Most useful trailering accessory you've bought?

[Catchlight]

Our build list is now etched onto a stone tablet in Kim's office, and we will pick up our trailer exactly two months from today.

Now that we have carefully researched and selected our Escape-supplied options, our thoughts are turning to outfitting the trailer for travel and camping.

We have two questions for the experienced campers on this forum:

1. What is the most useful accessory you've bought for your trailer from a source other than Escape? It could be a safety item, something to help with hitching or levelling the trailer, an entertainment source, or a kitchen aid -- anything that continues to enhance your towing or camping experience.

2. Where did you buy that item, and what are your favourite sources of trailer accessories in Canada, in the Northwest USA, or online?

Thanks for any suggestions.

[Washingtonia]

Umbra hooks. We purchased them from Amazon and brought them with us when we took delivery. Escape was nice enough to install them for us.

[padlin]

We cook over charcoal so for that it'd be the chimney.
For the trailer probably the mat from RVAwningMats.com: The largest and oldest distributor of RV mats, patio mats, RV Awning Mats and the new Fireside Patio Mat! Welcome! - RVAwningMats.com or the gas firepit.
Bought pre trailering, headlamps, now LED, from REI.

[kstock11]

Anderson Levelors , Bal 28100 Tongue Twister, Star Brite Premium Marine Polish Boat Wax. The tongue twister allows you to move the tongue of the trailer to line it up with the hitch. The Anderson levelors allow you to level with just one try. Both take away a frustration for your copilot when setting up and hitching up. As newbees to towing they are priceless. The wax is great to maintain the new look. All available from Amazon.

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by kstock11

Anderson Levelors , Bal 28100 Tongue Twister, Star Brite Premium Marine Polish Boat Wax. The tongue twister allows you to move the tongue of the trailer to line it up with the hitch. The Anderson levelors allow you to level with just one try. Both take away a frustration for your copilot when setting up and hitching up. As newbees to towing they are priceless. The wax is great to maintain the new look. All available from Amazon.

The Tongue Twister is very cool.

[padlin]

Originally Posted by kstock11

Star Brite Premium Marine Polish Boat Wax.

How's it to work with? does it wipe off fairly well?

[hotfishtacos]

High pressure tee with fittings and 2 high pressure hoses so we can run our high pressure camp stove directly off the trailer propane tanks. All sourced and purchased online.

HIGH PRESSURE TEE



STOVE ATTACHMENT



Steve

[Rossue]

For a single axle I really liked the two-tier leveler at camping world.

[kstock11]

Originally Posted by padlin

How's it to work with? does it wipe off fairly well?

I find it wipes off easily. I went with this with the feeling that boats see a much harder environment (salt water & more uv) than our trailers. I use often on the front to keep bug removal easier. I'll also keep the whole rig well waxed as I won't have a cover.

[bvansnell]

Last year we bought a pair of Grand Aero Towing Mirrors to replace some strap on mirrors we had previously. Things we like about the new mirrors:

• Easy to put on and take off
• Once the mirror is set up it stays adjusted even when taken off and put back on
• Quiet and stable
• Reasonable price for the quality

We purchased from Amazon.com where we buy many things.

[Jim Bennett]

Beer, definitely beer!!!

Oh, and X-chocks, or something that works in the same fashion. Improved stability while set up markedly.

Our little aluminum campstools, that rarely get used as a seat, but get hordes of use as a handy end table.

Many other accessories that have made their way into the way we use our trailers that have, for us, made our experience better, like LED strip lights in the cabinets, magazine racks, pot racks (with our Magma nesting pot set and other stuff in it), aluminum camp table for use with cooking or at a site where there are no tables, our bigger access hatch, etc, etc. The list is loooooooong.

[Zardoz]

Our "Swift Hitch" portable backup camera with hand-held monitor has made hooking-up a quick, one person operation. We are also very pleased with our "Picnic Time" reclining camp chairs we found on Amazon.

[Catchlight]

Thanks for your tips, everyone who responded. Those all sound like excellent suggestions.

If you have any afterthoughts, please post them. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some online shopping to do.

[Losangeles]

Originally Posted by rbryan4

The Tongue Twister is very cool.

Is there any downside to the Tongue Twister?

[Bill and Earline]

I have one and have never taken it out of the box. Once you have a back up camera, whether vehicle mounted, or loose, you'll become a very accurate backer upper, and won't need the twister.
Bill

[C&G in FL]

That would be three separate items:
1) Battery watering system. Batteries can be topped off to proper level without tearing apart the wrap around dinette or opening the battery box which is in an inconvenient location in the 5.0TA. Turns a 30 minute PITA job into a 5 minute joy.
2) Rear view camera which I find most useful in heavy traffic. Allow me to respond to dangerous close tailgaters I might not normally see.
3) ALR-9, which sends me an email the moment my trailer moves. In its well concealed location and with its self contained battery, if my trailer is stolen, the police can be on the thief/thieves as quickly as they can respond. It provides me great peace of mind and the knowledge that some scumbag(s) will be apprehended.

[Donna D.]

The great part of belonging to a community such as the EscapeForum is the sharing of information. Only YOU can decide what's the most useful trailering accessory. For instance, two of the items Carl finds useful are two things I don't even want... items 1 and 2. For me the most useful are a comfortable, comfortable chair for sitting outside and an electric blanket!

[Jim Bennett]

Donna is right, we all have our own preferences for what works best for us, and even that changes with time.

I too would not be interested in Carl's items 1 & 2. With Donna's must haves, the right chari is important, but for me that means a solid feeling seat, and does not have to be a cushioned recliner type, and I have never used an electric blanket, nor can I see ever wanting too, but there are others who would disagree.

Just look at how we all approach food prep and cooking, there are lots of ways adaptable to RVing, but we each have our own preferences.

It is good to hear what others do find useful for their style of camping, as often items are mentioned that I haven't even considered.

As I have mentioned umpteen million times before, as long as you are getting out, there really is no wrong way to do it.

[kstock11]

Originally Posted by Losangeles

Is there any downside to the Tongue Twister?

I purchased the tongue twister and love it. That and the Anderson leveler make setting up and breaking down a pleasure. We spent 49 nights camping on the pick-up trip. It made the learning curve much shorter for this newbie.

[JMTHKR]

My favorite accessory has been a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS), both for safety and convenience. Bought my system in 2006 and it is still working fine. Lots of good systems out there now. Also, I find a pair of Andersen levelers to be quite convenient. Cliff