Bedding & Kitchen Supplies and Bathrooms

[Jim W. & Kathy O.]

Hi to all you people who have owned and traveled with your RVs,
    Since we are new at this, and getting ready for our maiden voyage, from Upper Michigan to Flagstaff, AZ... we wondered about some odds and ends.  Our RV, a 1987 Ford Coachman (27 foot) and we have a back bedroom with these really small twin beds.  My question is this... Do you get or make special sheets, or will twin bed sheets work?  We already figuered out we need some sort of memory foam or at least the crate foam to make these comfortable enough for my 90 year old Mom, and disabled niece who will share this room.
      The other question I have... Do most of you utilize disposeable dishes on the road?  What kinds of pots and pans are best for the most versatility?  Maybe I'm overthinking this whole trip.  I have already given assigned storage to the 7 family members going on the trip to make it fair. 
    My husband is worried about the my niece and mom understanding the use of the toilet.  It looks to us like it has to be filled with water before using it.  We don't know if Mom can wait, or my niece can understand.  We'll try to do some basic picture intructions on the back of the bathroom door and pre trip training.  Again, I may be overthinking all of this.
    You have all been very helpful and we are just probably a little compulsive.  Oh, I take that back.  I am compulsive about travel planning.  Jim would just find a site along the way, no reservations.  I push for him to plan how many miles and then I reserve a park that fits our needs.  I loved the wireless internet park listing, because we booked several of those.  We have 5 people with laptops and one of those is my 90 year old Mom who got hers last month.... the learning has been interesting as at her age I am teaching her another language.
Thanks from a compulsive, overthinking Newcomer,
Kathy

 

[Tom]

After doing the sheets thing for a number of years, we use the Travasak sold at Camping World. They're like a large sleeping bag with a "cold weather side" and a "warm weather side". Sheets (provided) snap inside the Travasak and can be removed for laundry. Two individual Travasaks can zipper together to make a double (our preferred).

We use regular dishes except when dry camping (aka boondocking) for an extended period of time.

Depending on the toilet style, I doubt you'd have to fill the bowl before using the toilet. Use it. If it's just liquid, flush it. If there are solids, add water, then flush.

 

[Carl L]

   

The other question I have... Do most of you utilize disposeable dishes on the road?  What kinds of pots and pans are best for the most versatility?  Maybe I'm overthinking this whole trip.  I have already given assigned storage to the 7 family members going on the trip to make it fair.

Not us.  We use Corningware Corelle dishes  (our set has lasted 10+ years with no breakage);  plastic glasses and cups including a pair of stainless steel coffee cups for mooching around camp.  Paper plates are reserved for boondocking without services to conserve water.

Do you get or make special sheets, or will twin bed sheets work? 

RV bed and mattress sizes can be a bit odd.  Measure the mattresses and buy your sheets by dimension.  That said, twins will likely work.

Tom fielded the toilet problem.  I would only add that a small bit of water should be in the toilet at all times to seal the valve against the odors of the black tank.

Are you straight on the use of chemicals (No) and TP (Scotts single ply or any good brand cleared for septic tank use)?

 

[cuts_up]

My 83yo mom has Alzheimers, she's really pretty bad.  We don't take her camping, but we do do take road trips in our rv and sometimes take her.  I have to explain the commode every time she uses it.  I have to stand there and instruct each move.  Pull down pants, sit all the way down, put the paper in the commode, pull up pants, move so I can flush (she will never understand flushing with foot pedals). 

I use a combination of disposable and non-disposable dishes and cookware.  If it's just the 2 of us and we have water and sewer, we use glass and non-disposable plastic.  If there are more people, or we don't have water and sewer, then breakfast and lunch are on paper plates with disposable flatware.  Dinner is on Corelle with stainless flatware.  We use very few disposable cups for drinking because I hate them.  Solo cups and other similar cups allow ice to melt too quickly for me.  I keep a few disposable cups in the basement.

I use quite a few disposable baking pans.  I also keep a box of those little pop-up foil sheets to use on the toaster oven baking tray.

For washing small loads of dishes I like to use those blue paper towels sold at Auto Zone or in the automotive part of Walmart.  They are very heavy and sturdy.  I use them to wash, drain, and dry.  I also found some really nice and heavy dinner napkins.  When we use those at dinner I rinse both our napkins and use 1 for washing dishes, and the other to clean off the table.  After a meal or anytime we dirty a dish or utensil, I take a damp paper towel and wipe off the visible food, then drop the dishes into a dishpan I keep in the sink.  Then I wash them when the pan is full.  I like to use a dishpan for dish water, because then I am not limited to running the water into gray tank.  We can pour it outside if we need to, or pour it into the commode to help add water to the black tank for dumping.

 

[ArdraF]

We can pour it outside if we need to

Cuts Up,

You need to be careful doing this.  Sometimes it's prohibited, especially in national or state parks, and often in private campgrounds.  "They" would tell you that's why they have sewers and/or dump stations.

