RPF0650-The_Case_for_Pop-Up_Campers
00:00:00.000 | ♪
00:00:05.440 | California's top casino and entertainment destination
00:00:08.440 | is now your California to Vegas connection.
00:00:11.940 | Play at Yamaha Resort and Casino at San Manuel
00:00:14.480 | to earn points, rewards, and complimentary experiences
00:00:17.680 | for the iconic Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
00:00:21.120 | ♪
00:00:23.660 | Two destinations, one loyalty card.
00:00:26.160 | Visit yamaha.com/palms to discover more.
00:00:30.620 | Welcome to Radical Personal Finance,
00:00:32.120 | a show dedicated to providing you with the knowledge,
00:00:33.820 | skills, insight, and encouragement you need
00:00:35.960 | to live a rich and meaningful life now
00:00:38.500 | while building a plan for financial freedom
00:00:40.100 | in 10 years or less.
00:00:42.160 | Today on the show, we're gonna talk about camping.
00:00:46.040 | (laughs)
00:00:47.000 | Years ago, when I was in the,
00:00:50.140 | briefly in the marketing and brand management
00:00:52.180 | consulting business, I learned something
00:00:54.380 | from a senior marketing consultant who said to me,
00:00:56.680 | "Joshua, don't ever put anything camping related
00:01:00.720 | in any kind of marketing thing that you do."
00:01:03.660 | He said, "Don't ever use pictures of camping.
00:01:05.660 | Don't use pictures of families camping, et cetera."
00:01:07.800 | I said, "It's the kiss of death when it comes to marketing."
00:01:11.800 | Lots of people say they like camping,
00:01:14.400 | but in reality, nobody likes it.
00:01:16.940 | (laughs)
00:01:18.040 | So I never did.
00:01:19.780 | Now, I don't know if they were right.
00:01:20.940 | I assume they were right,
00:01:22.000 | but the RV industry is certainly healthy today,
00:01:24.780 | and the camping industry certainly seems fairly healthy.
00:01:28.980 | And for me, camping is something
00:01:31.160 | that I've always enjoyed doing,
00:01:32.260 | which I'll tell you about in a while.
00:01:33.880 | And in this show, I'm gonna fulfill a long-awaited promise
00:01:37.700 | that I'll tell you why I believe a pop-up trailer
00:01:40.760 | or a pop-up tent camper is the ideal solution
00:01:44.000 | for family camping.
00:01:46.200 | Now, you need to know what makes this such an important show
00:01:49.380 | is when I was younger, I promised myself
00:01:52.140 | I would never have a pop-up camper
00:01:53.680 | because I hated them.
00:01:55.180 | And I'll tell you why my opinion has changed
00:01:57.720 | since I've tried a number of different kinds of RVs.
00:02:01.680 | Bit of backstory wheel service
00:02:03.860 | is a good foundation for this
00:02:05.320 | as far as my own personal experience.
00:02:07.620 | I grew up, when I was growing up,
00:02:10.920 | for our family vacations,
00:02:12.160 | we frequently took family vacations
00:02:14.640 | using a pop-up tent camper.
00:02:16.900 | My dad had bought, he said he'd paid $500
00:02:19.400 | for this old piece of junk pop-up camper,
00:02:21.640 | and we took that thing all across the United States.
00:02:24.580 | We went from South Florida up as far north as Northern Maine.
00:02:28.880 | I think we went to Canada one time,
00:02:30.180 | but I don't remember that trip.
00:02:31.520 | We went out to the West.
00:02:32.620 | We went to Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana,
00:02:37.620 | all over the country with a pop-up tent camper,
00:02:41.160 | both with the cheap one,
00:02:42.120 | and then later at a later time,
00:02:43.960 | we rented a pop-up tent camper to use as well
00:02:48.140 | on a camping trip that we took.
00:02:50.540 | And so I grew up camping in a pop-up camper,
00:02:54.040 | and it was a wonderful way for my family and me
00:02:58.640 | to see the country.
00:02:59.840 | I saw my parents really tried to make sure,
00:03:02.880 | worked hard to make sure that they showed us the country,
00:03:04.920 | showed us what was available,
00:03:05.920 | so we just didn't live in one town
00:03:08.360 | and didn't have an idea of what the world contained.
00:03:11.400 | They worked hard to do that,
00:03:12.400 | and I'm really grateful for them.
00:03:14.100 | Because of that, I have an intense emotional connection
00:03:17.840 | with the topic of camping.
00:03:19.500 | I have this intense affinity for almost anything
00:03:23.240 | campground-related, travel-related, et cetera.
00:03:25.740 | Even to this day, I love campgrounds.
00:03:28.580 | I like going across the country.
00:03:30.040 | I like interstate highway.
00:03:31.380 | I like driving.
00:03:32.480 | I don't get tired of it.
00:03:33.580 | I have this intense emotional connection to camping.
00:03:37.620 | I should specify that I mean car camping,
00:03:41.460 | not backpacking out in the wilderness.
00:03:43.660 | I admire that, but I've never had the chance
00:03:45.400 | to do that kind of camping.
00:03:48.020 | So all of my experience has been car camping.
00:03:50.660 | So because this is such an emotional issue for me,
00:03:53.160 | it's something that I have thought a lot about.
00:03:55.640 | When I was growing up, I did not like our pop-up camper,
00:03:58.900 | and I'll tell you why.
00:03:59.980 | The reason was that I didn't like
00:04:02.840 | putting the top up and down.
00:04:04.720 | We had an old pop-up that generally worked,
00:04:07.620 | except the handle that was easy to access
00:04:10.880 | to turn the crank, that crank was broken.
00:04:13.980 | So we had to crank it at this very awkward place
00:04:17.200 | on the camper in order to pop the top up and down.
00:04:19.800 | The other thing I didn't like about it,
00:04:21.000 | it seemed like it was always getting wet inside.
00:04:23.660 | Now I understand that it was because I had old canvas,
00:04:25.960 | and the canvas would leak, and the beds would get wet.
00:04:30.140 | And then what was worse is the girls and my parents
00:04:32.700 | got to sleep inside the pop-up camper,
00:04:34.300 | but the boys always slept in a tent out on the side,
00:04:37.080 | 'cause we were too many to comfortably fit
00:04:38.620 | in the pop-up camper.
00:04:39.840 | So we slept in the tent, and I'd always,
00:04:41.320 | I just remember waking up with a wet sleeping bag
00:04:43.420 | in the tent, so I didn't have great experiences.
00:04:45.520 | And I would always look longingly in the campground
00:04:48.380 | at the big, fancy RVs, and I would just think
00:04:51.160 | how nice it would be if we had one of those.
00:04:53.360 | And we never had one of those.
00:04:55.600 | And so I said, I'm not gonna have a pop-up camper,
00:04:57.920 | I'm gonna have an RV.
00:04:59.200 | So from the time before I was a teenager,
00:05:02.100 | I always thought about RVs, I always was obsessed with them,
00:05:05.200 | I looked into them, et cetera.
00:05:06.640 | And at this point, I've now owned two RVs.
00:05:09.640 | My first RV was a Class B road-trek van camper,
00:05:13.920 | which my wife and I really enjoyed
00:05:15.600 | in the time that we owned it,
00:05:16.980 | but then we outgrew it with the number of children
00:05:19.800 | that we had, we just couldn't fit in it anymore.
00:05:21.680 | And I bought a travel trailer, and last year,
00:05:23.740 | my wife and I full-timed all around the United States
00:05:26.440 | for about six months, I think 13, 15,000 miles,
00:05:29.960 | something like that, all around the country,
00:05:31.720 | and we had a great time.
00:05:32.960 | And for that, I had bought a 30-foot travel trailer
00:05:35.320 | with a bunkhouse for the children, and we really enjoyed it.
00:05:38.680 | But that process taught me a lot,
00:05:41.480 | because in owning the travel trailer,
00:05:43.600 | I learned some lessons that I don't think
00:05:45.820 | I would've been able to learn from someone else.
00:05:48.220 | I had to do it myself.
00:05:49.720 | And what I learned was, I didn't like
00:05:52.560 | having the travel trailer as much as I thought I would.
00:05:56.520 | And I realized that I would rather
00:05:59.000 | have a different type of RV.
00:06:00.760 | Now, this is normal.
00:06:02.240 | Generally, you should know that most people
00:06:04.540 | who get into RVs usually go through a few different RVs
00:06:09.060 | until they figure out what they actually like.
00:06:11.720 | Some people try RVing and don't like it and get out.
00:06:15.960 | Some people have to try a couple of different things,
00:06:18.000 | and some people start with a pop-up
00:06:19.440 | and wind up with a big motorhome,
00:06:20.720 | some people start with a motorhome
00:06:21.760 | and wind up with a truck camper.
00:06:22.820 | I mean, it's all over the place.
00:06:24.180 | So expect, if you've never done this,
00:06:26.200 | expect that you're probably gonna have to try
00:06:28.360 | a few different rigs until you figure out what you like.
00:06:31.120 | And by the way, this is why you should be very careful
00:06:33.480 | financially along the way.
00:06:35.280 | I have, I guess technically I've owned three RVs,
00:06:38.960 | 'cause I also bought a truck camper.
00:06:40.600 | But so, yeah, I guess I should say that.
00:06:42.040 | I've owned three RVs.
00:06:43.440 | And along the way, I've been able to get into them
00:06:45.900 | and out of them without really losing any money.
00:06:48.280 | In fact, I just recently finally sold
00:06:51.080 | the last pickup truck that I own
00:06:52.520 | from the recent, from all of my full-time RV days.
