Ang pagpili ng tamang RV ay maaaring maging isang hamon. Napakaraming pagpipilian! Ang unang piraso ng payo na ibinibigay namin sa mga taong namimili ng isang RV ay iyon walang perpektong RV 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.

Upang maging tapat, maraming full-time na RV na itatanong mo ay malamang na nagkaroon ng hindi bababa sa 2 o 3 magkaibang RV. 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.

Mababasa mo lahat ng mga tip para sa pagpili ng tamang RV (tulad ng post na isinulat namin, 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.

Para sa amin, hindi pa kami nagmamay-ari ng isang RV at halos hindi kami nagkampo sa isa. Awtomatiko kaming pumili ng ikalimang gulong para sa espasyo. We loved it, too! In fact, we wrote this post – 10 Mga Dahilan para Pumili ng Fifth Wheel para sa Full-Time na RVing. Ang mga kadahilanang iyon ay eksakto kung bakit kami nagpasya sa isang ikalimang gulong, at hanggang ngayon malaking benepisyo sa pagpili ng fifth wheel.

Gayunpaman, makalipas ang 8 buwan nang oras na para bumili ng mas bagong RV, lubos naming nagulat ang aming mga sarili nang piliin naming lumipat sa isang class c motorhome sa halip na isa pang fifth wheel. 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.

Narito ang mga dahilan, gayunpaman, na sa halip ay pumili kami ng class c motorhome.

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

Kapag inilalabas ang mga gamit namin ang ikalimang gulong, naglabas kami ng napakaraming bagay na hindi namin nagamit 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 ang RV. Kaya, maraming tao ang pipili ng isang mas malaking RV hanggang sa mapagtanto nila kung gaano kaunti ang kailangan nila. It’s extremely common for full-time RVers to downsize their RV during or after their first year on the road. Sa isang paraan, ang pagdaan sa mga yugto, ay bahagi ng proseso ng pagpapasimple ng iyong buhay.

Maneuverability > living space

Nawala ang isang bagay sa paligid ng 50 sq ft nang mag-downsize kami mula sa aming fifth wheel hanggang sa aming klase c. Nami-miss ba natin ito? Syempre! Ngunit ang mga benepisyong natamo namin ay mas malaki kaysa sa pagkawala ng espasyo.

Ang aming paboritong benepisyo ay kung gaano kadali ang aming klase c. Ang pagmamaneho ay halos kapareho ng pagmamaneho ng aming lumang trak. 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. Ngayon, nakita namin ang aming sarili na may kumpiyansa na pumunta sa halos kahit saan nang madali, nang hindi kinakailangang palaging suriin ang salamin upang matiyak na aalisin namin ang isang gilid ng bangketa, at pakiramdam ni Lindsay ay 100% kumportable sa pagmamaneho anumang oras. 

Mas madaling araw ng paglalakbay

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.

Ngayon, hayaan mong simulan kong ipaliwanag ang pagkakaiba sa mga araw ng paglalakbay sa pamamagitan ng pagsasabi na habang isinusulat ko ang post na ito, nagmamaneho kami papuntang Nashville. Kumportable at ligtas akong nakaupo sa dining habang nagmamaneho si Dan. When it’s lunch time, I’ll get up and gumawa kami ng sandwich nang hindi na kailangang huminto at kung kailangan ko gamitin ang banyo…no problem! The dogs can move around a bit more too.

Oh, at bago tayo umalis sa isang lugar, ito ay magdadala lamang sa amin 10-15 minuto upang mag-impake, idiskonekta, at umalis. Wala nang hitching up at strapping down. Nag-iipon kami ng mga item, hinila ang slide, tinanggal ang aming mga hook up, tumalon at pumunta! Mabilis kaming bumiyahe at karaniwang 1 linggo lang ang pananatili sa mga bagong lugar, kaya napakalaki nito para sa amin!

Fifth wheel 38C Cast top plate-trailer truck parts Hitch Heavy Duty Hitch

Mas mahusay na mga lugar ng trabaho

Bagama't maraming mas bagong modelo ng fifth wheels ang may magagandang work space, ang sa amin ay wala. Ang tanging lugar na pinagtatrabahuhan namin ay ang kusinang kainan. Binubuo ito ng maliliit na upuang gawa sa kahoy na walang mga unan sa likod at halos hindi sapat na espasyo upang maging komportableng layo mula sa mesa. Ang booth dinette na may mga de-kalidad na cushions ay mas praktikal para sa buong araw na pag-upo.

Kung masyadong masikip ang kainan para sa aming dalawa, mas gusto kong magtrabaho sa passenger chair, na umiikot upang harapin ang living area. Mayroon ding isang nababakas na mesa na maaari kong i-set up, na maaari ding ilagay sa harap ng sopa, kung gusto kong maging sobrang komportable at nanonood ng TV habang nagsusulat ako. Kami samakatuwid ay mayroon 3 pagpipilian ng mga lugar ng trabaho! 

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.

Ngayong mas komportable na akong magmaneho ng bagong RV, makakapagtrabaho si Dan habang nagmamaneho ako. Ang mga araw ng paglalakbay ay hindi na nangangahulugan na kailangan nating maglaan ng oras mula sa trabaho. It’s all about efficiency and multi-tasking, right? And our weekends are free for adventuring!

Mas mahusay na gas mileage

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.

Ngayon, ang motorhome lamang ay nakakakuha ng parehong gas mileage bilang ang trak lamang, 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!

Kaya ayan na! Maliwanag, napakasaya namin sa aming desisyon na lumipat mula sa ikalimang gulong patungo sa tahanan ng motor! Pumili kami ng 2018 Winnebago Navion 24D at umiibig! 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!