Living in a fifth wheel in Maine in winter...doable or gonna be a nightmare? (Now with pics of wife) - Page 2

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Living in a fifth wheel in Maine in winter...doable or gonna be a nightmare? (Now with pics of wife) (Page 2 of 2)

Posted: 7/15/2013 6:48:07 PM EDT

[#1]

Posted: 7/15/2013 10:29:53 PM EDT

[#2]

my father in law works out of town about 10 months a year. he pretty much lives in his 5th wheel and when he went to Montana 2 winters ago, he stayed in a hotel all winter. said the fifth wheel couldnt cut it

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:25:15 AM EDT

[#3]

Basic question: Will local zoning laws allow this?

You have an 11 year old daughter. RV's can get real small after awhile. Your daughter is going to want to have friends over etc. She is going to need her own "space". There is no such thing as your own space in an RV. Rent a house or condo during construction. Keep life "normal" for her.

Is there a resort area nearby? If so, how is the condo market? If they move quickly and values are rising, buy a condo with as little down as possible. Then build the house and sell the condo. If you are lucky and the values go up enough, you may be able to cover some the cost of living in the condo.

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:27:06 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
http://cinekatz.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/the_shining_58569-1400x1050.jpg

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:34:07 AM EDT

[#5]

lol, you are gonna die

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:36:12 AM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:
I know someone who did this for years. Where in maine? coastal area with local resources and access to utility or middle of fucking nowhere pine tree land?

Its doable, but the build a nice shop and live there is a better idea. If you can get a NG hookup or propane (or electric) these things put out lots of heat and are pretty common up there.

http://www.rinnai.us/direct-vent-wall-furnace/installation

Got a Monitior heater as our backup heat (if the wood stove goes in .. it goes) and the only downside is that it needs electricity to work.

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:59:53 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
You say you have lived on boats....... have you lived on a boat in the arctic circle for 6 months during the cold season?

No? Well, it would be like that.

Southern Maine, your gonna get cold, and go through a lot of propane. You better insulate everything underneath it.

Northern Maine (I can spit on Canada)......... your gonna be going to bed with three layers of clothes and your propane heater cranked. Plan on cracked and frozen hook ups/pipes even if you skirt it.

How cold will that camper get when the wind is howling @ 40 knots and the temp is 25 below?

Oh, you didn't mention a plow truck, snow blower, shovels, etc. Your going to need at least two on that list.

You better have a backup plan for heat and electric if your out side of town. You will lose power when you really don't want to and sometimes it will take a day or two (or longer) to come back up.

I have seen tractor trailers drifted over up here to the point you don't know they are there. (depends on how bad we get the snow that year)

You going to want to pick a spot carefully when you park it.

As stated above, build a well insulated garage, and park your camper inside, or better yet, rent a house for the winter. They aren't that expensive in the sticks.

And the telecommute thing........... if you get way up here in the north end, don't plan on being more than a mile or two from town if you want fast Internet. You will be stuck with satellite.

Listen to this man. Rent a house.

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:05:26 AM EDT

[#8]

Build a 30x60 shop with a 2 bedroom apartment in it.

Build house.

Man cave plus shop.

????

Profit

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:23:10 AM EDT

[#9]

find a property to buy with a camp, old farmhouse or trailer on it.

or rent...

in lots of maine houses are cheaappp

as for zoning> most places living in a RV would be fine..

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:33:08 AM EDT

[#10]

The propane bill alone would eat you alive. Then you have to deal with frozen water/sewer lines, ect.

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:39:59 AM EDT

[#11]

Rent a house. Do what you want but don't subject your child to this.

Shit can get real bad in the winter because problems never seem to come alone, always compounding. When it's not winter welcome to mud season and the mosquitoes have landing lights.

Rent.

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:46:50 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
Build a 30x60 shop with a 2 bedroom apartment in it.

Build house.

Man cave plus shop.

????

Profit

I basically did this. Ended up living in it for 6 years and the house took three years to build. What was the hurry?

