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scamp trailer

One Simple Way to Increase Your Trailer’s Fresh Water Supply by Over 50%!

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One Simple Way to Increase Your Trailer’s Fresh Water Supply by Over 50%!

Most small travel trailers with kitchens/bathrooms usually have small fresh water tanks compared to larger RVs.  The size of the fresh water tank in our Scamp 13’ is 12 gallons and there is also a hot water tank (6 gallons).  So, our Scamp carries about 18 gallons of fresh water when fully loaded.  Since water weighs around 8.3 pounds per gallon at room temperature, filling the Scamp with fresh water adds about 150 pounds.  Interestingly, we’ve compared towing the Scamp with (completely full fresh and hot water tanks) and without water and did not feel any difference in towing or notice any difference in average gas mileage!  Because of this, if we are heading to a location without hookups (even if there are central water spigots available) we will fill up at home (including the hot water heater tank) before heading out.

The first thing to consider when looking at fresh water is how it will be used when you are camping.  Some people use their fresh water tanks for all their needs while camping.  This includes using their sink/s for washing dishes, rinsing food, washing their hands, washing their face, brushing their teeth, and even drinking; in addition, they will use their shower.  In big RVs with 60 gallon tanks and larger, this may seem reasonable (with the possible exception of drinking).  However, in small travel trailers, one has to be especially mindful of water usage when camping without hookups due to limited water in the tank.  Note:  if there are hookups at the campground, then careful water conservation is not really an issue (except for maybe environmental concerns).

After using our Scamp 13’ (with kitchen sink, bathroom, and shower) for around a year in a combination of boondocking and hookup locations, we now have a good understanding of what the trailer’s water and tank limits are with how we use it.  If we are careful, we can go about 3 days without having to refill our Fresh tank (this is also about the same amount of time that it takes our Grey tank, 21 gallons, to get filled).  This includes 2 people, each taking a shower every day (shower turned on to get wet, turned off while shampooing and lathering, and turned back on to rinse – aka, Navy shower).  We also use our sink to quickly rinse our plates once or twice a day (depending on meals).  One thing we don’t use our water for is drinking (or water for cooking pasta).  Most of the water we use goes down the shower drain into the Grey water tank.  We know some campers who are able to go at least double our time (maybe even around a week) without refilling water because instead of showering daily, they may shower much less frequently or take wipes and avoid the shower altogether!  In our case, we pretty much like to maintain the same type of cleaning rituals that we practice at home.

The key way in which we effectively increase our Scamp’s fresh water supply by over 50% is by carrying our drinking water with us in jugs in our tow vehicle!  We always bring two 4 gallon BPA-free water jugs in the back of our SUV for all our drinking and cooking needs when we go on a typical 10 day trip in our Scamp.  By carrying an additional 8 gallons of fresh water in our tow vehicle, we are effectively increasing our Fresh water tank supply by 67% (12 gallons Fresh > 20 gallons)!!!  This gives us a lot more fresh water supply.  Health experts typically recommend a person drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day (8×8 rule), which is about ½ gallon of water per person per day.  So, by using this rule, two people would bring 10 gallons of water on their 10 day trip (1/2 gallon/day x 2 people x 10 days).  We tend to drink slightly less water than this amount because we also drink macadamia milk in our cereal, oat milk in our tea, sometimes soup for lunch, and we eat a lot of juicy fruits (like oranges).  So, for us, bringing 8 gallons of fresh water on a 10 day trip works out great (we always have extra water when we return home).

In addition to greatly expanding our small travel trailer’s fresh water supply by carrying our own fresh water in BPA-free jugs, we also feel more comfortable drinking the water.  Although drinking RV tap water can be safe, that safety is largely dependent on the trailer’s tank and water system having been properly sanitized (see this article on how to sanitize your fresh water tank).  In addition, contaminants can possibly enter the trailer when hooked up at a campsite (either through contamination by the hose, spigot, or the water itself).  Using a water filter can help reduce some risk, but may not entirely defeat it.  Note: water hoses used at campsites should be rated as non-toxic for drinking.  We have always used our sink water for brushing our teeth and have not had any issues (but we do not drink this water – just rinse, and spit out).

There are many potential sources for fresh water if you choose to carry the water in a BPA-free water jug.  Bottled water is perhaps the easiest way to take water on your trip.  It can either be purchased directly at the market, or, there are often inexpensive water machines in front of markets that allow you to fill your own jugs.  Many different types of water are sold, such as alkaline and chemically treated water.  We have a filter water purification system in our home and use that to fill our 4 gallon jugs.  Whatever water and method you use to fill your jugs, you will ultimately greatly expand the amount of fresh water capacity available for your small travel trailer and likely improve the quality of your water by carrying your fresh drinking water separately in your tow vehicle!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Free Stayovers with Boondockers Welcome & Harvest Hosts

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Free Stayovers with Boondockers Welcome & Harvest Hosts

Sometimes things seem a little too good to be true.  The first time we heard about RV membership services like Boondockers Welcome and Harvest Hosts we thought there must be some sort of gimmick to it.  Who would let you stay at their home or on their farm for no money (and potentially even let you use some of their resources like water and electricity)?  We wondered if there would be surcharges or other gotchas.  Or, perhaps it would be very difficult to secure a stay over (like at State and National Parks).  It seemed hard to understand how this camping model really worked.

