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Old 06-19-2015, 10:02 PM   #1
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FULL TIMING is for the BIRDS...

An Airstream is an aluminum capsule with an inner wall, insulation in between the aluminum skin. It may have more or less window square footage. A door. Windows that open to various angles and bug screens. One or two ceiling vents in the ceiling.

An air conditioner that I would believe would not cool a small paper sack stuffed into it on a hot day.

A propane heater, which could cool the sack removed from the air conditioner.

A water pump. Fresh, grey and black water tanks. Two propane tanks. Storage space for things you could not use at home. A refrigerator that works...

The Dometic refrigerator operating in temperatures above 100F will have a freezer cooling to around 20F and the refrigerator at 55F. This is the Top End of the sweet spot for this refrigerator. TOP END for its ability.

Camped in 100F+ daytime weather, no hookups... I consider this Summer Full Timing possibility.

Camped in 50F+ daytime weather, no hookups... I consider this Winter Full Timing possibility.

Narrowing down the Full Timing would be having Full Hookups, unlimited Electrical power, Propane and someway to prevent your water system from freezing up. Maybe adding an alcohol/water mixture for the Adults and for the kids a microwave to melt the snow and ice outside the door.

Highs in the 50F+ to 100F- is reasonable during the daytime.

Any time the possibility of below 30F- degrees... or higher than 85F+ in the evening... not reasonable.

A Full Timer has to be on the move with the seasons. If not, you will last one year. Maybe a Leap Year and get that extra day to think things out.

An Airstream is really wonderful in the 40F to 90F temperature ranges. Lower or Higher temperature ranges and you become a human hot dog in the heat, or a head of lettuce in the cooler climates.

I have never had to wonder why so few people are Full Timers at one location. That is obvious to all, but a few. They have died, are stubborn or are among the 100 most wanted by the FBI. Maybe the Trailer plates are expired and the renewal would bankrupt themselves.

I do wonder about those who talk about Full Timing and do not mention that they get out of the cold/heat and migrate to better seasonal climates. You must be moving around to keep from freezing your lettuce or cooking your dogs. That seems to be an obvious conclusion, but I have made thousands of mistakes during my adult life's education to become opinionated, as it may be. Many of these lessons concerned burned dogs and welted lettuce.

Before even considering Full or Part Timing... try it out first. Like dating a person who cannot decide on hair color or how long their finger nails should grow out to be. Somethings need to be experienced before deciding on doing anything... permanent. Prison is not an option. Death could be, but not necessary for an excuse to change your plains.

Tucson and Las Vegas are, or can be, wonderful in February. In the summer you will not find a USA license plate that does not say... Arizona. These wise folks packed and headed back to where you were found frozen to the aluminum door to your Airstream several months earlier while Winter Full Timing.

YOU have to MIGRATE with the seasons, like a bird. Your trailer has no bird brain to think with, so you just might be able to use the brain of a bird to travel with the Four seasons.

(I am sorry I did not review this and edit anything that appeared to be "cooked or frozen" while reading. As this is meant to be an extension of settling this years February to June 2015 Off the Grid camping to date, some might toss in some better thought out edited text to convince me how wrong I actually am.)
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Old 06-19-2015, 11:17 PM   #2
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Chasing shirtsleeve weather

is the phrase I believe 2Airishuman used to use. Apt.

High summer heat is a chore and an impressive electrical expense, but constant below 40F is just too much, IMO. The problems become serious at some point. And the road condition may mean no escape.

40-90F is do-able, but 50-80F is the definition of a great time. Mild breeze and minimal rain. Round it off by using riders on distant unmuffled Harleys to check the zero on your .308 and it's the definition of perfect.
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Old 06-20-2015, 08:38 AM   #3
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From experiencing 100 to 121F days... 90F is refreshing and we made the adjustment to the heat under 100F very well. Humidity in the 3% at elevation to 35% range in the Lake Meade valley.

The most difficult part of being Off the Grid with high temperature evenings are... sleeping in it. The Airstream with all windows open, both ceiling vents running... still could not cool down the aluminum skin nor all of the latent heat stored within the trailer solid components.

There were a number of motorcycles at the Lake Meade campground in their protective gear. I should quit whining.

The tent campers had the advantage of cooling down much faster than any trailer or RV during the evenings and had the winds in their favor. I am sure many tent campers thought we were living in AC and left the windows wide open to warm the interior.

With minimal shade during the day, the hard shell campers were being cooked at night while the trailer slowly cooled down by morning. It works in reverse with COLD conditions creating a similar compromise of staying within a comfort zone.

At least in the Rockies, if you do not like the "weather where your are at"... head to higher or lower elevations. One hundred miles and you are in a totally different climate!
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Old 06-20-2015, 09:44 AM   #4
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FULL TIMING is for the BIRDS...

WET bulb 85F is where human health starts to suffer. Literally. Overnight temperatures above this are (love this word) "contraindicated" for short and long term health.

See the engineering toolbox or Wikipedia articles on how to take that measurement. CDC and WHO on affects. Or the history of why the British replaced their Irish slaves with Africans in the Barbadoes.
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Old 06-20-2015, 10:39 AM   #5
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I guess I'm a bird then.
Coo. Coo. Caw. Caw. Tweet. Tweet. Chirp.
This particular bird is able to keep his rolling birdhouse between 50 and 80 degrees with no ill effects to his health...
I have a 50 amp trailer with 2 a/c's that are also heat pumps in addition to the propane furnace. I never have trouble cooling. The only time I have trouble heating is when it is too cold for the heat pumps to do their thang.
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Old 06-20-2015, 01:48 PM   #6
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We just left Las Vegas yesterday. On Thursday afternoon, the Tundra's temp readout said 122F. Yikes! We were going to stay 4 days, only stayed 2. Now in Flagstaff, at 7000 feet, where it's a balmy 90. Our single A/C can keep up with 90, but not 122! The actual recorded high for that day in Vegas was 112. The recorded low overnight was 91.

We're not fulltimers. I was a fulltime liveaboard on a boat in Seattle for a dozen years, so am used to living in small spaces. Since we retired, we chase that shirtsleeve weather too. We wouldn't be where we are now, except for the International rally which starts next week in Farmington, NM.

Our years are evolving into:

Jan-April: southern California, fulltiming in the AS, mostly in Palm Springs
May-July: home in Portland to enjoy the garden
Aug-Sept: on the boat in Puget Sound, the San Juans, BC coast
Oct-Dec: home in Portland for autumn and the holidays

We love the vagabond life, but we don't want it to become "vagabondage." It's great to have a home we love to go back to.
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Old 06-20-2015, 04:10 PM   #7
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Ray Eklund,
You are a very humorous writer! I loved the hot dog, head of lettuce bit.
Thank you.
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Old 06-20-2015, 05:34 PM   #8
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"Tuscon is wonderful in February" ... ?!???!!!?

I seem to remember in college, heading onto campus at 7am in long pants and coat; then wandering out of labwork at 11am to find the entire mall filled with shorts/short-sleeve co-eds looking at me as if I am insane for what I am wearing.... :-P

... I hated lab days, in Tucson, in February.
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Old 06-20-2015, 06:07 PM   #9
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Who said full timing is for the birds? Well, you're correct, or my name isn't Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus!

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Old 06-20-2015, 10:24 PM   #10
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We (wife and two kids, 5 & 8 years old) had to full time for about two and a half months in Maryland from December 2013 to February 2014 during the "Polar Vortex". Actually, there were several "Polar Vortexes" that winter, down to 0 degrees at night with highs most of those days in the mid-teens. I cannot say it was that enjoyable of an experience, but the trailer did outstanding, especially once I got smart about dealing with the cold.

The only issue I had were the valves freezing closed with the tanks getting pretty full, and one valve handle breaking off in my hand. We tried everything to thaw them including hot water and antifreeze down the sewer hose. No joy. $80 later, I had a propane heater set up under the valves and after 45 minutes of warming, the valves moved.

An incandescent work light in the roadside city water inlet compartment kept the inlet free flowing. I built an insulated heated water hose for use during the more "milder days" and filled the freshwater tank every evening for when we were mandated to disconnect. I kept the compartment lights on too to keep the cool draftiness down to a minimum.

Never had a frozen tank or a busted pipe during this extended period of cold. Our neighbors were not so lucky with their SOBs. We saw them each day during their "walk of shame" to the bathhouses for their daily personal hygiene. The mobile RV repair guy was quite busy that winter in the park where we were staying.

Condensation was a considerable issue to deal with during this time, but most of it froze on the insides of the windows/portholes during the night. I did have to spend a small fortune on propane at $4.75/gal that winter. One 40 lb tank lasted us about three days, with the furnace running almost continuously, especially at night. I probably could have heated a house (including hot water tank) an entire year for what I paid in propane those two and half months.

I earned mucho brownie points from the wife that winter by keeping the trailer very livable.


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Old 06-21-2015, 01:08 PM   #11
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Simply chasing 70 degrees is the way to full-time bliss. That's what we do.
The house has wheels you know... use them.
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Old 06-21-2015, 01:38 PM   #12
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I cashed out of Nor Cal in '04 and mover to Flagstaff with my new 40' Alfa toy hauler. Lived there for 2 1/2 years, 90* summers with rain & light shows. Winter, 14 miles to Snowbowl for my snowboard fix. All the frozen water woes, rented 100 gal propane tank, biggest issue a 1/2" ice on the astro turf patio, a skating rink, , ,
As to the heat, I've lived a year in Bullhead City just to be close to Freightliner service, in case I needed more help. I cooled off by spending my time on the water, a couple of beers and a sandwich was all the money I had to spend for the day. In addition to the sun screening for the window exterior, I silver bubble wrapped the interior side of the windows and turned my rig into a cave. Above 110, no one was out doing stuff, 106 got to feel quite balmy, everyone was out and about
I'm looking for the place to stay when my wheels fall off, and can't travel anymore.
This is why I'm full timing, I just pay attention to temps, for my AS doesn't handle the temp extremes that that Alfa did
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Old 06-21-2015, 09:34 PM   #13
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I guess that's where I am weird -- I will go out in the airstream all four seasons, and although I am still a firmly rooted working fellow, I envision attempting to try and take the winter in the northern states (imagine Yosemite in winter) or the summer in Tucson (it ought be fairly easy to rig up a swamp cooler box to sit atop one of the fantastic fan domes, and lower the temp simply on battery power alone.)

... or am I just a darwin award in the making? :-P
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Old 06-22-2015, 04:53 AM   #14
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I tent camped 40 years in the deep south and out west before I ever had a trailer. I have seen lots of 80 degree nights and lots of 113 degree days with no air conditioner. I grew up poor, sometimes with no air conditioner in the house. It was very common in those days for cars to not be equipped with air conditioning. I attended public schools with little to no air conditioning. The best we had was a fan or an occasional window unit, which the teacher would not use because she said it was too loud and she didn't want to talk over it. I worked from June1996 to April 1999 at a correctional facility with no air conditioning.
Now, I freeze when I am in an air conditioned car or in a building- they all have air conditioning these days. Air conditioning has made us weak. Now, when it's 90 degrees outside I can't take it. I can't imagine trying to sleep in a tent on an 80 degree night. If it is 75 degrees in my Airstream, I am happy.
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Old 06-22-2015, 09:13 AM   #15
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Insulation

I have removed the inner aluminum skin on my 23' Safari Land Yacht. I was thinking about using spray foam insulation, especially after reading this thread. I'm in Florida. Does anyone have an opinion on this matter. I am also thinking of using fan fold insulation under my flooring. This is a ridged foam board that comes in 1/4" and 1/2' thicknesses. I pulled the useless fiberglass insulation from in between the floor and belly pan and discarded. Thanks to all of you good people.
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Old 06-22-2015, 10:30 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob Riffle View Post
I have removed the inner aluminum skin on my 23' Safari Land Yacht. I was thinking about using spray foam insulation, especially after reading this thread. I'm in Florida. Does anyone have an opinion on this matter. I am also thinking of using fan fold insulation under my flooring. This is a ridged foam board that comes in 1/4" and 1/2' thicknesses. I pulled the useless fiberglass insulation from in between the floor and belly pan and discarded. Thanks to all of you good people.
Do a search, sir. If I recall correctly, I think the general consensus is that spray foam will eventually disintegrate due to the vibrations from road use. You should be able to find some other threads discussing the issue.
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Old 06-22-2015, 11:05 AM   #17
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Avions used factory foam from circa 1970 thru 1990. Deterioration is not a problem. It is in trying to remove foam to make any repairs, and to trace any water leaks and make repairs that foam isn't so great

Prodex and Energy Shield and others are better choices.
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Old 06-23-2015, 02:31 PM   #18
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We toured the Newell factory in December. They use spray foam insulation on all of their coaches ($1.5 million and up). They actually spray three layers, rather than one thick one, and trim the excess after each spray. Then the interior is added.
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Old 06-23-2015, 03:22 PM   #19
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We are going to try full timing for a few years. I've only got 20 years of useful life and I can always buy another house to die in. If it's too hot we'll move the trailer. If it's too cold we'll move. Beats sitting in a house watching golf all day long like my father-in-law does while his motor home sits outside.
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Old 06-23-2015, 03:37 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KJRitchie View Post
We are going to try full timing for a few years. I've only got 20 years of useful life and I can always buy another house to die in. If it's too hot we'll move the trailer. If it's too cold we'll move. Beats sitting in a house watching golf all day long like my father-in-law does while his motor home sits outside.
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You figured it out!

I have spent the last two days on a riding lawn mower, a push mower between the trees and tomorrow a weed whacker to finish the job. This is the fourth or fifth mowing of the season, which is usually two, sometimes three times a season.

I've got a good 20 years left myself. Maybe 30, since I never listen to others and their theory of living a long life and they die in their 50's.

When the hummingbirds are going north, or heading south before the winter... I am packing up their feeders and following them. They seem to by "humming" a good tune and it might be better than "human advice".
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