People online often ask us about the inside of our RV. For those new to RV Wanderlust, our rig’s name is Meriwether and he’s 40′ of diesel-powered goodness…and he’s our home.

Brittany did an interior photo tour post earlier that folks had been asking for. But I figured I’d share some of the more fun and awkward things about the inside of the RV Wanderlust rig Meriwether, for those who follow our blog faithfully.

It will let you get to know us a bit more from a personal side too. Here we go…

1. Theodore Roosevelt

Just above the convection / microwave oven is a print of the 26th President of the United States. Truth be told [Read more...]

Everyone planning for full-time RV life faces the same challenge: what do I do with all my stuff? Some have gracious relatives with extra space and others spring for monthly storage. But those options aren’t always available. Sometimes, everything must go!

You’re not here for disclaimers, but I have to give two up front:

1. Eric and I had not accumulated a lifetime of possessions before we went on the road. In fact, from the time we were married in 2011, we purposely kept our belongings to a minimum. We already had some idea that this lifestyle might be in store for us, so we only got what we really needed…with just a handful of splurges along the way! All that to say, the amount of stuff we had to get rid of is very likely less than you have - and I want to recognize that!
2. Our 40-foot RV has a ton of storage space. I still have drawers with nothing in them, and our basement storage underneath is kind of unbelievable. If you’re making a gas RV your home, you’re facing a challenge I can’t even imagine, with no pass-through storage!

With those notes out of the way, our 700ish square feet of apartment space, plus a storage closet off the patio, held plenty that I couldn’t take with me. And yes, it was absolutely overwhelming. [Read more...]

Due to my rush to start redecorating, I accidentally skipped the photo tour of our RV at purchase! For those who are new to our blog, we own a 2004 40′ Tiffin Phaeton diesel pusher. Overall, our decade-old home is in great condition. The previous owners put in a lot of upgrades that we’re very thankful for!

Without further adieu, here’s the walk-through of our beloved Meriwether. [Read more...]

I needed a portable gas grill. Heck, everyone who RVs needs a portable gas grill, right? After all, who wants to be “that guy”? You know who I’m talking about - that one guy who shows up to a campsite without the essentials. I mean, would other campers look at me funny if I rolled up in a 40′ diesel and had no grill? That guy on the right is looking at me funny even now.

I envisioned myself looking longingly at other people’s campsites as they enjoyed their evening festivities with the aroma of seared meat filling the air, my stomach grumbling something unintelligible to me…nope, I wasn’t going to let that happen.

It was decided. I wanted the best portable gas grill I could get.

Search for the Best Portable Gas Grill Begins

So, I’m hanging out on Twitter on our @RVWanderlust account, as I often do, and I was thinking about this whole portable gas grill thing. Like most folks, before I was a full-time RVer, I’d had the big industrial-sized grills at my home. But now that I was rollin’ heavy, with space at a premium, I had no clue where to start.

So I tweeted this:

A friend that goes by the handle @CampsideChef was quick to respond. Without hesitating, he recommended Weber Grills’ portable line. He said he had a Q200 (and loved it) and that I should look into the Weber Grill product line.

And that’s where the problems began.

The Search for the Perfect Portable Grill Takes a Turn for the Worse

I love to grill. So naturally, I wanted the biggest, baddest grilling beast I could carry…So I checked out Weber’s website and found the Q3200. It was really sexy…in a very manly sort of way, of course. ~shifts eyes~

But I couldn’t tell from their website if it was indeed portable, so I tweeted this:

Since the Q3200 was no longer an option, I asked Weber what they would recommend from their product line if I wanted the biggest, baddest and best portable gas grill they made.

Weber told me a Q2200 would be the grill to get if I wanted their best portable gas grill.

So I began my local search. Naturally, I started by calling several local suppliers that were listed on the Weber website.

As I called around, sales reps must have thought I was from a different planet far into the future, where Weber made so many models that they had moved into quadruple digits.

