OMG, it works all too well!! We decided to give ourselves a special Christmas present this year and replace our two recliners. These recliners are rocker-recliner-swivel chairs that came with our fifth wheel from the factory when we bought it. Although they are very nice, after all these years of use they are starting to look quite worn. Also, they’ve never been as comfortable as we would have liked. For one thing, when they recline, they have a terrible habit of wanting to fold back up on us! This past summer, we stopped in a furniture store in Baker City, Oregon, and found the perfect recliner. It fit both of us just right. It rocked, reclined and swiveled, and it was super comfortable. But the store had only one. They offered to order a matching one for us, but it wouldn’t be in for three months and we’d be long gone by then. Miraculously, in this town of only 10,000 people, another furniture store also had the exact same recliner — but in a different color! Unfortunately, they couldn’t order a matching one any faster.
So we decided to look for these chairs when we got to Mesa, Arizona, where RV-oriented stores, including furniture stores with small furniture, line the streets. Unfortunately, none of them had these recliners in stock at all, but one store could get a pair in within a month. We excitedly put in our order. But what to do with the old recliners? With the holidays coming and us camping randomly in the National Forest, we figured it would be pretty tough to unload our old chairs. So, we put them on Craigslist right away, hoping against hope that someone might bite before the new recliners came in. To our complete shock, they sold in 24 hours! Now we have a gaping space where the chairs used to be — and the new chairs won’t be in for a few weeks!! The funny thing is that we’re starting to really like this new space. We’re calling it our “mosh pit” and we’ve got pillows and blankets on the floor and it’s really quite cozy!We’re feeling a lot like little kids now.
You know how it goes with kids and gifts — Santa goes to a lot of trouble to get the Big Special Gift for the kids, but after they open it and say “wow” and play with it for a few minutes, they set it aside and start playing with the box it came in, and that turns out to be much more fun! See all our Quick Pic posts HERE!We carry boats, fifth wheels, Class A, Class B, Class B+, Class C, Tent Trailers & Travel Trailers. Our manufacturers include Alweld, Bounder, Cameo, Carri-lite, Cedar Creek, Citation RVs, Coachmen, Colorado, Crossroads, Elkridge, EverGreen, Excel, Forest River, Fourth Winds, Fun Finder X, Georgie Boy, Heartland, Holiday Rambler, Hy-line, Jayco, Keystone, Koala, Kodiak, KZ RV, Borth Trail, Monaco, Montana, Montana Mountaineer, Mountain View, Newmar, Phoenix Cruiser, Riverside, R-Vision, Roadtrek, Sprinter, Sunnybrook, Terry, Timberland, Trail Runner, Viking, White Water, Winnebago and Yamaha Very nice full time use RV. Only 19786 miles, dual pane windows,climate control heat and cool system for zone heat and cooling,Electronic Climate Control system to allow two a/c operated from 30 amp service, high-gloss exterior fiberglass,two duct roof a/c, two 30000 btu furnaces,awning, microwave, 2 tvs, 5500 wt Onan gold generator with transfer switch,rear view camera, leveling jacks,
330 HP Cummins Diesel, Freight liner chassis 26850lbs gvwr, uvw 22350lbs, two belly heat pump A/Cs for low profile, inverter, 6 speed Allison transmission, air syspension and brakes, elelctric sofa, solid surface counter tops, day/night shades, electric step, fiberglass roof, 4 door refrigerator, glassed in shower, washer/dryer, lots of bedroom closet and drawers, huge exterior storage, 2002 Winnebago Journey 36DL Class AFreightliner Chassis, 75248 Miles, 2 Slide Out Rooms, Slide Out Toppers, Awning, 7.5 Onan Generator, 50 Amp Electric, Bus Style Storage,Back-Up Camera and Monitor, Roof Ladder, 5000 lb. Hitch, Convection Microwave, dual pane windows, Full time use RV, dual pane windows, solid surface counter tops, Heavy duty 22000# GVWR and 26000# GCWR, chassis gives 2500# payload and 5000# on the hitch, climate control system gives ability to zone heat and cool, 9000 series metal wrap awning, double electric step, exterior compartments slide out with main slide room, 5000# trailer hitch, real ladder, rear vision camera
