Lazy Daze Owners' Group

Oh, darn. I tried to check for that, but didn't see any indication that a CR membership was required. I've removed the link.

It's been three years, so here's an update. No, I haven't bought yet another RV! ;-) I'm still living in my 19' Airstream, towing it with my crew-cab Ranger pickup. And while I miss the spaciousness and windows of the big 27' Airstream, I definitely do not miss the F-250 pickup that was required to tow it. I'm happy with this outfit.

I've done my usual upgrades on this Airstream: 400 watts of solar panels on the roof (plus my homemade 200W "solar suitcase," but that's only needed for three or four months in the winter), 260 amp-hours of LiFePO4 batteries under the bed, and a 1,000 watt pure sine inverter powering three duplex outlets. I've replaced the converter, added 12 VDC outlets in many places, installed Sirocco II fans at the foot of the bed and in one corner of the dinette, replaced all the undercounter lights with better ones (as described elsewhere), placed filters in all the ceiling lights to change icy-cold to warm white, and so on.

I've made major changes to the kitchen. As built, it had something like five inches (!) of counter space between the stove and sink. Apparently you were expected to do all your prep on the dinette table, but bending over that gives me a backache. So I replaced the big three burner stovetop with a one-burner hob, giving me almost a foot of counter space, and added a drop-leaf counter extension for even more space. To gain storage space, I pulled out the big microwave/convection oven and built shelves instead. (I can still bake, using my Omnia stovetop oven.)

I replaced the propane fridge (after it nearly poisoned me due to a sloppy factory installation that let combustion fumes leak in around the bezel!) with a 12V/120V compressor fridge, and added a drawer underneath it. I mounted a Wave 3 catalytic heater around the corner from the fridge, where it sends its beams toward my usual place at the dinette.

Just as I had done in the big Airstream, I removed one of the dinette benches, and in its place I have a comfortable rolling/tilting/swiveling office chair. That makes a huge difference in comfort... and with the nearby location of the catalytic heater, I stay comfortable with minimal furnace use even in cold weather. (Mind, I'm wintering in Arizona, not Minnesota.) And I added a drop leaf to the end of the dinette table.

(One nice thing about Airstreams is that all the cabinetry is covered in high-quality laminate, so I bought a roll of the same Wilsonart Landmark Wood pattern and used it to finish the things I added - such as drawer fronts, cabinet doors, and the top of the drop leaf - to perfectly match the rest of the interior.)

Although I could always use more interior storage space, I've made this 19' Airstream very comfortable. The Ranger is pleasant to drive; it doesn't feel much different than a minivan or large SUV. And with its crew cab and bed topper, it more than makes up for what the Airstream lacks in outside storage. I'm using an Eaz-Lift weight-distributing/antisway hitch, which I find is better than the Equal-i-zer hitch I had before. (The Eaz-Lift hitch has tapered bars, which makes for smoother action.) I've had absolutely no problems with sway or porpoising.

When we were discussing insulation earlier in this thread, the question of single-pane windows and all-aluminum construction came up. I can report that while I have seen condensation on the windows and small wall areas on a handful of cold, humid occasions, it hasn't been a problem.

So all in all, I think I've found an RV setup that will last me for as long as I want to stay on the road. :-)

It's this one, with 800-pound-rated weight distributing bars. Of course they have 600- 1,000-, and 1,200-pound rated models for lighter and heavier trailers as well.

My only complaint about it is that in my setup, the W-D bars hang fairly low on their chains (I have only light tension on them, else they'd be pulled up higher) and occasionally scrape when going over dips. No harm done, but the noise is unsettling.