When we bought our travel trailer, we also had to buy the myriad accessories that were needed to make everything run smoothly. We left them with the trailer when we sold it, and when we bought our RV, we bought those accessories again. But this time, we were better informed about what we needed, and what we didn’t. Some hadn’t gotten much use, while some were worth their weight in gold. Some we didn’t have the first time, but we knew we needed them this time.

I have a couple posts planned showcasing some of the items we have found invaluable as we travel and camp. First up, some items that make RV setup so much easier. These are items we use while we set up camp or that make that process go smoother. Future posts will cover things that make life easier inside the RV and things that make life more enjoyable outside the RV.

8 Items That Make RV Setup So Much Easier

1. Wire holder for box of disposable gloves

Disposable gloves are invaluable when it’s time to dump the tanks or any of the other tasks that might make your hands dirty. But why let the box float around in the storage bay, getting lost, smushed, leaking gloves everywhere, or worse: empty and you don’t realize it until it’s too late? Attach this wire holder to the inside of a storage bay, and you’ll never need to search for those gloves again (or run out at the wrong moment!).

2. Clear sewer hose elbow

You may wonder why you’d want to see what’s coming out of your black and gray tanks, but trust me on this one. It is so much easier to see if the tank is empty or running clear with the clear elbow. If you have an opaque elbow, you have to lift it out of the dump hole to see what’s going on. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather not risk getting sewage all over my shoes and the ground.

3. Sewer elbow holder

We store our sewer hose in the back bumper of the RV, but the elbow doesn’t fit. We didn’t want it floating around the storage bay (gross!), so we were super excited to find this simple holder. Like the holder for the box of gloves, it also attaches to the side of the storage bay, and it securely holds the elbow (and another attachment, if you have one) out of the way.

4. Leveling blocks

Leveling blocks are invaluable when trying to level your RV or trailer. Many RV refrigerators have to be level to work, slides can get ruined if the RV or trailer isn’t level, and it’s just plain uncomfortable to walk around or try to sleep when everything lists to one side. These blocks can be used individually or stacked to help your vehicle get closer to being level by driving the lower side of the RV or trailer up on the blocks.

The blocks can also be placed beneath jacks when the ground is soft to provide a more stable surface. There are square blocks for single tires and rectangle blocks for dual tires. These sets in particular come with a central pole that holds the the blocks in a stack, keeping all the blocks together in one place.

5. Wheel Stabilizers

We haven’t used these with our RV, but we did use them with our little 18′ trailer. The yellow Wheel Stops are surprisingly effective at cutting down on movement and stabilizing the wheels while parked.When we buy our Airstream trailer, we’ll probably get these X-Chock Wheel Stabilizers because they look more heavy duty and able to stand up to a lot more use, which they will be getting when we travel full time.

6. External water filter

Water quality and taste varies significantly from one campground to another and from one region of the country to another. This is a super simple charcoal water filter that attaches to your potable water hose and filters the water as it comes into your RV or trailer, whether you’re filling your fresh water tank or using the water straight from the spigot. We use ours in conjunction with a Berkey filter inside, because I’m super picky about the flavor of our drinking water.

7. Collapsing water hose

Speaking of bringing water into your RV or trailer, you need a dedicated water hose for potable (drinking) water. Regular hoses are rigid and bulky, taking up valuable space. When we bought our RV, we bought a collapsible hose that takes up significantly less space than the hose we had for our trailer. I couldn’t find the exact hose we have, but these expanding hoses look like they are space savers as well.

8. Power pigtail, dogbone, adapter

Whatever you want to call it, a power adapter is important. You never know when you’ll need to adapt your 50 amp RV to a 30 amp connection or your 30 amp RV to a 15 amp connection. We use our adapter to power our RV in our driveway as we get ready for road trips, or when we’re driveway surfing with friends or family.

Just remember you won’t have full power capabilities on a lower amp system. Certain appliances, such as your air conditioning, typically require a higher amperage to operate smoothly. You may be able to turn it on, but it won’t work to its best capacity and you run the risk of tripping a breaker. Check your manual to see whether you have a 50 amp or a 30 amp system so you know which adapter to buy: a 50 to 30 amp adapter or a 30 to 15 amp adapter.
Not ready to buy accessories because you’re still trying to decide what type of RV or travel trailer to buy? Fill out the form below to receive our free flowchart to help you narrow down the options.

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