00:06:56.040 | And for context, I bought a van, then I bought a truck,
00:06:59.000 | then the truck got stolen, and I bought another truck,
00:07:01.320 | and I bought a camper, and then I bought a truck camper.
00:07:04.080 | And then systematically I sold all those things.
00:07:06.100 | I just did my accounting,
00:07:07.040 | and I was able to come out of the whole saga.
00:07:09.560 | If I exclude the van, I was able to come out
00:07:11.760 | of the whole saga completely whole,
00:07:13.320 | where I didn't lose any money,
00:07:15.040 | even with all of the money that I spent
00:07:18.600 | on trucks and campers, et cetera.
00:07:20.160 | I came out completely whole.
00:07:21.560 | If I include the van, that was my big mistake,
00:07:23.500 | was my big 15-passenger van that I bought.
00:07:26.720 | Then I lost about $2,000 total
00:07:28.880 | on a total of three vehicles and two RVs.
00:07:33.640 | So you can do it, and I would encourage you,
00:07:35.540 | be careful on your way through.
00:07:36.620 | Be careful when you buy, and go in slow,
00:07:39.280 | prepare to take your time,
00:07:40.320 | don't spend money you can't afford to lose, et cetera.
00:07:42.360 | Stay out of the new place,
00:07:43.560 | although actually that's a subject for a different day.
00:07:46.400 | I'm not as opposed to new RVs as I once was.
00:07:49.520 | I wasn't sure if I would get out healthy
00:07:53.180 | from all of my different deals,
00:07:54.500 | but thankfully I was able to get out of them
00:07:56.760 | without losing a bunch of money.
00:07:58.800 | So you're gonna have to try a few different things,
00:08:01.280 | and my idea in this show is to help you
00:08:03.360 | to learn from my experience as to why I think
00:08:06.200 | that a pop-up trailer is the ideal solution
00:08:08.320 | for most families in their camping endeavors.
00:08:12.160 | Everything in RVing is a matter of trade-offs.
00:08:15.680 | We are in kind of a golden age of RV choices
00:08:18.800 | where there are so many wonderful designs.
00:08:21.880 | You can find something that will fit
00:08:23.560 | anything you're looking for,
00:08:25.380 | but these are all a matter of trade-offs.
00:08:27.240 | They're a matter of comfort compared to convenience,
00:08:30.800 | and size, and cost, and just tons of trade-offs.
00:08:34.760 | So you're gonna gain certain things
00:08:39.520 | and give up certain things,
00:08:40.500 | and you're gonna have to judge what's important to you
00:08:43.800 | based upon your goals.
00:08:46.600 | For clarity, I would not choose a pop-up
00:08:49.600 | for full-time living.
00:08:51.200 | I would not choose it for that,
00:08:52.620 | and that's why I did not choose one.
00:08:54.360 | You need to be able to be indoors more comfortably
00:08:56.680 | if you're full-timing on the road or taking extended trips.
00:09:00.340 | Pop-ups, I don't think, are good for that.
00:09:02.480 | But I do think that a pop-up is the ideal
00:09:04.440 | solution for what I'd call normal family use of a camper.
00:09:09.200 | And what I'm saying is,
00:09:10.680 | two to three to four weeks per year,
00:09:13.080 | family vacations in national parks,
00:09:15.840 | covering the country, touring around,
00:09:17.700 | a few weekends here and there,
00:09:19.200 | I think a pop-up is an ideal solution for that.
00:09:21.900 | Let me explain why.
00:09:22.960 | So what's the problem with camping?
00:09:25.320 | Well, let's assume that you would like
00:09:27.040 | to have a bit more comfort and a bit less hassle
00:09:30.380 | than you can get with tent camping out of your car.
00:09:34.040 | Tent camping is the easiest way to get into camping.
00:09:38.080 | It's the cheapest way, and it's very, very flexible.
00:09:41.480 | And tent camping is, in many ways,
00:09:43.400 | the best solution if you're going
00:09:46.120 | to be off of the beaten path.
00:09:48.320 | For example, if you wanna just drive out into the desert
00:09:51.040 | and camp out in the middle of the desert,
00:09:53.080 | a tent is a great way to do it.
00:09:55.320 | You got a four-wheel drive vehicle,
00:09:56.600 | you toss a tent in the back, you drive out in the desert,
00:09:58.720 | you set up your tent, you're good to go.
00:10:00.560 | A tent is certainly the best solution
00:10:02.400 | for somebody who's gonna backpack into a place
00:10:04.520 | where there are no roads and get off the beaten path.
00:10:07.400 | That is what tent camping is great at.
00:10:09.600 | But if you are doing car camping,
00:10:12.720 | going to state parks, national parks, et cetera,
00:10:15.600 | tent camping isn't great in the United States
00:10:18.120 | in that context.
00:10:20.300 | My biggest frustration with tent camping
00:10:22.000 | in that context is that it's dirty.
00:10:24.680 | Everything is dirty.
00:10:25.920 | All the campgrounds, usually there's just dirt all around,
00:10:29.080 | which they can't help it.
00:10:30.080 | There's a lot of wear and tear.
00:10:31.520 | If you're up in a beautiful mountain meadow,
00:10:33.160 | you can put your tent down on a nice lush green meadow
00:10:36.480 | and you won't get dirty.
00:10:37.760 | But when you go into your local state park,
00:10:39.680 | there's gonna be dirt all around
00:10:40.960 | and you track it in and out of the tent
00:10:42.960 | and it gets in your bedding and it gets on everything
00:10:45.560 | and your kids get filthy, et cetera.
00:10:47.200 | It's just dirty.
00:10:48.880 | Tent camping is a hassle because you're on the ground
00:10:51.560 | and that mountain meadow works really well
00:10:54.360 | with your thermo rest spread across it.
00:10:56.520 | But when you're in the little piddly tent pad
00:10:59.200 | that's covered with gravel at your local state park,
00:11:02.000 | you're tearing up your tent,
00:11:03.520 | terribly uncomfortable for you.
00:11:05.160 | You gotta put down all this extra stuff
00:11:06.680 | to make it comfortable and it's just a pain.
00:11:09.000 | And then tent camping generally means
00:11:11.560 | that you gotta, in addition to a tent,
00:11:13.640 | if you're actually gonna be out there
00:11:14.940 | for anything more than sleeping,
00:11:16.460 | you're probably gonna set up other stuff.
00:11:18.220 | You're gonna set up some kind of tarp or canopy
00:11:20.400 | so that you can have some place to cook under.
00:11:23.280 | You're gonna set up a table.
00:11:24.360 | You're gonna set up a kitchen.
00:11:25.240 | You're gonna set up all this gear.
00:11:26.760 | And that stuff takes time.
00:11:28.800 | It takes time to set it up, takes time to haul it.
00:11:31.440 | It's just kind of a hassle.
00:11:33.240 | So let's assume that you wanna be a bit more comfort
00:11:35.600 | and a bit less hassle than you can get with tent camping.
00:11:38.320 | You wanna be out of the dirt.
00:11:39.360 | You wanna be off the ground.
00:11:40.860 | You wanna be able to be out of the elements,
00:11:42.620 | out of the heat, out of the cold,
00:11:44.240 | out of the rain with a little bit of comfort.
00:11:46.360 | And then you'd like to be able to have a faster
00:11:49.120 | and simpler setup of your camp
00:11:51.740 | and a faster and simpler teardown of your camp.
00:11:54.820 | You don't wanna set up a tent, then set up a tarp,
00:11:57.240 | set up a table, set up a stove,
00:11:58.680 | and do all those things a little bit faster.
00:12:01.200 | Let's assume also that you're more than two people
00:12:03.320 | because if you're only one or two people,
00:12:05.740 | I think your best bet there is to be very flexible
00:12:08.240 | and enjoy your small size.
00:12:10.720 | I think truck campers are a wonderful way to go.
00:12:12.680 | The small, hard-sided trailers,
00:12:14.940 | the little fiberglass egg trailers type of thing,
00:12:17.180 | or very small travel trailers are great if you're two people.
00:12:20.360 | But if you're more than that,
00:12:21.280 | it becomes a little bit more challenging.
00:12:22.960 | Where do the beds go?
00:12:24.400 | And then again, I'm tailoring this
00:12:26.520 | for a US-American context.
00:12:29.440 | So assume you want something a little bit better than that,
00:12:31.720 | but then assume that you don't really wanna go up
00:12:34.240 | to the big options because yes, you could get a tent,
00:12:37.440 | but you were gonna assume you're not gonna go ahead
00:12:39.760 | and go for a big luxury motorhome,
00:12:41.800 | a $100,000 RV of some kind.
00:12:44.760 | So you're looking for something in the middle.
00:12:46.280 | Well, basically you'll look at, in that scenario,
00:12:48.960 | look at something like a travel trailer,
00:12:50.900 | a medium-sized travel trailer,
00:12:53.080 | a large travel trailer, 20 feet, 25 feet, 30 feet,
00:12:56.120 | something like that.
00:12:57.580 | Or you can consider something like a pop-up camper.
00:13:01.320 | Here are my arguments in favor
00:13:03.360 | of your considering a pop-up camper.
00:13:05.560 | A pop-up tent camper has all of the basic infrastructure
00:13:10.380 | that you need to have adequate comfort.
00:13:14.040 | It solves all of those basic things
00:13:17.080 | that are uncomfortable about a tent.
00:13:20.320 | In your pop-up camper, you can have a comfortable bed.
00:13:23.240 | You can use a residential mattress,
00:13:24.660 | you can have a foam mattress, whatever you like,
00:13:26.720 | but you have a large residential bed
00:13:29.120 | that you can put nice covers on.
