2015 RV Christmas List -> Useful Outdoor Stuff That Lasts
Over the past few weeks I’ve been thinking about our 2015 RV Christmas Wish List. I’ve done one of these almost every year we’ve been on the road, and it’s always been fun.
I usually pick a topic, like a “big 5” wish-list or an inexpensive Christmas RV decorating ideas list or a RV stocking suffers under $20 list etc. This year, as we near completion of our 6th year of fulltime living on the road I wanted to focus on outdoor stuff, and more specifically I wanted to focus on the stuff that lasts.
In our modern world, where everything seems to be manufactured to be disposable after a few years, I thought this would be an interesting share. Also, we are near-perfect guinea-pigs for this, since we are downright monstrous on our outdoor gear. We regularly forget to take stuff inside when it storms or rains, we throw it and drop it and we even drive 33,000 lb beastly RV’s over (some of) it. What could possibly handle that kind of continuous abuse?
Well, here’s our top 5 list of stuff to wish for that does:
1/ Lynx Leveling Blocks
A pack of inexpensive plastic blocks that last 6 years of driving a monstrous 33,000 lb RV up on them? Yup, believe it or not we still have our very first pack of Lynx Levelers
I honestly never thought these cheap things would survive our rig, but they have. A select few have cracks in them, but they still all work and our plan is to keep using them until they disintegrate into the strands of individual polymer from whence they were formed. I think every RVer should carry at least two packs of these in their rig.
2/ RhinoFLEX Sewer Hose
No-one ever wants to deal with a leaky sewer hose, and thankfully (cross fingers, paws and toes) we’ve never had to. When we first bought “the beast” a helpful fellow RVer recommended we get the RhinoFLEX Sewer Hose and what a great recommendation that turned out to be! We paired it with a Camco Hose Support and have never looked back. It attaches easily collapses easily, and goes the distance for both #1 and #2 (I can’t resist sometimes, ya know).
I know there are other brands of sewer hose out there, but I honestly don’t think the others last quite like this. It’s the #1 recommended brand on RV forums and most definitely the only one for us.
3/ Weber Q100 Grill
We started our RV journey with a Coleman Roadtrip Grill which, although well-rated online, was a pain to store and keep clean. We quickly got rid of it and exchanged it for a Weber Q100 (now called Weber Q1000
We did have the foresight to buy an inexpensive, but durable Vinyl Grill Cover too, so at least our poor grill doesn’t get tooooo much weather abuse, but other than this we really don’t do much to protect it. We’ve used it regularly for years and plan to keep this baby for a loooong time.
4/ Werner Ladder
Every RVer needs a solid ladder. Whether it’s to keep those windows sparkly clean (which I know you all do regularly, right? LOL) or to peer across the top of your slides when they leak having a safe, solid way to get high is important (chuckle, chuckle). Since space is always a premium having a collapsible or telescoping ladder is a definite plus, and one that can handle outdoor abuse is even better.
We’ve had our Werner 13-foot Telescoping Ladder for over 5 years. It’s the exact same design as the Little Giant (as far as I can tell), it hangs off the back of our RV when we travel (from a cheapo chair rack) and we’ve never taken it inside so it’s literally been out in the rain, snow, mud you-name-it that whole time (like I said we’re horrible with out outdoor gear). We even managed to crunch it in our RV slide once which left a rather cringe-worthy bend in our slide, but did absolutely nada to the ladder. There are many other telescoping ladders out there, and I’m sure all are pretty good, but this one is rock SOLID and passes the wheelingit continuous-abuse test with flying colors.
5/ Surge Protection
No RVer should ever be without surge protection. If there’s ONE piece of equipment I would recommend every newbie buy it’s this. It may seem like a big up-front investment, but for under $500 you are protecting ALL the electronics inside your rig which literally means thousands of dollars of stuff. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked to RVers who’ve been hit with bad power or a surge that has fried a large portion of their inside electronics, which then took them months and many $$ to fix. Me? I’d much rather fry a few hundred dollars of surge protector.
We’ve had our external TRC Surge Guard
Other outdoor gear that has lasted, but just didn’t make the top 5 include our handy dandy $15 tarp (honestly can’t remember which brand we bought, but we use our tarp for covering stuff, shade, temp repairs you-name-it), our $5 water thief (we use this snazzy little tool at just about every forest service campground we go to), our $20 folding metal table from Walmart (this thing has taken enormous abuse and is still living) and our pricey, but incredibly tough (and very useful) MagneShade front windshield covers.
