Living in a Romahome C15

[Cornishsue]

Hi everyone

I have been away from this forum for months for various reasons so hello again. I'm about to give up my rented flat and live in my Romahome C15 for the summer. I'm planning to stay on a site with EHU most of the time and will use a tent as an extra room. I have taken a rented garage in my home town so that I can store all my work materials (I paint and sell furniture).

I have all the gen I need to know about how to live in my van and am looking forward to being virtually without possessions - what I'm wondering is whether I should in fact upgrade in size to another type of motorhome, in order to have more living space.

What would be the next size up, so to speak? And what would the benefits be? I know absolutely nothing about other motorhomes and having tried to look on the internet for information it's too confusing, as there seems to be so much choice.

The thing is, I absolutely love my Romahome - she's a little 1997 beauty in wonderful condition, so easy to drive and park and economical on fuel. I'd only want to trade her in if I could see a really advantage in upsizing.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Sue

[jessiem]

Sounds to me that you don't really want to give up your C15. So why should you? Seems as though you have everything organised. For the sake of a little bit of extra room/storage,(which you already have in the form of a tent) in my honest opinion, Keep hold of your little beauty.

[Ian.C.S]

there is no advantage for you in going large.It will take away the things you appreciate about your C15.what you have is sufficient for 365 camping,so relax stop stressing and enjoy the peace and calm.

[jayjay]

Hi Cornish Sue! So you went for it - congratulations!

My advice would be to see how it goes before making any decisions about whether you need a bigger MH. You will probably be just fine with the C15. And the things you mention, like it being easy to park and economical on fuel really do disappear with the larger MH's.

If you decide you need more space, then go to a motorhome dealer and have a look at different models and makes as you'll know by then what you'll need in extra space if required.

I think an awning like a Movelite Square would be a must if living in it though! Unless its a BIG tent.

Good luck with it and come back and let us know how you get on.

[GeoNomad]

I have lived 4 months a year in my C15 for the past 4 years, the things that interest me in a larger one are:

toilet and shower - as I spend most time off sites

comfortable seating at a table - some big ones have a nice captain's chair arrangement that would be more comfortable than lounging on the seats in the C15. Would also be better for working on the computer and for meals - maybe...

BUT, when it comes down to it, I would miss the small size and economy of the C15 and at the end of 2-3 months, I am never ready to leave.

I would really miss the small size on some of these Cornish roads

Peter
Camped at Lizard today....

http://nomadness.benlo.com

[RRH]

Sounds like you have doubts about the C15.

I will difer to the centimental view by many Romahomers and say go for a larger van. we all need certain comforts and cluastrophobia is not one of them.

[andrew]

Andrew

One of our mature lady owners has lived in a Romahome for the last seven years having sold her bungalow and banked the money. She started in a C15 and loved the freedom it gave her but upgraded to an R20 some two years ago.
She didn't gain any space by doing this but she felt more confident with a new vehicle and decided it was just a nicer vehicle to drive.
She knows when and where to stay to get the best deal, relies heavily on decent facilities at the sites and has the option to call in (or not!) to see her very grown up children when she wants. Often stays on one site for a month making full use of her bus pass to see the sites, shopping etc.
She's not computer savvy but her mobile phone enables her to keep in touch when necessary.
I thought she'd struggle with the lack of space after a year or two but obviously not!

[Graham]

I agree with Jayjay I would give a try in your C15 and see how it goes for a few months, things you will need to think about are when winter comes and the darker and colder nights are with us. Has the van got heating will you have access to electric hook up etc. etc.

If you decide you do want to go for a bigger van and want to stay with Romahome, then why not consider a Dimension or R30.

Plus points:
The cabin seats swivel round to make more lounging area.
An altogether roomier van.
More cupboard space.
and best of all an onboard toilet and shower.

Minus points.
Slightly larger to drive and park (but still fits in a parking bay)
Less economical with fuel 28-32 mpg as opposed to 45-50mpg you are used to.

Why not have a trip to a Romahome dealer like Ant at Avon Motor Caravans in Bristol or Freeborn in Southampton both have good reputations, you could have a look at a Dimension and see what you think.

