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Full Time RV living - Page 16

post #301 of 517
7/12/10 at 3:10pm
Hi Lisa,
I follow several of the RVing full time blogs. I would love to read yours as well. I have started one as we prepare our journey to getting on the road: www.LivingInspiredTour.com
We will be hitting the road whenever our house sells (once we put it up in Sept or Oct). We are taking our time about this too. We are also going to convert our RV to veggie oil as well. We are going to get a Class A. I have read about the FOTR and the NuRVers and can't wait to meet up with everyone. I am totally excited about that.

Thanks for the reminder about patio furniture as well as blow up water toys (Fun!)

I'll be checking out your blog! Good luck with everything!

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post #302 of 517
7/13/10 at 8:07pm
Hi again...

I was trying to do a little searching on my county's website to make sure that full time RV living was allowed here without any weird restrictions or anything (why do I always feel like everything I want to do is illegal?) But anyway, I can't find anything on it. I'm thinking just to be safe, I should call the courthouse and ask? They have an internet request for info form, but I'm feeling like I'd almost rather call because it would be more anonymous, and I don't want to attract attention! Any ideas about the best way to check out this stuff?

Also, has anyone experimented with doing your own greywater filtration while living in an RV?

thanks again for any thoughts
post #303 of 517
7/16/10 at 3:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by starrmama View Post
Hi again...

I was trying to do a little searching on my county's website to make sure that full time RV living was allowed here without any weird restrictions or anything (why do I always feel like everything I want to do is illegal?) But anyway, I can't find anything on it. I'm thinking just to be safe, I should call the courthouse and ask? They have an internet request for info form, but I'm feeling like I'd almost rather call because it would be more anonymous, and I don't want to attract attention! Any ideas about the best way to check out this stuff?

Also, has anyone experimented with doing your own greywater filtration while living in an RV?

thanks again for any thoughts
I can't imagine it being illegal. But if you're planning on parking it at your parents' house just make sure they don't have CC&Rs where they live that don't permit parking RVs. More likely in a nicer subdivision, probably not an issue if they're on acreage. The only thing with acreage I could see being a potential problem is that septic systems are approved for a certain number of bedrooms, and if you are living full time in an RV on the property that might exceed the septic certification. This would apply whether you were actually using their septic or not, and in some places "alternative waste management" such as composting toilets are not an acceptable substitution for septic according to county rules. A person who lived out in the boonies near my hometown in a homemade cabin with a composting toilet was forced by the county to put in a septic system or live somewhere else, so that's a legitimate thing to check on. This would be hard to check on anonymously though because it would probably depend on the location of the property. But honestly as long as your setup looks temporary and you're "just visiting" I doubt anyone would ever even say anything.
post #304 of 517
7/16/10 at 3:52pm
Thanks again WTHamI

Yeah, they are on 18 acres of their own land, so I don't think there are CC&Rs, but I still figure I better check to make sure the county doesn't have any weird ordinances or restrictions.

Will it look like we're "just visiting" if we get a water, sewer, and electric line run right up to the camper lol?

I know my parents used to have septic, but now they might have hooked into county sewer... not sure... will start getting all this info. nailed down once we have the "big talk" - hopefully tomorrow!

We may go ahead and hook up either to septic or sewer, for greywater and in case anyone asks... but I'm pretty sure we'll do our humanure pile anyway, and just hope no one notices that part!
post #305 of 517
7/19/10 at 8:54am

need wise council from those who have BTDT(LONG)