00:13:31.040 | It can be comfortable, it can be beautiful, et cetera.
00:13:33.320 | And one of the great things about a pop-up tent camper
00:13:36.520 | is there are lots of beds, lots of bed space.
00:13:40.620 | You can fit many children into a pop-up tent camper.
00:13:43.460 | So you could solve that problem of being up off the ground
00:13:47.280 | for your sleeping and out of the dirt,
00:13:49.300 | which is hugely important.
00:13:51.440 | In a pop-up tent camper,
00:13:53.020 | you have all of the basic cooking gear ready to go.
00:13:56.240 | You have a propane stove, usually.
00:13:58.800 | You have a sink with a water tank,
00:14:01.720 | which is very convenient.
00:14:02.960 | And then usually you have a fridge of some kind,
00:14:05.500 | whether it's DC electricity or propane
00:14:09.040 | or a combination of the two.
00:14:10.520 | So you have your basic cooking gear ready to go.
00:14:13.720 | That makes a big difference
00:14:14.980 | because it's much faster for you just to set up a kitchen
00:14:17.240 | and have everything in cabinets
00:14:19.320 | than it is to haul the cooler out of the car
00:14:21.560 | and set up the stove on the table
00:14:23.100 | and then figure out how to get it under the canopy.
00:14:24.640 | It's just all there.
00:14:26.040 | You have privacy for using a toilet, things like that.
00:14:28.960 | It's one of the frustrations of a tent.
00:14:30.960 | Yeah, you could bring along a cassette toilet
00:14:32.680 | and set it up in the tent,
00:14:34.480 | but you have a little bit more privacy in a pop-up camper.
00:14:38.180 | Not as much privacy as in a nice hard-sided camper,
00:14:41.000 | but you have adequate privacy.
00:14:43.240 | You have a built-in electrical system.
00:14:45.880 | You have a battery power.
00:14:47.220 | You have a converter that can charge the batteries
00:14:50.200 | and you can plug it in.
00:14:52.040 | You have lights.
00:14:53.560 | Very importantly, in a pop-up camper,
00:14:56.080 | you can have an air conditioner,
00:14:57.760 | which for those of us who live in hot places,
00:15:00.560 | an air conditioner makes a huge difference
00:15:02.660 | in your ability to use your camper.
00:15:04.720 | So you can have an AC for the hot days,
00:15:06.480 | and that AC is usually easily able to be run
00:15:08.640 | on a small generator,
00:15:10.200 | which can be very easily taken with you.
00:15:12.620 | And/or you have a small propane heater,
00:15:15.300 | often built into the camper.
00:15:17.480 | So you're adequate to cover yourself when it's cold.
00:15:21.300 | Or if you don't have something built in,
00:15:23.800 | you are in an enclosed space that's small enough,
00:15:26.600 | has a little bit better insulation than most tents,
00:15:28.840 | so you can just use some kind of portable heater
00:15:31.160 | inside of the camper.
00:15:33.360 | So a pop-up camper offers all of the basic amenities.
00:15:38.360 | There's very little difference in terms of the way
00:15:41.280 | that the systems of a pop-up camper work
00:15:43.960 | versus a large half-million dollar motorhome.
00:15:46.740 | All the systems basically work the same.
00:15:49.220 | The motorhome has a heater,
00:15:50.680 | and it has ducting down into the bays underneath,
00:15:53.860 | and it's got maybe two thermostats or something like that,
00:15:58.260 | but at the end of the day, it's just got a heater.
00:15:59.980 | The motorhome has a couple of air conditioners,
00:16:01.760 | but they're about the same as the air conditioners
00:16:03.780 | on your pop-up camper.
00:16:05.100 | The motorhome has a generator that's built in,
00:16:07.300 | and it might be a diesel,
00:16:08.440 | but you're a little generator that you can just grab
00:16:11.620 | out of the back of your car and put by the back
00:16:13.580 | and plug it in, it'll work great.
00:16:15.660 | Basically, all the systems work the same.
00:16:18.500 | They're just slightly fancier and shinier
00:16:21.340 | in the half-million dollar motorhome.
00:16:24.300 | So a pop-up camper offers a massive upgrade in convenience
00:16:29.300 | and comfort over tent camping,
00:16:33.340 | but yet it's not extreme like some of the bigger ones are.
00:16:39.940 | It's a massive improvement.
00:16:41.780 | It's a big, big step up.
00:16:43.340 | So you'll probably get better buy-in
00:16:45.460 | from your family members.
00:16:47.180 | It'll be a little bit easier for me.
00:16:48.660 | It's a lot easier on my wife.
00:16:50.540 | Instead of making her do everything in the dirt
00:16:52.300 | and just hassle, having facilities is really useful.
00:16:56.660 | And the pop-up camper has very usable space.
00:16:59.780 | It doesn't have a lot of interior space.
00:17:01.780 | That's a major downside of a pop-up camper,
00:17:04.260 | but the interior space that it does have is very useful.
00:17:07.340 | It's useful for beds, et cetera.
00:17:09.180 | Not great to hang out in, pretty small,
00:17:11.660 | but it has lots of bed space,
00:17:12.980 | and it gets you out of the weather when you need to.
00:17:15.300 | Other big, big benefits of a pop-up camper though.
00:17:18.020 | A pop-up camper is easy to tow,
00:17:20.500 | probably with the vehicle that you have.
00:17:23.940 | And when you're towing,
00:17:25.220 | so boys, you're needing to buy another vehicle,
00:17:27.340 | a special vehicle, and it's not as tiring to have it.
00:17:32.020 | When I bought a travel trailer,
00:17:34.140 | I bought a travel trailer,
00:17:35.100 | and then I bought a big one-ton 15-passenger van
00:17:37.540 | to pull it with.
00:17:38.700 | And the numbers on the paper should have been
00:17:41.300 | that my travel trailer should have been able to be pulled
00:17:44.780 | by the van that I had.
00:17:45.900 | The numbers all worked in terms of the tow rating.
00:17:48.220 | Now, I'm still not exactly sure what happened,
00:17:50.580 | why it didn't work,
00:17:51.940 | but my van, I couldn't get the travel trailer
00:17:54.140 | over 50 miles an hour,
00:17:55.300 | even with the engine running flat out.
00:17:57.820 | It may have been a problem with the van.
00:17:59.220 | It may have been a problem
00:18:00.060 | that I just bought the wrong engine,
00:18:02.460 | but it was a big one-ton van with a big Chevy 350 V8.
00:18:07.340 | It should have been able to do it, but it couldn't.
00:18:10.380 | And so it could have certainly pulled a pop-up camper,
00:18:14.020 | but I had to upgrade the whole tow vehicle
00:18:16.020 | and buy a big diesel pickup truck
00:18:17.380 | to pull this big trailer around.
00:18:18.980 | One of the things about a big vehicle
00:18:23.100 | that I underestimated before I had one
00:18:26.780 | is that it's very tiring to drive a big vehicle.
00:18:30.860 | Now, perhaps you wouldn't be so silly
00:18:33.060 | as to underestimate that,
00:18:34.420 | but I was surprised by that.
00:18:36.780 | I love big vehicles.
00:18:38.100 | I enjoy driving big trucks.
00:18:39.980 | I'm very comfortable driving big trucks.
00:18:42.380 | I've driven big trucks.
00:18:43.460 | I've been driving trailers my whole life.
00:18:45.260 | I was the 15-year-old who was out backing trailers up
00:18:48.340 | around my parents' house every which way
00:18:51.060 | so that I could become a very skillful trailer backer.
00:18:53.820 | I wanted to make sure that I knew
00:18:54.980 | I would never embarrass myself,
00:18:56.180 | and so I would know how to do it.
00:18:58.060 | I've driven big trucks my whole life
00:18:59.740 | and been very comfortable with it.
00:19:03.380 | But even so, I have to concede
00:19:05.580 | that driving a big vehicle
00:19:07.500 | is not nearly as comfortable as driving a smaller one.
00:19:11.180 | In the time, one of the things I really wanted
00:19:13.140 | when I bought the Class B van camper
00:19:15.860 | that we owned for a time
00:19:17.220 | is I really wanted something
00:19:18.380 | that would be comfortable for me to drive to conferences.
00:19:21.220 | I like to go to conferences.
00:19:22.660 | I find them very useful.
00:19:23.780 | Go for four days, go out to Texas,
00:19:25.540 | or go up to Georgia, or something like that.
00:19:27.180 | And so I thought, "This will be great.
00:19:28.420 | "I'll have this Class B.
00:19:29.620 | "It's super simple and nimble,
00:19:31.340 | "and I'll drive it to Texas,
00:19:32.620 | "and that way I don't have to bother with the hotel.
00:19:34.820 | "I can just camp along the way.
00:19:35.860 | "It'll just be me traveling."
00:19:37.460 | It'll be really wonderful.
00:19:38.820 | It was work.
00:19:42.020 | I very, I did use it a couple of times,
00:19:45.660 | but it was big.
00:19:46.900 | It was thirsty, and it was work to drive it.
00:19:51.060 | And I got to the point where I realized
00:19:52.860 | that even though I had this nice RV,
00:19:55.780 | and I had all the stuff in it,
00:19:57.780 | I had all the amenities,
00:19:59.980 | it was an RV, a comfortable bed,
00:20:02.260 | I would just as soon either just stay in the hotel,
00:20:05.420 | drive a car, or fly and stay in the hotel
00:20:07.620 | like normal people do,
00:20:09.060 | or just stay in my minivan.
00:20:11.020 | More comfortable and easier to drive,
00:20:13.460 | and if I'm gonna go 1,000 miles,
00:20:15.140 | it's just a lot less work and a lot cheaper
00:20:16.740 | to drive a minivan than to drive this Class B RV.