Since the cost of an annual membership of both organizations is very low (less than the cost of one night’s stay at a typical RV park), we decided to give them a try figuring we had little to lose (especially if we were able to stay at least one night during the annual membership term).  Joining is very easy and is all done quickly online.  Once you complete payment, you can then sign into each of the websites and write up a profile that describes yourselves and your RV.  It is significant to note that both services require the RV to be completely self-contained (meaning sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation are all enclosed in the RV — toilet, sink, and grey tank are required).  Once your profile is set up, you can search the available locations (with descriptions on what is offered).  After you decide on a location and verify it can accommodate your rig length, you can then make a stay request (on Boondockers Welcome, this is done entirely online through messaging with the host and on Harvest Hosts you actually have to call or text the host).

Boondockers Welcome allows searches by location on a map with host sites depicted by a trailer.  When the trailer is clicked on, more information appears about the location which can then be opened to reveal the site details (e.g. number of spots, maximum length of trailer, house rules, utilities available, reviews by users …..).  Incredibly, there are plenty of Boondockers Welcome locations across the US and Canada (and sprinkled throughout the world)!  Most of the Boondockers Welcome locations allow stays of up to 2 or 3 days, but hosts may allow a longer stay if they choose.  Once you find your desired location and verify the space can accommodate your RV / trailer, you enter your arrival date and number of days you want to stay from the pull down menu.  After your request is submitted, you are prompted to message the host and tell a little about why you are travelling.  The host will then view your profile which lists your RV type and make a decision on your stay.  You will receive an email (and text) with the acceptance decision as soon as it’s made.  It’s good to stay in touch with the host through the messages center as your arrival date gets close.

Harvest Hosts, like Boondockers Welcome, provides a search map to find locations.  The map is color coded with icons denoting if the location is either a winery (red wine glass), farm (yellow barn), museum or other attraction (green building), or brewery / distillery (brown beer mug).  You can enter some preferences such as RV length, if the location is pet friendly, and the type of location when you conduct a search.  Once you find a location that looks good, and click on it, you will see a description, including the address of the business along with how many spaces are available, the maximum RV length allowed, and if the location is pet friendly.  To reserve the spot, a number is provided to either call (or sometimes text) the host.  Generally, acceptance is given on the spot over the phone or via text.

While both Boondockers Welcome and Harvest Hosts provide places to stay for your RV adventures, they are oriented a bit differently.  Boondockers Welcome locations are usually provided by fellow campers or those interested in travelling by RV.  The properties are generally the hosts’ homes (which could be driveways in cities or spots on large parcels of land or farms outside the city).  And, it seems like the primary motivation of many Boondockers Welcome hosts in providing overnight stays is to meet and help out fellow travelers as well as socialize with them.  Hosts also get discounts on guest memberships and credits when guests stay (another incentive to become a host).  These hosts generally don’t expect anything in return for your stay and are often very generous in their time and resources.  So, it’s important that guests are well-behaved and appreciative to keep this system working.  Harvest Hosts locations on the other hand are mostly businesses which have space to accommodate certain size RVs.  In general, the Harvest Hosts location does expect the guest to make a purchase.  Since Harvest Hosts locations are mostly wineries and farms, this often means purchasing a bottle of wine or other product from the farm.  From our experiences in California, the Harvest Hosts locations seem to offer less in the way of utilities (e.g. water, electricity, dump) than Boondockers Welcome locations.

Our overall impressions of both memberships are extremely positive.  After signing up and logging in, we found that it is usually very easy to secure reservations (often with very few dates already blocked for any given location).  And, given the extremely low annual price of each service, joining both seems a no-brainer.  There really isn’t much of a gotcha in these services (beyond the expectation of buying something when staying at Harvest Hosts locations).  Boondockers Welcome seems to be the better value if your goal is to have plenty of places to stay on your travels and aren’t looking specifically to stay at a farm or winery.  For example, if you are doing a cross country road trip, Boondockers Welcome provides great opportunities for free stops all along the way (and many in scenic locations).  And, there seem to be more Boondockers Welcome sites within big cities, whereas Harvest Hosts locations, being mostly wineries and farms, are often out of the city.  For those who love wine, joining Harvest Hosts would be a must.    Staying at a vineyard and having a wine tasting can be a special experience.  Boondockers Welcome locations also include farms and other special properties as well, so unique experiences aren’t just limited to Harvest Hosts.

