Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Home Built RV: How in the world do I do this?
Well, as you can see this looks simple and for the most part it can be if you take the right steps and do good planning. I have set up several you tube videos that can help guide on a step-by-step basis and I have also written an e-Book with some basic plans and list of materials. I have also created a plan page that you can use in order to brainstorm some of the ideas based on your perceived needs for how you'll use your "Home Built Trailer". Now for the part that no one likes to hear. I want to provide the absolutely best information and details I can possibly provide and can not do this for simple grins. In order to accomplish my mission I really need to have some way to support and defray my expenses and so I have chosen to use advertising in order to offer you the best possible product. I have several vendors that can help along the way and I would certainly appreciate your support for them by visiting their ads and see what they might have to offer.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Home Built RV: Work out your design
All those wonderful ideas and places to see, people to be and things you only saw in a book. So now we need to begin our design. Some considerations at this point are: Do you need a kitchen area, an inside shower or toilet, how many beds? Where will you sleep, where will you eat and what will you haul? What do you already have? Look around and take stock of what you have in terms of tools and materials.
The first thing that I did was look at some of the efforts that have been posted out on the Web. I found everything from someone that converted their Minivan to someone that made a self-contained two story out of a box truck.
I visited several of the RV sales groups to see what a manufactured RV Trailer might contain and what the measurements looked like. I learned about gross vehicle weight, axle weight and it's distribution. What kind of vehicle would work with the various weight classes or really sizes of the trailers available.
After this research I started to formulate what I felt would work for us and how we wanted to use our "Home away from Home". We wanted to be able to go "Camping" to the Beach on long weekends or to the mountains for maybe a week at the time. We also wanted the ability to maybe go to Football games and camp out the night before in order to avoid the game day traffic. This led us to decide that we wanted to have a Kitchen area, a bath area and sleeping area for at least 4 if not 6. We have a Minivan already and didn't want to have to buy a new vehicle for hauling use if we could avoid doing so.
We have some key tools and in our case we happen to have an old 4 X 8 trailer that we could use as a platform and possibly expand it's foot print just enough for our goals. We also decided to use aluminum studs and beams for the frame in order to save weight.and use the thinest plywood possible for the interior sheathing wall and then a 3/4" for the exterior wall and floor. I did several floor plan mock up versions first before final design. My goals were to have the lightest materials, but still have functionality. We used Steel I-beams welded to the present trailer platform to lengthen the trailer to an 11 foot versus the original 8 foot by placing them so that we added one and a half foot forward and an equal one and a half to the back. We then placed aluminum crass members to form the floor and build the walls on top of them. I have a time line of pictures located at this LINK. Please feel free to take a look and as they say a picture is truly worth a thousand word.
*All images provided by Pinterest by permission.
The first thing that I did was look at some of the efforts that have been posted out on the Web. I found everything from someone that converted their Minivan to someone that made a self-contained two story out of a box truck.
I visited several of the RV sales groups to see what a manufactured RV Trailer might contain and what the measurements looked like. I learned about gross vehicle weight, axle weight and it's distribution. What kind of vehicle would work with the various weight classes or really sizes of the trailers available.
After this research I started to formulate what I felt would work for us and how we wanted to use our "Home away from Home". We wanted to be able to go "Camping" to the Beach on long weekends or to the mountains for maybe a week at the time. We also wanted the ability to maybe go to Football games and camp out the night before in order to avoid the game day traffic. This led us to decide that we wanted to have a Kitchen area, a bath area and sleeping area for at least 4 if not 6. We have a Minivan already and didn't want to have to buy a new vehicle for hauling use if we could avoid doing so.