Posted: 7/16/2013 3:55:31 AM EDT

[#13]

Why Maine btw? Why not someplace like Northern Arizona?

Posted: 7/16/2013 4:04:26 AM EDT

[#14]

You won't be happy with the time it takes just living.. the cost to heat, water problems, moisture issues, and being cold with no end in sight. and that's if the propane heating system doesn't fail. you need a double back up. electric heat, and some kind of wood/coal heat. I spent a Northern Maine winter in a 22' RV . I would only do it again to save my life. I could of lived in a Hotel cheaper. or had I spent time to box in the RV in a shed and heated the shed with wood. lessons learned.

Posted: 7/16/2013 4:32:14 AM EDT

[#15]

Rent, please rent.
1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)
2. Heating it will cost
3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage
4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

Posted: 7/16/2013 4:56:16 AM EDT

[#16]

Tag

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:40:23 AM EDT

[#17]

Some of the sugestions seem kind of screwy to me.

If you build a shop and stick the camper in it the exaust from the gas furnace of the camper will be venting into the shop. This isn't going to be good. I guess there are ways around it but it also sounds like you are heating both the camper and the shop ?

Does the average mobile home have better insulation than the average camper? How is the cost/resale of a mobile home going to compare to
a camper? I really have no idea just tossing things out.

Are you building this place yourself or just paying for it? You do realize that building in northern New England in the winter months has its own set of challenges?

One of the problems I see is that most of the folks who know about trailers/campers are dealers or owner/sellers and have a interest in selling what they own so their information might be a bit biased .

Interesting proposition but somehow the renting of a house or apartment might be more of a sure thing at a known price.
Florida to Northern New England is a tough move as is , living in a camper could be rough

Good luck

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:43:58 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:

Rent, please rent.

1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)

2. Heating it will cost

3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage

4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

I would prefer to live there but the wife wants access to a particular high school just over the border from NH. There is a major private school that provides HS to the locals. It's a very nice school, but we have to live in the district or pay $21,000 a year.

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:48:46 AM EDT

[#19]

Build one of those insulated steel buildings on a nice 8 inch concrete pad to park the trailer in and have a wood stove installed.

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:50:46 AM EDT

[#20]

Heating a fifth wheel going to be difficult and expensive. If the three of you are okay with basically living cold then go for it.

ETA: You'll need a least three of the biggest propane bottles you can move. One in use, two backups. Be prepared to get really tired and moving and getting bottle filled.

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:53:50 AM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Rent, please rent.
1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)
2. Heating it will cost
3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage
4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

I would prefer to live there but the wife wants access to a particular high school just over the border from NH. There is a major private school that provides HS to the locals. It's a very nice school, but we have to live in the district or pay $21,000 a year.
what school? im 20min from the NH boarder and if i knew where you where looking i could help you find a place to rent. if you really want to do the 5th wheel thing its your call, but i really think renting is a better option

Posted: 7/16/2013 5:53:56 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
Build one of those insulated steel buildings on a nice 8 inch concrete pad to park the trailer in and have a wood stove installed.

8"

do you have any idea what a 8" slab would cost? Way overkill IMHO.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:02:05 AM EDT

[#23]

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:03:38 AM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Rent, please rent.

1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)

2. Heating it will cost

3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage

4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

I would prefer to live there but the wife wants access to a particular high school just over the border from NH. There is a major private school that provides HS to the locals. It's a very nice school, but we have to live in the district or pay $21,000 a year.

what school? im 20min from the NH boarder and if i knew where you where looking i could help you find a place to rent. if you really want to do the 5th wheel thing its your call, but i really think renting is a better option

Fryeburg Academy, about 7 miles east of Conway NH

If we rent, and thanks to GD I think I've convinced the wife, we would
need to be in the MSAD 72 school district. Time of move would be end of
June next summer.

