Death by Trailer

As per usual, I have failed as a blogger and left you at the edge of your seats!!!! How terrible of me! I will start by saying...sorry...for causing you such horrible agony 😉 next I must apologize, this post is from my phone as our internet has cone out, so you may see some miss spellings and odd autocorrects.

Since my last post, we have again done many things. The flooring was so rotted in our bedroom slide out all the word had to be replaced and the floor in the living room slide out was replaced as well.

Glad we found this even though it meant replacement. The wood was composting.

The slide out was held in by that...umm can you say death trap in more than one way?

Our garden!!! The rot was so extensive in the bedroom we were growing things. It is likely we would have ended up very ill or injured had we moved in without fixing these problems.

Just to show how soft the wood was.

As you can see we got some of the flooring in but we had to remove the floor from the slide out.

We still have not completed all the floor upstairs in the bathroom or bedroom. However the downstairs has been completed. 

For this looking for information about it we used the allure cherry flooring and decided to glue it because we aren't sure where we are going to end up. 

Flooring teaser. As you can see the slide out was replaced with a tarp until it was put back in.

When trying to replace the slide out, I nearly dropped it on Eric, so instead my adrenaline kicked in and I dropped it on myself. I didn't know until Eric was back in the trailer and my foot was gushing blood. Ps I hate feet!!!

Before putting the rest of the floor in we decided to cut off part of the island. It opened the space up immensely! So glad we did it. Just make sure when dealing with electrical stuff to unplug the trailer. 

 A note on taking this apart. All we did was saw it up however, because there was a plug in we required some rewording. After attempting to thread the wire back through the floor several times using feeling and hopeful sight, my husband pulled out his bore score and we had success. I will tell you it came in very handy!!!

 As far as actually putting the flooring in, I will have to get back to you. That will require a full post. Now that I have the blogger app on my phone I can write it pieces at a time and hopefully save it. I'm always so busy with school and work that I don't have time for much else. Sorry ladies and gents.

Happy camping!

Victoria

Late Night . . . I really don't have a good title for this one!

It's been a few weeks; sorry about that! I have started several posts but have never completed them due to falling asleep, which I'll be honest I risk for this post as well. Although I do have a late night baked potato in the oven that is oh so enticing.

Okay, where to begin. Last I left you, we had just moved our home into the backyard which was possibly an impossible task but with several of the amazing men I know, accomplishable. Since then a great deal has occurred. First, I finished painting touch-ups, and managed a few, first RV selfies, with my fur baby, Blue (he will also be living in the RV with us. A post to follow more on this topic later).

 I also found the pillow that we used as our color inspirations for the entire main living space of the RV and is beginning to seep into other areas as well :)

 After finishing the painting I began to take out the carpet . . . I was not a happy camper which the next picture demonstrates. First words of wisdom when REMOVING CARPET always use a pry bar as those making RVs have no regard for future buyers that have interest in removing the carpet as they place staple on top of staple . . . and I mean upwards of 20 staples in a single spot. Further, areas around the walls are covered in staples and make it extremely difficult to remove without assistance. I did not know this bit of information during the time and spent a good hour or two screaming my head off. I'm sure the neighbors thought we had purchased a slaughter house!

 The beginning stages of carpet removal. The bedroom, believe it or not, was actually the easiest place to remove carpet.

 During removal of carpet, we began to see the full extent of the water damage . . . More information on the full amount later in this post.

 When they make RVs, they put the flooring in before building the walls . . . so be prepared. This linoleum only covered a small section of the bedroom.

 These three pictures show the removal of the downstairs carpet an linoleum. Overall it took be several evenings of long nights after work to accomplish this task. However, you will see further on why the removal of used flooring is rather essential when purchasing a used RV. In order to remove the flooring under the living room slide out it will be removed. I will also provide instructions on this task in a future post.

