Travel trailers lessons learned

[nwslopoke]

I am looking at some trailers for my wife and me. Probably Dec-Feb purchases after clearing some bills.

Right now leaning towards 20-25 ft 2 axel. I've heard single axel trailers get beat up too bad in a short time. Also have heard that trailers much over 25ft can face higher parking fees. This will be our 1st trailer and have a 1500 Ram. We have national park passes. Mostly for my wife.

Looking for fun facts we don't know to ask up front. Just the 2 of us. Probably most trips between Or, Wa, ID and UT.

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[arakboss]

Are you planning on boondocking too or strictly staying at paid parks?

 

[nwslopoke]

My wife likes hiking state and national parks. Mostly Or or Wa. Once we had a trailer I wouldn't mind venturing out for some shooting spots. I don't think too much boondocking before gaining more experience though. I also don't envision long stays. Maybe a day or two due to our schedules. We lose a lot of time driving from hotels to the spot or event we want to go to.

 

[Longwalkhome]

Travel trailer life is about the truck, the biggest mistake is picking the right truck.

If you are just a part timer then its not as important but if you intend to move around the truck makes all the difference.

 

[JustSomeGuy]

Tires and wheel bearings. Make certain that the tires and wheel bearings are good quality. Lots of trailer manufacturers use the cheapest tires and wheel bearings they can find. I outfit my trailers with Timken bearings and appropriately rated truck tires straight out of the gate.

 

[nwslopoke]

Tires and wheel bearings. Make certain that the tires and wheel bearings are good quality. Lots of trailer manufacturers use the cheapest tires and wheel bearings they can find. I outfit my trailers with Timken bearings and appropriately rated truck tires straight out of the gate.

We plan on buying new. I see some models with upgraded rims and the dealers say, look, it has Goodyear tires. Not sure how much better that is.

 

[arakboss]

Tires and wheel bearings. Make certain that the tires and wheel bearings are good quality. Lots of trailer manufacturers use the cheapest tires and wheel bearings they can find. I outfit my trailers with Timken bearings and appropriately rated truck tires straight out of the gate.

That is good advice, I see a lot of trailers and rvs pulled over with flat tires during my travels.

 

[arakboss]

https://youtube.com/c/HaylettRV

 

[nwslopoke]

https://youtube.com/c/HaylettRV

Funny. That guy has been popping up in my youtube feeds. I have been looking at prices and I do see a variation in price for the same trailer in other states, Some times several thousand cheaper. But I am still some months out.

 

[arakboss]

Funny. That guy has been popping up in my youtube feeds. I have been looking at prices and I do see a variation in price for the same trailer in other states, Some times several thousand cheaper. But I am still some months out.

He is likely biased as he is a dealer but he seems to cover a lot of info with his videos.

 

[Labradorian]

After pulling a gooseneck for a while this summer, moving the hitch over the rear axle is a huge plus in just about all things going down the road.

 

[DeanfromOregon]

For me and the wife, It's all about the floor plan. Try out a million of them and you'll figure out what you like.

We've gone from the tent, to the tent trailer, to the camper, to the class C, to the heavily modified class C (same unit, just did a bunch of work to it). Ours is a 28' class C with a king bed and one slide. Still going to make more changes to the inside, but simply looking for a few more creature comforts at this point.

You have to figure out what's truly important to the two of you and go with that. You have to talk and read a lot, sync up once a week or so.

No shame in renting first. It will help expose you to "all of the things".

 

[kmk1012]

After getting tired of looking at used trailers that were other people's problems we opted to buy new. It's a 29.5' bunkhouse type. Overall is over 33.5' which can be fun in tight parks being a bumper pull but I'm a decent trailer backer. I worked in the tire industry for seventeen years and would strongly recommend staying far far away from anything Goodyear trailer, saw too many with problems, some resulting in expensive, trip ending trailer repairs. Also, our trailer is less than 2 years old but developed a water leak through the ac unit. Appearantly this is a common issue across all brands because they all use a thick gasket that needs regular tightening as it compresses. Dual batteries are better than one and dual 6v in series is better than dual 12v parallel for long trips as they handle being discharged far better. One more thing, don't load everything weight wise in the front bedroom, it puts lots of tongue weight on the truck. My old (2018) Chev Silverado just wasn't up to the task and I replaced it with a new Powerstroke. We pulled the continental divide this summer and the only thing slowing us down was the corners and Cali plates in Montana, LOL.