00:20:20.500 | Similar thing happened with the travel trailer.
00:20:22.660 | I dragged the travel trailer all across the country,
00:20:25.100 | 15,000 miles, and I'm very comfortable,
00:20:28.060 | grew to become very comfortable driving it.
00:20:30.700 | It was no big deal.
00:20:31.780 | I'm good at driving it.
00:20:32.620 | I'm good at backing it, et cetera.
00:20:34.700 | But when I had it,
00:20:35.940 | I never took it on any short-term trips,
00:20:38.540 | but it was such a hassle to hook the thing up
00:20:40.980 | and to deal with where am I gonna park it, et cetera,
00:20:43.700 | I didn't think I would ever use it for a short-term trip.
00:20:47.300 | It wasn't the kind of thing where I would use it
00:20:48.940 | for a quick weekend getaway.
00:20:50.600 | Just too much of a hassle.
00:20:52.180 | I wouldn't wanna drag it to North Carolina.
00:20:54.420 | North Carolina's not that far away,
00:20:56.060 | but it would just be a hassle for me
00:20:57.180 | to drag it to North Carolina.
00:20:59.060 | So I underestimated that.
00:21:00.680 | It's tiring and annoying to have to deal
00:21:03.580 | with a big vehicle.
00:21:05.700 | Even if you're kind of that little boy like I am,
00:21:08.040 | or I love driving big vehicles, I like having 'em,
00:21:10.660 | it's tiring and annoying.
00:21:12.820 | A pop-up camper is very, very easy to tow.
00:21:16.660 | Because of the way that it's situated,
00:21:18.980 | where it's very low, it's usually hidden behind the vehicle,
00:21:21.720 | you can see over it, it's short, it's not long,
00:21:25.980 | saying the same thing again, short, not long,
00:21:27.860 | it's easy to tow, it's easy to park,
00:21:29.620 | it's easy to get in and around.
00:21:31.460 | You hardly know it's there.
00:21:32.340 | If you're driving a normal pickup truck,
00:21:34.260 | or a van, or something like that,
00:21:35.100 | it's the kind of trailer where it just doesn't bother you.
00:21:38.820 | It's like driving a little 12 or 15 foot
00:21:41.180 | landscaping trailer around.
00:21:42.940 | It's light, you don't even care.
00:21:44.500 | You can keep it hooked up all the time, it doesn't matter.
00:21:46.780 | A lot easier to tow, and that's a huge advantage,
00:21:49.980 | because it means there's a good chance
00:21:51.660 | you're more likely to use it.
00:21:53.420 | With a pop-up camper, when I've driven across
00:21:55.160 | with a pop-up camper, and I have camped in them
00:21:58.140 | as an adult, borrowed friends and relatives,
00:22:01.500 | it's not at all intimidating or annoying
00:22:04.260 | to drag it three states away.
00:22:06.380 | Whereas a large travel trailer is,
00:22:08.940 | even if you're well equipped for it.
00:22:10.980 | A pop-up camper is easy to drive around in cities
00:22:14.180 | and at attractions, which is very useful,
00:22:17.380 | and it's easy to back into a campsite.
00:22:21.800 | One of the things I did not like about a pop-up camper
00:22:25.300 | was, when I was younger, was I didn't like
00:22:27.820 | how long it took to set the thing up.
00:22:29.700 | You had to put the top up, you had to pick the cabinets up,
00:22:32.140 | I always just thought, this is a real pain.
00:22:34.200 | I want just a hard-sided camper that I could just
00:22:37.060 | pull in and be ready to go.
00:22:39.220 | Then I had a hard-sided camper that I could just pull in,
00:22:41.700 | and what I found out was, there's a whole bunch
00:22:44.620 | of setup time needed for that, too.
00:22:48.540 | You have to get it backed in.
00:22:50.540 | And even if you are a very skillful trailer backer,
00:22:53.740 | as I am, even if you're that, even if you're skillful,
00:22:58.160 | it takes time to back a big trailer into a small campsite.
00:23:02.700 | It takes time to get it all situated exactly how you want it
00:23:06.660 | so there's room for the slide to come out.
00:23:09.060 | It takes time to get it level and to figure out
00:23:11.860 | exactly how to get it level so that it's gonna work well.
00:23:15.020 | And then, once you set it up, you still gotta put
00:23:17.340 | your stabilizers down, you gotta unhook
00:23:19.900 | this big weight distribution hitch that comes
00:23:22.380 | with all these extra levers and chains and such
00:23:25.620 | that you gotta deal with.
00:23:27.000 | Then you gotta put the slides out,
00:23:29.060 | you gotta get everything just so,
00:23:30.400 | so it takes time to set up the travel trailer.
00:23:33.340 | It's not as simple as you just pull in and you're there.
00:23:35.900 | That's a benefit in favor of motorhomes
00:23:37.860 | with the self-leveling jacks,
00:23:39.500 | but that's more on the higher end.
00:23:41.860 | If you're shopping in that market,
00:23:43.180 | you're not gonna want a pop-up camper.
00:23:45.920 | But you do have to do a few extra things
00:23:48.480 | with a pop-up camper.
00:23:49.420 | You've gotta put the top up, you gotta slide the beds out,
00:23:51.660 | you gotta brace everything.
00:23:53.580 | But I would bet you that I could do it faster
00:23:58.040 | with a pop-up camper.
00:23:58.880 | I never had the chance to put it side by side,
00:24:00.920 | but I bet you I could have a pop-up camper ready to go
00:24:03.360 | faster than a travel trailer,
00:24:05.520 | just because of the ease of getting it backed in
00:24:07.820 | and getting it set right where you want it.
00:24:10.440 | Then, even the frustration of putting things up,
00:24:13.040 | really, what's the difference between cranking up the top
00:24:16.240 | on a pop-up tent camper versus putting a slide out
00:24:22.120 | or putting two or three slides out?
00:24:24.100 | You still gotta sit there and wait for it,
00:24:25.900 | and you can buy pop-up campers that have an electric motor,
00:24:28.580 | or you can just use something as simple
00:24:30.500 | as the electric motor in your drill and put them up.
00:24:33.780 | Which brings me to some of the bigger,
00:24:35.900 | more important benefits of a pop-up camper.
00:24:39.260 | My number one reason why I would want to have
00:24:42.700 | a pop-up camper out instead of a travel trailer
00:24:45.820 | is that a pop-up camper is easy to store
00:24:49.620 | inside and undercover.
00:24:52.360 | It's easy to store in your garage,
00:24:55.340 | or in a shed, or in a carport.
00:24:58.480 | It's so small, it's easy to store,
00:25:00.860 | and that makes a huge, huge difference.
00:25:04.340 | Because you can store it inside easily and inexpensively,
00:25:08.700 | that means you can keep it out of the sun.
00:25:11.820 | You can keep it out of the rain.
00:25:14.140 | You can keep it out of the cold.
00:25:17.100 | And that will make your RV last longer.
00:25:22.100 | The biggest enemy of a travel trailer,
00:25:24.740 | especially when you're unlikely to use it very much,
00:25:28.260 | as most families are, more than a few weeks a year,
00:25:31.460 | is it's just gonna sit outside,
00:25:33.660 | and for, let's say you use it four weeks a year,
00:25:36.100 | 48 weeks of the year it's gonna sit outside and rot,
00:25:39.340 | and four weeks of the year you're gonna use it.
00:25:41.660 | But you're only gonna be able to use it for a short time
00:25:44.460 | because you're gonna get annoyed at driving around
00:25:46.700 | with a rotten camper.
00:25:48.420 | The sun beats on the roof and degrades the rubber
00:25:51.340 | and degrades the seals,
00:25:52.540 | and then a little bit of water gets in
00:25:53.820 | and it starts rotting the walls,
00:25:55.100 | and pretty next thing you know
00:25:56.140 | you've got something delaminating here,
00:25:58.420 | or delaminating there.
00:25:59.940 | Now does it have to be that way?
00:26:01.540 | Certainly not.
00:26:02.380 | Maybe you have a barn you can stick it in,
00:26:05.160 | or maybe you build a shed on the side of your house
00:26:07.400 | to put it in.
00:26:08.240 | I think you should do that if you're gonna buy a big camper.
00:26:11.060 | But drive around anywhere and you'll see
00:26:12.900 | that most campers stay outside,
00:26:15.340 | getting beat on by the sun
00:26:16.780 | and getting beat on by the rain, et cetera.
00:26:19.580 | And then once something starts,
00:26:21.380 | you get a little bit of mold or it starts to rot,
00:26:23.900 | then it gets frustrating to you
00:26:25.620 | and you don't like it all that much and it gets beat up.
00:26:28.300 | Whereas if you can keep something inside,
00:26:30.860 | you can stop the rubber from deteriorating on the roof,
00:26:33.620 | you can stop it from delaminating,
00:26:35.860 | you know that no water's getting into it
00:26:38.100 | 'cause it's in your garage,
00:26:39.140 | and you know that no water is likely to get into it
00:26:41.340 | 'cause all the seals are not getting as degraded.
00:26:44.020 | Now because of that, you can keep it around
00:26:45.980 | for years and years
00:26:47.140 | and it's probably gonna stay in great shape.
00:26:49.260 | If you go and look at a 15-year-old travel trailer
00:26:52.360 | that sat out in the sun for 15 years,
00:26:55.280 | you don't wanna own the thing.
00:26:56.780 | But if you go and look at a 15-year-old pop-up camper
00:26:59.860 | that's been garage kept, it'll look great, it'll look nice.
