Wow - that is some awful news! You guys have definitely had more than your fair share of issues.

Sorry that you are having so many troubles - hope things start looking up SOON!

Soooo sorry to hear of your news! I'm sure it's heartbreaking. If you enjoy the lifestyle it's too soon to give up. At least you are both still working, right?

You both have been such an inspiration to those of us coming behind you.  Good luck with whatever you decide. 

Leslie

Thanks for sharing, we feel your pain and can relate. Last year was tough for us but we remain encouraged that better times lay ahead.  We believe this to be true for you also. Learn and remember, but keep your eyes on the road ahead and don't flinch. Our money is on you having an awesome experience real soon, that will put all of this in perspective. 

Passing along "positive waves" (Elliot Gould line in Kelly's Heros).

 

Cheryl & Mitch, wishing you both the best, sorry to hear of yet another ordeal for you. Hoping the repairs go well and with less cost than estimated.

Cheryl, in other posts you stated that my positive attitude was inspiring, but you need to know that you inspire me. Yes we had challenges getting on the road and a challenging first 3 months on the road but since then we've been on the waves, it seems like you guys have yet to hit a peaceful plateau before the next wave comes crashing in. Just know you are in my thoughts and prayers.

Thanks everyone. We decided to stay the course. We worked and prayed too hard for this dream of ours for the past 4 years and to give it up for yet another financial setback is silly. We're grateful that we have a nest egg to dig into for this, although it's very scary since this egg is supposed to last for 3 years and after this, we'll be lucky if it gets us through 1 more year. But this is the lifestyle we've chosen and we're not ready to give it up.

We met with the technician, the project manager and his boss today. They're looking at a baseline of 30 hours, but if they have to rebuild the wall as well, possibly 40 hours or more. They're talking weeks before the rig will be ready and probably more money than we said.

I think what makes this so horrible is the cause of the problem, which was a water leak that had been going on for a while to cause the rot (most likely from the washing machine because the pipe runs under the bed).  Apparently the leak was fixed, which means the previous owner knew about this and never told us.  And because it was hidden under the floor and inside the walls, there was no way for an inspector to discover it (we had a private inspector and the warranty company inspect it).  Due to the rot, that weakened all the screws which came out or loose, which caused the slide to retract in a lopsided way, eventually not completely closing on one side.

For now, our daughter is letting us stay with her for about a week until we figure out where we can live until the rig is ready.  We may need to miss the Reunion rally, although our rig is at that campground, but we can't stay in it.

But there is a silver lining... Mitch is starting a new job on Monday, which happens to be in Raleigh where our daughter lives.  So at least there'll be some income in the meantime.

Lesson learned:  buy NEW.  Even if there are a lot of problems, at least it's all under warranty and not hidden problems from a previous owner.

Cheryl and Mitch, sorry to hear about your rig. Look at the bright side, at least you have a good solid rig to work with and when it is all repaired, it will still be a great rig to full time in. Even new rigs have issues that do not show up until out of warranty. Repairs are all part of the adventure and at least you have your health, each other and a sense of adventure that will get you through this too. Wishing and praying for a good outcome for both of you in this.

Cheryl & Mitch, our thoughts are with both of you and we will continue to send positive vibes your way.

Hugs!

cherylbrv wrote:

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"But there is a silver lining... Mitch is starting a new job on Monday, which happens to be in Raleigh where our daughter lives."

 

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I believe Cheryl & Mitch, that despite your current challenges, as all of us endure in this life, that at least you are traveling thru this adventure with each other, and now get to continue to share your lives with your daughter. 

May God continue to Bless your lives, Tim

-- Edited by Jake62 on Friday 15th of May 2015 02:39:29 PM

Cheryl & Mitch,

So sorry to hear of your latest troubles. I hope things pick up soon. You guys are in our thoughts.

Dave & Troy

Cheryl, glad to hear you're hanging in, and our prayers will be with you over the next few weeks, that maybe this won't be as bad as they anticipate and repairs will be quick. You make us realize that there will be trying times, but sticking together will enable us to get through things, and we won't be the only ones that ever has problems. Stay strong!

Mitch n Cheryl, I had missed this thread when originally posted. So sorry for the continuing repairs :/ Do not kick yourself too hard "Should've bought new". Ive met ppl with newer Full-Timer, Quality Brand rigs who have had problems that never should have happened. One repairman told me the build quality has gotten really bad since the economic problems in RV industry in 2008. Probably

It appears that whether you have a new or previously enjoyed RV, some have next to zero problems, or are so handily inclined (not us!) they can do most repairs themselves which doesn't seem to phase them keeping their repair costs down, and just a minor inconvenience in their travels.

For some others it affects their business plans if working on the road, and having to pay the high door rates for professional (hopefully!) repairs can wreck havoc with a tight budget/nest egg. You get a handful that have zero problems on their new rigs and others that seem to spend months at the dealership at time of delivery trying to resolve bad build/quality issues that should never have occurred and then after the fact appear to spend other times still at repair facilities with ongoing issues. Likewise with a used rig that maybe has had neglect by the previous owners from being kept well serviced. Then there's those that have picked up a great used rig a few years old that the previous owners got all the bugs ironed out of and it's been a wonderful rig for the second/third owners. To a large degree it really is luck of the draw and relying on folks honesty and integrity when purchasing from them.

The best piece of advice we received was from BarbaraOK - put 10% cost of the rig in an emergency/repair budget from the outset, and allocate a portion of your expense budget to keep adding/replace it accordingly. When we needed a new engine two years ago this really saved our bacon, likewise when our fridge died last year and so on and so forth.

Cheryl and Mitch have updated their status every 3 or 4 days on their blog which I clicked on in their signature above, and sounds like they are playing doting grandparents to a new puppy at times that they are enjoying whilst awaiting their rig repairs, and if I recall correctly are expecting something positive by Saturday???? Anyway it's all on their blog.

June 2nd and still waiting for the repairs to be finished. Now they're saying they're having "adjustment problems". Also still waiting for the tank to be delivered. So very grateful our daughter and son-in-law are letting us live with them. Still....

Cheryl, sorry to hear about your trials. We also had to bite the bullet this year. Had a transmission go down on out truck. $14000. Warranty covered $7000 but that left me owing $7000.   Like you I was extremely worried about depleting savings. Decided to put on a credit card, then transferred to my Discover with no interest for 18 months. Had to pay a 3% fee. Then the money I was going to replenish savings with I used to make payments. In 13 more months it will be paid off, and I still have my nest egg if there is another emergency. Keep your great attitude, remember it's an adventure!