Another new Commer

[FJRider]

Hello all. I am new to the site but not to tech in general. I started out as a field tech and worked up to applied engineering working in RF as a field communications and site engineer and then moving to IT building and running Data Centers and then to high level IT security.

As I move to retirement and wanting peace, security, and relaxation and clear a few other things in my life I have decided to sell the house in the city and see how much I. And cut cost and ensure that I can maintain myself for as many years as I have. To that end I have decided to get land in the north or north east of Texas that is unrestricted And that I can do what I want with no government involvement Except the septic system and then get a motor home and set it up for bone docking. To that end I will need to be building a couple of off grid solar system. Been watching the videos for a while and look forward to learning new engineering

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Yamaha fan?

Consider that a motorhome, or any other RV, no matter how good the marketing is, has GARBAGE insulation compared to a permanent structure. Texas has both heat and cold, and climate control in the motor home will be a huge portion of the energy equation and ongoing expenses. Plan for skirting for insulation and a large propane tank for the RV furnace. If you use the typical absorption fridge, you almost have to run it on propane. They use 5-6X the energy of a comparable size compressor fridge.

Having owned both motorhomes and trailers, I vigorously urge you to consider a 5th wheel. They are so much more livable than a motorhome. We paid about $15K last year for a used 37' Montana Big Sky with 4 slides, and it is just amazing. It feels like the Taj Mahal compared to our 33' Newmar Mountainaire.

Good luck!

 

[FJRider]

Yamaha fan?

Consider that a motorhome, or any other RV, no matter how good the marketing is, has GARBAGE insulation compared to a permanent structure. Texas has both heat and cold, and climate control in the motor home will be a huge portion of the energy equation and ongoing expenses. Plan for skirting for insulation and a large propane tank for the RV furnace. If you use the typical absorption fridge, you almost have to run it on propane. They use 5-6X the energy of a comparable size compressor fridge.

Having owned both motorhomes and trailers, I vigorously urge you to consider a 5th wheel. They are so much more livable than a motorhome. We paid about $15K last year for a used 37' Montana Big Sky with 4 slides, and it is just amazing. It feels like the Taj Mahal compared to our 33' Newmar Mountainaire.

Good luck!

Thanks. This will be my 3rd motor home. I also had a couple of older trailers also. I have thought about a 5th wheel and keep looking at them but prefer motor homes. Understand the heat and AC issues with both of them. I am thinking about dumping propane totally. Going with an induction cook top and 4 to 5 of the diesel heaters like the the Van Builders us. After years of building and operating high availability Data Centers redundant systems. One of the hardest things that I cannot figure out yet is how to swap to ductless systems. As to the fridge I have had many of the Ammonia types and have no intention of running one of those. Most of what I am looking at have residential fridges in them. If it does not I will convert to it. The tank location I am kind of hopping to be where I house some of the solar system.

I tend to research things to the extreme and over think things but that is just me.

 

[12VoltInstalls]

am thinking about dumping propane totally. Going with an induction cook top and 4 to 5 of the diesel heaters like the the Van Builders us.

A 16Kbtu propane furnace runs on 3A and is effective- and eliminates huge expensive solar and batteries for the few months of cold, plus a tankless propane water heater is super cheap to run when you can’t make excess solar do hot water.

Five diesel heaters still use fuel, and the summary watts will likely be more than the RV furnace…

As far as the RV is concerned: one can still assemble a 16x20 building fairly inexpensively. (disclaimer: I’m currently living in a 24’ camper cuz it saves me $1000/month) An RV is fine, good in many ways, but after a time you just start to think about a more traditional domicile with nice windows and a porch. The money for a decent RV and then outfitting it might not be much different than a small, tidy house. That’s tidy house, not tiny house.
(I admit I don’t quite get the tiny house thing)
Plus a properly built little house may not completely fall down (or over!) in a small or medium tornado.

Just some thoughts.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Thanks. This will be my 3rd motor home. I also had a couple of older trailers also. I have thought about a 5th wheel and keep looking at them but prefer motor homes.

I was in your camp having owned 3X motorhomes first (I still own the Newmar), but once I got a 5th wheel, it was all over. While they're all crap compared to permanent structures, the insulation of a 5th wheel can be dramatically better than a motorhome. Plus, rodents LOVE nesting in the engine compartment of a motorhome.

Understand the heat and AC issues with both of them. I am thinking about dumping propane totally. Going with an induction cook top and 4 to 5 of the diesel heaters like the the Van Builders us. After years of building and operating high availability Data Centers redundant systems. One of the hardest things that I cannot figure out yet is how to swap to ductless systems.

If freezing is at all a problem in your area, many RV systems depend on the furnace keeping certain portions of the plumbing from freezing.

As to the fridge I have had many of the Ammonia types and have no intention of running one of those. Most of what I am looking at have residential fridges in them. If it does not I will convert to it.

Glad to hear it.

The tank location I am kind of hopping to be where I house some of the solar system.

I tend to research things to the extreme and over think things but that is just me.

Our system is completely separate from the RVs - in a shipping container. We have a 50A pedestal we just plug the RVs into.

Even if you want to keep it contained to the RV, at a minimum, seriously consider a ground array, so you can have surplus solar at an appropriate tilt. Flat panels on an RV roof only perform at about 40% of rated during winter compared to summer.

 

[FJRider]

I think that there might be a little misunderstanding here. I will be putting a small house on the property (6 to 8 hundred Sq. Feet). Or an inexpensive trailer like one of the FEMA trailers. For a home base. One of the things that the last couple of years have soon is that even if full timing you really need a home base so the property will be home base. The RV will be for traveling and in the beginning I really hope to be full timing. Because of this I will have to have 2 solar systems. One in the RV that will need to support an energy hog for the Sq. footage and one for the land. I was already planing on the one for the land being built in an insulated shipping container. I have a couple of Kids that are struggling that I want space for. They in fact will probably be in 5th wheels or something similar (40 foot FIMA trailers can be had for 5K) For the property what ever is on it needs to be movable to keep the taxes down as low as possible. There is one 3 acre lot for 35K that already has septic and a well on it. The lot is smaller then what I want and closer in then I hope for but fills in all of the boxes very nicely. My house will most likely be a shed to house. There are several places around here that build them to be turned into houses with double pane windows, vapor wrapped with engineered anchor systems rated to with 150 MPH winds.

Right now I am thinking about an older Tiffin Allegro bus or Zephyr 2 slides plus. The side walls are 2.5 inches thick and the roof is 3 inches so as far as RVs go they are pretty good in the insulation. Tiffin has a huge maintenance center that provided really low cost repairs and serviced their product there for the first ten years if it’s life. (Watch You, Me and the RV on YouTube to see how it works). Because of this and it until last year being a family company the built them well. They learned what broke and what it took to fix it so they where always updating and kept things simple. FOr traveling as I said I really prefer to travel in a Motor Home. I also prefer the toad for getting around as I like to explore and 4WD. I do hear you and agree that you have more usable space when stopped in a 5th wheel or longer trailer. Just for other factors a Motor Home works better for me.

As to the rodents in the engine compartments If I am traveling I have to have an engine wither it is in a truck or a motor home.

I really appreciate everyone that replies to me here. It lets me go back and double check every thing that I am thinking. I am having to change everything in my life at this time 3 to 4 years ahead of when I was planing. Covid and a few other things put me into retirement before I was planing on. I had planed on taking the next 4 years to do what I need and want to do. That said I am not going to rush it.

Again thinks for the input