Hi! I am glad to be accepted into this RV online group. We are just starting out and have so many questions. We have a 38' (I think) 2015 Jayco 5th wheel. My husband's custom order Ford 350 dually has just arrived and we still had to wait to put 500 miles on the truck before towing. (We purchased the 5th wheel 6 mos ago and it is still on the dealer's lot.) Finally it looks like we will be able to bring it home.
I have a few questions:
What are some items you are glad you packed or never needed in the RV?
Has anyone traveled with birds? (Dogs seem to be easy to travel with but I can't imagine leaving our bird behind for weeks at a time.)
Thank you very much. I look forward to reading all posts. Happy miles. Karen
bjoyce said
09:16 AM Feb 20, 2017
I can't remember any items we packed that we were glad we did, other than necessities. Most everything is available to purchase a replacement. I do wonder why I have a suit in the closet, which might not fit and I have not needed in 13 years of fulltiming. Turns out you don't need to wear a suit to most events anymore, including funerals and weddings. We have unloaded many items at rummage tables in campgrounds, mostly Escapees parks, since we were not using them. Other items went to family and friends. Some of these we packed originally, others we bought later and found we were not using. If we were tight on money, we might have tried to sell these things, but that can be difficult on the road.
kcmoss101 said
09:39 AM Feb 20, 2017
BJOYCE thank you for your reply. We are not full-timers (yet), but I want to be conservative with packing items we still want to enjoy daily life... real plates, coffee cups. I will still have to figure out how to keep these things from breaking. I do know one thing that I won't have to worry about: a suit. My husband hates them and usually, for the occasional major event, he would have to buy a bigger size anyway. Thank you for your help! Wish us luck. Road trip!!
LarryW21 said
09:58 AM Feb 20, 2017
Welcome, KC! Practice changing a tire and dumping your tanks. A "dry" run! Take notes on what you need. I needed a bottle jack for lift and breaker bar to loosen the lugs for the tires, and rubber boots and hand sanitizer (to use after I took off the gloves) for dumping.
kcmoss101 said
10:11 AM Feb 20, 2017
LarryW21: Thanks for your reply. I had to laugh. When I read have a "bottle jack," I thought you were talking about a Bottle of Jack (Daniels) and said to myself that was a good idea and I should put it on the list! I think I am most nervous about setting up hoses and can't get that picture of Robin Williams in "RV" out if my head! The RV dealership gives us thorough training before we can drive off the lot. (We bought a used 2015 Jayco 5th wheel and I have forgotten the model but it was top-of-the-line in 2015.) The advice for the bottle jack (both of them) is certainly appreciated and I will share with my husband. Karen
bjoyce said
10:25 AM Feb 20, 2017
A lot of us use Corelle for dishes, since they are less breakable, light weight and easy to get spares. Find a Corning/Revere outlet store and buy a setting for 4 or 6, which is all you need. A friend switched when he hit an unexpected bump and his heavy ceramic dishes came out of the cabinet and made a mess..
RonC said
10:42 AM Feb 20, 2017
kcmoss101 wrote:
BJOYCE thank you for your reply. We are not full-timers (yet), but I want to be conservative with packing items we still want to enjoy daily life... real plates, coffee cups. I will still have to figure out how to keep these things from breaking. I do know one thing that I won't have to worry about: a suit. My husband hates them and usually, for the occasional major event, he would have to buy a bigger size anyway. Thank you for your help! Wish us luck. Road trip!!
Like you, we started out as extended travelers and not full timers ... so we bought pots, pans, plates, sheets, silverware, etc. to fully set up the 5th wheel. We then began to enjoy it so much, that we decided to go full time. I really wish we hadn't bought everything double. As a result, we spent hundreds replicating what we had in our home. Two irons, two electric can openers, two crock pots and on and on. So I guess I wish we figured out what we wanted to do BEFORE we set up to separate households, which then needed to be combined. Gave away most of the new stuff to our kids, so not a complete waste ... but it still aggravates me that we did that.
kcmoss101 said
10:44 AM Feb 20, 2017
BJoyce: I was afraid someone might say that, but the Corelle is a nice compromise. We live down the street from an outlet and I will check out the Corelle. Thank you. Karen
kcmoss101 said
10:49 AM Feb 20, 2017
BJoyce: My husband has been warning me about not buying things for RV until it is actually in our driveway. (It's been at the dealership since last fall while we waited for our truck.) Your advice is good. I have been raiding our basement for things already though. Thanks. Karen
kcmoss101 said
10:53 AM Feb 20, 2017
Oops! RonC: The last post regarding buying "2-of" was for you. I am new to the group and posting from phone is a little bit different. Thanks for sharing your experiences with me.
Second Chance said
12:19 PM Feb 20, 2017
Your subject line is what caught my attention... and might for anyone old enough to remember the Kingston Trio and "A Rollin' Stone..."
The search function is your friend on any of the forums. A quick search for "must haves" on RV-Dreams yielded seven threads on the topic.
