We are shopping for an RV  in which to begin our full time lifestyle.  As  I get further into my research I have come to understand that only a few brands of RV are suitable for full time living.  We plan to follow the warm weather but want it to withstand mild winter temps if we have to come home for a period of time. We have parents that have health problems in Oklahoma and we may need to stay there for a while. Is the full time rating due to the fixtures being able to hold up to full time use or is it due to insulation and being able to withstand all seasons?
Thanks for any help we get.  We are going to buy used but I want to narrow down the make and model so I can just search for the ones that will meet our needs.

We will be using our 2005 Double Tree Mobile Suite 36TK3 for full timing.

http://www.doubletreervsuites.com/

-- Edited by FD5 at 12:38, 2009-01-29

A full-timing RV must be able to withstand daily use, everything from carpet to appliances, must be built to handle the abuse of being used every day.

We aren't full timing but we are some timing. We were full timing in a Cambridge like Howard and Linda has and had no problem. We are now in a 2009 Mobile Suites and would have no problem full timing in the MS. We have the most insulation (R-factor) of any 5th weel we have owned. However its a very heavy 5th wheel. But with 3 1/4" walls and a 15" frame we are suppose to be heavy. If we ever buy another 5th wheel it will be a Mobile Suites. We have been in Texas and now are in Florida and haven't had any issues so for. When we return to Tennessee in Mar we will have been in the MS about 5 months. GBY...

Check out the Carriage products. They state in the ads that they are a fulltime unit. That is what Sherri and I have now and we are totaly satisfied with it. Joe and Sherri

The OP (ORIGINAL POSTER) does not state if they are interested in motorized or towable RVs. Until we know it is difficult to advise about specific brands. The best thing for the OP to do, IMO, is to buy the RV Consumer Group review CD and concentrate on snowbird and fulltime units. I would eliminate almost all that were not marked as such.

Opps, sorry, we will be buying a 5th wheel.  Thanks for all the input!
OP

Tina and I decided to FT about 4 months ago and have been researching it heavily.  We attend shows, visit dealers, chat with service managers.  Like many here, we are aiming at a 5'er.  Money is an object, but not the goal.  Quality, durability, reliability, serviceability and good old "gee I really like this" appeal are what *REALLY* matters.  In my case, I can work on and fix pretty much anything.  Been doing it all my life.

Our top requirement is that it MUST be rated (by the factory) for FULL TIME living, because we are selling everything and going that direction.

That said, we found that we were confronted with a rather unusal situation.  The economy has resulted in many RV manufacturers closing their doors.  Going out of business.  Gone.  No (factory) warranty in man cases.  Kind of a bummer, because we've been eyballing a new Teton 40 footer that is REALLY nice and well priced.

Our brand other choices, in no particular order....

Carriage
Mobile Suites
Newmar

Dang!  Well that was short and quick!

We also require a washer AND dryer, no combo.
A fireplace
LCD TV's
4 door or equivalent sized fridge, with an icemaker
King bed
Separate (from bedroom) bath/vanity/shower (shower needs a seat)
Dual 40lb LP bottles
Generator (big plus, but at least generator ready)
Corian countertops

That's the REALLY important stuff for us.

With Teton going out of business and Newmar pretty much in the same boat, that leaves Carriage and Mobile Suites (for us).  Honestly, I think Mobile Suites will be the way we go.

Towing?  We feel that a minimum rig will be a 1 ton dually crew cab 4x4. 2006 or newer, with an automatic.

So....  as soon as the housing market picks back up a bit and we can sell our sticks-n-bricks....  we're out of here!  FT'ers at last!

The Fleetwood Regal or Quantum, luxury 5ers have an "Extreme Package" option which is double insulation all-around, dual-paned windows, wrapped, heated tanks, and a fully enclosed underbelly.  From other forums, Regal/Quantum owners swear by their units, making it our number 1 pick once we're ready to FT (this Summer or when the condo sells).  Our number 2 backup choice is the Grand Junction which advertises high R-values for insulation and forced air heat in the enclosed belly and the basement.

Good luck with that fridge.  Twelve cubic feet is about the biggest we've found unless you have a rig with room for a house fridge, but then boondocking might be difficult.

Newmar is still selling and building RVs and repairing them. With less employees and not as many RVs being sold as before, but they are alive.

Twelve cubic feet is about the biggest we've found unless you have a rig with room for a house fridge, but then boondocking might be difficult.

Norcold now makes a 17 cubic foot unit that runs on LP, PolarMaxRF 2117.  Dometic's largest LP/electric fridge is a 14 cubic foot model,

NDA 1402. Most RV manufacturers really mess up how they install residential fridges so they use even more power than they have to. What they do is not give the fridge enough air space and ventilation in the back so the compressor rarely if ever goes off, because the back of the fridge is heated up. That drains your batteries fast. A better option is a fridge built to run in a solar home, like Sun Frost. It will still need more batteries, but boondocking is still possible.

Our brand other choices, in no particular order....

Carriage
Mobile Suites
Newmar

Dang!  Well that was short and quick!