ArdraF

 

[Carl L]

Cuts Up,

You need to be careful doing this.  Sometimes it's prohibited, especially in national or state parks, and often in private campgrounds.  "They" would tell you that's why they have sewers and/or dump stations.

Yew betcha Ardra.  I have seen park rangers go ballistic over people dumping dishwater out on to the ground.

 

[Shayne]

Buying sheets at CW  Heck I still got the wife sewing old flour and feed bags together.

 

[cuts_up]

Cuts Up,

You need to be careful doing this.  Sometimes it's prohibited, especially in national or state parks, and often in private campgrounds.  "They" would tell you that's why they have sewers and/or dump stations.

ArdraF

I don't do it if we have sewer.  The private campgrounds we've stayed in all had sewer hookups.  If it doesn't go down the kitchen drain, it usually goes into the commode to get more liquid in the black tank.  But I figure if tent campers are dumping wash water, then they can't say anything to me about doing the same thing.  But I guess there is no point in tempting them, I will be discrete. 

 

[Carl L]

I don't do it if we have sewer.   The private campgrounds we've stayed in all had sewer hookups.  If it doesn't go down the kitchen drain, it usually goes into the commode to get more liquid in the black tank.  But I figure if tent campers are dumping wash water, then they can't say anything to me about doing the same thing.  But I guess there is no point in tempting them, I will be discrete.   

Tent campers, other than backpackers, should not be doing that either.  Most tenting sites in front country campgrounds have grey water dump sites for that purpose.  Use your gray tank and help keep the campsites halfway decent.

 

[Shayne]

Always best to try to leave a place better than you found it.

 

[Ron]

We had a neighbor at a campground in Mich dumping his grey water out on the ground.  Got a whif of the smell a couple times but didn't know where the odor was coming from for sure.  The I saw him early one morning doing the deed.  He was invited to leave shortly there after and without a refund.  The park had received several complaints but nobody could identify exactly where to odor was coming from  being is was just an occassional whif.

 

[Topolino]

    

Are you straight on the use of chemicals (No) and TP (Scotts single ply or any good brand cleared for septic tank use)?

Do you mean that I am not supposed to use the bottle of blue chemicals that the dealer gave me in the bathroom?  If it is going to kill everything in my septic tank then I guess I better call the septic service before my pump tank pumps up to the septic tank.  If you are not talking about those chemicals what chemicals are you talking about????

 

[Carl L]

Do you mean that I am not supposed to use the bottle of blue chemicals that the dealer gave me in the bathroom?  If it is going to kill everything in my septic tank then I guess I better call the septic service before my pump tank pumps up to the septic tank.  If you are not talking about those chemicals what chemicals are you talking about????

Probably not.  What we are mostly talking about is any product that contains anything called formaldehyde or formalin.  Those are worse than useless.  If you are dumping into a private septic system by no means should you use tank chemistry.  A big slug of formaldehyde will bollox up a septic tank just fine.

It does not hurt to carry a packet or two of an enzyme based deodorant for those occasional days when the tank goes sour.  But that is kind of a once or twice a year sort of thing.

 

[Topolino]

Oh bugger.  The one they gave me does have formaldehyde.  Just called my dad and he said worst case scenario is that it breaks up the solids enough to go out to the leach field.  So solution is to put make sure I have a filter on the septic tank and if I don't hubby is bringing one home from work.  ;D

 

[KodiakRV]

Oh bugger.  The one they gave me does have formaldehyde.  Just called my dad and he said worst case scenario is that it breaks up the solids enough to go out to the leach field.  So solution is to put make sure I have a filter on the septic tank and if I don't hubby is bringing one home from work.   ;D

It could also kill all the bacterial action in your septic tank.  That's what drives the decomposition of the solids into liquids. 

 

[ArdraF]

Topolino,

When you say septic tank, we're all assuming you mean the kind at a stick house that has a drain field.  Never put formaldehyde in that.  Your best bet to keep a septic tank healthy is a one pound block of brewer's yeast which will keep the bacterial action going, whereas the formaldehyde products will kill off the bacteria that breaks down the "stuff."

As to RV waste tanks, the same is true.  Avoid formadehyde.  It not only stops the bacterial breakdown, it is bad for the environment.  Some campgrounds prohibit use of formaldehyde based products because it damages their septic tanks.

ArdraF

 

[Ron]

Products containing formaldehyde are not only bad for RV tanks and septic systems it has been known to upset the sewage treatment plants costing much time and many dollars to get things back to working order.  So if you see a sign at a campground indicating that dumping of tanks containing formaldehyde products is prohibited please honor their request as it may be the result of such an event.

 

[Carl L]

Oh bugger.  The one they gave me does have formaldehyde.  Just called my dad and he said worst case scenario is that it breaks up the solids enough to go out to the leach field.  So solution is to put make sure I have a filter on the septic tank and if I don't hubby is bringing one home from work.   ;D

If you have already used the stuff, fill the tank with water and dump at a dump station connected to a municipal sewer system and go and sin no more.  If you have not used it, return the bottle to the dealer who gave to you, or take it to a hazardous waste disposal station if that is not do-able.