00:27:03.820 | And yes, there's still gonna be maintenance involved,
00:27:06.100 | you're still gonna wanna refresh the seals
00:27:07.860 | and put a little goop on it here and there,
00:27:10.260 | but that's normal and it's gonna be in great shape.
00:27:12.380 | Your tires are gonna last longer,
00:27:13.820 | everything's gonna last longer if you can keep it inside.
00:27:17.500 | Because you can keep it inside
00:27:20.500 | and because it'll last longer,
00:27:22.280 | you'll feel less frustrated about it depreciating,
00:27:25.780 | about it just collapsing in value.
00:27:28.300 | These things are not cheap.
00:27:29.820 | You know, a new travel trailer,
00:27:31.340 | you can get them new for $20,000 to $30,000
00:27:34.360 | depending on what size range you're dealing in.
00:27:37.060 | I'm thinking about a 30-foot trailer, something like that,
00:27:39.180 | $25,000, you can find a new one.
00:27:41.260 | But as soon as you keep it for a year or two,
00:27:42.980 | it's down to 15, there goes 10 grand,
00:27:45.500 | and then they just keep going down from there.
00:27:47.620 | And so if you care about money and you care about value,
00:27:50.980 | you're probably not gonna wanna have an RV
00:27:52.660 | sitting in your backyard just getting rotten
00:27:55.220 | and destroying any value that there is in it.
00:27:57.980 | So if you can keep it under cover,
00:28:00.080 | you're gonna have less frustration about keeping it around,
00:28:03.780 | even if it's just for a rare use.
00:28:06.880 | That to me is a huge, huge benefit.
00:28:11.620 | When you can keep something inside,
00:28:13.140 | if you'll properly service everything,
00:28:15.480 | then it should work when you go to use it,
00:28:17.880 | unlike keeping it outside when it's rotting
00:28:20.600 | and stuff's just falling apart due to non-use.
00:28:23.700 | I don't know how to emphasize it any more than I did.
00:28:28.200 | As far as I'm concerned,
00:28:29.720 | that is one of the number one benefits of a pop-up camper.
00:28:33.700 | Yes, the benefits of it being light and nimble
00:28:36.640 | are also significant,
00:28:38.480 | but being able to store it inside
00:28:40.760 | means it's not going to be falling apart.
00:28:44.280 | That's tremendous.
00:28:46.560 | Pop-up campers are simple, and this is really wonderful.
00:28:50.720 | Because when you own an RV,
00:28:52.960 | basically you have a cheaply built,
00:28:55.160 | usually, cheaply built wooden shell
00:28:58.360 | with a little bit of wallpaper slapped up inside
00:29:02.160 | and a little bit of aluminum slapped up outside.
00:29:05.080 | That's not that big of a deal.
00:29:07.200 | Yes, it can get water in there
00:29:08.720 | and it can start rotting on you,
00:29:10.600 | but your issues are probably gonna be the systems inside.
00:29:14.760 | One of the great things about a pop-up camper
00:29:16.600 | is it doesn't have some of the systems
00:29:19.540 | that otherwise can break,
00:29:21.080 | and the systems that it does have are simple enough
00:29:24.660 | that you'll probably feel confident
00:29:26.160 | just to swap 'em out yourself.
00:29:28.300 | One of the things I like about a pop-up camper
00:29:30.980 | is you can avoid the whole need for a blackwater tank.
00:29:35.040 | You can just simply use a cassette toilet
00:29:36.800 | instead of a blackwater tank,
00:29:38.600 | which totally changes your relationship with RV parks
00:29:41.840 | when you don't have to constantly find a place
00:29:43.420 | to dump your black tanks.
00:29:44.660 | Pop-up campers can have a heater, but it's simple enough.
00:29:48.360 | You can pull it in and pull it out.
00:29:50.000 | It's just very, very simple.
00:29:51.440 | And I actually, if I were buying one today,
00:29:54.640 | I would be happy to buy one
00:29:56.680 | where only a couple of the systems are built in.
00:29:59.700 | I think it's nice to have a sink
00:30:02.040 | that has a 12-volt pump run to a water tank.
00:30:05.360 | I think that's useful.
00:30:07.000 | I don't care that much about the stove system.
00:30:09.600 | A stove, a little propane stove,
00:30:12.080 | is just as easy to set up as one that's built in.
00:30:15.160 | That's not a big deal.
00:30:16.120 | A cassette toilet is really great.
00:30:18.320 | Beyond that, a few electronics, great,
00:30:20.720 | but I don't mind bringing in and just adding
00:30:23.200 | the type of solar generator,
00:30:26.120 | like a Yeti type of thing that you see
00:30:28.480 | where a power station,
00:30:29.800 | where there's a lithium battery in it
00:30:32.320 | with some AC plugs and some DC plugs, add some lighting.
00:30:36.040 | That stuff can all be dealt with pretty simply.
00:30:38.480 | And so because pop-up campers are simple,
00:30:40.540 | you can fix them when you need to.
00:30:41.760 | You can just throw the old stuff away
00:30:43.240 | and put something in portable.
00:30:44.960 | These days, I just as soon choose the portable option.
00:30:47.640 | Think of it like this.
00:30:48.840 | How happy are you if you, in 2005,
00:30:52.360 | bought the top-of-the-line navigation system in your car
00:30:56.960 | versus today, the navigation system
00:30:58.840 | that's in your cell phone?
00:31:00.240 | A lot easier just to have your cell phone
00:31:01.720 | and plop it there and use that to navigate.
00:31:04.000 | For this audience, you would appreciate
00:31:08.080 | that the economics of a pop-up truck camper are fantastic.
00:31:12.680 | They are cheap to buy, even if you buy one new.
00:31:16.160 | Now, in the used market, you can get them
00:31:18.160 | for $3,000 to $5,000 in very workable shape
00:31:22.200 | used all day long.
00:31:23.700 | I'm not opposed these days to buying new RVs.
00:31:27.100 | I think there's a place for that.
00:31:28.240 | I don't think you should do it
00:31:29.160 | unless you're really sure that you're gonna have it
00:31:31.080 | for a long time because when you buy a new RV,
00:31:33.800 | you'll never get out of it
00:31:35.520 | without losing a good amount of depreciation.
00:31:39.040 | But if you can buy one for $3,000 to $5,000,
00:31:44.040 | that's just not that much money, a good tent.
00:31:47.080 | If you wanna bid out of the world of Walmart tents,
00:31:49.020 | a good tent can frequently be $1,000, a good family tent.
00:31:52.280 | $3,000 to have a tent on wheels
00:31:54.700 | is not that big of a deal.
00:31:57.200 | A lot of times, in my experience,
00:31:58.680 | you can find a great deal on a pop-up
00:32:01.640 | and it's likely to be in better shape
00:32:04.880 | than a travel trailer of its same vintage
00:32:07.880 | because of what I said about the weather.
00:32:09.880 | The travel trailer may have been stored outside,
00:32:13.760 | whereas the pop-up camper is likely
00:32:15.520 | to have been stored inside.
00:32:17.400 | That's a tremendous benefit.
00:32:20.100 | So they're cheap to buy.
00:32:21.140 | Even if you buy them new, they're not that expensive.
00:32:23.880 | Huge benefit, it's cheap to add on
00:32:26.560 | to whatever else you already have.
00:32:28.360 | This may be a bigger deal for some people than others.
00:32:32.000 | If you already have a big one-ton diesel truck
00:32:34.280 | that you use for work anyway,
00:32:36.040 | and you just run across a travel trailer, that's fine.
00:32:39.560 | Grab the travel trailer, you'll enjoy it.
00:32:41.880 | But most people have to think ahead.
00:32:44.200 | Most people have a small SUV or a car
00:32:47.160 | or something like that.
00:32:48.640 | Well, you often underestimate the cost of the whole thing.
00:32:53.040 | You go out and start looking at campers
00:32:55.040 | and you forget the fact
00:32:56.920 | that you're gonna wanna upgrade the car.
00:32:58.580 | And you look at the tow rating on your medium-sized SUV,
00:33:03.440 | and it says it can handle 8,000 pounds.
00:33:07.320 | But by the time you go down to the dealership
00:33:09.560 | and you buy an RV that has a dry weight of 7,995 pounds,
00:33:14.560 | and the salesman says, "Yeah, you can do it.
00:33:17.280 | "Your SUV is rated for that."
00:33:20.200 | And then all of a sudden you hook it up
00:33:21.920 | and then you fill it up and then you put stuff in it.
00:33:24.940 | Then you feel like you're destroying the transmission
00:33:29.560 | on your SUV and you don't wanna do that.
00:33:31.440 | Next thing you know, you got a new truck out there.
00:33:34.560 | It's a hassle.
00:33:35.920 | Pop-up camper usually doesn't need that.
00:33:38.160 | It's cheap to add on to whatever else you already have.
00:33:41.440 | The vast majority of SUVs and trucks and vans
00:33:45.140 | can pull a pop-up camper.
00:33:47.080 | Now, you can get some really big and heavy pop-up campers
00:33:50.020 | that would not be able to be pulled with a minivan.
00:33:52.880 | A minivan usually rated for about 3,500 pounds of towing,
00:33:55.940 | but you can find small pop-up campers that it can handle.
00:33:59.240 | Most mid-size SUVs, most half-ton pickup trucks,
00:34:02.100 | you can always find these things and they can do it.
00:34:04.660 | There's no need for a new truck.
00:34:05.940 | There's no need for a big diesel engine.
00:34:07.980 | And that's worth it.
00:34:09.180 | That's worth a lot.
