Pantry in BC 3800 FL

StrongJava

Well-known member
Hi!

We are at the Houston RV show today. There were not a lot of Heartland 5th Wheels (No Bighorns) but we looked through a couple of Big Country rigs. The one we really liked quite a bit is the BC 3800 FL. The idea for us would be to remove one of the couches up front and put in a desk. We also liked the steps up to the rear bedroom which gives even more storage outdoors. And, we thought the layout of the kitchen table was unique and nice, except...

Yes, there is a but, and it is one I just don't understand. We did not see an obvious pantry space. I was curious from owners if you found this to be true? And how do you allocate pantry space in your coach?

Thanks.

Tim
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Hi!

We are at the Houston RV show today. There were not a lot of Heartland 5th Wheels (No Bighorns) but we looked through a couple of Big Country rigs. The one we really liked quite a bit is the BC 3800 FL. The idea for us would be to remove one of the couches up front and put in a desk. We also liked the steps up to the rear bedroom which gives even more storage outdoors. And, we thought the layout of the kitchen table was unique and nice, except...

Yes, there is a but, and it is one I just don't understand. We did not see an obvious pantry space. I was curious from owners if you found this to be true? And how do you allocate pantry space in your coach?

Thanks.

Tim

Tim, don't want to rain on your parade, but the slides in the front living are not the same level as the living room floor. Removing a couch is possible, but I believe the floor of the slideout will be higher than the rest of the living room.


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StrongJava

Well-known member
Hi Erika,

Thank you for the reply. I think you're raising the possibility that a desk height would be wrong given the floor would be higher? My current set up (Bighorn 3670RL) which has a desk in a slide out, which I modified by adding an extension. I made the extension about an inch lower than the regular desk, and I use a rolling office chair so I can change the height. The only problem I have is that I sometimes have to roll the chair up over the lip of the slide out, all of which is carpeted.

I started reading through your blog and your transition to the 4010RD. You wrote that you had room for a desk? Can you tell me more about your plan?

I don't see a designated pantry in the 4010RD photos either? It sounds like and Tony are full-timers, so how are you organizing food storage? We're still pretty new at this.

Thanks!

Tim


Tim, don't want to rain on your parade, but the slides in the front living are not the same level as the living room floor. Removing a couch is possible, but I believe the floor of the slideout will be higher than the rest of the living room.


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TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Tim, what I'm saying is that the floor of the slide is 5" higher than the floor of the living area. You would not be able to move a chair under the desk, and your feet would be raised up much higher at a sitting position. I guess if you could raise your chair height and get close enough to the desk without going under it might work, but it might be awkward.

Our desk mod can be seen here: Big Country 4010RD office space mod
//heartlandowners.org/showthread.php?t=58189

We use the cabinetry next to the fridge for pantry space.
ff2a66430b7d2b18b46644b1bb08abca.jpg
4dc4c8dbbe3a6e3bf1f77fabfc50fdfc.jpg



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StrongJava

Well-known member
Hi Erika,

Thank you for the note and the pictures. I now understand about the floor. Yes, I can see where 5" is too much to me it work. I guess they use the same style of slide mechanism as is done for the beds, and yes I can see where those would not be as flush.

I'm concerned the 4010 may be longer than we want. We like to do a lot of state parks, and have found in the time we've been doing this that they often have tighter spaces and turns. At over 42', it is more than 4' longer than our current coach.

And I really appreciate you sharing the link to the mods you made with the desk. That is our basic idea too. Good to know that it won't work in the front, at least with the BC.

We'll have to keep looking. Currently considering an Highland Ridge 3X388RKS.

Tim
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Hi Erika,

Thank you for the note and the pictures. I now understand about the floor. Yes, I can see where 5" is too much to me it work. I guess they use the same style of slide mechanism as is done for the beds, and yes I can see where those would not be as flush.

I'm concerned the 4010 may be longer than we want. We like to do a lot of state parks, and have found in the time we've been doing this that they often have tighter spaces and turns. At over 42', it is more than 4' longer than our current coach.

And I really appreciate you sharing the link to the mods you made with the desk. That is our basic idea too. Good to know that it won't work in the front, at least with the BC.

We'll have to keep looking. Currently considering an Highland Ridge 3X388RKS.

Tim

Tim, I really hope you reconsider a Heartland product, but I understand. Texas State Parks are sometimes pretty small. We'll cross that bridge too, I suppose, but the BC is great for us as a fulltiming unit. I towed it on our trip bringing it home, and it towed very easily. Tony didn't have any issues getting it into our site (a pull-through). It is about 5 feet longer than our previous ElkRidge, which had the built-in desk much like your BH. This is a great floorplan to adapt for an office, and I highly recommend it.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
We've taken our 39 foot Landmark to a number of Texas State Parks. Because of the age of the parks, and the type of trailers in use when the parks were built, the selection of sites for large rigs is somewhat limited. For us, that just meant advance planning and sometimes choosing our dates to get a better selection. For example, at parks where you couldn't reserve a specific site, we'd schedule arrival on Monday or Tuesday afternoon when the parks are more likely to be relatively empty. That would give us a better selection of sites. For parks where we could reserve a specific site, we'd plan the trip far enough in advance to get the site we wanted.
 
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