RV Show at the Evergreen County Fairgrounds in Monroe, WA

We are probably a year away from buying a brand new rig, but we do spend a lot of time looking at floor plans and checking out different 5th wheels.  There are so many brands, and so many levels of quality.  What we have determined is that if we are going to full time it for 5-10 years (that's the current plan anyway), we are going to want what we want.  While cost is important, it will not be a deal breaker.

Right now we have a 2005 NuWa Hitchhiker II LS.  We love the floor plan and are looking for something similar but with a W&D connection that isn't crammed into the bathroom.

For whatever reason, the dealers did not bring the "new" fifth wheels to the show.  I guess the newest models won't be arriving until June.  Some of the sales people we talked to said they had new rigs at their permanent locations, and we should stop by and see them there.  For the ones we talked to that actually listened to what we were looking for, we will be stopping by at some point.  For the ones that didn't listen, and just wanted to push whatever they had on hand, well, we won't be your customers.  Your loss.

We've narrowed down our major front runners to Forest River, Arctic Fox and DRV.  The Forest River models at the show were not the top of the line, and the ones that were there were used rigs, more than a few years old with floor plans that were no longer available.  Arctic Fox said their new rigs would be coming in this June.  We will be following up with them then.  I'm one of those people that can read reviews and become educated about the quality of the finishings, but I really need to see it and get a feel for it before I can make a decision.  DRV did have one rig there that I liked.  If I ordered from the factory, there might be a few things I'd see if we could customize.  Like I said, if I'm going to live in something full time for 10 years, then I am going to want what I want.

Here are a few pictures I took of the DRV Mobile Suites rig.  I think this was a 2014 model (or maybe even a 2013).  The inside pictures did not turn out as well as I would have liked, but they will do.  At least it did have the rear window that we want.  We would take out the couch and put in swivel recliners, so we can enjoy the view.

Not the best show I have ever attended, but it was free for us with comped tickets from the sponsors website and the parking was free.  The other plus was I got in half of 10,000 steps for the day climbing in and out of the various rigs!

Our rig is still in the state of disrepair.  I praying for a June finish date.  In the meantime, if I can't be camping, I can certainly be dreaming about our next rig!

Snowball in August (or How Trailer Repairs Can Get Out Of Hand)

I know this has nothing to do with snow, but this project has grown like a snowball rolling downhill.

It all started when I noticed one of the seams across the front of the 5th wheel trailer, under the overhang where it meets the vertical front panel, would gape open when resting on the front landing gear and close when hitched to the truck. You'd think it would be just the opposite, gape open when hitched, close when resting on the landing gear.

That started an internet search which led to Lippert Frame Flex problems. Apparently it is not all that uncommon. In Lippert's defense, they do supply 80% or more of the frames to the entire RV industry. On the other hand, if you look at some of the welds they are definitely questionable.

I looked on our trailer where others reported having issues and lo and behold, I found the frame was cracked at the welds for the pinbox. Not the welds failing, but the frame metal itself is cracking.

Now back to the snowball reference. While gutting the bedroom to give the welder access to the frame to repair the welds and beef up the frame I found wood rot in the walls and floor. The bedroom slide room front outer corner is rotted top to bottom as is the floor where it attaches to the wall. I had found that leak a couple years ago and fixed it with eternabond tape but it appears the damage was already done.

Now it appears I also have some water damage in the front right corner above the overhang. This is probably why the front seam was gaping. There are a number of lag screws, both vertically and horizontally securing the side wall to the frame, and between rotten wood and frame flexing, the lag screws are either sheared off or not holding.

So far, as mentioned, I have the bedroom and closet gutted and the floor and part of the wall in the slide removed. I just purchased some lumber today and will be starting to re-frame the walls. I found a source for the 1" OSB board for the slide room floor (Midway Plywood Co.) and found an RV dealer (Paulsbo RV in Everett, WA) who could order the black vapor barrier cloth that is on the bottom of the flooring. Not easy stuff to find. Mobile home suppliers have it but it is only about 2 mil thick as opposed to the stuff on the RV which is more like 12 to 14 mil thick. There is also a special tape called floor scrim repair tape. I saw one person's repair online and he used the tape to reinforce the vapor barrier cloth where it contacted the rollers when extending and retracting. I think I'll do that, too.

I also removed the under belly panels. The ones that look like corrugated plastic. It's called Coroflex. I wanted to see what was under the trailer and look for any signs of water incursion from below. I also have some water damage to the big slide and surrounding floor and don't know if it is related to the water damage I described above, but water leaks are hard to track and I need to be sure I fix the leak or I'll be doing this again. Actually, no, I won't. I'll trade it in on a new rig.

We've already cancelled leaving for warmer weather in October to make sure we have the frame flex problem fixed and all the rotten wood up front taken care of. On the plus side. I've justified buying a bunch of new tools with some of the money we've saved by my doing the work myself. It's a little scary because I'm learning as I go but I come from a long line of DIYers so I've had years of experience doing the odd job.

