Just out of curiosity, how many of you forum members full-time in your Foretravel? As I think I've mentioned elsewhere, my wife and I hope/plan to buy our first coach in two or three years. (In the meantime, I'm reading as much as time allows.) With the budget that we've set, that coach could be an older (pre-2004, based on current pricing I've seen) FT or Country Coach or a slightly newer Newmar, Tiffin, or Winnebago (possibly 2011 model, with Newmar the favorite of those three brands).
I know a person can full-time in just about anything, but curiosity got the better of me, so I thought I'd throw the question out there. Thanks.
We've full-timed since 2003.
In two different 26ft Lazy Daze Class C's and a 1997 36ft U295 and 1999 40ft U320.
best, paul
Thanks! From your signature, I see that you are well-equipped with solar power. Based on your memory of your U295, would it support that much capacity? The 36-foot length is the one I feel most comfortable with in the FT line, and the idea of spending much of my time "off the grid" also appeals.
I've been living in mine for almost three years.. I know that this (fulltiming) isn't for everyone but for me at this point in my life is perfect. For the most part I'm plugged in but am equipped with solar panels so I can dry camp only needing the generator for using the A/C or micro wave. I've gone for days without having to run the gen and living comfortably. The hardest part for me was taking the first step. I had the coach for years but just used it for fun. The first couple nights being "homeless" were a little shaky in my head but as I look back,no regrets. I have my house rented so if I ever decided to grow up I could go back. I don't see that happening (knock on wood). Poor health would be the only thing I could see that would change how I live.. Good Luck!
I have 750 watts of solar on the roof of a 36' and can place more up there. I may have to move a couple closer to each other than present but getting 1200 would be easy.
If we want to use the Micro we do not have to start genset.
JohnH
Howdy Walt,
Nancy and I have been full timing since the fall of 2009. 65,000 miles and having a blast.
Here' a link to our travels in 2013: Our Travels 2013 (http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=20221.msg146216#msg146216)
Good Luck, Dave and Nancy A
Thanks, John, for the info. My wife and I are not RV park types and prefer state parks, Forest Service campgrounds, and even getting off the beaten path whenever we can, so solar will likely be a big part of whatever we do. Good to know we can "go big" in terms of solar without going really big in terms of the coach. :)
Dave and Nancy,
You certainly got around quite a bit in 2013. :D You also picked a hot time to visit Three Island Crossing in Idaho (guessed that was the location when you mentioned Glenns Ferry). My wife was born in Mobile and still has family in lower Alabama (or L.A., as she refers to it), so I've been through that tunnel a few times. Thanks for sharing that experience.
Howdy Walt, Yes, it was Three Island Crossing. Nice park, but boy it was hot!! Only a 30amp, but in our great FT coach, we got along fine.. I wish you had been looking last year, as we spent a couple of weeks in Boise, and you would have been welcome to look us over.
Good Luck in your search. Your definitely on the right track looking at FT. IMHO, these are the best coaches available, especially for full timing.
Dave A
Walt, we're almost full-timers in our 93 U300 40' coach. We live in it but use the house for the dishwasher and bath so we don't have to dump as often. As soon as the place sells, though, we'll be full-time in the coach. We bought this coach specifically to be our full-time coach, and the more we travel in it the more we are convinced we made the right decision.
Walt we have had our FT for about 9 years. We will be full time in about a month, house is sold along with most everything else. No second thoughts yet. In the middle of all the moving just started tearing out the old carpet tonight and getting ready for new hardwood and tile, and new washer and dryer.
Thanks everyone! It's good to know that if we do end up buying a Foretravel for travel full-time we won't be alone. Not that I thought we would be.
Dave and Nancy, Three Island Crossing is a nice park. We usually go there at least once a year, but definitely not in July or August. :) If you ever do pass through Boise again, I'd love to see your coach. The one coach I've seen so far in person convinced me of the quality of Foretravel.
Bruce and Linda, and David - best of luck as you start your full-time odyssey. We're still several years away, but I've been thinking about it almost every day since I first heard of the idea five years ago. Got the DW on board with the idea a couple of years back. Now to sell on FT as a coach brand to consider. :)
Hi Walt -
Carol and I have been full timing for about 1 1/2 years now. One of the best decisions that we have made. Good luck.
Hey Walt, Donna and I have been full time now for 13 months! It seems to suit us well. Our coach is very comfortable and has been stone reliable...that provides a lot of comfort. Also knowing that when / if we retire from the coach, it will be sought after and have value. Another great perk is you meet great folks like Scott and Carol among others.
