Izbira pravega avtodoma je lahko izziv. Obstaja VELIKO možnosti! Prvi nasvet, ki ga damo ljudem, ki kupujejo avtodom, je ta popolnega avtodoma NI for you. You will have to make some sacrifices…of course unless you plan to spend a million dollars for custom options. But if that’s the case, you probably aren’t reading this post anyway.

Če sem iskren, veliko zaposlenih avtodomov, ki jih vprašate, je najverjetneje imelo vsaj 2 ali 3 različne avtodome. Before you’ve lived in an RV, it’s hard to truly know what you want and need. So don’t be surprised if you change your mind, too.

Lahko preberete vse nasveti za izbiro pravega avtodoma (všečkaj objavo, ki smo jo napisali, DON’T Buy an RV Until You’ve Read These 5 Tips!), do tons of research, and drive yourself crazy. But, ultimately, until you’ve hit the open road and discovered your travel style, your parking preference, etc….it’s hard to know which RV is the best for your lifestyle.

Pri nas nikoli nismo imeli avtodoma in smo komaj celo kampirali v njem. Za prostor smo samodejno izbrali peto kolo. We loved it, too! In fact, we wrote this post – 10 razlogov, zakaj izbrati sedlo za stalno vožnjo z avtodomi. Prav zaradi teh razlogov smo se odločili za peto kolo in so še vedno velike prednosti pri izbiri sedla.

Toda 8 mesecev kasneje, ko je bil čas za nakup novejšega avtodoma, popolnoma smo presenetili sami sebe, ko smo se namesto drugega sedla odločili za zamenjavo za avtodom razreda c. We purchased our fifth wheel knowing it was a “starter unit” to simply allow us to try out RV life and determine if it was for us or not. It wasn’t designed for full-time living…it was much more of a weekend warrior RV. So we originally went into the purchasing process with the plans to buy another fifth wheel.

Tukaj pa so razlogi, da smo se na koncu raje odločili za avtodom razreda c.

We didn’t need as much “stuff” as we thought we did

Ko selimo naše stvari iz peto kolo, ven smo potegnili toliko stvari, ki jih nikoli nismo uporabili and actually forgot we had in there. Again, we didn’t know anything about the lifestyle and how it would be. Now, we know what we like to do in the places we visit, we know we don’t need as many clothes as we thought, and we ditched the duplicates of things.

It’s a huge adjustment to downsize from a house to avtodom. Marsikdo bo torej izbral večji avtodom, dokler ne ugotovi, kako malo ga dejansko potrebuje. It’s extremely common for full-time RVers to downsize their RV during or after their first year on the road. Na nek način je prehod skozi stopnje del procesa poenostavitve vašega življenja.

Manevriranje > življenjski prostor

Izgubili smo približno 50 kvadratnih čevljev, ko smo z našega petega kolesa zmanjšali na naš razred c. Ga pogrešamo? Seveda! Toda koristi, ki smo jih pridobili, odtehtajo izgubo prostora.

Naša najljubša prednost je, kako okreten je naš razred c. Vožnja z njim je zelo podobna vožnji našega starega tovornjaka. Since the length is right under 26 feet, we can “fit” into most parking spots. We’ve even managed to find street parking in the city and have “moochdocked” outside of family members’ houses with no problem at all.

In contrast, the last time we returned home, we had no choice but to put our fifth wheel in storage while visiting family because there was not enough space for it in anyone’s driveway or neighborhood. It was really inconvenient to move out of our home for a few weeks and not have full access to some of our belongings.

We also used to be so jealous of the RVers who could pull off the side of the road to snap a photo of a scenic view. We’ve had to settle for mental pictures because pulling over with a 30ft trailer isn’t exactly safe, if there is even space for it. Zdaj se počutimo samozavestni, da lahko z lahkoto zapeljemo skoraj povsod, ne da bi morali nenehno preverjati ogledalo, da zagotovimo, da bomo odstranili robnik, in Lindsay se počuti 100-odstotno udobno pri vožnji kadar koli. 

Lažji potovalni dnevi

Let me paint a picture of what our travel days looked like when towing the fifth wheel. First, we would have to strap down any loose furniture, along with the typical stowing of items. Then, we’d have the usual disconnecting of the sewer, water and electric. The final step would be backing up the truck just right, lowering the trailer, and hitching it up, which would typically take 10 minutes alone (on a good day). We’d often be stressed that we would forget a step, because there were just so many.

