RV pads

[Jason Worman]

Hi, I was wondering what people have paid to have a RV pad put in at their homes. We are needing to put one in where we are living. Thanks

[Pat Long]

Jason,     What ever you do DONT just let the lowest bid win the job.  Ask questions to be sure what you will be getting, and in writing.  Make sure you have class 2 base or comparable material and at least 95% compaction of that material.  Its wet in Oregon.  Be sure the approach of the pad has a footing because thats where all the weight of the coach will be when driving on and off the pad.  Last use at least #4 rebar nothing smaller.  Use these questions while requisition a bid for a more realistic and quality rv pad.  Other question just ask, been in construction for over 30 years

[Jason Worman]

Pat,

It's a 36 foot coach, so I am thinking a 40×10 pad. If built to your recommendation, do you have a ballpark figure at what we are looking at cost wise?

Thanks
Jason

[Stan Simpson]

Don't make it with ashphalt, even gravel will be better. Concrete is preferred. We put in a 42 x 18 a little over a year ago. The cost was right around $7000 which included the removal of a small crab apple tree. We ran extensions of the down spouts on the corners of the house under the concrete for drainage purposes. The pad is concrete, the newly widened part of the driveway is asphalt. You will not like 10 feet wide. That gives you only 12 inches on each side. As soon as you open the door, you are off the pad when walking up to it to load for a trip.

[Fred Cook]

I had a couple truck loads of white chat (half inch minus) brought in and leveled out. I compacts very well after getting rained on.  My ground slopes so portions of it are 3 about 3 feet high.  Also had a shelter erected over it and installed my own 50 amp service off the service panel in the garage.  With shelter and earthwork.... cost around 8 grand.

[Doug Allman]

From experience too small a pad or a coach bay is only realized after you have got one.
Even if you add to it later it is not the same with the smooth completely wide surface done the first time. If you do not like patches in your pants or socks you wont like then with your coach pad or bay either. If you have never camped on a narrow pad go find a campground with one and see how you like it being a trip/kneel pain.

Think about it like when you are camping and the room you like when all slides, bay doors, or compartment slides are extended. Some day you are going to do some maintenance or other RV detail and you will be much happier and safer if all is on a smooth level wide surface. Try using a step ladder on a almost wide enough pad.  A comparison might be a garage that is too narrow for your cars - fun aint it.

[Joel Ashley]

I have to agree that your dimensions are too small and you’ll regret not spending a relatively small amount more for the extra benefit;  you’ll just end up adding infrastructure/concrete after the fact at more expense.  40 ft. you may get away with, but go at least 12 ft wide.  Consider that a solid, non-muddy surface to stand on front and rear for washing or engine and genset access is nice, as is entry door activities. 

Our short driveway and side garage apron approach are concrete, but the rear wheels of the coach sit on 3/4-1 inch gravel 4+ inches thick, 12 ft wide, with 4 ft of brick walkway and planting strip on one side.  The extra room allows bay door swing space on both sides.  Two regrets... the gravel base under the concrete was supposed to be deeper per code and we’ll compacted, but as is commonplace the builder’s subcontractor fudged (ours developed cracks), and if I’d splurged on running concrete all the way back I could roll a creeper under the entire coach length instead of just the front 6 feet.

If you’re gonna do it, do it right from the get-go and spend anti-regret money.  Be proactive and hire a researched-reputable concrete contractor, pay for an overkill gravel base and proper cement blend, rebar, and depth, then be onsite for the prep to verify the base depth and drainage.  If possible, prep sewer, water, and electric utilities on the correct side of the coach because they are a major convenience for years to come.  Ours are on the wrong side;  running sewer or water hose and electric cord under or around the rig is a pain.  As others implore, don’t jump at the cheapest bid;  it’s probably not the best quality job or the best investment.

It’s been 24 years since our house was built, so can’t speak to cost except to say put as much into it as you can afford - you’ll have to live with your decisions for years to come.  If you elect to just do gravel, that’s fine but run it deep.  1/2” gravel will settle better than 1” or larger that tends to move sideways under coach tires, but 1” if weather-exposed resists weed growth as time goes by.

Joel

[Jason Worman]

Thanks everybody for the insight. I talked over with wife and being on the Oregon Coast, best to do the project next year, as rains have set in. Have huge parking lot where we live so we will figure out alternative for this winter. As a side question, we could run a 150 foot 50 amp extension cord around the building to 50 amp service, is this safe? Thanks.

[Joel Ashley]

That’s a lot of voltage drop, but it is 50amp.  Consider spending some now, in anticipation of next year’s project, on hardwiring underground to set a 50amp outlet post where the pad will be and that you could use in the interim.  50 amp cord at that length is gonna be expensive anyway.

Joel

[Jason Worman]

Joel,

Thanks for the advice, we chuckle around here about all this blacktop we have but coach needs to be behind building. If you ever come to the coast, come see us in Reedsport.

Jason

[Fred Cook]

That’s a lot of voltage drop, but it is 50amp.  Consider spending some now, in anticipation of next year’s project, on hardwiring underground to set a 50amp outlet post where the pad will be and that you could use in the interim.  50 amp cord at that length is gonna be expensive anyway.

Joel

I paid $479 a month ago for 150 feet of 6/3 direct earth burry cable off Amazon, rated at 55 amp. Used every inch of it to reach the shelter shown above. I used a 15 amp extension cord to keep the batteries up prior to installing the 50 amp service.

[Tom Webber]

In my mind concrete is the way to go but also the most expensive. I would do a minimum of 40' x 12' x 5" thick. Use #4 rebar on 12" centers. Just remember a lot of contractors want to use 2"x4" lumber as a form but they are only 3 1/2" not a true 4".  The reason I say 5" thick, as rebar can not be installed technically in 4" concrete. The size listed above will require 8 cubic yards of concrete at something over $125.00 per cubic yard. That is just the beginning of the cost. There is excavation, getting rid of any excess material, forming, finishing the concrete and restoring the area around the pad. The other issue is the joint pattern in the pad to try and minimize cracking
You might try calling you local ready mix concrete supplier to recommend a contractor. They should suggest a contractor that has has paid his concrete bill on other jobs  not one who has not.
Never pay any contractor until the project has been completed to the agreed tens.

[Fred Cook]

I agree concrete is an viable choice but why waste all that money when all you are doing is parking the coach until you take it out the next time? Leveled gravel for the past 6 years has worked great for us.

[Gerald Farris]

Jason,
One thing to consider with a concrete pan is thickness. I know that your coach is not as heavy as mine, but I parked my Marquis in the driveway when I was getting my previous house ready to sell on the way to being a fulltimer, and the weight of the coach resulted in so much damage to the 4 inch thick driveway the section under the coach had to be replaced in order to close the sell to the new owner. That coach had 24,000 lbs. on the drive axle which is a lot heavier than your coach, but I would not consider a 4 inch pad for a Beaver. I fact I parked my 50,000 lbs.+ Solitaire for 2 weeks on a fairly new (3 months old) concrete pad at an RV park in Kentucky that the park manager said was 6 inches thick and there was no way that it was going to break, but when I left, there were 3 cracks that ran the length or full width of the slab. I know that the extra thickness is more money, but having to replace a 4 inch pad that breaks up is even more money.

Gerald

[Samuel Sperbeck]

Hi Fred,
You said you used 6/3 wire to your shelter. Is there a ground wie in that cable?

Thanks, Sam