Rob
kcmoss101 said
02:20 PM Feb 20, 2017
Rob: Yes, I am definitely old enough to remember the Kingston Trio and I did intend for the play on words. Thanks for the search suggestion. Sometimes it's easy for me to forget the obvious. The Mosses will be rollin' soon. Karen
mikevalerie said
12:52 AM Apr 10, 2017
Hi Im mike , My suggestion would be a cordless 18 volt impact milwaukee makes a 1/2 drive and a alum floor jack 2-3 ton always have good tires , if and when you get a flat you never get it in a good spot , you want to deal with it a fast and safe as possible I have these items in my truck and my cars sound kinda over kill but once you get in a bad situation you will understand and hopefully you never will Good luck !
LarryW21 said
02:11 PM Apr 10, 2017
"What are some items you are glad you packed or never needed in the RV?"
I almost didn't take my extendable ladder on this last trip...never used it before. Did need it this time to give a good "shake" to the TV antenna that wouldn't come down, then just a touch of WD40. Glad I had it.
Someday said
02:19 PM Apr 10, 2017
One of the best things we did back in the late 90's when we bought our original fifth wheel was to do a dry run (2hrs from our SnB), by going up into Banff National Park on Tunnel Mountain for 3 nights, cooking and prepping our food in the Rig, and testing each and every system (including operating the washer/dryer).
Our RV salesperson gave us his cell number and believe me as the greenest newbies you could get to RVing at that time, we for sure needed it. We made a list as we pressed buttons and switches and so on and so forth, pretended we'd blown a fuse etc, and at the end of each day gave him a call to cover what we couldn't work out from reading manual after manual after manual that came with all the components that made up our Rig.
At the end of that trip, we had a further long list of items we needed to add from home or buy to make our Rig functional for how we intended to travel. We pretended we were prepping typical meals and foods we enjoy, what were we missing to make our evenings outside more enjoyable and so on and so forth. Silly things forgotten like a potato peeler, manual can opener, measured for storage containers to house smaller items logically in the smaller overhead cabinets etc etc. Measured the size of the oven for extra dishes/trays and so on and so forth.
I'm a great believer in doing a dry run either on your driveway or for more realism, heading off a little remotely somewhere but close enough to home "just in case".
Something else that many folks have recommended over the years, is to have some boxes in a spare room or keep a list and as you are living day to day in your SnB home, as you use or utilize something to prep things add to that box or your list of items to get. Obviously with space at a premium by comparison to the house, is there an alternative that could have multiple uses instead of one use.
If you are going to be RVing in varying temperatures, what would make life more comfortable for you? Heated pads/blankets/Mr Buddy or similar heater. Will you be using the water from your tank for cooking and drinking or will you use container water for consumption?
Everyone is different in their needs and expectations in life generally and RVers are no different = different strokes for different folks. Some folks swear by Happy Camper or some other deodorizer/water softener in their black/grey tanks, whereas others of us, haven't had any issue for years and just believe in using plenty of water to flush/drain.
For sure it's a learning curve and the temptation typically at the front end is to pack way more than you need or will use, but with time and experience you will slowly find your groove. Remember the memories are priceless, and for everything else, there's ............ Walmart ;)
PS: I second Corelle plates etc = lightweight, but they do break if dropped hard enough! I also went from several years having glasses that we didn't have break, but now prefer the plastic style glasses you can get in all shapes and sizes that feel great, and that we don't have to think about any more.
-- Edited by Someday on Monday 10th of April 2017 02:23:03 PM
kcmoss101 said
10:41 PM Apr 10, 2017
LarryW21: I can see how we wouldn't think about needing the extension ladder but what a surprise for you!! We do have the attached ladder on the back of the 5th wheel, I assume for climbing to the roof. Still, I am adding all these suggestions to my list. Like you, we may not need it right away, but...
Thanks Larry. I appreciate your suggestion. Karen
kcmoss101 said
10:54 PM Apr 10, 2017
Someday: You gave me lots to "chew" on!! My husband thought it would be a good idea to sleep in the driveway for several nights too. Also, there is a very nice state park (for dry camping) that is only about 2 hours away. That is our next test. We have put a few things on a portable table that is also going into the RV. I like the idea of making a list of the things we use everyday. That should be a reminder to us for what we would probably need. There is a Corelle outlet down the road and as much as I want to use some of our "plentiful" dishes from the cupboard, we should probably think about a shopping trip. Thanks for reinforcing that from the many times I read about and hesitate using, about using the Corelle. Plus, my husband wants to drive to the truck weigh station on the highway to give us some sort of idea about the truck and RV weights.
At this point I think I could give myself a headache about thinking about everything.
Hi! I am glad to be accepted into this RV online group. We are just starting out and have so many questions. We have a 38' (I think) 2015 Jayco 5th wheel. My husband's custom order Ford 350 dually has just arrived and we still had to wait to put 500 miles on the truck before towing. (We purchased the 5th wheel 6 mos ago and it is still on the dealer's lot.) Finally it looks like we will be able to bring it home.
I have a few questions:
Thank you very much. I look forward to reading all posts. Happy miles. Karen
Welcome, KC! Practice changing a tire and dumping your tanks. A "dry" run! Take notes on what you need. I needed a bottle jack for lift and breaker bar to loosen the lugs for the tires, and rubber boots and hand sanitizer (to use after I took off the gloves) for dumping.
Like you, we started out as extended travelers and not full timers ... so we bought pots, pans, plates, sheets, silverware, etc. to fully set up the 5th wheel. We then began to enjoy it so much, that we decided to go full time. I really wish we hadn't bought everything double. As a result, we spent hundreds replicating what we had in our home. Two irons, two electric can openers, two crock pots and on and on. So I guess I wish we figured out what we wanted to do BEFORE we set up to separate households, which then needed to be combined. Gave away most of the new stuff to our kids, so not a complete waste ... but it still aggravates me that we did that.
Your subject line is what caught my attention... and might for anyone old enough to remember the Kingston Trio and "A Rollin' Stone..."
The search function is your friend on any of the forums. A quick search for "must haves" on RV-Dreams yielded seven threads on the topic.
Rob
Hi Im mike , My suggestion would be a cordless 18 volt impact milwaukee makes a 1/2 drive and a alum floor jack 2-3 ton always have good tires , if and when you get a flat you never get it in a good spot , you want to deal with it a fast and safe as possible I have these items in my truck and my cars sound kinda over kill but once you get in a bad situation you will understand and hopefully you never will Good luck !
I almost didn't take my extendable ladder on this last trip...never used it before. Did need it this time to give a good "shake" to the TV antenna that wouldn't come down, then just a touch of WD40. Glad I had it.
One of the best things we did back in the late 90's when we bought our original fifth wheel was to do a dry run (2hrs from our SnB), by going up into Banff National Park on Tunnel Mountain for 3 nights, cooking and prepping our food in the Rig, and testing each and every system (including operating the washer/dryer).
Our RV salesperson gave us his cell number and believe me as the greenest newbies you could get to RVing at that time, we for sure needed it. We made a list as we pressed buttons and switches and so on and so forth, pretended we'd blown a fuse etc, and at the end of each day gave him a call to cover what we couldn't work out from reading manual after manual after manual that came with all the components that made up our Rig.
At the end of that trip, we had a further long list of items we needed to add from home or buy to make our Rig functional for how we intended to travel. We pretended we were prepping typical meals and foods we enjoy, what were we missing to make our evenings outside more enjoyable and so on and so forth. Silly things forgotten like a potato peeler, manual can opener, measured for storage containers to house smaller items logically in the smaller overhead cabinets etc etc. Measured the size of the oven for extra dishes/trays and so on and so forth.
I'm a great believer in doing a dry run either on your driveway or for more realism, heading off a little remotely somewhere but close enough to home "just in case".
Something else that many folks have recommended over the years, is to have some boxes in a spare room or keep a list and as you are living day to day in your SnB home, as you use or utilize something to prep things add to that box or your list of items to get. Obviously with space at a premium by comparison to the house, is there an alternative that could have multiple uses instead of one use.
If you are going to be RVing in varying temperatures, what would make life more comfortable for you? Heated pads/blankets/Mr Buddy or similar heater. Will you be using the water from your tank for cooking and drinking or will you use container water for consumption?
Everyone is different in their needs and expectations in life generally and RVers are no different = different strokes for different folks. Some folks swear by Happy Camper or some other deodorizer/water softener in their black/grey tanks, whereas others of us, haven't had any issue for years and just believe in using plenty of water to flush/drain.
For sure it's a learning curve and the temptation typically at the front end is to pack way more than you need or will use, but with time and experience you will slowly find your groove. Remember the memories are priceless, and for everything else, there's ............ Walmart ;)
PS: I second Corelle plates etc = lightweight, but they do break if dropped hard enough! I also went from several years having glasses that we didn't have break, but now prefer the plastic style glasses you can get in all shapes and sizes that feel great, and that we don't have to think about any more.
-- Edited by Someday on Monday 10th of April 2017 02:23:03 PM
LarryW21: I can see how we wouldn't think about needing the extension ladder but what a surprise for you!! We do have the attached ladder on the back of the 5th wheel, I assume for climbing to the roof. Still, I am adding all these suggestions to my list. Like you, we may not need it right away, but...
Thanks Larry. I appreciate your suggestion. Karen
Someday: You gave me lots to "chew" on!! My husband thought it would be a good idea to sleep in the driveway for several nights too. Also, there is a very nice state park (for dry camping) that is only about 2 hours away. That is our next test. We have put a few things on a portable table that is also going into the RV. I like the idea of making a list of the things we use everyday. That should be a reminder to us for what we would probably need. There is a Corelle outlet down the road and as much as I want to use some of our "plentiful" dishes from the cupboard, we should probably think about a shopping trip. Thanks for reinforcing that from the many times I read about and hesitate using, about using the Corelle. Plus, my husband wants to drive to the truck weigh station on the highway to give us some sort of idea about the truck and RV weights.
At this point I think I could give myself a headache about thinking about everything.
Thank you so much!! Karen