I've started a photo album on PhotoBucket to document the project as it progresses.

http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/torzach/library/

Kim

The Trip Home

We left Cheney on Wednesday.  Packed up fairly quickly. Got on I-90 headed west without problem.  A few miles down the road, we noticed the ice chest and the outdoor carpet in the bed of the truck were bouncing around.  We pulled off so Kim could tie them down with the extra bungee cords we had packed.  He went into the 5th wheel to get a few bottles of water for the cab of the truck.  Back on the freeway.  Oops, left the handrail folded open.  Pulled off at the next exit to fix that.  Back on the road.  Going all, listening to a book on cd.  Kim looked back and even though it was tied down, the ice chest was flopping around again.  Pulled over again, unhook the ice chest, stow it in the basement.  Re-secure the carpet.  Back on the road.

We decided to stop and pull into the scenic outlook to the Gingko Petrified Forest just before the bridge at Vantage.  Took a stroll down to read the information plaques (affirming that we would meet no rattlesnakes on the trail) and enjoy the lovely view.  Back on the road.  I suggested stopping at the rest area at Vantage for lunch, but apparently the rest area was moved.  As a kid, I had made many trips to Moses Lake and Spokane, and I could have sworn the rest area was right there in Vantage.  Whether they moved the rest area, or my memory is faulty (God forbid), it was up at the top of the hill.  BTW, this is a very long hill.  We had to slow down to about 40-45 mph.  Made it to the rest stop.  Way too windy to eat outside, so we quickly made some sandwiches and ate in the truck. 

Just outside of CleElum, we look back, and the box with the TV satellite is bouncing around in the bed of the truck.  Pull over again, at the next exit, get box, put inside of RV.  Get back on freeway.  Oh oh - looked in the mirror - Handrail is out again.  Pull over, again, at the next exit, secure handrail.  Vow to make checkoff list for future trips.

We managed to make the rest of the drive without stopping.  We are home for 2 weeks, and then head to Blaine/Birch Bay, for our second practice trip.

New Tires for the 5th Wheel

We made our first trip out of the driveway.  Kim just left with the rig for Les Schwab in Lake Stevens for some new tires.  Considering this was our first experience with backing up, there were no angry words exchanged.  It was an easy back up out of the driveway, and then a 3 point turn on our cross street.

And I drove!  Okay, I backed up about 20 feet in a straight line.  I heard 'noises' coming from the rig.  Sounded to me like a parking break not released.  But I'm not a 'noise' specialist.  Kim thinks the springs just need greasing.

We'll go with his assessment for the moment.

Getting Set Up

Ah, here we are, at our 'home park' - aka the driveway of our house in Snohomish.    Our daughter, Erin, and her family moved into our house when we moved to Hawaii in January.  We didn't plan to move back into the house completely, so we took over the spare bedroom.  Now we are moving out of the spare bedroom and into the 5th wheel.  With all 3 tipouts out, we just fit.  With the stairs down, we can either hop sideways onto the pavement, or out a bit and onto the grass, avoiding the flower beds that line the driveway.

It was late in the afternoon when we got back, and I had promised to make meatloaf for dinner.  Erin is pregnant with her first child, and she thought meatloaf sounded good.  Anxious to keep the little mama happy, I took off for the kitchen, leaving Kim to do the set up.

I am not a mechanical person.  I was barely listening when we did the walk through at Poulsbo RV.  Kim and Jerry (the RV Tech) talked the same language.  It would have added 3 hours to the process for them to dummy down the conversation so I had a clue.  At some point, Kim will have to walk me through all the how-to's.  In the meantime, I know the switches for the hotwater tank, how to flush the toliet, how to move the slides in and out, and which switches go to which lights, and which lights don't have switches.  Oh, and I can raise and lower the shades and the windows, open and close drawers, as well as the refrigerator and freezer.  Did I mention I was an RV Virgin?  Did I mention I can count the number of times I've been camping on the fingers of one hand?  Just when I thought I knew something - like lifting up on the drawers to pull them out - things change.  In this RV, you just pull straight out - hard.  If you lift it up, you pull if off the tracks.

While I have very minimal experience with trailers, 5th wheels and motor homes, I do have plenty of experience in moving.  And I know the very first thing I wanted to do was make the bed up.  That way, when I knew I was pooped and about to fall asleep, I didn't have to stop to make the bed first.  I didn't, however, know where we had packed our sheets and comforter.  Oh well, I just stripped the ones off the bed we used in the spare bedroom, and used those for the time being.

We actually watched a movie on the dvd, and then it was lights out.  Day one complete.

Picking Up The 5th Wheel and the Drive Home

Betsy and I went to Poulsbo RV in Everett, WA last Saturday to pick up our new-to-us 5th wheel trailer. It’s a HitchHiker II LS 32.5 UKTG (UK= U shaped kitchen/ TG= triple glides or slide outs). It’s 33 feet long and didn’t look quite so big until we backed the truck up to the hitch. Compared to the truck it’s pretty big.