00:34:10.380 | So it's cheap to just add it on
00:34:11.900 | to whatever else you already have.
00:34:14.300 | And the biggest thing, again, is the low profile of towing.
00:34:18.020 | It's not all about weight.
00:34:19.540 | A lot of it has to do with wind resistance.
00:34:21.980 | How tall is that trailer?
00:34:24.320 | You could tow a fairly heavy trailer.
00:34:26.980 | And once you get it going,
00:34:28.060 | as long as you don't have a ton of wind resistance,
00:34:29.980 | you can drive it pretty fast.
00:34:31.720 | But if you have a big, tall trailer
00:34:33.340 | that sticks up high above your vehicle,
00:34:35.540 | that wind resistance does a lot of damage to your driveline.
00:34:40.540 | Cheap to add on to the things that you already have.
00:34:43.700 | Big benefit of pop-up camper, it's cheap to pull.
00:34:46.540 | You have a radically cheaper fuel cost
00:34:48.940 | because of that low profile of, low towing profile
00:34:53.420 | versus a large, big box.
00:34:56.540 | It's much cheaper to pull.
00:34:58.220 | And that's probably useful.
00:35:00.380 | It means you'll use it more.
00:35:01.500 | It makes it easier to drive, like I said earlier,
00:35:04.380 | but it also makes it cheaper to drive.
00:35:06.860 | It's frustrating to think about
00:35:09.180 | heading across the country at eight miles per gallon.
00:35:12.020 | But if you take an average vehicle,
00:35:13.820 | and I'm guessing here,
00:35:14.820 | it's a little bit of educated guessing,
00:35:16.260 | but I have never taken a medium-sized SUV
00:35:19.180 | and towed a pop-up camper across the country.
00:35:22.080 | But here's what I'm gonna guess.
00:35:22.980 | Your medium-sized SUV might get you,
00:35:25.620 | say, 22 miles per gallon
00:35:27.580 | without towing anything on the highway.
00:35:30.780 | Maybe 25, depending on what SUV we're talking about here.
00:35:33.340 | 20 to 25.
00:35:34.860 | You'll probably lose five miles per gallon
00:35:36.700 | towing a pop-up camper.
00:35:38.780 | But going to 15, from 20 to 15, or 25 to 18,
00:35:42.720 | is not as difficult as going from 22 to 10,
00:35:47.720 | like you get with a big travel trailer,
00:35:51.320 | or going from 22 to seven,
00:35:54.240 | like you get with a big fifth wheel,
00:35:56.320 | or going from 25 to six,
00:35:59.400 | like you get with a big Class A motorhome.
00:36:02.740 | That's a big deal with regard to the economy,
00:36:09.400 | the economics of the thing.
00:36:11.100 | Pop-up camper can be cheap to fix.
00:36:13.540 | Need to fix the roof?
00:36:15.080 | Well, it's at waist level.
00:36:16.760 | It's not that big.
00:36:17.920 | You can look at it and feel pretty confident
00:36:19.960 | about going and getting a cock gun
00:36:21.580 | and putting goop on the roof, or redoing the rubber.
00:36:24.320 | It's not as intimidating as being 13 feet off the ground
00:36:28.120 | with this big, huge thing,
00:36:29.380 | with all this stuff sticking through the roof,
00:36:31.200 | where you don't know if you can do it or not.
00:36:32.960 | You can do it.
00:36:33.840 | Heater goes bad, pull it out,
00:36:35.880 | say, we'll just use a Mr. Buddy heater next time.
00:36:38.280 | We don't need to replace it.
00:36:40.280 | That's a little different
00:36:41.460 | when then your heater goes bad on your big 30 foot trailer,
00:36:45.040 | and you need the ducks to come out in the front room
00:36:47.220 | and in the back room.
00:36:48.600 | Well, now all of a sudden you're into it
00:36:49.920 | for a $400 new heater.
00:36:51.720 | Hot water heater goes,
00:36:53.340 | I could go on and on.
00:36:54.180 | Bad fridge?
00:36:55.020 | Nah, you know what?
00:36:55.840 | We don't need a propane fridge.
00:36:57.080 | Let's just toss in one of these 12 volt refrigerators
00:37:00.100 | and add another battery.
00:37:01.440 | Simple, cheap to fix, simple.
00:37:04.120 | Big benefit of a pop-up camper,
00:37:05.780 | it's cheap to camp in.
00:37:07.800 | You fit in the smaller spots,
00:37:09.680 | which can save you money.
00:37:10.920 | You fit into more of your friend's driveways.
00:37:13.080 | You can go visit more friends,
00:37:14.620 | unlike when you have a big giant thing
00:37:16.280 | and there's nowhere to park it.
00:37:17.920 | You can drag a pop-up camper off-road
00:37:20.680 | or into less developed areas
00:37:22.680 | much more easily than you can with a big trailer.
00:37:26.160 | Out West in the Western United States,
00:37:28.080 | there is so much wonderful BLM land,
00:37:31.440 | government land all over the place
00:37:32.840 | that you can camp on without paying,
00:37:34.640 | but it's hard to get a big trailer there a lot of times.
00:37:37.840 | Little trailer can make it down a little rutted road,
00:37:40.760 | pull into beautiful clearing and set up for free.
00:37:43.360 | Much easier than a big trailer.
00:37:45.700 | Pop-up camper is cheap to keep.
00:37:49.800 | Probably there's no need for storage fees.
00:37:52.600 | This is a big deal.
00:37:53.440 | Many times people buy a travel trailer,
00:37:55.460 | they park it in their yard,
00:37:56.480 | then all of a sudden code enforcement's knocking on the door
00:37:58.940 | or the homeowners association is knocking on the door
00:38:01.400 | and they say, "You can't keep that big trailer.
00:38:03.560 | "Here, it's not allowed.
00:38:05.240 | "It's gotta be back behind the house
00:38:06.860 | "or it can't be here.
00:38:08.440 | "We don't allow these in the HOA."
00:38:10.640 | So then now you gotta take it to a storage location
00:38:12.840 | and now you're paying a monthly rental fee
00:38:14.400 | for the storage location to keep it at a storage lot.
00:38:17.160 | So now you're into a thing for thousands
00:38:18.880 | or thousands of dollars per year just for a parking space.
00:38:22.360 | Pop-up camper may be able to fit inside of your garage,
00:38:24.960 | thus avoiding the problems
00:38:26.480 | with the homeowners association.
00:38:28.160 | You can stash it more easily at a friend's house
00:38:34.000 | or a relative's house than a big giant camper
00:38:36.160 | where there's just no place for it.
00:38:38.100 | And then, again, because you can keep it inside,
00:38:41.320 | it's cheap to keep
00:38:42.260 | because it's not being destroyed by the weather
00:38:44.420 | and you're not so worried about it just falling apart on you.
00:38:47.900 | And then pop-up campers are,
00:38:49.900 | the economics are great
00:38:52.660 | because they're inexpensive enough
00:38:54.220 | that if you wanna buy one new
00:38:56.340 | so you can get exactly what you want,
00:38:57.900 | all the options you want,
00:38:59.060 | have it all in perfect condition,
00:39:00.860 | you can justify buying one new, using it for a while,
00:39:05.060 | and then you can just go ahead and keep it for decades
00:39:07.720 | as a just-in-case plan.
00:39:09.360 | There's really not that much that can go wrong on them.
00:39:11.120 | And if you can keep them inside,
00:39:12.560 | then they can stay in much better shape.
00:39:15.040 | So for all these reasons,
00:39:16.120 | the economics of a pop-up camper are great.
00:39:18.520 | Again, cheap to buy, cheap to add on to the equipment,
00:39:21.440 | the vehicles that you already have.
00:39:23.200 | They're cheap to pool, they're cheap to fix,
00:39:24.920 | they're cheap to camp, they're cheap to keep,
00:39:26.680 | and they're inexpensive enough
00:39:28.000 | that if you just wanna buy them new, that's fine.
00:39:32.160 | Now, where does a pop-up camper not shine?
00:39:35.580 | Well, there are some important things.
00:39:37.260 | Number one, they are not awesome in the rain.
00:39:41.500 | It's a pain to put them up and down when it's wet,
00:39:44.900 | and you've gotta make sure they dry them out.
00:39:47.100 | In that way, they're like a tent.
00:39:48.580 | It's not awesome to go tent camping in the rain,
00:39:50.900 | and it's not awesome to go pop-up camping in the rain.
00:39:54.500 | It's not awesome to hang out in a pop-up camper
00:39:57.160 | for multiple days in bad weather, such as rain.
00:40:01.100 | You're not gonna have the same experience
00:40:03.480 | that you'll have in a larger camper in bad weather.
00:40:07.160 | Now, in general, this isn't a problem.
00:40:08.800 | In general, for most trips, most just short-term vacations,
00:40:11.960 | weekend here and there, usually you wanna be outside,
00:40:14.560 | around the campfire, and you wanna be
00:40:16.840 | just embracing the weather, whatever it is.
00:40:19.080 | That's very different than full-timing.
00:40:21.240 | In full-timing, if you hit in bad weather,
00:40:23.040 | you need to be able to be productive,
00:40:24.400 | you need to be comfortable, you want that nice recliner,
00:40:26.920 | and you want your fireplace popping,
00:40:29.240 | and that recliner with your feet up,
00:40:30.780 | and whatever you've got on your satellite TV.
00:40:33.680 | But if you're full-timing, that stuff's important.
00:40:36.660 | But most people aren't full-timing,
00:40:38.200 | and you don't need all that comfort.
00:40:39.920 | If it's raining and you're away for the weekend,
00:40:41.840 | go home early.
00:40:42.840 | You can just quit.
