My DW and I have decided to try to winter-over on the Oregon coast, about 10 miles inland.
This should be a challange but might be fun.
What can others, that have taken this project on, tell us to be ready for and what to take to be warm and dry?
We have a 34 foot motorhome, I'm told was built for and sold in Alaska, don't know how true this is, or even if the manufacturers have a special build.
I don’t need anger management-I just need people to stop pissing me off.
Vancouver, WA
2006 Holiday Rambler DP
grandpalarry wrote: My DW and I have decided to try to winter-over on the Oregon coast, about 10 miles inland.
This should be a challange but might be fun. What can others, that have taken this project on, tell us to be ready for and what to take to be warm and dry?
We have a 34 foot motorhome, I'm told was built for and sold in Alaska, don't know how true this is, or even if the manufacturers have a special build.
Don't do it. Many will chime in and tell you it can be done, but there are a lot of things you have to do to the MH to even try and make it comfortable in cold weather. Don't care if the manuf said its built for Alaska or not. The big windshield of a Class A and the passenger windows is NOT, NEVER going to be made out of thermo pane glass. And this is where most of the cold is going to come in from.
I have spent just 4 or 5 days in below freezing temps in Florida during one of their cold snaps. Covering all the windows, vents, etc to try and heat it and living in a dark cave just to stay warm was not on my list of things I would ever want to do for any length of time. Just saying.
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us".
Because it looks like you may be from Vancouver, WA, you know what the weather is like on the Coast. Unpredictable, always foggy or rainy and usually windy during winter storms.
But that doesn't mean you couldn't manage fine slightly inland. Winds may be not as harsh if you're protected by Evergreens. Weather is the hardest things to control. With large windows, in the winter IF it's sunny it helps warm up the RV.
What you can control, get an extended stay hookup and have 100# LP tanks delivered if possible. WE always do that whenever possible now.
Check out more hints in the post on Winter Camping in Full-time RVing.
BTW: We've seen plenty of MH's, Cls C's, TT's winter in worse weather than the Coast.
2009 DRV Mobile Suite 38TKSB3 (38RSSB3)....our custom home w/2011 upgrades
2010 Ford F450 KR CC 4x4......his office
Working Fulltimers since 3/2005
"Shoot for the Moon! Even if you miss it, you will land among the Stars."
If I had the opportunity to stay the winter somewhere, I would be headed south to some nice warm weather. UP there all the bone chilling cold, rain, fog, ice, snow....
Or down south, 70F winter days, sunshine. Not a hard decision for me.
4 whopping cylinders on Toyota RV's. Talk about great getting good MPG. Also I have a very light foot on the pedal. I followed some MPG advice on Livingpress.com and I now get 22 MPG! Not bad for a home on wheels.
grandpalarry wrote: My DW and I have decided to try to winter-over on the Oregon coast, about 10 miles inland.
This should be a challange but might be fun.
What can others, that have taken this project on, tell us to be ready for and what to take to be warm and dry?
We have a 34 foot motorhome, I'm told was built for and sold in Alaska, don't know how true this is, or even if the manufacturers have a special build.
When you say "the Oregon Coast", that's a lot of ground. We've wintered in Woodland, WA (twice 2005 & 2006). We've wintered in Portland in 2007. 2008 & 2009 we were in the Ukiah, CA area. 2010 we were near Mill City, Oregon.
From Oct to April, hurricane force winds slam the Oregon coast and the damage those winds cause is real. Trees down. Roads damaged. Flooding and electric power out for several days. 10 miles inland would be doable but you should pick your spot very carefully. (On high ground and not where a tree can land on you.) 40 miles inland (along the I-5 corridor)is easier to handle. It rarely snows on the valley floor. Anything above 1,000 feet on the coastal or Cascade mountains will have snow when the valley or the coast have rain. It rarely snows on the coast. Driving can be tricky... black ice on the roads is patchy and depends on the elevation of the road and the wind chill.
The temps will not get down to freezing very often on the Oregon Coast. Portland, Salem, Eugene... might see below freezing temps during the night now and then but daytime temps will be above freezing and more like 45 to 65 deg from October to April. If you think the temps are going to be dropping, just disconnect your water hose or put them inside somewhere. Freezing isn't a problem... mold is. Mold is a BIG problem. Condensation on the windows is a big problem. I've never seen mold grow on glass before.
Rubber backed curtains or even double layered regular curtains on a pocket rod help to keep your windows from losing heat but you sill have to have air circulation across the glass if you don't want to be wiping the glass down every morning. (That's a pain).
Are your bays heated in your MH??? Anything in the storage area will be prone to get damp and mold. Tools will rust. Cardboard boxes will mold. You need air circulation in the bays.