The tech at Poulsbo RV gave us an hour and a half orientation on how everything works and then we were ready to go. I guess. Betsy remembered the tech showing us how to put one of the glides out about a foot or so so we could get to the back window to tape on our temporary license and asked me about it just before I was going to pull out. We looked and sure enough, no license. We tracked down our salesman and he said he was sure it had one, it was good until 2010. We went to look and he asked the tech where the license went. It was out of state and they took it off. We ended up getting new WA state license for free.

Pulling out of Poulsbo RV you have to cross Evergreen Way, a four lane street with center turn lane and, of course I needed to turn left. Fortunately, traffic was pretty light that day and I easily got across and headed in the right direction. Thankfully the diesel engine in the Ford F250 has plenty of pulling power and it was no problem keeping up with traffic. Staying inside the white lines was another matter but no one honked so I guess I was ok. Just before we got on the freeway I noticed in the rear view mirror that one of the storage doors was open so I found a nice wide shoulder to pull over on and secured it and gave everything else the once over and away we went. Again the diesel engine quickly and easily got us up to speed and everything was hunky dory, that is until I hit a stretch of road that had grooves worn in the pavement from years of use. The truck’s steering is a little sloppy and I over-corrected a couple of times before it settled down and was tracking straight again. Still managed to stay in my lane and hopefully didn’t freak out the other drivers too much.

I did a Google search about the steering problem and learned it has been a problem with Ford trucks for several years running now and no fix in sight. Ford is apparently adopting the “if you ignore it maybe it will go away” method for correcting their design flaw. We’ll see once we start traveling. There’s lots of Fords on the highway so maybe it’s just a matter of getting used to the quirks.

RETURN TO THE MAINLAND

Four months went by in a flash. July 28th was here before I knew it. We were headed home. Our plan was to stay with our daughter and her family for a few months. We had given ourselves that amount of time to search for an RV we could afford, and make our travel plans. We planned to explore the area between our hometown of Snohomish, WA and Phoenix, AZ,  where a number of Kim’s family members lived. We figured it would take 2-3 months to find the motor-home we wanted.

Well, let me tell you, when the Universe supports your intentions, boom -  things happen. The first day we went window shopping for an RV, we found one we really liked. We had started looking at Class A Motor Homes. We saw a number we really liked, but we out of our budget range. Kim had once talked about getting a 5th wheel, but I said no. I wanted to have a small tow vehicle.

Well, never say never. We were looking at various options at Poulsbo RV, in Everett, Washington. http://www.poulsoborv.com/  Bob Anderson was the salesman we were dealing with. He patiently showed us a number of options, and just as we were narrowing things down, I thought it would be a good idea to look at 5th wheels just in case. I hadn’t been in a 5th wheel rig in about 20 years, and let me tell you, things have changed.

So it was back to square one. I much preferred the feeling of a 5th wheel.  We found one we liked at the Everett location. It was brand new and really maxed out our budget allotment. Bob looked online and found one he thought we’d like up at the Mount Vernon store. We took a drive up there, looked at it, and knew it was the one. The ceilings were higher, and it had a more spacious layout. It felt more like a home. A much littler home than I was used to, but a home nonetheless.

Next stop, a truck to pull it with. We made a few calls, checked a few websites, and found a Ford F-250 Super Cab LB SRW truck at Bickford Motors, right in our home town. http://www.bickford.net/ Our salesman was Dan Hudson, and before I knew it, we were the proud owners of a new (to us) truck.

A quick trip to the bank for two cashier’s checks, and we had our rig or rigs. I’m learning the lingo here. Apparently the 5th wheel is a rig. The truck itself is a rig. And together in combination the truck and 5th wheel trailer is a rig. If Kim’s Aunt Maria and Uncle Bill were travelling with us in their motor home, we would then have a traveling caravan of rigs – I guess.  Like I say, I'm still learning the lingo.

And to top it all off, I knew the Universe and Angels were with us because the truck color (Arizona Beige Metallic) matched the trim on the 5th Wheel , which by the way is a NuWa Hitchhiker II 32.5 UKTG LS – translated for other virigins means it is made by NuWa, the model is Hitchhiker II and it is 32.5 feet long with a U shaped kitchen and triple glides. Glides apparently are the same thing as slide outs. We have two in the ‘living room’ and one in the ‘bedroom’.

The process of finding and purchasing the rig, which we thought would take a few months, took less than 2 weeks, from “We’ll take it” to “Holy crap – we have to drive this home now?” I actually suggested that they deliver it for us, but apparently that wasn’t in the cards. It was a matter of just jumping in and doing it. Or rather for Kim to jump in and do it, and for Betsy to follow behind in the little Ford Focus thinking there is no way in hell she will ever be driving that thing!