Hi there! We are James, Stephanie & Addison. We are a full-time RV family traveling the U.S. We are a 23-year military family that loves the outdoors in all flavors. It has always been a dream of ours to one day purchase an RV and travel. We decided to pull the trigger in September 2022. We officially became a "full-time family" in December of 2022.
We would love for you to follow along with us as we travel the U.S. and go on many adventures. We look forward to chatting with you, and hopefully meeting you. Safe travels!
After installing the freeze adapter, you say “because the water is above 37degrees it automatically shuts off the water”. I’m confused. I thought it closes off the flow if the temp drops BELOW 37
@@explorationsrenovations5982 It is the opposite. It is designed to start dripping below 37 degrees to protect the lines. Similar to when you open up the faucet in a house in extreme cold. The reason you see a steady stream on the video is because I pulled it straight from the freezer. It will auto regulate the flow according to the extreme temperature
I REALLY appreciate your gentle go through of all the pros and cons ... I aa now at the end of my 15 years of RV-ing ... not full-time, but for health reasons etc, not because I don't love it ... but still, I appreciate your points of view AND how you have expressed them.
This was a useful video. My husband and I will be starting our full time trip in April 2025. My children are grown per say. My son is in the AF ans daughter is at college. I have seen quite a few videos and people mention play date type meetups for parents. There also maybe homeschooling meet ups for the towns you are visiting. Thank you for the information
@@AnjiBishop Thanks for taking the time to respond. Right now, we are looking at joining the “Full-Time Families” membership. We just need to figure out how to incorporate it into our travels.
Well, the first question I have is WHY are they so EXTREMELY BOOKED out in their repair facility? Why do they have so much "warranty work". I am in the market for an RV and based on your experiences, and their clear quality issues, I will definitely be avoiding anything made by Alliance.
We agree 💯 about Top of the Rock. We will definitely do that again when we visit Branson. Your slide repair looked like it turned out well. We will be interested to see how it holds up if you could do an update in a month or 2. Also agree with avoiding bad weather when you can. That's on of the reasons our homes have wheels. We enjoy your videos. Safe travels.
@@Luv2Bhitched Hey…thanks so much! We will do our best to stay updated with our repairs. We just had the engine light pop on today on the truck during travel too! Always something, isn’t it? Stay tuned to see how that turns out.
We will be at Indian. point COE on a couple weeks going to see octoberfest at silver dollar city Branson is very family oriented so much to do and see one visit is not enough safe travels
Gate valve is definitely a must! I did a brief video on ours hopefully it was helpful to others. I love the trim in the bedroom over your bed, we are exploring options for trim as we always hit the trim we currently have.
Great video! I'm new to RVing and have watched dozens of these videos. You were very concise and took your time to explain each item. Most of the videos on RU-vid are hurried to keep them short. Keep up the great content and stay safe out there.
@@leeayers5481 This comment means more than you know. We really do try to make sure and give our community value in every video. It takes a lot of effort to put these videos together. Thanks so much!
Very cute video!! Like the call out of KYD!! They got us going with a Hybrid a few years ago! Moved on from that and now have a 253rb Sunset Trail! Good luck and yes, "must haves" are, well, must haves!
Awesome coverage at the zoo. How often should you empty the black tank? New subscriber here. We are saving up for our first RV and have videos on that journey. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
@@ournexttrail It depends on the size of your tank. On our unit we have a “black tank flush” valve that you put water through to rinse the tank after each empty. That’s where we let ours overflow.
@@brad1574 We were thrilled when we discovered this little life saver. We didn’t like the idea of carrying all the extras of the warming hose and insulation materials, etc. The Freeze Miser works flawlessly.
Tire monitor Backup camera Keyless lock Expanding sewer hose Tray sewer line supports Indoor outdoor thermometer Lights for stairs X stabilizer for betwten wheels Leveling drive on block Water softner
@@missouritravelers we certainly have a lot of these items as well. We are considering doing a “must-haves” video, as well. Is that something you you would be interested in?
I have heard that back-flush things happen to a lot of RVers. Of course, I have never done it to my current RV. Notice I said current rig! The zoo looks nice .
I am glad i have auto level on our fifth wheel we always use a torpedo level to check back to front and side to side on case we need to block up the wheels
We have been using a level for months now, which isn’t that big of a deal, but this system will definitely just make the job that much faster. We are just going to manually level from now on.
