Handy Hints, Gadgets, Products & Gizmos

[GizmosMom]

Another member suggested a new forum section with new products but it doesn't look like it will be feasible. So I thought I would post this here under General RVing Issues. If enough people post (even if you have mentioned it before in another post) we can keep it near the top?

Do you have a handy hint, a new product or an old product that makes your RVing or Camping much better?

(Sorry, no commercial advertising allowed)

I'll start:

Someone in the Camping Van posted a reference to using a Super-Chamois to wipe down their shower. I have been using an icky old thick sponge and I like the chamois idea so much more.

Now I want to hear what works for you

[ak_traveler]

thomasgunnar wrote:
I'm sure someone has one of these but I wasn't going to read through 108 pages to find out.

We have a slide and sometimes the sites have trees. With my slide out I cut a stick a couple inches longer than what the slide sticks out. When I get into a spot with trees out comes my stick and I can see if I am ok to open the slide or if I need to reposition.

and I carry a tape measure!

[californiatrave]

Next topic ! Have you changed the mattress on your bed that has a lift-up platform , and now it won't stay up (the platform !),because the new mattress is heavier ?? I got new stronger gas struts at Napa Auto Parts. Just bring in one of the old ones, and any part info you might be able to find, altho they usually can find an appropriate upgrade anyway.

[californiatrave]

The "shower clean" or the other brands of the same type product work good, just be careful next time you use the shower, the floor may be quite slippery ! I also keep a small "Super-Chamois" type to do some wipe down. Another good product to clean/polish the inside is "Gell-Gloss" , leaves a clean slick surface with a great shine and it is designed for fiberglass.

[Gfitzgrld]

I use a precut piece of 1x2. Stored underneath for easy access.

[martipr]

thomasgunnar wrote:
I'm sure someone has one of these but I wasn't going to read through 108 pages to find out.

We have a slide and sometimes the sites have trees. With my slide out I cut a stick a couple inches longer than what the slide sticks out. When I get into a spot with trees out comes my stick and I can see if I am ok to open the slide or if I need to reposition.

I put a wrap of tape on my awning pull rod.

[Bull_Rider]

I do what thomasgunnar does with his stick, but I use a tape measure. It's written inside the first cabinet that the slide out needs 38" when extended. No more guessing.... Thanks.

[thomasgunnar]

I'm sure someone has one of these but I wasn't going to read through 108 pages to find out.

We have a slide and sometimes the sites have trees. With my slide out I cut a stick a couple inches longer than what the slide sticks out. When I get into a spot with trees out comes my stick and I can see if I am ok to open the slide or if I need to reposition.

[pkunk]

I light my home woodstoves & my pit fires with a TurboTorch™. Quick, clean & easy.

[JimBollman]

I guess the, why I use either homemade fire starters or commercial wax fire starters cut up in chunks instead of paper is I can store enough fire starters for a weeks worth of campfires in a 2 lb coffee can. In our small slide in camper we don't carry a stack of newspapers to start fires. Also we store the fire starters in the wheel wheel of the truck where papers would get damp if not sealed in plastic. Even at home with our wood stove I find building a fire with a small 1"X1"X2" piece of wax log and no real kindling, is a lot faster then messing with paper and kindling.

I only made this last batch of fire starters because I had a bunch of wax left over from an experiment, I was doing to make fire blocks for my Fire Cap.



This link tells about my experiment in making fire blocks. Ended up being cheaper and easier to use wax logs cut into chunks or wood scarps.

Jim...

[ak_traveler]

Here's a mod/hint that we have discovered on our Cougar - may be of help to some of you:

On our Cougar, we have a heating vent (floor register) right in front of the kitchen sink...where one stands to do any sink work. We we have discovered (also the hard way) that they just don't make RV floor registers as sturdy as the home variety! the thin sheet metal that ours were made from has broken out two or three of the fins - and with each fin broken the whole register loses more and more structural integrity.
So come spring, we will be replacing all of them with some cast iron ones we found at Lowes. We just have to measure to see the size and then pick them up. The magnetic covers we got for the OEM ones may not work, but we intend on putting some fine screening under these new ones anyway which will keep most of the rocks and other debris out.

[campingshadow]

i have a Splendide washer/dryer combo that has a lint filter that must be periodically cleaned. I can never remember which way to turn it (and it is bloody tight)....so today after getting out two pairs of pliers and first twisting one way and then the other, I finally got it open. Then I took some pink nail polish and made a small arrow on the filter front showing the direction to turn it in next time.

Also discovered (the hard way) that when they say the filter must be screwed in ALL the way to prevent flooding....they mean ALL the way. Now I am very glad my W/D is in the bathroom and not in the bedroom. I would have been much more upset than I was today if that flood had landed on the carpet and not the bathroom floor.

Note to self: ALL the water flows thru the filter. Never try to mess with the filter while the machine is running. Make SURE filter is tight (really tight) before turning on machine. 6 gallons of soapy water is a lot when it is running across the floor - and into the heating vents!!!!

[robna]

Paper dry paper for fire starter thats all ive ever used maybe its the old fashioned way but its never let me down. Ill try some of these tips they sound interesting . The only other thing ive used is lantern fuel for wet or damp wood.

[pbitschura]

Another fire starter. I put a small handfull of wood pellet fuel in the center of a toilet paper tube after stuffing one end with dryer lint. Then fill the rest of the tube with lint and pinch both ends shut.

[Paw_Paw_Festus]

Fire starter? We use the kids in camp. Don't freak out, bear with me.
To teach them camp safety and "how to" stuff, we have a contest from day to day on who can start the fire with one match.
We supervise, but we let them use any SAFE and environmentally friendly method to start the fire. No gas or class B fuel of any kind. No plastics or styrofoam.
Basically, they can use paper or wood. They only get one wooden match. No lighters. Our oldest grandson will split logs of pine into toothpicks with a small hand axe for an hour. He can Get R Done every time.
I'll have to throw the egg shell idea at one of the other kids to give him a little competition.

[rj7388]

ak_traveler wrote:
This whole "home-made fire starter" thing is very inventive, but what's wrong with good old-fashioned newspaper?

By all, means, employ that KISS principle!