We've been weekend camping in our new-to-us FW for the past 2 months - we bought a property about 2 hours away. It has a house on it which we've rented out, and a 3500 s.f. workshop, which held a sizeable furniture manufacturing business - so lots of power there. It also has it's own washroom with shower, so we've been using that except at night.
We didn't have a 30 amp plug, so were just using household power with the appropriate power conversion cords, and we had water. No sewage. We weren't able to run the A/C but the nights have been comfortable. It's been fine.
We decided two weekends ago we should act like we were actually camping - not pseudo-camping and that we should test everything - as if we were in a campground and/or boondocking - sanitize and use the fresh water tank, use the shower, etc.
To do that, we had a 30 amp plug installed last week - (yes - for a trailer - not a dryer plug) - and turned on the A/C. There was a shaking and banging, and we promptly turned it off, and decided we'd call service on Monday. By the end of the day though - we realized we'd been running off of the battery all day, and had no shore power at all.
We had to charge it up with the truck to get the slides closed and with less than 2 weeks to our first trip, we were very disheartened. Service did a site visit (without us being there or giving them money or anything - thank God for small towns).. and replaced the inverter. They checked the A/C and said that something was lose, and that it had nothing to do with the inverter being blown.
We went back this weekend, and the A/C does work, it's not noisy, so we figure we're good to go. Go to watch a movie, and the DVD no longer works - likely blown when the inverter blew, I am guessing. We buy another one - but have to buy the entire surround sound system, because just the player by itself won't connect to the home theatre that's installed in the RV. So - buy the entire system, but don't even unpack the speakers. It's not as good as what we had - because it doesn't have an iPod dock, or the ability to plug in the antenna coax cable. Where DO you buy a Samsung TV receiver that has an iPad connection, and in-bound co-ax? NOT at Best Buy, Future Shop or THe Source, I can tell you that much...
Next, try using water from the fresh-water tanks - which were sanitized last week. The pump works, water comes out, but the pump is so noisy - ALL THE TIME - not just when it's trying to get water to the taps. Okay, we can probably live with that - we're not planning on doing much boondocking - if any on our trip.
Then try to cook dinner and find out the Dometic convection/microwave is shot as well. It doesn't look like a big deal to get it down and see if there's a fuse in it to replace - but the weekend is over, and we've run out of time. Some people have said yes - others no - do we need to replace that microwave.. still don't know.
Our trip from Toronto to Memphis and Nashville is due to start on Thursday - and we are "this close" to cancelling the whole thing - today our mind is set on going to go for it .... it is not, however - an auspicious beginning.
We did decide to go ahead and put new tires on the rig here in Canada, rather than going with our original plan of waiting until we were in the US and trying to save a few $$$.
Oh, and the reason the inverter blew in the first place is - my husband believes/hopes - a bad breaker on the 30amp circuit. He replaced it and it's been fine.
It's all about the journey, and not the destination, right...? RIGHT???
Two days until our first trip - and ready to call it quits before we start!
and certainly not one you would want to share with anyone "thinking" about getting an RV 
Hope your trip is trouble free.
Marianne
It'd be nice if they would but I'm not holding my breath. 
Linear Mode