We also require a washer AND dryer, no combo.
A fireplace
LCD TV's
4 door or equivalent sized fridge, with an icemaker
King bed
Separate (from bedroom) bath/vanity/shower (shower needs a seat)
Dual 40lb LP bottles
Generator (big plus, but at least generator ready)
Corian countertops


Wow you list sounds just like our list as soon as our home sells.
The only other thing we are looking for is a seperate bath, no shower in the bedroom. After going to the Tampa Show in Jan, Mobile Suites and Carriage are the only two left on our short list.

Excel and Heartland also make excellent fulltime 5ers. We went with the Heartland Landmark. One reason being is that Heartland is the only 5er manufacturer that is debt free.

I would not hesitate to buy a used Teton, or an orphaned new rig. With the new rig, I would want an aftermarket warrantee that covered the major items - and of course the price would reflect the demise of the manuf. You should be able to get a Teton - new on the lot - for a minimum of 40% off list, and I would expect more. I don't see New Horizons mentioned here. After looking at all the RVs at the Tampa show the NH stood out for us. There are some things I don't like still, but they are about to change those things (wide body and ducted air). There are distinct advantages to a true custom rig. None of the other rigs mentioned here are true custom rigs. Nor are any built near as well as a NH. Tied for second on my list are Elite Suite and Kountry Air. The Elite can be pretty fully customized. The Newmar, not so much. We have owned a Newmar 5er before the Royals International we own now. They have pretty good quality and excellent factory service. Personally, I would never buy a Fleetwood product. The company has a terrible service reputation, and the build quality does not impress me. But that is just my personal opinion. For the money, a Landmark is a pretty good product, but it does not compare to the higher lines. IMO.

Since you are buying used, I would suggest looking at HitcHiker by NuWa.  They recently announced they are closing production, but will keep the factory service and warranty operation open for at least another year.  They made 3 levels of 5th wheels, with Champagne being the top of the line followed by Discover America and HitchHiker II or HitchHiker LS.  They have been in business for over 40 years and really pioneered slideouts and many other innovations.  They build a very high quality 5th wheel, yet not nearly as heavy as Excel or Mobil Suites.

In addition to HitchHiker, we have the following on our fulltimer shortlist:

Carriage Cameo or Carrilite
Excel by Peterson Ind.
Mobile Suites

Good luck!

-- Edited by wmalefyt at 14:01, 2009-01-30

As a long-time shopper and tire-kicker before we bought our Class A, I would NEVER buy a Fleetwood product.  They are short on quality and long on poor service.  Just ask Nick Russell, editor of the Gypsy Journal, about Fleetwood and you'll run in the opposiite direction.

You are getting some really solid advice here.  One more thought, make sure you are buying enough truck for that 5er.  Pulling the 5er is generally not a problem -- it is the stopping that is critical.

I have been well pleased with my Peterson /Excel. The newer ones have a -10 degree guaranty ,mine(05) has a 0 degree guaranty. It is a good fulltime trailer. I haven't had the condensation problems many other makes experience. I have 4 slides and don't feel cramped. I have the Moride suspension, disk brakes and a TrailAir pin box,stacked washer dryer - good options

I am also researching a fifth wheel and agree with many, but not all of the postings here. I just purchased the RV Consumer Group Ratings and am studying them now. I'm glad to have made the purchase because some of the rigs that I thought were OK that I saw at the Tampa show, they rated poorly. They also rate the mfr's past reliability & each rig's tow-ability - something that I wouldn't be able to guage by looking. I was suprised by some of their ratings though e.g. they rated most Carriages as snowbirding use but there seems to be a lot of very happy Carriage owners who are happily fulltiming in theirs.

My short list so far: Mobile Suites, Carriage, Excel, and maybe Jayco Designer. There are others that are well rated but are beyond my budget.

Does anyone have experience / knowledge about Jayco Designers? I don't think that I've ever heard them mentioned here. I was suprised at how well rated they were for their price point and have become interested in them.

Good luck - its a lot of work!

-- Edited by DreamerBob at 19:14, 2009-01-30

Carriages as snowbirding use but there seems to be a lot of very happy Carriage owners who are happily fulltiming in theirs.
Don't get hungup on RV Consumer Group's definition of "fulltime" against "snowbird", "fulltime" just means they think it is built for colder weather than "snowbird". 

I'm no expert, 4x4, but I would be willing to bet that with all the features (and weight) you want in a 5th wheel you are going to need more than a 1 ton to pull it.  My opinion only, but I would be glad to hear what others have to say.

gypsy

4X4given what part of the country do you currently live in?

If by chance you are in central Florida, next weekend there is an RV Show in Ocala you might want to check out.

We also are full time wannabees as soon as the housing market starts breathing again.

We had pretty much narrowed our choice to Carriage until we saw a NuWa Discover America last weekend!

After much posting and research we would not hesitate to purchase an orphan unit if it was priced right.  We can fix most anything, it is the construction and durability we are most interested in.

