Stocking a travel Trailer for the first time....

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dooleycrew

Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Posts
9
What will I need for the travel trailer for the first time? I have never had one, so this is a little over whelming to say the least.  I am finding loads of checklists, but nothing that has a set idea of what should be on the travel trailer at all times.

So far I have:
Equalizer Bar for towing -  Do these normally have anti sway built in or is it seperate from the system? I am lost on this!!
  Already have the hitch mounted on the truck for the trailer also...
Fresh drinking hose - is 50ft enough? I think its the longest they make... I don't know how long I need... don't want to be stuck without water because my hose is too short!
Sewer hose -  20ft ok? I noticed they only come in 15 ft with 5 ft extensions... Should I expand this?
Electrical cord to run to get power to the trailer - Is this a standard orange indoor out door power cord? Is 100ft enough?
Disposable Gloves for dumping sewer.
Wheel Chaulks/blocks to keep from rolling. I plan to do both sides of all 4 wheels... is this over kill? Never know what incline I will have right? Do I need wheel lifts?
What are some helpful tools to have?


Thanks
MIchelle
 
Hi, Michelle.

  Sure would be nice if you can tell us what size/kind of trailer is hooked onto what size truck.

  Are you technically adept in case something goes wrong?  Many folks will give suggestions; the above info will help.

carson FL

edit: I read some of your earlier posts, so my questions above are probably redundant...sorry.
 
dooleycrew said:
What will I need for the travel trailer for the first time? I have never had one, so this is a little over whelming to say the least.  I am finding loads of checklists, but nothing that has a set idea of what should be on the travel trailer at all times.

So far I have:
Equalizer Bar for towing -  Do these normally have anti sway built in or is it seperate from the system? I am lost on this!!
  Already have the hitch mounted on the truck for the trailer also...
If it is an Equlizer brand hitch, it is weight distribution and sway control all in one.

Fresh drinking hose - is 50ft enough? I think its the longest they make... I don't know how long I need... don't want to be stuck without water because my hose is too short!
Depends where you are headed. I have never needed more than 50 feet, but have read on here that some have.

Sewer hose -  20ft ok? I noticed they only come in 15 ft with 5 ft extensions... Should I expand this?
Kinda like the water hose, it depends on your site or campground. I have never needed more than one hose.

Electrical cord to run to get power to the trailer - Is this a standard orange indoor out door power cord? Is 100ft enough?
I have never needed more than the one that is in the trailer. I think mine may have been 30 feet. A standard 'orange cord' is probably only a 14 guage wire. I wouldn't try and run the AC on that.

Disposable Gloves for dumping sewer.
Always handy to have

Wheel Chaulks/blocks to keep from rolling. I plan to do both sides of all 4 wheels... is this over kill? Never know what incline I will have right? Do I need wheel lifts?
IMHO both sides of all four is overkill, but if you have the space and already have the chocks, then use them. Wheel lifts? Do you mean the blocks to put under the tires to help level the trailer? Yes, handy to have.

What are some other helpful tools to have?
This could go all sorts of directions. I like to cary my portable tool box, but I'm sure it's overkill. Make sure you have all the tools you need to setup the trailer. Socket or wrench for the jacks if you have them, a wrench for lugnuts if you have to change a tire, crank if the trailer is a pop-up, things like that.


Thanks
MIchelle
Click to expand...

Good Luck!
 
Try editing your message to fix the quotes. If you need help, let us know.
 
dooleycrew said:
What will I need for the travel trailer for the first time? I have never had one, so this is a little over whelming to say the least.  I am finding loads of checklists, but nothing that has a set idea of what should be on the travel trailer at all times.

