Our Reasons for Going Stationary for Awhile

As of April 1st, we have entered another phase of our travels... the "catch up" phase. It seems that the majority of people who travel/RV full-time have to do that once in a while, and for varied reasons. Usually it is because there is too much month left at the end of their money, and we're no different.

Last summer's "wild goose chase" to east Texas, and then a hasty retreat to South Dakota before returning to Arizona had been very costly in fuel expense. Thankfully, we had very little lodging expense along the way, except where we chose to pay to stay a week, first at the Rainbows End Escapees Resort in Livingston, Texas while we got some work done on the RV, and then two weeks at (what was then) our new home resort in the membership system in Gunnison, Colorado. We only did that to check it out to see if it was something we would ever use again. It wasn't.

Prior to that, we spent a month at a very UNdesirable RV park on Route 66 east of Albuquerque while Sharon went to Alaska for a couple weeks. While she was gone, I put up with not only bad water and unlevel sites, but a very hateful, disagreeable and sarcastic manager (the worst I have ever encountered in over 35 years of RVing)! That stay cost over $350 by the time we finally argued/threatened the balance of our electric deposit back from the park owners.

Besides blowing out an exhaust header donut on the way to Texas, we also had the circuit from the generator to the converter box burn out, had the roof air conditioner serviced, had new front shock absorbers installed, and new tires installed. However, it seems every attempt to try to get a front end alignment met with failure, so we waited until we got to South Dakota for that. And while there, we also had them install new front "in-coil" air bags to replace ones that were totally rotted out when we bought this RV. (The dealer should have inspected them and known that!) The Chevy P-30 truck chassis is well-known for having front coil springs that are WAY too soft and shock absorbers that barely meet minimum standards!

From South Dakota we seemed to be in pretty decent shape until we got to western Arizona, where we discovered we had a propane line leaking somewhere behind the water heater. That resulted in having to shut the refrigerator down and move all the food back to the trailer refrigerator again until we could get repairs made. We also had to use our portable butane stove for cooking and hot water.(Having redundant systems is not a bad thing!) A final repair trip back to the dealer we had purchased the RV from revealed a broken copper tubing line between the main black pipe along the frame rail, and the shorter copper tubing going to the water heater, the latter of which they replaced... poorly.

After we emptied out our rental storage unit in Blythe, California and headed for Texas, we discovered we still had a propane leak. So we had to shut the gas off and move all the refrigerator contents again to the trailer. It wasn't until we got to Louisiana that I discovered that the mechanic who had replaced the copper tubing had forgot to tighten the flare nut where it joined to the black pipe behind the rear wheel! It was an easy fix with a wrench, but cost us an entire tank of propane again, which we had to replace at rural Louisiana rip-off prices of $3.89 a gallon!

Also, while in Arizona, we knew we would be boondocking a lot in getting to Florida and depending on battery power, so we decided to upgrade all the incandescent lights in the living quarters of the RV to LED lamps, and those (nearly) two dozen lamps cost us another $120.

In Texas, we also discovered that our clearance lights have not been working, and we could not pass their vehicle inspection without them! Between the heat and humidity, I was in no mood to work outside troubleshooting that problem (nor to pay someone else to do it), so we made a last minute decision to abandon our attempt at Texas residency and head for South Dakota, which we had originally intended anyway!

After leaving Texas, I discovered little by little that the front brakes were getting worse and worse, but we continued to South Dakota and back to Arizona with them. On the way to Florida, and before we got across Texas, I could hear metal to metal... not a good situation driving through mountains and towing a 3000# trailer on which the electric brakes also decided to fail somewhere after South Dakota! So before we left Louisiana, we had to find a shop that could work on RV brakes, and even that turned into a fiasco, with wasted trips and another poor repair job.

It wasn't until we had left there, that I realized the front end was pulling to the right slightly when the brakes were applied, but also we have a loud squeal in the right front brake that is still there after arriving in Florida. Not only that, but I noticed the bearing dust cover is also missing from that wheel, either because the shop forgot to reinstall it or because it was not put on right and vibrated loose somewhere in our travels between Louisiana and Florida.

