The one thing all RV and travel trailer owners will tell you about their travels; when you are stocking up and packing, space is at a premium! It can be a huge challenge to fit everything you need into an RV or travel trailer, and over the years this has forced campers to become ingenuitive in coming up with new and amazing ways to save room. You never know when you are going to see a new idea that might help. Here are just a few things you might try to maximize your storage potential.
IF IT’S ON A ROLL, IT CAN GO ON A ROD: This one is pretty simple. Open wall space is one of the easier things to find in an RV. Step one, head to the housewares section of your local store. Pick up some closet clothes rods and brackets. While these are great for hanging clothes, they can also hold a number of other things. If you cut them down to size, you can use them to hold rolls of trash bags. Hanging tight against a wall high up they can hold wet towels or blankets. Fishing nets can be rolled onto the rod and hung up. So can area rugs. Mounted on the outside of the RV, a white shower curtain or a sheet can be hung from these can act as a projector screen. In a pinch, you could even hang clothes from them.
WILL IT FIT IN A LONG TUBE?: Some campers have started creating storage on the undersides, sides, or backs of their RV buy mounting large four to eight-inch PVC pipes in place with gutter hangers. If you place a screw cap mount on either end you have quick access. A lot of things can go into these. Rolled up tarps or rugs, fishing gear, walking sticks, tent frames, etc. Always make sure they are attached securely and make sure there is no way for them to come loose. If placing under the RV, you might consider spraying truck bed liner on the pipe to help prevent wear and tear.
UPRIGHT WALL TUBES: While you’re at it with the PVC, it can be used for a lot of different storage purposes. Cutting them short and hanging them vertically with pipe mounts basically creates a usable “holster” for things. Diameter and length to cut will depend on what you are wanting to hang. A two-inch pipe cut to four inches long mounted in the bathroom could easily hold a hairdryer. A longer one with a cap at the bottom end could hold a curling iron. A larger one, say a four-inch one, cut to 12 inches, capped on the bottom, then filled with bamboo sticks and mounted on a kitchen wall can hold your larger knives. There are endless holders you can make with PVC pipes.
SAVE THOSE LITTLE CONTAINERS: One of the most important ways to save storage space is to have a few things as “loose” as possible. Drawers and tabletops have a tendency to become “catch-all” areas, that quickly become cluttered and waste valuable space in your camper. A lot of items in day to day life come in small containers that are considered disposable. Mint tins, pill bottles, baby food jars… think tiny receptacles that you can quickly accumulate that are all of the similar sizes. Instead of small things being tossed in a drawer… paper clips, rubber bands, coins, batteries, screws, stamps, etc. , you label all your tiny containers and put them inside for neat and tidy storage. You will be amazed at the room you will gain in your drawers just by organizing all the small bits and bobs in them.
5 GALLON BUCKET COIL HOLDER: Hoses and cords. Lots of hoses and cords. There just is no way of getting around it. However, there is a clever way to store them. Take a 5-gallon bucket, preferably one with a snap-on lid. Cut a two-inch slot (maybe wider or shorter depending on the size of the hose or cord you have) on either side, ending it about two inches away from the top and bottom. Leaving enough of the hose or cable hanging out of one slot side for attaching purposes, and coil the rest on top of it clockwise into the bucket. Keep coiling it until there are just a few feet left, and hang that out the slot on the other side. You can now easily coil and uncoil the hose/cord, and the bucket is easily stored in the lower compartments of the camper. You also only have to uncoil as much hose and or cord as you need, and carrying it around becomes a lot simpler if the bucket has a handle.
Hopefully, you will find at least one if not all these tips useful as you plan out your next trip. Just a little bit of modification here and there can make all the difference in the world. You yourself might just come up with some new space-saving idea no one else has ever thought of!
