Like everything in life, this is a journey too. Unless you purchased your RV off the lot or found one second-hand from a private sale, then you probably will need to select upgrades and options. If you’ve done your research you will understand the customizable options each brand offers.

I will say this, other brands in the fiberglass category do have customizable options, I just didn’t dig deep into those brands. Escape is known for its abundance of options. I am not degrading those brands; they all seemed to be fine RVs and people who buy them love them.

When I chose Escape, the ability to have lots of customization options was at the top of the list. Because I am planning on living in my RV somewhat full time, time will tell; when I looked at the different brands, I kept picturing myself living in it long-term.

Again, this is where spending time understanding each of the brands and mashing them up with your needs will pay off in the long run. There are those who will purchase an RV and do no modification and others who’ll gut the thing and completely change it; who are you?

I fall probably closer to the “do no modifications” so I want it close to perfect right out of the gate and Escape lets us do that. Don’t get me wrong, this company will have its limits on what it will do for you, but overall, it gave the best customization options for the class of RV I was looking for.

While I was contemplating putting a deposit on one, I was playing with the estimate form I found while bouncing around their site. At first, I was looking at the 17’; each trailer will have an estimate form geared toward that RV. I found myself getting caught up with trying to figure out what everything was, so one night I was having a bit of vino and decided it would be best to put the deposit down, then I could worry about everything after…and so I did. Up until you sign the building contract you can get a refund of your deposit minus @$150us.

There are @ 90 options to consider on the estimate sheet.

A lot of RVs now come with Solar as an upgrade. This will allow you to go off-grid, and take the time to understand the limitations, but it is definitely an update worth getting.

I did the first pass at the build sheet to get a rough estimate of the final cost (nothing is final without the tax and delivery added so there are those costs to come). Since then I have watched the video that talks about each option and made updates. One thing that I like is that there is time to get it right because there is such a backlog.

I’ve been more active in the FB group, asking questions about this option vs. that option. The group is very active and has lots of RVers of all different levels so do your reading you’ll learn a lot, but always come back to what your needs are.

I paid attention to the questions people asked and the problems they have and started to take notes. I went back to a lot of the Youtube videos I previously watched and found others on modifications. There is a woman who posts weekly about her RV adventures. There are others that posted about the things you thought they needed and didn’t.

When choosing options, don’t just think of “today”, most people will say “think of the resale”. Today, fiberglass RVs hold their value pretty well and one day you may want to sell it and the options you choose now will affect the price you can get later on. For example, I am planning on getting a compost toilet. This doesn’t require a black tank and its plumbing, but because I am thinking of resale, I will choose the option with the black tank installed, just not completely hooked up, obviously, a compost toilet doesn’t need a tank.

I’ve decided to go with this contemporary look (above) vs the oak (below) or maple you typically see in RVs. What’s nice about it, it feels cleaner and more modern and you can add warmth to it with the floors, countertop, and material you choose. I’ve seen some people have painted accent walls to add character. Some hang curtains instead of blinds; those blinds always end up in the trash anyway.

Escape also has a page on their site just about customization. I haven’t chosen my interior options such as floor, counters, or material, but what I did was copied the images of each of the options I liked, then put them together as mood boards so I can see them all together.

As you can see, there are so many options it’s beginning to be hard to choose. I’ve also started to venture out of the standard options, which are endless, and am looking at customized choices which are the first 3 boards at the top. I really like the red “leather”, think it will brighten up the inside and add a bit of a retro look, but then add the “wood” looking floors for warmth.

What’s nice, just like your home, if you grow tired of something you can always change it. Depending on how handy you are or find someone else to do the work, you can do your own upgrades.

Escape will send you samples of their standard options; it’s a nice way to see some of the combinations at home if you can’t make it to their factory.

Beyond your options, you’ll need to purchase a fair amount of items to support your RV such as a surge protector that goes on the power source then you plug your RV into the protector. I now go to Amazon when I find something I will need and add it to my saved-for-later list and it’s getting long.

WIFI

If you plan to be a full-timer, wifi is something you will need to solve. Luckily there are lots of videos from people who have been trying to solve this; one couple started RV Mobile Internet website. Some of the setups RVs have are quite complex, but once you start watching one Youtube video, you’ll see additional ones to watch. One thing I’ve learned to date is you’ll need redundancy. I can’t really talk more about this as I am still in the early stages of learning.

You can’t really rely on campground wifi. From what I’ve learned, most of the time it’s sub-par and if the campground is full you may not even be able to connect.

If you’re not going to be a full-time or part-time full-timer, then don’t worry about it. Get out there and enjoy without staying connected. Stay tuned!