The front end pulling to the right has become more constant, and even the steering wheel is about 15 degrees off from level now. I have also discovered that the brand new right front air bag is not holding air, so that side rides soft. Every time we hit a dip in the road, I can feel that side drop more than the left side. So now I have to have the air bag repaired by someone new here in Florida, since the original installer is in South Dakota. And I have to have another wheel alignment (way sooner than expected) and the only shop we could find to do the job before is also up there! We haven't looked for one here in Florida yet!

The burned out #10-3 romex line between the generator and converter box under the rear bed cannot be simply replaced or repaired, because I have since determined that the burned out portion of the line is underneath the bathroom somewhere, and undoubtedly wrapped and or wire-tied in a bundle. It cannot be pulled out or accessed without major tear-out and rebuilding of cabinets and flooring... thanks to the "engineers" at Gulfstream (and I use that term very loosely) who engineered this coach, and routed things the way they did... totally asinine!

I have new wiring to make the repair with, but it will have to be rerouted behind the generator and along the frame before stubbing up under the rear queen bed. And since this coach sets so low to the ground as to not allow anyone to simply crawl under it, that repair will have to wait until I can either afford for someone to put it on a lift and then pay for their labor, or else run it up on blocks on one side so that I can crawl under it and do the work myself. Frankly, I'm not willing to do either one at this time.

I have been able to do a "work-around" to tie the generator into a temporary receptacle when we absolutely have to use it, although it's not as convenient as simply turning on the switch. But for now, it works. It will likely have to stay that way until we can get somewhere that doing repairs of that nature will not be a problem. I'm not going to attempt it in a RV park!

While in the Arizona desert we also had a resettable fuse link go bad under the hood, that leads from the coach batteries to the converter box. That knocked out our interior lights and water pump. It wasn't that expensive to repair myself, but should have also been a warning that whenever a fuse or breaker trips there is probably a reason for it.

Sure enough, after we arrived at Fore Lake in Florida, that circuit failed again... farther back on the coach. I was able to troubleshoot the cause and found the feed wire had become chafed against the left rear spring shackle (again, bad routing of wiring, just like the bad routing of the propane line behind the spring shackle on the other side) and had shorted to the grounded chassis where it eventually burned completely in two. I was able to buy some insulated splice lugs and wire to make that repair myself, by running the left rear wheel up on blocks to raise the back end so I could crawl under it.

The chassis and drive train (without all the added-on RV systems) have been very dependable in general so far, as it should be with less than 60,000 miles on the odometer. Still, this RV is now 21 years old, and anything going wrong is a distinct possibility. Metal parts may have little wear, but soft parts can dry out and deteriorate... anything from transmission seals to engine gaskets. I know we have a leak on the power steering pump which is dripping onto the serpentine belt. Road vibration can lead to other things breaking or wearing through (and already has).

The engine has been starting and running very dependably, even after setting for over a week at a time, even though I get a loud squeal from the serpentine belt whenever the air conditioner starts. But the low mileage and general dependability doesn't mean that I trust it on the road for long trips! I don't want to get stranded out in the middle of nowhere with a choice of mechanics even less than what I have here!

The clearance lights are still not working, and just like last summer, I am not going out into this heat and humidity to attempt to troubleshoot the problem. We just won't drive between dawn and dusk! I have since determined that the trailer brake problem is not an electrical issue, but rather loose parts inside the wheel drums. Again, I am not going to work on it in this heat and humidity! Also, if it turns out that I can't fix it, the trailer will still have to be towed to a shop, and I am not ready to do that yet. We have more immediate priorities!

Another issue that we discovered with this coach is that even though it has a 7-pin trailer receptacle on the rear bumper... no one took the extra time to run a charging circuit to it! We have trailer lights and electric brakes, but no way to charge the trailer batteries while we are going down the road! To overcome that problem (as in "workaround"), I made up an extension cord that hooks up to the trailer plug, and can be clipped directly to the coach batteries on the RV, but only when we are parked. This way, the solar can charge the RV batteries, or the RV batteries charge the trailer batteries. It's not an ideal situation because of the batteries being two different types of two different ages, but it works well enough to get us by when we are parked for awhile. However, it must be strung out along the ground... not very convenient.

