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Old 01-04-2018, 10:11 AM   #1
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Full Time in a 5th Wheel?

Good morning everyone from cold Ocala, Fl.,
We are getting ready to begin our new life as full timers. Our double wide is for sale and we will be transitioning to full time in a 5th wheel. We have chosen a new Rockwood Signature Ultra Lite 8290BS as our "home" of choice. It has a wonderful floor plan that suits us just fine and should be towable with our 2018 Ram 2500 with 6.4L V-8.
I think that we have done all our homework for the new lifestyle but we are asking any and everyone who has done this for any suggestions and help to make the transition easier. We plan on 6 months here in Ocala, Fl. from November through April and then travel throughout the southeast on up to the northeast before returning back to Florida for the winter.
Are there any ideas on what to expect living in a 5th wheel? Would it be better in a travel trailer? We do not know if the 5th wheel would hold up with everyday living. This is something my wife has wanted to do since we retired but decided against it 4 years ago but now want to experience it before any health issues would prevent it.
We look forward to everyone's opinions and know that we will get the best advice possible from Forest River owners.
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Old 01-04-2018, 10:19 AM   #2
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Good Luck!! You should enjoy the 5er. Enjoy your freedom!
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Old 01-04-2018, 10:22 AM   #3
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First of all congratulations!!!!

Nice truck as well, we love ours.

My personal feeling is that Full timing in a fifth wheel is a better option than a travel trailer. Easier to hook up, tow, and greater stability.

I would be concerned that an ultralight may not be the best choice for full timing due to durability issues.

There are many on here who fulltime and should be able to provide specific feedback.

No matter what you end up doing, enjoy!!!!
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Old 01-04-2018, 10:36 AM   #4
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Good For You
You're asking for advice, so here it is:

Follow the weather if you can.

When you run into problems don't get frustrated post your questions right here.

Be aware of all your weights, upgrade your trailer tires before you go on any major trips and monitor/maintain your axles and suspension regularly.

Get a dehumidifier, there have been several posts lately from the SE where the posters experienced excessive moisture problems in their RV, it's always best to deal with those issues before they become an issue.

Happy Trails
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Old 01-04-2018, 10:54 AM   #5
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No problem full timing in a 5er but have never seen an ultra-lite rated for it. If known, manufacturers will void the warranty but that is only good for 1 year anyway. We are anytimers and spend about 6 months in our 5er and for that reason I would only buy one rated for full time There are many out there and are built with full time in mind. A little more cost but get a lot more.
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Old 01-04-2018, 10:59 AM   #6
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I 3/4 time in my 5r and have nothing to say badly about the experience. When at the worksite, it provides good comfort and all the amenities of home, plus I can take it on vacation anytime I want. I upgraded my tires to Goodyear G rated tires and have no worries about blowouts or handling of the RV when I tow it.
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Old 01-04-2018, 11:01 AM   #7
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Thank you for the replies. We have decided on the Signature Ultra Lite because of costs and an upgrade from the Ultra Lite. It provides a lot of room and features for the dollar and Forest River seems like a very reputable manufacturer. Sometimes a more expensive model doesn't always mean a better quality unit and we are just trying to get as much input as possible. We know that there is no guarantee that we will not have issues but a general feeling of satisfaction and fun too. Our plans are for the 6 months in Ocala, Fl. and then move north to Carolina's and park for a month and play tourist then move to Va. and do the same, etc. There will be minimal driving just between one RV Park to another so hopefully we will encounter little if any problems. We have even spec'd a residential refrigerator in place of the RV refrigerator. Thanks to all.
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Old 01-04-2018, 11:05 AM   #8
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We also have planned to replace all 5 tires with American made tires before we move it. It is a shame that USA manufacturers have decided to use sub-grade Chinese tires just to save a buck. It would make more sense to use USA tires and raise the trailer costs.
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Old 01-04-2018, 11:24 AM   #9
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Expectations

My wife, two kids, and I have fulltimed for the last 2 1/2 years. It's a wonderful way to live but like anything else- it isn't filled with sunshine and rainbows all of the time. We've had amazing highs and have seen absolutely stunningly beautiful sites.

We've also had some terrible lows dealing with rig issues with a couple of health challenges thrown in. But, the good news is that we've been able to overcome all of the challenges and the good far outweighs the bad.

Patience and Sense of Humor

The biggest thing to carry with you is your patience and sense of humor. Seriously. Stuff happens- some little, some big, some that just makes you scratch your head.

Weights

Cypressloser touched on one of the most important things to be aware of- and that's knowing and minding your weights. Being an ultralight camper, your cargo carrying capacity is going to be somewhat limiting. This means, you need to be mindful of what you're bringing and carrying with you. It also means that you should be in a fairly regular purging/donating cycle- as you bring new things in, some things have to go back out.