Flooring removed from the bedroom, or at least partially. It was definitely a task to complete. In order to get the flooring from under the bed, the bed frame was removed completely. Not a difficult task as it was not directly attached to anything.

 After pulling up the flooring I noticed two things, first, even though I had swept, vacuumed, and washed the floor the filth managed to congregate in areas that were unreachable during cleaning. Most specifically where the carpet and linoleum met. When making the RV the edges of the carpet are just folded over to create a neat looking end, however, as you can see in the first picture, it does nothing but collect dirt, and hair. I was disgusted when I saw it! Second, the state of the carpet was deplorable! As you can see in the second picture, the entire carpet was covered in stains. In this picture, there is no water damage in this particular area. I cannot imagine what those stains are from, and honestly, I do not dare!

Due to the condition of our flooring, I can only assume that flooring in other used RVs is very similar. RVs are not necessarily intended to be lived in on a regular basis. Most people use them as "recreational vehicles" thus care is often minimal. If you intend on living in a used RV, I highly recommend for your own health, and sanitation benefit, replacing the flooring, especially with something easy to clean and durable (more on this topic later).

For the sake of eating dinner late, accomplishing tasks I've been putting off all weekend, and for keeping things short, I shall leave you here. However, I will attempt a flooring post later this week, but we all know how good I am at that! ;)

Happy Camping!
Victoria

Adventure Time

Okay. There is a lot to get you all caught up on as the past two days have been filled with rehoming, moving, and other essential that really add to our story. First and foremost, we had our very first trailer adventure...attempting to get it in the backyard. I have posted below several pictures of this process. I just have to say, I definitely have the most amazing and fantastic husband; without him and his knowledge this feat would not have been possible. Additionally, I want to thank my father-in-law Jonathan, and our friend Cole for their assistance as ground guides, supervisors, and coordinators. Although I probably could have attempted it, my knowledge and spatial abilities would have fallen flat to the task. You three are amazing men and I appreciate all that you did this weekend!!!

Now, to most people, the daunting task would have been impossible as it was like getting a camel to go through the eye of a needle (is that how the saying goes, well it's too late in the evening for me to care anyways so doesn't really matter). There were several obstacles that had to be considered including a tree, municipality boxes, our neighbors yard, and the gate. Surprisingly, it only took a few hours to accomplish, with many, forward, backward, forward, backwards, inch this way and inch that ways. Somehow it is now in the backyard :)

 This tended to be the issue with each of the obstacles, just shy of enough room :(

 The home stretch...we had to remove the ladder to get it through unscathed.

Nearly there, nearly there!!!! Plus ground guide 1, my father-in-law :D

 Yup, they pulled some MacGyver and winched the branches back. (The tree was not allowed to come down, so although that's a good thought, not an option.) Plus ground guide 2, our friend :D 

PS If you look, both of them have got the head tilt down :,D

My husbands got skills!

Yup, happened a few times. Required some re-situating.

Little man watching the action. I'll make sure to make a post about animal transitions to mobile living.

Like I said, threading!

He took up the whole road. I saw several cars begin to turn down the street, see the trailer, then make a U turn. It was rather amusing. We also managed to gather a few neighborhood bystanders. 

Example of the tree winch. 

In showing all of these pictures, with my silly little captions, I am trying to explain that truly anything is possible, especially with a tiny home. The joke now is that if our in-laws ever sell their home, my husband and I come with it :D

Now, our second big adventure was selling our Nissan. It was a big step. We had placed it on craigslist last year when we thought we were moving out of state and not a single person was interested. This time we had several calls within the first weekend and sold on the third day of the post. I think it's God's way of saying we are following his calling and making decisions that align with his plan for us. I'll admit, I am pretty darn excited.

With all of that being said, the inside is slowly beginning to make some changes that I will share with you later this week, including the final painting photos, determining amperage to decrease the possibility of throwing the breaker *rolls eyes and sighs with exasperation*, and the installation of the new flooring this weekend!!!!!! Each hour, and every step brings us closer to our completed home :)

Happy camping!
Victoria

It's all about that paint, 'bout that paint!