00:40:46.960 | So that's a big place they're not awesome.
00:40:50.160 | It's adequate to get out of the rain
00:40:52.800 | for a day or two if you need to.
00:40:55.120 | It's adequate.
00:40:56.800 | Not awesome, but adequate.
00:40:58.540 | Better than a tent, at least,
00:41:00.060 | because you're not in the mud, you're not in the water.
00:41:03.120 | But that is an important downside of pop-up campers.
00:41:06.440 | Pop-up campers do take time to set up and tear down.
00:41:10.680 | There is a little bit of extra time.
00:41:13.280 | You do have to crank the top up and down,
00:41:15.080 | and you do have to put the cabinets up.
00:41:16.920 | And so it does take a little bit of extra time,
00:41:19.720 | and there are occasions in which that extra time
00:41:22.480 | can be annoying, like going to the grocery store
00:41:25.600 | and getting groceries.
00:41:26.960 | Well, are we really gonna put the top up on the trailer
00:41:29.280 | and put all this stuff away?
00:41:30.360 | Big trailer, it's easy.
00:41:31.200 | You pop the door open, you go in,
00:41:32.600 | put stuff in the fridge, and get back in the car.
00:41:34.760 | Though that can be annoying.
00:41:36.760 | And then I would say one of the biggest downsides
00:41:38.960 | of a pop-up camper is you really can't comfortably,
00:41:43.280 | at least I've never seen anybody do it,
00:41:44.960 | you really can't boondock at just a side
00:41:47.440 | of the highway rest stop or a Walmart parking lot.
00:41:50.520 | One of the things that I love about fixed RVs
00:41:53.380 | is that ability just to pull over,
00:41:55.960 | climb in your bed, and go to sleep.
00:41:57.440 | You can find a safe place to park
00:41:59.480 | where you're not gonna get hassled
00:42:01.000 | by somebody telling you to move on.
00:42:03.600 | You can be as comfortable anywhere
00:42:05.760 | as you are anywhere else.
00:42:07.600 | And I actually really like it.
00:42:09.580 | I like pulling into the rest stop on the highway
00:42:12.240 | and sleeping.
00:42:13.080 | I like the Walmart parking lot scene.
00:42:14.240 | I enjoy that stuff.
00:42:15.160 | It makes me feel, I don't know, fun.
00:42:17.640 | It makes me feel cool to be able to be there.
00:42:19.440 | And it's fun when you have your whole home with you
00:42:22.160 | that you can just, you wake up in the morning,
00:42:24.160 | you look out the window, and you say, where are we today?
00:42:26.760 | Now, when I was younger, that was my number one reason
00:42:30.200 | why I wanted an RV.
00:42:32.280 | And I especially was interested in the economics of it.
00:42:37.280 | The idea that by just staying at the side
00:42:40.680 | of the highway rest stop, you could avoid having to pay
00:42:44.560 | for a night's accommodation.
00:42:46.340 | That can be a big deal.
00:42:48.160 | It's hard to find, even at just a bad hotel
00:42:50.800 | in the United States, most places,
00:42:52.280 | it's hard to find one for cheaper than 70, 80 bucks.
00:42:55.480 | And a lot of times those ones, you don't really wanna
00:42:57.080 | take your shoes off, you don't really wanna touch,
00:42:59.280 | it's kinda questionable.
00:43:00.800 | So usually you're at 100 bucks to get kind of a moderate
00:43:04.360 | rate hotel or more.
00:43:08.080 | And the RV can save you that money.
00:43:10.720 | But it can also save you money on things like food.
00:43:13.760 | For example, when you have a fixed RV,
00:43:16.320 | it's fairly easy to say, hey, it's lunchtime,
00:43:18.600 | and you pull over into the rest stop
00:43:21.520 | or pull over into a parking lot.
00:43:23.600 | You've got all your food ready to go, made up there.
00:43:27.680 | That's a big deal for me, and I really like that.
00:43:30.560 | And I really would be loathe to give it up.
00:43:33.840 | Especially when full-timing, it's huge.
00:43:37.640 | But for family vacations, I think that it's worth
00:43:41.520 | giving that up.
00:43:42.980 | I think it's worth it.
00:43:44.760 | At this point in time, for the family vacation model
00:43:47.800 | of travel, I would just happily pay for a hotel
00:43:52.000 | for the night, and happily pay for a restaurant meal,
00:43:55.200 | if necessary, while moving fast across the country,
00:43:58.120 | instead of worrying about being able to sleep
00:43:59.920 | at a Walmart, just get the hotel.
00:44:02.440 | And the reason is, all those maintenance items,
00:44:04.880 | when you own an RV, really is where your big money goes out.
00:44:09.280 | Remember when I had to fix the generator on my motorhome,
00:44:12.720 | and it was 1,000 bucks.
00:44:14.640 | And I had worked on it myself, I had diagnosed it,
00:44:17.620 | I had downloaded the stuff off.
00:44:19.320 | 1,000 was too much, it was $700, something like that.
00:44:25.020 | I had downloaded all the manuals, I had troubleshot
00:44:28.520 | everything, I had corresponded, I had tried to do it
00:44:31.580 | myself, and finally I just came to the point
00:44:33.340 | where it wasn't working right, and I had to just get it
00:44:35.980 | done by the professional.
00:44:37.380 | 700 bucks to service the generator.
00:44:39.980 | And I was really annoyed, because when you have to deal
00:44:43.060 | with maintenance items and things like that,
00:44:45.180 | that's money you can never get out of the deal.
00:44:49.180 | When you go to sell it, nobody gives you an extra $700
00:44:51.940 | because you had generator service.
00:44:53.360 | That's just the cost of doing business,
00:44:55.340 | cost of having one of the things.
00:44:57.020 | And when you start comparing $700 here, and $600 there,
00:45:01.740 | and $800 there, all of a sudden you can buy a lot
00:45:04.940 | of hotel rooms for that money.
00:45:08.080 | Now is it economical to full-time in an RV
00:45:10.460 | and be able to save money while traveling hard
00:45:12.560 | across the country?
00:45:13.460 | Absolutely, if you're full-timing.
00:45:16.700 | But for the family vacation model, nah, no way.
00:45:20.940 | There's no way you come out ahead.
00:45:22.640 | The hotel is a cheaper deal.
00:45:24.580 | So in summary, for a family that wants to be able
00:45:26.900 | to get out into the woods, park, get out in the woods,
00:45:31.820 | or national parks, state parks, et cetera,
00:45:34.220 | with a bit more comfort than a tent,
00:45:36.900 | but who doesn't need luxury, then I think a pop-up camper
00:45:41.360 | is ideal.
00:45:42.200 | It's best paired, in my opinion, with something
00:45:44.100 | like a big full-size van if you have one of those.
00:45:46.860 | But whatever you have is fine.
00:45:48.460 | It's an ideal compromise.
00:45:52.780 | If it's me, if I move back to the United States
00:45:54.860 | in the future, it's what I'll buy.
00:45:56.820 | I'll buy a full-size van and a pop-up camper.
00:45:59.060 | I'd buy a used one.
00:46:01.540 | I can't bring myself to buy one new,
00:46:03.020 | but I would shop the new market, you never know.
00:46:06.060 | But I would buy a full-size van and a pop-up camper.
00:46:09.060 | Now would I like to have a motorhome?
00:46:11.660 | I'd love one if you give it to me.
00:46:15.820 | But unless I'm full-timing, it's hard to see
00:46:20.860 | how I could stomach the fuel bill to cover the distances
00:46:23.460 | that I would enjoy covering.
00:46:25.740 | Going across the country at six or eight miles per gallon
00:46:28.460 | gets pretty old.
00:46:30.300 | And so just the economy of being able to travel freely,
00:46:34.180 | and it means it gets used more.
00:46:37.260 | Fifth wheel, same thing.
00:46:38.380 | For full-timing, fifth wheel would be awesome.
00:46:40.940 | Is there a weekend here or there to tow that big old thing
00:46:44.620 | and deal with it?
00:46:46.060 | It's just a pain.
00:46:47.420 | And again, I'd have to keep a big diesel pickup truck
00:46:49.620 | around at eight, 10 miles per gallon.
00:46:51.180 | Travel trailer, fine.
00:46:53.300 | But basically the same problem as a fifth wheel.
00:46:55.220 | It's a hassle, like I described earlier.
00:46:57.420 | What about a small travel trailer?
00:46:59.340 | Well, for me, I don't really fit well in a small travel trailer.
00:47:02.260 | Shoulders are too big, too tall, et cetera.
00:47:04.580 | And there are not enough beds for my family.
00:47:06.660 | Usually two people fit well in the small travel
00:47:10.860 | trailers, and I don't see the point.
00:47:12.940 | The bathrooms are uncomfortable.
00:47:14.380 | They're too small.
00:47:15.140 | I don't want to use the shower.
00:47:16.460 | I don't use the TV.
00:47:17.260 | So why do I need that stuff?
00:47:20.820 | So when I was younger, I promised myself
00:47:23.420 | I would never have a pop-up.
00:47:26.060 | But at this point in time, I've decided
00:47:28.540 | that a pop-up is right for me.
00:47:31.780 | It really is.
00:47:33.540 | Now, I would be remiss if I didn't close this show
00:47:37.500 | with an email that I got from a listener
00:47:39.260 | back when I mentioned this.
00:47:40.380 | I guess this was seven months ago now,
00:47:43.460 | where a listener heard me and wrote this email in.
00:47:46.220 | This is a long-time listener of the show.
00:47:48.180 | Hey, Josh, I wanted to write about halfway
00:47:49.900 | into the travel trailer episode and push back
00:47:51.580 | on you a little bit.