Here are instructions for weighing your fifth wheel:
How to Weigh a Fifth Wheel Camper (at CAT Scales) | Learn To RV

Weigh often & repercussions of being overweight

I run over my camper's maximum gross vehicle weight (GVWR) and right at the axle weight rating (GAWR). I replaced the leaf springs shortly after we took off (the camper already had 3 years of heavy travel on it).

I did the Escapees SmartWeight and found that 1 of my tires was significantly overloaded and 2 others were maxed out. From that, I decided to upgrade my wheels + tires to those that had extremely higher capacity.

Even if you aren't overloaded, I'd still look for a quality tire in a higher load range than you currently have. For me, that's Maxxis M8008 or Goodyear Endurance. I doubt jumping to the Sailun S637 is reasonable being that it's likely a different wheel size.

Still, the combination took its toll on the camper. In September, after coming down 101 out of Oregon, we found that our frame had buckled badly. There was never an impact- it was just the forces of the road and extra stress of backing into sites.

More recently, we got hung up on a curb and broke a leaf spring.

Getting help

Again as mentioned above, this forum is a wealth of information. I've posted more "help me" threads in the last year than the prior 5 before. These are recreation vehicles and aren't designed for living in them. Stuff crops up- stupid things like my kids destroyed all of the drawer slides in the bunkhouse or we've had the bottoms of 3 drawers get pushed/fall out. Bigger things happen- I inspect the roof regularly and watch for signs of excessive wear and tear (you know- like the major frame damage I mentioned above).

If you're handy- GREAT! If not, you'll need to rely on mobile RV techs for the majority of what you're doing. Or, some service centers are more fulltimer centric and will let you stay in the rig while they do the work during the day. Many will even let you plug in. Gone are the days of dropping your rig off for weeks/months at a time- even a week in a hotel adds up cost-wise.

Mail, insurance, and other specifics

(This is a simplified view of the world- there are special circumstances that completely can throw this all on its head. But here's my simplistic view of residency (aka domicile.))

You're going to need to decide on a state of domicile. Florida is already advantageous because its lack of state income tax. Florida, South Dakota, and Texas are the big 3 for fulltimers- no state income tax and lax residency laws for fulltimers.

For mail, you'll either need to use a family member's address who will receive everything OR use a professional mail service. We tried using friends initially and that was a hot mess- they weren't organized at all. We trusted them and would have them open the mail and text/email pictures of important stuff.

Since then, we signed up with a mail service - St. Brendan's Isle. There are lots of these services out there. Use the zip code for each and shop around for insurance- you'll find rates change depending on your address.

As I mentioned, insurance-wise, you'll find different rates for different addresses. This is for health and auto/fulltimer insurance. Did you see what I said about fulltimer insurance there? A regular camper policy isn't good enough- contact an insurance broker who is familiar with fulltime RVers. You need to make sure you have proper coverage for your contents AND have enough hotel coverage to hold you over in the event of a major catastrophic issue. I spoke with both Miller RV Insurance and RV Insurance Pro . com and both were extremely helpful.

Budget

The last thing I'll touch on in this novel of a post is your budget. Fulltime RVing can be cheaper than stick&brick living or it can be much more expensive. It comes down to what you make out of it. The longer you stay at any one place, the less expensive the nightly rate is - daily is most expensive, weekly is slightly cheaper, monthly and longer is cheaper still. Travel is obviously expensive.

Sight-seeing and touristy crap has been surprisingly more expensive. Our Edu-tainment budget makes up for any cost difference between campsite rent and what our our mortgage was - but a large part of this life is roadschooling the kids. This is their education, so might as well make it worth while.

---

Have fun out there. It's an amazing life full of ups and downs.

(Kudos if you make it to the bottom of this!)
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Old 01-04-2018, 11:43 AM   #10
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Great post Doug.
Thanks for sharing!
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Old 01-04-2018, 11:53 AM   #11
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We are not full timers. We are snow birds. We 'only' spend 3-4 months a year in our trailer. Like you we found a trailer whose floor plan suits our living. We chose a tag along because many times I will load my motorcycle into the truck and take it with us. Since I am handy, I modify the trailer to suit our needs. This winter we decided to go where it drops below freezing at night. I added heat tape to our water lines and insulated the under belly of the trailer to keep the lines from freezing.

Keep an eye on your rig looking for maintenance items that need corrected. When things break, consider upgrading them with better equipment. The fixtures that come installed in the trailer are not the best quality. As an example, I am upgrading the kitchen faucet and sink with a home style.

Enjoy you new found freedom and explore the United States while you are able. We find two weeks in one location is about right. It gives us enough time to explore the area but not get bored. Right now we are in Albuquerque NM where it is 56F compared to 15F at home.
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Old 01-04-2018, 12:17 PM   #12
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At 11,700 pounds GVWR your really pushing your limits. Ultralites are not really suited for full time living. There light for a reason. I suspect you will be shopping for a different setup within a year or so. But heck its your money.
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Old 01-04-2018, 12:40 PM   #13
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Full time

Navy grandparents,



Just sent you a private message PM.

