Motorhome 101 Part III

This will probably be the last installment of Motorhome 101 as I feel that I am scraping the bottom of the barrel (as will be plainly realized in a few moments) for the dregs of anything that may be of interest on this topic. Living in the motor home in-between Travels is just like living in your house except that in our case, we need to pull up anchor about every eight days or so and travel four miles down the road to the local State Park where the Dump Station is located.

                        This is the subject that most people want to know about (just like asking the astronauts “How do you go to the bathroom in space?”) but are hesitant to ask. In our case, we are more fortunate than the astronauts because we have gravity working for us and a “regular” facility, a.k.a. “bathroom”, works just fine. In our case we have two of them on board. One is a half bath located in the center and the second is a full bath (shower) and it also holds our washer and dryer. All of these attributes do make it a bit easier to live full-time in here.

                        “Hey Don, we noticed that you skipped over the part about where all the you-know-what goes!”

                        Well alrighty then all you members of the local Sewerage and Sanitary Facility Committee, here, to satisfy your inquisitories is your answer!

                        We have Holding Tanks.

                        Two of them to be exact. One is the “Gray” Water Tank which holds the used water from the sinks, shower, and washing machine. The second is aptly named the “Black” Water Tank which hold the “water” and other “stuff” from the toilets. These two tanks obviously have a “Holding Capacity” which is roughly half of what our Fresh Water Tank holds for each one. So, if we were totally out on our own for a few days, the 90-gallon fresh water would eventually end up in the 45-gallon Black Tank and the 45-gallon Gray Tank.

                        “Ok, got it Donny, but then what? Where does all this stuff ultimately wind up?”

                        That, my friends is the million-dollar question with the $10.00 to $25.00 answer. Because that’s what it costs us to utilize a Dump Station if we are not staying in an RV Park. Or there are some free ones, usually at a few Rest Stops on the Interstates. Alabama takes First Prize in the Most Awesomest Rest Areas competition not only because they all have Dump Stations but because they are staffed 24-hours a day and manicured to the hilt when it comes to Groundskeeping.

                        Now comes the yucky part but if you’ve ever changed the diaper on a baby you’ve got nothing to fear my friends as this event uses long tubular hoses to accomplish what you did with Wipes and a smelly diaper pail. Just rinse things out when you’re finished, wash your hands, and be on your way. It’s that simple and definitely not a big deal.

                        Next let me show you the layout of our particular motor home. While there are similarities in motor home layout, there are obviously ways to design things differently depending on the size, it’s primary usage, and of course, the manufacturer.

Ours is fairly standard and has two slide-outs. One is just the width of the bed, and the other is one of the largest in the industry and it takes up almost the entire length of the passenger side of the vehicle. This is the one that’s actually too large as its size makes it inherently heavy, therefore putting undue strains on its motors. We make sure that ours is brought in and out only while we are “leveled” as a kanked motor home would just bind up the system. This is the one that makes us nervous! But look at the extra room it provides!

                        Back in the day, before the slide-outs were developed (early 1990’s) only the width of the motorhome could be utilized for anything. This was not as bad as it seems as the interiors were designed for those space constraints. I was in an impressive 1986 Bluebird (the bus manufacturer) Wanderlodge a few months ago and it was excellent! Actually, it was to the point where I did not really miss the slide-outs because the design of the interior was really functional and easy to be in.

                        But we do have slide-outs. Ours, and all the newer ones, are designed to utilize these space-extensions to the max. It really does make a difference, especially now that we are used to having them. A few weeks ago, you may recall our Slide-Out Issue when we were up in Montana which did not get rectified until five weeks later when we pulled into Country Classic Auto and RV Repair in Sussex, New Jersey. We squeezed by each other, walked sideways around the front of the bed and were not able to open the fridge door all the way. All of this was a bother, none of it decreased our travel plans as we were still fully functional.

                                    That just about wraps up our Motorhome 101 class for the foreseeable future. (I can hear the sighs of relief coming through the speakers on my laptop! ) But just in case any of you are contemplating a purchase of anything like this, please feel free to contact us and we can help you with any questions that you may have.    

                                    And then we can say, “Hey, let’s meet in Tucson this winter!” We promise you’ll like it there!