Land purchase would ideally be 15+ acres of mixed woodland on a semi
decent road. Going to self build a post and beam home from a kit.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:32:58 AM EDT

[#25]

I know nothing about cold weather or living in a mobile home but common sense tells me that it would be better for you to rent a place rather than try to hook up a 5th wheel and keep warm during a Maine winter. Not only would it be cheaper but you would have more room and be much more comfortable.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:54:09 AM EDT

[#26]

I own some land in VT. My neighbor has 75 acres and lived in a 4 season trailer while building his house.

The winter was a bit rough but not terrible. He had a dedicated plow truck, snowmobile, snow blower and the wife's car.

Staying on site helped to deter thieves and allowed him to spend more time working on the property instead of traveling back and forth.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:55:15 AM EDT

[#27]

*only clicked this thread to see wife pics*

Posted: 7/16/2013 7:02:22 AM EDT

[#28]

If you can get a smoking deal on a 4 season trailer it MAY make sense to go the trailer route. I would say go rental instead.
You will be in a town with services available like food, school and health care.
My brother built a house out in the boonies of NYS and he had to give it up, it was too much for his wife to drive the boys to school every day and every trip to the market was an expedition.
Not to mention keeping a mile long driveway plowed and repairing washouts every time they got a heavy rain.

Posted: 7/16/2013 7:47:16 AM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Rent, please rent.
1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)
2. Heating it will cost
3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage
4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

I would prefer to live there but the wife wants access to a particular high school just over the border from NH. There is a major private school that provides HS to the locals. It's a very nice school, but we have to live in the district or pay $21,000 a year.

So you want to move to Fryeburg or Bethel??

Only two that I know of down there are Gould academy and Fryeburg Academy. I attended Fryeburg myself years ago.

Edited to add>>>> I just saw your last post specifying the school.

Forget the trailer idea. You should be able to get land/house instead. The area is not that expensive, but does get crazy during Fryeburg Fair.

DO NOT try to live in your 5th wheel. Life will suck.

Posted: 7/16/2013 8:28:29 AM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:

*only clicked this thread to see wife pics*

Sorry, she wouldn't let me post any good ones.

Posted: 7/16/2013 12:40:17 PM EDT

[#31]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Rent, please rent.
1. You dont know anything about trailer life (said so your own words)
2. Heating it will cost
3. You dont want your first year to be miserable... Stress on family.. Marriage
4. Depending on where in maine or nh, rents can be cheap... Probably less than the deperciation on a trailer (they depericiate fast) cost of heating it, setting it up, a truch to pull it, etc...

Please move to nh

we need all the pro freedom people we can get!

I would prefer to live there but the wife wants access to a particular high school just over the border from NH. There is a major private school that provides HS to the locals. It's a very nice school, but we have to live in the district or pay $21,000 a year.
what school? im 20min from the NH boarder and if i knew where you where looking i could help you find a place to rent. if you really want to do the 5th wheel thing its your call, but i really think renting is a better option

Fryeburg Academy, about 7 miles east of Conway NH

If we rent, and thanks to GD I think I've convinced the wife, we would need to be in the MSAD 72 school district. Time of move would be end of June next summer.

Land purchase would ideally be 15+ acres of mixed woodland on a semi decent road. Going to self build a post and beam home from a kit.

as someone else said, finding land and a house rental shouldn't be hard. start looking in winter and spring. even in that area good internet can be iffy, the power will go out every other storm, but NH is really close so do your shopping there. im about 25 minutes south of there, in a town that most people (even those who have lived in Maine their whole lives) have never heard of

personally i don't think fryeburg academy is really anything special. they seem to have a problem with their students trying to burn the place down. but again that's a personal observation

Posted: 7/16/2013 1:11:55 PM EDT

[#32]

Quoted:

personally i don't think fryeburg academy is really anything special. they seem to have a problem with their students trying to burn the place down. but again that's a personal observation

Was never a problem when I was there. When did this all start?

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:39:34 PM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:

Quoted:

personally i don't think fryeburg academy is really anything special. they seem to have a problem with their students trying to burn the place down. but again that's a personal observation

Was never a problem when I was there. When did this all start?

first time was about ten years ago, student burned down the gym. then about three years ago maybe? almost same thing but gym didnt burn down, it was caught early

Posted: 7/16/2013 2:49:18 PM EDT

[#34]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Build an insulated shop. Park RV inside the shop. use a wood burning stove for the shop during the coldest part of the winter.