Now although the title is rather silly, picking the color to paint your RV is no joke. And honestly, I highly recommend painting no matter how much you don't mind the wallpaper. My husband and I intended to do just an accent wall and ended up painting the entire place and we are extremely glad that we did. Not only does it help to get rid of that camper smell, it makes the place feel like a real home by bringing a touch of our personality to the standard assembly line 5th wheel.

First, pick your color inspiration! We decided on a ten dollar pillow from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. It was extremely elegant containing golds, silvers, brown, and cream. It's definitely a color that you do not normally see in a 5th wheel and contained many usable colors that would assist in making the place home.

We weren't sure what colors were exactly right. We picked a color called Sandie Pecan and Brown Suede. We thought the Sandie Pecan would be the accent wall but it ended up being to light. We then picked the Brown Suede out and liked it much more for the accent wall, and made the final decision to paint the entire house with the Sandie  Pecan using the Brown Suede to accent. In total, with three adults working, including paint pick up time, etc., we have taken about 10 hours to paint with the bedroom and bathroom still requiring the second coat.

 I began by cleaning and bleaching everything down. It was pre-owned by a couple who used it rarely. It had been locked up throughout the winter and spelled stale and contained some left over rotting food that required a good clean out!

 Some changes definitely needed to be made throughout this thing in order to make it a beautiful space that my husband, Kitty and I would be calling home for about the next 6-7 years at the shortest.

 Blue's favorite space was the garage. I think it was because there was nothing in it making it easy for him to see, sniff, and experience our new space.

 This is the view (slide outs closed) from the garage facing toward the front.

 YUP, I was such a happy cleaner xp

 As the night went on I decided it was safe to pull all the slides out. Our home becomes very spacious and an enjoyable space that I can envision holidays, sleepy days, and in general the a place to finally call our own!

 This provides the best pre-remodel view of the 5th wheel. Some of our basic plans include painting, taking out the cabinets below the TV and extending the counters, moving the sink, putting in a dishwasher, changing the loft into storage, replacing furniture, creating shelving space, putting in skylights in the kitchen, and overall adding a touch of femininity to the place. As a toy hauler the overall theme is a man's retreat with bottle cap opener and all!

 First to start we removed all non essential items, including the couch (that will not be going back), outlet covers, lighting fixtures, and those HIDEOUS (I cannot extenuate it enough) window fixtures. Then we picked out our colors. It was then time to move onto the dreaded painting. To tape off and paint the entire slide out myself took about three hours. One of our friends came over to help, he painted and my husband taped and it took us about 6 hours to complete, almost two coats on the entire main living space. The following day my husband and I began some touch ups and finished the second coat, and moved onto the bedroom and bathroom. To paint almost an entire 30ft trailer (we are not painting the garage) with 2 coats we highly recommend at least a gallon of your main color and about a quart for any accent colors. For taping off you will need at least three rolls of tape!

 Sorry this picture is sideways I am to lazy to flip it, but I wanted a picture of our first meal in our new home. (Note to those cooking make sure to place the rack on one of the upper shelves as the burner in the bottom will burn the bottom of your food, while not cooking the top.)

Here is the general color concept. I do not currently have picture of the finished product as we have had family visits and illnesses over the past week which has hindered our remodel of home. Our next step will be taking out flooring and putting in a new laminate that should further increase the homey feel. For those that are wondering, I will be posting in excess about taking the flooring our and putting it in for the slide outs as I personally have found no information on exactly how to complete this task. So it should be fun.

Finally, I will post updated pictures hopefully this weekend once I have finished painting the bedroom and bathroom, and removed the flooring.

Happy 5th wheeling!
Victoria

The Beginning

 

 In the Beginning

What started out as a concept on Thursday, turned into reality on Sunday. My husband and I purchased a 5th wheel that we would not call our home for the next several years. It was extremely fast and slightly unplanned but overall we are very happy with our choice, and become happier as the trailer comes to life with us!

