One of the reasons we bought an RV was because they are much larger than a caravan or European motorhome because they have slides. As you will see from our RV has Landed post we have two slides on our RV, one is opposite the kitchen and door and holds the sofa and dinette and the other is opposite the bathroom and our bed and holds the bunk beds, double wardrobe, drawers and bedroom tv.
These slides make the RV so much wider, in fact, it goes from 2.45m wide to 3.25m wide giving us so much additional space inside to move around.
Reasons we can’t use the slides
Sometimes we can’t have these slide out! This could be because we are at motorway services or wild camping and it is frowned upon to put the slides out.
Another reason is if the wind is just too strong and we risk the slide toppers being ripped off.
Picking our RV
We picked our RV with this limitation in mind and made sure that it would be usable even with the slides in. Some fifth wheels and RVs, when the slides are in there is not enough room to move around. We saw one that had a bathroom with a small side corridor that when the slide was in it cut off access to that corridor and the rear bedroom meaning it could not be used with the slides in.
Issues we have when the slides are in
It’s much harder to pass in the corridor, but there are areas where it’s wider so you just use those. One of the cool features we have is a false floor that we can put in over the steps this gives us a space which is a little wider for passing.
We can’t easily get in the wardrobe, as when the slides are in the wardrobe touches the bottom of our bed. The only way in is to lift the mattress which then allows the doors to be opened – but it is very much a two person job. If you plan ahead you can get clothes out ready. There are drawers you can still use so we put essentials in those.
We can’t see the TV as well in the main area as the slide wall gets in the way but we can always go and sit on our bed and watch TV instead.
There is also one plug socket that we can’t use with the slides in but it’s not the end of the world.
The slides being in also partly obscure some of the air conditioning vents which means you lose some of the cool air over the top of the slide rather than into the main area of the RV.
Slides in
So what is our RV like with the slides in can you still live happily? Well yes!
Obviously there is not as much room but we can still easily move around.
We have in fact spent a good few days in locations with the slides permanently in due to high winds without getting too annoyed. Although we were very happy when we could finally put the slides back out.
Conclusion
If you are looking to buy an RV or a Fifth Wheel make sure you consider what you can and can’t use when the slides are in. Chances are you will at some point have to spend some time with them in and you want to be able to get about and use the essentials.