Don’t scrimp, just do the math and buy before you go.

I promised an article about the extra stuff someone is going to try to convince you to buy to “get you going” with your new RV.

There are tons of Vlogs out there telling you about the cool stuff you need or want to make RV life simpler, easier, or even mandatory to make your RV life, whether full time or casual, more enjoyable.

Here is our list of mandatory/completely necessary items in our RV. I will caveat this by saying that we, like everyone out there have specific likes and dislikes. We were occasional users of a 2007 Forest River Sandpiper 29RK and have now moved into a 2022 Vanleigh Beacon 41flb and are full time.

The must have basics do not change:

• Dedicated drinking water hose. I’ve seen some ugly things done around the dump stations and would never hook my drinking water hose to any spigot located there.
• Basic duty water hose. Any hose works for rinsing tanks and washing cars/RV.
• Sewer hose. The standard length is from 10 to 20 feet. Get the long one along with an extra, we are currently at a very nice campground but one side of the space is soft and I have 25 feet of hose out to reach the sewer.
• Blocks and chocks. No-one cares if they are the yellow/red ones or wood blocks you make yourself. I still have some cut 2×6 blocks in our storage bay because when you need more, you just need more. My yellow blocks are 15 years old and yes, I destroyed the first set of chocks. I have gone heavier duty rubber chocks.
• Tank treatment. Get a good one and follow the directions. Do your research, all will work but there are some quality ones out there. Scented is not really best because if you need scented, there is some issue with cleaning your tank out. or cleaning your bathrooms.

Now, for the fun part:

Do you need other items? I think so even if you are “just a weekender”. Here is my list of minimum requirements as a full time RV’er.

The water hose, get two because it really is a pain when you get totally set up and find you’re 3 feet short of reaching the spigot. and yes get a pressure regulator, preferably an adjustable one. All of my fresh water connections and hoses are stored in a good quality storage container with a clear lid. This keeps filters and hoses free of dust and grime.

Water filters, Yes, you should have an external one that filters down to very minimum particulates and use it. Some RV’s out there do not have the onboard filter hooked into the main city feed line, they are only filtering the tank water (do your research). Some don’t have an onboard system at all. If your filter system does run city water through it then inspect and replace filters as need, don’t scrimp on this unless you like to have G.I. tract issues.

For the basic hose I like the green heavy-walled space saver hose from Zero-G. This hose does not kink and is heavier duty than its cousin the Zero-G collapsible and has better connections. You just never know when you really need to wash the rig, truck or use it for something else and of course flushing the black tank.

Sewer hose. Pay the extra money and get a good one or two. Anything that doesn’t crush and is smooth inside will give you good drainage and be relatively maintenance free. Also, right here, buy or make a sewer hose support for grades, we have had the Slunky brand for years and find it to be priceless. Add in at least one clear elbow to connect to the sewer. There is no reason to not be able to visually verify that your hose is running clear when flushing it. All my sewer items are kept in a hard sided storage box in the bed of my truck. Also make sure you invest in good quality disposable gloves along with sanitary wipes and hand sanitizer. The clean kit is in it’s own “Plano” brand storage box away from fresh and sewer hoses.

Blocks n Chocks. Buy or make good ones, heavy duty and strong enough to withstand some abuse. Make a checklist to remind you to remove them. If you have anything with tandem axles I would spend the money for the X-Chocks, they do add a lot of motion control when used. I also invested in the Snap Pad product for my new RV as they fit the metal 6 point levelling system well and provide that added footprint. If you want any of the roll on levelling systems, do your research, I don’t have them currently and I’m a little concerned about the usefulness in an 18 k trailer.

Tank and sewer treatment. I have my methods as does every other owner/operator ever. Whatever brand you buy, make sure it is reputable and is as environmentally friendly as possible and still does the job. I am a fan of Unique, having used it in the marine world in the past and now use it in our full time tanks. They have a full range of products that work and meet my goals. While we are here, I hate the overly citrus smelling stuff and have found, after talking with many older unit owners, that you can eliminate 99% of odors by using a quality cleaning product to clean your toilet, as there are many nooks and crannies where stuff likes to gather and grow. Again, Unique has a full range of products for all your RV/Marine head needs.

Electrics. I have a power cord reel for my 50 amp primary and love it. I also purchased the 20 foot extension cord and dog bone for extra length and step down to 30 amp power as well as a 15 amp adapter. I carry a 150 foot 15 amp cord and a 15 footer, I figure I should be able to hook up to any power source. All of the extras are carried in a hard storage box in the “electrical compartment”. I also upgraded my “generator prep” to a generator install. 5500 watts of propane fueled Onan power on demand. Why propane? I have two extra 30 pound propane cylinders in the back of the truck and I don’t want any gasoline onboard the RV. I am now exploring the solar prep.

Better steps. In our old RV I installed the Mor-Ryde Step Above product and we really loved going from the bouncy springboards to a solid grounded product. The new RV came stock, as many larger towables and fifth wheels do these days With the Lippert Components version. I think this is an upgrade worth the money.

Tires and wheels. Tire quality has improved over the years and the notorious “bomb” tires have pretty much disappeared. I have a couple of opinions about them and believe strongly that these poorly made import tires were probably victims of exceeding the expected speed rating on them. Go ahead and buy the domestic produced tires or the imports, just look at your maximum load and speed ratings. I see comments on blogs and vlogs all the time from people saying that they “know the ratings” but exceed them anyway regardless of country of manufacture. IMHO, are you not on vacation or retired? Slow down to safe hauling speeds and enjoy the trip.

Talking of tires and wheels. Do get a TPMS system. Do your research and get the one that appeals to you. Chances are your tow vehicle has one, so why not your bumper pull or fifth wheel? I don’t know about you but if I can prevent damage I certainly want whatever tools I can get to do that. Most of the available ones fall into two categories, installed in the tire or a replacement valve stem cap. I chose the big name Tire Minder one with six caps. They are easy to install and have a signal booster that can be installed at the front of the RV (I chose the forward bay near my batteries) to make sure the wireless signal reaches your cab. The ones from GMC that are compatible with my truck were “unavailable” during the last 6 months so I may turn around and get it when they become available.

Those ugly pool noodles? YES!!! Do not knock them. I know, and have personally knocked myself silly more than once on the corners and edges of head height slides. Do yourself, your family and friends a favor and get your favorite garish colored noodles and cut them to fit at least all your slide corners and hitch (whether 5th wheel or bumper pull to avoid those shin knockers).

I think this has run on enough by this point and we should all stop for our favorite cold drink and go over this list of items. It is in no way a comprehensive list of the things you need to have nor a list of everything you want to have. This is just a list of what I have and feel is useful.

If you disagree, feel free to argue nicely.

If you see Karl and Bebop out here stop, say hi, and I’ll offer you something to drink.

disclaimer; I get no compensation from anyone for my opinions expressed, but if anyone mentioned here wants to?

BFD

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