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Old 01-04-2018, 01:28 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by navygrandparents View Post
We also have planned to replace all 5 tires with American made tires before we move it. It is a shame that USA manufacturers have decided to use sub-grade Chinese tires just to save a buck. It would make more sense to use USA tires and raise the trailer costs.
If you have 16" wheels that can handle 110 PSI Sailun tires are actually the best and made in China! Bonus they are 1/2 the price of 2nd best.
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Old 01-04-2018, 01:33 PM   #15
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At 11,700 pounds GVWR your really pushing your limits. Ultralites are not really suited for full time living. There light for a reason. I suspect you will be shopping for a different setup within a year or so. But heck its your money.
Manufacturers build units for full time living for a reason and will void the warranty if known someone is fulltime in one not designed for it for a reason. Thinking of getting the same quality in a lesser built unit is incorrect thinking. Start at looking at R- values and go from there. I suspect your suspicions are correct.
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Old 01-04-2018, 01:51 PM   #16
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We don't full-time, but we camp host from May until September every year, so we do 5 months in, then a week or so in October, November, December and in March or around spring break.

That being said, you will get lots of comments about a full-time fifth wheel, arctic packages, seasonals, double pane windows, etc. Go with what you can easily afford and use it until it is no longer fun or unusable. Who is to say that after 8 months, you are ready to get back in a house and then just use the 5'er for occasional trips? One of you experience health problems? It's just not comfortable for you for months at a time?

If you have gone with something you can afford, you can either park it, sell it or rent it out. If you have gone into deep debt to afford a "full-time" fifth wheel, it will be hard to recoup your investment and not end up owing a lot more than it's worth if you don't use it for 8-10 years.

This just MY OPINION on the subject and like everyone else, I can have one.

I hope you thoroughly enjoy your new lifestyle and if you do make it up to Virginia, stop by and see us at Natural Tunnel SP. You can't ask for any better weather, majestic mountain views and really friendly people.
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Old 01-04-2018, 02:49 PM   #17
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Good luck

I have a 2012 signature ultralight 8288ws we started full-time 2 1/2 years ago. It was going real well till last summer when my wife who suffers with cops caught pneumonia and passed. I have started traveling again but it is not the same.
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Old 01-04-2018, 04:09 PM   #18
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Originally Posted by CaptnJohn View Post
Manufacturers build units for full time living for a reason and will void the warranty if known someone is fulltime in one not designed for it for a reason. Thinking of getting the same quality in a lesser built unit is incorrect thinking. Start at looking at R- values and go from there. I suspect your suspicions are correct.
Manufacturers cannot void warranties. It's against the law. I work for a caterpillar dealer in the service department and have crossed this bridge many times. They can deny a warranty repair, but not void a warranty.
Secondly, what exactly is a full time rv? Made different? Labeled as such? Just asking as my wife and I plan on retiring someday and would like to travel with our travel trailer.
While on the topic of travel trailers, why couldn't you full time in a travel trailer? We've been rving for about 20 years and the quality is so much more improved now a days, just like the auto industry, that, IMO, a travel trailer could be used full time, not just a 5er.
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Old 01-04-2018, 04:16 PM   #19
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Originally Posted by merrykalia View Post
We don't full-time, but we camp host from May until September every year, so we do 5 months in, then a week or so in October, November, December and in March or around spring break.

That being said, you will get lots of comments about a full-time fifth wheel, arctic packages, seasonals, double pane windows, etc. Go with what you can easily afford and use it until it is no longer fun or unusable. Who is to say that after 8 months, you are ready to get back in a house and then just use the 5'er for occasional trips? One of you experience health problems? It's just not comfortable for you for months at a time?

If you have gone with something you can afford, you can either park it, sell it or rent it out. If you have gone into deep debt to afford a "full-time" fifth wheel, it will be hard to recoup your investment and not end up owing a lot more than it's worth if you don't use it for 8-10 years.

This just MY OPINION on the subject and like everyone else, I can have one.

I hope you thoroughly enjoy your new lifestyle and if you do make it up to Virginia, stop by and see us at Natural Tunnel SP. You can't ask for any better weather, majestic mountain views and really friendly people.

Great post and and opinion I share.

We expect to be pretty much full timing within the next 12 months and we'll use our 8529IKBS until we learn differently or see the need to do otherwise.
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Old 01-04-2018, 04:18 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by jtesta1 View Post
I have a 2012 signature ultralight 8288ws we started full-time 2 1/2 years ago. It was going real well till last summer when my wife who suffers with cops caught pneumonia and passed. I have started traveling again but it is not the same.
Sorry for you loss.
I hope you are able to get out and continue on.
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