So, that’s my list for this year. Hopefully stuff you can buy (or wish for) and not have to buy for at least 6 years of use and abuse.
If you still need more RV gift inspiration, then feel free to check out our previous lists below. Happy shopping everyone!
- 5 Ways To Decorate Your RV For Christmas (Cheaply & Compactly)
- 2013 “Big 5” RV Christmas Wish-List
- 2012 -> 5 Cool RV Christmas Gift Ideas For Under $50
- Tis The Season For RV Gifting! -> My Top 5 RV Gifts for 2011
- RV Christmas 2010 Wishlist -> For the Bookworm
- RV Christmas 2010 Wishlist II -> 10 Stocking Stuffers for Under $20
- RV Christmas 2010 Wishlist III -> Last, Last Minute Gifts
Nina,
Do you use the Lynx levelers on you dual wheels also? If so do you support both wheels on a low side or just the outside or inside wheel?
As always thanks for your wonderful sight.
Steve
YES! If we need to raise the back of “the beast” we will use levelers on the back wheels and we ALWAYS use them on BOTH wheels (all 4 wheels if we’re raising the entire back). I don’t like to have any of our wheels un-supported.
Nina
Hi Guys,
The Lynx Levelers, I have to ask just because we have a yellow set of similar kind, we bought them at Camping World. Are any of yours broken or fracture? Its a big problem with the yellow ones and were looking to replace them.
Progressive Industries, we are actually scheduled to have this surge protector installed. The beauty of having it hard wired is it can be wired to not only protect you from shore power problems but faults from your own generator.
MagneShade, we love our MagneShade those are some strong magnets. Very clean looking install.
Water Theif is on order.
RhinoFLEX Sewer Hose, we have the Extreme and had a problem with it leaking. I called Rhino they sent out a new one. Another thing I asked about was what they screwed the ends on with. That goopy stuff, they use Vaseline as the lubricant or seal. So if it ever starts leaking, take it apart clean it and goop it up. it’s probably in the directions that I didn’t read. I keep all the seals in pretty good shape with a type of equipment useing a product made for swimming pool seals, its silicone stuff.
Weber BBQ, we don’t have propane, we havr one of those all-electric coaches, so we’re using the Weber jumbo Joe. It’s an 18 inch grill that uses briquettes, that’s old school.
Love the list. As always great article, with lots to think about.
So far a few of our original Lynx (I think 2 total) have some minor cracks in them, but they are still all usable. We’ve not had ANY of our Lynx totally fall apart (not yet, anyway), and we really do use them a lot.
Nina
Thanks so much for the latest post of your Christmas list. We appreciate your labor of love with your posts. Great ideas-Have thought many times about a surge protector. Have been lucky so far but I think I have pushed my luck far enough. Time to head to Amazon. Thanks again for your posts.
Merry Christmas
Bill and Linda Hicks
Whidbey Island, WA
Heading south this week from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. First big trip in our new to us Class A diesel pusher. Amazed that you use Lynx Levellers on The Beast. Did not load our levellers that we had for the travel trailer into the coach storage….figured that using them under 32K lbs would be “instant crush time”. Hope I can find time to get them out of storage & find a spare corner for them onboard. Thanks for the tip! SW USA here we come.
Yup, I’m still amazed (to this day) that those Levelers can handle our weight. Good travels to you!
Nina
We have everything except for the surge protector, which we’ve thought about for years but never gotten around to buying. Thanks for the reminder — I think we need to tell Santa that it’s time for him to bring us one! 😉
I sooooo recommend a protector. I know it’s really just an insurance thing (and hopefully one you’ll never use), but it’s a good insurance to carry IMHO.
Nina
Hi there – interesting blog. Just thought that I would write in regards to your mention of the TRC Surge Protector. We have the same and the decals curled and peeled off ours to. While I could still remember what all the lights meant, I did want to replace the decals. I called TRC and asked if I could buy new decals. I gave them the model number and even though it was way out of warranty, they sent me new decals (2 sets actually) to the next campground that I was staying at. I put on the 1st set and the unit still looks like new. You may want to contact trc and see if they would do the same for you. Travel safe……… Dave K.
