Living “little” has its challenges…living little and on wheels presents even more! While we are not “full timers” quite yet, we do spend a fair amount of time on the road and camping in our vintage 1987 Avion 32 foot travel trailer.
On this snowy, 13 degree day here in upstate NY I thought I would do a post about some of the little hacks and items that I have found make trailer life and travel just a little easier.
I am in charge (primarily) of the interior decor and liveability of our Avion. I like a warm and homey feel. I also do not want to spend a lot of time taking out and putting away those decorative items and touches each time we set off for a new RV destination or trip. So in my quest to find ways to “fix in place” items…here are my go to products in no particular order.
We don’t speed, we prefer 60MPH on highways but that does not mean that things stay put…this helps!
Pro’s: clear, works well on non-porous items like china, glass, plastics.
Con’s: does not work well on vertical applications, melts in warm weather/high heat, not good for heavy items
I use a variety of items to help some of my pictures, collectibles (yes, after 30+ yrs of antique collecting I could not quite give up that obsession completely) and decorative items that I want to “stay put” in our Bavarian-decor themed RV.
For china, glass and non-porous items I use Rock N Roll clear gel putty. Link on Amazon. This product is good for things that lay flat on a counter or shelf. It does NOT work for items held vertically or in high heat climates. (yes, this is a testimonial…been there, done that as it dripped down my wood wall).
For vertical items such as pictures, textiles or wall decor I use a combination of heavy duty Velcro with sticky back, 3M hooks or velcro strips then I will also use Quakehold! Museum Putty which is a waxy, thick putty. I have used both the “collectors” and the “quakehold” versions with positive results.
Museum putty does not seem to melt in higher temps, it also works on wood and textiles better than Rock N Roll putty. Both products do allow you to remove your stuck down item with a twist and pull. I will often put two pea-sized blogs of museum putty on bottoms of frames. Roll the blobs in your fingers/hands to warm up and become pliable then place on the bottom corners of hung pictures to keep them from shifting around and possibly marring our original, beautiful Avion wood stained walls.
It may sound funny…but paper towels that “Stay Put” are also a blessing.
Viva paper towels are the only paper towels I have found that actually cling to each other on the roll. So as you “roll down the road” they do not “unroll” off your dispenser! You will note, I also use a vertical paper towel holder (on our Amazon List) and this helps as well and this one in particular is weighted and has a rubberized base. I have yet to have this dispenser move more than an 1″ on our front counter shelf during any trips. Please let me know if you have found any other brands with similar features. Viva are a little more pricey than other brands but they also are very absorbent and do the job!
Using cotton mesh shopping bags to hold fresh produce, breads and such saves precious refrigerator & counter space!
Cotton Mesh Grocery Bags: We used screw in large “safety” cuphooks (the kind with the little tabs so the hook is closed) and hang these mesh cotton bags to hold tons of stuff from apples & bananas to bagels and loaves of bread. These kinds of foodstuffs take up tons of room in an RV refrigerator and typically these items do not lend themselves to compact stacking. Using these bags they are handy, off my counter top, easily in reach and items stay circulated with air! The added bonus is when empty they are the signal to take them down and bring them along shopping to the grocery store to restock up! I found these on Amazon.com. NOTE: I do not recommend leaving them hanging in place with items in them if you are on the road. I unclip them from the hooks and simply place the bags with their contents in my sink or on my dinette cushions during the trip and hook them right back up once we have arrived at our next campsite.
Not for your carpet but for your mattress! This gripper rug pad helps to keep mattresses on the bed board foundation while you roll down the road!
While not all RVs have this issue, our ’73 Avion with the mid coach twins did and so I share it with you here. Our 87 has the rear twins and in between them is a night stand which prevents the mattresses from “taking a walk” while we roll merrily down the road.
But for those of you with RV mattresses who do like to “walk” I have found that cutting up this TrafficMaster Premium Gripper Rug Pad we purchased at Lowes did the trick! We bought the 8 x 10′ size, cut a piece for each of our twin bunks. P.S. Use any left over pieces in between your dishes and pots and pans to prevent rattle, breakage and scrapes.
We placed the gripper pad directly onto the wooden bed base under the mattress and wholla— no more sliding mattresses! The waffle texture and breathability also helps a little to protect your mattress from lack of air flow = mold issues. NOTE: for maximum protection of our mattresses we also use the fiber layer made by MattressInsider.com which is a stiff full 1″ of breathable layer to prevent any moisture issues from under the bed storage (cold) space and from body heat being trapped in the mattress. I have seen way too many moldy looking bed boards, walls and mattresses in other peoples photos of their RVs! I have a whole blog post just on that layer with links to product, etc. A breathing mattress is a happy mattress!
All or most of the items I have mentioned above can also be found in the shared AMAZON list we have on our Pewter Palace Resource/Links page. We constantly add new items, this list is for our readers benefit- we do not get any kickback or credit from Amazon.
Hope these 4 little tips/hacks help! Let us know what you have found a great trick/hack in the comment section below!
Be well, stay safe and happy travels!
-Luisa
There are a lot of camping club membership programs to chose from. Each RVer has to do research and soul searching to find what fits their current and future needs best. We spent years researching and deciding before pulling the plug to join the clubs we have so far to save $$ on camping fees and support.  
ThePewterPalace-Our Love Affair with Avions 