Handy Hints, Gadgets, Products & Gizmos
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...
Forum Discussion
WOW! What an awesome thread! Took me several weeks to get through all of it! So many great ideas that my head's spinning with what I want to do first! Here's some of what I use in my little TC:
Found an aluminum fold up table at my local Aldi food store that rolls up and stores in a bag like a bag chair. Cost me 20 bucks.
Got 2 of those plastic folding patio tables on clearance for 6 bucks online at CW. They fit nicely in the rear compartment.
Found a folding nylon bag type table at a garage sale for 2 bucks. New, never out of the bag!
My kitchen sink stopper wouldn't seal so the water kept running out. I had bought several dish pans to keep in the TC for various uses so I found one that fit perfectly in the sink and used it for dishes. Got them at the dollar store. I've since found a new stopper at Menard's (I'm a Menard's junkie--I'm always cruising their aisles for stuff that I can repurpose in my TC!).
Bought a bathroom caddy at WW to hold my kitchen scrubbing pads by the sink but because the suction cups wouldn't stick on the wood paneling next to the sink I took the suction cups off and hung it up with command hooks. I have a mirror that hangs on my truck tailgait (when the TC isn't on it) that helps me see the trailer hitch when hooking up my horse trailer. I was missing one of the suctions cups so I used one from the caddy-fit perfectly!
When I replaced my old non working refrig, I kept every useable part I could get out of it, including the shelves, freezer door, and the panel that fit the original door. I re-used the panel on the new frig;it came without one and I didn't feel like spending a lot just for a cover when I could make the old one fit and it already matched the interior of the TC. Since I never use the wardrobe for clothes, I used one of the interior shelves to make a shelf in the wardrobe-glued some pieces of wood up on either side and it fit perfectly on top. Perfect for paper products. If I want to put something in there that's taller than the shelf I can just remove it by simply lifting it out.
Since my TC is a pop up, I didn't want to add an awning to the top, but I do want some type of awning over the door. On another forum someone mentioned the awning from the Bus Depot. Looked like it would work, so I got one. Still trying to figure out how to attach it so I'll have to let you know whether it will work out or not. Nice thing about it is that it will also work on your car or truck or with an optional leg kit it can be a free standing awning. It actually fits in a bag the size of a bag chair!
Don't have a hot water heater so we picked up an electric tea kettle at a thrift store to heat water for those times when we have electric. I think it cost about $3. Otherwise we just use our regular tea kettle on the stove.
Somewhere I came across a large cutting board for filleting fish. It just happens to fit pretty good on top of the stove for extra counter space. We just lean it against the wall in back of the stove when we don't need it.
For hanging up jackets I found a nice over the door 2 hook rack to put up on the wardrobe door.
At a yard sale I found a 2 shelf rack that I cut into 2 smaller shelves. One I put up with wire ties by the kitchen for a spice rack. The other shelf I put up by the door for keys, small flashlight, etc. Cost me $1 and I got 2 shelves out of it.
In my first TC, the battery compartment had a hinged door that made getting the battery in and out easy. In my current one you have to get the battery in and out thru the portapotty compartment, what a pain! I moved the cushion over the area where the battery is located and found it was only a piece of plywood screwed in place. Had my DH unscrew it and found it would come out giving access to the battery compartment and water tank. Now it's a lot easier to get things in and out! I'll have him drill a finger hole to make it even easier to open.
I'm thrifty (OK I'm really cheap!)so I like to look around at what's on hand at home to use instead of buying if I can. For a grey water tank, I took a piece of old garden hose and cut it to the right length then cut a hole in the lid of an empty kitty litter bucket and ran the hose into it. Works pretty good and having a lid on it keeps it from getting nasty. When the bucket's empty, I just slide the hose down into the hole. The metal end keeps it from going all the way inside and I don't misplace the hose.
We don't usually camp where we don't have a shower but I do have one of those pop up shower tents (Sportsmen's Guide) and 2 solar showers. I haven't had occasion to use them yet but I got a really large( way taller than me and I'm 5'6") shepherd's hook at the dollar store on clearance ($2) and I'm going to have DH weld a large washer on it so I can run guy lines for added support and use it to hold the showers. I'll have to let you know how it works out.
Pantry space is at a minimum and I don't like having tubs of canned goods taking up space in the living area so I store my canned goods in plastic shoe boxes with lids and small, lidded plastic storage boxes that I can fit into the access hatches to the truck bed. I usually store gallons of drinking water in there first and it can be hard to get them out if they are all the way in the back. I'm going to make a hook out of a wire coat hanger straightened out with the hook on the end to grab the handles and drag them forward.
We like to have our campfires and we found we could really use something to move the logs around but we didn't have any tools. My friend found us a set of fireplace tools at a garage sale for a few bucks. They were just what we needed and don't take up too much space.
When my best friend and I go camping, one of us sleeps on the dinette which isn't the most comfy bed. I bought a foam waffle type pad which isn't bad but still not as comfortable as I want. So I bought a 3 1/2 in. memory foam pad( from WW) to go on top of the cushions. Hopefully this will make it much better for longer stays.
We didn't have a lot of light over the sink, so I bought one of those tap lights that you can stick on with sticky tape. Haven't had a chance to really see if it works or not since I just added it right before I put the TC in storage so again, will have to let you know.
I have a few other mods that I plan on implementing next spring, specifically one for storing the shepherd's hook and 2 metal tiki torches under the wall of the camper with broom holders and a solar powered motion light outside the door so we don't have to leave the porch light on all night. I will have to see how it goes and keep you posted.
