You speak my language with simple convenience, practicality, comfort, frugality and of course common sense. We do have some of the products you use now. Look forward to your newsletter monthly.
I put pin switches and LED lights in all of my cabinets. Open the door light comes on, close door and light goes off. I also installed a 12v computer fan in bottom of fridge to move the cold air and two of them in the back of the fridge to blow over the coils. Helps tremendously in this Texas heat.
***** We should be making it even more our own this summer, now that the new is well worn off the rig, we plan to renovate a bit. Chuck the furniture, buy a nice recliner and make some of our own. I plan to build in a computer desk and a day bed with storage where the sofa is now.
curliefro Thanks, yes we do! This summer we are in the process of renovating the interior, replacing the original furniture with stuff that is more our own style and adding some custom builds. ua-cam.com/play/PLp14lzXh07ukjWsut_YRW4d-RZ0_wu6Ai.html Just yesterday we picked up a really cool new recliner to replace the tired old original - rvhappyhour.com/members/raytronx/activity/29846/ Thanks for the comment, Cheers Ray
Great idea on the knife valve at the outlet! I am going to do that to our 93 NuWa 5th wheel tomorrow. One of our valves is seeping sometimes,,,,,,you are so right,,,,,,nice to remove the cap and not have that small burst of liquid. Plus, at the finish of a dumping you don't have to worry that every last drop got out before you take the hose off.
Thoroughly enjoying your videos Ray. We just purchased our first RV, a 2006 Class A Fleetwood Pace Arrow 37C & pick it up from the dealer next week. We are excited to hit the road as both new RVers & new snowbirds & I have found your posts very informative & useful as I prepare as best I can for what lay ahead. Thanks for sharing your insight and valuable tips.
Great video, good tips. As a new to the RV world couple we value the information and the comments that are informative for alternatives. Really amazed at the available space that the 5th wheel affords for mods/upgrades. We are starting out with a 25' Sprinter so I am examining every inch available. Have tons I want to have available during travel. Checklists are changing every day.
Thank you so much for this video! We are hopefully moving to our RV full time in near future and will be boondocking for a bit. Tons of helpful info! Really appreciate it!!!
Very useful tips. Especially the Dust Caps for Locks so cool, I've never heard or seen anything like that before (maybe I never noticed it). Thank you so much!
I am interested on where you found the lock with the cover on your storage door. We just bought a 2019 31 ft Surveyor and we are changing out all the locks like we did on our older trailer for safety.
+JonasVideoReview I made a foam square to lay the iMac face down into, then it gets placed in the storage area under the bed. Seems to work well, we have been on many rough roads and the iMac is OK after over 4 years of travel.
Great roof upgrade with the tape over the original caulking. When/if I ever get time and no rain at the same time, I’ll have to get that done with our rig. There seems to be a small leak in the skylight over the shub. Hopefully, that will fix it until I get get it properly repaired/replaced. D.
I to have installed solar on my roof, however I recently bought an extra 100 watt panel so I can park in the shade and satellite the new panel in the sun, make for about 20 degrees cooler in the RV... Nice work on your upgrades...
windjammer1958 Thanks, good idea on the remote panel, down the road I may get one to catch that early morning low angle eastern sunlight. Temperature isn't too much of a problem as we are full-time snowbirds and just keep moving to cooler locations. :)
Excellent job on the upgrades. I did have to scratch my head on the remote awning? I have to use a crank.....guess I'm still in the 70's. LOL Hey, you forgot your jack pads. That was a big upgrade. Good to see a new video, it's been awhile.
Wow... these are very well thought-out and implemented improvements. As you noted... some of these improvements are obvious (or would make themselves obvious fairly quickly after some use of the rig), but they are nice improvements... and again, as you noted, I don't know why the manufacturers don't do some of these things beforehand (LED lighting, Fan-Tastic vent fan, Digital Thermostat,Towel and Shower Racks, Pantry Lighting, LOL The EXTRA WASTE VALVE, just to name a few). I'm interested in getting an RV or building my own custom camper (so I am new to all of this and I'm researching this type of stuff) so I appreciated your candor and I appreciated the time you took to make this video. Thank You and I wish you happy and safe travels :)
Hi Ray, love your love your rv! Always a swell video! I like the oops in the shower..... and Anne is a shy one eh? The cameo by your Beagle in last shots was icing on the cake! Thanks again!
I’m sure you have figured this out by now, but others may not, so I’ll throw it out there. The gate at the end of your black/gray water dump can be used to back flush your black tank with your gray. Empty your black tank and leave it open. Than shut the last gate and open the gray gate. The water sloshes into the black tank as the water finds level. Close the gray gate and open the last gate to empty the remains from the black. Then finish with emptying the gray. Close all the gates.
Yep I've also like your videos I've also read, from time to time, your bog. Your modifications are nice additions and pretty much what I would do if I were to continue to live in my RV. I had a 09 26ft bunkhouse that had a unique floor plan,as rule I do not like bunk house style, however for the little over 2 years I lived in mine it became obvious that one must make changes to aid in functioality. You mentioned RV designers didn't take some thing into account and I think that is because most folks are weekend warriors and the are in parks are semi full time camps such as out here on the Eastcoast. I have plans on finding an older pull behind or 5th wheel and kind of semi remodling it to fit my needs because I want more prctical features and I was thinking of trying to add electrical appliances that are soft start in addition to LEDS etc. so I only need a small generater such as those Champions you run, and not overburdening the batteries when using power as one example.
Daniel Voss Thanks for the idea, but I don't have much to offer in that area. Our only solution is wearing very simple clothing, usually cotton and having enough items for at leat two weeks, then hitting a laundry mat or RV Park for a big wash session. Some RVers have small onboard washers and dryers, but our rig is a little too small for that.
