Des Moines -> Northern California

[slavka]

I appreciate the input. its valid, and I should be more prepared.

I'm trying to find a middle ground somewhere between getting home by a certian deadline, and making some stops along the way for kids. to be honest, not sure how much "fun" we'll have on this first trip, as it will most likely end up being a lot of driving with few stops

I think we'll just have to play it by ear, and see how far we'll actually get. its impossible for me right now to plan the trip correctly.. simply because I've never done anything similar yet.

I've done quiet a bit of reading and self educating on generators, plumbing system, electrical, etiquette, etc. I'm hoping when the time comes this will help.

i am also somewhat relying on the walkthrough to actually go through the sequence of steps I would need to take in specific situations.

my main goals for this trip are: make it home safely; dont break new rv; have some fun

I am bummed out by your attached photo.. I hope this is not common.

[MNtraveler]

Sorry if I was too harsh! That Walmart experience is atypical, but it highlights the lack of safety and security in a parking lot. Children kind of change everything. Particularly after long tedious days on the road, the kids would love nothing more than the chance to romp around a playground or jump in a pool or at least a stream! Look for fun stops along the way, even if short ones. (The SAC Air and Space Museum near Omaha, for example.) AAA is very good at this if you are a member. Then look for places to unwind and blow off steam (really, for everyone) at the end of the day. One other thing to consider is flying out a couple of days before the family so you can get trained and gain some experience driving around and living in the unit. You have to quickly become the family RV expert. The videos you are watching are a great way to start that. Best of luck!

[MNtraveler]

The Pawnee State Recreation Area near Lincoln NE is a very nice spot, an easy day's drive from Des Moines if you can schedule it that way, easy to get in and out of (quite level paved pads), and electric hookups. They have a lake with a beach....

Nebraska has a good number of Recreation Areas and parks along the route, many of which are along the Platte River. The fee is about $20 plus you will have to pay $8 for a one day nonresident vehicle fee.

If you need to make it further than Lincoln the first night, you may want to shoot for something near Grand Island. I don't recommend trying to make Kearney on your first night. It's a bit far. I sure wouldn't go beyond that. Even after one day, you will have a much better feel of what you and the family can do in a day.

https://maps.outdoornebraska.gov/parks/

Two great apps for finding parks and RV parks are RV Parky (not a type) and RV Park Reviews.

[MNtraveler]

YouTube channels that are great for learning:

RV Education 101 (by Mark Polk)
https://www.youtube.com/user/rved101

RV Geeks
https://www.youtube.com/user/RVgeeks

[slavka]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

YouTube channels that are great for learning:

RV Education 101 (by Mark Polk)
https://www.youtube.com/user/rved101

RV Geeks
https://www.youtube.com/user/RVgeeks

thanks a million for all the info.. I really appreciate it.

thats why I'm asking folks with experience who can guide me in a right direction.. I should be fairly intune with RV and all the processes by the time I get home. (most likely by the second time i'll have to dump tanks )


with all the preparation, I'm getting really excited.. we're heading out next sat morning to Des Moines, and will be on a road back home that night.


can't wait

[MNtraveler]

How's it going? (I'll be offline starting Monday night for the week.)

[slavka]

Hi. Thanks for asking, I was going to do a full report when I got home.

Picked her up yesterday. Walkthrough went fine. Everything worked as expected. They tried one last time to upsell me

I am bummed about quality inspection by FF. Minor things, final touches are lacking.

We found following issues

Scratches outside
We got a 2400w, and on a slide out on the back of the motorhome there is a either piece of trim missing or cutout is larger my 1in

As we started driving found few more things.

Lock for exterior TV in not operable
Some plastic cutouts we're done poorly with gaps visible
Window on slide out side rattles by wind during speed



Minor things, but I feel they should've been addressed before leaving factory

Other then that were having a great time. First night found a camp 1hr shy of souix falls with hookups


Right now we're in Cabela's in rapid City

My mpg sucks. I'm getting 10.5 average. It's probably a combination of my inefficient driving and need to break in new engine

Picked up a windshield chip already, need to find a place to fill it in

Thanks

Pictures to come after I wash the bugs off

[Wolverine 1945]

Originally Posted by slavka

Hi. Thanks for asking, I was going to do a full report when I got home.