Nice tip! We have it in memory what the lights mean, but it would be really nice to replace the decal. Cheers for that idea!
Nina
Hi Nina, sorry this isn’t about this post but wasn’t sure where to ask. Hope this is ok! I’ve read where you said bigger is not always better. We are trying to decide between a 36 ft fifth wheel and 39 ft. The larger one gives us a little more liviving space, an additional slide out, additional 1/2 bath & loft. We will have my brother with Down syndrome who will be living with us..thus the garage living space. The smaller unit 36 ft will still provide the garage for his space, but will be shorter in length to offer more access to State & Natiinal parks. We also want to invest in solar to enable us to boondock. I realize it would be hard to advise someone else, but after your 6 yr, experience, would you go with a smaller rig?
For us personally we would go for the smaller rig, but that’s just because camping spots (where we can go) are by far the most important factor for us. If we had a family member with us who needed the extra space, then I might choose to prioritize that. It really just depends on your individual situation & which factors are the most important to your comfort and travel as a family.
Nina
About the surge protectors, preach it!!! My portable Surge Guard 34830 must have saved my motorhome from something horrid…the plug on it melted but everything in my home was safe. I blame Florida lightning storms. Luckily it had a two year warranty so it was replaced for free. I will NOT plug in without one now.
Exactly the reason to have one! Thank goodness the surge protector sacrificed itself and your coach was saved from whatever happened there. I’m totally with you on this one.
Nina
After seeing the leveling blocks under your wheels at Sam’s, we have decided to move to blocks over wood. We have split all our wood once again and have to get new cut. But we won’t be needing wood any longer for leveling, we are moving to blocks. All we need is to get a few days closer to our Tucson reservation and we’ll have them sent:) Thanks for the link:)
Sweet! I honestly don’t think you’ll be disappointed. We love our leveling blocks!
Nina
I find using wood under plastic blocks when parked on soil is the best option. It keeps the blocks from sinking in, making them easier to remove and keeping them cleaner.
It’s a nice extra support, but I have to admit we’ve never done it. We’ve had a few times where our bottom row of Lynx blocks has sunk in a bit (in soft soil, wet ground or sandy spots), but it’s never been a big issue.
Nina
Great list Nina. We have everything but the shade. It’s on the list for the Tampa RV Show in January. LOVE LOVE my progressive industries. SO many parks have low voltage you don’t even know about without it and some have damaging surges. Months later you have appliance troubles.
Progressive Industries makes a very nice product. If ever our Surge Guard fails or fries that’s what we’ll upgrade to.
Nina
I love your blog. We are still getting our house ready to rent. I have been reading aqyour blog for 2 yesrs and find it so great and simplistic. I just want my husband and I to be ready to take the plunge. I do have 2 stafishishire terriers aka pitbulls, Nina do you think we have problems on our fulltime dream endeavor. They are so lovable. Thank you . Tina
The biggest issue you’ll likely have is that many private parks prohibit what they call “dangerous breeds” which, sadly, includes pit bulls. However NONE of the public parks have these restrictions, so if you camp in public parks (national forest, state park, COE, BLM etc.) you’ll be fine. It will mean more planning for you and a few more restrictions on exactly where you can stay, but I think it’s totally do-able.
Nina
Hi Nina,
This is my first time writing to you, but I have enjoyed your blog off and on for a few years now. Thank you for writing it and helping those of us getting ready to “get out on the road” someday. My husband, Steve, and I bought our first motorhome 3 yrs ago, a used class C Winnebago, and love it for the frequent weekend camping that we do during good weather here in northern Ohio. I can tell that Steve would like a class A rig someday and I see that they are making a lot of all electric RV’s. What is your opinion about all electric?
We hope to retire in 2017 and spend much more time on the road traveling. Your blog is a gem for helpful tips and inspiring stories. We really appreciate it. :):):)
Jody
There are both advantages and disadvantages to all-electric.
The advantages are no propane (no need to carry or fill propane) plus some appliances, specifically residential fridges, tend to cool better than their propane-electric counterparts.
The biggest disadvantage is that power usage is high which means if you ever want to dry-camp or boondock you’re looking at lots of battery power plus a very hefty solar installation and/or lots of generator usage.
