Newbie - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Workinoutgirl · RV-Dreams Community Member

Newbie

53 Merc · RV-Dreams Family Member

Joey, is this not your home? Why on earth would you have your belongings in boxes? Put your things where you THINK they should be and prepare to rearrange as required. Weight placement depends on conditions. I for one would tend to place the heavier items near center of gravity (over the axles), the remainder needs to be wherever it needs to be.
As far as water. Are you really willing to haul water from Washington to Arizona? Why not put a bit of water in the tank to be used for short stops. I am sure you are not going to make the total trip in one go. You will most likely stop for an overnight or two or three. Unless you plan on camping off the grid, you will have water service in campgrounds. Hook up the hose and use their water as needed.
I think I see you think you must use the tank and on-board pump for water service. If you are in a campground, use the hose to the service connection and leave the pump off and the tank at minimum level.
All of us have faced the same excitement and nervousness way back when. Just remember, if we can do it, so can you. The learning curve will be steep, but doable.

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

I would have to agree with Ken in that you should store things from the boxes into storage compartments and drawers where you would have them for full time living in the RV.

As for the water, many only travel with enough to have available for flushing the toilet and getting some drinking water on occasion.

As for where to pack things, you will want to strike a balance in the weight in the RV and not put more at the front than necessary. Too much weight in the front of the trailer will really put extra stress on the rear end of your towing vehicle. That way of loading will also cause the front end of your truck to be light, which could lead to a dangerous situation when trying to steer, especially on wet roads.

Also, too much weight in the back of the RV is not a safe way to pack either.

Keep in mind how much weight will be in your RV so that you don't exceed the capacity of your suspension or of the towing ability of your tow vehicle.

Good luch with everything.

Terry

Workinoutgirl · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thank you so much for your suggestions . I have been doing as much research as possible. So far this is the best site I have come across. Any other comments or suggestions are very appreciated.~Joey

Workinoutgirl · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thanks Terry, Anything else you want to share please feel free.Do's & Don'ts and so on .When I say newbie I really mean NEWBIE

RVRon · RV-Dreams Family Member

We're motorhomers now but at one time we owned a 26' travel trailer. I made the mistake of packing it with too much weight at the rear of the trailer and boy was it a handful towing! It would wigwag all over the road - scaring the heck out of anyone behind me (and of course the driver!). I later found out that you really need to have more than 50% of the weight in front of the axles to make it more solid on the road. Just don't go over the tongue weight capacity of your tow vehicle.

As for packing, we've found that totes are very handy for keeping things organized in the outside compartments. Of course the big things don't need to be in a tote but the small stuff would be all over if it wasn't confined. We've found that the Rubbermaid totes hold up best and try to get clear ones so we can see what's inside.

Good luck with your new home!

-- Edited by RVRon on Friday 4th of May 2012 08:56:37 AM

Workinoutgirl · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thank you, those are great suggestions ,I did in fact get some of those !