I am thinking of purchasing a 35+ft fifth wheel to live in year round up here in Canada. I am a little unsure about going through with this and finding out that a trailer is to small to live in year round, or having a bunch of problems due to cold winters or not finding good places to park year round.

Please share your experiences. Anyone living in an area without hookups?

 

I suppose once you got set up and closed in may not be to bad. I know of one site hear in town that ppl live in their trailers all the time. They seemed to be skirted in. A 35 ft with some slides I suppose would be as big as some small apartments I have seen. A little cooler I would think when it get down to -30 and windy.

 

Look at all the retirees doing it, a 35ft with slides should be more than enough room to live. Heck you can even get a washer dryer combo in most, and now even a small drawer dish washer! When my kids are moved out I would love to full time, heck then you can kiss property tax goodbye!

 

Some friends did it while they built a new house. Too close for their comfort but everyone is different. There are models available up here with extra insulation in the floors and roof, and storm windows. Good luck!!

 

Lived in our Canadian built Glendale Titanium, 34' in Casa Grande AZ for about a year, AC struggled in the 115 *F ((115+40)x5/9)-40 = 46.1*C but the furnace kept it warm in the winter with no artic kit installed. We managed OK. But it takes a little getting used to.

 

My wife's parent's tried it(36ft motorhome) but after 3 months they had a bad mold problem. Fogged up really bad everytime they cooked, the fact that they were on Vancouver island probably didn't help either.

 

we are contemplating living in ours while we have a new house built. right now ours is set up on the lake, and it would be like an extra 50 or so miles one way to work for me. i havent done the math yet but it might be cheaper to get a small apartment temporarily. we have spent some cold winter nights in it, down to single digits F and have been comfortable to say the least. i wouldnt hesitate to stay in it full time if it was feasible.

 

Not yet. Maybe after I pay the Christmas bills. Seriously, check out some of the forums for full-timers. Airforums.com is good. It's all Airstreamers, but they're really into it. Roaming Times is a good source. RVtravel.net is another one. They're entire books on the subject.

Here's my advice after talking to thousands of people at trade shows, etc.: Don't sell the house and move into the trailer. Try it out for a few months and always be thinking about how this will be when you're 80. If you can afford it, keep the house and full-time in the RV.

Check out full time parks like Traveler's Rest in Florida. I'm sure they're some in Canada, too. They usually have a place to park the RV, build a small house eventually, and a supportive retirement community.

Too much to discuss on this forum. My hat's off to anyone who can pull it off.

 

Do some reseach other than here. Im not 100% sure on this but I believe that RVs are not meant to live in for extended periods of time due to the chemicals and the composition of the materials used for construction.

 

I lived in a old 28' Terry trailer in the Sierra mountains while I built my house. I lived alone which probably helped. I didn't have any problems as long as the heater kept running. It was a big snow year and I had to keep the snow away from the sides. I had a mote dug around the trailer and at mid winter the snow was up to the roof. The mote probably helped with keeping the wind away. One night I got home from the bar at 2:00 am, It was snowing hard and the door to the trailer was stuck {3' of sierra cement up there}. There was enough snow on the roof to sag and pinch the door so It would not open. I got on the roof and shoveled the snow off. Put my foot through the roof vent while I was up there.
It was a adventure and I was only 25 at the time, so I thought it was fun. Not so sure I would feel the same about it today. With proper planning and the right attitude it is totally doable in any climate. The attitude is probably the most important part.

 

Since you live in a harsh climate be sure to look into 4-season and full-time rated RVs. Most aren't insulated well enough for long stays in severe cold or heat. 4-season and full-time RVs are better equipped to handle rough weather.

 

I know a bunch of 1/2 timers and one genuine full timer. The FTer has traded a couple of times and is up to ~36" 5er but the 1/2 timers have a little smaller 5ers. 36" seems to be about average for the FTers MAYBE because a 3500 dually can handle it. My FTer friend drasticly changes the options each time he trade, depending on how/where he plans to stay for the next few years. I would say to buy good quality and be sure you get the options you will need - all the 4 season stuff for Canada... the best insulation, dual panes and maybe oversized furnace and heated tanks. Have fun! Craig

 

For a TRUE "fulltimer" with enclosed and heated everything, and a 5KW gen expect to pay well over $70K new.

As far as moisture issues someone mentioned, that is one of the inherent problems with RV's. You MUST keep some air moving, which, I imagine would be hard in Canada.

Fulltiming in South Caroline, Arizona or California, yes. Canada, I don't know.

 

By the way, go to an RV show. There's a lot of good info about full-timing there. And you can check out the big units, which are definately made to live in. Most look better than my house.

 

A simpler conversion (115-32/1.8=46.1).