Win.

best idea. when you are done, you get a shop.

And double stack straw bales around the entire base of the trailer.

That works great, but it do draw the mice.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:19:23 PM EDT

[#35]

Check with the school, the academy serves a number of the surrounding towns as well.

watch out for swamp land, the skeeters in Denmark are epic.... lots of swamps

there tends to be cheap land and old farms in porter/hiram as they are far from anywhere.

Posted: 7/16/2013 6:26:40 PM EDT

[#36]

Quoted:
Wife and I are brewing what may be a hair brained scheme: We intend to move with our 11 year old daughter to either Maine or NH next summer (I can telecommute so can live anywhere).

If you can live anywhere, why choose Maine or New Hampshire?

Move to western Ohio (where I live) or Indiana - lots of conservatives, open spaces, and four seasons (instead of winter, winter, winter, and mud). Taxes in Indiana are low, too, and people will actually speak to you.

Posted: 7/17/2013 3:11:04 AM EDT

[#37]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Wife and I are brewing what may be a hair brained scheme: We intend to move with our 11 year old daughter to either Maine or NH next summer (I can telecommute so can live anywhere).

If you can live anywhere, why choose Maine or New Hampshire?

Move to western Ohio (where I live) or Indiana - lots of conservatives, open spaces, and four seasons (instead of winter, winter, winter, and mud). Taxes in Indiana are low, too, and people will actually speak to you.

I grew up in the Northeast, and lived in NH for several years when I was single. It's an amazing area, particularly northern NE. It's close to the ocean, close to great skiing, close to mountains, close to remote wilderness, not too far major cities, full of lakes and rivers, great hunting, and well educated and generally friendly people. The NE has more variety than most other places in the country. The politics need to be navigated, but the rest makes up for it in my opinion.

Posted: 7/17/2013 4:48:14 AM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:
Build an insulated shop. Park RV inside the shop. use a wood burning stove for the shop during the coldest part of the winter.

Win.

This.

A good way to convince the wife of the need for a large garage/shop.

Because it will be much harder to justify it after the house is done.

Posted: 7/17/2013 5:59:25 AM EDT

[#39]

I am really confused here.....I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would move from Florida to Maine or NH. I freeze my ass off in NC in the winter and it is mild compared to the NE.

I would recommend renting first or do the barn thing next.

People used to southern winters have a hard time adjusting to northern winters. My son has been in Chicago for 4 winters and he still freezes to death.

Posted: 7/17/2013 7:31:25 AM EDT

[#40]

Quoted:

I am really confused here.....I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would move from Florida to Maine or NH. I freeze my ass off in NC in the winter and it is mild compared to the NE.

I would recommend renting first or do the barn thing next.

People used to southern winters have a hard time adjusting to northern winters. My son has been in Chicago for 4 winters and he still freezes to death.

You can dress for cold, but when it's 95 degrees and 99% humidity in South Florida there's nothing you can do but hide inside. I say this as a guy that used to ski six days a week for years.

We lived in VA for a while, and the half assed winters they had there pissed me off.

Posted: 7/17/2013 8:26:31 AM EDT

[#41]

I built my in-laws post and beam while they rented a half mile up the street. It was really perfect how it worked out for them. They had a meeting with the site guy to discuss the location of the septic when all of a sudden they noticed a "for rent" sign. Rents in NH are slightly higher than Maine due to various reasons. However it's up across the board due to the amount of families losing their homes and needing to rent.

If you're looking for a timber framer, Kyle Whitehead is probably one of the coolest guys I know and is still a family friend long after the house has been built. The guy is a genius and is work is solid as I've seen. Mink Hill Timber Frame

Feel free to reach out with any more questions.

