Remember that when you leave this Earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received, only what you have given, a full heart enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage. -St. Francis of Assisi

Friday, March 18, 2011

Water

How much water do you use?

I'm looking at a Class B+
with a freshwater tank of 39 gallons

Just wondering how long this would last?
(for one person)

Do you use bottled water for cooking and drinking?

Is a 6 gallon water heater enough water to take a shower?

**********************************************************
New vs. Used
 I'm looking at a new 2010 that is marked down
 because the 2012 models are on the lot.
I always felt that with new, you lose a lot with depreciation.

I like the idea that no one else has used it,
and that the water tanks have not sat empty
maybe getting moldy or smelly???

What's your opinion on this?



12 comments:

  1. We did the same thing, Teri. Our rig was was a year old but had never been used. I loved that, but it's just a personal preference. If you take a reasonable shower, turning on, wetting down, turn off to soap, on to rinse, off for hair conditioner, on to rinse again, a 6 gallon tank is fine. Mo and I can both take a shower with our 6 gallon tank. We manage easily 3 or 4 days on our 36 gallon tank of fresh water. We do bring drinking water from home in the fridge, but use our tank water for everything else.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like you are getting close!

    I think the amount of water you use will depend on if you go to RV parks, or state parks that have hook ups or if you plan on boondocking most of the time.

    Some people strongly prefer their own shower, no mater how small and how conservative they need to be to use it.

    Others are OK using the showers at the park. I like them better because they are bigger and I can run the water as long as I want! But I always wear shower shoes to protect my feet. I guess I don't mind the park showers because I'm so used to the showers at the 24 hr. Fitness!

    I's all personal preference!

    ReplyDelete
  3. That is the way we feel - I know A LOT of people buy used and swear by it. But we just want something that only we have lived in. We also like that because it is new we will know its history and how it has been serviced etc.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Six gallons will get you a shower, but if you look around a lot of the rig's have 10 gal water heaters now.40 gallon fresh water tanks are about the standard, some large motor homes go to a hundred gal.Be safe out there. Sam & Donna.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I did a lot of boondocking in my older Class C. It had a 35 gallon tank and that would last me 2 weeks as long as I carried bottled & cooking water (which I did).

    I religiously recycled all kitchen & bathroom sink water to the toilet for flushing. I took more sink baths than showers.

    I bought used and never worried about the fresh tank. I flushed it with bleach and it was fine (instructions in many places online). You need to do that once a year regardless...and I always used a good water filter to fill the fresh tank.

    ReplyDelete
  6. None of those sink baths or military showers for this guy. I like hot water & lots of it. For drinking we generally buy bottled water. Because we boon dock a lot we carry big jugs of extra water that we can add to our main tank if & when it gets low. Easy for us to throw those jugs in the Jeep & refill them as needed in nearby towns or service centers etc. Yes, it's always nice to buy new but that is not always an option depending on a person's financial situation. I think Malone's idea of a year old model but still new is a good way to go if possible. Our rig was a used 4 year old coach with only 14,000 miles on it. It was the right fit for us & we have been very happy with it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have to agree with everybody above. You learn to be extremely water conservative. New vs used is a personal and financial choice. If you can get a good deal on a new/old unit great, but they depreciate immensely as soon as you drive off the lot. RVs are not an investment like a house. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think our water heater is six gallons, and that's plenty for both of us to take "leisurely" military showers. Once I went to my two-pint shower the six gallons was excessive. :D

    We bought used and bleached our tank and lines. Your new 2010 sounds nice. You can have the best of both (used and new) worlds.

    Roxanne

    ReplyDelete
  9. Teri,

    39 gallons only comes into play if you do a lot of boondocking. Most places with full hookups means you won't be using your own fresh water supply. In fact, I keep our tank only about 1/4 full to save on gas and allows enough water for when we pull over in rest stops and need to use the head.

    We generally use bottled water for drinking but not for cooking or coffee. The places we have gone to have had good water.

    6 gallon water heater has worked fine for us since it heats up rather quickly for the next person. Showers need to be pretty fast though, we turn our water off while soaping up to conserve hot water. However if you get the 10 gallon they are typically LP and electric where the 6 gallon units are generally LP only. So an upgrade will give you both. There are ways to add electric heat to an LP only heater as well.

    As for new or used, this is a tough one. You save A LOT by buying used and most of the time the issues have been worked out but of course that isn't always the case. When you buy new it's yours, it's never been used by anybody else and sometimes it's worth the extra money to get that. You get a new warranty as well and generally better treatment from the dealer.

    Also, another generic comment, Class C's many times have bigger holding tanks. If the Class C or B+ is Sprinter based, you pay big bucks for it but get better MPG as well, is it worth it to save gas and pay a higher cost for the rig, only you can answer that one.

    Also, I know you like GM but trust me when I say this, the Ford's are EXCELLENT in the Class C and B+ models, heck in any model of RV they are excellent. Plus, they are better looking than their GM counter parts, IMHO of course. ;)

    Here is a comment from a few dealers I have been talking too, STAY AWAY from Gulf Stream. These two dealers say Gulf Stream's have a higher leak rate and Gulf Stream is in trouble right now and not paying warranty claims on time or sometimes at all.

    Teri, post how many feet you're interested in, maybe the budget you're looking at and we can all give you some ideas on what might be a good fit. Write up your dream new/used rig and we'll all see what's out there.

    Good luck!

    Erik

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Terry I thought I lost you. After surgery I really couldn't get on line much. You sure have been busy looking around. Its good to shop and see what is out there new/used. I bought used have had a few miner problems but you can have those w/new also. I have a 6gl hot water it works for me. I also have a 35 fresh water but carry bottled water. I don't boon dock but some times only have electric hook ups.
    I wish you the best of luck have fun.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Teri,

    One thing I forgot to mention, and this is advantage GM. The dog house on the Ford's is bigger and intrudes on knee space when exiting the driver seat to go into the back area. Newer GM models have a smaller dog house making it easier on the knees.

    For women, this might not be as big a deal but for guys like me who are 6', it was something I noticed.

    Just more info for you to soak in. :)

    Erik

    ReplyDelete
  12. Its me again, I have the Ford and yes the leg room is not much and when you have bad knees it is so very hard to get up and get in the back.
    Terri you seem to know what you are looking for and that is great. I really didn't understand about to much stuff and since the price was so good I bought my rig. Of course I am happy to have it. but know I would do more shopping and find what is really to my liking.

    ReplyDelete

Hi, I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Drake Tax Software

Overnight stays in these states:

Overnight stays in these states:
It is the sandstorm that shape the stone statues of the Desert. It is the struggles of Life that form a person's character ~ Native American Proverb