So far I have:
Equalizer Bar for towing -  Do these normally have anti sway built in or is it seperate from the system? I am lost on this!!
  Already have the hitch mounted on the truck for the trailer also...Yes the sway control is a separate item.  You may or may not need one.  Try first
Fresh drinking hose - is 50ft enough? I think its the longest they make... I don't know how long I need... don't want to be stuck without water because my hose is too short!In most full hookup campgrounds 10 feet is probably more than enough.  Personally we do a lot of dry camping in National Forest Camp grounds so I carry about 250 feet at minimum
Sewer hose -  20ft ok? I noticed they only come in 15 ft with 5 ft extensions... Should I expand this?I have on board a 10 and a 20 feet hose and at times I have used both when the sewer drop is a long ways off.
Electrical cord to run to get power to the trailer - Is this a standard orange indoor out door power cord? Is 100ft enough?You trailer will already have a 20-25 foot cord and generally this is sufficient for all applications.  IF you want an extension cord don't go over 25 feet as the power loss could cause brown outs at times.
Disposable Gloves for dumping sewer.  I carry a pair of heavy duty rubber gloves.
Wheel Chaulks/blocks to keep from rolling. I plan to do both sides of all 4 wheels... is this over kill? Never know what incline I will have right? Do I need wheel lifts? Go to Lowe's and buy yourself an 8 foot 2X6 and cut it down to about 16 inch peces.  Bevel the ends to make it easier to climb up on.  That is probably all you really need.  Unless you camp in some really hilly places.  Yes, I have four of the blocks to block the tires fore and aft.  It might also be a good idea to get a couple of those clamp type tire blocks.
What are some helpful tools to have?  You will need a jack specifically for the trailer.  I find a 10 ton hydraulic does really well.  On top of that, you will need a breaker bar and the correct socket for the lug nuts.  Then get yourself a tool box and load up with an assortment of hand tools and screwdrivers.  I carry 3/8 to 1 inch wrenches, regular and Phillips screw drivers. A test light or VOM meter can be very handy too.  Harbor Freight is great for all this stuff



Thanks
MIchelle
Click to expand...

Also a pen and note pad.  As you start traveling, and realize you don't have some tool or other items, make a note of it and when you get home, go buy it.  Pretty soon you'll have a monster tool box in the back of your TV and nothing at home. ;D
Most important item to have with you is patience and a smile.
 
Ah, donn stole my absolute must have item...the notepad and pen!  Most of the other stuff is covered pretty well.  But you will most certainly need that pad and pen.  Even following all the checklists you can download, you will inevitably find something YOU need and if you don't write it down, you will forget it. 

One other thing to do is camp either close by your home, or close to a local Wal-Mart of other type of store like that.  There will likely be items you will remember, and a quick trip to Wal-Mart will fill the need.  A good maiden voyage is one where you had a good time, learned a lot, and figured out just what you need to make future trips more enjoyable!
 
dooleycrew said:
What will I need for the travel trailer for the first time? I have never had one, so this is a little over whelming to say the least.  I am finding loads of checklists, but nothing that has a set idea of what should be on the travel trailer at all times.

So far I have:
Equalizer Bar for towing -  Do these normally have anti sway built in or is it seperate from the system? I am lost on this!!
  Already have the hitch mounted on the truck for the trailer also...  sway bars are separate from a weight distribution hitch, although the weight distribution hitches, due to how they work, do add some "anti sway" effect to the trailer.  My thoughts are to try it without and see if you have a sway problem, but do be careful in doing so.  Sway can be initiated by speed, or by a big semi passing you going either way.  Killing off your speed is the only way to stabilize it.
Fresh drinking hose - is 50ft enough? I think its the longest they make... I don't know how long I need... don't want to be stuck without water because my hose is too short! It depends on your situation.  Some folks carry 5/15/25 foot lengths.  Most campgrounds will be OK with 5-15.  Occasionally you get into a situation where maybe a single water spigot is serving a dozen or more campers "daisy chaining off it" and it may be considerable distance from your trailer.  In that case, a 100 foot hose sometimes comes in handy.  Also, carry one of those hose splitters that converts a single faucet outlet into 2 outlets...that's how the daisy chaining works.  Also comes in handy if it's just you at a single site as it provides an "outside" water source without unhooking the trailer hose.  Lastly, don't forget to buy yourself a water pressure regulator to use with your hose.  Most folks attach them to the hose at the end that goes on the faucet.  That way, you protect your hose as well as the plumbing inside the trailer.  They're inexpensive and needed in some places where the water pressure can exceed 100 psi.
Sewer hose -  20ft ok? I noticed they only come in 15 ft with 5 ft extensions... Should I expand this?
Electrical cord to run to get power to the trailer - Is this a standard orange indoor out door power cord? Is 100ft enough?
Disposable Gloves for dumping sewer.  Careful here, just "any old" cord won't work.  Take a look at the plug end on your camper.  If it has 3 pins in a triangular pattern and two of them are flat and one is round, then this is a 30 AMP plug and it means that to extend it properly, you need a #10 wire extension.  If it has 4 pins, 3 of them flat and 1 round, then it is a 50 AMP plug and you need an even bigger wire extension.  Not something you'll find at Home Depot.  Both of these larger extensions are available at camping stores and off the internet.  In practically every campground, your trailer cord will suffice.  Again, if you are in some "camping community" situation where there are not specific trailer sites marked off/provisioned, the electrical outlets may be grouped on a pole somewhere and 50' or more from your trailer.  In this case, an extra 25' extension is nice to have.
Wheel Chaulks/blocks to keep from rolling. I plan to do both sides of all 4 wheels... is this over kill? Never know what incline I will have right? Do I need wheel lifts?
What are some helpful tools to have?  Several options here....they make wheel chocks that go between the tires and lock them together, or you could go with a chock in front of/and behind the wheels on each side.  I think 4 chocks/side is overkill.  You also need to consider the "left to right" levelness of the trailer.  Usually, the tongue jack will get you where you need to be in terms of front/back level, but for side to side, you may want to carry some lengths of 2x6 or 2x8 to drive the low side of the trailer up on.  When I pulled a trailer, I carried an assortment of wood..two 4 foot lengths, two 2 foot lengths, and eight "squares of wood" which are handy for putting under the tongue jack if you need to go up a long way, or under the rear stabilizers if the ground is soft or an extended distance away.


