Pros and Cons of living in the RV

Since this is about the new lifestyle we are living I decided a pro and con blog may help anyone who is trying to decide if this is something they would like to do.

First I will be completely honest. If someone had suggested living full time in an RV 6 months ago I would have thought they were nuts. Too little room, too much sacrifce of worldly goods, you name it I would have had a reason!

At 52, hubby has worked really hard to give us the better things in life. I have been fortunate in that there were not many years that I had to work, and was able to stay at home with my boys most of the years they grew up. We had lean years in our younger days, so when he was able to, Hubby made sure we had everything we needed and just about everything we ever thought we needed and then some. Can we say spoiled rotten? We also held on to everything....so much so that when we had to store everything....it took 2 - 12x25 storage units to hold it all. Granted some of it was stuff the kids needed to store too but it was still WAY TOO MUCH STUFF!

There are 2 types of full time RVers. The ones that park pretty much full time in the same spot like we are doing right now. Other full time RVers, travel some. They either have the savings to live full time on the road or they work from home on the internet or they work at each new location till they save enough to travel again. We all wish we could just travel without thinking of the cost involved. Some day, we will be able to do that. Right now its best for us to stay put. Hubby has a great job less than a mile from here. Both our boys and their families live less than 18 miles from us. They younger son will probably head to Portland before too long, but for now we are all here.

No matter what type of RVer you decide to be, you really need to take stock of what is REALLY important to you personally. What comforts do you refuse to be without? This is what I learned, when we got the first RV ( 22ft motor home):

I learned that I needed to be in something bigger than a 22ft to be able to cook in the kitchen or even FIND anything. That double sinks should hold more than 2 quarts of water and a 2 gallon hot water tank is hard to get used to but you CAN do it! That a 3 burner stove makes fitting 2 pots on it very hard. That washing dishes, especially pots in those little sink is a true test of tenacity!

I learned that the walking area of the 22ft was designed for someone about the size of twiggy, and the ceiling height is not for anyone over 5' 5".

I learned that a closet size bath with a manual potty and a small stand up shower are too small to even brush your teeth! We used the shower to put a stacking shelf for the towels, etc. We only used that potty in the middle of the night. The rest of the time EVERYTHING was done at the RV Park restroom/showers. I learned that tromping thru the snow, rain, etc to take a hot shower or use the bathroom was not my idea of a good time.

I learned that the small master bed area at the end of the RV was much too hard...hard to sleep on, hard to get out of and nearly impossible to fix the bed. I learned that something as simple as a curtain hanging on a rod across the entrance way to that room gives you a chance to "get away" from everyone. I learned that if you sat on that bed with headphones on, you could drown out the noise that comes with 4 adults and a 2 yr old living in a small space.

I learned that the itty bitty refridgerator doesn't hold ANYTHING, so in order to avoid grocery shopping daily, we had to keep things in ice chest outside and remember to keep ice in it.

I learned that you really take it for granted when you can do laundry without leaving your house! I learned that finding room to stack dirty clothes is a task in itself.

BUT since we have the 40ft RV: I have room to move, slide out Living Rooms are great! Three people can stand in the kitchen and not touch a wall or counter! I have a full size fridge, my small chest freezer, 4 burner stove and oven, microwave, toaster oven, full size double sink, a snack bar with bar stools, tons of counter space and cabinets and an oversized pantry. In the living room I have my double recliner love seat, my computer, 32 inch tv, lots of cabinets and lots of windows that brighten the place up. I also have my full size washer and dryer AND a full bathroom complete with flushable potty, full tub and shower. I have an actual bedroom, with 2 closets, 6 drawers built into the bottom of the bed, cabinets over the bed, nightstands with drawers. We actually have a door to our bedroom! There are huge storage bays outside.

The only issues since we moved in this one and have so many electrical appliances is getting used to turning something off before turning something else on. We can only pull 30 amps at this RV Park and if you pull more it will kick the breaker. After tromping thru the snow to reset the breaker you learn really quick to keep an eye on what is pulling electricity! Most days its not an issue. The only time I have a problem is if I am running the Washer and Dryer, electric heaters and hot water heater with everything else that runs on a regular basis. After using the hot water for whites, I turn the hot water heater off. Then I can run the washer and dryer at the same time without kicking a breaker. It sounds like a pain, but you get used to it and it is so worth it to have all the comforts you rely on.

It actually is more comfortable than some apts I have lived in. So even though we came into this lifestyle unexpectedly, I really am enjoying it and even window shopping at newer models for the future!