We find the shopping and planning challenging but fun, inexpensive entertainment in today's economy.

It is pretty frightening what is going on in the world today but one step at a time is all we can do.

Our goals are to pickup a used Peterbilt or other unit to pull our 5er with as DH has connections since he works in the trucking industry and was an over the road driver for years.

Right now it is all a dream but one that is very managable to come true someday.

I agree with some of the previous posts, I would not purchase some of the mass produced products out there but everyone has their own likes and dislikes.

We were at an RV dealer yesterday who gave us the line that they have exclusive rights to this fireplace for the RV they were showing, did he really think I fell for that line..........the next dealer we went to right down the street had the exact same fireplace in a different RV........Dimplex........it's like the line "we sell more RV's than any other make or model"........well of course you would if you mass produce them vs a mfg who doesn't.

All I am saying is educate yourself as much as possible.  I take what any salesperson tells me with a grain of salt and then check it out for myself.

We live in Austin, Texas though Fort Worth / Granbury will wind up being our HB.  We attended a show in Fort Worth a couple weeks ago and went over LOTS os units.  We've recently started to become interested in Grand Junction and KZ Escalades as well.  So as is usual, our list keeps changing and growing.

Well it is nice to read that it is not just "us" who's list keeps growing and changing when it comes to selecting a full time 5er!

We currently have a KZ product and we are very happy with it!  If you like the Escalade which is the top of the line, look at the Montego Bay which is very nice as well and the next level down from the Escalade.
Susan

Oh!  yes, I forgot to mention that we looked at a Montego Bay and with the right floorplan, it could work for us.  The brochure seemed to hint that it was full time "friendly", but I haven't confirmed this yet.  Whichever way we go, having a warranty and a unit built for full timing will be essential.

BTW, does your handle mean you ride a Hog?  Just curious.  Tina and I do, which presents another challenge, as we have yet to see a Toy hauler that we like (needs a "real" living room) to take the bikes with us.  Also, together, they weigh about 1,800lbs.  I would be worried about putting that much in the back of a toy hauler.

When I created the screen name yes I did ride a HOG, 2000 Heritage Softail pearl white, loved that bike!

We rode everywhere, DH had a Fat Boy, and we rode from FL to Lake George NY, to Mrytle Beach all over.

Prior to the Heritage I started with an 883 Hugger which I took to Sturgis!

Pretty brave for an old lady learning to ride at 46!

We no longer have HOG's, we now have a 2005 Honda Goldwing which is AWESOME, no sore butts there!  We added another toy a waverunner as well.  The Goldwing fits in our toyhauler just fine and our rig is just under 30' long.

We have decided though that for full timing it we want the added living space and we can tow the bike on a trailer behind our drive vehicle.  After much research and reading Howard & Linda's journal where they sold everything and then purchased a run around vehicle we have decided to keep my Honda Element as our run around vehicle.

Nice pics of you guys and your great bikes!
Susan

We were at the Tampa RV show also for two days. There were many type's of RV's and of course we looked at many. We also have a 2009 Mobile Suites 36 TK3 and are very pleased with the MS. We do prefer the Mobile Suite's vs Elite Suites for the difference in weight only. We also pull the MS with a 1 ton Chevy and we have no problems with stopping. The MS has the most insulation we have ever had in a 5th wheel. The MS is equipped with Disk Brakes and thats the difference in stopping. We also have owned a Chevy Kodiak 4500 which was a awesome Truck. It was set up for towing with the Chariot hauler bed and had Link air ride suspension, air ride seats it was loaded. However the weight was 10,900 lbs and with our 5th wheel we had a gross of 27,900.

We also would go back to the Drv set up at the Tampa RV show. After looking at other 5th wheels and compare, and the Drv Elite,Mobile and Select suites were still in our opinion the best buy. We are also hoping that Drv will be able to survive the serious problems that the RV industry is going thru. We think they will because they build what they sell, thats why you don't see a lot of units on dealership lots. We have been in our Mobile Suites going on 6 months and have had no issues yet. The only issue we have is the 92" couch which will be taken out when we return to Tennessee and we also will take out two of the dining chairs we never use them, other than that we have no complaints with the Mobile Suites. Good Luck with your choice. GBY....

I'm getting in a little late here. I plan to start full timing in July 2010 and I'm starting to get ready. Teton, and NuWa are on my short list, but also is BigHorn from Heartland. I haven't seen anything about on Heartland in this thread. I understand NuWa is out of business. Heartland seems healthy. Any Heartland opinions? Thanks, J

NuWa is not out of business.  they ceased production for awhile this winter but have announced that they will resume production in June with factory direct sales (as well as dealer sales).  Check out www.NUWA.com and for lots of information the NUWA Owner's Forum at www.NUWAowners.org/forum/

The NuWa rigs are definately rated for full-time use with Dow blue foam insulation, attics, and heated basements.

-- Edited by LeslieW on Tuesday 17th of March 2009 10:33:58 PM

I fully agree with the posters who suggest the RV Consumer Group rating guide CD's.