What Is The Most Useless Thing To Have In An RV?

Up through the years we have owned several RVs. Looking just at the ones we had after we came to Canada, the first one was an old Class C. It was the most basic RV you would imagine and it was old - from 1989. The many engine problems we got from the 460 FORD engine made us trade it off for a new Open Road 37ft 5-wheel. The thing was so poorly made that we were not surprised when the company went belly-up during 2007-2008 recession. I mean it was just pure junk. The most useless thing in that RV was a fake fireplace, run by AC-power. The "flames" so poorly created that it was pathetic to watch. It didn't even heat much, and after every roadtrip the front metall frame would be on the floor. Geeez.....

After that, we got a 39ft. Damon Ultrasport Diesel Pusher. WOW!!!

I wouldn't say it had useless things mounted into it, but it sure wasn't a great quality RV either. Roof leaks came fast, even so it was only 4years old. After 2 years of use for our trips south, a slide motor and the toilet needed replacement. It had a 330 CAT engine and was always running good. Like today, we pulled an autotransport trailer which would carry our Jeep Patriot.

We then stepped back to a regular travel trailer, bought brand new from a dealership in IOWA. It was a Flagstaff 27RLWS, the same model we have today. 3 slide-outs and a great floor plan. Only 2 years old, it needed a furnace replacement which was done under warranty.

It was sold in 2014 and replaced with a cheaper Passport Trailer. That one was pure junk again. I used it throughout the winter when having work in Alberta, Poorly insulated, it delaminated on the rear wall. When a storm let a branch poke a hole through the rear, it was repaired and sold quickly to some people who had lost their house in a wildfire around Slave Lake, AB.

Some years passed without an RV, but in 2019 I spotted a Flagstaff 27RLWS for sale in Michigan. It was a 2015 and I bought it for USD13,600 and dragged it home. Unfortunately, COVID happened and nobody could travel. So instead we made it into an AirBnB, which it still is today. Same floorplan as the one bought new in 2012, it has been a great trailer. Like in the previous TTs I cannot think of anything useless in there. Some details lack good craftmanship, but afterall it is just a travel trailer. Most travel trailers are using 3500 pound axles which isn't enough to carry peoples travel stuff and maybe 40gal of fresh water. A few hundred dollars more, and they could have had heavy duty axles, but such are the ways of the American RV industry.

So now we come to our latest and current purchase. After getting the trailer down to California 3 times, I have been longing for more driving comfort. Last year's transmission failure on our van really made me think what to do. A Class A was topping the wish list and now we got ourselves in a 2004 Beaver Santiam. It is an RV that was considered being high on quality with features other Class A wouldn't have. It is also almost identical to a Monaco Diplomat, because Monaco actually had started making Beavers. After only a few days of ownership it is too early to give a complete picture of how this RV will work out.

However, a few things stand out. Nr.1: it is very heavy. Everything inside is massive wood. You park it, run around inside and there isn't the slightest vibration in the floor, which was a bad thing for Dixie in the trailer. Now, she loves the Beaver. 

Nr. 2: Windows are double pane which prevents condensation from building up. But when a company wants to outdo the competition they "invent" features which seem to be unnessecary, like f.e.x a remote control to operate a "Fantastic Fan". I ask "what is the purpose of that?" Who is so small that he or she can't reach up to the ceiling to start the fan. We have one in the TT and it has never been any problem for anyone to start the fan or open the cover manually. But the most unnessecary feature in this RV, and I know many Class A have it ---- is a washer/dryer. This thing which brings a lot of extra weight to the RV can only be operated while the RV is plugged into 50amps. Let's just say we are having that luxury of so much power. Would we actually use the washer and endure the noise of its operation or would we rather use the laundry room in that campground or a town laundromat? If we park this rig in the boonies, we won't have 50amps and thus could not use that washer anyway. Besides, it is a small version of the washer you have at home and its capacity is there-after.

So I conclude with that a washer/dryer in an RV must, by definition of limited possibilities for use, be the most useless feature an RV can have.

So now, I expect a barrage of comments disputing that statement because you have used the RV washer many times when being in an RV park. Good for you, I say, but consider what this feature has cost you, at least when you purchase a new RV. And you might have saved the collossal amount of $15 every time since you didn't have to use a commercial laundromat. 

So for us, it is time to say Good Bye to Colorado. Tomorrow we will be heading across Raton Pass into New Mexico. How far will we go? We will leave that to the moment when we make a decision to call it a day. We are not in a hurry and RVing is about freedom.