And with the generator circuit bad, this also means that I have to start the RV's engine in order to charge any of the batteries, which requires more fuel than the generator would use. It works, but is far from an ideal situation.

So with all these past expenses, future expenses coming up, and various hassles, we have made the decision to stay parked for awhile, in a place with power available. Having water and sewer is a bonus. We also have basic cable TV available at no extra cost, but since we now have Verizon 4G-LTE unlimited, and are used to watching all of our TV on the web anyway, we use that. Since it appears we are going to be here all winter, I may even set up the Lava brand 150-mile antenna that we have been carrying around (and still haven't used while traveling). From what I hear, I will likely get more stations on that than is available with the basic cable provided by the park. I'm waiting until after we go out for a propane refill with the RV before I set up the antenna, because it, too, is a hassle.

So now, we have finally arrived at a point where I need to talk about how we decided on the park we are in, and I will do that in the next post. I just wanted to let everyone know why we came to this decision, after we said we were going to travel full-time. We still intend to travel... a lot... but maybe not full-time. But we will "live" in an RV full-time... for now. This RV will remain as our mobile "home base" for now, and we will be making shorter trips out from here in something smaller... yet to be revealed... but soon.

There is another situation that has arisen since we have been here in Florida that may require more and more time being spent in Indiana. We don't want to go back to snow country again, but have even discussed possible compromises.

We want to remain mobile, with the ability to move back and forth in spring and fall (between Florida and Indiana), but unless we can find a reasonable RV park in our target area, combined with the cost of a site at both locations and the fuel expense to get back and forth, it almost appears to be cheaper to buy a place with a mortgage again! Even the rural RV parks in northern Indiana have gone crazy with their prices... wanting $550 a month for an RV parking spot in a rural park several miles from a small town out in the middle of farming area! I can buy a small modest house with real estate for less than that!

At some point, we also want to get to Arkansas and empty out the rental storage unit, but we have no idea when that will be possible. We have to have both a way to haul the contents, as well as a place to put them when we get home. We also have to have sleeping accommodations for at least a night coming and going. It may also have to wait until next spring, or until we can come up with a strategy to make it possible.

As anyone can see, there are many reasons to remain stationary for awhile, and many things to be determined yet, but as I mentioned, it appears we will remain here until at least next spring. There is a lot of catching up to do and decisions to be made that affect our future RV travels.

After discussing our method for choosing a long-term RV park in the next post, I will talk about the RV park where we are now. I don't normally like to mention places until after we have left them, but since we are going to be here through next winter, there is no point in waiting. Besides, being in a safe and secure park is far different than boondocking out in the middle of nowhere! As always, common sense has to outweigh certain rules.

I don't mean for this post to come across as negative, but rather as things to think about for any of you who may be contemplating a full-time RV life on the road. What I mention here are the realities of buying a RV (or any other vehicle) that is too old to be dependable, even if it has low mileage. An RV has countless parts and systems that can go bad at any time, and all too often, the hype of getting out there and going on adventures leaves out these realities.

Unless you have cash to buy a decent RV, the only other alternative is to take on payments, which in turn takes away from traveling money. Nothing is free in this world, so you have to look at your budget carefully and decide what works for your own circumstances. Just make sure you start out with at least $3000 as savings reserves. A major engine failure or a transmission replacement can cost that much to repair. A larger diesel pusher can be up to double that. If you have to replace your vehicle at some point, you will need cash or down money to make a purchase. You also have to have enough income over your living expenses to replace that savings once it is spent.

All I can say as a warning, is to always consider worst case scenarios in calculating expenses BEFORE you ever leave home. If you do that, and then don't spend that much, you will be money ahead, and there's nothing wrong with that. If you don't figure on worst cases, you will likely get stuck somewhere in your travels, in a place you don't want to be, with few choices about how to get out of your situation. Stay in control of your finances before you have nothing left to control, or your finances will control you! Live within your budget and put savings away so that you don't have to ask strangers for help. Make adjustments, sacrifices or whatever you want to call them, to stay in control before you lose control.

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