Your biggest truck camper mistake?

[Canadian_Camper]

Heading out on the road in a couple of days, for our first long trip with our new to us truck camper (having previously owned and travelled extensively with a travel trailer).

What is/was your biggest truck camper mistake?

Hopefully, we can learn from other's mistakes. I'm feeling excited but a bit nervous about travelling with the truck camper as opposed to a travel trailer.

Thanks!

[Crazy_Creek]

Backing under a low hanging branch and poking a hole in my roof

[jimh406]

Not doing a dpf delete.

Not checking batteries before the trip.

Not bringing enough bottled water.

Not binging binoculars and spotting scope.

[jmtandem]

What is/was your biggest truck camper mistake?

Selling it!

[billyray50]

Selling my 2012 Adventurer 86 FB.

[NEOK]

Pulling the truck out from under the camper without disconnecting the umbilical cord. Luckily it didn't do much damage. Enjoy your camper!

[romore]

My dad forgot about the tailgate being open when turning around. Grandad's elm tree 1, tailgate no score.:B

[ramlinwillie]

Selling my Lance 821!

[SoCalDesertRid1]

Back when I had the big extended length camper several years ago, which the rear jacks hung low on, I hit a series of large road cones with the right rear jack in a construction zone. It didn't tear the jack off, but it did tear the lower mount out of the plywood and damage it, plus bend the jack a little.

On the same camper, which was missing one of the roof vent covers, I had put a piece of plywood over the vent hole and a large rock on top of the plywood to keep the wind from blowing it off. Well, later on, I forgot about the plywood and the rock and I drove it down the road. When I got to where I was going, I remembered about it. I went on the roof to check it and both the rock and the plywood were gone. Hopefully someone behind me didn't get a large rock on their hood or through their windshield!

Again, on the same camper, I had put a bicycle inside the camper in the main hallway, leaning against the counter. The bicycle moved while I was driving and turned on the gas control for the stove. When I got to where I was going, I opened the camper door and was about knocked out by the gas smell. Fortunately, nothing lit on fire. I learned then to shut off the propane tank while driving.

Also on the same camper, when I was first bringing it home, I didn't have tie downs for it yet. I thought, I'm only going a short distance in town, I'll drive carefully and it will be fine. It was fine for most of the trip, until right before I to my neighborhood. Someone pulled out in front of me and I had to brake hard. The camper slammed forward and bent the front wall of the truck bed and dented the cab. Later on, I ended up having to unbolt the bed, lift it up and pull it back, remove the front bed wall, straighten it and then pound a pipe into the upper lip/channel, which was round and perfectly sized to fit a pipe into, to strengthen it, weld a piece of steel angle along the bottom where the bolts tore out, then put it all back together. I've never hauled a camper without tiedowns since then.

[GoinThisAway]

My most spectacular mistake so far was laying the propane igniter gun used to light the oven on the stovetop grill ... with one of the burners going. Kaboom! Gave me a good scare but luckily didn't do any serious damage. Of course you already know how to handle nearly every aspect of traveling with a truck camper after your years with a travel trailer. One thing I can thing of that is different is that truck camper rigs are taller than travel trailer rigs so you have to know your height and watch for anything you won't fit under.

[WNYBob]

Always make sure that the front is higher when raising or lowering, you don't want to tip it forward.

Biggest mistake buying a TC, much happier with a small 20' TT.

[Steve_in_29]

If you use the camper's jacks to level the rig make sure you remember to release/loosen the tie-downs. Then remember to reattach them properly before driving away.

Don't forget the TC sits a LOT higher then your travel trailer did so watch your overhead clearances.

[ryoung]

I no longer own a truck camper...that was my biggest mistake, selling it.
Calm down though. With your extensive experience with a travel trailer, I'd say your worries are none. If you use the campers jacks to stabilize when camped, as some do, don't forget to retract them before heading down the road.
Enjoy your truck camper.

ryoung

I no longer own the truck and TC in my signature.