We recently had a memorable Boondockers Welcome stay on our way home back to San Diego on a 10-day trip up to Coos Bay, Oregon.  We were looking for a stayover at a halfway point between Oakland and San Diego.  We found a miniature donkey farm on the Boondockers Welcome map and messaged the host.  She was especially gracious and we booked an overnight stay right away through the online messages center within the Boondockers Welcome website.  We did have to drive down a long dirt road to get to the farm, but it was well worth it.  The farm is situated on over 20 acres and we were told we could park anywhere!  We parked high up on a hill on a nice quiet space overlooking the valley below (near one of the miniature donkey enclosures).  We had access to water if we needed it.  The host was really nice and spent the afternoon with us showing us her animals and allowing us to feed and pet the miniature donkeys.  We gave the host a small gift (Peanuts oven mitt with kitchen towels set) to show our appreciation.  The night was extremely quiet and the stars were out.  After breakfast, we said goodbye to the donkeys and drove off.  It was one of the best stops on our entire trip!

Our first Harvest Hosts stay was at an olive oil farm in Paso Robles.  The host had one spot behind their barn facing a grove of olive trees.  The location was on our way from Santa Barbara to Oakland and, therefore, wasn’t too far out of the way on our trip.  Other than a quick greeting from the host (and purchasing a $20 bottle of olive oil), we were on our own in a very quiet location (the main house was a far distance up the hill).  There weren’t really any hookups (although we were offered a $40 / night electrical hookup which we declined).  We had our solar panel and plenty of water (and propane gas for our hot water heater and stove), so we were fine without hookups at this location.  We enjoyed being out in the olive orchard and seeing the stars at night.  The experience was very tranquil and felt much nicer than any RV park we had visited.  After breakfast the next morning, and then a long walk in the country, we just drove off having gotten our money’s worth out of the annual Harvest Hosts membership in just this one stay.

Based on our great experiences and the low cost memberships of both Boondockers Welcome and Harvest Hosts, we highly recommend both subscription services and think it’s very easy to get your money out of them within just a visit or two.  The current subscription price for an annual guest pass at Boondockers Welcome is $50.  If you want to join Boondockers Welcome:

CLICK HERE TO JOIN BOONDOCKERS WELCOME

The current subscription price for an annual guest pass at Harvest Hosts is $70.  However, currently there’s a 15% off promotional coupon for Harvest Hosts if you would like to join and give it a try.

CLICK HERE TO JOIN HARVEST HOSTS

 

Disclaimer:  You will be supporting the continuation of this website by buying here as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are services, products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific service or product and cannot guarantee that the services or products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

How our “Water Bandit” Saved our Trip

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How our “Water Bandit” Saved our Trip

Ordinarily, we try to stay away from unsavory characters – which include bandits of any sort.  It just doesn’t seem morally right and legally appropriate to hire such thugs to perform essential tasks (even if they are legal).  However, we made an exception when we discovered the “Water Bandit”.

CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON

No, you do not need an extra seat in your tow vehicle to take one of these bandits along.  Nor do you need to carry potential bail money with you in case your bandit is caught in the act.  This “Water Bandit” is actually a small clever rubbery device that can attach to water spigots at campgrounds – that were perhaps intentionally designed without threads (or ones with stripped or damaged threads) – making attaching a regular hose now possible.  The “Water Bandit” slides over and grips onto the spigot with the rubber side on one end and has a threaded end for your hose or water tank filler with a shutoff valve on the other end.

This inexpensive device takes up very little space and can be a true trip saver at some campgrounds!  On our most recent trip up the California coast to Coos Bay, Oregon, we stayed at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park (about 50 miles north of Eureka).  We were running low on water and there are no hookups at this campground.  However, there are water spigots sprinkled throughout the campground and we found one close to our campsite (#49).  I set our water jug under the spigot and turned it on and a high pressure spray of water shot in all directions with very little going into our water container.  It was difficult to adjust the amount of water coming out (e.g. all on or off).  I realized it was going to take all day to capture water in this method without some help.  And, then, remembered our “Water Bandit”.

I screwed on our water tank filler hose onto our “Water Bandit” (since we were too far from our campsite to use our hose to reach the Scamp) and then slipped the bandit over the spigot.  I placed our dolly under the water jug so I could easily move it to the Scamp after being weighted down with water.  Note:  a gallon of water weighs about 8.34 pounds at room temperature (so our 6 gallon water jug weighs about 50 pounds when full)!  When I first opened the spigot and water shot through it at high pressure, the bandit flew off (as it is not intended to use under pressure).  So, I turned the water off, slipped it back on the spigot, angled the hose straight down into the water jug, and then held the bandit on the spigot with one hand while opening up the spigot with the other (some people report success using a hose clamp to hold their bandits onto the spigot).  The water now behaved and quickly shot straight down into the water jug, quickly filling it.  If we had been parked closer to the Scamp, I would have hooked up our hose and filled our Scamp’s fresh water tank directly.  In the end, the “Water Bandit” helped us tremendously in having an enjoyable trip by allowing us to fill our water tank.  We will never go camping again without our “Water Bandit”!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

My Travel Trailer Tool Kit

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My Travel Trailer Tool Kit

It only took one trip to realize having a tool kit when travelling with a small travel trailer is essential!  Even if you have no experience working on or fixing things, having some basic tools can be a real life saver.