John Taylor Sure, check out my full blog post about the locks - www.loveyourrv.com/rv-storage-bay-locks-really-secure/ I got mine from www.ch751.com/ They were good to deal with, small US company. Cheers Ray
The best thing about it I find was a few times when the manual switches didn't work ie. for the awning and front jacks, the remote circuit to those motors still worked. Good for back up.
Thanks, I've thought about drawers but it's always a trade-off with weight. As full-timers, our rig is pretty packed so near it's max weight capacity. I always have to weigh the pros and cons of adding things. We haven't found the need for them so decided against adding the extra weight. I have long arms. :)
Thanks. You may like the sequel video - 20 more upgrades - ua-cam.com/video/uRbGmxun1LI/v-deo.html Cheers Ray
9 років тому+6
Very nice video as always. I really like the roof upgrades and the lights in the pantry. Really nice how you've used empty space !!!!! left by the manufacturer for storing shoes. The shower faucet and shower head are great also. I plan on installing an oxygenics in mine as soon as I can, they give a lot more pressure.
I'd add more batteries before more solar and see how the system balances out first. I have about 270 watts of solar and 2 golf cart batteries and I find that when I have lots of sun I have too much solar and when I don't have sun I don't have enough battery. Part of the problem is that the batteries can only charge so fast (something generator operators need to learn) so while I might get as much as 13 amps going in when the batteries are low, when they are getting full that number drops right down. (I know 13 amps is only about 160 watts but the panels are lying flat so they don't run at 100%.) I have golf cart batteries now but when they are done I am going back to 110 AH deep cycle 12 volts. They are more flexible and cheaper. You can have 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. And you can steal one to run your trolling motor. I haven't found the 6 volt batteries to offer any advantages, they cost more, and you have to keep adding distilled water. The LED lights are a godsend. Before they came out I had a florescent, still do actually, and it was better than the incandescents but no where near as good as the LED's. I didn't replace all the bulbs, just the ones we use most. A six pack of LED's is the best power upgrade you can make. They are so much cheaper and easier to install than a florescent. I'm especially glad I replaced the porch light. Before, if I forget to turn it off when turning in for the night, it could easily use 1/4 of a 200 amp hour setup. Now, if I accidentally leave the LED porch light on I barely notice it. Then put one bulb (who ever uses both lights in those fixtures?) in the main area, bathroom. dinning, kitchen, and bedroom and you can cut your battery drain at night by a ridiculous amount. The other advantage of putting an LED light in the porch fixture is that you no longer really need lanterns at the camp site. Say goodbye to that propane Coleman torch that goes through a $4 bottle of propane in 5 hours, you don't need it anymore. Sure,, it's still a lot brighter, but the light is in the wrong place and it's a bother. Once you have an LED porch light all you have to do is turn it on. Sometimes for fun I also hang a string of LED Christmas lights from the awning and plug them into the inverter, but again the power draw is pretty low and it provides all the light you need around the campsite. I noticed you have a power awning. My trailer came with one and I still have the bent up pieces but I had it replaced with a manual one. When properly extended with all the clamps tight, a manual awning is much less likely to twist itself up in a gust of wind and rip itself off the camper. I would never buy an electric awning again without automatic wind retraction, and even then I wouldn't like it because sometimes I like to sit under the awning when it's raining and the electric ones cannot be adjusted for that. The other consideration that is important is the TV. Of course most people are buying LED TV's now, but if you have an older rig with a plasma it has to go. They use too much power to run on batteries. And even with an LED it is important to look at the power consumption and consider how big of a screen you really need. A 21 inch LED TV might use 30 watts, whereas a 42 inch might go over 100. The same applies to computer monitors. And always use a laptop, the solar panels can charge them in the day and you don't have to drain the rig's batteries at night.
Fun! Hey I would really like to see how you ran the wires for all those uprgades, like the solar panels, the pantry lights. You went under the belly for the headphones, did you have to tear down the fabric? How did that work out? Thanks!
Thanks for the awesome video! :-) You have given me alot of great ideas for my travel trailer! Just a quick question though what's the toggle switch on the side of your thermostat for?
I use a similar shut-off valve on my shower, but would like the info on the one shown in the video. I like the large buttons used to toggle it. Thanks!
Thank you! That one does look like it has bigger buttons than the one I have now. I just called Oxygenics to ask if they sell the valve separately and they said they do, but only to customers with proof of purchase. Thanks very much for your quick reply with the link!
this is why I want to build my own tiny house. you have a complete place and yet you found things that needed improvement. you should design them now that you know where they are lacking.
The outside right rear tire looks low, you need to check it. I liked all your up grades and I need to find the surge protector like you have, where did you get it?
Stan Wilson Must be an optical illusion, as the PSI is bang on the same as the others, I always check before each tow. Here the install post I did for my surge protector - www.loveyourrv.com/progressive-industries-model-ems-hw30c/ Cheers Ray
Ron Ortoli Thanks, see my blog post - www.loveyourrv.com/installing-renogy-200w-solar-kit-rv/ In the video I show the path I used in a wall along side the black tanks vent pipe. Made for a really convenient path and very short distance to my batteries.
After watching countless you tubes for improvement ideas - this was the BEST!! Keep up the great work and include us - RV lovers. I am also planning to use solar energy but will need it for about 26 hours (continuous) which mean lights, A/C or heat, refrigerator (but NO other appliances such as microwave) ect. I wonder if the batteries can last that long with a 10-12 hours sun charge.
Faucets in, most campers, are the cheapest junk you can get. When it comes time for replacement hit a good box store like HomeDepot or Lowesand buy a set for home use. As long as they match up with the holes in the sink top you're good to go.
Hi Ray - - I really have been enjoying your videos. I used to RV with my family. Now I'm an old lady and being a bit of a voyeur while I wait to get my eyes renewed (cataracts) to reclaim my license. I'm using the time to explore RVing vicariously so that I can decide what kind of vehicle I want to aim for when my eyes are healed. Retired, I know that I want a dual purpose vehicle. It's deciding Class B, Fifty Wheel and a Super Truck, Class A or Travel Trailer. I'm leaning toward a fifth wheel or a Class B. I've done the van with a push up roof and enjoyed it. I am also looking to figure out wheher I want to go full time or stay part-time and set up my vehicle for airbursh and such to work festivals. It's exciting and fun and a great impetus to make me get my eyes done sooner rather than later. Once that is done and I can part-time for a little while I will be in a better position to decide whether or not to sell off and prepare to go full time. What fun the next few years hold for me! Thank you for sharing your tips. Solar is new to me and WOW! It surely does make things easier. I'm now a subscriber so will be checking out the rest of your online stuff. Happy trails!
Ellen L Johnson Thanks very much. :) We had a Class B Camper Van for years and loved it. Took us to some nice places and I used it as my daily driver. Once we went full time and with two dogs at the time, we went for the fifth wheel, four years ago that was and we really like it still. I'm planning on some remodeling this summer, replace the furniture with leather, build a day bed/sofa and remove the carpeting and add in some vinyl woolven flooring, stay tuned. :) Cheers Ray
Love Your RV We camped for several years in a Ford 450XL Econoline window van with a push up top which my ex and I built in ourselves. One thing he did on the daybed was to put four drawers below it that came all the way up to the plywood bottom of the bed. They pulled out to form the support for another piece of equally thick plywood that we used to form the rest of our queen size bed at night. We got a pillow thing that was made for it and would fold up in the daytime to form the backrest for the sofa. Our kids slept in the sling bunks above in the push up. They loved it ! Oh, a lip on the front of the drawers made by the paneling facing provided a stop for our mattress so that it didn't slide off. Later I also built a cabinet on which we put eye-bolts for the bungee cords we used to hold down our portable propane two burner primus camp stove and our plastic portable sink. A large jerry jug provided drainage for that sink inside the van so that we could use it either inside or outside. We put a porta-potti in the back of the van with some hanging storage above it and a closet door which opened toward the front of the van to become a privacy door when someone wanted to use the toilet. A taller bank of smaller drawers provided the rest of our storage and we put a mirror above them for "primping" inside the van. We would spread a very large tarp over the van before we put the top up and then we staked and tied it with some tent poles and ropes to form a rain fly and outdoor space on one of both sides of the van. By putting the tarp over the top we could still open our double side doors for easy ingress and egress when parked. I too drove this unit for my vehicle and for most of the time we had it, the van, named Blueberry Ice Cream by my girls, was the only vehicle we owned. Later, when we moved to California and my husband didn't take the train to work or have a company car, we got a small car as well. Didn't mean for this to go so long, but wanted to hopefully get the info about the convertible day bed and deep drawers to yo before you did your remodel. I imagine those three piece attached fold-out daybed cushions are still available. Peace - - -Ellen
Great upgrades! Great video! Doesnt that digital meter max out at 10 amps that you have measuring solar charge amps to battery bank??? I love the setup. It all looks great and you really made it your own! Love it! Thanks for the great video!
I mostly boondocking during the winter season in the desert and adjust my elevation to follow mild weather 60-80F so a low power draw electric fan is usually sufficient for cooling. If it ever gets really hot I could use a gas generator or head to a RV park or state/county park with hookups till the heat passes. To put together a solar power AC system can get quite expensive as you need quite a few solar panels , lots of batteries and a large inverter.
Darwin Hall Cheapest place to order I believe is Amazon - www.amazon.com/Starlights-921-250-Replacement-Ceiling-Fixtures/dp/B004LF93WQ/ref=pd_sim_auto_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0ETNWWFEEKD4FB35JK4R Here is a blog post I did on my install with the numbers used - www.loveyourrv.com/install-review-starlights-led-lamps-rv/
Love Your RV Thanks for the quick reply. I have some LED lamps in my fixtures, but they are very blue and my wife doesn't like them. I will check out the link to Amazon.
Very impressive upgrades, hope you don't mind me taking a few for myself. Only questions are (1) does your system allow you to add more panels and batt's? Also have you switched all your lights to the LED bulbs so it doesn't drain more power? ty for the video
ZEROEDN72 Thanks, you bet. :) Yes I have space for more batteries and panels and plan to double my capacity for this falls boondocking season down south. I have swapped out my old lamps for LED and it made a big difference. - www.loveyourrv.com/install-review-starlights-led-lamps-rv/ Cheers Ray
I see your two panels are bringing in almost 10 amps. So now your looking at going to four panels I am looking to start with 4 panels and use 12 volt batts that have a 125 or 155 ah rating only because I get a huge discount on 12 volt batts. I am just starting learning about solar and from my calculations I should create over 30 amps in full sun but I boondock in tree areas so I am hoping to get 15 to 18 amps in full sun. Now would you go with 300 AH's on the total battery bank or stay down around 250AH. My biggest charging draws would be my mobility cart because I am disabled and a few cameras and laptops along with the normal stuff, TV's radios lighting etc. In your opinion is 400 watts enough with the 250 AH bank or or would you increase to 600 watts and run over 400 AH battery bank. BTW I like many of your improvements. Manufactures really need to pay attention to what people change or improve on. My current 400 watts plans will cost me 1800 to 1900 bucks so I want to do it once and be safe with enough power instead of adding on later. Oh another thing did you run with a MPPT setup or just a generic set up. If you can help out it would be very valuable to me. TIA David
+David Wohlfeil 400 watts may be enough solar but I would suggest going with a 400 AH bank so you have sufficient storage capacity. That's what I'm soon planning to do. I didn't go with a MPPT as I believe a cheaper PWM type controller will work well enough with my system size and since all my panels will be the same type and wired in parallel, so I can allocate the savings elsewhere. If you are boondocking in trees, you may have shade issues, check out this article for some info on that problem when is comes to using a MPPT type controller - www.amsolar.com/home/amr/page_165 Cheers Ray
+Smitty Durkin Thanks for the info I value your input. I will be purchasing my equipment over the winter. The battery info is most valuable I will take that into consideration when buying them. My system will be mostly from Renogy Panels, controller, and inverter plus meters. I like keeping everything in the same brand name because its all been tested together. At my current figures my system will cost $2300.00 Th buy back all depends on how often I go out but I figure it should be around two and half years.
I didn't catch the name or brand of that tape you were using on the roof ? Would you mind letting me know ? I enjoyed these videos of yours. I just found you. I have seen two of them and now have subscribed.
It's called Eternabond. Here is some more info on it. Thanks for subscribing. Cheers Ray www.loveyourrv.com/resealing-rv-roof-eternabond-tape/ www.loveyourrv.com/beefing-up-my-rv-roof-seals-with-eternabond-tape/
+Scott Andrews There are a couple sources Amazon and CH751.com. Check out my blog post about changing them out --> www.loveyourrv.com/rv-storage-bay-locks-really-secure/ Cheers Ray
Love your videos. You don't have a satellite dish for tv? I was wondering how much that cost to add to an RV. Did you coat the roof? How often do you have to do that to make sure it does not leak? How much were the upgrades and did you add them yourself?
Thanks Ron, We aren't big TV watchers so whatever we get on the antenna for free is fine, we do download the occasional TV series or movie. I'm not sure how much Sat cost but I have seen some folks with the little Tailgater Sat things, I don't think they are much. If you install an automatically pointing dish I'm sure it can run into the thousands. I installed all the upgrades myself, some were cheap some were several hundred dollars, like the solar power and the surge protector. Cheers Ray
Thank you for the reply. Is it hard to install the upgrades? Maybe you can do some videos on how to install some of the things you put in. I want to have some solar when I get my RV and your instructions would be a great help. I like what you have done to yours and would want to add some of them to mine!! Than you again!!
Check out these two links. Contained in the posts are links to all my details of the installations usually with a video. :) www.loveyourrv.com/20-upgrades-we-have-made-to-our-rv/ www.loveyourrv.com/20-rv-upgrades-fifth-wheel-trailer/
You speak my language with simple convenience, practicality, comfort, frugality and of course common sense. We do have some of the products you use now. Look forward to your newsletter monthly.
And now you're up to 63.9k!! Awesome!
I put pin switches and LED lights in all of my cabinets. Open the door light comes on, close door and light goes off. I also installed a 12v computer fan in bottom of fridge to move the cold air and two of them in the back of the fridge to blow over the coils. Helps tremendously in this Texas heat.
Great video, lot's of ideas to chew on here. I love to see how fulltimers organize their rigs to their personal lifestyle, thanks!
***** We should be making it even more our own this summer, now that the new is well worn off the rig, we plan to renovate a bit. Chuck the furniture, buy a nice recliner and make some of our own. I plan to build in a computer desk and a day bed with storage where the sofa is now.
Thank you for your videos. My wife and I are looking at going full time in the future. It’s great to see your ideas.
You're welcome. Thanks for watching. :)
You truly love your RV! Love how your creative upgrades have improved your quality of living.
curliefro Thanks, yes we do! This summer we are in the process of renovating the interior, replacing the original furniture with stuff that is more our own style and adding some custom builds. ua-cam.com/play/PLp14lzXh07ukjWsut_YRW4d-RZ0_wu6Ai.html Just yesterday we picked up a really cool new recliner to replace the tired old original - rvhappyhour.com/members/raytronx/activity/29846/ Thanks for the comment, Cheers Ray
Great idea on the knife valve at the outlet! I am going to do that to our 93 NuWa 5th wheel tomorrow. One of our valves is seeping sometimes,,,,,,you are so right,,,,,,nice to remove the cap and not have that small burst of liquid. Plus, at the finish of a dumping you don't have to worry that every last drop got out before you take the hose off.
wayne halladey Ya, it's been a great little additon.
Thoroughly enjoying your videos Ray. We just purchased our first RV, a 2006 Class A Fleetwood Pace Arrow 37C & pick it up from the dealer next week. We are excited to hit the road as both new RVers & new snowbirds & I have found your posts very informative & useful as I prepare as best I can for what lay ahead. Thanks for sharing your insight and valuable tips.
Rich Dawdy You're welcome, glad you like the vids and stuff. Congrats on the RV and hitting the road! Cheers Ray
Ray, Congrats on the 7,500 subscribers. You earned them all with great videos!
fastfoodvon Thanks!
Great video, good tips. As a new to the RV world couple we value the information and the comments that are informative for alternatives. Really amazed at the available space that the 5th wheel affords for mods/upgrades. We are starting out with a 25' Sprinter so I am examining every inch available. Have tons I want to have available during travel. Checklists are changing every day.
+Tom Hess III Thanks. I like fifth wheels, lots of storage space and headroom. Happy Travels with the Sprinter. Cheers Ray
Time for a wind generator. Lol. Good info thanks for the useful up dates.
Jim Davis You're very welcome. :)
Thank you so much for this video! We are hopefully moving to our RV full time in near future and will be boondocking for a bit. Tons of helpful info! Really appreciate it!!!
You're welcome!
Thank you for all your great helpful video's helped me to get my broken landing gearoff.
Cool, that's great to hear, Cheers! Ray
Very useful tips. Especially the Dust Caps for Locks so cool, I've never heard or seen anything like that before (maybe I never noticed it). Thank you so much!
What a great video chocked full of great info! Always enjoy your videos!
Nice upgrade ideas, I really like the Cougars too, like there set up. Thanks
Ed H Yes we really like the layout inside, makes it seem larger than it is, especially with the big windows.
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND EFFORT!!
Kenny A You're very welcome. :)
Wow good info on that lock. I pulled my keys out of my pocket and sure enough, CH751. Will have to do a lock upgrade. Thanks!
***** You're welcome. Cheers Ray. :)
Good ideas, thanks for sharing them. It's motivating to see how much you have done yourself. Good job.
Great upgrades! I'll use the ones I need when I do my own build. Love your flag! Happy trails to you and your lady!
I am interested on where you found the lock with the cover on your storage door. We just bought a 2019 31 ft Surveyor and we are changing out all the locks like we did on our older trailer for safety.
Check out - shoprvlocks.com/ Cheers, Ray
Like your upgrades. Thanks for the ideas.
"Happy Trails & God Bless " 😂
nice to have more ideas for when i get my own unit.
Watched a lot of video's ....yours was the most useful thanks
Thanks! I've put out a sequel with our latest upgrades - ua-cam.com/video/uRbGmxun1LI/v-deo.html Cheers Ray
Great job Ray!!! Did you see the plaque I built for the Pinnacles?? on the right as you pass the old pipeline.
Is it this one? - www.loveyourrv.com/wp-content/gallery/trona-pinnacles-blm-in-california/Trona-Pinnacles-sign.jpg
+JonasVideoReview I made a foam square to lay the iMac face down into, then it gets placed in the storage area under the bed. Seems to work well, we have been on many rough roads and the iMac is OK after over 4 years of travel.
Thank you for the good videos
All good common sense additions with cost considerations in mind! Very nice, I enjoy the channel:)
Norm K. Thanks!
very good info. i will upgrade somethings now. thank u
Lots of valuable information. Well done!
Thank you, I have another 20 if you're interested - ua-cam.com/video/uRbGmxun1LI/v-deo.html
Cheers! Ray
Great roof upgrade with the tape over the original caulking. When/if I ever get time and no rain at the same time, I’ll have to get that done with our rig. There seems to be a small leak in the skylight over the shub. Hopefully, that will fix it until I get get it properly repaired/replaced.
D.
I to have installed solar on my roof, however I recently bought an extra 100 watt panel so I can park in the shade and satellite the new panel in the sun, make for about 20 degrees cooler in the RV... Nice work on your upgrades...
windjammer1958 Thanks, good idea on the remote panel, down the road I may get one to catch that early morning low angle eastern sunlight. Temperature isn't too much of a problem as we are full-time snowbirds and just keep moving to cooler locations. :)
Wow those 751 keys are used everywhere.......I use them everyday at work.
Thanks for info, lots of good information that I can use.
You are so nice and have so many good ideas.
Good ideas. Thanks for sharing
Very good essential upgrades!
Gorgeous area you are parked. Thanks for all of your tips, love your channe
Thanks!
Great tips !
You got my subscription. Nice upgrades, nice work.
jarrod landry Thanks!
Looking forward to your new sofa video. Great ideas.
Thanks Ray.
Excellent job on the upgrades. I did have to scratch my head on the remote awning? I have to use a crank.....guess I'm still in the 70's. LOL Hey, you forgot your jack pads. That was a big upgrade. Good to see a new video, it's been awhile.
NWHiker I often thought I could modify the circuitry and make the remote work do something else the but never can up with anything useful.
Keep the videos coming. Look forward to the next one.
Very nice video! Thank you for sharing~
Great video. Thanks.
Wow... these are very well thought-out and implemented improvements.
As you noted... some of these improvements are obvious (or would make themselves obvious fairly quickly after some use of the rig), but they are nice improvements... and again, as you noted, I don't know why the manufacturers don't do some of these things beforehand (LED lighting, Fan-Tastic vent fan, Digital Thermostat,Towel and Shower Racks, Pantry Lighting, LOL The EXTRA WASTE VALVE, just to name a few).
I'm interested in getting an RV or building my own custom camper (so I am new to all of this and I'm researching this type of stuff) so I appreciated your candor and I appreciated the time you took to make this video.
Thank You and I wish you happy and safe travels :)
Hi Ray, love your love your rv! Always a swell video! I like the oops in the shower..... and Anne is a shy one eh?
The cameo by your Beagle in last shots was icing on the cake!
Thanks again!
BoxinTheCompass Thanks! I think she was hard at work and didn't even notice I was recording. :) The beagle always seems to worm her way in, haha.
20 upgrades-----20 likes.
good quality video.
thanks for sharing.
I’m sure you have figured this out by now, but others may not, so I’ll throw it out there.
The gate at the end of your black/gray water dump can be used to back flush your black tank with your gray. Empty your black tank and leave it open. Than shut the last gate and open the gray gate. The water sloshes into the black tank as the water finds level. Close the gray gate and open the last gate to empty the remains from the black. Then finish with emptying the gray. Close all the gates.
Greatly helpful information, thank you!
You're welcome. :)
Yep I've also like your videos I've also read, from time to time, your bog. Your modifications are nice additions and pretty much what I would do if I were to continue to live in my RV. I had a 09 26ft bunkhouse that had a unique floor plan,as rule I do not like bunk house style, however for the little over 2 years I lived in mine it became obvious that one must make changes to aid in functioality. You mentioned RV designers didn't take some thing into account and I think that is because most folks are weekend warriors and the are in parks are semi full time camps such as out here on the Eastcoast. I have plans on finding an older pull behind or 5th wheel and kind of semi remodling it to fit my needs because I want more prctical features and I was thinking of trying to add electrical appliances that are soft start in addition to LEDS etc. so I only need a small generater such as those Champions you run, and not overburdening the batteries when using power as one example.
Powder River Yup , most full timers I know eventually do a full remodel at some point to make the RV there own.
nice job...great tips!
Good info and upgrades.
Thanks for the video. I have a suggested video that may be interesting. How about laundry solutions.
Daniel Voss Thanks for the idea, but I don't have much to offer in that area. Our only solution is wearing very simple clothing, usually cotton and having enough items for at leat two weeks, then hitting a laundry mat or RV Park for a big wash session. Some RVers have small onboard washers and dryers, but our rig is a little too small for that.
Great upgrades.
As always great video
sweet rig!
I'll steal some of your ideas I'm sure, but will have to adapt them for my TT.
Thanks for sharing🌎
I love the storage locks. The cover is great. Do you know where I can get some?
John Taylor Sure, check out my full blog post about the locks - www.loveyourrv.com/rv-storage-bay-locks-really-secure/
I got mine from www.ch751.com/ They were good to deal with, small US company. Cheers Ray
one of my first buys, was that valve. Its a life saver to keep that long pipe full of ???? at bay.
I like the flag too. It must help you find your RV in a crowded spot.
I have that same remote in my cougar..I thought it was more gimmicky than useful when the salesman showed it off, but he was sure proud of it.
The best thing about it I find was a few times when the manual switches didn't work ie. for the awning and front jacks, the remote circuit to those motors still worked. Good for back up.
good stuff great ideas
Great video thanks for sharing .
u should put in some draw sliders either wire baskets or wooden draws in the cabinets especially the deep ones
Thanks, I've thought about drawers but it's always a trade-off with weight. As full-timers, our rig is pretty packed so near it's max weight capacity. I always have to weigh the pros and cons of adding things. We haven't found the need for them so decided against adding the extra weight. I have long arms. :)
Great video, subbed. Vancouver canada !
69troyjan Thanks!
just the video I was looking for ! Thank you great job
Thanks. You may like the sequel video - 20 more upgrades - ua-cam.com/video/uRbGmxun1LI/v-deo.html
Cheers Ray
Very nice video as always. I really like the roof upgrades and the lights in the pantry. Really nice how you've used empty space !!!!! left by the manufacturer for storing shoes. The shower faucet and shower head are great also. I plan on installing an oxygenics in mine as soon as I can, they give a lot more pressure.
François Goudreau Thanks! The showers are great now, I think it uses a bit less water as well. :)
I'd add more batteries before more solar and see how the system balances out first. I have about 270 watts of solar and 2 golf cart batteries and I find that when I have lots of sun I have too much solar and when I don't have sun I don't have enough battery. Part of the problem is that the batteries can only charge so fast (something generator operators need to learn) so while I might get as much as 13 amps going in when the batteries are low, when they are getting full that number drops right down. (I know 13 amps is only about 160 watts but the panels are lying flat so they don't run at 100%.)
I have golf cart batteries now but when they are done I am going back to 110 AH deep cycle 12 volts. They are more flexible and cheaper. You can have 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. And you can steal one to run your trolling motor. I haven't found the 6 volt batteries to offer any advantages, they cost more, and you have to keep adding distilled water.
The LED lights are a godsend. Before they came out I had a florescent, still do actually, and it was better than the incandescents but no where near as good as the LED's. I didn't replace all the bulbs, just the ones we use most. A six pack of LED's is the best power upgrade you can make. They are so much cheaper and easier to install than a florescent. I'm especially glad I replaced the porch light. Before, if I forget to turn it off when turning in for the night, it could easily use 1/4 of a 200 amp hour setup. Now, if I accidentally leave the LED porch light on I barely notice it. Then put one bulb (who ever uses both lights in those fixtures?) in the main area, bathroom. dinning, kitchen, and bedroom and you can cut your battery drain at night by a ridiculous amount.
The other advantage of putting an LED light in the porch fixture is that you no longer really need lanterns at the camp site. Say goodbye to that propane Coleman torch that goes through a $4 bottle of propane in 5 hours, you don't need it anymore. Sure,, it's still a lot brighter, but the light is in the wrong place and it's a bother. Once you have an LED porch light all you have to do is turn it on. Sometimes for fun I also hang a string of LED Christmas lights from the awning and plug them into the inverter, but again the power draw is pretty low and it provides all the light you need around the campsite.
I noticed you have a power awning. My trailer came with one and I still have the bent up pieces but I had it replaced with a manual one. When properly extended with all the clamps tight, a manual awning is much less likely to twist itself up in a gust of wind and rip itself off the camper. I would never buy an electric awning again without automatic wind retraction, and even then I wouldn't like it because sometimes I like to sit under the awning when it's raining and the electric ones cannot be adjusted for that.
The other consideration that is important is the TV. Of course most people are buying LED TV's now, but if you have an older rig with a plasma it has to go. They use too much power to run on batteries. And even with an LED it is important to look at the power consumption and consider how big of a screen you really need. A 21 inch LED TV might use 30 watts, whereas a 42 inch might go over 100. The same applies to computer monitors. And always use a laptop, the solar panels can charge them in the day and you don't have to drain the rig's batteries at night.
Fun! Hey I would really like to see how you ran the wires for all those uprgades, like the solar panels, the pantry lights. You went under the belly for the headphones, did you have to tear down the fabric? How did that work out? Thanks!
Thanks for the awesome video! :-) You have given me alot of great ideas for my travel trailer! Just a quick question though what's the toggle switch on the side of your thermostat for?
Craig Sawyer Thank you! It's the High/Low fan switch for the Air Conditioner. The Hunter thermostat didn't have that so I had to add it on.
Oh ok that's a great idea! :-)
Where did you get the paper towel holder? Thanks for the great tips.
A kitchen store in Victoria BC about 6 years ago. Haven't seen one like it anywhere since. Cheers Ray
I use a similar shut-off valve on my shower, but would like the info on the one shown in the video. I like the large buttons used to toggle it. Thanks!
It came with the Oxygenics shower head I had. Here is one like it - amzn.to/2y9wwHa Cheers, Ray
Thank you! That one does look like it has bigger buttons than the one I have now. I just called Oxygenics to ask if they sell the valve separately and they said they do, but only to customers with proof of purchase. Thanks very much for your quick reply with the link!
this is why I want to build my own tiny house. you have a complete place and yet you found things that needed improvement. you should design them now that you know where they are lacking.
Thanks... 👣
Would love to install those rounded key locks.... where did you pick those up from?