I am glad i have auto level on our fifth wheel we always use a torpedo level to check back to front and side to side on case we need to block up the wheels
I don't know if anyone in the trade uses the clever term "loose weld" but a proper weld literally turns two pieces of metal into one. Unlike a nut and bolt, or a shoelace, there's no such thing as a loose weld. It is either solid, or not. In the pipeline industries, they won't even interview a welder who has less than ten years of experience, because they need perfect welds--even though they xray every one to check for pinholes. Yes, anyone can buy a cheaper welder and make a "good enough" weld. But if one stud was welded poorly, literally EVERY stud that welder did on your rig should be looked at. Which means, possibly taking every wall apart. (Worst case.) I'd insist on an extended warranty on ALL the welds, and compensation if you have to do this again. Compromise, sure, but don't let them poo-poo the problems.
Agreed, the problem is not normal. We are really looking forward to getting it in for service and will have all the conversations upon drop off. Thanks.
Yes the fan-boys(girls) are strong on any Alliance fan-forum. But this is part of the Alliance programming. I’m not saying that Alliance is not a fantastic company. But being realistic, things brake. I’ve learned ONE BIG THING about being a small business owner….How you take care of the problems is Paramount to your business longevity. As long as your in the warranty period, ALLIANCE APPEARS to take care of you wonderfully. But I’ll add that are websites showing the contrary. So, let’s hope your scenario is as good as the Ally’s say it is.
Hi, Thank you for sharing. We also have a 2022 5th wheel, a Grand Design 295RL. We are part timers but we travel extensively thru the US. We have a 2020 Dodge Ram with a B & W 5th wheel hitch. in our due diligence we had Geico Towing for our truck & an add on policy for the RV. In addition our 5th wheel was under warranty which was also supposed to cover towing. The transmission went out on our truck on the HWY between the Tetons and Jackson Wyoming. We were on the side of the HWY with 4 kids traveling with us. There was no cell service. Fortunately my grand daughter had an Apple watch so she could chat for short periods. We were able to reach our insurance (Geico) after 5 tries and the phone dropping off. Finally we called 911, the connected us to the only towing service in the area that could pull our rig and the truck. The owner was kind enough to bring his truck so all of us could be transported with the kids to a safe location. We ended up paying out of pocket for the tow. Our insurance paid us back for the tow to a local RV campground. Since our truck was under warranty we took it to a local dealership. Our RV was left at the RV park without a way to move it to a storage location. We then had to incur a cost to have it moved by a towing company to a storage location and pay storage fees. We had to stay a the campground for 3 days, before we could get a rental car. In Jackson Wyoming they do not have 1 way car rentals. So we had to go to Idaho Falls to rent a car to get home to California. Since there was no cab service uber or Lift we ended up relying on the kindness of others to drive us to Idaho falls 75 miles away, to rent a car. We were able to get home in the rental car with the kids. But here it is 3 weeks later. Our truck is still at the Yeti Ram dealership in Jackson Wyoming with no status on when the truck will be repaired. To date the Trailor is still in storage at the RV park incurring a daily cost for storage. Unfortunately this was a first mechanical problem with the Truck. And we need to look into an insurance that will assist us in this type of situation. Come to find out most coverage is only for an Accident where you need to find a way to get you home with your RV. Since there was no accident and there was no personal injury we had no coverage to get us back to our home base. If anyone knows of insurance for 5th Wheel travelers I would love to hear what that insurance is. Unfortunately you don't know that you don't have coverage until an emergency arises.
Hello Allies! Since you are full timers, when was the last time you had your rig weighed? The "crack" you are referring to is not actually a CRACK, it is a tear in the seem tape covering an expansion joint, you will see on the opposite side (outside) a black metal strip that is screwed through these two panels to allow for independent movement by design. Regarding the closet, is there any visual issues on the outside? These interior panels are just finish panels and are not structural and are susceptible to movement from vibration and road shock. To say "Extensive Repairs" is misleading and is not right to put this onto any manufacturer, this is more cosmetic. As far as the leveling system, have you done a "Zero Point Calibration" per the Lippert manual? These will and do get out of calibration over time and need to be re-zeroed. Alliance RV is hands down is the best in the industry when it comes to customer service. We don't want to sound like a Shill, but after 4-5th wheel RVs by other manufacturers, no other RV manufacturer comes close to what Alliance has to offer all around, especially from a customer service standpoint. There is no "frame failure" as some would state, some are now questing weather to purchase an Alliance. What is not told often enough is how happy buyers are with their Alliances, us being one of them. The Alliance community is one of a kind, it is a FamAlly, any Allie would stop and help any other Ally in a split second if needed. This is what Alliance is about, it is a lifestyle, a family of likeminded people I hope your viewers walk away from this video knowing things happen, it is how we overcome challenges that matter.