Found an aluminum fold up table at my local Aldi food store that rolls up and stores in a bag like a bag chair. Cost me 20 bucks.
Got 2 of those plastic folding patio tables on clearance for 6 bucks online at CW. They fit nicely in the rear compartment.
Found a folding nylon bag type table at a garage sale for 2 bucks. New, never out of the bag!
My kitchen sink stopper wouldn't seal so the water kept running out. I had bought several dish pans to keep in the TC for various uses so I found one that fit perfectly in the sink and used it for dishes. Got them at the dollar store. I've since found a new stopper at Menard's (I'm a Menard's junkie--I'm always cruising their aisles for stuff that I can repurpose in my TC!).
Bought a bathroom caddy at WW to hold my kitchen scrubbing pads by the sink but because the suction cups wouldn't stick on the wood paneling next to the sink I took the suction cups off and hung it up with command hooks. I have a mirror that hangs on my truck tailgait (when the TC isn't on it) that helps me see the trailer hitch when hooking up my horse trailer. I was missing one of the suctions cups so I used one from the caddy-fit perfectly!
When I replaced my old non working refrig, I kept every useable part I could get out of it, including the shelves, freezer door, and the panel that fit the original door. I re-used the panel on the new frig;it came without one and I didn't feel like spending a lot just for a cover when I could make the old one fit and it already matched the interior of the TC. Since I never use the wardrobe for clothes, I used one of the interior shelves to make a shelf in the wardrobe-glued some pieces of wood up on either side and it fit perfectly on top. Perfect for paper products. If I want to put something in there that's taller than the shelf I can just remove it by simply lifting it out.
Since my TC is a pop up, I didn't want to add an awning to the top, but I do want some type of awning over the door. On another forum someone mentioned the awning from the Bus Depot. Looked like it would work, so I got one. Still trying to figure out how to attach it so I'll have to let you know whether it will work out or not. Nice thing about it is that it will also work on your car or truck or with an optional leg kit it can be a free standing awning. It actually fits in a bag the size of a bag chair!
Don't have a hot water heater so we picked up an electric tea kettle at a thrift store to heat water for those times when we have electric. I think it cost about $3. Otherwise we just use our regular tea kettle on the stove.
Somewhere I came across a large cutting board for filleting fish. It just happens to fit pretty good on top of the stove for extra counter space. We just lean it against the wall in back of the stove when we don't need it.
For hanging up jackets I found a nice over the door 2 hook rack to put up on the wardrobe door.
At a yard sale I found a 2 shelf rack that I cut into 2 smaller shelves. One I put up with wire ties by the kitchen for a spice rack. The other shelf I put up by the door for keys, small flashlight, etc. Cost me $1 and I got 2 shelves out of it.
In my first TC, the battery compartment had a hinged door that made getting the battery in and out easy. In my current one you have to get the battery in and out thru the portapotty compartment, what a pain! I moved the cushion over the area where the battery is located and found it was only a piece of plywood screwed in place. Had my DH unscrew it and found it would come out giving access to the battery compartment and water tank. Now it's a lot easier to get things in and out! I'll have him drill a finger hole to make it even easier to open.
I'm thrifty (OK I'm really cheap!)so I like to look around at what's on hand at home to use instead of buying if I can. For a grey water tank, I took a piece of old garden hose and cut it to the right length then cut a hole in the lid of an empty kitty litter bucket and ran the hose into it. Works pretty good and having a lid on it keeps it from getting nasty. When the bucket's empty, I just slide the hose down into the hole. The metal end keeps it from going all the way inside and I don't misplace the hose.
We don't usually camp where we don't have a shower but I do have one of those pop up shower tents (Sportsmen's Guide) and 2 solar showers. I haven't had occasion to use them yet but I got a really large( way taller than me and I'm 5'6") shepherd's hook at the dollar store on clearance ($2) and I'm going to have DH weld a large washer on it so I can run guy lines for added support and use it to hold the showers. I'll have to let you know how it works out.
Pantry space is at a minimum and I don't like having tubs of canned goods taking up space in the living area so I store my canned goods in plastic shoe boxes with lids and small, lidded plastic storage boxes that I can fit into the access hatches to the truck bed. I usually store gallons of drinking water in there first and it can be hard to get them out if they are all the way in the back. I'm going to make a hook out of a wire coat hanger straightened out with the hook on the end to grab the handles and drag them forward.
We like to have our campfires and we found we could really use something to move the logs around but we didn't have any tools. My friend found us a set of fireplace tools at a garage sale for a few bucks. They were just what we needed and don't take up too much space.
When my best friend and I go camping, one of us sleeps on the dinette which isn't the most comfy bed. I bought a foam waffle type pad which isn't bad but still not as comfortable as I want. So I bought a 3 1/2 in. memory foam pad( from WW) to go on top of the cushions. Hopefully this will make it much better for longer stays.
We didn't have a lot of light over the sink, so I bought one of those tap lights that you can stick on with sticky tape. Haven't had a chance to really see if it works or not since I just added it right before I put the TC in storage so again, will have to let you know.
I have a few other mods that I plan on implementing next spring, specifically one for storing the shepherd's hook and 2 metal tiki torches under the wall of the camper with broom holders and a solar powered motion light outside the door so we don't have to leave the porch light on all night. I will have to see how it goes and keep you posted.
