RV/Travel Trailer Newbie

[Roofer1]

Recently bought a new piece of hunting property and am waiting on pricing to potentially build a pole shed with a section with some living quarters. The Mrs and I seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum on the definition of living quarters. Her expectations are probably going to shoot me over a hard budget as I'm done with banks and borrowing money. All that said I'm digging into RV's/campers to use on the property to buy some time to save for a few more years. Ultimately, I'm looking for something that I can trust to leave operational until around Thanksgiving in Wisconsin with it being 4 hours from home. Have researched a little and a model that has popped up is Arctic Fox by Northwoods. If anyone has any direct intel I'd appreciate it. Any other input would also be appreciated. Thanks

 

[loganwayne]

Most campers that are newer come with under belly insulation and tank heaters if they have an all season package.

That said I would still insulate and skirt the camper. And use an air compressor and blow the lines out before I left for a while

 

[torrey.harris.5]

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[HTNFSH]

I had the same idea.

I would consider building or buying a large shed before a camper. I own a toy hauler and can share from personal experience that the build quality of all campers is unbelievably poor. I own some vacant land myself with water ane electric already on on-site and won't use mine for that purpose. It doesn't matter if your budget is $50k or $200k.

If you're set on an RV/camper, you will have a longer lifespan if it's stationary. At minimum, you will want to build a pole barn-style carport to protect the roof and high enough to be able to clean it.

 

[Roofer1]

Not set on buying a camper, especially with prices on them being what seems ridiculous (in my opinion anyway). It seems like throwing away money knowing its a short term solution. The camper option is just my impatience with wanting to get my family with me when I'm there. A tent with a hole dug 30 yards downhill for a bathroom would be fine with me. But... a wife and 2 teenage daughters aren't in agreement

 

[BigE]

I've owned an Arctic Fox 27-5L for 10 years and will confirm their build quality is better than most RV manufacturers. We have stayed in our trailer in a couple of feet of snow in multiple places across the US. They are a true 4 season camper, we've stayed in -20 degrees. If you plan to live in a trailer longer term in freezing temperatures there are a lot of things you can do to improve your comfort with skirts etc. The easiest suggestion is to leave the heater on and the cabinet doors open to help the heat get to the pipes. Ours does have heated belly pans and insulation underneath to help too.
If you have any specific questions, just ask.

 

[CMF]

I would consider building or buying a large shed before a camper. I own a toy hauler and can share from personal experience that the build quality of all campers is unbelievably poor. I own some vacant land myself with water ane electric already on on-site and won't use mine for that purpose. It doesn't matter if your budget is $50k or $200k.

If you're set on an RV/camper, you will have a longer lifespan if it's stationary. At minimum, you will want to build a pole barn-style carport to protect the roof and high enough to be able to clean it.

I'd second all of this. We've been full timing in RV going on 4 years and I'm constantly fixing crap. Stationary will eliminate a lot of repairs, but no matter the model, they're all built like crap.
If you have the time to invest in building out a roll off shed, you'd probably get your money back out of it one day.
I'd definitely do the additional roof if you go the camper route, especially since you are from it and won't be able to check on it regularly.

 

[wyosteve]

I had a 2006 Arctic Fox 24-5 and now have a Jayco. While Arctic Fox gets touted for their build quality, I didn't find that to be the case. I was really disappointed to see mine used 2x2 pine for the wall studs and the insulation was maybe 2 inches thick. Not my definition of 4 season. The heated underbelly/tanks is available on a lot of rigs as mentioned above. I agree with the others in that a building of some type is the better way to go for what you've described. Cost wise probably not a lot of difference.

 

[cnelk]

A camper set on land will deteriorate quick and become overrun with rodents

Build something or buy a cabin and have it set

 

[brca005]

I had the same idea.

I would consider building or buying a large shed before a camper. I own a toy hauler and can share from personal experience that the build quality of all campers is unbelievably poor. I own some vacant land myself with water ane electric already on on-site and won't use mine for that purpose. It doesn't matter if your budget is $50k or $200k.

If you're set on an RV/camper, you will have a longer lifespan if it's stationary. At minimum, you will want to build a pole barn-style carport to protect the roof and high enough to be able to clean it.

I'd second all of this. We've been full timing in RV going on 4 years and I'm constantly fixing crap. Stationary will eliminate a lot of repairs, but no matter the model, they're all built like crap.
If you have the time to invest in building out a roll off shed, you'd probably get your money back out of it one day.
I'd definitely do the additional roof if you go the camper route, especially since you are from it and won't be able to check on it regularly.

I’m going to third what has been said, they are all built with the mostly the same stuff (Lippert and Lippert owned companies), just have a different name on the front and they’re all garbage. I full timed with my family for 2 1/2 years and was constantly fixing something on it.

It’s not worth buying a camper, when that money could be put towards a slab and some walls to at least allow you a place to stay out of the elements and you can chip away at getting the inside finished.

The price of campers is ridiculous these days, the price of everything these days is ridiculous but that’s the world we live in.

 

[TaperPin]

Once upon a time I saw a fairly large 5th wheel that had been converted for ease of use in on and off freezing conditions and weekend use - it was very nice inside with all the bells and whistles, but there was no running water at all. No tanks, no faucets, no shower, no flushing toilet, no pipes to freeze. A water jug with a spigot sat next to the sink for washing hands and brushing teeth that drained into a 5 gallon bucket. I know nothing about the fancy new dry toilets, but it had a built in vent that went out the roof and was supposed to be somewhat civilized. It looked like you dump the 5 gallon bucket, take the water jug, pull a bag of turds and walk away. The bus conversion crowd seems to have a lot of similar designs since they are retrofitting something that was never intended to have tanks. Same for some shipping container homes.

I worked with a guy who bought a used commercially produced insulated work space pod mounted on a very new 2 ton truck chassis. It was used as a mobile work space for some state agency and had a full fiberglass exterior shell like a fiberglass boat bottom with full foam insulation, and doors/windows like an RV. I’ve seen similar units used on the oil patch. The thing was built like a tank and didn’t need to be parked out of the weather. He just used regular furniture and a futon bed to make it livable like a garage made into a teenagers hangout.

Another friend bought a large bumper pulled camper and turned it into the teenage daughter’s hangout. It stays parked on a nice slab in the back yard and the interior was painted and reupholstered to the tastes of mom and daughter. They love the thing.

 

[BigE]

Some good ideas and suggestions in here so far. I'd guess your personal use case is more important than the suggestions of others that don't have all the info. If you don't plan to travel anywhere else, a trailer probably isn't the best answer. Can save the money and invest into your future solutions with a pole barn or garage type space that doubles as a living space temporarily, or go buy some beat up trailer, a converted school bus or a shed to leave out there that you don't have high expectations past a year or three. If having the girls enjoy it with you, might need to adjust your needs to match.