We Rv 4 Fun.com Blog

Like many RV’ers, we love grilling out, but are not that crazy about the mess. The novelty of cooking over the fire wears off rather quickly when camping frequently, and charcoal grills tend to be a little messy and time consuming. When traveling hard, as soon as we set up camp the troops want to be off on a hike or at the pool, not sitting over a grill for an hour waiting for the coals to offer the right temperature for dinner prep.

We decided early in our camping endeavors that a gas grill for traveling on the road was best for our temperaments. The last time we were in the market for a grill, we took our homework seriously; there are so many different types of grills, and they are not cheap.

Questions to ask before before buying a grill:

Gas or charcoal? Charcoal grills are less expensive and more disposable than their gas counterparts. Small “hibachi” type grills exist in both types of fuel, so portability isn’t an issue. Do you mind toting bags of charcoal? On the other hand, more expensive gas grills usually have an LP Gas hose extension so you can connect it directly to your RV’s gas tanks.

Fire or heating element? You can get a gas grill that looks like a charcoal grill and cooks with the flame, or one that works more like a non-stick pan on a heating element. Do you like your food to have that char-grilled flavor, or would you rather have non-stick surfaces that are (supposed to be) easier to clean?

I love cooking over a fire, but always end up fishing a hot dog or burger out of the coals when it slips between the rungs of the fire grate. Many portable grills have small enough gaps that you don’t have to worry about this. However, the fat drippings can really make a mess of a grill rather quickly, but this can be solved with some tinfoil. Worse yet, the charcoal dust often leaks out and spreads around the storage compartment, however a crate or some other transport container to limit the mess.

How many will you be cooking for? Another concern is cooking area.  Large families may become rather dismayed by the lack of cooking space available on smaller grills. Likewise, if you like to cook an entire meal on one grill (we cook packets of veggies with our meat), you will need a larger grill.

Will you do more than just grilling? Some grills have interchangable plates that allow the grill to become a griddle or stove burner. The griddles allow for pancakes, sausages, etc. Keep in mind that these surfaces aren’t always easier to clean up than a plain old grill that you can simply clean with a metal brush.

Do you like new every year? Using something a few times and throwing it out certainly doesn’t help our landfills, but that’s the way some folks operate.  We urge you to upgrade slightly to a grill that will last for more than one season.

Whatever you decide is best for you, check out Grills and Grilling Accessories from Camping World

Happy Grilling!

One of the reasons we RV is related to cleanliness. Do you remember the news story about the bed bugs in the swanky NY hotel room?  Have you ever seen a mattress?  How many times do you think that blanket or comfortor gets washed. 

When we go on a trip with the camper, I know who has used the bed, toilet, and kitchen, and I also know when they were cleaned last.

You should see these videos.

Was Your Hotel Room a Meth Lab?

Don’t drink from Hotel Glasses

I love having my own bathroom, bed, and kitchen when on the road. I know it’s clean (or not!), and know the only bugs we will be catching are the ones the girls collect in jars when playing outside.

Chances are a Camping and RV Show is coming to a venue near you in the coming weeks. Camping and RV shows are common in the winter, when people are busy planning their future camping trips for the spring and summer. What is better to do during the inclement weather of winter than imagining yourself camping in your RV? Often located indoors in fairgrounds or other heated locations large enough to handle the large amount of units and people that attend, RV shows charge a fee to both exhibitors and attendees. Coupons for $1 to $2 off your purchase can usually be found online and in the local newspaper. Here is a search tool to find RV Shows.

RV shows are a great resource for anyone considering an RV purchase.  You can find hundreds of different types of camping trailers and RV’s in one location; everything from Pop-up campers to expensive Class A or Bus type Motor Homes. The units are open to the public, so you can sit at the table, mom can look in all the cabinets, dad can look at the engines, and the kids can bounce on the beds (the well behaved ones don’t, but mine do…). I guess that’s why some of the more expensive Motor Homes are not open to the public…?

Many dealers will have factory representatives available to answer even the most difficult of questions.  A few years ago, we were interested in one particular unit, but didn’t want to wait the 12 weeks for delivery.  The factory rep was able to get on the phone and find us a unit that would be available in 2 weeks! We ended up passing on the unit, but found the service refreshing.

The dealers are ready to wheel and deal, so if you are dead set on a new model RV, bring yours to the show and you can work out a trade on the spot. If you see an RV that you must have, the best day to work out the best deal may be on the last day of the show, when dealers don’t want to go home with all that unsold inventory. Likewise, expect a little hard selling if you show any interest in a particular unit. Although, for the most part, the dealers are fairly laid back with the sales pitches; after all, they have thousands of people roaming in and out of their units during a show.

The shows are also a great opportunity to find out about other industry resources. Representatives from regional camping resorts and campgrounds are available so visitors can make reservations, get brochures, and find out about area activities.  Booths dot the grounds with offers of gadgets to make your RV lifestyle a little easier, crafts for sale, and my husband’s favorite; the jerky man who sells all kinds of wild game jerkies. Fare such as hot dogs, nachos, and burgers are available.

So if you are not sure what to do when the weather is rotten, beat the winter doldrums and get out to an RV show near you this weekend!

The Weatherman screwed up again!

The weather report called for Saturday am, turning to snow Saturday night, with frigid temps Sunday. We figured we would pass on skiing Saturday, leaving that morning for Hagerstown, then ski (maybe) Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Pack the RV, drive to Hagerstown, set up at the Jellystone Park. 45 degrees and not getting much colder. We took a nice walk on a wooded trail that runs the length of the campground, reveling in the peace of the off season. Usually we have to take care not to get run over by kids on the rental 3-wheel bikes. (more…)

The ideal food for camping or RV’ing would be delicious, nutritious, take very little room to store, and wouldn’t need refrigeration.  Preparation would be minutes, and wouldn’t take anything more than boiling water and stirring.

I am not talking about Ramen Noodles, folks, but something much more satisfying. (more…)

Following is a copy of a post I recently made on the www.irv2.com forum on a discussion over whether now is a good time to buy a new RV.  It pretty much sums up the way we feel about finances in general.

For those of us without unlimited funds, and about 50 years of life expectancy in front of us, we have learned to temper our “wants” with “enough.”

A 4-slide $250K depreciating asset that gets 7 mpg just doesn’t’ make sense for us (that doesn’t even consider the maintenance expense!). And we are in the top 5% of savings for our age group (40 yrs). (more…)

After owning three different RVs over the last 8 years, we know that owning an RV has all the maintenance issues of a motor vehicle combined with the maintenance of a house, and then some, related to all the bouncing and jostling of the unit when traveling.  This week was another example of “fun with RV maintenance.” (more…)