I have decided to start a blog, because in my adventure thus far (which as only been 5 days), blogs have been the greatest source of information for information about living in a trailer or RV year round.

Context

Here is a bit of context to assist you in determining if small living, specifically RV style, is appropriate for you. My husband and I live in Alaska and intend on living here for a few more years until I am accepted into a Neuropsychology PhD program. We are unsure of where we will end up as there are several programs I am interested in. Further, we are uncertain if we will stay in the city after I get my degree.

Variables at Play

With the general context set in place my husband and I began talking about looking into apartments because we are currently living with his parents. One of the greatest issues with Alaska is the cost of living. The most disgusting apartment in the worst part of the city will still run you approximately $1,000 with only some utilities included. To make matters even more difficult we have a cat, which no where allows pets. Plus, I must admit, that I am extremely picky when it comes to my living situation. I want tons of counter space, we must have a washer/dryer, and dishwasher. To get the perfect apartment we were looking at, at least $1,500 excluding utilities. This was not possible as we both make less than $20 hourly and were interested in saving for a house, however, with knowing that we would be moving shortly it is impractical to purchase a house.

Last week, we began talking about purchasing a fifth wheel for our move in order to make life a bit easier on us. We stopped in at an RV dealership and began the hunt, determining important aspects that we both required for a fifth wheel, especially if we were going to be living in it for several months. During this same time, my parents were in the process of looking at an RV in which they were planning on living, permanently.

After seeing several fifth wheels, my husband and I had several requirements listed, including washer/dryer, large kitchen, and a garage. Most of these amenities come standard in a house but definitely not for a trailer.  We talked about how much we would spend and decided that $40,000 would be an appropriate amount but we would likely not be able to get a toy hauler (garaged trailer). Most toy haulers, even used, were upwards of $75,000. I was not very happy.

Finding Our Fit

One evening, as I lay in my soft warm bed searching items on my phone. I decided to pull up craigslist. There was trailer after trailer with many different features. Some trailers were ugly with rotting insides, while others were far more extravagant  than one could imagine. Then I saw it. The perfect trailer! It was beautiful! I could see it's overall robustness and all important pull outs. I was in love, there was just one issue was it as amazing in person?

After talking with my husband we decided to meet with the owner and look at the trailer. The next day we were out viewing it. In a matter of moments we decided to purchase the trailer, however, we were racing another couple who had also agreed to purchase it but had not provided the money. I said a quick prayer as we raced to the bank. Within 20 minutes...WE HAD OUR HOME! It felt amazing to know that we had just purchased our first home. I felt no fear, it was right, it was perfect!

The overall cost was only $5,000 over our budget, but... the trailer was worth $10,000 more than we paid!!!!! :)  PS: it's a 2009 Keystone Fuzion 403

Finding Your Fit

Now our story worked out pretty darn well. Within less than a week we had discussed, looked, and purchased our trailer. It is not likely that it will occur for you in this amount of time, or at this stage in your life. It is most definitely a commitment in many ways, financially (although cheaper than a house or apartment), relationally, and space. Here are several things to consider:

• What are absolute necessities you are looking for in your tiny home?
• Once looking, are there any new things to consider?
• Is it what is best for you financially?
• Are you willing to live in a small space and become ninja organizer? 
• What aspects of a trailer are you willing to compromise on?  (For example, I could compromise not having a garage, but was not willing to give up a large kitchen).
• If you purchase a trailer will you be staying at a year round RV park, purchasing land, traveling, or staying on a family or friends property?

These are a few thins my husband and I thought about before purchasing and they may help you make your decision as you begin to look at what your future plans, and goals are.

Anyways, I most definitely need to sign off; Ive been to excited to sleep this past week :D

Good luck on your tiny endeavor!
Victoria