV.  Either one means  you can park in a standard parking spot.   You can pull into a campground or rest stop, spend the night and leave without any sort of fuss or set up/take down.  Both will do well with fuel economy and maintenance costs.  I am not sure about van conversion but there are plenty of choices for truck campers that are really well made.  I have a Northstar Igloo which is 17 years old and in like new condition with minimal repairs and maintenance needed over the years of heavy or full time use.  

If you want something small, I recommend you do lots of research and decision making before visiting a dealer.  RV dealers seem adept at upselling big and heavy.

Edited September 14, 2021 by JimK

[brokeboater]

2 hours ago, JimK said:

You will quickly find this is not the forum for small and light. 

Go big or go home!! 

For the same reasons you mention about your truck camper I gravitated to a 25' Airstream and a moderate sized truck.  Easy tow, great gas (diesel) mileage, easy set up, good resale value.  I think this was the OP that didn't want to tow anything but there is a lot to be said for small travel trailers.

[Kirk W]

5 hours ago, JimK said:

You will quickly find this is not the forum for small and light

Really? We tow a 20' travel trailer, ultra-lite, no slides. There are a few smaller but not that many. It is true that the bigger units are more common with the frequent posters, but I don't think that mine is the only small RV represented here. 

[RV_]

My last RV I sold in late 2019 was a 19' Scamp fiver. But like Kirk we are no longer fulltimers, and we both had large RVs when we were fulltime.

Edited September 14, 2021 by RV_

[sandsys]

10 hours ago, JimK said:

You will quickly find this is not the forum for small and light.  

Of our three recent rigs the BIG one was a 35 foot motorhome. The other three were all built on a Sprinter Chassis with two of those being Class Bs. We didn't tow a car with any of those three.

Linda Sand

[fpmtngal]

12 hours ago, JimK said:

You will quickly find this is not the forum for small and light.  

If you want something small, I recommend you do lots of research and decision making before visiting a dealer.  RV dealers seem adept at upselling big and heavy.

I didn’t speak up before because the OP said no towing. But I full-time in a 21’ (overall) travel trailer, GVWR of 5500 lbs, so there are some people here on this forum who want small and light.

I recently went to the Las Vegas Camping World for a sail switch and their lot was full of various RVs. Some of them were used, and while they did have a few smaller trailers (among the used ones, two were brands Camping World doesn’t carry), the vast majority of units were a lot larger than I would want. Maybe the reason salesmen will try to upswell you is that they have a lot more inventory of large RVs.

[Kirk W]

7 hours ago, fpmtngal said:

. Maybe the reason salesmen will try to upswell you is that they have a lot more inventory of large RVs.

The main reason for that is that salesmen work on commission so they get more for the selling the higher priced RVs. Since it doesn't appear that Charlie918 has been back, I guess we aren't hijacking his tread? 

When I look at the RV brands online, most manufacturers are building very few smaller RVs and even those still being built have gotten bigger. At the same time, companies like NuCamp and Timberleaf are springing up and seem to thrive. 

[fpmtngal]

I think there are more smaller TT than most people see or realize are out there. They tend to be harder to find, at least the better quality ones are. I like the NuCamp trailers I’ve seen.

Lance ( Lance ) still makes small TT as well as truck campers, though they now have models that are about 30’ overall (NOT small!) that are selling well. I think their best seller is still one that’s 23’ overall, and they make 4 models that are 21’ or less, one without a slide.

I was going to add the specialized Black Series to the small TT list, because the couple I’ve been in seem small. I knew they were heavy but didn’t realize just how big they really are until I looked at the specs. They are longer than they look inside, so don’t fit into the small TT category.

[Jinx & Wayne]

On 9/13/2021 at 10:44 PM, sandsys said:

Not if he gets a Class B or small Class C. We didn't tow a car behind any of those we had.

Good morning, Grumpy!  I heard what the OP said about towing. It is the same thing Jinx said about a dually - and now we have a dually.  Information is good and is easy to ignore if unnecessary.

Were you working daily when you were without a car? A car is not absolutely necessary, but commuting to work in the OP's living space and setting up camp every day for ten years may be less than fun.  If the OP has a partner, that person can drive the car from place to place, but if not things could get pretty inconvenient without a dinghy or a towed vehicle.

Wayne & Jinx
2017 F-350 diesel, dually
2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

[orca]

Linda.... this is kinda off topic.....BUT....I wake up grumpy every morning, then i get her a cup of coffee!  

[sandsys]

4 hours ago, Jinx & Wayne said:

Were you working daily when you were without a car? A car is not absolutely necessary, but commuting to work in the OP's living space and setting up camp every day for ten years may be less than fun.

No, but. We moved nearly every day because we were out to see the USA. In a small motorhome that is easy to do because you don't have much stuff laying around that you need to pack up. And you don't have to hook up every night, just when you want to dump and fill, and not even then in some places like La Posa South in Quartzsite. We also ran errands while moving from one place to another. It's great to have your whole rig right there when grocery shopping since you don't have to save that errand for last to get back home with the frozen food. And at the laundromat you can immediately hang up those clothes that need hanging. And we never left behind something we wished we brought with us--like rain coats. I really enjoyed living in a small rig and now think this one bedroom apartment is too big. Wouldn't it be nice to come out of work and have a meal and take a nap without having to commute first?

Linda

[noteven]

Wingamm non-supersized RVmobiles:

 

Wingamm USA

[Kirk W]

45 minutes ago, noteven said:

Wingamm non-supersized RVmobiles:

A history of Italian design

[jamtracy]

Charlie? Charlie?

Funny how someone starts a thread with a single never come back comment and everyone goes after each other. He probably forgot where he has posted. Lots of good stuff on this thread. I hope he comes back.

Quote

 

 

[Kirk W]

1 hour ago, jamtracy said:

I hope he comes back.

Me too! Profile does show that he looked but some comment would be appreciated. What do you think, Charlie? Anything helpful?