Your floor will be cold if you don't keep your bays heated enough and it's IMPOSSIBLE to keep your bays heated enough. So be prepared to wear some sturdy shoes with wool socks all the time.
Winds... if you have a slide with a topper you need to put a PVC pipe beneath the topper to form a "^" shaped roof. That lets the rain drain and keeps the wind from whipping the topper to shreds.
Don't put your awning out. Even if it's weighted down the winds can demolish it.
It' will start to rain in October and it won't stop for many many many weeks. Count on not seeing the sun much. The nice days will be golden though. You'll appreciate every single one of them.
The summers are very nice but you need to know that winter in Oregon is six months long.
I believe that there is an Alaska pack option from many manufacturers. Usually means double paned windows, and perhaps blanket heaters for the tanks. Not much else though (I believe). Mine supposedly has the Alaskan pack but all that seems different is heavier window treatments and dbl paned windows.
Take several small electric forced air heaters. Use that aluminum faced bubble insulation cut to size for your windows. Foam blocks for the vents.
As already mentioned, a 100 gallon propane tank would be good. As would a shelter to park under. The rain is unrelenting.
And I'd say winter on the Oregon coast is 9 months long...it's not so much the cold as it is the damp and cloud cover all the time.
Don't tell anyone but the Oregon coast in the winter is a very special place. Love it.
Inland a bit "might" have less wind, but is also likely to be wetter and it will be colder. Personally, I would rather be right on the coast, sheltered by some tree covered dunes. You may want to look up the historical weather for where you plan to be to find out what it will be like. It will be an El Nino winter this year. Usually El Nino years start early with big storms but then, sometime around early December, fizzle out and the remainder of the winter is fairly dry (relative term for the coast). However, spring is often long and protracted in El Nino years.
Be mindful of where you park as there will always be puddles and/or mud and it's no fun having to use a boat to get to/from your RV
Besides adding insulation to your windows and/or between your cab and living area, I suggest you get a good dehumidifier (or two) to reduce the humidity in your living area. You may also want a radiant heater for increased comfort. The usual protection for water lines should suffice in all but the coldest weather. Then, just disconnect them. Sewer hoses shouldn't be an issue.
Good (rubber) rain gear will allow you to get out for walks. I suggest avoiding cotton clothing....unless you never want to be warm and dry.
Think of it as an "adventure" and have a great time. And, if it gets too bad, hopefully you just head south for a couple weeks to reset and dry out.
Don't tell anyone but the Oregon coast in the winter is a very special place. Love it.
Inland a bit "might" have less wind, but is also likely to be wetter and it will be colder. Personally, I would rather be right on the coast, sheltered by some tree covered dunes. You may want to look up the historical weather for where you plan to be to find out what it will be like. It will be an El Nino winter this year. Usually El Nino years start early with big storms but then, sometime around early December, fizzle out and the remainder of the winter is fairly dry (relative term for the coast). However, spring is often long and protracted in El Nino years.
Be mindful of where you park as there will always be puddles and/or mud and it's no fun having to use a boat to get to/from your RV
Besides adding insulation to your windows and/or between your cab and living area, I suggest you get a good dehumidifier (or two) to reduce the humidity in your living area. You may also want a radiant heater for increased comfort. The usual protection for water lines should suffice in all but the coldest weather. Then, just disconnect them. Sewer hoses shouldn't be an issue.
Good (rubber) rain gear will allow you to get out for walks. I suggest avoiding cotton clothing....unless you never want to be warm and dry.
Think of it as an "adventure" and have a great time. And, if it gets too bad, hopefully you just head south for a couple weeks to reset and dry out.
Have fun,
Steve
Good advice -- we have ENJOYED two winter in the town of Golden, Colorado -- with any luck I'll get the chance to do it again. Couple of quick things to use - Reflective Bubble Wrap -- and Halogen lights in the storage bay.
BOL,
Busskipper
Maryland/Colorado
Travel Supreme 42DS04
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States traveled in this Coach
I have spent just 4 or 5 days in below freezing temps in Florida during one of their cold snaps. Covering all the windows, vents, etc to try and heat it and living in a dark cave just to stay warm was not on my list of things I would ever want to do for any length of time. Just saying.
We have often been in below freezing temps in our MH. Couple of small electric heaters during the day, furmace comes on for 2-3 hours before daylight. Never a real problem for us. We do keep the sunscreens on durung the winter, seems to help. We are fortunate in that our coach is pretty well insulated and the furnace heats the bays, which helps heat the coach. Also try and make sure we get sun into some of the big windows every day.
That said, no way would I spend a whole winter on the Oregon or Washington coasts!
Barb
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