New Airstreamer

[jdb]

Hi, guys, here we go, another new Airstreamer joins the herd.

Here's the deal: I live(d) happily in my home for the last seventeen years until getting dumped out on the street recently by an unsympathetic divorce judge. Since uncertainty seemed certain, if that makes any sense, and flexibility looks like a necessity, I motored on down to my local Airstream dealer and got a 22' 2005 CCD off the lot about four months ago.

I towed the unit around behind my '97 Ford Expedition until I found the perfect, albeit temporary, resting place right beside New Mexico's San Juan river in a no name RV park owned by a great guy named Lonnie. I set it up and have been living in it since then.

I love my little aluminum cocoon. It has everything I need right at hand, takes about 8 minutes to clean up, and gives me a feeling of home and security that my former 3400 square foot Santa Fe style adobe home didn't. Of course, I was sharing the big house with the harpy b%$#^ from h$&&, and the Superdome wouldn't even have been big enough to shelter both of us harmoniously even before Katrina tore it up.

This is my first trailer, so the learning curve is really steep, as you can imagine. (Leveling blocks? Can't you just jack it up with those little jacks? You mean you have to put your foot on the sewer hose before dumping the black tank? LOL) But I'm four months down the road now, haven't permanently destroyed anything, so I figure I can at least post on the forum.

I'm going to winter over in the trailer, so I've been reading all I can about trailer coldproofing because it gets pretty nippy here in the high desert. It's getting colder in the mornings (low 40's) so I'm getting practice before real winter hits. I'm currently trying to figure out the best way to skirt this thing and also how to keep my water supply from freezing. The propane price crisis drove me to visit my local Home Depot and pick up a portable electric heater to supplement the Airstream's furnace. I also hooked up an auxiliary propane bottle to augment the truly puny 20 pounders that came with the trailer. I'm picking up a goodly supply of foam so I can cut out window panels to slide between the pane and the screen to provide a little more insulation than 1/8" of single pane glass provides. The Airstream is a remarkable beast, but isn't the ultimate in winter homes. And what is the deal with that fitted comforter that they provide. White Miracle Material? I was playing with my two year old nephew, tossed him on the comforter, and he slid all the way across on the slick surface and crashed into the window across the bed before he came to a stop.

I just wanted to say thanks to all the forum contributors. You may never know it, but your contributions here really help to pave the way for others. I'll be dropping in occasionally to let you know if I lose any toes to frostbite.

Until then, you can find me any given evening sitting in my chair watching the glorious New Mexico sunset and sipping a margarita out on the bank of the San Juan river.

[ALANSD]

welcome, and best wishes for a successful transition to the new lifestyle.

[azflycaster]

Know the place well. The PO of my trailer stored it across the street from Abe's, in the boat storage area. I'll be at the river next month with about 45 other members of my fly fishing club. No trailer, we bus up and stay at Abe's. Maybe we will see you ate the Sportsman some evening

[maxandgeorgia]

Sounds like you have had a rough time, but now, camping alongside the legendary San Juan, looks like you are on the up-curve. While sitting on the bank, cast a line for me!

[flyfshr]

I can't think of much of a better place to regroup and relax. What part of the bank on the San Juan? There's alot of river there. Enjoy the lifestyle and your margaritas. Toss both a line and a 'rita for me will ya?

Brad
FF

[jimmieanna]

Hello there,

I too am doing my first round at living in an Airstream. This too will be my first winter living this way. I laughed out loud reading your post, you are funny. I loved visiting in New Mexico, what a beautiful place to settle. Good luck with the winter. I am trying to figure out what to do about water for the winter, right now I still have a water pipe busted I have water coming into the place with a water hose. But since I just moved in here a month ago, I have been using the shower facilities provided at the site here. I plan on contacting this plumber I found out about just last week that can help me. But I don't want to get my pipes fixed and then have them bust again. I don't understand what to do about the water left in the lines when it starts to freeze. I live in Northwest Arkansas, and the owners of the RV park have a very few rules, but one is not to run water when the temps start to freeze. And it gets cold here as well. All of this to ask what do I do about freezing pipes. I am not certain I understand this skirting business.