We have some key tools and in our case we happen to have an old 4 X 8 trailer that we could use as a platform and possibly expand it's foot print just enough for our goals. We also decided to use aluminum studs and beams for the frame in order to save weight.and use the thinest plywood possible for the interior sheathing wall and then a 3/4" for the exterior wall and floor. I did several floor plan mock up versions first before final design. My goals were to have the lightest materials, but still have functionality. We used Steel I-beams welded to the present trailer platform to lengthen the trailer to an 11 foot versus the original 8 foot by placing them so that we added one and a half foot forward and an equal one and a half to the back. We then placed aluminum crass members to form the floor and build the walls on top of them. I have a time line of pictures located at this LINK. Please feel free to take a look and as they say a picture is truly worth a thousand word.
*All images provided by Pinterest by permission.
Home Built RV: Life Live and in 3D
As I mentioned in my previous Post we all have budgetary constraints and this should be looked at as a positive. Once you know how much or what resources are available you can make a much better and more sane decision. On a personal note and the way I feel about budgetary constraint is this. Not even Donald Trump can own all the buildings in New York city, even he has budgetary constraint. Count your blessings and be content and realize how important it is to live within your means and how this attitude can help guide your decision on what might be the better choice at the threshold of retirement.
Now we can start the fun part. Define what you want your new life to be. What adventures have you put off or places that you wanted to see, but had so many important obligations pulling you onto the straight and narrow? Do you have Grand Kids and are there places that you want to take them and spend some happy days without the distractions of a routine life? Maybe you want to see all of the Buildings still standing that were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and not owned by "The Donald" (now that's a road trip)? Maybe some Disney? Me, I want to head out to the coast and have some Beach time every other weekend. From the Coast to the Mountains, whatever you have put off, now is the time to make it happen. Visit those relatives that moved away and never thought they would see you again.
Once you have an idea of how or what you'll use the RV for it's time to begin your design. What????????
Now we can start the fun part. Define what you want your new life to be. What adventures have you put off or places that you wanted to see, but had so many important obligations pulling you onto the straight and narrow? Do you have Grand Kids and are there places that you want to take them and spend some happy days without the distractions of a routine life? Maybe you want to see all of the Buildings still standing that were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and not owned by "The Donald" (now that's a road trip)? Maybe some Disney? Me, I want to head out to the coast and have some Beach time every other weekend. From the Coast to the Mountains, whatever you have put off, now is the time to make it happen. Visit those relatives that moved away and never thought they would see you again.
Once you have an idea of how or what you'll use the RV for it's time to begin your design. What????????
Home Built RV: The What and Why.
We all have a bit of wanderlust in us and as we approach retirement we itch even more for seeing places that we were not able to in our younger days of work and family first. As I look over the horizon of my life to come, I anticipate how nice it might be to pick up on any given day and head to the beach or the mountains. Maybe I'll go to that music festival or City Street Scene that I read about in the paper. My hope is that I will have the time to do the fluff of my life, the drifting onto the casual and non constrained. These are nice thoughts and great fantasies, but alas, the reality of budgetary constraint becomes ever present as my wife asks how will we pay for these great adventures. You know how I like to shop when we travel!
Over the past couple of years my wife and I have been researching how we might be able to best extend our travel days now that time may be more plentiful and deadlines much disappeared. One of the areas that we investigated was that of acquiring an RV (or Recreational Vehicle). We grew to understand that there are basically three Categories of standard RV's. There are Class A, Class B and Class C. The best way to describe these would be that a Class A is what a lot of Folks might call a "Bus". A Class B would be a large "Camper Van" and a Class C might be better described as a Trailer with designated sleeping and kitchen facilities. All have their place and purpose. The cost of each is somewhat unique, but can range from several thousands of dollars to over a $ Million depending on taste, up-fit and size. The Class A and Class B are usually self propelled by either a Gas or Diesel motor. The Class C being a trailer needs a tow vehicle in order to be moved unless it is transported and set-up with the initial sale. The advantage to this type of travel is that you aren't living out of a suit case, which makes it seem more like a "home" environment.
