Stationary RVing: Surprising Takeaways

Wonder what stationary RVing is like? Well look no further friends. After a year of living the stationary RV life, I’m here to bring you some little known facts on the lifestyle.

Here are some takeaways that may surprise you to learn about stationary RVing.

We have too much stuff.

My husband may roll his eyes at this, but it’s true.

When you live the stationary rv life, you can kind of just let things lay around. You never worry “where am I going to pack that up when we head to Niagara?” because well, you ain’t going to Niagara. You’re stuck in a hot campground in the heart of Dixie.

A few weeks ago, something happened and we had to move a lot of stuff out of our basement (read: outside storage). It was all the stuff we had brought with us to the RV. Books and pictures and a giant tub of blocks. All stuff we put in our storage and haven’t looked at since.

I know if we were traveling, we would be more cognizant of all this weight. (Seriously, you would not believe the amount of books I have stored away under there.) But since we’re stationary RVers, it hasn’t been a priority.

Maybe we should have made the initial investment of a washer/dryer

Our Alfa See Ya has washer/dryer hookups.

And after 12 months of toting my laundry across the park, I wish we would have made the initial investment. Especially since each load of laundry costs me about $3 or $4.

I spend about $80 a month on laundry. That is a lot of money after 12 months. (Not to mention the hysterical fits from my daughter as we make the short trek because she wants me to carry her as well as the laundry basket.)

And since we live in an RV park with unlimited water, it might have made sense.

The corners of the RV seem to be getting smaller

Don’t get me wrong. I love our RV and it is great for stationary RVing. It’s big and gives our little family lots of room to move around and spread out. It’s super heavy (16k lbs dry) and solid, meaning it doesn’t scare the bejeezus out of us on rainy days.

That said, this RV doesn’t move. I’ve got the same views out my window every day and sometimes life gets stagnant. Which makes living in less than 400 square feet pretty rough sometimes.

The corner of my bedroom is a hot spot for irritation. There is just enough space between the bed and closet for me to stand. But my daughter and dog seem to think it’s the perfect place to have a pow wow. Especially when they see me standing there trying to decide what to wear that day.

It takes some effort to see your RV as “big” when you’ve got crap like that going on and you head over to your friend’s “average” 3 bedroom home for ladies night.

The RV wasn’t exactly meant to be lived in this much

Gosh, do we live in this thing.

One thing about stationary RVing that is very different from full-time travelers is well, we’re stationary. We’re not going out and exploring our area every night (or whatever you cool kids do). After a year, we’ve pretty much explored all there is to explore.

And the RV is tired.

Paint is starting to wear off in high use places. The electrical wiring has had some work done. The heater has been fixed. The AC needs fixing. The walls have been rebuilt. The carpet has been replaced.

And while yes, these things happen with any and all RVs, being plugged in 24/7/365 takes a toll on your rig.

My kitchen is carefree

I still have my ceramic dishes I got from my wedding. My set of knives sits on my counter proudly. Even my mixing bowls are glass.

When you live stationary in and RV, you don’t have to worry about your stuff breaking while you’re driving down the road.

I also don’t worry about securing the cupboard and making sure all food is locked up and secured for the next trip. This big beast ain’t goin’ nowhere, so I ain’t worried about it, ya feel me?

With stationary RVing, it’s easy to look like white trash

We are stationary in an RV park. This means there are people coming in and out of the campground day in and day out.

And if I left all my crap (see #1) out I’d be lookin’ like white trash.

I don’t like to be lookin’ like white trash.

So I try to keep all my stuff cleaned up and organized so it looks like we are just on a fun RV trip, too. Every day I go out and clean up a little. Put all Chelsea’s toys back under the hitch. Make sure the picnic table is cleared off from debris. You get the picture.

I still constantly feel my site looks ghetto from a year’s worth of mud (from the rain) under the RV, but I make it work.

There’s a weird sadness when another stationary RVer moves on

We’ve been parked in the same spot for 12 months now.

We’ve seen people come and go quickly, and others stay for longer periods of time. Getting to know those people has been great. And it’s sad when they leave.

There’s a strange sadness that comes over me when I drive down my road and see a fellow “stay-putter” gone. I mean, campgrounds are friendly places. You get to know your neighbors and you come to like them. When someone who has been next to you for 6 months leaves?

Well it’s a little sad.

And maybe I feel a touch of jealousy, too.

After all, I have a 16 THOUSAND pound RV and a Ford Focus. I am all that is stationary RVing.

Want to know more about stationary RVing?

Check out this post on living in an RV on your own land! Even more different than campground life!