 

[nwslopoke]

Thanks. Info on things like the batteries and AC are helpful. Currently leaning towards a 23ft 2 axel around 5,000 lbs. I hope your AC is covered. Do you use a generator? Also we hope to make do with the current truck. One reason I posted. To lose any pipe dreams and research what is reasonable.

 

[giddyupgo55]

plug in's you can never have enough. I have a 32 foot travel trailer and have no where enough plug in's.

 

[nwslopoke]

Can you run the AC and microwave at the same time? Or better, what can't you do at once?

 

[DeanfromOregon]

If you're plugged into a 30 amp circuit you should be gtg on running everything at once. Keep in mind "dedicated circuit". If you plug in in your driveway and run your AC on the same circuit your beer fridge is connected to, you'll pop a breaker.

More random thoughts. Federal campgrounds typically have a limit of 30' max. Even the places where you can take the longer RV's, they typically have just a few spots for the longer rigs.

Our Class C is 27-28', I have gone a little nuts on the solar, 450W with an inverter and six lithium ion batteries with a 3000w inverter. It's good for running the microwave and the AC when not plugged in and not appropriate to run the generator.

You do you. I went with something a little more off the grid since we like camping on the BLM, Alvord desert, top of the Steens, etc. We're usually good for a night in one place then we're on the road the next day. Lots of people I know like to park a trailer in a spot and use it as a base of operations to scope out an area. We like to mix it up a bit.

Looking at electric bikes, or a small trailer for my Harley. We just spent 5 days at the beach in the same spot, she drove the motorhome and I drove the bike. We went riding every day along the coast, she loved it.

Get what you want now, but be aware if your criteria start changing. Most people cycle throughout their lives between bigger and smaller with very little predictability.

Remember there is ZERO quality control in the lower tier of RV out there. This is best reason to get something a year or two old because the first owner would have had to fix all the stuff that came broken from the factory.

This is exciting!

 

[slimmer13]

I am looking at some trailers for my wife and me. Probably Dec-Feb purchases after clearing some bills.

Right now leaning towards 20-25 ft 2 axel. I've heard single axel trailers get beat up too bad in a short time. Also have heard that trailers much over 25ft can face higher parking fees. This will be our 1st trailer and have a 1500 Ram. We have national park passes. Mostly for my wife.

Looking for fun facts we don't know to ask up front. Just the 2 of us. Probably most trips between Or, Wa, ID and UT.

What's the towing capacity of your Ram? In my experience, the listed capacity is way more than the practical capacity without overworking your pickup. No fun crawling up a grade with the transmission overheating.

 

[Barefootdog]

I might suggest you start by figuring out what that 1/2 ton truck needs as upgrades. Sway bars, air shocks, breaking, transmission and towing equipment to start.....or whether it's safe to be operated to tow the trailer you're planning to get.

A truck operating near, at or beyond its manufacturers stated limits will not help you control a problem when the time comes.

Not trying to be a downer. Choose wisely and have a great time.

EDIT...Slimmer above typed faster than I did. He is correct.

 

[ORhutner]

Rent before you buy!!! You will quickly find out how your tow rig handles different trailers and whether you are going to get enough use out of a trailer to justify buying one over renting one. It will also let you know real quickly whether you like towing a long, heavy trailer if you don't have much towing experience, towing isn't for everyone and that is OK. Owning a travel trailer is the equivalent of spending lots of money on something that was manufactured as cheaply as possible and only built to last long enough to make it off the sales lot. If you don't have a covered place to store a travel trailer it will quickly deteriorate and depreciate before your eyes.

Maintaining a travel trailer is like maintaining a second home but built like crap and fixing one problem exposes two more. If you don't like maitaining your current home then you better be prepared for the additional expense of having someone else maintain and winterize your camper. Also have to have a plan in place to deal with rodents as a warm dry place that sees minimal use is very attractive.