Counter Space!! Where is it?? 15 1/4"??

[BobsYourUncle]

Is it just me? Or are there others that have next to sweet nothing for counter real estate?

My TT is 27 feet long. You'd think they could give me a little more than just room to butter a slice of bread!

I have next to .... struggling for a polite term here....
Next to nothing for counter space.

From my stove to my sink is 15 1/4 inches. Thats it!

I mean sure I can use the fold down thing on my stove top, but not when I'm cooking. Or my table top, but I don't want to use that for food preparation either. My laptop sits there and the current paperwork, leaving room for a dinner plate and a cold one!

And I don't have one of those counter top things that fits in the sink hole either

Yup! 15 1/4" of countertop space, thats it!

Is it just me? Or do you guys have 4/5ths of nothing there too?

Oh, and there is a 2 inch strip to the left of my stove. What do I do with that besides wipe it when I wash dishes?

[Veebyes]

RV designers need to spend some time with motor yacht & sailing yacht designers to see how to get the most out of space. It really is bad at how much cubic space is not used in most RVs. They do dumb things. At the end of the counter where a fold up extension could have easily been put in mine, what do the idiots do? Why they put an outlet there, they put the switch for the fantastic fan there & they put the light switches for the outside lights & the galley area lights there. Dumb!!! Could have extended the counter by at least 18" with a fold up extension.

[Tiger4x4RV]

Forget making sink covers. I bought a very inexpensive plastic cutting board and that lays across the double sink. It also serves as a lap desk when needed.

My stick house has only about 5 feet of counter space total, so I'm used to cooking in small spaces.

[BobsYourUncle]

Lots of great ideas everyone! 🙂

I actually do have a small flip up shelf at the end of my counter, past the sink. It sits about 6 inches lower than the countertop. I typically use it for my coffee maker as thats about all there is room for. But when my fridge died a few weeks back and I bought a bar fridge, I had to leave the shelf down and put the fridge on the sofa. Fridge is still working after I fixed it so I guess I can get rid of the bar fridge now. I left it there just in case.....

But the several of you mentioning the flip up shelf got me thinking. I could create a folding shelf with piano hinges and have it instead of the factory one. I could make it larger, but it would extend over part of the sofa.... Give and take I guess. Don't use the sofa much anyways.

I have intended to make sink covers - I know this carpenter type guy who knows how to fix stuff and build things! 😉 I just haven't got around to it.

I will be actively looking for a more winter friendly replacement TT, hopefully by this fall. But meanwhile, I will work with what I have.

RK has been a suggestion from several. I actually have steered away from the RK only because of how everything in the rear of my TT gets tossed. My bathroom is always a mess after a trip, towels flung off hooks, medicine cabinet contents scattered inside so when I open the door stuff falls out.
My concern with the RK is all my dishes, food etc. being tossed all over the place. I have never had an RK, so I am only thinking this through and have no experience with it.
I do prefer a RBath unit so the toilet is back out of the way and not in the middle of the living area.

Definitely no room for an island in here. I don't have slides and it is already tight for floor space. No room for a fold up table either. It would be in the way no matter where I put it.

A couple of you asked why I bought it:

A friend had the unit and needed quick cash. He offered it to me for 3500 less than he paid for it. My previous TT was a roach, it was a leaker and the whole back end was badly rotted out. It stunk and had white grossness growing all over under my bed. It was a no brainer to me. Sold the old Sportsmen for 2400 with full disclosure and paid 6500 for this one. And it was exactly the layout I wanted. Separate front bedroom, a must for me, rear bunks for the grandkids, rear bath and mid kitchen. My perfect ideal layout. And one entry door, not two.
Thats why I bought it.

When I inspected it before purchase, I only saw what great shape it was in and not the lack of counter space! It didn't occur to me until I have lived in this thing for months on end through a harsh winter and I spent a lot of time in meal preparation.

Now I am more aware!!!

Now that I am aware of my own needs more than before I can keep a list of things to watch for when I upgrade to a newer unit.

And Dutchmen, thank you for your permission to buy a new one!! :B

Nice pics several of you have posted!! Nice layouts.

Maybe my next one will have a slide or two. But not sure I want slides though. Air leaks for harsh winter living and I am frequently in places where I can't put a slide out. I have to be able to use it with slides in, if I need to.
I'm sure I'll figure something out!

[rhagfo]

My DW loves to cook in the 5er, yes we are a bit longer than 27', but large large kitchen and lots of counter space were #1 priority, #2 was table and chairs, #3 was roomy living room, #4 was separate bedroom and bathroom, Well the only compromise was the Bedroom/bath. I now like the master suite setup is is really roomy.