We were staying over at a Harvest Host location on an olive tree farm in Paso Robles and had no access to electrical hookups.  We had our solar panel, so we weren’t very concerned.  Unfortunately, when I setup the panel outside, one of the two power wires slipped out of the solar panel connector.  Without the attached wire, the solar panel wouldn’t be able to keep our Scamp battery charging.  I just needed a small screw driver to secure it again, which would only take a couple of seconds.  However, such a simple task was virtually impossible without the right tool and there were no stores anywhere close by.  Fortunately, I remembered I had a micro screw driver in my drone kit and was able to use it successfully.  After this experience, I vowed to equip our Scamp travel trailer with a proper tool kit and we haven’t travelled without it ever since!

I first thought I would just buy a pre-made tool kit at Harbor Freight Tools.  They have a number of nice tool kits that are very inexpensive.  However, when I went to check them out I realized that they were all preloaded with a lot of unnecessary tools I didn’t need and, in turn, were heavy.  When one travels with a small travel trailer, it’s always a good idea to keep weight in mind.  You only want to carry the absolute essentials to keep the trailer as light as possible to make it easier for your car to tow and conserve precious space.  For example, it’s probably not necessary to have a full socket head kit for your travel trailer when you only need a few socket sizes (e.g. battery nuts, wheel lug nuts, and tongue jack nuts).  In addition, there are some specific tools (e.g. voltage meter) that are useful for the Scamp and wouldn’t necessarily be in a preloaded tool kit.  So, instead of purchasing one of the pre-made tool kits, I decided on buying specific tools individually.

After taking a lot of measurements, I found this really nice plastic box on Amazon which has plenty of room for all my tools and fits great on the floor in the Scamp’s front clothes closet!

CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON

Tools in my Scamp travel trailer toolbox:

  1. 25’ Extension Cord (Orange) – use it whenever you overnight on the street in front of a friend’s house.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  2. Digital Multimeter – use it to check power is coming out of the solar panel extension cables.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  3. Ring Terminal 12-10 Crimp Connectors – use for connectors to the trailer battery (e.g. electric tongue jack, LEDs….) 5/16” (Home Depot)
  4. Tool & Terminal Kit – good for crimping the connectors (Home Depot)
  5. Work Gloves – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  6. Headlamp – keeps hands free when working in low light.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  7. Multi-tool – Provides a variety of options in one tool.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  8. Adjustable Grip Plyers – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  9. Micro Cutter – use to cut wires and zip ties.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  10. Swiss Army Knife – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  11. Foldable Scissors – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  12. Needle Nose Pliers – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  13. Ratched Socket Wrench:  Use for battery nuts, wheel lug nuts, and tongue jack nuts (we use a 3/8” square drive), CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  14. Socket Heads:  Get appropriate sized socket heads for your battery nuts, wheel lug nuts, and tongue jack nuts.  Note:  our 13’ Scamp sizes are 13/16” hex for wheel lug nuts, 9/16” hex for the 3 tongue jack bolts, and ½” hex for the battery terminal nuts (using 3/8” square drive).
  15. Zip Ties, Electrical Tape, Duct Tape, Velcro Tape – use for a variety of tasks.
  16. Ratchet Screw Driver Set – CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  17. Mallet – similar to hammer.  CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON
  18. Pencil – used to draw graphite on zippers to make them work better.
  19. Manual Crank tool for electric tongue jack (should come with electric tongue jack)

“Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses prevent them.”  Albert Einstein

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

It’s Hip to be Square

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It’s Hip to be Square

Sometimes a shape is very important.  This certainly can be the case when packing your small travel trailer refrigerator.  Small items tend shift when travelling down the road and the problem can be especially bad when items are cylindrical (like water bottles) and can roll around.  If the refrigerator isn’t completely packed, a loose water bottle can crash into other items, possibly damaging them in transit.  Additionally, a heavy item that is rolling around inside the refrigerator could potentially leak and create a big mess.

On our first few Scamp trips, we secured water bottles in the refrigerator with Velcro straps.  This method worked ok but made it a nuisance to quickly remove the water bottles.  We noticed that items that were in square boxes (like soup) didn’t move around much during trips.  So, we replaced our water bottles with one square water bottle that we refill with pure water when it is low (we carry two 4 gallon drinking water safe water jugs in our SUV which we fill with our reverse osmosis water system at home before we leave on a trip).  The square water bottle works great and tends to say in its place in the refrigerator without using straps!

Now, we try to choose square containers for anything that will need to be refrigerated, if possible. Since we like pancakes on Sunday mornings, we found a great brand of pure premium maple syrup (Parker’s) that we intend to refill with our favorite pure maple syrup when it runs out.  We took Parker’s maple syrup up to Mammoth Lakes on our last trip and it held its position in the fridge well!  Other items packaged in square containers that we enjoy and take in our Scamp’s refrigerator are Macadamia Milk and boxed soup.

