A Few of Our Favorite Things

It seems like it doesn't matter how much research you do, you probably won't know exactly what you want in an RV until you live in one for a while. This was certainly the case for us, but overall we're very happy with Rhiannon! She even came with some unexpected bonuses.

This week I'm going to share our favorite things that came with our motorhome. If you're thinking about buying an RV, you'll want to consider these... if these things are as important to you as they are to us!

All the things we love that came with/on our RV. If your shopping for an RV, you'll want to consider these!

Inside

We're "full-timing", or living only in our RV, in the Pacific Northwest. Humidity and precipitation are high. Based on our time here I would say it rains about 75% of the time. This means, we spend a lot of time inside our RV. These are the things that work to keep us dry and happy with spending all this time in our home:

Floorplan

Though this may not be the most original thing to enthuse about, as we have the most common floor plan in the RV world. This is still something that was very important for us in choosing our RV. The openness and functionality means a lot to us.

1.) The cab: Another WONDERFUL addition to the living room layout, which will be an absolute necessity for any future RV, is the driver's side door. Though this might not seem like such a big deal, as to require caps lock, it has been! There have been situations in which the regular door, or "front door", would get stuck shut. This was due to having older parts such as: the door handle and the screen door handle (we may go into how to combat this issue in a later post). The driver's side door has allowed for an alternative entry when issues with the front door occur. Also as aspiring doomsday preppers, this may allow for easy escape in case of a need to evacuate due to zombie invasion or something more realistic...

2.) The living room: The TV is in the front over the cab. We are avid Netflix watchers. Therefore this layout makes watching our favorite shows and movies easy for everyone in the family. This also is great for offering many different seating options, to view. Once we removed the unnecessary recliner, it really opened the living space up. Having a different place to relax is important for people who hate sitting in one place night after night (Loren). It's also great to turn the captains chairs around for extra seating, mostly used by our feline family members.

3.) The bedroom: The window placement creates a more open and functional space. The 3 windows, located on each side of the bed as well as on the opposite wall, make the room feel more spacious and allow for a great amount of airflow. The windows to the side of the bed is our preferred layout, as this allows for sitting against the wall without fear of falling outside.

3.) The slides: Consulting with our fellow full-time RV community, in-person and through forums, the placement and thought behind what goes on the slides is key. A big deciding factor for us when choosing the right RV was with this in consideration. Rhiannon's slides do not have plumbing on them. This seems to be a very important consideration, as this is just asking for leak issues. Our pipes need tightening ever few moves due to "earthquake-like" environments associated with driving your home on a highway. I couldn't imagine the extra stress added from being placed upon a slide mechanism.

Fridge

I love our refrigerator! It's a great size- 4 doors but not quite a residential, so it doesn't guzzle power. It can run on propane or electric, so it's great for boondocking. It has a built in ice-maker, which was one of the selling points for us. This thing is self-locking, so it won't burst open if you forget to lock it up before driving. An alarm sounds if you don't close it all the way or if it loses power.

Skylights

One thing we hated in our last apartment was the lack of natural light. It's something you might not realize you'd miss until it's gone. We love all of our windows, 2 skylights, and 2 ceiling fans. Though it's time to replace the skylights, they still let in tons of light! Our fans are great too- they can suck air out or blow air in. I definitly didn't pay attention to this when shopping for the RV, but lucked out anyway!

Bathroom

As much as I want a composting toilet (and I really really do!) I have to admit our Sealand toilet is not bad. It's porcelain, so it's easy to clean and doesn't look like a tiny toy toilet. We've got a good size shower and a real sink! Most RVs I've been in lately have tiny sinks, which is nice for counter space but they just bother me for some reason.

Water Heater

I was certain the days of long relaxing showers were over when we moved into the RV. WRONG! With our 10 gallon water heater, we can easily take 30 min + showers. Like the fridge, it's able to run off propane or electricity. It does take a chunk of power to run it though. It's no problem on 50 amps, but on 30 amps you can't have much else running with it.

Outside

All the things that make it easier to move and be in nature comfortably. We've roughed it in cars and tents plenty, and have come to really appreciate comfortable camping (also known as glamping).

All the Shade

Our power awning is more of a love/hate item for us. It provides lots of shade, when it's working. The support bars are placed higher than some I've seen, so you don't have to worry about hitting your head. It's been through some windy nights and sudden hail storms, which left it a little lopsided. It's been working great lately, after Loren messed with it a bit. We've since learned to bring it in every night and when we have rain, so most of the time it's in.

We also have cute little awnings over our driver's side windows. I love these and you don't see them too often. They provide nice shade, and protect the windows from getting constantly hit with rain.

To top it off, we just found the front window shade in the basement storage! It's been there this whole time, and we didn't realize. It's made by Prompt RV, and allows you to see out but people can't see in. It also helps a ton with the heat!

Storage

I definitely underestimated the storage space before buying Rhiannon. There is plenty of storage outside, we even have some room left over. It does get pretty moldy, so you have to be careful what stays outside. Read all about how we stay organized here.

Automatic Leveling System

Another love/hate item is the automatic Level Leg system. It's wonderful when it works... when it doesn't, it's one of the most frustrating things on the RV. I almost bought manual levelers a few months back. Thankfully, Loren worked her magic on these and they've been working the past few moves. It really is convenient just pushing a few buttons to level.

Tanks

We have a huge propane tank built-in. Because we use mostly electricity, it lasts a long time. Our gas tank holds 76 gallons (I think), so it too lasts a while! So long in fact, we have to add Sta-bil so it doesn't go bad in the tank.