[2gypsies1]

There's really only so much room in 27'. Where would you suggest they get more counter space? A good suggestion if you have a slide and aisle room is to carry a folding table that can be set up for food preparation. Also, RVs come in all different configurations. We had a 27' TT at one time and had plenty of counter space but perhaps our bathroom or bedroom has less space than yours.

[tatest]

Why did you buy one without counter space, if that is important to you?

No workspace in the kitchen is not universal to RVs, but at any given size, when the kitchen has more room, something else has to go: a piece of furniture, wardrobes or cupboards, space in the bathroom.

We chose the RV we did because it had ample space for the kitchen (but not as big as kitchens can get) and had a large wardrobe. The compromises were a small shower and compact bathroom, and no lounge chair, which is featured in other C motorhomes this size, at the expense of the kitchen usually.

Trying out the living space is probably the most important part of RV (or house) shopping. Most of the people I know who traded within two years of buying, it was because the space turned out not to fit their needs.

[Chock_Full_o__N]

Golden_HVAC wrote:
Hi,

Try a couple of fold down shelves?

DH put in a fold down shelve at the end of the counter next to the sink and I don't know how we ever lived without it. We put the tea pot on it to get it out of the way. It's too lightweight for the crockpot, but it will hold a few dishes and is handy for meal prep.

[Katdaddy]

We were at an RV show a couple weeks ago and I asked my Wife "Why don't these things have any counter space"? A lot of them didn't even have space for a coffee maker. Ours doesn't have tons of space, but it does have enough functional space that we can make it work.

[AuntSmurf]

We just went from a TT with virtually no counter space to a RK 5'er. A Rear Kitchen was on my "must have" list, and I refused to even look at anything else. Not even ones with an island. Love, love, love my rear kitchen! Will never have anything else!

[Yeti_plus]

Bob,
You need to find a carpenter type who could create a sink cover for you.:B
If you are around new houses being built, wander into one nearly finished and get the sink cutout piece and use it to create your own cover. A residential sink cutout should cover both sides of an RV sink.Just a thought. Or check with a cabinet shop for a cutout.
Brian

[cocos_cabana]

Our 30ft Wilderness Advantage was sadly lacking counter space, so we found a cabinet that fitted at the end of the existing L-shaped counter. DH put wheels on it to bring it up 2" to match the counter height. When we park it rolls into its spot, when traveling it is bungeed to the table legs.

We are so happy with it...extra counter and lots of extra cupboard storage!!!

[bukhrn]

BobsYourUncle wrote:
Is it just me? Or are there others that have next to sweet nothing for counter real estate?

My TT is 27 feet long. You'd think they could give me a little more than just room to butter a slice of bread!

I have next to .... struggling for a polite term here....
Next to nothing for counter space.

From my stove to my sink is 15 1/4 inches. Thats it!

I mean sure I can use the fold down thing on my stove top, but not when I'm cooking. Or my table top, but I don't want to use that for food preparation either. My laptop sits there and the current paperwork, leaving room for a dinner plate and a cold one!

And I don't have one of those counter top things that fits in the sink hole either

I use 2 of those, and a 18" flip up counter extension
Yup! 15 1/4" of countertop space, thats it!

Is it just me? Or do you guys have 4/5ths of nothing there too?

Oh, and there is a 2 inch strip to the left of my stove. What do I do with that besides wipe it when I wash dishes?

[jesseannie]

I sure agree about the lack of kitchen counter space. We love to cook when we are on the road just like we do at home. We rejected a lot of trailers because of no counter space.
We ended up buying a front kitchen model that is going to be adequate for cooking as well as getting the dishes done when we are through cooking.
It is a mid 90's model and it even has a real porcelain sink.
Choose to make it a good day
jesse

[RollandB]

In all the years we've had a rig, none have been perfect. No counter space led us to the rear kitchen 5er we have today. Have been considering downsizing and counter space or size allotted to the kitchen is one of the first to go.

[DutchmenSport]

I think "someone" is unhappy with their camper! I think "someone" will soon be purchasing a NEW camper! It always starts with one tiny "thing" in the camper that the owner finds irritating, and then it becomes a bigger and bigger source of irritation, kind of like the story of the "Princes and the Pea."

That's OK BobsYourUncle, you don't have to have anyone's permission to get a new camper. But if you do need someone's permission, you have mine! Go for it!