First TT for Drycamping

[chezmoose]

The DH and I are hoping to replace our 40 year old PUP in the spring with a TT. The PUP is still in excellent condition for her age but seems we have to repair something after every trip lately. Plus we're hoping to cut down on set-up/tear-down time.

I've been lurking the forums for a while and we're starting to do our research and visit dealers to figure out what we like/don't like and what will fit within our weight requirements. We will most likely purchase something in the 18-20 ft range.

The majority of our camping is done in state/nat'l forest campgrounds with the occasional boondocking trip and maybe once a year at a campground with electricity.

Are there any special considerations we should take into account when purchasing? Since we're used to not having running water, lights, AC, etc., I imagine we can be pretty conservative. One of the salespeople said that most people run out of water before they run out of battery power. Is it possible to re-fill the fresh water tank from a jug?

What do you recommend for emptying the holding tanks after a dry camping trip? Visit a state park and use their pump station?

Any and all advice for dry camping will be appreciated.

[deweysmith5]

We carry a 6 gallon jug that we refill the water tank with if we run low on water. We also have a five gallon upright water jug with the push button spout that we can fill up and sit outside and use for drinking, coffee, etc. To underscore what prichardson said, we have always kept out trailers in the under 30 foot range so that we would readily fit in the state park size of campsite. Just be sure to get decent size waste tanks - some of the smaller trailers have very small waste tanks.

[gmw_photos]

Since you are long time campers with limits to how much water you carry, you will likely do just fine with the onboard water tank.
I always carry an extra seven gallon jug of water with me, but instead of refilling the fresh tank from it, I usually just use water out of it. I keep a easy carry clear one gallon water container in the camper, and just step out to the tailgate of the truck and fill it from the seven gallon jug. I use that for things like making coffee, refilling the dogs water bowl, etc.

Here is a site that shows many dump sites:

http://www.rvdumpstations.info/

[prichardson]

Nat. Parks and forests tend to have smaller spaces so try to stay under 30 ft overall length. Also slides can sometimes be problematic in those places. When looking for a rig check the battery location as you will want to upgrade to a pair of "golf cart" batteries. Most TT in the 25' range have 30+ gallon fresh water capacity. As far as dumping after camping; if the place you are at does not have a dump station most private campgrounds allow (for a fee) others to use their dump station.