RV's anyone???

RNERHOUSESUPOR · Oct 11, 2009

How long do you want to stay in one place? Living in a Class C for very long would be one hundred times longer feeling, especially if there are 4 children. My fifth wheel toyhauler is fine for my daughter and me so far. She is nearing the teens and may not appreciate the closeness as much in the future. I am trying to resolve that before it happens. Knew a family that lived in their 5th wheel all summer. They had a "Bunkhouse" for their 4 children ages 2 to 12. Don't think I could do that either, but they each had a bed.

Keep looking at different RV's you may find one that will fit your needs.

I have met LPN's working on travel assignments but not for a long time. Surgical techs, Physical Therapy and a few Rad Techs are the only non RN's that I have met. I have my winter assignment after working a Perdiem job for the summer. I start in January. Good luck in your search.

EmergencyNrse · Oct 11, 2009

Just bought my 1st Class A. :specs:

I don't think I put as much research into it as I needed to. After tax, tag, title now what do I do with it?

I'm told they can't be parked on the street. Here in San Diego they will give you 72 hrs in one spot. If you come back too soon they ticket you. I was hoping for more flexibility but it looks like I'm headed to a campground.

Campgrounds... you can't stay in the same park for any longer than 3 weeks then you have to move on. I'm unsure as to how much time you have to spend away before returning. What a shell-game!

This is going to be fun.

roamingessential · Oct 12, 2009

Thanks! I will keep all this in mind.... (we only travel with 2 kids during the school year I just need the extra two spaces for our girls if they are traveling with us for short trips) appreciate all the suggestions....

RNERHOUSESUPOR · Oct 12, 2009

Emergency Nurse,

Before you head off to a campground try looking around in your area for an RV Storage space. They should me much less expensive than a Campground and you can leave it parked in the same spot as long as you pay the rent. Can't live in it while there though.

I have made it through my first sub freezing spell. It didn't last too long but it's still in the 40's for the next week. Came a little earlier in the year than I expected but with the help of my Dad, we got things ready in an afternoon. Still have a few things I want to do but nothing extremely urgent unless the temps dip below 0 degrees. That will be the real test.

I'm looking to make the second biggest purchase since the Toyhauler purchase. I have an 1999 Ford F350 Dually with the 7.3 Diesel that I thought would be big enough for any trailer I purchased. Yes it will pull and stop the trailer but in the Mountains I just don't feel the same as I do on the flat roads. Have started looking at the HDT's (Heavy Duty Truck). Met several folks at a rally in Kansas two weekends ago and am getting ready to replace the Ford with a Volvo 770. Wish me luck,

Rod

sheneeRN · Nov 11, 2009

Wow!! This is a great thread!! My husband and I are seriously thinking about getting an RV and traveling. We have an 11 year old daughter that we would home school. He is an IT manager but the company he works for has recently come up for sale and he is thinking about doing come on-line classed to further his educaiton. I am begging him to hit the road for about a year!! The info on here is just wonderful!! Thanks to all the RV travelers who posted thier stories!!!

EmergencyNrse · Nov 11, 2009

Wow!! This is a great thread!! My husband and I are seriously thinking about getting an RV and traveling. We have an 11 year old daughter that we would home school. He is an IT manager but the company he works for has recently come up for sale and he is thinking about doing come on-line classed to further his educaiton. I am begging him to hit the road for about a year!! The info on here is just wonderful!! Thanks to all the RV travelers who posted thier stories!!!

Mine is a "vintage" model and am running into some problems as a result of it's age. I didn't consider that many places will not allow you inside their park if your rig is older than 10-years. There are other RV grounds that cannot handle anything over 40'. Many things to consider before you buy...

I'm not living in it yet so there isn't much of a problem. I wanted to get some experience with motor homes before I actually put down big money on one.

I figure I will be breaking, repairing, and shaking down all the problems associated with the lifestyle. This way for me it won't be so expensive and I'll get a lot of experience this way. Hard to drop a quarter million $$$ on something you don't even know how to handle. (In my other life I drove a beer truck).

Later though, I'm talking Monaco, Tiffin, Alfa, Fleetwood, Newmar, Itasca, Prevost... Diesel Pushers!

