One-Year Anniversary June 2016

One year ago, we sold our home in Maryland and began living full time in our 2007 Allegro Bus.  It has been a wonderful year and we feel like we have just begun living the dream.  Pattie reminds me that this is partly because the dream of full-time living for us included being masters of our own schedule and that did not occur until about six months ago when I fully retired.  Until Dec 2015, I was employed and working from The Bus or company offices and we were not able to make our own schedule.  The fact remains that we have been living in The Bus for a year and this blog entry is a review of things we have learned along the way.

GENERAL STUFF

The Right RV – Selecting the right RV is a personal choice; however, the systems need to be durable enough for full-time use rather than weekend vacations.  We chose an older high end RV and have spent about $15K upgrading it with some of the modern features as opposed to spending the same amount on a newer one that may not be as well constructed.  Below is a list of our modifications:

Treated battery compartment with POR15 and acid absorbing pads	Added HDMI splitter and wireless transmitter for outside TV
Added battery watering kit	Added winterize kit to water pump
Added M&G Engineering brake system and Demco base plate to Jeep	Replaced shades with easy roll day night shades and one piece front shades
Removed TV from lower storage bay and added shelf	Replaced RV refrigerator with full size residential refrigerator
Removed one couch and added Lazy Boy chairs	Deactivated side cameras because delay in switching during lane changes was distracting. Now, rear center camera is always on.
Replaced RV mattress with our king size innerspring mattress	Removed factory PC and added storage drawer
Upgraded front and rear TVs with flat panel TVs	Added pull out tray under sink
Upgraded DVD surround sound with Blue Ray surround sound	Replaced Track King in-motion satellite antenna with Weingard Trav’ler antenna

Dimensions – Numbers are important!  Know your length, height, width, and weight before your first trip.  Maps and Apps are good references for keeping you out of trouble, but they are not perfect.  Always look for restriction signs along your route. 

Navigation – You could full-time RV alone, but having someone along for the ride makes it so much better.  One practical aspect is having a navigator planning and tracking your route as you drive.  We use several computer based aids as well as a current Trucker’s Atlas.  No matter how good you plan, nothing beats keeping an eye out for those pop-up road hazard and restriction signs.

Weather – Check weather early and often from several sources in your area.  A four seasons RV can operate normally in freezing temperatures, but proper precautions with water hose, sewer hose, and internal tanks must be taken.  Be prepared to live with the slides closed in the event of bad weather and know where you will go to take shelter in severe weather. 

TOP SCORES -- Best, Worst, Most…

Best Memory: Napping while sea breeze blew through coach on North Padre Island

Worst Mechanical Failure:  Wiper motor failed causing a return to Red Bay, AL for repair

Best Daily Activity:  Kissing at sundown each day

Most Rewarding Experience:  Helping flood victims in Louisiana and Pennsylvania

Most Impressive Site:  Niagara Falls

Most Educational Activity:  RV-Dreams boondock rally in Tallahassee, FL

Best Club Membership:  Passport America 50% off at participating campgrounds

Worst Recurring Problem:  Aqua Hot heater failure took more than six months to diagnose and fix

Best Lifestyle Experience:  Flexible schedule and the ability to extend the stay if you like the place

Best Camp Ground Experience:  There were so many good ones this was hard. Battle Run Campground near the Gauley River Recreational Area was a beautiful Army Corp of Engineer campground with almost all spots having a view of Summerville Lake. There were good walking trails, a swim beach, good fishing, beautiful views of lakes, waterfalls and rivers, an interesting historic state park and of course a great Jeep ride through the woods over creeks and mountains (All this on a designated County Highway!).

Best Hiking Gear:  Merrill day hikers and Easton adjustable walking sticks

Best Gadget:  36-inch selfie stick.  Used for checking top of slides and roof for debris.

Worst Things We Brought Along:  Bowling ball and golf clubs.  We have not used either of these in the past year. 

Most useful Bike Accessory: Blue OX tall bike rack.  It carries the bikes between The Bus and the Jeep.  It can easily be mounted to the back of the Jeep to take the bike to a remote trailhead. 

Best Apps:  All Stays, Passport America, Google Maps

Most Often Asked Questions:  How long are you going to do this?  Where are you going next?  We don’t have an answer to either of these questions and that is what makes it fun.

OPERATING COSTS

Some people may be curious as to the cost of operating a large diesel pusher motorhome.  Below are the maintenance costs we have incurred this year.  These costs do not include fuel costs or upgrades we made, only normal maintenance for approximately 20,000 miles we drove this year.

Changed engine and generator oil and filters, changed fuel filters	$465
Tiffin – Adjusted rear DS slide, repaired roof leak, replaced black tank breaker valve, replaced awning motor	$950
Changed fuel filters	$100
Serviced AquaHot and replaced wipers	$400
Changed engine oil and filter	$250
Tiffin – Replaced door latch, new fresh water hose, lubed slides	$150
Changed generator oil and filter	$200
Engine oil/filter changed, Fuel filters changed, Chassis greased, Transmission fluid and filter changed, Air Cleaner Filter changed, Air Dryer Serviced, Rear Differential fluid changed, Engine Drive Belt Replaced, coolant tested OK.	$1400
Tiffin – Windshield wiper motor replaced, gray tank leak fixed, AquaHot control thermostat replaced, inside remote thermostat sensors replaced, sealed leak around PS rear side, replaced gasket in DS rear power compartment.	$599
Taxes/Tag (Alabama)	$628
Total	$5142

Obviously this is much more that it costs to maintain a normal automobile over a period of one year.  Think of it in terms of maintaining your car and your home.  We average about 7.5 mpg in The Bus.  Based on an average price for diesel this year of $2.50 per gallon, we spent about $6700 on fuel. 

SUMMARY

We are not sure what the future will bring, but we are enjoying the ride for today.  As long as the Lord blesses us with the ability to travel and live this way and we are being productive for Him, I suppose we will keep traveling.  Looking forward to our second year on the road.

Thanks for keepingupwiththejonesrv!