From a ladies view - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Jay and Fay · RV-Dreams Community Member

From a ladies view

Judy · RV-Dreams Family Member

Hi Fay although we dont have a MH or class C. we have a fiver. It has a full length couch one that you can lay down on and stretch out on. Of which Im sure of that you can find in a class A. Second of all my washer/dryer are seperate and do not take 2 1/2 hrs to wash a load. They both can be washing and drying at the same time. (two seperate units) It has 4 settings of how long you want loads to wash. I think theyre are very few of us who have enough storage and could always use more in doing the full timing thing. Make sure you find the right one so that the both of you will be happy in traveling in.
good luck. I feel the rv industry could use a woman in designing some of theyre units!
southwestjudy & Bob & 2blackdogs

RnL B · RV-Dreams Community Member

We just started fulltiming this summer in our class A. Here are some of my thoughts "from a woman's point of view". Some "wish I had thought of's and glad I have's".

First, counter space next to the sink is a must for making washing the dishes easier. We do not have enough counterspace by our sink for even a camper size dishdrainer to fit properly. Something I didn't think of before because we had a dishwasher in our stick house.

Washer/dryer combo. I can't imagine not having one...mine does not take 2 1/2 hrs to complete a load. I'm very careful to load it so there are not alot of heavy items in the same load. I think its well worth it. Its only the 2 of you, so you can keep up with the laundry easily. I will sometimes take the afghan, blanket, towels..etc down to the campground laundry if I want to do them all at once. Just to get it done.

If you have certain appliances that MUST go with you, be sure that they will fit where you want to put them. I have found the linen cabinet is great for my appliances. Also some that I don't use often are stored in the compartments.

We have a central vac in our MH. It is not something I thought I would want, it just came with it...but boy is it nice not to have to drag out a vac...just the hose has to be pulled out and attached.

I suggest once you find a motorhome you like to take time...sit in it...think of your daily routine and how it will fit into the motorhome. Do you like to watch tv or movies? Be sure that the tv is in a good place for you to relax on the couch and still see the tv comfortably.

Just a few thoughts from a new fulltimer.....best of luck on your search!

mcw50 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Hi Fay..........We're on our second Class A, and both have had wardrobes across the back. We have fewer clothes now than when we were living in a stick house - and that was an adjustment. But we also find that we don't have as much need for a wide variety of stuff as we used to. My husband says "If I can't wear shorts, I'm in the wrong place!" And to be honest, I can't remember the last time either of us wore slacks or jeans! We have a bin of "cold weather gear" in one of our storage bays. We have the combo washer/dryer, and it does take a while. But we often do one load a day and keep up okay. Over time, I've also found I need far less kitchen stuff that I'd thought I would. We just don't do fancy cooking or have lots of company....potlucks and paper plates are the "norm" if we do! We have "real" dishes and glasses for only four. But I do have a lot of "small appliances." As was suggested, think about the things you use most often and where you could put them and how you would use them in the RV you pick out....we're all different.....and quite a few of us have things in strange places...like a crock-pot under the bed, or a bread machine in the linen closet. Silicone bakeware is great, too, it can be rolled up and stuffed in a small space.

Good luck with your planning!
Mary
seven years full-timing

hogans1947 · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have been full timing for a year and have decided that even though we bought our Class A on ebay we love everything about it. We did have pictures of it and knew that it had the things we knew we needed but also many things we didn't know we needed. Don't have a washer/dryer and didn't want one. I would rather have the storage room. We do spend a lot of time close to family that are spread all over the U.S. so don't have to use laundromats that often so that helps. TV placement is critical even if you don't watch that much. We have a lot of windows so that makes things appear larger. Kitchen sink faces out into living area. All windows are across from each other so cross ventilation is great in living area and bedroom. Lots of storage space in "basement". Deep sinks with covers to give more counter space. Also love our central vac. We added that. Just a few of my favorite things !!!!
Good luck, Brenda

SoonToTravel · RV-Dreams Family Member

Hi Fay, we have a 35 ft. 5er & have a stackable washer/dryer. I can't wash a load of cloths & dry another one at the same time, but it does'nt take 2 1/2 hrs. to do a load. The 2nd owners put in the w/d unit, we are the 3rd owners. I'm very glad we have a w/d.

Lois

ken and cindy · RV-Dreams Family Member

SoonToTravel wrote:

Hi Fay, we have a 35 ft. 5er & have a stackable washer/dryer. I can't wash a load of cloths & dry another one at the same time, but it does'nt take 2 1/2 hrs. to do a load. The 2nd owners put in the w/d unit, we are the 3rd owners. I'm very glad we have a w/d.

