Camping Trailer And RV Additions To Make Your Camping Experience Better
Owning a camping trailer or RV brings a great deal of fun and memories to last a lifetime, but there are extra responsibilities with the vehicle's upkeep and maintenance. Here are some additions you can add to your camping trailer or RV to improve your camping experience and its off-season downtime.
Set Up Game-Trail Cameras
While you have your camping vehicle parked at a campsite or at an RV park and you need to be away from it for a period of time, you want to make sure it remains safe. Always lock up your vehicle and put any items away into a storage space within the camper or RV when you have to leave it for any length of time. But it can also be helpful to install your own security system camera to monitor the exterior of your camper.
To help you with this, you can buy and place a game-trail camera beside your trailer or RV. Game-trail cameras can be installed on a nearby tree or on the outside of your camper in a hidden spot; movement will activate the camera to take pictures. You can view your photos on your computer or your smart device, depending on the type of game camera you have, which you can find at most camping supply stores or online. This is a great way to keep an eye on your investment while you are away.
Install Solar Panel System
Your camping trailer or RV has many working parts that require electricity, either from its battery or from a direct electricity connection at the park or other location you may be staying at. Unfortunately, your vehicle's battery does not hold a charge forever and may not be able to power many items in your trailer or RV, such as the water pump, fridge, television, lights, and heater. So, when you are camping at an off-the-grid location, you may want to consider investing in solar panels to help power your trailer or RV and bypass using a loud and smelly gasoline-powered generator.
You can install a set of solar panels into your trailer or RV to provide power to run its components no matter where you are. And depending on your electrical needs or your budget, you can build your solar panel system to fit them: starting out with one panel and buying more later on. There are solar panels available that you can fix onto your roof, or you can use a portable panel that you set up on the ground at your campsite.
It is important to have adequate batteries to store your collected power. As an example, to run your trailer or RV on full power such as you would at home, you need 120 to 150 Ah (amp hours) to be collected by your solar panels each day. One trailer or RV battery typically holds 70 to 90 Ah, and you need to have a battery capacity to store at least twice your daily usage. Having at least three batteries would allow you to hold extra power for cloudy days, and it protects your batteries from damage if they run below 50 percent capacity.
Buy an Off-Season Cover
Not every RV or trailer owner has the ability to store their trailer or vehicle in a storage facility or garage to protect it from the off-season elements. Storing your vehicle in the weather can cause the exterior, the awning, and the tires to become weather-worn from the sun and freezing temperatures. Over time, this can cause damage to occur, such as causing your awning to rot and your tires to degrade.
To protect your RV or trailer, you can buy an off-season cover to protect it from UV rays, snow, ice, and dirt that it will be exposed to while you are not using it. Most covers will fit to the exterior of your vehicle and can be secured in place so they don't blow off. Then, you can remove the cover in the spring and store it in a storage bag until the next fall.