1st time buyer here

My wife are considering living full time in a RV 5th Wheel. We are going crazy looking at so many different models that are out there with Heartland, Redwood, etc...I like the pricing on the Heartland and noticed some of the models have a REAR kitchen area and living room in the middle. How is the quality of the Heartland? I know it is a Bias question being on here, but looking for a really honest...pro's/cons etc? THis will be a FULL TIME RESIDENCE...also we are considering buying a Ford 250/350 with shorted...we were told if we get a shortbed, get a auto slider hitch...any help would be appreciated...

Honestly - HL quality is good; in the top quartile of units in similar price range, in my opinion - but all manufacturers have their challenges with quality.

Where HL shines is in Customer Service and after sales support - HL; not the dealer (some are great, others not).

As well HL has a 2+5 warranty on some trailers and builds trailers with Full Timers in mind (2010 era, and I think it was on the Landmarks; not sure if it is now applied to other Brands).

Buy a 1 ton (F350) and shortbed is OK without the slider hitch with the HL invented 88 degree turn front cap - I have a shortbox and have not used my slider with the HL cap design.

Brian

Go here to HL News on the HL website and scroll through the press releases to see the Press releases on 2+5 warranty and HL Fulltimers

Once you've determined your price-range the big thing is how the rig fits you. Sit down where you think you'll sit the most...is it comfortable looking at the TV? Lay in the bed then get up and walk to the bathroom. How convenient is the refrigerator to the stove? Where will the trash can live? How easy will it be to get groceries in/out of the cabinets?
Test all the movements that you do daily and see how comfortable they are in the rig you are eyeing. You'll know when one feels right.
Now....the first rig you buy will be the one you want while the second will be the one you need!

Big Horns are for full timing. I know there are people full timing in Big Country models also. Heartland cares about the owners.

Hi Heliboy2002,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. There's lots of useful information here along with a great community of friendly and helpful people.

Many members of this forum are full timers in their Heartland RVs and will no doubt jump in to tell you their stories. I would say that the overwhelming majority are very happy with their units and will tell you that Heartland Customer Service is excellent.

Heartland has many models (Landmark, Bighorn, and others) where the warranty statement specifically covers full-time use. This is important because some manufacturers may have warranty statements that specifically void the warranty if the rig is used full-time. You'll want to check this out in advance. Heartland does this because they have designed these rigs for full-timers and have years of experience with full-timers.

Beyond direct Customer Service, Heartland has a real commitment to their owners through support for the Owners Club and Rallies, and through factory participation on this forum. Heartland owners enjoy the benefits of an active community of owners who reach out to help one another every day.

Every trailer will need service; some sooner, some later. Not every trailer comes with great customer service and a great community of owners.

We couldn't be happier in our Big Horn. We've been fulltiming since 2010, and had our BH 3670 since Labor Day of this past year. Now can't imagine how we did without it.

As far as the shorted, we have a Chevy 2500HD Silverado diesel with duramax. Heard the same thing about the slide hitch. I've backed into a few spots since having it and I really, really can't see when I'd be in such a pickle that I'd need to slide it.

That being said, I will say to you what everyone else said in their posts saying almost the same thing: If I do get in that pickle, I'm glad I have that option of sliding.

We will be purchasing a Heartland BC soon. Having said that, I do not believe that Heartland makes a true Full-Time unit. The manufacturers that I am aware of are DRV, Excel, New Horizons, and LifeStyles. Way out of my price range. I suspect it would take a lot more than a 350/3500 to tow those. Never looked into it because there is no way I could afford the coach. Certainly, you can full-time in a Heartland product, especially if you stay in the south, but they are not really full-timer units.

we have been fulltiming in our 40ft Road Warrior for about 15 months now and have no complaints. Our Harley goes where we do. Bette

KnightsWatch said:

We will be purchasing a Heartland BC soon. Having said that, I do not believe that Heartland makes a true Full-Time unit. Certainly, you can full-time in a Heartland product, especially if you stay in the south, but they are not really full-timer units.

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Actually, Landmark, Bighorn and Big Country are warranted for full time use.

Peace
Dave

And there are a lot of us living in them full time.