Phil Chew I got them from www.ch751.com/ :)
The outside right rear tire looks low, you need to check it. I liked all your up grades and I need to find the surge protector like you have, where did you get it?
Stan Wilson Must be an optical illusion, as the PSI is bang on the same as the others, I always check before each tow. Here the install post I did for my surge protector - www.loveyourrv.com/progressive-industries-model-ems-hw30c/ Cheers Ray
How did you route the cable to the roof top panels? I love these mods, we are about to buy a 35' fifth wheel for full time living in AZ.
Great video.
Ron Ortoli Thanks, see my blog post - www.loveyourrv.com/installing-renogy-200w-solar-kit-rv/
In the video I show the path I used in a wall along side the black tanks vent pipe. Made for a really convenient path and very short distance to my batteries.
After watching countless you tubes for improvement ideas - this was the BEST!!
Keep up the great work and include us - RV lovers.
I am also planning to use solar energy but will need it for about 26 hours (continuous) which mean lights, A/C or heat, refrigerator (but NO other appliances such as microwave) ect. I wonder if the batteries can last that long with a 10-12 hours sun charge.
Thanks, I have a newer video also showing 20 More upgrades - ua-cam.com/video/uRbGmxun1LI/v-deo.html
Cheers Ray
Faucets in, most campers, are the cheapest junk you can get. When it comes time for replacement hit a good box store like HomeDepot or Lowesand buy a set for home use. As long as they match up with the holes in the sink top you're good to go.
Hi Ray - - I really have been enjoying your videos. I used to RV with my family. Now I'm an old lady and being a bit of a voyeur while I wait to get my eyes renewed (cataracts) to reclaim my license. I'm using the time to explore RVing vicariously so that I can decide what kind of vehicle I want to aim for when my eyes are healed. Retired, I know that I want a dual purpose vehicle. It's deciding Class B, Fifty Wheel and a Super Truck, Class A or Travel Trailer. I'm leaning toward a fifth wheel or a Class B. I've done the van with a push up roof and enjoyed it. I am also looking to figure out wheher I want to go full time or stay part-time and set up my vehicle for airbursh and such to work festivals. It's exciting and fun and a great impetus to make me get my eyes done sooner rather than later. Once that is done and I can part-time for a little while I will be in a better position to decide whether or not to sell off and prepare to go full time. What fun the next few years hold for me! Thank you for sharing your tips. Solar is new to me and WOW! It surely does make things easier. I'm now a subscriber so will be checking out the rest of your online stuff. Happy trails!
Ellen L Johnson Thanks very much. :) We had a Class B Camper Van for years and loved it. Took us to some nice places and I used it as my daily driver. Once we went full time and with two dogs at the time, we went for the fifth wheel, four years ago that was and we really like it still. I'm planning on some remodeling this summer, replace the furniture with leather, build a day bed/sofa and remove the carpeting and add in some vinyl woolven flooring, stay tuned. :) Cheers Ray
Love Your RV We camped for several years in a Ford 450XL Econoline window van with a push up top which my ex and I built in ourselves. One thing he did on the daybed was to put four drawers below it that came all the way up to the plywood bottom of the bed. They pulled out to form the support for another piece of equally thick plywood that we used to form the rest of our queen size bed at night. We got a pillow thing that was made for it and would fold up in the daytime to form the backrest for the sofa. Our kids slept in the sling bunks above in the push up. They loved it ! Oh, a lip on the front of the drawers made by the paneling facing provided a stop for our mattress so that it didn't slide off. Later I also built a cabinet on which we put eye-bolts for the bungee cords we used to hold down our portable propane two burner primus camp stove and our plastic portable sink. A large jerry jug provided drainage for that sink inside the van so that we could use it either inside or outside. We put a porta-potti in the back of the van with some hanging storage above it and a closet door which opened toward the front of the van to become a privacy door when someone wanted to use the toilet. A taller bank of smaller drawers provided the rest of our storage and we put a mirror above them for "primping" inside the van. We would spread a very large tarp over the van before we put the top up and then we staked and tied it with some tent poles and ropes to form a rain fly and outdoor space on one of both sides of the van. By putting the tarp over the top we could still open our double side doors for easy ingress and egress when parked. I too drove this unit for my vehicle and for most of the time we had it, the van, named Blueberry Ice Cream by my girls, was the only vehicle we owned. Later, when we moved to California and my husband didn't take the train to work or have a company car, we got a small car as well. Didn't mean for this to go so long, but wanted to hopefully get the info about the convertible day bed and deep drawers to yo before you did your remodel. I imagine those three piece attached fold-out daybed cushions are still available. Peace - - -Ellen
What was the tape you mentioned you had used on the roof ? Thank you
It is called Eternabond - www.loveyourrv.com/rv-roof-repair-eternabond-review/
Great upgrades! Great video! Doesnt that digital meter max out at 10 amps that you have measuring solar charge amps to battery bank??? I love the setup. It all looks great and you really made it your own! Love it! Thanks for the great video!
The Ramblin CamperVan Nope, it's got a 20 amp shunt current meter in it, I seen it a 11.6 amps on a really sunny day last week. Thanks.
Before that one, bottom of plaque is marked E Clampus Vitus Billy Holcomb chapter.
You run a genset ? Thanks b reat video btw
Doug Ferguson Yup, check out about 3 mins into this video - ua-cam.com/video/VPH79iAIkIQ/v-deo.html
Thanks, Ray
Many good tips but please finish the list links for the items recommended. At least the name and brand will help.
Thanks, check out the link to the companion blog post for more info in each item - www.loveyourrv.com/20-upgrades-we-have-made-to-our-rv/
What do you use for your flag pole? And where can I get one?
MontiR Aruba Here is a blog post I did demoing my flag pole. - www.loveyourrv.com/fun-rv-tip-get-flag/
your upgrades I like . the renoly system that you put in , is it upgradable can u add more panels ??