Lots of other food items can either be found in square packaging or packed in square containers.  For example, fruits like grapes are nicely stored in sealed containers.  The bottom line is to avoid putting heavy cylindrical objects like bottled water or soda cans in your small travel trailer’s refrigerator when travelling because they can cause issues.  Instead, be aware, that it’s hip to be square!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Save Time & Money with a Home Dump!

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Save Time & Money with a Home Dump!

One of the biggest concerns of small travel trailer campers is the status of their Fresh, Grey, and Black water tank levels and the necessity to Dump the tanks before it’s too late.  A small travel trailer with sink, bathroom and shower generally has four tanks [e.g. Fresh tank to hold fresh water, Hot Water tank (usually fed from the Fresh tank), Grey tank (the water that is drained from the sink and shower), and Black tank (holds what is flushed down toilet)].  Our 13’ Scamp travel trailer with bathroom has a 12 gallon Fresh tank, 6 gallon Hot Water tank, 21 gallon Grey tank, and 9 gallon Black tank.

It’s important to monitor tank levels so you don’t run out of water or, possibly worse, have dirty or hazardous water / waste back up into your trailer!  Most campers get an idea fairly quickly how long they can go without dumping their tanks.  When we purchased our Scamp travel trailer, we had a tank monitor sent directly to the factory and had them integrate it into our Scamp when completing our custom build.  We use the SeeLevel II tank monitoring system (we purchased ours on RVupgrades.com because the price was much lower than on Amazon).   This monitor allows one to see the levels of all the tanks as well as the travel trailer voltage (which you want to make sure doesn’t go much lower than 12 volts – around 50% charge).  We rely on the monitor religiously to make sure we are keeping our tanks and voltage at the correct levels.

We have found that with two people each taking a fast shower every day, regularly using the Scamp bathroom, and using the sink sparingly (using paper plates or washing dishes outside if allowed), we need to Dump on about day 3.  If we are at a campsite with full hookups, then it’s no big deal.  However, if we need to move the trailer to Dump, then we try to be very careful in how we use our water so the need to Dump is less frequent.  The Achilles heel for us is the Grey tank which fills up after a couple of days (primarily due to showers).  The Black (toilet) tank usually doesn’t need to be refilled until day 5.  And the Fresh tank is generally not an issue since there usually is a spigot or water hose wherever we camp (even at areas with no hookups).  So, at campsites without hookups, we either have to use a shared Dump in the campground on day 3 if we are staying more than a couple of days or drive to a Dump.  For the future, we are considering using an outdoor shower to extend our time between Dumps since it’s the Grey tank filled quickly by showers which greatly limits our time between Dumps.

A home Dump is similar to the Dump hookup used to dump the Black and Grey tanks at the campsite.  The home Dump just utilizes the sewer cleanouts (for use by plumbers when they need to clear a clog inside the main sewer pipe going from the home to the City sewer system).  This pipe is the conduit which takes all the material flushed down the toilets in the home to the City sewer system.  The sewer cleanout covers can typically be found somewhere in the front of the home.  Our cleanout covers are located in our garage.  There are two covers which both go into the same sewer pipe, but each hole directs the plumber’s auger in a different direction (the cover closest to the road on ours directs the auger toward the house and the cover closest to the house directs the auger toward the street).  It really doesn’t matter which cleanout you use to Dump because material dumped from your trailer will go down into the sewer line either way.

A home Dump is fantastic if feasible and allowed by local laws.  It’s especially useful when arriving home after staying at a campsite with no Dump, or where the Dump had a long wait or wasn’t easily available, or was a bit too expensive (we’ve paid as low as $7.50 to Dump at a Valero station in Santa Barbara up to $15 to Dump at a private location in Mammoth Lakes).  In our area, the closest Dump is about 30 minutes’ drive away!  The home Dump also makes it possible for us to test our systems (shower, sink, toilet), sanitize and flush these systems with Happy Campers, and sanitize and flush our Fresh and Hot Water tanks.  It would be much less convenient and more expensive to do these tasks away from home.

We were very fortunate in that our sewer cleanout access areas happened to be located right in front of where our Scamp travel trailer sits in our garage!  In order to utilize them, we just had to have our plumber cut a few inches of the pipe down into the hole so an enlarged PVC cleanout adapter (available at Home Depot) could be attached to easily accommodate our 3” RV sewer hose with the cement cover still able to sit on top when not in use.

When searching for your cleanout, keep in mind that there is usually a cover (cement) that says “sewer” on it.  The cleanout is likely to be outside your home between the foundation and the street or could be on the side of your home (closest to the bathroom).  Hopefully, it will be located in an area that is convenient for you to place your travel trailer within 6 feet of the opening. It’s also best if the cleanout is either level or below your travel trailer so gravity allows the material being dumped to easily drain into the cleanout.  The cleanout pipe is usually 4 inches in diameter with a screw cap that has a square knob or indentation on the top.  Please let me know if this works for you!

Cleanliness is next to godliness!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

 

Using a Trailer Dolly to move your Trailer without a Tow Vehicle!

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Using a Trailer Dolly to move your Trailer without a Tow Vehicle!