00:47:52.260 | When I heard you were going to recommend a pop-up,
00:47:54.620 | I almost drove into the ditch.
00:47:56.900 | Not really.
00:47:57.860 | In our evolution of camping, we went from a tent to a pop-up,
00:48:00.740 | back to a tent, and then to an 18-foot travel trailer
00:48:04.540 | with bunks for the kids.
00:48:06.380 | I would never recommend a pop-up or buy another one.
00:48:10.460 | We bought ours new.
00:48:11.860 | All the used ones smelled like mildew,
00:48:14.060 | which should have been a red flag.
00:48:15.780 | Also, we planned on keeping it long enough
00:48:17.900 | so the depreciation didn't hurt so much.
00:48:20.340 | It was $12,000.
00:48:22.220 | We kept it for three years and traveled several thousand miles
00:48:25.020 | in it, probably five to eight weeks a year camping.
00:48:28.220 | There are plenty of downsides to a pop-up.
00:48:30.980 | In the humid south, unless you can keep it
00:48:33.300 | in a dehumidified garage, it will mildew
00:48:36.220 | and smell.
00:48:37.540 | It's uncomfortable at temperature extremes.
00:48:40.220 | It's a pain to set up or take down in the rain.
00:48:42.980 | You can't pull over during a trip
00:48:44.780 | and send the kids to the bathroom,
00:48:46.460 | or access the fridge, or prepare a meal.
00:48:49.380 | It's hard to pull over at a rest stop and sleep
00:48:51.420 | because it's so much work to put it up or down.
00:48:54.540 | Unless we stopped in a campground for the night,
00:48:56.380 | we would often just get a hotel
00:48:57.740 | while on the road for long trips.
00:49:00.100 | I think the perfect solution is the trailer we have now.
00:49:03.460 | It is 19 feet, weighs 3,400 pounds,
00:49:06.740 | so you don't need a diesel to pull it.
00:49:08.300 | Gas is a little cheaper.
00:49:09.780 | We've slept three adults and two kids for a week
00:49:12.180 | with one kid on the floor.
00:49:13.860 | It has bunk beds and a table that makes a queen.
00:49:16.940 | It has a full fridge and freezer,
00:49:18.620 | which the pop-up didn't have.
00:49:20.500 | It also has a stand-up separate shower with toilet
00:49:23.220 | that has fresh, gray, and black waste tanks.
00:49:26.580 | Pop-up doesn't have that, microwave.
00:49:29.300 | It is so very simple to set up and take down.
00:49:31.220 | Basically, just pull over and hop in
00:49:32.820 | if you need to use the bathroom
00:49:34.020 | or make a meal or sleep for the night.
00:49:36.140 | It really is like being at home.
00:49:37.940 | I'd go back to a tent before a pop-up again.
00:49:41.260 | As for use, we use ours at least three times a year
00:49:44.020 | to visit family and stay in their yards
00:49:45.860 | as the house is full,
00:49:47.220 | including two weeks every year in Tennessee.
00:49:49.540 | We also take several three-night trips to the beach.
00:49:51.900 | Just got back from St. Augustine
00:49:53.380 | and a week or so in the mountains.
00:49:54.820 | It's very comfortable at temperature extremes.
00:49:57.340 | One of the best things, as I'm sure you know,
00:49:59.260 | is being about to load up the fridge and freezer at home.
00:50:04.020 | Turn it on, have food supplies,
00:50:05.420 | and we get to the campground.
00:50:06.740 | You can't do that in a pop-up.
00:50:08.460 | We paid $16,500 for our travel trailer.
00:50:11.420 | It was one year old and used twice.
00:50:13.780 | We haven't had, what, one maintenance problem
00:50:15.860 | in over a year.
00:50:17.140 | I just had to replace the converter and buy a new battery
00:50:19.420 | as the factory-installed one
00:50:20.780 | didn't bring the battery up to enough volts.
00:50:23.140 | I upgraded to a Group 31 AGM
00:50:25.300 | so we can boondock a little more.
00:50:27.380 | One downside to a smaller camper
00:50:29.020 | is that the waste tanks are smaller.
00:50:30.620 | We can only last about three days
00:50:32.180 | with normal use for a family of four.
00:50:34.500 | I think a small travel trailer,
00:50:35.980 | something like our Riverside Retro,
00:50:38.420 | a Scamp, or a Casita, would be the perfect choice.
00:50:41.700 | Plus, if you ever do need to bug out,
00:50:43.340 | it's much easier in a small travel trailer than a pop-up.
00:50:46.900 | So, still watching,
00:50:49.400 | Housing says, "Please don't recommend a pop-up.
00:50:53.380 | "It's the worst purchase we made.
00:50:55.160 | "I'd rather spend $400 on two really good sleeping pads
00:50:58.500 | "like we have and stay in a tent.
00:51:00.660 | "Maybe different for others,
00:51:02.020 | "but I've never heard anyone who's owned one
00:51:03.840 | "for three to five years say great things about them."
00:51:07.480 | So, that was Brandon, who lives in South Carolina.
00:51:10.920 | You have to consider your own situation.
00:51:16.580 | And this may be unique.
00:51:18.300 | I do concede that if you can get away
00:51:21.660 | with a small travel trailer,
00:51:25.020 | that there are benefits to it.
00:51:26.860 | And if I were two people, I certainly would do that.
00:51:30.700 | One of the big benefits I would point out
00:51:32.020 | about a pop-up, though, it does have more bed space.
00:51:34.660 | And with the size of my family,
00:51:36.500 | that's important, is to figure out
00:51:38.540 | where do you put all the beds.
00:51:39.900 | And I did the bunkhouse model.
00:51:42.340 | I had the big bunkhouse, and it was super comfortable,
00:51:46.260 | but it had all of those downsides that I mentioned to you.
00:51:50.100 | I do think it is important to be able
00:51:52.420 | to store it out of the weather.
00:51:54.540 | And in that case, you would treat it like a tent.
00:51:57.820 | And I think that would solve that basic problem.
00:52:00.540 | As to being uncomfortable in temperature extremes,
00:52:02.940 | yes, I think it can be,
00:52:04.780 | but it's more comfortable than a tent.
00:52:09.060 | So, you can run the air conditioner, simple to do.
00:52:12.280 | If you are considering purchasing an RV of some kind,
00:52:17.980 | what I would recommend that you do,
00:52:19.820 | as with almost anything else, is rent.
00:52:22.820 | Rent some different options and try them out.
00:52:26.460 | It's fairly easy in most places to rent a pop-up camper.
00:52:29.980 | You should be able to find one.
00:52:31.340 | We took a rental pop-up camper
00:52:32.940 | from Florida to the Grand Canyon one time,
00:52:35.620 | and it worked fine.
00:52:36.940 | So, you can rent one, try it out that way.
00:52:40.100 | Rent a few different travel trailers,
00:52:41.980 | and rent a big motorhome,
00:52:46.120 | if you're thinking about going that direction.
00:52:48.140 | There's been such a proliferation in the rental marketplace
00:52:51.120 | that now you can find almost anything to rent.
00:52:53.940 | Don't think that it's expensive to rent a camper
00:52:58.940 | and you'll just save money by buying one.
00:53:02.060 | You will not.
00:53:03.300 | It's not expensive to rent a camper.
00:53:05.460 | It is much cheaper than buying one.
00:53:07.980 | You won't know today, if you've never owned one,
00:53:11.220 | you won't know all the little expenses that add up,
00:53:13.300 | but it's cheaper to rent it,
00:53:15.540 | which is probably why you should rent it anyway.
00:53:18.500 | You should just dispense with buying it.
00:53:20.380 | In the long run.
00:53:22.720 | Usually there you get into just how many nights
00:53:24.900 | you're actually gonna use it,
00:53:26.180 | and then availability, et cetera.
00:53:28.380 | But renting is a wonderful option.
00:53:30.820 | I will fully concede the point about pop-up campers
00:53:34.660 | not being able just to get in and have a meal.
00:53:36.980 | And that is one thing that's lovely
00:53:38.920 | about a fixed trailer, fixed motorhome, et cetera.
00:53:42.480 | That's all I've got to say on the subject.
00:53:44.620 | I hope that was a good, useful thing for you to consider.
00:53:47.960 | Try it for yourself.
00:53:49.420 | Just always be careful.
00:53:50.900 | I will tell you, it is possible,
00:53:52.980 | many people lose a lot of money on RVs,
00:53:55.580 | and because of that, you have an opportunity.
00:53:59.140 | If you're careful and if you're patient,
00:54:01.180 | and if you take your time, you can do okay.
00:54:03.980 | But you need to be prepared that whatever you buy,
00:54:07.260 | it is not an investment.
00:54:09.100 | It is purely an expense,
00:54:10.900 | and you're gonna come out of it
00:54:12.540 | with less money in your pocket than you have going in.
00:54:15.000 | So make sure you can afford that.
00:54:17.260 | Have a great day.
00:54:18.860 | With Kroger Brand products from Ralph's,
00:54:20.740 | you can make all your favorite things this holiday season
00:54:23.900 | because Kroger Brand's proven quality products
00:54:26.380 | come at exceptionally low prices.
00:54:28.620 | And with a money-back quality guarantee,
00:54:31.060 | every dish is sure to be a favorite.
00:54:33.500 | ♪ These are a few of my favorite things ♪
00:54:36.940 | Whether you shop delivery, pickup, or in-store,
00:54:40.620 | Kroger Brand has all your favorite things.
00:54:43.740 | Ralph's, fresh for everyone.
00:54:45.840 | (upbeat music)