In review of this as an alternative I had a couple of major concerns since we have not owned an RV. First there is the expense and it is not something to be taken lightly. Because of the investment I also wanted to make sure that we would actually use it. My wife and I both shared the belief that it would be tragic to put several thousand dollars (from our investigation the price range we felt we would be at was between $15K and $150K) into a vehicle and not use it. As I was quickly reminded "that is a lot of shopping"! Also, I for one am fatigued by "monthly payments" and feel a strong need to avoid financing or at least minimize it.
My second concern was our ability to physically use it. How convenient would it be to relocate and how would it be to move and park at campsites.
As I looked into our alternatives and received emails with new letters from different RV sales agents I ran across a sub-culture of DYI projects that caught my interest and I began to drill down into their work. Inspiring I thought to myself. This led me to assess my abilities and resources. I began to question as to if I could maybe do something similar. Since I had an older trailer and am fairly good with building project in the past I began to create my design. I also liked the fact that it would give us a chance to see if we would actually take the time to use an RV if we had it, but not have the large investment risk. So have I got you thinking?
Over the past couple of years my wife and I have been researching how we might be able to best extend our travel days now that time may be more plentiful and deadlines much disappeared. One of the areas that we investigated was that of acquiring an RV (or Recreational Vehicle). We grew to understand that there are basically three Categories of standard RV's. There are Class A, Class B and Class C. The best way to describe these would be that a Class A is what a lot of Folks might call a "Bus". A Class B would be a large "Camper Van" and a Class C might be better described as a Trailer with designated sleeping and kitchen facilities. All have their place and purpose. The cost of each is somewhat unique, but can range from several thousands of dollars to over a $ Million depending on taste, up-fit and size. The Class A and Class B are usually self propelled by either a Gas or Diesel motor. The Class C being a trailer needs a tow vehicle in order to be moved unless it is transported and set-up with the initial sale. The advantage to this type of travel is that you aren't living out of a suit case, which makes it seem more like a "home" environment.
In review of this as an alternative I had a couple of major concerns since we have not owned an RV. First there is the expense and it is not something to be taken lightly. Because of the investment I also wanted to make sure that we would actually use it. My wife and I both shared the belief that it would be tragic to put several thousand dollars (from our investigation the price range we felt we would be at was between $15K and $150K) into a vehicle and not use it. As I was quickly reminded "that is a lot of shopping"! Also, I for one am fatigued by "monthly payments" and feel a strong need to avoid financing or at least minimize it.
My second concern was our ability to physically use it. How convenient would it be to relocate and how would it be to move and park at campsites.
As I looked into our alternatives and received emails with new letters from different RV sales agents I ran across a sub-culture of DYI projects that caught my interest and I began to drill down into their work. Inspiring I thought to myself. This led me to assess my abilities and resources. I began to question as to if I could maybe do something similar. Since I had an older trailer and am fairly good with building project in the past I began to create my design. I also liked the fact that it would give us a chance to see if we would actually take the time to use an RV if we had it, but not have the large investment risk. So have I got you thinking?
Monday, August 11, 2014
How to use Social Media for the Job Search
Platforms
There are several social media platforms that job seekers can use to become visible to employers. Twenty Years ago, these online venues did not exist. Today, it is almost impossible to find employment without having an online presence. Use these platforms to get the attention of the employer you desire today.
Facebook
Facebook has the largest social media presence online. Most users gravitate to the site for socializing purposes. People like to share information with family and friends. Job seekers can create an online profile to build relationships with hiring personnel. To enhance their professional brand, candidates should create a professional Facebook Business Fan Page.
Pinterest
Pinterest is a visual bookmarking tool. It has the ability to generate web leads. For Example , anyone with an online presence should have a website. Then he or she could use Pinterest to direct their viewers to the electronic portfolio. The portfolio should have visual samples that evidence their knowledge skills and experience to prospects.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is considered the most popular professional website. It allows job seekers to build relationships for networking purposes. individuals can add audio, video and employment samples to highlight their skill set. This is a professional website that every job hunter should register to.
Twitter
Twitter is a sample website. Recruiters post job listings to evaluate interest vacancies.
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