A trailer dolly is a great product for moving small trailers (less than 3000 pounds and tongue weight less than 600 pounds) around on flat level surfaces if one has a moderate level of physical strength or help from other people.

Just before taking delivery of our 13’ Scamp travel trailer, we ordered an Aquacart trailer dolly which was advertised as being able to easily move trailers.  I had envisioned I could use this dolly to pull our 13’ Scamp travel trailer up our driveway and then perfectly position it in our garage.

The Aquacart is extremely well made – 2” welded aircraft quality aluminum with big 13” wheelbarrow tires (and weighs 25 pounds).  Indeed, this dolly is very sturdy.  It feels like it was over engineered to carry large loads.  It seems to be the Rolls Royce of trailer dollies.  It’s big though, and unless you have an SUV with fold down seats or a truck, it may be difficult to take on trips.  The wheels, however, can be removed as they have clips.  We did take it on our first trip and used it to pull our Scamp travel trailer into our campsite (since we had no experience backing up our travel trailer).  Since our first trip though, we haven’t taken the dolly on trips because we are now better at backing up our Scamp, it mostly hasn’t been necessary because most spots are easy to back into (although we could have used it getting into my cousin’s driveway on a narrow street), and the Aquacart takes up some space in our SUV.

When our 13’ Scamp travel trailer was delivered on the street in front of our house last November, we found out that unless the surface is flat and level it can take a lot of muscle to move around a 1500 – 2000 pound travel trailer!  It took three people to pull the Scamp up our driveway!  In retrospect, I don’t think I would do that again because it could potentially be dangerous if someone lost their grip and the trailer couldn’t be stopped from rolling.  A runaway trailer is not a good thing!

Aquacart recommends keeping the dolly’s tires well inflated to make it easier to move trailers around.  The dolly comes with a 1-7/8” universal ball which we easily swapped out for a 2” ball which is compatible with our Scamp travel trailer hitch.

We now use the Aquacart trailer dolly regularly to move our Scamp around in our garage to place it in perfect position after we back the Scamp into the garage.  It’s much easier to back the Scamp in the general area in the garage and use the dolly to position it than to try to back it just perfectly into its spot.  We’ve tried the latter approach and it can be very time consuming.  We highly recommend the Aquacart dolly for this purpose and all other jobs when moving around a small travel trailer on flat level surfaces.

CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

 

 

Stop Cranking Your Arm and Replace Your Manual Tongue Jack!

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Stop Cranking Your Arm and Replace Your Manual Tongue Jack!

One of the first few things we replaced on our Scamp travel trailer was our hand crank tongue jack.  The tongue jack sits on the front of the trailer and allows one to raise and lower the ball coupler so the trailer can be attached to the tow vehicle.  It didn’t take too long to understand how much cranking is required when hitching and unhitching the Scamp travel trailer!  Not only can cranking over and over be repetitively hard on your arm, shoulder and joints, but it takes a lot of time and energy.  It’s also the time when you want to be concentrating on other parts of the process and cranking the jack up and down can be distracting.

Our process typically works as follows:  once the rear stabilizing jacks on the Scamp trailer have been raised, I crank up the front of the trailer, so that the ball receptacle is higher than the ball on our SUV.  I then back up our SUV so that the ball is aligned with the receptacle.  Sometimes, I have to get out of the SUV and crank up the tongue a little more to make sure it clears above the ball.  Then, I back up the SUV so the ball is directly under the ball receptacle on the trailer.  Then, once the alignment is perfect, I crank down the trailer tongue until the ball receptacle goes down completely over the ball and the coupler latch can be completely locked into place.  When arriving at the campsite, after securing the trailer with wheel chocks, I unlock the couple latch and detach all cables connected to the SUV, and then start cranking again to raise the front of the trailer until there is plenty of room for the ball on the SUV to clear when the SUV is driven forward.  When the SUV is driven forward and away from the trailer, the trailer again needs to be cranked (usually down) until the trailer is level.  And, all of the above cranking processes are to be repeated when leaving the campsite and arriving back at home!

It didn’t take too long for us to realize that all the manual cranking wasn’t a fun way to enjoy our Scamp trips!  Fortunately, changing the tongue jack is super simple!  And, electric tongue jacks are easy to install and not too expensive!  The Scamp travel trailer has just three bolts – so, it’s just a matter of securing the Scamp onto the SUV (like you are going on a trip), raising the manual jack all the way up, removing the bottom plate on the jack, unscrewing the three screws that attach the jack to the trailer, and lifting the entire assembly up and out of the jack shaft.  It’s important to make sure that whatever electric tongue jack your order has the same screw hole pattern as your original screw hole pattern so that when you lower the jack into place, the screw holes match.  Then, it’s just a matter of screwing down the jack into position and connecting the power cord to the battery (and possibly a ground wire).  Be careful in that often Black is positive for DC power jack arrangements (and White negative) – so, it’s important to check your manual to make sure the correct color is attached to the positive battery terminal and perhaps negative terminal if required.