Thanks
MIchelle
Click to expand...
 
Equalizer Bar for towing -  Do these normally have anti sway built in or  is it seperate from the system? I am lost on this!!
  Already have  the hitch mounted on the truck for the trailer also...
Click to expand...
The Equalizer brand of weight distributing (WD) hitch has it built in. Most other brands do not.  Are you sure you have the Equalizer brand of hitch?
Fresh drinking  hose - is 50ft enough? I think its the longest they make... I don't  know how long I need... don't want to be stuck without water because my  hose is too short!
Click to expand...
Typically 25 feet is plenty for any campsite and many of us carry two 25 footers rather than a single 50, just so we don't always have to handle that long hose. There may be a few campsites somewhere that you need more than 50 ft, but they are rare. Most likely to be in somebody's yard or driveway rather than a commercial campsite.
 
Sewer hose -  20ft ok? I noticed they only come in  15 ft with 5 ft extensions... Should I expand this?
Click to expand...
As with water hoses, distance to a sewer inlet may vary but 10-20 feet is typical. I carry two 10 ft sewer hoses for ready use and have another 20 footer stashed away for the rare instances where I need a bit more.
 
Electrical cord  to run to get power to the trailer - Is this a standard orange indoor  out door power cord? Is 100ft enough?
Click to expand...
The 'standard orange cord" is a 16 gauge cord and suitable for smaller loads only.  Max power is about 13 amps in lengths up to 25 feet and much less for 50-100 feet.  What is the shore power system on your RV rated for? Typically they will be 30 amp or 50 amps (the three prong plug is 30A, while the 4 prong is 50A).  And how long is the cord on the trailer? 15-20 feet is typical and that is often enough to reach the campsite power pole by itself.  You will probably want a 20-25 foot, 30A RV extension cord, though, for the occasional outlet that is further away.

If your trailer has a 30 amp power cord, you may also want to get a 30A-to-15A adapter so it can be plugged into a standard household power outlet when necessary. You only get half the power, but its better than nothing! You can get one at a Walmart or RV store.

 
Disposable Gloves for dumping  sewer.
Wheel Chaulks/blocks to keep from rolling. I plan to do both  sides of all 4 wheels... is this over kill? Never know what incline I  will have right? Do I need wheel lifts?
Click to expand...
4 wheel chocks is plenty. One each front and back, on both sides.

What do you mean by "wheel lifts". The device known a s a wheel lift is for changing tires. I wonder if you mean some other device, perhaps for leveling the trailer?  That would be a piece of wood or plastic that is placed under the wheels on one side to raise it up about 1" per slab (multiples can be stacked). If that is what you mean, then yes you want some.

Also, does the trailer have built-in stabilizer jacks in the back? They are used to steady the trailer when parked.
 
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