Picked her up yesterday. Walkthrough went fine. Everything worked as expected. They tried one last time to upsell me

I am bummed about quality inspection by FF. Minor things, final touches are lacking.

We found following issues

Scratches outside
We got a 2400w, and on a slide out on the back of the motorhome there is a either piece of trim missing or cutout is larger my 1in

As we started driving found few more things.

Lock for exterior TV in not operable
Some plastic cutouts we're done poorly with gaps visible
Window on slide out side rattles by wind during speed



Minor things, but I feel they should've been addressed before leaving factory

Other then that were having a great time. First night found a camp 1hr shy of souix falls with hookups


Right now we're in Cabela's in rapid City

My mpg sucks. I'm getting 10.5 average. It's probably a combination of my inefficient driving and need to break in new engine

Picked up a windshield chip already, need to find a place to fill it in

Thanks

Pictures to come after I wash the bugs off

Sorry I forgot what RV you were picking up,,,
But I would be very happy with 10.5 mpg,,, in a new gas RV !!!
We have a 2013 Sunseeker 2500TS,,, we have never gotten 10 !!!

[MNtraveler]

Sounds good, mostly! Mileage should improve as it breaks in. Small defects are not unusual. Fit and finish just isn't what it should be in this area. Sorry about that chip! Many insurance companies will replace the windshield with no deductible because of safety. I don't know about filling chips.

I'll be offline rest of week. Good luck and you can get any help you need here from the forum folks!

[slavka]

We made it !!!

6 days on road with a little over 2500 miles

our route was from Des Moines -> Sioux Falls -> Rapid City (SD) -> Mount Rushmore -> Billings (MT) -> 2 days in Yellowstone -> Salt Lake City -> Lake Tahoe (were we will park through 4th of July)

Overall whole trip was great .. dry camping few days did not end up being a big deal for us.. We're used to conserving water and electricity, so running lean was manageable and doable.

Once we stayed at an RV park with hookups, and then we dumped our tanks and refilled fresh water tank

We found no major issues with the RV.. minor things I mentioned before, are more annoying then anything else.

we did try to run furnace in yellowstone, and it produced smoked and triggered file alarm. I will have to check it out right away. I think I just need to run it for a little bit to get all the oils and such burned off it.

rattling window is not as big of a problem as I thought.. it ended up being a blind hitting against the frame.. we lowered the blind a little and its ok now, though window does "wobble" open during speed ..i'm not sure if its normal

Milage wise, we got great improvement.. at yellowstone at 40-45mph I actually got ~ 17.7 mpg

once at freeway speeds it varied greatly from ~ 12 to 14(ish) mpg .. I played around with various speeds and here is what I'm finding out

@ 70mph i was getting around 12 mpg
@ 65mph around 14mpg .. but wind conditions and resistance made it inconsistent.

cruise control is not efficient.. i was getting better mpg if I drove by feel

thanks everyone for your help.. You helped make this a great and memorable trip for me and my family

[rockfordroo]

Furnace stinking is normal. Run it an hour or so and it will be fine.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

Furnace stinking is normal. Run it an hour or so and it will be fine.

Agreed. With the windows open, vent fan in and probably pull the battery from the smoke detector but don't forget to put it back in. For a while, you may have to do this for a short while before hitting the road for each new trip.

Otherwise sounds great! Yellowstone is amazing!

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

Agreed. With the windows open, vent fan in and probably pull the battery from the smoke detector but don't forget to put it back in. For a while, you may have to do this for a short while before hitting the road for each new trip.

Otherwise sounds great! Yellowstone is amazing!

Should read "vent fan ON"

[slavka]

did as was suggested,

ran furnace for about 15 min or so with fan on and doors / windows open .. that was enough.. now all good.

thanks for solution

[Wolverine 1945]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

Should read "vent fan ON"

There is an EDIT button if we catch our screw ups soon enough !!!
I know because I use it quite often !!!

[MNtraveler]

I didn't catch it until later. :-(