We leave in the morning for our family reunion tour. Western Oklahoma for the 4th and then to central Texas for the other side reunion. We will take two of our grandchildren with us....life is good.
The right time and coach will come! Good Luck!
We would seriously recommend also including a 40-foot coach in your consideration. It's really not much different in terms of driving and maneuvering than is a 36-foot coach, and there is significantly useful storage space than is available in a 36-foot coach. While we aren't yet ready to full-time (and perhaps may never be), we are really glad we have the 40-foot coach. It's already clear that we appreciate the extra space.
Hey,
We have had our couch 1 year and been in it 11 months. Love it! This winter proved to me that I like my coach with out a slide. Although I have not had a ft with one. Aqua hot is a must in cold climate's. I saw a prevost with a frozen basement and water flowing out all of the doors. He said it was to expensive of an option. Mine stayed 55 every were but the compartment with the ah in it was 70s. Cycled off a lot at 0 outside. Get 7-8 mpg with toad at 73 mph cruise. Retarder breaking system is very needed with weight. My engine ran great when it was this cold. Great coach for 2 people. Not good sleeping on the leather sleeper though. My floor plan is like the 99 320 that is for sale in Texas.
I moved the table up to the edge of the wrap around couch. More walk way as the table slides out to sit and eat. Desk is great mounted large monitor on wall wireless key board all works great.
The kitchen is great for one person only. We can dump and unhook while building air ready to drive in 15 min.
Happy shopping , but really look heavy at fortravel. No doubt they are one of the top from 95 or so on. 40 footer for me though.
Good luck!
Reta and I are in our 14th year of full-timing and would do nothing else. We've had our FT for 9 years and would have nothing else. We have 465 watts of solar and could add enough to get it well over 1000watts. Higher wattage panels and smaller design could bring that all to the ridiculous point with money being the only limit. See you all down the road. ^.^d
We've been full-timing in ours since 2008 and expect to keep doing it for a long time. 500 W of solar on the roof, 2 8D AGMs, and 8kw generator is all we need for drycamping. We run both the residential fridge and the standalone (U-Line) ice maker on solar all day/over night with no problems. We have gas heat (furnace) and catalytic heaters, and are never cold in the winter (OK, not up north often in the winter, though...).
It's a great full-timing coach!
We agree! While we don't know whether or not we will ever actually "full time," we definitely look forward to some very extended part-time traveling! Our coach is fully equipped and all ready to go--it's just waiting for us!
Thanks for all of the input and advice. We were out with the trailer for the weekend, and I had some problems getting onto the forum before that, so I'm just now seeing some of the responses.
For those of you with 40-foot coaches, do you find the extra length limits you much in terms of the places you go or can go? I ask because my wife reiterated today that 40-feet is too long. Her opinion was further solidified by the fact that we had to back our 34-foot fifth wheel out of a pull-thru site in a state park in order to be sure we could get around the corner coming out of the site. Having never driven a coach, I'm not sure if such maneuvers are any easier with a motorhome.
I have not wanted to go anywhere that I could not find a space. Sometimes it is a challenge but you just had one and it is doable. Thought it would be harder but finding a spot but it has not turned out that way.
Just remember: when towing that 34' 5th wheel, your total length is 50+ feet. I would think a 40' coach would be no problem at all for you.
True. Guess I hadn't considered that. On a somewhat related note, Foretravels (as I think I've seen somewhere) appear to have longer wheelbases than a lot of other similar length coaches. Is that a good, bad, or simply different thing when it comes to handling, turning, and overall maneuverability?
No issues anywhere with my 40 to date. Lots of 42 and 45's out there. Btw, primo coach was 36. Drive them before you get so rigid on what works and doesn't
We have a 40 foot unit and it has never prevented us from staying at any location. Obviously, more care and planning is required as any vehicle's length increases, but it has never been a problem for us.
X2
A truck pulling a 5'er or TT bends in the middle. A motor home doesn't. That isn't the real issue, though. A long wheelbase MH will have a larger turning radius, but the actual road space it needs to make the turn is narrower. With our toad we are about 58' long. We usually unhook the Jeep before we leave the park office. We were in a state park recently that was a bit difficult to get into some spots - for everyone. I cheated by pulling forward into the empty spot across from us, then backed straight in to our spot. If that spot hadn't been empty it would have been a bit of a challenge, but still doable.