Lois

Lois ,

Whats the reason you "can't" wash and dry at the same time ? confused

Ken

brainranger · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hello there,
This is Robin, the other half of brainranger to lend an ear. We have had 7 motorhomes and have had the same dilemma that you speak of. Until our last purchase. We bought a 39 foot Fleetwood Revolution. I still can't fill up all the storage space, it has a mid lav and a bathroom in the rear with dressers, closets, and washer/dryer. You could almost have a prom in the rear bathroom there is so much room. CHeck this out, I just love the room and we will be fulltiming this time next year, God willing.
Robin

Here4Now · RV-Dreams Community Member

We are in our 15th month of full-timing. My husband wanted the washer/dryer and I didn't. I am SO GLAD that we got one. With just the two of us, we are easily able to keep up with our laundry by doing a load every day or so. If we don't have full hook-ups and are in one place for a week or more, we may have to use the Blue Boy to dump gray water, but it is well worth it to be able to do laundry in our own unit. Although it can take longer, I'm not in any rush....we're retired! I've had to learn some accommodating techniques like load size. If it's a fuller load, I take out our shorts and tops while still damp to dry on a hanger or on the line on the back of the motorhome to reduce the wrinkles.

We have a closet the width of the MH in the bedroom and appreciate the size. It holds not only our hanging clothes, but racks for our shoes, a file box of records, our Oreck sweeper (nice and lightweight!), and shoe boxes of storage.

We do cook differently now and have learned to work within the space. Not exactly a 2-person kitchen, but we've learned how to "dance" around each other. We skipped the gas oven in order to have the large drawer that holds the pots and pans. I've found the convection/microwave oven to be more than adequate. I occasionally miss having a broiler but not enough to give up the large drawer.

The sofa in our travel trailer was not comfortable at all, BUT the sofa bed in our MH is extremely comfortable...my husband's favorite place to stretch out and watch TV.

We have part carpet and part vinyl tile. As hard as we try, the carpet eventually shows dirt...even with throw rugs. We would opt for all vinyl tile and use a large area rug if we had a choice. Much easier to keep clean.

I was actually amazed at how well everything fit in our Allegro Bay. We sold the house and all its contents, and I was looking forward to downsizing. I found out I could get along with much less...and using our ingenuity on occasion is fun. We discovered lots of nooks and crannies as time went on. We're still discovering more efficient use of spaces.

Spice storage was a challenge that was solved with the Tubular Spice Rack. I can store 45 spices in a 6 x 10 1/2" space.

We purchased a featherweight Singer sewing machine for my quilting, and my husband custom built a storage unit for his tools. Unfortunately, we still couldn't include his table saw both for weight and size considerations. Maybe if we get a diesel someday. My "stash" is stored at our daughter's home, but when we were there in August, I pulled all the fabric I'll need for two new projects.

In our Allegro Bay, we selected the "freestanding" dinette with built-in cabinet and chairs over the booth dinette. The table is cantilevered off the storage unit on the wall. Although the booth dinette has drawers for storage under the seats, we liked the storage and residential look of the freestanding dinette. We found that we could store the breadmaker, ice tea maker, hand mixer,
toaster, and crockpot with room left over.

We opted for the four-door refrigerator with icemaker. Except for when we're camping with our daughter and family when the fridge is really packed, we have found the size of both the fridge and freezer to be adequate for day-to-day living. We are big ice users, so the icemaker is well worth the space it takes up in the freezer.

If you're interested, we included a pretty comprehensive review of our first year on the road on our weblog as well as a link to the website for the Tubular Spice Rack.

Happytrails · RV-Dreams Family Member

I can simply say "ditto" to everything that has been said. We have the combo washer/dryer and it doesn't take me 21/2 hours to do my laundry. I keep it up and try not to let the laundry build up. I also put in smaller loads than I did in my "stick house" washer. I sometimes hang pants or shirts to air dry. I love the washer/dryer option. I also like the idea of sitting in the motorhome you are interested in and trying to imagine living there. What do you need? Kitchen space is always a premium. I also love my microwave/convection oven. Check out the shower space. Not all motorhomes have the same size shower. We have a huge corner shower with a nice built in seat. I love it. We also have the full wardrobe to hang clothes - that is nice. We also have drawer space in our bedroom and they are full. We also like the full basement storage space with the slide tray.
Take your time and think through what makes it "home" for you. Have fun looking.
Good luck!

Jay and Fay · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thanks Ladies for your advise. I took it. smile

We just back from the local Holiday Rambler dealer. They have a new 36' Neptune that seems to have what we are looking for. I sat, looked and tried to imagine day to day living in it. It appears to have most everything we have been looking for. It seemed to be of quality construction, had enough storage space and livable. Mostly it is in our price range.
We have looked at LOTS of MH but seem to come back to this one.
What are your thoughts on it ? Does any one have any experience with this model ?

Thanks, Fay

Happytrails · RV-Dreams Family Member

Holiday Rambler is a great product. We have owned 2 Endeavors - both have the 330 Cummins and of course the Roadmaster chassis, 40 ft. My husband and I both like the 8 airbags. It makes the ride very smooth. You can't go wrong with a company like Holiday Rambler/Monaco. Are you looking at a new or used motorhome? Don't hesitate to look used, late model, with low miles. There are a lot of those on the market and someone has already taken the BIG hit and hopefully completed the inital get the "bugs out' process. If you like the floor plan and it feels right for you guys and you keep coming back to that particular MH then that just might be the one for you.
Good luck and keep us informed on your decision.

SoonToTravel · RV-Dreams Family Member

Ken, at the bottom of our dryer, there is a lever in the middle. You have to push it to the left to wash & to the right to dry. But that's OK with me, I'm just happy to have a w/d. smile