Here is a place that has lots of information for newbies and future RV-ers.

http://www.rv.net/forum/

Be sure to read stuff in the "Beginning RVing" forum.

sissy56 · Nov 11, 2009

Even the new diesel pushers can have problems, The ECU on our 2006 Cross Country died in Palm Bay, FL. had to have it towed to Orlando for $600, the tow truck broke both our mirrors off, $460 (thankfully it was covered by the tow company) Cummins couldn't program their own part, so freightliner fixed the problem for $330. After a week we were finally on our way. In spite of all the problems this is the only way to live for us. I tried a permanent job only lasted 5 months, now I'm back to traveling. There's just too much country to see before I can grow roots.

rodggang · Nov 28, 2009

Hey everyone,

We did a travel assignment in North Carolina and just loved it, but then came home to Iowa and took a staff position due to the economy. I am getting the itch again and ready to hit the road. I have been updating my profiles with my companies and will start seriously looking after the first of the year. It looks to me things are opening up a little with jobs again....Are you having any problems with finding assignments?

We have a 36' Excel fifth wheel with slides and it worked great for us. We have looked at upgrading to a motorhome, but can't find one that is setup as nice as our fifth wheel. We are also thinking that motorhomes are great for traveling long distances, but when you get there the fifth wheel is a better option....What do you guys think?

I love this website....so much great info!

Cris

RNERHOUSESUPOR · Nov 30, 2009

Where did you work in Iowa. I spend the summer in Ottumwa but took a short assignment in Utah this fall till right after Christmas. I head for Florida in January. I have been able to return to the same hospital, this will be the third assignment. I am looking to upgrade my tow vehicle for my 5th wheel. Am looking at a Heavy Duty Class 8 truck. Check out the HDT site on RVNetwork.com. I had thought of a motorhome but think the toyhauler I currently have will last a long time if I have the proper tow vehicle.

Rod

rodggang · Nov 30, 2009

We are from Knoxville, not far from Ottumwa. I have worked for the local hospital here for about 15 years, but took a little time away to try the travel and contract thing about 2 years ago. Decided to take a position here again when the economy went "south" to have a guaranteed job. Now I am getting the itch to get back out there. I have been watching the websites pretty close and looks like things are loosing up a little, but still not like it was a few years back.

How long have you been traveling? I have 2 friends that just left to go to Arizona and I am so jealous. Have you worked any where in Texas or Arizona? What specialty do you do? I would like to do something in Missouri this summer to be close to home.

We have a Chevy diesel dually to pull our Excel. My husband just told me that we probably need to get new tires if we decide to head out again, but I am thinking like you, our trailer is really nice and will work for many years if we take care of it.

Do you use one agency or are you signed with several? What do you do about insurance in between jobs?

Thanks for the info....will be anxious to hear about your experiences.

Cris

RNERHOUSESUPOR · Nov 30, 2009

I currently am working with All About Staffing. Have information with another company but haven't used them and would need to update the info if I do. Have a job in Florida till hopefully June, can't say where I will be next summer. Have some family issues that may keep me close to the Midwest again. I started travel nursing in 1989 working ER, traveled till my youngest was born and then stayed in South Florida till a divorce and I went to Kansas. My daughter would visit me in the summer but I missed out on too many school functions so I started to travel in the winter. The hospital was OK with it for one assignment but when I decided I wanted to do it every winter they didn't care for it anymore. I am doing OR nursing now. Started as a CVOR scrub but now can do almost anything in the OR. Don't do much Neuro, except spine. Try to stay out of messing with someone's brain. I took one assignment in Arizona, Tucson but it didn't work out as planned. Promised big money but when I arrived the job had changed from CVOR Scrub to circulation. I hadn't stepped to the other side of the table much and they didn't hold up to their end of the bargain. Neither did the company I was working for. Don't have anything good to say about CCTC.

Where did you go to school? IHCC?

I finally got a BC BS personal policy. Some companies had insurance but AAS doesn't offer it. I just did per-diem work this summer and insurance wasn't offered. From what I remember about insurance costs as a full time employee I think my out of pocket premiums are about the same. Don't have many frills though. It's just a major medical with a high deductible, that I hope I don't have to use.

Just spent the last week in Ottumwa. Home for the Holiday. Have taken a short assignment in Utah to help them out. They helped me last summer when the Arizona assignment went sour. Am in Utah till right after Xmas and then back to Iowa for a few days before heading south. They say jobs are getting more plentiful. I hope things continue. I need to work for several more years to pay off the toy-hauler and maybe a truck.

Rod

sissy56 · Nov 30, 2009

I worked in Tucson, AZ for the winter and the weather was perfect warm in the valley or if you felt the need, snow in the mountains. We looked at 5th wheels but I really didn't want to be driving a big diesel truck back and forth to work, so we chose a diesel pusher (better resale value, lasts longer, and low interest rate) and we tow a jeep liberty. My DH is retired military so our insurance is through the military, and we can stay in the famcamps on base if there is one close by a hospital. We stayed at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson. I have worked in FL during the winter and sometimes it is difficult to find a campground that isn't already booked throughout the winter, also it can get pretty pricey if you're near the ocean.