The second reason us the main reason we (personally) are not fans of all-electric. We can power our entire rig (with propane fridge and propane cooktop and oven) on a mere 600 watts of solar and 440 amp hours of battery. If we had a residential fridge we’d likely need around 400 watts more solar (plus more batteries) and if we had an electric cooker, we’d need as much power as we could possibly put on our roof (with ideally, extra battery capacity to match) and even that likely wouldn’t be enough (electric heat elements are huge power hogs and we love to cook).
So it just depends how you plan to RV. If you stay in mostly private parks with full hookups then no problems at all. If you are looking to boondock and dry-camp a lot then all-electric can be more problematic.
Nina
Nina is right, all of my research points to as much solar as you can get up there for an all electric coach. We just had ours installed and we started out with 1280 watts with the ability to expand to a total of 1600 watts.
We’ll see how it goes…
Thanks Nina! We have all these items in one form or another except for the MagnaShield. I use the Progressive Industries portable surge protector and chose it over the hard-wired version becuase if it ever blows and needs repair I can just send it to them without all the hassle of taking it out of the rig. The sewer hose we carry is the PolyChute with smooth sides inside with no ribbing. I figured the ribbing creates places for stuff to stick or slow down. It’s expensive but works like a champ. We love our Weber Q120 and use it all the time. Would not be without our 3 sets of Lynx Levelers… I will have to look into a telescoping ladder as my 6 footer will not let me see the roof.
Marti and hope to run into you and Paul this winter somewhere out there in the desert!
Safe travels!
Ed
Our ladder only gets us to the roof when it lies flat. In “bent” (A-frame mode) it’s not tall enough. We really like that we have both options. Never heard of your particular brand of sewer hose. I’m always interested in learning about alternatives so I’ll have to look it up.
Nina
Great list, I’m happy to say we have the hose and ladder and love both of them. I think we’ll have to get the blocks as more and more we are finding sites where the front tires would be off the ground if we didn’t opt for being a bit unlevel. I’m assuming you place the blocks under the tires in those circumstances – once the tires are off the ground after leveled?
No, we place the blocks on the ground in front (or behind) the wheels and then drive the rig up onto them *before* we level. You can’t “squeeze” the blocks underneath the wheels after-the-fact. That doesn’t provide the right support. You need to actually drive your rig onto the blocks. The idea is to get your rig “mostly” level using the blocks. Then once your rig is on the blocks you can “fine-tune” the rest of your leveling (e.g. with your jacks) so that the rig is perfectly flat.
By the way, If we’re using Lynx blocks under the front wheels we’ll also place wooden blocks under the front jack (before we deploy it) so that jack don’t over-extend. We do the same with the back jacks if we’re raising that end of the rig. You can see pics of what that looks like here:
https://www.wheelingit.us/2010/10/25/supporting-leveling-the-rv/
Hope that explains it!
Nina
Great list! We have several of the items you list, but the others are new to me. We need a new grill, so I’m going to check out your recommendation. Thanks!
I can most definitely recommend the Weber. I think you’ll be very happy with it. Happy shopping!
Nina
Great minds think alike – I too have the first 3 items and LOVE them (and my water thief as well). I have two metal tables (one that rolls up and a new one I bought that is in two smaller pieces which works better in my tight quarters). As always you have great and thoughtful recommendations!
Those little metal tables are so versatile. I still can’t quite believe our Walmart cheapo outdoor metal table is still alive, but it’s kicking and well. We use it everywhere we go.
Nina
Thanks for the outstanding christmas list!
We are newbies: bought a 27ft Winnie View at the end of September and immediately drove cross country for a 2 month stint. I follow your blog (as well as the RVforum) and used the index to look up advice, like cold weather camping when we drove into early snowstorms in the high desert.
We’ve been lucky, I now know! No devastating or expensive experiences. And hope we never do. The powersurge protector and leveling blocks are on our immediate list.
Thanks for keeping up your blog. It’s so delightful to read, and you really provide a great service.
Sandra
Thanks for the lovely comment & glad I could give ya some gift tips 🙂
Nina
I couldn’t agree more with all of those ideas! I do not have one of those windshield covers yet though and that would come in super handy! Might have to add that to my wish list.