I forgot to mention that we’d have to set up a comfortable space for the dogs, pack up a bag of snacks, water bottles, a trash bag, our computers (if we wanted to struggle to work at all), cameras (you always have to be prepared for beautiful scenery), etc. We would be crammed in and have to stop every 2-3 hours to stretch and use the bathroom. If we wanted to make lunch in the fifth wheel, we’d end up taking 30-45 minutes every time we stopped, which made travel days even longer.

Zdaj pa naj začnem pojasnjevati razliko v dnevih potovanja z besedami, da se med pisanjem te objave vozimo v Nashville. Udobno in varno sedim za jedilnico, medtem ko Dan vozi. When it’s lunch time, I’ll get up and naredi nam sendvič, ne da bi se moral ustaviti in če moram uporabljajte stranišče…no problem! The dogs can move around a bit more too.

Aja, preden nekam odidemo, nas vzame le približno 10-15 minut za pakiranje, odklopite in vzletite. Nič več pripenjanja in pripenjanja. Pospravimo predmete, potegnemo drsnik noter, odklopimo kljuke, skočimo noter in gremo! Hitro potujemo in na novih mestih običajno ostanemo samo en teden, zato je to za nas ogromno!

Sedlo 38C Deli tovornjaka z lito zgornjo ploščo za priklopnik Vlečna kljuka za težke obremenitve

Boljši delovni prostori

Čeprav ima veliko novejših modelov sedla velik delovni prostor, ga naš nima. Naš edini delovni prostor je bil kuhinjski jedilni kot. Ta je bil sestavljen iz majhnih lesenih stolov, ki niso imeli naslonskih blazin in komaj dovolj prostora, da bi bili udobno oddaljeni od mize. Jedilni prostor v kabini s kakovostnimi blazinami je veliko bolj praktičen za celodnevno sedenje.

Če postane jedilnica pretesna za naju oba, raje delam na sovoznikovem stolu, ki se obrne proti dnevnemu prostoru. Na voljo je tudi snemljiva mizica, ki jo lahko postavim, dodatno pa jo lahko postavim pred kavč, če se mi zdi še posebej udobno in gledam televizijo, medtem ko pišem. Imamo torej 3 možnosti delovnih prostorov! 

I mentioned that I am working while we drive, which is also a big deal for us. And the computer is not sitting on my lap in the passenger seat. I am actually at a “desk”, where I can focus without getting car sick or getting a neck cramp!

We also used to only be able to travel on weekends because Dan was the primary driver and he couldn’t take time away from his work during week days. We would occasionally be able to squeeze travel in on a week day if the drive was under 3 hours and after the work day. The hardest part about that though, other than driving at night, is that our weekends are our most valuable time. Weekends are the best time for us to be exploring new places and enjoying the greatest benefit of RV life.

Zdaj, ko mi je bolj udobno voziti novi avtodom, lahko Dan dela, medtem ko jaz vozim. Potovalni dnevi ne pomenijo več, da si moramo vzeti čas stran od službe. It’s all about efficiency and multi-tasking, right? And our weekends are free for adventuring!

Boljša poraba goriva

What do you get when you cross a GMC Sierra 2500 truck and a 8,500 pound fifth wheel? A gas guzzler! That’s not a joke. We used to get 7-8 miles per gallon while towing! Then we’d continue to get poor gas mileage when we would detach the trailer and drive the truck around cities. We basically lived at gas stations.

Zdaj ima samo avtodom enako porabo goriva kot samo tovornjak, which is around 15 mpg. When we tow our Jeep Wrangler behind the motorhome, we still average around 11 miles per gallon…not too shabby. But when we arrive, we can ride around in the jeep and get 18 miles per gallon around the city! Cha-ching! More money in our pockets, which makes us happy campers!

Torej ga imate! Jasno je, da smo zelo zadovoljni z našo odločitvijo, da sedlo zamenjamo za avtodom! Izbrali smo Winnebago Navion 24D letnik 2018 in smo zaljubljeni! We named her “Wanda” because she allows us to “wanda” around the country while feeding our “wanda-lust”. Or, as my dad says, we “wanda” how we’re going to pay for her! But, as they say, not all who “wanda” are lost. Ha! Okay, that’s enough puns!