With all of the maps and satellite views online it is generally pretty easy to check out a potential site before going to it. If you find something that looks promising, but still have questions, just unhook the toad and go check out the site before taking the coach there.
Walt, you might want to go to some of your nearby favorite parks next weekend and see what sort of coaches are there. If you don't see any over 36' then you might be onto something. If you see longer coaches there, though, you will know that they can fit. Go talk to some of those people and see what they can tell you. Even if the coach is another brand, a 40' coach is a 40' coach.
Here's a picture of our television. Yes, we take it down when we're traveling. (Someone actually asked about that recently - not on this forum, though).
A longer wheelbase is good for stability while driving. The tradeoff is turning radius.
We consider our 38' Foretravel the perfect length, but almost as rare as 34'. Unless you need lots of storage space, you should be very happy at 36', an easier to find length.
We prefer 36'. . .
I know some people like slides, but NOT having slides gives more storage space and less headache. I travel single most of the time, and I'm usually outside anyway. Slides were a definite NO for me. I didn't want the extra systems and more stuff to break.
Also, I know many like AquaHot, but I really didn't want it due to my lifestyle. I'm not usually in super cold places, and it takes up more room and more to maintain. I've yet to ever run out of hot water...and it is 3way with the engine heating it.
Aqua hot has had very little in the way of big issues. I would not discount one for that reason. Works like a water heater on elec too. You are trading space near the outside for inside spaces the older units.
Oh if you are boondocking and want to preheat the engine you can as well.
Hi Walt,
Never had any trouble getting our 40 foot U 320 into any place we have traveled.
Raymond
Clever! Never quite thought of that.
These are more religious wars I had a 270 and now a 320. 270 had no slide. Aqua hot and slide our are like power windows and remote door locks in a car. Once you have them you don't want to go back.
Love my 270 but hated those noisy propane furnaces
I'm torn between having slides and not having slides. I think I'd be happy either way. I don't know how strongly my wife feels about having them. As far as AquaHot and the like is concerned, I don't have strong opinions. I would not buy a coach simply because it has it or discount a coach simply because it doesn't. It isn't a deal maker or deal breaker for me.
I can agree with the furnace being a bit loud. But I feel it's compatible to the A/C.
Before buying, I did some online research. A few people said the new 2 stage furnaces were much quieter...like aqua hot quiet.
Also, it's not fair to compare aqua hot running on electric to a propane furnace. It needs to be firing diesel. I know it's still quieter, though.
If you wish to go all electric at any time and ditch the propane tank, you will need aqua hot.
I will admit the propane furnaces are noisy, but so are the roof ac units. In either case, we often run the one on the back when we are in the front to lessen the noise.
All electric and longer-term boondocking don't really seem to go together in my mind. I'm sure people do it with solar out west, but in the woods or the shade it won't work too well, haha.
The Norcold in my couch is 2 years old. So far it works great. It's a smaller unit. It kept my ice cream nice and hard on setting 4 out of 9 (coldest) in the Florida heat last week.
It really comes down to use. If one is going to use the RV and stay in places that offer power to plug in, then all electric is great. If I'm plugged in, I can always use an electric space heater. Propane really makes sense for a user like me though
From another thread
Those wheelbase numbers do come into play, and I've deleted the turning radius info to highlight them. We saw evidence of this at the Mineola Grandvention - with our tag axle we couldn't get level in sites non-tag 40' coaches could and we had to ask to move.
In the same length coach, those without a tag will be easier to level (shorter wheelbase) but an advantage of the tag is that it gets you vastly more CCC and I wouldn't want a 2-slide 40' coach without a tag for that reason (I recall a 40' non-tag 2-slide with all ceramic flooring that left relatively little (maybe 1500 lbs?) capacity not including people, I don't think it would have worked for fulltiming). 36' or 38' will be less sensitive to a challenging site than 40' non-tag since it has an even shorter wheelbase. Tag and slides also reduce storage compared to the same length non-tag coach (both bay and interior due to the associated mechanisms).
That said, we half time and love our 2-slide, tag-axle 40' coach.
I half time too it seems and in a 42 and love it. I could do with a 40 as well. I have a 24 foot as well but find other then going into the city I do not use it like I thought. I have owned a 34 foot and 36 as well. I could get the 36 into anywhere the 34 fit even the same spots. Now I have been able to maneuver the 42 into them too but it took a bit of work but it would surprise you where it has been. Now I have found places none of them will fit and the jeep goes there. Why hike is my motto on the jeep.