We’ve been extremely happy with ours. The shades are on the pricey side, but they’ve been very durable and easy to install. Plus the customer service at Magneshade is very good. We lost 2 of our magnets last year (not sure how) and they immediately sent us replacements for free. Nice folks.
Nina
Your blog is very interesting and reflects all of the thought and caring you put into it. I hope some day we can travel like you guys…all the stories and pictures are wonderful. Christmas lists are fun and they can be truly endless but the year after we bought our ’08 Winnebago we got a small fireplace heater that we use constantly all winter. Since we stay in many rv parks with electricity it really helps us save on propane…maybe not for everyone but we love it.
I’ve always loved the look of those fireplace heaters (they just look sooooo cozy), but we’ve never tried them. Good to know you like yours.
Nina
Hey guysthis is kind of interesting.
We were in a campground and another camper school me on the use of leveling blocks and tires.
Its research time. I found this information on leveling blocks on the Internet.
http://www.rvadvice.com/rvarticles/4tires.html
The blocks should be wider than the tread and longer than the tire’s footprint. This provides maximum support to the tires and assures that the load is evenly distributed throughout the tire’s footprint area. If they’re not tires can become fatigued and separate internally causing a failure.
Our tires is 315 / 80 R 22.5 and the footprint is about approx, 9.75″x 9.75″ this means these smaller blocks won’t work.
We are looking at getting more leveling blocks by BSRM Inc. the size “Husspad-Motorhome 12 X 12″ or Outrigger Pads.com 12 X 12” Maybe you can contact them see if they will send you some pads to do a blog on it.
According to this article and information from
Michelin Technical Bulletin “The Use of Blocks to Level Motor Homes/RVs Equipped with Radial Tires” it appears that most of these plastic pads are under sized.
We have 4 of the Hosspad Motorhome size. I originally bought them to put underneath the jacks but now ur using them for leveling under the tires. I have stacked them 3 high and drove up on them no problem. It’s just that after reading these articles I should buy more and say bye bye to all my plastic ones.
What do you guys think?
Honestly I feel fine with our blocks.. Our tires are always completely on the blocks with zero overhang to either side. They’re centered and fully-supported, which is really the point of the article. If you like the larger ones, I don’t see a problem with that either, of course. More support is always nice.
Nina
Nina/Paul
My wife and I are seriously considering full-timing three years from now. Really enjoy reading all of the information that you have on your site. All the decisions that need to be made is mind blowing but obviously one wants to get as many things right as possible and your site seems to cover it all-thank you. Just a couple of questions. We’re trying to decide between a 5th-wheel trailer (we currently own one but will need to upgrade to something bigger and more of a 4-season model, along with a bigger truck) and a Class A (preferably an Allegro by Tiffin). Any thoughts on this subject would be welcomed. However, my real question, is your “Beast” a gasoline or diesel model? If gas, have you had any problems climbing the more mountainous regions in the western parts of the country that you’ve traveled to.
We’re Diesel and have never had any issues climbing mountains. That said we know a lot of folks in gas coaches too. You can fulltime in either. Just make sure the engine has the right power for the weight of the coach.
As for 5th wheel versus A there’s really no “right” decision and each had pros and cons. Class As tend to be easier to set-up/pull-down and it’s nice to be have your whole house (plus pets) travel in comfort down the road, but they are pricier to own and maintain than a 5th wheel. 5th wheels are less expensive and sometimes more off-road capable (depends on the brand), but if they are more trouble to set-up/pull-down and it’s more hassle to travel if you have pets. Either one is a capable fulltime option.
Nina
I recently compiled a listing of my favorite bloggers Christmas Lists’ and of course included your list. I hope it is okay that I have shared it on my blog.
sentimentalsue10.blogspot.com/2015/12/my-favorite-bloggers-share-gift-ideas.html
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us! Always enjoy your easy style of writing!
Sure!! Thanks for including me!
Nina
I have been following your blog for some time. I wanted to comment about the Progressive Industries Surge protector. I do not have the 50amp model I have the 30 amp version, and have had it almost as long as you have had your TRC Surge Guard unit. It has saved our RV several times. Best money I have spent
Excellent! I’m definitely a fan of surge protectors. Good to know yours has served you so well.
Nina