@@tyersontheroad2607 Thanks for watching and commenting. When we are saying extensive repairs, it is because we were told by our rep at Alliance that the bedroom slide will need to be removed and the front end cap will need to be removed also in order to fully diagnose and make repairs necessary. To us, that is pretty extensive. We do weigh our unit throughout the year to make sure we are not overloading. As for the leveling system, we have recalibrated it several times. It does tend to get out of whack when traveling.
Yay. Great video... I live here n work here. I grew up on this lake. I must say a few places to eat... in Camdenton at Peperoni Bills and shout I can't think of the Mexican restaurant. That's right down the road from bills.. and as far as osage beach area. I love back water jacks
Latest Update: we spoke again with our Rep at Alliance, and he stated he didn’t receive our last 2 emails, no problem. However, we did learn that you can actually schedule an exact date to get work at the factory, it will just be much later. In our case we will have to wait until April next year due to things on our personal schedule. Additionally, he is also going to make a request to get us into the factory in November, if available, we just have to wait for September 1st to submit the request. As far as Frame Failure, or Frame Flex, he assured us the Alliance has not had ANY of these issues with there units, and that we were not experiencing this either. Time will tell. Some may be wondering if we would recommend buying an Alliance RV, the answer is still yes, at this time. They really do try to do what is right by the customer.
We are going to do an update video this week to discuss the latest on this situation with the factory. We have some good information to talk about. If you are not subscribed, now would be a good time to do so.
You guys, things break, but that is not normal breaking. BTW, our Tandara has not broken yet after 3 years of full time. Why are you protecting Alliance? They sold you a shoddy product that has frame failure. Period!
@@yvonnearce8267 This is exactly why we made this video. These comments are very helpful to us. We are certainly giving some real thought to the frame failure issue, and we are going to start pressing the issue with the factory to get in ASAP.
You have to remain flexible but maybe an RV should not be so flexible? Once in a while I wonder if much less luxurious and more robust may be desirable.
You do realize what you have is frame failure, right? There's a broken STRUCTURAL weld for the upper deck of Lippert frame that over-stressed the welds for the aluminum framing around the portal of your slide in the house box. Your upper deck is twisting extensively, and the more you travel with it in this condition, the more the frame and house box welds are being overtaxed. Yes, I am a structural engineer, and yes, I am an RVer. So, I am acutely aware of the hassle of getting into a factory service center (my 5er has been back to Indiana 3x) and the way dealing with manufacturer customer service personnel can be like talking to the wall... However, you really have a coach that's now unsafe to tow on the nation's roads because 1) the pinbox is mounted to the structural deck framing and 2) have no understanding of the magnitude of the frame failure. Unfortunately, you find yourself a member of the Lippert frame failure club, and you need to get back on Alliance and talk about this unsafe state your coach is in, you're full-timers, and you know this is a real, broad industry problem where the veil has been pulled off. Customer service should have helped coordinate your rig being measured for frame flex via the Lippert standard, which is will clearly fail, which will then clear the way to get a mobile Lippert technician out to you to inspect and attempt to stabilize the failure so transport can be reasonably safe. What you have cannot be completely fixed in the field. Not only does the slide box have to come out and the cap off, the forward baggage doors and skin will need to be removed, and your laminated wall peeled open to repair the broken aluminum welds and reinforce the portal framing. The only way they'll be able to complete this in a week for you at the factory is if they put multiple techs on it, which is a rare thing. Most of the time, this is a 2 to 4 week repair, depending on what they find when opened and if they need Lippert to come inspect and direct repairs or perform the frame repairs. Patience and kindness are indeed important, but you have a more serious problem with your coach than one that can wait "'til next year" after you tow to Florida and back... ALL manufacturers are acutely aware of the frame failure issues and very sensitive to the matter, and you have frame failure. Use the leverage afforded by others. Good luck to you both!