Posted: 7/17/2013 11:37:45 AM EDT

[#42]

Quote History

Quoted:

I built my in-laws post and beam while they rented a half mile up the street. It was really perfect how it worked out for them. They had a meeting with the site guy to discuss the location of the septic when all of a sudden they noticed a "for rent" sign. Rents in NH are slightly higher than Maine due to various reasons. However it's up across the board due to the amount of families losing their homes and needing to rent.

If you're looking for a timber framer, Kyle Whitehead is probably one of the coolest guys I know and is still a family friend long after the house has been built. The guy is a genius and is work is solid as I've seen. Mink Hill Timber Frame

Feel free to reach out with any more questions.

View Quote

We are looking a company called Enviro Tech Post and Beam. Their system is interesting because it can be piece built rather than the traditional need to build entire bents.

http://enviro-techpostandbeam.com/

The wife, FIL and I could build the thing ourselves without a crane, with the exception of needing a crane for hoisting and hanging the SIP panels. It should be pretty quick too. I would appreciate your comments since you've built a traditional one.

Posted: 7/17/2013 1:53:03 PM EDT

[#43]

Quote History

Quoted:

We are looking a company called Enviro Tech Post and Beam. Their system is interesting because it can be piece built rather than the traditional need to build entire bents.

http://enviro-techpostandbeam.com/

The wife, FIL and I could build the thing ourselves without a crane, with the exception of needing a crane for hoisting and hanging the SIP panels. It should be pretty quick too. I would appreciate your comments since you've built a traditional one.

View Quote

Those SIP panels are the bee's knees. We used the pre-drywalled ones where appropriate and life was good once we got inside. The house is so damn tight they had to put in an air handler just to draw in fresh air from outside and keep the place from turning into a friggen green house in the winter months.

Excited to hear how things progress for you. Been a while since I've been involved in a build, let alone a timber frame. Best of luck.

Posted: 7/17/2013 1:55:46 PM EDT

[#44]

Quote History

Quoted:
Thanks guys. The wife is impressed by the folks on GD

View Quote

That's a first.

Posted: 7/17/2013 2:03:21 PM EDT

[#45]

Quote History

Quoted:

Fryeburg Academy, about 7 miles east of Conway NH

If we rent, and thanks to GD I think I've convinced the wife, we would need to be in the MSAD 72 school district. Time of move would be end of June next summer.

Land purchase would ideally be 15+ acres of mixed woodland on a semi decent road. Going to self build a post and beam home from a kit.

View Quote

Nice area

302 is crowded this time of year with tourists and locals running back and forth between Greater Portland and The White Mountains....traffic on weekends is sometime very frustrating.

Quick drive over the border to get any viceities....booze and tobacco are much less in NH .

Posted: 7/17/2013 2:06:09 PM EDT

[#46]

My brother and his wife spent two, yes two winters in a teepee in Montana.
He says it was a bit uncomfortable to say the least.

Posted: 7/17/2013 6:17:39 PM EDT

[#47]

Quote History

Quoted:

Those SIP panels are the bee's knees. We used the pre-drywalled ones where appropriate and life was good once we got inside. The house is so damn tight they had to put in an air handler just to draw in fresh air from outside and keep the place from turning into a friggen green house in the winter months.

Excited to hear how things progress for you. Been a while since I've been involved in a build, let alone a timber frame. Best of luck.

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:

We are looking a company called Enviro Tech Post and Beam. Their system is interesting because it can be piece built rather than the traditional need to build entire bents.

http://enviro-techpostandbeam.com/

The wife, FIL and I could build the thing ourselves without a crane, with the exception of needing a crane for hoisting and hanging the SIP panels. It should be pretty quick too. I would appreciate your comments since you've built a traditional one.

Those SIP panels are the bee's knees. We used the pre-drywalled ones where appropriate and life was good once we got inside. The house is so damn tight they had to put in an air handler just to draw in fresh air from outside and keep the place from turning into a friggen green house in the winter months.

Excited to hear how things progress for you. Been a while since I've been involved in a build, let alone a timber frame. Best of luck.

Thank you!