We have a Landmark Rushmore, and have been fulltimers now for about five months, and loving every minute of it. We did appreciate that these rigs are warrantied for fulltime use when we made the decision to purchase this model. We did make several modifications to make our fiver the perfect home for us, but we loved the floorplan and the options that were available. Someone mentioned that these rigs were good if you stay down south...although it wasn't our first choice, we did spend a month this past winter in Catskill, NY, in temps down to single digits, and our rig held up well.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

We also take our Rushmore into very cold weather. We've taken 3 extended ski trips to Breckenridge, CO for 4 - 6 weeks at a time with temps down to -30F several times. We've been very comfortable.

To the original poster, we are full-timing in our first ever travel trailer - a Big Country 3690SL. It is a rear kitchen unit (I think maybe the only rear kitchen unit in the upper-end Heartland products - Landmark, Bighorn, Big Country).

We have had it in winter weather living in it (just have to make appropriate preparations). We really enjoy the rear kitchen. It was the biggest selling feature for us.

Be sure to check our blog for all the various little mods we've done and all the fun we've had with our BC. Since this is our first ever travel trailer, I can't compare quality with anyone else, but we've had very few little items that were quickly fixed by our dealer (or by ourselves).

We just bought a Bighorn 3370RK which has a rear kitchen. Still awaiting delivery. That was a must for my wife. We will be in it about half time the next year or two. I believe their Silverado also has a rear kitchen plan.

Thank you all for the great input. It is tough especially going to the dealers. Everyone's product is better than others I hear a lot. I guess salesman will always be salesman but I believe there are smarter consumers out there with the Internet and a forum like this. I am a pilot and travel often so living in a 5th wheel is the most sensible especially taking our dogs. I like the Lifetime warranty everyone is mentioning in case something happens but also it can be taken to a NON HEARTLAND dealer to be fixed and covered under warranty. Nice. The rear kitchen I like also because of the size and spacious. My wife likes it also though she doesn't cook. Go figure.

As with the truck, I think a f350 to be safe SW base shortbed. I guess the auto slide wouldn't hurt and I like that HL has the 88 degree radius turning. Thanks y'all

HELIBOY2002 said:

I like the Lifetime warranty everyone is mentioningl

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I'm hoping you meant to type "full time warranty."

Yes thank you

How much propane did you burn? I mean that seriously, because at those temps our furnace must have been running constantly.

danemayer said:

We also take our Rushmore into very cold weather. We've taken 3 extended ski trips to Breckenridge, CO for 4 - 6 weeks at a time with temps down to -30F several times. We've been very comfortable.

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KnightsWatch said:

We will be purchasing a Heartland BC soon. Having said that, I do not believe that Heartland makes a true Full-Time unit. The manufacturers that I am aware of are DRV, Excel, New Horizons, and LifeStyles. Way out of my price range. I suspect it would take a lot more than a 350/3500 to tow those. Never looked into it because there is no way I could afford the coach. Certainly, you can full-time in a Heartland product, especially if you stay in the south, but they are not really full-timer units.

Click to expand...

You couldn't be more wrong! Not only are Landmarks and Bighorns rated and warranted as full time units, they are designed for and by fulltimers like us.

We lived fulltime for six years in our Bighorn and are still full time in our new Landmark....and it is better insulated than the Bighorn. With the Bighorn we traveled with friends who owned a Teton to Yellow Stone several years ago in early April and the temps at night hovered around zero...we stayed just as comfortable as them and both of us used about the same amount of propane. And no, our furnace did not run constantly, nor did theirs...each of us used auxiliary heat sources, I.e., fireplaces and portable heaters...as does anyone in sub-freezing temps.

Absolutely love the quality of the Heartland products. Last year I got transferred and have been full timing in our North Trail travel trailer. We did some prep work before I went. I did inquiry from the Heartland forum exactly what I would need. I was told exactly what to expect and what I would need. I added tank warmers and will add a trailer skirt next year. I do run a little electric oil heater to help out on the propane use. We went through 8 weeks of temps that were -15 at night and up to 5 in the day. I had no problems at all. I do wish Heartland offered double pane windows on their TT's like they do for the 5er's. I think that double pane windows should be standard. I switched out my 20lb propane tanks for 30lb ones. I went through 3 tanks in that time period. Not to bad.