@@robv4053 thanks for all the info. We are now working with the VP of Services at Alliance to try and get squared away. Wish us luck on getting in. We DO NOT want to take it to a service repair shop, as we know the wait times can be ridiculous.
@waltfriedrich7631 No, there really isn't. Unlike most folks, I have seen the failures myself, repaired a number of them as I am also a welder, SCWI, and a CWEng, and have witnessed Lippert, two established RV frame and body repair shops, as well as repairs in two manufacturers' facilities. Damage they have at opposing corners is due to torsion, and the house framing could no longer resist it. Broken weld(s) will be found streetside. All can be repaired, but the longer it goes without repair and is towed, the more of a problem it will be. This problem has been around a long time. It's only just become more prevalent due to the COVID-19 RV boom with 10s of thousands of more units out there that were also assembled with too much speed and too little quality control. If you want to blame these impacted owners for causing the failure, blame the roads, blame use of an RV as an RV, I certainly cannot stop that. However, all indicators are pointing to a failed structural frame weld somewhere roadside.
@@robv4053 you sir get me wrong. I am not blaming anyone!!! Unlike you I want it opened up and see what actually caused the issue. I have been around RVs since the 80s...was an RV rep in the 90s... know gas, arc welding and MIG welding and have engineering backgrounds. You have a foregone mind when it should be open. Let's see what they find before throwing accusations.
@waltfriedrich7631 I'm not throwing accusations but learned, experienced opinion as someone who practices heavily in forensic failure analyses and have been around this issue many times. I'm glad you have a technical background because you then understand there is urgency in this situation, but your RV knowledge from the 90s is not really relevant to current construction. Stick and tin was still dominate, many manufacturers made their frames, lamination was in its infancy, fundamental design premise was the frame carried the box, and so-on. I, too, want it opened for the sake of the owners to be repaired. However, it's definitely going to reveal broken weld(s). Alliance, unlike many of their competitors also adheres the house walls to the steel deck tubes with a Sika adhesive in addition to the lateral lag screws through the tube into the stuffed aluminum wall tubing and vertical screws up through the steel sill plates into the stuffed aluminum wall tubing. The house box stays integral with the frame because of this adhesive bond. This is one of the reasons why it is so obviously a frame failure, and the house box is now exhibiting fatigue failures in the aluminum framing. Lippert and the manufacturers rely on an intact "shell" - the frame and the house acting as one to perform. When one fails, the other can handle some readjustment of the loads temporarily - all structures are designed for slow (yielding) failure and not catastrophic (instant) failure. However, this is a temporary state, and once failure has begun, it will accelerate if loads conditions are not mitigated and repairs enacted, especially with dynamic loading conditions. The overall point of my posting was for the owners to understand there's a higher level urgency with the cause of the damage that's finally manifested into an easily observed condition. Based on their response, they became aware of this sooner, given their elevated conversation with Alliance.
I had this exact issue on a keystone Montana. Eventually, you will see it on the outside as well. The issue is the wall connection to the actual frame. The Aluminum wall studs and base will likely have welds broken and / or the bolts have come loose attaching to the frame. in my case, it was both. Keystone agreed to pay for the work to be done at a local shop that was capable of doing the work. They pulled the outside fiberglass skin off the section from the bedroom slide to the front cap and front cap. They beefed up the wall, rewelded the a couple of aluminum wall studs and reinforced wall base aluminum and filled it with wood to allow better lag bolt attachment to actual frame. They replaced the outside Fiberglass, matched the gel coat color and new decals. It took 4 months in the local RV repair / body shop (during the winter months). While mine was in the shop, I noticed many others in there for the exact same reason (many different brands). Everyone thinks only Grand Design has this issue. According to repair shop, almost all makes with Lippert frames have similar issues, the only difference is how the manufacturer helps and supports the customer through it. Just be sure to have a full front frame inspection when they do the work to ensure you don't also have weld or frame cracks as well.
@@gcslade great information. This is why I want the factory to handle it. We can’t afford to be out of our rig for that long as full-timers. I really appreciate it
Shitty quality is the result of White exclusion called DEI. This is what happens when you hire people because of their appearance instead of their qualifications. I don't care whose feelings I hurt, facts are facts. You want a RV built on fee fee's or on Quality?