Not one of them seemed to know what I was talking about when I asked for the Q2200 Weber portable gas grill. I’m sure it didn’t help matters much that I was looking to buy a 2014 model before the grill seasonal displays started showing up in stores.

Needless to say, I couldn’t find one anywhere. Store reps didn’t think these grills even existed. As you can imagine, I was getting pretty frustrated.

So I contacted Weber Grills directly. It turns out that in 2014, Weber Grills changed the names on their portable grills by adding a “0″ at the end of each model number. Apparently I caught the window where Weber knew, but the local suppliers hadn’t been informed yet. The Q200 became the Q2000 and the Q220 became the Q2200, etc.

I realized the reps must just not be in the know. Regardless, we had a party scheduled for Saturday and I needed the grill by Friday. So in a fit of desperation, I went to at least 8 different local stores, only to be disappointed at each one as none of them had the Weber Q2200 portable gas grill.

@WeberGrills on Twitter Saves the Day

So I contacted @WeberGrills via Twitter, letting them know of my frustration.

Weber immediately began a Direct Message (DM) dialogue with me. Heather was the rep for Weber who was tweeting with me. I told her of this frustrating journey I had been on. Without hesitation, Heather took care of the situation. She emailed some folks at Weber and they placed a special order for me for a Q2200. Not only that, but they had it delivered to Breed and Co. in Austin. (I really appreciated that they went to a local business).

When I went to pick up my Weber Q2200 portable gas grill, to my surprise, Weber had gone an extra step and provided a complimentary hose and book for me!

But Is the Weber Q2200 the Best Portable Gas Grill?

I have to say I’ve been incredibly impressed. Not just with the customer service provided via their Twitter account, and the fact that they went the extra mile, but the grill itself is outstanding. Here are the specs:

• 280 sq. in. total cooking area
• Porcelain-enameled cast iron cooking grates
• 12,000 BTU-per-hour stainless steel main burner
• Easy-start electronic ignition
• Cast aluminum lid and body
• Glass reinforced nylon frame
• Removable catch pan
• 2 sturdy fold-out tables (which fold in for compact storage)

We just got it last week, so I’ve only done a limited amount of grilling, but here is what I have to say:

• Assembly was a breeze. Took 4 minutes and only one tool needed, a Phillips head screwdriver.
• Grill heats up incredibly fast, so wait time for cooking is minimal. 2 minutes to 400+ degrees on high.
• Temperature gauge is on the grill, so there is no question as to what heat level you are at. There’s also an adjustable heat wheel.
• Meat cooks very evenly, no matter where on the grill it is placed.
• Clean up is a snap with the removable grease pan.
• Lightweight and very portable. The side tables fold in for storage once the grill is cool.

So there you have it, folks. I’ve had a lot of grills in my time. I thought I’d be disappointed downsizing to a portable gas grill, but I’m not disappointed in the least. The Weber Q2200 is a fantastic grill, and their social media customer service was outstanding.

If you have any questions at all, please comment. Weber didn’t pay me or ask me to write this article. These are just my personal thoughts on the grill.

In my opinion, at under $300, you can’t go wrong with this unit.

See you out at the campsite. If you pull in and don’t have a grill, I promise I won’t look at you funny. There is always an extra plate at our campsite for you.

Happy grilling!

I’m shivering like a mobster in a tax collector’s office.

It’s 21 degrees in Austin and dropping to 16 degrees tonight! Ok, ok, I get it. All you South Dakota folks and Canadians out there are just snickering at us. But hey, anytime you have to open the refrigerator to heat the house (or the RV), it’s too darn cold!

So here’s the story. Brittany and I bought our brand “new to us” RV on January 2nd. On the 3rd, we took it to an outdoor storage facility and parked it. Our intentions were to clean and prep it for full-timing by February 22nd when our lease expires.

It was a good plan. A solid plan. One that worked with our timeline. What could go wrong?

Then came the cold weather report. Immediately I started getting texts and messages from quite a few people with cold weather tips for a diesel RV. [Read more...]