Hello all fulltimers from someone hoping to become one. We are in a predicament where we feel like we can do one or the other and we're nervous about taking the plunge. Our lease is up and our current landlords have someone ready to move in next month. We have just enough $ to move into a new place which is already lined up - or - just enough to buy an rv. If we do move into this new place, we will still be paycheck to paycheck, and i don't know when this opportunity will arise again.
We do not like where we live, dh HATES his job, and have been fairly miserable here, struggling financially, v. few if any like minded people around us, etc. So I was thinking about this rv thing, found this thread, and are seriously considering this.
The problem is, we are seriously worried about the financials. DH has a good trade, and could most likely find work around the country. My main thought is hopping from organic farm to organic farm finding seasonal work if he can't find stone jobs (his trade), possibly communes here and there for work exchange (already been to The Farm, so thinking about a period there), and then thinking about the possibility of traveling with the renaissance faire. (He's an old world style stone carver and would fit right in with that too.)
I just want to hear from someone who has done any of this. I know some of you have jobs that can telecommute, I just want to know if anyone has done the farming thing or anything similiar.
We have three kids 7, 3, 1, (homeschooled) and I do think after an adjusment period of course, they would enjoy the lifestyle as well.
Don't want to go on and on, we were just wanting to know if anyone has made it financially like this. DH is just worried that we'll end up destitute in a crummy park somewhere worse off than before. If it were just us we would be gone yesterday! But of course we're worried about the kids. Looking forward to any and all opinions!
post #306 of 517
7/19/10 at 10:33am
mydannyboy- HI! I have not btdt, yet. Hitting the road soon though. But if you read through the thread you will find your questions answered. Finances have been talked about several times. From this thread and reading blogs of famililies on the road it's totally feasible. And every family has a different way they are supporting themselves. Some through photography, blogs, day labor work etc. So much depends on if you have debt, if you will be purchasing your RV outright, or have a payment etc. Gas and lodging (rv camps) seem to be the biggest expense as far as I can tell. Anyhow, this whole thread has tons of great info. I know, cuz I asked a lot of questions. lol


And I have a new question. How many of you have Ladders? My hubby wants to bring one. It condenses to a decent size, but it's heavy. I think we only need our little step ladder. Thoughts?
post #307 of 517
7/19/10 at 12:42pm
Thank you so much, i'll read through - how do you make money blogging?
post #308 of 517
8/8/10 at 10:47pm

Almost there!

Yeah! We have our fifth wheel and just purchased a truck to pull it with while we were out in Washington. Now we just need to sell the house!! I am so excited to have no lawn to take care of and so much less stuff (and cleaning!). Probably won't be totally full-timing until the first of the year, but we are moving closer!!
post #309 of 517
8/9/10 at 10:14am
Congratulations Indianagrl!!

So I have been wanting someone to benefit from what we've learned recently, so I'll share it here.

Recently, Thousand Trails put out an offer that if you paid $450, you could have either a west or east half of the US membership for a year. We decided that since we average about $35/night, this would be worth it for us. Well, we've been using it for a couple of months now, and it totally rocks!!! I can't believe how much money we are saving!!

Pros:
usually the campgrounds are very large and spacious. Most times it feels like a state park w/ lots of trees & privacy.
We are saving a lot of money
Many, many amenities
Usually built around a lake
The pools have all been large and wonderful.
They ususally have a large, air-conditioned activities building.

Cons:
The TT campgrounds appear to have been built in the 80s, and not well maintained. For example, they might boast tennis, basketball, shuffleboard, etc, but these are all crumbled and not maintained.

They are usually out in the boonies, meaning that getting internet can be problematic, and you must drive to the town you are wanting to visit.

But all in all, we have saved so much money already!! Our biggest inconvenience has been that sometimes we can't get internet (even w/ our wireless card) and DH has to go drive somewhere to work. But that hasn't happened too much.

At the moment, we are staying in an Outdoor World (that's in the TT system.) The OW totally rocks! It *is* well maintained and we love it! And, it's close to what we are visiting (Williamsburg, VA). and btw, Williamsburg, VA is so much fun!!!!!

Anyway, they aren't offering the same offer we got, but they still have a special offer going where you don't have to buy the entire membership.

Also, we've saved a lot of money using Passport America. (Preeeety sure MoonStarFalling gave me that great advice - thanks!)

Anyway, we spent so much money our first year of fulltiming, it's such a relief to be doing this for so much less money!
post #310 of 517
8/9/10 at 6:19pm
indianagrl congratulations! I totally agree not having a lawn, a bunch of stuff, house etc there is so much more time left in the day that isn't spent cleaning and mowing.

IntuitiveJamie: my DH is a carpenter so we did have a ladder in the bed of our truck but I'm pretty sure we never actually needed it.

Pilgrim thanks for the review on TT! Wow yeah that would really help keep expenses down.
post #311 of 517
8/10/10 at 9:40am
Indianagirl-Hooray. Good for you! That is wonderfully exciting! I know a couple of mamas on here are veeery close to setting off themselves.
Pilgrim- Thx so much for the heads up. Ive been wondering about y'all and how you are doing.

