discovering the world… and thyself

[RVtrek]

Hi everyone,

I'm setting up a truck/trailer combo.  Got an old truck a few months ago, and I'm picking up the trailer on Tuesday (December 20th, 2016), assuming the weather doesn't go crazy.

I'm in MN right now in my sticks-and-bricks house, and I'm planning on taking off Jan 1st for RTR.  It'll take me a week or so getting there because I don't want to drive a zillion hours a day.

I have all kinds of plans for how to outfit the trailer as my eventual full-time rig, but due to life circumstances, I only have the funds and opportunity right now to basically outfit it with various camping gear.  It should be an exciting adventure, nonetheless!

I have a deep desire to meet my "tribe" as Bob calls them.  Life where I'm at now has gotten to be terribly lonely, and I can't wait to meet a bunch of RTR people! 

And Bob, if you should happen to read this, thank you for being an inspiration for myself and so many others!

 

[TMG51]

See you at the RTR! Don't be shy.

 

[JesseTrue]

Welcome! You're ahead of me, but I'm going to be doing the same setup. Keep us posted on your build.

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk

 

[rvpopeye]

Welcome aboard !
24 hours is all there is but a zillion miles is ,,,,well , I'll have to do the math ................

 

[RVtrek]

Keep us posted on your build.

I've got lots of plans for this trailer.  First, it's going to be a glorified tent for the RTR trip, then it'll be a cargo hauler to move my sticks-and-bricks stuff to a nice storage spot in Texas, then eventually I'll get to start work on making into a full-time rig.  Plans are to have around 1,700 watts of solar on the roof, whatever battery tech I can afford, a split A/C unit, soundproofing in the bedroom, and no propane on board.  It'll probably take me a full year of construction to get all of that accomplished.

And, like so many other people, I threw together a blog (rvtrek.org) to chronicle the whole thing.  Right now I'm in the acquisition phase of buying stuff for the RTR trip.

 

[RVtrek]

24 hours is all there is but a zillion miles is ,,,,well , I'll have to do the math ................

OK, so it's not a zillion, but it can certainly feel like it when you're driving 55mph (maybe 60) in an old truck towing a giant trailer behind you.  I've done enough cross country trips in enough different kinds of vehicles to know that for this setup, I don't really want to be driving 10+ hours a day, it would just be too exhausting and unenjoyable.  So I'm going to slow it down a bit and take a few more days on the journey.

 

[highdesertranger]

Welcome Michael to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you. I here you on the zillion miles/hours or whatever. show us some pics of your set up. see you at RTR. I will be in the low rent district. highdesertranger

 

[Dennis]

Sounds like a workable plan. Using a cargo van for a hard sided tent is a move up compared to a lot of the trips I have made.

 

[jimindenver]

Welcome to the forum. Like you I leave 1/1 and pray we both have safe driving.

 

[RVtrek]

show us some pics of your set up

Now that I finally have my trailer, I actually have something to show!

http://rvtrek.org/2016/12/20/i-have-the-trailer/

More pictures to come at some point in the future when I start using the trailer more.

See everyone at RTR!

 

[WriterMs]

Wow, that trailer looks like it will be a roomy home for you, Michael. And you know what? You may be glad to have the time inside "camping" to better work out exactly the layout you want. And the RTR will be filled with ideas.

I thought the 1,700 watts was a typo then saw you plan to run an air conditioner? another wow.

 

[Vagabound]

Michael, a belated Welcome to The Forum.

Very cool rig -- figuratively and literally. ;-)

Congratulations!

Tom

 

[Gunny]

I am impressed. That is a nice looking trailer. You have enough room in there for anything you desire, well sort of.

Hope to see it and you at RTR.

Rob

 

[RVtrek]

You may be glad to have the time inside "camping" to better work out exactly the layout you want. And the RTR will be filled with ideas.

I'm grateful to have the time, period!  I'm so happy that I'm not going to be spending my life sitting behind a desk… I've spent so much of my life thus far doing that.

I think I have a good idea of what the final layout is going to be like when I get time to fully build it out.  It'll likely be something like this: http://rvtrek.org/2016/10/14/travel-trailer-layout-medium-v5/

I thought the 1,700 watts was a typo then saw you plan to run an air conditioner?  another wow.

Yeah, I might have missed part of the point of cheap RV living here.  I've spent a good number of years living in relative luxury, and the idea of "roughing it" wasn't all that appealing.  So I decided to make a "comfortable" abode for me, and that meant soundproofing, air conditioning, an all electric setup, and other various amenities.  I also didn't see any reason to not cover the entire roof with solar panels.

I'll be chasing good weather, as many RVers do, so if I do need to use the air conditioner, hopefully it'll be for a minimal period of time.  And if I'm not using the air conditioner, then yes, that 1,700 watts of solar is going to be plenty to keep whatever batteries I end up with fully charged.

 

[rvpopeye]

1,700 watts sounds like you will be set !
Bet it will be a thing everyone that sees it will be green with envy!
I just relax when I travel , you get to see more and experience what is along the route.
250 mi. a day is pushing it for me , and I only travel during the daytime so I don't drive by something cool.
So much out there and so little time ....you never know if you'll pass that way again and hopefully not !
So much out there and so little time...............

 

[Vagabound]

...  I also didn't see any reason to not cover the entire roof with solar panels.
...

Are you planning any kind of a roof rack on top of the trailer to allow you to carry something other than solar panels up there? If so, have you thought about how you're going to do that such that the solar panels don't conflict with the other things you want to carry and vice versa?

Tom

 

[RVtrek]

Are you planning any kind of a roof rack on top of the trailer to allow you to carry something other than solar panels up there? If so, have you thought about how you're going to do that such that the solar panels don't conflict with the other things you want to carry and vice versa?

I had never thought of carrying anything on the roof other than solar panels and roof vents.  I figured I had the bed of the truck if I wanted to keep anything else.

What kinds of stuff are you planning on putting on the roof of your rig?

The only sacrifice I think I'm really making for having that many solar panels is a lack of additional skylights.  In a perfect world, I'd probably remove one of the panels and put in a skylight.

 

[rvpopeye]

What are your battery plans?

 

[Vagabound]

...

What kinds of stuff are you planning on putting on the roof of your rig?
...

Well, I'm still designing. The answer to your question has several parts. First, there are some things that I know I want to carry, such as maybe a ladder or a kayak. Second is the just in case category. I can envision needing to carry something sometime that I don't have room for some place else, or something long. More than anything else, I think I want the capability.

A couple more things to add. One, I have more or less decided to design a rack that has two levels, only slightly divided. A lower level for the solar panels, and a higher level for anything else, to keep that stuff off the solar panels. Of course, while anything else is on the second level, if directly over the panels, then the function of the panels is reduced or disabled. I'm hoping that with careful placement of everything, I can avoid that. 

Two, I have limitations that you don't. The top of the box on my truck is already about ten and a half feet tall. That makes any kind of a roof rack something to seriously consider in terms of added height, bridge or gas station roof clearance, etc.

Tom

 

[RVtrek]

What are your battery plans?

Not quite set in stone yet.  It'll depend on available funds at the time I'm ready to upgrade.

Right now, I have a temporary set of (10) 12v AGM batteries that are 32ah each.  (I found a guy on craigslist selling at a pretty good price.)  That's going to hopefully get me through the Arizona trip, and who knows how long after that.

I'd love to get some lithium ion batteries, but I may just get a giant set of AGMs.  Either way, I want to have far more amp-hour capacity than I'd ever need.