, sofa/hide a bed, dinette/bed, day/night shades, lots of interior cabinet storage in kitchen and hallway, slide out work station at passenger area, Flexsteel furniture, swivel rocker with foot rest, microwave, stove and oven, large refrigerator, walk around queen bed in rear slide, huge closet and drawer space in bedroom with work station, rear TV, large private bath with glassed in shower and porcelain toiletGreat condition and cared for, amazing bedroon 12 feet wide with two swivel chairs, great bath, Powerful Workhorse Chevy Vortec 8.1L engine, Loaded, airs, awnings, jacks, microwave, 2 roof a/c. Full body paint, Workhorse chassis, 5000# hitch, driver door w/ electric window, fiberglass roof, electric awning, heated/electric mirrors, solid surface counter tops, power recliner double chair, microwave/convex oven, solar battery charging system, energy management system, 10 gal water heater, Motor-aid automotive heat and hot water, Hydraulic leveling jacks, fire place, T.V. with inverter, Below floor “True Air residential central air conditioning for low roof profile with electric heat pump
, 40,000 BTU furnace, Dlxe surround sound system, 2 power sun visors, Queen air mattress with dual controls, rear camera, 50 amp service, 4 door refrigerator,Our Up-Front Costs To Go On The Road This page is another window into our personal affairs to better help those considering full-timing determine what expenses may be incurred in the preparation for the lifestyle. Remember, we didn't have an RV and had never RVed before so it was like purchasing and furnishing a new home. In fact, that's exactly what it was. We were fortunate to have a good deal of equity in our house and paid cash for everything shown here. Many of these expenses are not necessary to the full-timing life and we may have spent more than others in some cases and less than others in some cases. One of the keys for us was purchasing these items while we still had a very good income before our resignations took effect. Even though some of these expenses may seem extravagant or unnecessary, hopefully this page will at least be helpful in identifying expenses you may not have thought of or give you a ballpark idea of costs you can expect.
2006 Keystone Cambridge 358RLS Fifth Wheel $61,904.00 12 Cubic Ft. Refrigerator 5100 BTU Electric Fireplace Slide Tray in Basement (We later removed) Dual Pane Safety Glass Tinted Windows Onan Marquis Gold 5500 Watt Propane Generator $4,900.00 Carefree of Colorado Sideout Kover II Slideout Awnings (4) $1,825.00 Vent & Fantastic Fan Covers (3) $400.00 Cabinet & Closet Space Modifications $2,830.00 $71,859.00 Total RV Set-up Note: The Keystone Cambridge was discontinued after its first and only model year due to lack of demand. It's a great rig - too bad. Ford F-450 Lariat Supercab in Arizona Beige $46,351.00 6.0L V8 Turbo Diesel 4 X 2 Dual Rear Wheels High Capacity Trailer Tow Package Fifth Wheel Towing Capacity - 21,600 pounds Gross Combined Weight Rating - 30,000 pounds Spray-in Bed Liner $275.00 Custom Bed Cover To Go Around Fifth Wheel Hitch $650.00 $47,451.00 Total Tow Vehicle Set-Up
24K Husky Hitch Installed $1,561.00 (Special Welding Was Required For F450) RV & Tow Vehicle Service Agreements Freedom Care 7 Year Full System Coverage $1,894.00 TireGuard 7 Year Road Hazard Tire Coverage $499.00 Coachnet 3 Year 24 Hour Emergency Roadside Assistance & Technical Hotline Plus RV Warranty & Service Appointment Assistance $199.00 $2,592.00 Total Service Agreements Satellite Dish Internet & TV Installation Datastorm .74m Satellite Dish Installed $5,245.00 D-Link Wireless Card (2) DirecTV R10 80 GIG DVR Receivers (2) $200.00 ($100 after $50 mail-in rebates on each receiver) $5,445.00 Total Satellite Dish Internet & TV Installation Satellite Internet Service & DirecTV Service Direcway Broadband Satellite Service $1,129.00 One year of service 5% Discount for One Year Up Front Plan Regular Monthly Rate was $99.00 Purchased through Motosat (manufacturer of the Datastorm dish) Note: Direcway became Hughes.Net.