MoonStarFalling-I really don't see a need for a ladder. I just can't figure out why we would ever need one. But dh is worried I'm missing something with that?
post #312 of 517
8/10/10 at 10:05pm
Small possibility you would need a ladder to get on top of the camper, to check the roof for leaks or A/C damage etc. That's if you don't have a built in ladder on the back of your camper. Otherwise, I can't think of any reason.
post #313 of 517
8/11/10 at 10:18am
This is terrible. This weekend we decided to sell our house and start RVing, and for three days I've done nothing but obsess over the RV life. Not only am I NOT getting my house ready to sell, I'm not even keeping up with dinner! I'm in loolah land!

So even though I don't need to know any of this until much farther along in the process...

Anyone living in a Minnie Winnie? We want to stay as small as possible for ease of getting around, and ability to make do with bikes and no tow car. It's me, dh, a 6 year old and a 1 year old. Who likes this size?

Who recommends buying a used RV? We can't afford new, but I'd love to hear from people who have had great experiences with older RVs.

I want to make expenses as low as possible so I'm thinking veggie oil and solar panels. What else can I do to keep us more comfortable boondocking?

I'm thinking one year old would be in the front passenger seat in a car seat and dd and I would sit at a table with lapbelts and do puzzles/play games. Is that the sort of set-up others have? Is it possible to safely have a lap and shoulder belt installed in a seat that only has a lap belt so that dd could be in a booster? How concerned is everyone about that sort of thing?

Oh, and instruments! DH wants to travel around playing music but as it is he makes me set the thermostat to 79 in our house to protect his guitars. How does this work in an RV? Won't it heat up (or get cold) whenever we're out? And won't we be out a lot? Suggestions? Experiences? I know there are other musicians living on the road!

By the way, we're in Clearwater Florida, and 79 is cool here
post #314 of 517
8/14/10 at 8:51pm
My hubby and I made the decision in Feb. So I've been obsessing for 6 months now! We are taking it slow, getting all our ducks in a row. We are getting close now though! Good luck with everything!
post #315 of 517
8/16/10 at 5:13am
We pick up our 36 ft - big @$$ RV on Thursday- my husband went out and paid for it today, we're having a little work done on it right now.

exhale....

we were going to do it next week, we jut got lucky.

I'm so ready to go.

We're supposed to leave by the 30th to get to Dallas for labor day weekend, but I'm ready to go NOW.

exhale...
:lo ve:jo y:lo ve
post #316 of 517
8/16/10 at 6:12pm
This is FANTASTIC news Lisa! I couldn't be more excited for you...and totally envious! : joy
post #317 of 517
8/17/10 at 8:28am
Congratulations!! That is very exciting!

Where is everybody? We are in DC for the week.
post #318 of 517
8/19/10 at 9:18am
Still at home in Mississippi.
But putting the house up for sale in Sept.
Painting guys are coming in two weeks to do freshen up some rooms and then it's on!
post #319 of 517
8/22/10 at 2:32pm
Lisa, congrats!! We are also launching the 30th (or close).

I could use some advise. We were planning to head out at the end of this month from Minnesota, through Colorado and to the Bakersfield area for the fall/early winter. After winter we were planning to head east to be in Savannah, GA for my sister's late spring wedding. We have a place to stay free in Bakersfield and we have never been to California...however, I just found out that I am pregnant (after several pregnancy losses and 5+ years of infertility). I would guess I am due in March or April.

Desperately seeking advise pretty pleeeeeaaaaassssseeee!? What would you do? Head toward Florida and spend the winter there, lessening our travels...or stick with the free place to stay near Bakersfield? Stay in the RV at the time of birth or find a temporary place to rent?
post #320 of 517
8/22/10 at 10:47pm
Nicole- CONGRATULATIONS!!
How wonderful! And what timing, huh?
I wish I had some advice for ya, but I haven't done this before either.
I will be interested to hear what ppl have to say.
No matter what, I'm very happy for you and your family!

You may also like:

Sitting or Squatting: What's Really Best in the Bathroom?
There Is Not Always a "Fix" For the Difficult Child
10 Things You Don't Need For a New Baby