[Cornishsue]

Living in Romahome C15

Thanks everyone, what a wealth of advice! It makes sense to give it a go in my C15 and only make the change if I need to. I'm still getting my head around the flexibility of life in a van and being without possessions, and forget how easy it will be to make the change if I want more space or a toilet/shower - sooooooo much easier than selling/moving house. It's very helpful to know the difference in mpg between smaller and larger and that is an important consideration for me, as my C15 is my only 'wheels'.

I'll be leaving my flat at the end of May and will let you know how it goes Thanks again all of you.

[peterfowden]

Good Luck Sue

I think you should keep your C15 .
Surely it would be reasonably easy to make a basic shower in the rear footwell with a shower curtain rail fixed in a square behind rear door.
Everthing is fibreglass there just needs a drain cutting in floor and fix a length of pipe to sink tap .
A few kettles of hot water in your tank should make it nicer.
Has anyone tried this ?

[jayjay]

I think you should keep your C15 .
Surely it would be reasonably easy to make a basic shower in the rear footwell with a shower curtain rail fixed in a square behind rear door.
Everthing is fibreglass there just needs a drain cutting in floor and fix a length of pipe to sink tap .
A few kettles of hot water in your tank should make it nicer.
Has anyone tried this ?

I remember a chap on here who did this - Scarrabri. He had a large container in the footwell to stand in rather than cut a drain in through the floor.

A better and less complicated way is to get a hoselock/other pressure shower and use the awning as you can move about more with no chance of wetting electrical points, etc. There's a few threads in the 'useful equipment/ gadget section of the forum on the topic. A loo would also fit better in an awning, just bringing it in overnight for middle of the night stuff. My loo and shower both sit up a corner of my awning, behind a shower curtain.

When it comes to winter, you will need EHU anyway, so pick a site where there will be hot showers and loo block.

[gadgetman]

Hi Sue I purchased a C15 and loved it, went to many sites meeting paople and looking at their MH's large and small and discusing the in's and out's with them, well I'm a big chap 15 stone 6' 1" in the end I exchanged my C15 for a few home comforts, the main thing I wanted was toilet & shower, and I needed more room to streach my long legs, so I ended up part x my C15 for a Herald Squire four birth :so happy: but all this comfort comes at a price, 28 to 34 mpg, instead of 45 to 50 mpg, parking length and height, not to much of a problem as I have a disabled blue badge, the benifits for me with a larger van are fantastic, but everybody's needs differ, go to meets, talk to people, look at other vans, folk love to show you their MH's, then you can decide what you want, don't rush, you have all the time in the world. Good luck.

[Cornishsue]

Cheers for your advice and thoughts. I'll be living in my C15 for the summer only, going into furnished accommodation for the winter, and will be on a site with EHU so I don't need to think about being cold. I won't be touring much because I'm self-employed and need to be near my workshop (a rented garage) on a daily basis. Re showering I've decided to take a subscription at the hotel pool down the road from the site I'm moving to so that I can shower there on my way to work .

Regarding whether to stick to my C15, thanks to all your advice I've definitely decided to stay with it at the moment because of the cost of fuel and the good mpg I get. Interestingly, over the Easter break I met a couple in my home town who had a bigger motorhome and they gave me a tour, and it reminded me of why I like the C15 - for its cosiness.

I'm having fun whittling my stuff down to the minimum, my grown-up kids think it's wonderful having a 'travelling' mum and my friends and family are enjoying acquiring my furniture. Apart from daily essential stuff all I'm keeping are my books, DVDs, laptop, guitar, and a box of toys for my toddler grandson.

Watch this space!

[VonUK]

The R25 is a good compromise, with onboard loo and shower, mpg is 40 ish so not too bad. Decent heating and hot water, 2 'wardrobes', lots of overhead locker space which I find so much easier than the bunker lockers. Downside is that there are very few secondhand R25's around at the moment because it is a new model - might be something to consider in the future. Of course as an R25 owner I am somewhat biased Having said that, I loved our R20, but it was just a bit too small for we 2 adults and a dog.