We ordered the Barker 32454 VIP 3500 Power Jack for our Scamp travel trailer and have been extremely satisfied with the jack and the company.  This is one of the pricier power jacks, but we feel the quality is worth it and have had really good interactions with customer service when we initially had questions.  The jack has performed really well and is fast and quiet.  We have never had an issue with it, using it regularly for almost a year.  The jack is grounded by the trailer itself by the screw plate, so only one positive wire goes to the battery.

CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON

I also had the opportunity to install a much less expensive jack for my friend Dana who has a 16’ Scamp.  She chose the Weize Power Jack, which is also a 3500 lb. jack and meant for A-frame trailers like the Scamp.  Installation was very similar to the Barker, except there were two connector wires.   Dana reports that she has been very satisfied with this jack.

CLICK HERE TO BUY ON AMAZON

Both Barker and Weize power jacks have a manual bar which can crank the jack in case the trailer battery is depleted.

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

 

Drain and Clean Your Tanks Regularly To Avoid Algae, Bacteria and other Bad Guys

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Drain and Clean Your Tanks Regularly To Avoid Algae, Bacteria and other Bad Guys

Algae, bacteria, and other harmful microorganisms can grow in your trailer’s Fresh and Grey tanks as well as other parts of the water system such as the pipes, hoses and water heater.  It may be possible to see the algae or it might just be that your water has a funny smell.  If you regularly are using a product to clean the Black and Grey tanks (after each trip) then it’s not likely there will be issues in these tanks.

Algae like to grow in a moist warm environment which is often the situation with the trailer’s tanks, water heater tank, and pipes.  Algae and other microorganisms have the potential for not only making the trailer water smell funny and clogging up water lines, but also could be dangerous to one’s health.  Personally, we only drink water that we bring from home that is produced in our reverse osmosis system and stored in 4 gallon BPA free plastic jugs.  But, even showering and washing dishes and hands with contaminated water could be potentially dangerous (e.g. skin, stomach, and lung issues).

Using a water filter before water enters your trailer is a must.  Additionally, the first thing to do when you get home from a trip is to drain all your tanks to eliminate the potential growing environment for the algae (this should include draining your hot water heater tank if the trailer will be stored more than a couple of weeks).  Draining the Fresh, Grey, Black, and Hot Water Heater tanks is easy and should be something you do after each trip so your trailer is ready to go for your next adventure.  When we get home, we usually park our Scamp in front of our house on the street so we can wash it before putting it back in the garage.  We open up the Fresh tank value located under the passenger side dinette seat so that the remaining Fresh water drains out on the road.  Once fully drained, we close the valve.  We also open the Hot Water Heater tank plug on the outside of the Scamp (open metal service access door on driver’s side) and let the tank drain as well (before opening, water should be cold and pressure released by turning on hot water tap at sink with on demand pump off).  On our Scamp’s Suburban hot water heater, a 1 1/16” socket is needed to unscrew the hexagonal bolt which is not only the plug to the hot water heater but also the Anode Rod (see image).  After washing the trailer and bringing it into the garage, we then drain our Black and Grey tanks using the sewer clean out drain in the garage.

It’s a good idea to sanitize your trailer water system once every six months and change your external water filter at the same time (or at least once per season or earlier if you notice decreased water flow).

Supplies:

RV Fresh Water System Sanitizing Instructions (Frequency = every 6 months)

  1. Make sure water heater is off and the circuit breaker to it is off.  Also, make sure the hot water heater switches are all off (electric and gas) and the gas LP valves are also off.
  2. Fill your Scamp Fresh tank so it is ½ full.
  3. Wearing gloves / protective eyewear and using a funnel  and plastic hose tube, pour ¼ cup of household bleach (e.g. Clorox) into your ½ full Fresh tank (or whatever ratio is recommended by your trailer manufacturer) (never pour full strength bleach into an empty tank).
  4. Add fresh water to your Fresh tank until it is full.
  5. Turn on 12V On Demand Water Pump.
  6. Run each tap one by one (sink hot water, sink cold water, shower hot/cold) until you smell the bleach and then let the tap run a few more seconds and then turn off.
  7. Fill Fresh water tank again to 100%.
  8. Turn off 12V On Demand Water Pump.
  9. Let sit overnight.
  10. Drain the Fresh and Hot Water Heater tanks.
    1. On the Scamp 13’, remove the passenger side dinette seat cushion and access the panel underneath. Open the drain valve 180 degrees and the Fresh water will drain on the ground below.
    2. Release water pressure in system by opening kitchen sink hot and cold faucets with demand pump off until water trickles.
    3. On our Scamp 13’, the hot water heater service access panel is at the driver’s side rear of trailer. The plug/anode is at the bottom of the heater.  Use socket wrench (our Suburban hot water heater plug needs a 1- 1/16” or 27mm socket) to unscrew plug (which also has a long metal anode rod).  You may have to pull the plug bolt head with some pressure if the rod gives resistance.  Water will drain out once the plug/rod is removed (so move trailer onto the street or location where water draining isn’t an issue).  This is the time to inspect the Anode rod.  If it looks very eaten up or is 75% consumed replace it when this process is complete.*  See instructions at bottom.
    4. If you have a Hot Water Heater tank rinser, now’s a good time to pressure wash the inside of the Hot Water Heater tank to remove any leftover sediment. We use this one.
    5. Tighten the Dummy Plug (old Anode rod with wire clipped off so just plug remains), Existing Plug, or New Plug onto the Hot Water Tank so it is sealed.
  11. Fill Fresh tank and open hot water tap until water flows (so hot water tank is full).
  12. Run each tap (sink hot, sink cold, shower hot/cold) until there is no bleach / chlorine smell.
  13. If bleach smell persists, drain Fresh tank and water heater again using their drain valves and refill with Fresh water.
  14. Once smell is gone, drain the Fresh tank and Hot Water Tank again and let sit dry until next trip.
  15. Now firmly secure the Anode rod in with Teflon tape and socket wrench.
  16. Turn off 12V On Demand Pump.
  17. Replace external water filter with new one.