[cccamper]

Originally Posted by azflycaster

Know the place well. The PO of my trailer stored it across the street from Abe's, in the boat storage area. I'll be at the river next month with about 45 other members of my fly fishing club. No trailer, we bus up and stay at Abe's. Maybe we will see you ate the Sportsman some evening

gee he didn't mention being starving.. who was the Sportsman?


we're new here too, relatively. robert has learned much to handle the functional end of things. working on our new '78 sovereign has proved interesting and he's been trying to learn *exactly* where each pipe and electrical line wanders off to in the scheme of things.

my part is fun and easy, making the interior look nice and workable for full time living. rustic mountain - which reminds me of growing up in washington state.

so far the only real challenge has been to find a full size sofa - very comfortable- to fit through a 26" door. can't find anything like that in "knock down" furniture. robert doesn't seem to think cutting a 48" hole in the side to shove in a sofa, then repairing it, is justified.

e (and Robert)

[jdb]

Hi, Jimmieanna...
You really can't let the water freeze in the lines, or there will always be a mess, and it can even migrate inside the trailer and bust lines in there, too. I did two things: 1) hooked up a 1/2" copper water line instead of a hose, and 2) hooked up an electrical heating line to the copper. They sell those heating lines at places like Lowe's and Home Depot, or at your friendly trailer supply place. You'll have to insulate the water line after you put the electric heating line on it. It's pretty complicated if you haven't done that kind of stuff before, so you might want to cook a big meal for Dad and beg him to help. A beer or two couldn't hurt.

Skirting is simply putting stuff between the ground and the lower bottom side of the trailer to keep the wind from blowing under the trailer and robbing heat from you. It's like a "skirt" from the bottom of the trailer to the ground. Skirting makes getting up in the morning and putting your feet on the floor a lot more pleasant. Some people use aluminum that is specifically made for skirting, I used Styrafoam boards.

Good luck! We got a cold front in this weekend and it snowed in the nearby mountains. Let me know how it goes for you.

[jdb]

"so far the only real challenge has been to find a full size sofa - very comfortable- to fit through a 26" door. can't find anything like that in "knock down" furniture. robert doesn't seem to think cutting a 48" hole in the side to shove in a sofa, then repairing it, is justified."

I don't know, maybe you could make the 48" hole into a picture window!

[jdb]

Originally Posted by flyfshr

I can't think of much of a better place to regroup and relax. What part of the bank on the San Juan?

Hi, Brad. I'm well downstream of the Quality Waters, nearer to my workplace. There are a few trout down where I am (between Bloomfield and Farmington) but not enough to really fish for. I get up to the good stuff regularly, though.

[jdb]

While sitting on the bank, cast a line for me!

Hi, maxand georgia!

I'll do it, as soon as the cold front passes and the weather clears up!

[jimmieanna]

Jimmieanna here, thank you JBG for the helpful post. I am presently not doing too good on the plumber situation. I had a "friend of a friend" tell me last Sunday night that they would be over this week and look at my water troubles. Hence nothing has been done, so next week I am going to ask the other plumber to come by and help me out.

Daddy gave me the Airstream he had it for 5 or 6 years and still did not know how to hook it up to drive it out of the driveway. (funny huh?) Anyway he lives miles from here. I was wondering, if I just buy some sheets of Styrofoam and cut to fit will that work on this skirting business? I know what you mean on the floor, it is miserable already in the morning and I don't want to keep waiting on these things. We have great weather right now. I had the A/C running this weekend.

[jimmieanna]

[quote=jimmieanna]Jimmieanna here, thank you JBG for the helpful post.


oops! I meant jdbsorry

[jcanavera]

Originally Posted by jdb

also how to keep my water supply from freezing. The propane price crisis drove me to visit my local Home Depot and pick up a portable electric heater to supplement the Airstream's furnace.

Just remember that when it gets down to freezing, you will need to use your furnace in lieu of the electric heater. You have ducting to critical areas that the furnace will keep warm. Your electrical heater will not take care of those areas alone.

Jack

[jdb]

Fast Forward update: After a year of fulltiming, a couple of years overseas in Dubai, a couple of years in California, and a year in South Carolina, here we are in 2011 fulltiming again. I'm currently moving east to west and am in Wayne, Ne. right now. Wayne has a Lion's Club RV park that features 30/50 amp power and water hookup but no sewer hookup for $8/night. Ya gotta love the Heartland. I'm visiting my daughter and son-in-law and the grandkids right now and will stay here for a week or so, then on to Texas to visit my brother. I love wandering around!

[mcintoshMD]

Hello, newbie here, not sure where to post but will give it a shot.
How do I turn off the propane water heater when I am not using it, there are on off switch in the bathroom to choose between, fresh water/blk-gry tank, then rocker switch for electric and gas, 2012 20 ft flying cloud.

I turn off switch at fresh water , gry, blk tank , turn off electric and gas, also turn the gas off out side but the flint starter is still clicking away, and if I turn on the gas from outside the gas water heater will start again, wasting gas, because I am not using it, and worse we will be away.