Simple camping tips

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

tools... hah. my truck carries ...

I'm guessing you even carry a torque wrench!

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by alanmalk

I'm guessing you even carry a torque wrench!

actually? nah... I have a pretty good feel for lug nut torques, I'm not going to be rebuilding head gaskets or anything like that.

[Farther]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

I'm not going to be rebuilding head gaskets...

Or changing blinker fluid.

[Vermilye]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

level!



tools... hah. my truck carries a very heavy duty set of pure copper jumper cables, a Viair compressor, a toolbox with sockets and wrenches, another toolbox with strippers/cutters/pliers/crimpers/screwdrivers/allenkeys/etc mostly electrical stuff. The trailer toolbox has a framing and an engineer hammer, a nail puller modified to pull big tent stakes, a 1/2" drive breaker bar with the socket for the wheels, and the socket for the water heater anode.

I carry 3 tool boxes that contain everything above, plus a 3/8" Battery drill & impact hammer, heat shrink gun, a collection of files, stapler, glue gun, and more. And yes, Alan, a torque wrench. I spent too much of my life with fully equipped metal, wood & electrical shops. I do miss the plasma cutter & MIG welder, but you can't carry everything! Glad I finally have a truck big enough to carry it all. Hard to let go...

[h2owmn]

John, I can't see exactly how your acculevel is attached...are the screws into the window cover and the level is attached (slid onto the screws) when you need it? Are the screws into the metal frame underneath or just into the white cover? Thanks! I am reticent to put holes into the body.

[Iowa Dave]

I have a heavy duty 1/2 inch breaker bar and 6 inch extension. My sockets are the ones I can visibly certify as needed should something need tightened or adjusted so I only have 5 or 6 in the box. I have a 1/2 inch ratchet in the front box with the Anderson socket on it. I’ve got a little set of 5 flat wrenches and a quarter inch drive set with standards and metrics. A couple crescent wrenches which I use but don’t loan out because I wouldn’t want to offend a broke down wrench snob and I’m good to go. I have jumpers under the Highlander third seat. High quality and long, in a bag. I also carry a battery booster pack, inflator, bottle jack, and the torque wrench. Everybody has a different comfort level and no two tool boxes are the same. IMHO
Iowa Dave

[Jill]

I thought of a couple other tips:

1. I don't use the glass plate that goes inside the microwave. I use no plate at all, or a chinet paper plate. This way you never have to worry about remembering to remove the glass plate for travel and find somewhere safe to store it.

2. I find that if I lift the toilet seat up when showering, I actually get less water on the toilet seat.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by padlin

The only tip I can contribute is look before you pull in. Make sure you scope out any gas station or other stop before you commit to pulling in, need to make sure you can get out.

Yep. Learned that one the hard way. But it's one of those lessons you don't forget. Also keep an eye on vertical clearances. It's not a big problem with Escapes but you can still find places too low to pass through.

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

Yep. Learned that one the hard way. But it's one of those lessons you don't forget. Also keep an eye on vertical clearances. It's not a big problem with Escapes but you can still find places too low to pass through.

Hi: Mike Lewis... I once asked a fellow 5.0TA owner if he had a new style TV antenna. He got very defensive with me!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[Mike Lewis]

I use my Escape mainly for long-term travel over weeks or months, traveling long distances. So I'll address that type of travel with these comments:

- I save quarters from pocket change for laundry and tolls in a separate container, then take that container with me to a laundromat.

- I do laundry every two weeks, mainly because that's as much as I can carry in one duffel. I go every other Wednesday when the laundromats are less busy. Be aware of your surroundings-- I try to chose laundromats that have an attendant and are in nicer areas. Haven't had any problems so far, but once a guy stole a roll of quarters from an attendant. Neither the attendant nor I figured out what had happened until he was gone.

- You have to make reservations well ahead of time for the big, obvious attractions, e.g. the Grand Canyon. But in between those stops I just wing it. It has worked so far.

- My largest expenses have been for gas and camping fees (surprise, surprise). The U.S. National Parks Service senior pass gives free admission to parks after the $80 one-time fee, and half-price on camping. Other federal lands honor the pass as well. Next year will be the first time I will use it extensively, and it should have a positive impact on my budget.