Walt,
If you stay a day and then move as a normal routine, non slide might be the way to go. If you tend to drive and they sit for a few days or weeks, slides may serve her better.
She will LOVE the aqua hot and slides, careful if you show her those coaches
Like I said , choices!!!
From our experiences Tim is right on. It all comes down to how you like to travel.
When we are traveling and only staying for one night, we use our one slide 36' as a non slide. The only thing in our coach that cannot be accessed with the slide in is the pantry. This requires some planning to ensure that any items in the pantry that will be needed are removed from the pantry and stored elsewhere. I understand that a slide model has less storage than a non slide model. That may be the case as our one slide model has a GVWR of 35,320 pounds. When loaded for a trip our weight is around 31,000 pounds. Bottom line, purchase a one slide model and use it as either a slide or non slide as the need arises.
I'm hoping that staying a day and then moving will not be our routine. I think our plan is to go somewhere and stay a few weeks to a month before moving on so we have time to explore. I already know she likes the slides as we have them in our fifth-wheel. of course, that layout would be impossible without them. I will, though, have to keep that in mind about the Aqua Hot. I also have not ruled out going all-electric as we do plan to install solar on whatever we end up buying. Thanks to everyone who has chimed in so far!
I've noticed than many of the two slide models - at least in the model years we could consider - tend to have the wardrobe on the second slide, so the one-slide coaches to me seem like a better option. Gotta talk to the CFO and see how the motorhome savings fund is shaping up. :D
Look carefully at the bedroom photos of wardrobe slide units. You will notice that there are no, side wall overhead cabinets, on either side wall, to either bump your head on, or store anything. Also harder to see is that the rear overhead cabinets are not as deep, front to back, to allow a slide on the side wall to be as long as possible. That further cuts down on bedroom storage.
We bought our coach, without slides, as the seller move up to another 36' but with two slides. Their comments about the lost storage capacity in the newer 320 was interesting. We all guessed they lost 40-50% of their storage that we have in their old U295, inside and in the bays.
That is something I've noticed in the FT slide models. Many of the overhead storage compartments seem smaller, height-wise, to the compartments in non-slide models or in other brands. I know my wife would not be happy with that.
"That is something I've noticed in the FT slide models. Many of the overhead storage compartments seem smaller, height-wise, to the compartments in non-slide models or in other brands. I know my wife would not be happy with that."
We picked up their coach as a trade in at FOT, after the full timer/seller had emptied it into their newer 320. They were looking for where everything should go, and had their towed car full, and still piles of things to find places. Granted they got a great coach, and more carpet room, that works better for them as they spend 1-4 months parked during their winter's in TX.
Hope to be full timing in ours soon. Only been Home two nights since May 1st. Loving every minute of it.
We don't full time, but as far as usable space, we just upgraded from a 36 to a U320 40'-- the space difference is amazing. Drivability is actually better on the U320 than it is on our older U280 36', and I didn't expect that.
This is a great thread, especially since we plan to full-time late next year. Since I'm new to the forum, I've noticed that most of the responses are from those with FT in the '90s or early 00's. Much different than many of the SOB forums which highlight the latest DPs. It's nice to see so many FT full-timers whose coaches have withstood the test of time.
My 2 cents, we will get slides and I'd like to get a tag. We will probably "move" monthly and the slides are a tremendous asset when sitting for more than a couple days ... unless they leak :) I'd like a tag since it gets you a little more ccc, along with maybe a little more stability on highway. However, my only experience was test driving one, so certainly not an expert.
Tim, that's part of the reason why we have a Foretravel. One of the marks of a high quality coach is how well it stands up over the years.
2001 42' single slide u -320 - James Triana's pick for his favorite used FT
Tim,
Excuse my ignorance, but who is James Triana?
James T. is the person at FT who is VP of support - basically he is our "bible" and authority on most things FT (beyond this group that is)
Hi jake62,
James T. is a Foretravel owner's greatest asset. If he does not have the answer, well I have not heard of this happening. He has been there just about forever. This forum is a Foretravel owner's second greatest asset.
Raymond
He showed me how they rolocked the subframe supports to the bulkhead at the unihome introduction at Nac in oct 1987. Had a small display piece setup. I got to use his assembly tool to drive one in and take one home. Young guy then. Smart then also. Kidded him recently about the rolocks.