RV Living

Have you ever thought about chucking it all and living in an RV? Well, that is my life. I live in a 40 foot 5^th wheel. Here is the floor plan for my home: Heartland Bighorn. You can check out the site to see what the interior of my home looks like. It’s not your typical family camping RV.

I have a stacking washer and dryer, both Whirlpools. I consider this a must when we’re traveling since I hate looking for a laundry to wash my clothes. Especially after our time in southwestern Kentucky where I had to drive forty-five minutes to the closest laundry, that was before we bought the 5^th wheel and only had a travel trailer which didn’t have the space for a washer and dryer.

Yes, we have a special truck to pull the RV. My husband has a 3500 Chevy Silverado HD with a Duramax engine and an Allison transmission. It’s also a dually which makes pulling the RV much easier. Instead of a bumper hitch we have a 5^th wheel hitch in the bed of the truck.

This past winter, while in northern Nevada, we bought a specially fitted tarp which buttons onto the bottom of the RV. It works like skirting on a mobile home keeping the floor of the RV a bit warmer during the winter.

Two months ago we bought a Tempur Pedic California King mattress to replace the one we had in the RV. Our bed is on a platform which can be lifted at the bottom. This provides us with a huge, easy to access storage area. I keep extra sheets and blankets in there, along with suitcases and outerwear. My husband requires several different outwear sets of clothing, depending on what part of the country his job happens to be in.

Instead of depending on the RV parks to provide us with cable TV, we take our own satellite and receiver with us. We have a big flat screen TV in the living room and a smaller flat screen TV in the bedroom. We also have two DVD players and a stereo. The speakers for the stereo are throughout the RV. We still have the capability of receiving cable TV, if it’s provided by the RV park so we can get local channels.

There have been times in our travels that I’ve not been able to get any internet in the RV parks. While in northern Colorado, I had to drive to the library to use their internet. However, I now have an AT&T internet card. It doesn’t work everywhere but it is a good back up. Trust me when I say that rural America doesn’t have the 3G capabilities that are taken for granted in the larger cities.

Unlike many RVs, our bedroom is completely separate from the bathroom, with a wall and a glass paneled door. There are two decorative glass panels on both sides of the door. I absolutely love that separation.

There are two air conditioners, one in the living area and the other is in the bedroom both in the ceiling. The one in the living area is vented, which means the cool air is pushed through vents in the ceiling throughout the RV. However, the bedroom air conditioner is needed because we like to keep the bedroom very cool for sleeping. A fantastic fan is located in the kitchen area, in the ceiling. When it’s too cool for the air conditioner but too warm to be comfortable, we can open a few windows and turn on the fantastic fan. It pulls the cool air into the RV, along with those smaller gnats slipping through the screens. The only unpleasant part about using the fantastic fan is it also pulls the odor up from the black tank (where the sewage goes). One of the saving graces about having the throne room separate from the sink and shower is the odor stays contained.

The best thing about living in an RV—housework doesn’t take very long. The worst thing—not much storage, if you happen to be someone who collects anything. Living in an RV makes you pare down what you need to live. Only the essentials, ma’am, but you can add a few extras due to the extra storage space found in a 5^th wheel. It’s called basement storage and is underneath the RV, accessed from the outside.

Our RV has two kinds of window dressings or blinds or shades (whatever you want to call them). When they are both down, it’s considered a “privacy” shade. When that one is up and the other one is down, it’s like having sheers behind the drapes in your house. You can see out, even so no one can really see into the RV due to the tinted windows. Of course, just like in a house, if that shade is the only one down in the evening and the lights are on, people can see inside. These shades are also on the bedroom door and the glass panels beside the door.

Our RV has two kinds of window dressings or blinds or shades (whatever you want to call them). When they are both down, it’s considered a “privacy” shade. When that one is up and the other one is down, it’s like having sheers behind the drapes in your house. You can see out, even so no one can really see into the RV due to the tinted windows. Of course, just like in a house, if that shade is the only one down in the evening and the lights are on, people can see inside. These shades are also on the bedroom door and the glass panels beside the door.

My husband’s favorite toy is the central vacuum. My favorite is the kitchen faucet, it sprays with the touch of a button and pulls out so I can spray wherever I need to spray or make it higher for larger dishes. The stove has three burners and the oven is small but there is a convection/microwave so most things are easy to cook. With only two of us most of the time, I don’t need anything bigger. I do quite a bit of slow cooker recipes especially in the summer because it keeps the heat down. Have you ever cooked a ham in the slow cooker? Awesome! We also grill quite a bit.

We’ve replaced the living room furniture with five recliners and three of them are rocker recliners which are my favorites. With the ease of lifting the backs off the recliners we can stack them off to the sides so we can pull the slides in when we’re ready to hit the road.

What’s great about staying in most, not all, RV parks? One fee usually does it. Once we pay the rent we have access to whatever the park offers. Showers, swimming pools, hot tubs, playground and recreational area are all free to use. Each park is different. Some parks will charge extra for electricity if staying longer than a week. Of course, propane which is used for cooking and the water heater are costs the RV owner pays. Water, sewage, and garbage are all included in the rent.

If you’re thinking of getting rid of your house and hitting the open road in an RV, of any kind, you need to do your research. Decide what kind of RV you want and what features are the most important. Don’t settle because the sales jerk is pushing you, look around, sit in it, picture yourself in it, then make the crucial decision. It’s not for everybody but for some of us, it’s a perfect lifestyle.

Denise Pattison