Yes, I have expanded my system to 5 panels - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/
How do you run the a/c out there on solar and how long? I'm new to the boondocking world. Thanks
I mostly boondocking during the winter season in the desert and adjust my elevation to follow mild weather 60-80F so a low power draw electric fan is usually sufficient for cooling. If it ever gets really hot I could use a gas generator or head to a RV park or state/county park with hookups till the heat passes. To put together a solar power AC system can get quite expensive as you need quite a few solar panels , lots of batteries and a large inverter.
Like your upgrades, where did you purchase your LED light bulbs for your light fixtures and what brand/model number did you get. Thanks.
Darwin Hall Cheapest place to order I believe is Amazon - www.amazon.com/Starlights-921-250-Replacement-Ceiling-Fixtures/dp/B004LF93WQ/ref=pd_sim_auto_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0ETNWWFEEKD4FB35JK4R
Here is a blog post I did on my install with the numbers used - www.loveyourrv.com/install-review-starlights-led-lamps-rv/
Love Your RV Thanks for the quick reply. I have some LED lamps in my fixtures, but they are very blue and my wife doesn't like them. I will check out the link to Amazon.
Darwin Hall These ones are definitely a nicer light, and still pretty bright. look for 3200 Kelvin in the color temp spec
Very impressive upgrades, hope you don't mind me taking a few for myself. Only questions are (1) does your system allow you to add more panels and batt's? Also have you switched all your lights to the LED bulbs so it doesn't drain more power? ty for the video
ZEROEDN72 Thanks, you bet. :) Yes I have space for more batteries and panels and plan to double my capacity for this falls boondocking season down south. I have swapped out my old lamps for LED and it made a big difference. - www.loveyourrv.com/install-review-starlights-led-lamps-rv/ Cheers Ray
Keep Shiny side up. ✈️
I see your two panels are bringing in almost 10 amps. So now your looking at going to four panels I am looking to start with 4 panels and use 12 volt batts that have a 125 or 155 ah rating only because I get a huge discount on 12 volt batts. I am just starting learning about solar and from my calculations I should create over 30 amps in full sun but I boondock in tree areas so I am hoping to get 15 to 18 amps in full sun. Now would you go with 300 AH's on the total battery bank or stay down around 250AH. My biggest charging draws would be my mobility cart because I am disabled and a few cameras and laptops along with the normal stuff, TV's radios lighting etc. In your opinion is 400 watts enough with the 250 AH bank or or would you increase to 600 watts and run over 400 AH battery bank.
BTW I like many of your improvements. Manufactures really need to pay attention to what people change or improve on. My current 400 watts plans will cost me 1800 to 1900 bucks so I want to do it once and be safe with enough power instead of adding on later.
Oh another thing did you run with a MPPT setup or just a generic set up.
If you can help out it would be very valuable to me.
TIA
David
+David Wohlfeil 400 watts may be enough solar but I would suggest going with a 400 AH bank so you have sufficient storage capacity. That's what I'm soon planning to do.
I didn't go with a MPPT as I believe a cheaper PWM type controller will work well enough with my system size and since all my panels will be the same type and wired in parallel, so I can allocate the savings elsewhere.
If you are boondocking in trees, you may have shade issues, check out this article for some info on that problem when is comes to using a MPPT type controller - www.amsolar.com/home/amr/page_165
Cheers Ray
***** Interesting setup, thanks for all the information. Cheers Ray
+Smitty Durkin Thanks for the info I value your input. I will be purchasing my equipment over the winter. The battery info is most valuable I will take that into consideration when buying them. My system will be mostly from Renogy Panels, controller, and inverter plus meters. I like keeping everything in the same brand name because its all been tested together. At my current figures my system will cost $2300.00 Th buy back all depends on how often I go out but I figure it should be around two and half years.
what is the name of the tape you was using on roof, what do you think is the best roof calking thanks very useful video
The tape is called Eternabond and the caulking I use on the roof is Dicor Self-Leveling Lap Sealant - Ray
I didn't catch the name or brand of that tape you were using on the roof ? Would you mind letting me know ? I enjoyed these videos of yours. I just found you. I have seen two of them and now have subscribed.
It's called Eternabond. Here is some more info on it. Thanks for subscribing. Cheers Ray
www.loveyourrv.com/resealing-rv-roof-eternabond-tape/
www.loveyourrv.com/beefing-up-my-rv-roof-seals-with-eternabond-tape/
Oh how kind of you to get back with me so quickly ! Thank you !
Where did you get the round cylinder key locks?
+Scott Andrews There are a couple sources Amazon and CH751.com. Check out my blog post about changing them out --> www.loveyourrv.com/rv-storage-bay-locks-really-secure/ Cheers Ray
Your trailer tires survived that road?
Oh, yeah no problem, just go slow. I've driven many rough patches of interstate highways that are much harder tires. :)
Love your videos. You don't have a satellite dish for tv? I was wondering how much that cost to add to an RV. Did you coat the roof? How often do you have to do that to make sure it does not leak? How much were the upgrades and did you add them yourself?
Thanks Ron,
We aren't big TV watchers so whatever we get on the antenna for free is fine, we do download the occasional TV series or movie.
I'm not sure how much Sat cost but I have seen some folks with the little Tailgater Sat things, I don't think they are much. If you install an automatically pointing dish I'm sure it can run into the thousands.
I installed all the upgrades myself, some were cheap some were several hundred dollars, like the solar power and the surge protector. Cheers Ray
Thank you for the reply. Is it hard to install the upgrades? Maybe you can do some videos on how to install some of the things you put in. I want to have some solar when I get my RV and your instructions would be a great help. I like what you have done to yours and would want to add some of them to mine!! Than you again!!
Check out these two links. Contained in the posts are links to all my details of the installations usually with a video. :)
www.loveyourrv.com/20-upgrades-we-have-made-to-our-rv/
www.loveyourrv.com/20-rv-upgrades-fifth-wheel-trailer/