- Stuff breaks on trailers while you're traveling. So carry tools as mentioned above, and some spare parts.

- Some people get worn out when traveling for a long time in their trailer. It doesn't hurt to take a break and spend a night in a hotel. Take a "Hollywood shower".

[sclifrickson]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

re: backing into a space in the dark... I've been toying with rigging some sort of little laser pointers on magnetic bases to shine down at the ground next to the rear bumper so I can tell how far back I am via my rear view mirrors....

Clever. Use green lasers if possible. Much more visible at same wattage as red due to human eye sensitivity, but I’m guessing you know this already[emoji6]

[Jill]

Here's another tip. Be careful how you load the fridge. On this last trip I had probably 1 too many full milk/juice bottles (okay and margarita mix) on the middle shelf and it broke. It pretty much caved so everything fell to the middle. So be careful of the weight when loading your fridge.

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by Jill

Here's another tip. Be careful how you load the fridge. On this last trip I had probably 1 too many full milk/juice bottles (okay and margarita mix) on the middle shelf and it broke. It pretty much caved so everything fell to the middle. So be careful of the weight when loading your fridge.

Same advice for the door, keep it light.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by h2owmn

John, I can't see exactly how your acculevel is attached...are the screws into the window cover and the level is attached (slid onto the screws) when you need it? Are the screws into the metal frame underneath or just into the white cover? Thanks! I am reticent to put holes into the body.

it is screwed to the fiberglass cover with nylock nuts and washers on the back side. I used all stainless hardware, and I plan on leaving it up there full time. you can slightly loosen a couple screws to adjust it up/down to level it, given the slots on the Acculevel.

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Same advice for the door, keep it light.

On Dometic refrigerators with plastic shelves too much weight will break them as mentioned above. It is possible to use wire closet shelving,12 inches deep and cut the appropriate closely measured length to fit. Once cut to fit I used a Dremel tool to smooth the rough edges and sprayed with white plasti-dip to keep them from rusting. Installed with “lip up” the new wire shelves work well to retain rolling things. You can make one for the freezer too.
Iowa Dave

[gbaglo]

I fixed my broken shelf with aluminum "stuff"... 'L'-shaped something or other and epoxy. It's held up for many years, but I also have a note on my check list to keep fridge door light.

[Jill]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

On Dometic refrigerators with plastic shelves too much weight will break them as mentioned above. It is possible to use wire closet shelving,12 inches deep and cut the appropriate closely measured length to fit. Once cut to fit I used a Dremel tool to smooth the rough edges and sprayed with white plasti-dip to keep them from rusting. Installed with “lip up” the new wire shelves work well to retain rolling things. You can make one for the freezer too.

Iowa Dave

Thanks for this info. Replacement shelves turn out to be hard to find and surprisingly expensive! We may have to try the wire shelf option. Did you need a special tool to cut it?

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Jill

Thanks for this info. Replacement shelves turn out to be hard to find and surprisingly expensive! We may have to try the wire shelf option. Did you need a special tool to cut it?

You can use a hacksaw, or a pair of wire cutters suitable for steel wire (like fence pliers, or the cutters at the base of a classic pair of ViseGrips). Note diagonal wire cutters are only meant for soft copper wire. If you want to cut it fast, use an 4.5" angle grinder with a cut-off wheel, will go through the soft steel wire like butter, but watch the heat buildup, you can burn the plastic skin on the wire shelfs.

then as he said, file or grind the ends smooth, and coat in plasti-dip

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

On Dometic refrigerators with plastic shelves too much weight will break them as mentioned above. It is possible to use wire closet shelving,12 inches deep and cut the appropriate closely measured length to fit. Once cut to fit I used a Dremel tool to smooth the rough edges and sprayed with white plasti-dip to keep them from rusting. Installed with “lip up” the new wire shelves work well to retain rolling things. You can make one for the freezer too.
Iowa Dave

Hi: Iowa Dave... I don't need to install wire shelves in the fridge cause I drink "Light beer"!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[John in Santa Cruz]

hah. i had a couple growlers of some serious craft beer on the middle shelf of my Dometic DM8555 or whatever its called, and yeah, crack, dump, make a mess :/

the replacement shelf for those 8555 fridges is like $100.