*Replacing the Anode rod (Frequency = every 12 months under hard water usage or when 75% consumed):  Take a wire brush to the clean drain port threads to remove sediment and any leftover Teflon tape on the threads.  Next, apply mineral oil on a cloth to the clean threads to prevent corrosion and assist in installing the new Anode rod.  Wrap Teflon seal tape on threads of new Anode rod, leaving the first few threads exposed so you can screw in plug by hand.  Screw in new Anode rod clockwise by hand to make sure it’s threaded correctly and then use socket wrench until it is firmly tight (do not over tighten to avoid stripping the threads).  Note:  the anode rod does not and will not need to go all the way in.  The anode just needs to be tightened enough to be water tight.  Tighten snug and do not crank down beyond this or damage to the threads or tank could occur.  If it leaks, tighten a little bit more if possible.

We order this 3 pack of Anode rods for our Suburban hot water heater, and it comes with Teflon seal tape:

(3 Pack) Suburban RV Anode Rod Replacement Part 232767

Why is the Anode rod so important?  The Anode rod is able to help keep the Hot Water Tank from rusting by promoting a chemical reaction called electrolysis.  The process makes the Anode rod corrode in place of the exposed steel in your water heater which can lead to leaks.

RV Grey & Black Water System Sanitizing Instructions (Frequency =  every or every other trip)

We use Happy Campers Organic RV Holding Tank Treatment for the Grey and Black Water (toilet) tanks.

First, we dump our tanks.  Then, we fill jug with 1 scoop of Happy Camper with 1 gallon of water and mix and pour into the toilet and then flush the toilet immediately (Black tank).  Then, we pour two more gallons of fresh water into the toilet and flush.  We do the same for the sink (Grey tank).  We let the tanks sit for a week, allowing Happy Campers to sanitize the tanks, and then dump the tanks.  Works great!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

 

 

UnderGlow Your Travel Trailer!

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UnderGlow Your Travel Trailer!

One of the coolest purely unnecessary things we’ve done to our Scamp has been to add an underglow LED lighting kit!  It’s not necessary, but almost essential!

We installed the kit by MicTuning 4 POD RGBW LED Rock Light kit which has 4 LED pods.  Given the small size of the Scamp trailer (13’), we’ve found that 4 LED PODS are enough to underlight the entire trailer.  There are kits with more lights for larger trailers / vehicles, but this kit will work well for small trailers.

The kit comes with all the lights and cables necessary.  All that needs to be done is to attach cables to the trailer battery, test the system by installing the MicTuning phone app, and then mount the LED pods and cabling on the trailer frame.  Our friend Jon has a 3D printer and made some custom mounts that we glued strong rare earth magnets into, allowing the mounts to magnetically attach to the trailer frame.  He also made some magnetic brackets to hold the cables against the trailer frame.  As a precaution, we also secured the cable with Gorilla tape in select areas just in case a magnetic mount fails.  We’ve driven with the magnetic mounts over 2,000 miles to date and they haven’t detached or moved from their position on the trailer.  The kit does come with standard mounts and these should be satisfactory for mounting the PODS.  Or, other custom methods could be used to secure the LED PODS on the trailer.

The Scamp trailer in itself looks futuristic, with its all-white glossy finish and egg shape (along with the HD antenna on the roof).  However, lighting up the underside at night makes the Scamp look like a spaceship!  People really notice it, and often oohs and aahs can be heard at the campsite!  With the Bluetooth MicTuning app, the color of the lighting can be easily changed with just a tap on your phone screen.  There is even a music mode that will strobe the lights in sync with the music playing on your phone!  We’ve used these lights various times. On our first trip to Anza-Borrego State Park, it was so dark at night that it was really hard to find one’s way back to their trailer after dinner.  Having the lights on made our Scamp easy to find and weren’t offensive since they glow down toward the ground.  Be aware that one should not drive with the lights on as they could be distracting to other drivers and it is likely illegal in most, if not all, areas.

At a low cost and a high Wow! Factor, we highly recommend these LED ROCK lights!  Light kit, liked it!

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Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly.