Travel trailer advice

[lee]

Hi,

Which ever manufacture RV you choose,... it is vital that you get up on the roof at least x2 a year and perform an inspection. Every seam, every roof pentation must be inspected to see if the DICOR sealant is still intact. Touch up suspect spots by cleaning with Simple Green, rinse with water soaked cloth, let dry then apply DICOR self-leveling sealant (when over 50* degrees).  Every time that I inspect, I find a spot that needs attention.

Also, inspect sealant around every light (clearance, brake, etc.) and every window and doors.

After inspection/repair then apply a protectant (I use Areospace 303) to the roof membrane (including slide out) also apply to the slide out seals, all door seals.

Water intrusion is every RV owners worst enemy.... especially here in the Great North-Wet!!!!!

Finally,... if you plan on keeping the RV for a long time,... and plan on putting a lot of miles on it.... install a wet bolt suspension kit.... and most important... replace those stock "China-Bomb" tires with quality tires.

Lee

[280ackley]

I've been looking at Outdoors RV which are made in LaGrande I think.  They look well built but I haven't seen one in person yet.
https://www.outdoorsrvmfg.com

Does anyone have any experience with them?

[trophyhunt]

Outdoors RV is a top model in my opinion.

[Buckhunter24]

Was there a trailer covering thread a while back? I thought there was but cannot find it. Considering a steel frame building, but may take the cheap way out with a canvas type cover

[lee]

Hi,

Being an RV owner for over 20years,... I haunt many RV forums. Since I own a Keystone product, I haunt a Keystone forum the most (BTW: Not affiliated with Keystone RV Manufacturing). One of the Moderators is a repair technician at an RV repair facility. His recommendation is to NEVER cover your RV with one of the advertised RV covers. He states they do more harm than good through abrasion to the roof membrane from wind and also the fact they trap water and moisture under them causing more problems.

He recommends what I stated in my post earlier on this subject. Inspect, Inspect, Inspect. At least x2 yearly.

Lee

[Pnwrider]

I've been looking at Outdoors RV which are made in LaGrande I think.  They look well built but I haven't seen one in person yet.
https://www.outdoorsrvmfg.com

Does anyone have any experience with them?

My neighbor just bought the outdoors rv 28’ bunkhouse. Said he did tons of research and narrowed it down to them. He wanted one that he could use throughout the winter for skiing. Seems like a solid unit from the time I’ve spent checking it out. His biggest issue is trying to find storage for it. He called everywhere within 20 miles and no one has space.

[Mudman]

Azdel walls.  PVC roof membranes.  Alum framing?  Underbelly protections.  These are important to me to reduce issues down the road.  Also I plan to put up a metal 30'x16" rv port this year.  Sun UV rays do alot of damage imop.  We have a new 27' TT so I plan to protect it.

[trophyhunt]

Yup, wasn’t going to have a new trailer without a steel rv cover to protect it! Don’t regret buying it one bit.

[Mudman]

I tried order one few months ago and backlog kicked in.  I had false info from em or sumthing but I said screw it for now.  Plan to order one soon and put it up this summer.  Roughly $4kish..  RV covers suck and lumber is so high.  Jeez.

[Magnum_Willys]

My neighbor just bought the outdoors rv 28’ bunkhouse. Said he did tons of research and narrowed it down to them. He wanted one that he could use throughout the winter for skiing. Seems like a solid unit from the time I’ve spent checking it out. His biggest issue is trying to find storage for it. He called everywhere within 20 miles and no one has space.

Yea finding storage space for anything is crazy - most storage places are 100% full - don't even have a 4x10 much less a 40 x 10 !  check out neighbors.com?

[jackelope]

All really good info. We’ve decided to hold off a year. We’re thinking about renting one a few times just to make sure we all like it. I know I will, I grew up RV’ing with my grandparents and have used one several times as an adult. I don’t think my wife ever has and my kid definitely has not. Only tents.  Because of our driveway situation we don’t have a good place to store one so we’d also have to pay storage somewhere too. Not a dealbreaker but also not ideal. I appreciate all the awesome advice though. Those Outdoors trailers look pretty great. They’ll be near the top of the list for sure.

[Craig]

I’m selling my 2018 27’ trailer with bunk beds. Probably a little to heavy at 6500 dry weight. Daughter is at college and my son will be going to college next year. No need for bunk beds anymore.

[C-Money]

We were not super happy with the quality of our new Salem camp trailer. Got rid of it and got a used Komfort 5th wheel, and seems to be a bit better built unit. The Salem was okay, lots of warranty work after purchase, and just kind of felt a bit cheap. Hope you find the the unit that you are looking for!!

[KFhunter]

getting on the roof of my RV scares the hell outta me,  feels like I'm going to fall through, it makes so much cracking creaking and breaking noises.

wish I would have read this thread before I bought it, would have known to look at the wooden rafters and not bought.  Seriously need a 120lb kid up there to do the dicor

[browney5er]

All really good info. We’ve decided to hold off a year. We’re thinking about renting one a few times just to make sure we all like it. I know I will, I grew up RV’ing with my grandparents and have used one several times as an adult. I don’t think my wife ever has and my kid definitely has not. Only tents.  Because of our driveway situation we don’t have a good place to store one so we’d also have to pay storage somewhere too. Not a dealbreaker but also not ideal. I appreciate all the awesome advice though. Those Outdoors trailers look pretty great. They’ll be near the top of the list for sure.

I don’t know if you’re looking to buy a brand new trailer when you decide to buy but I would definitely consider buying a used one. You can find 1 and 2 year old trailers a whole lot cheaper and most are like brand new. I think you’re on the right track with Outdoors Rv. My wife and I researched for over a year and came up with Outdoors Rv and Northwood manufacturing. We ended up saving half on a 2018 Outdoors Rv Glacier Peak 5th wheel. If you can be patient and watch Craigslist, Facebook and other classified pages you will be able to get more trailer for your dollar, I promise.