In January 2006, we upgraded equipment and moved the dish on our roof at the recommendation of Mobil Satellite Technologies (Mobilsat). We then bought the Hughes.Net satellite internet service through Mobilsat rather than Motosat. Than annual cost has been $798 since that time. DirecTV Total Choice Basic $588.00 Lowest Cost Basic Plan ($43.00 Monthly) Plus Additional Receiver ($5.00 Monthly) Plus DVR/TIVO Service ($5.00 Monthly) Plus Distant Network Service to get Broadcast Network Channels from New York & Los Angeles - ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX - 8 Channels ($9.00 Monthly) Total of $62.00 Monthly (We got discount on first 3 months) Note: We still have the same DirecTV features as when we started, but the prices have increased quite a bit. As of 2010, we are paying about $85 per month. $1,717.00 Total One Year Service For Satellite Internet & TV Due to our situation, we decided to pay all insurance costs up front for one year. That is why we included insurance for the first year in this section.
It may be wiser to pay for insurance on a monthly, quarterly, or semi-annual plan, but we liked the peace of mind of making sure these large expenses were paid in full for at least the first year. Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield PPO Health Plan with Health Savings Account Option; (80/20 Plan with $4,800 Deductible) $2,366.00 Note: Though we still have Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield, we've changed plans twice. As of 2010, we have what is called a Lumenos plan with a Health Savings Account feature. It is a 100/0 Plan with a $10,000 deductible and a $155 monthly premium. In 2007, we changed to a monthly payment rather than annual. MetLife $250,000 30 Year Guaranteed Level Premium Life Insurance for each of us. Total of both policies: $953.00 RV Insurance - Drive Insurance By Progressive with 250,000/500,000 person/accident coverage with Full-timer personal liability coverage $897.00 Truck Insurance - Drive Insurance By Progressive with 250,000/500,000 person/accident coverage $729.00
Umbrella Policy - RLI Insurance with $1,000,000 coverage $200.00 Note: We are still paying Life Insurance, RV Insurance, Truck Insurance, and Umbrella Insurance annually. $5,145.00 Total Insurance For One Year Camera Equipment & Binoculars Nikon D70 Digital SLR Camera - $1,700 Note: Loving photography and wanting to document and share our experiences on this website, we decided to buy some topnotch camera equipment while we were still working and could afford it. Swarovski 8 X 20 Pocket Binocular - $800 Note: Being birders, we wanted to get a top pair of compact binoculars for hiking - agian, while we could still afford it. This pair was a great addition to the Eagle Optics Ranger model ($400) that we already had. $2,500 Total Camera Equipment & Binoculars La-Z-Boy Pinnacle Rocker Recliners (2) - $1,200 Note: We replaced the swivel rocker recliners that came with our rig with La-Z-Boy Pinnacle Rocker Recliners (leather fabric - Cobblestone).
We found that the recliners that came with the rig were not good quality, and because they were swivel rocker recliners, there were heavy and hard to move when preparing to stow them for travel. The La-Z-Boy recliners are narrow, lighter, and the backs come off which made them easy to get in the door. In our travels and talks with many full-timers, it has become pretty clear that buying your own living area furniture is a good idea. Later, we took out the sleeper sofa that came with the rig and replaced it with another identical La-Z-Boy recliner. Books on RVing & Fulltiming $70.00 Escapees RV Club Membership $70.00 Good Sam RV Club Membership $19.00 (We've since canceled) Good Sam Golf Club $30.00 (We've since canceled) Passport America Membership (3 years) $114.00 (We now renew annually) Workamper News Subscription $37.00 Caretaker Gazette Subscription $30.00 website host and construction guide) $399.00 (Annual renewal is $299) Journal) $59.00 (We no longer use - changed to Typepad for our Journal)