Getting to know your Motorhome or Campervan and your own needs

Everybody's home-from-home and the way they want to use it is different. Here's how to work out what you do and don't need to have in yours.

by Julie Wills

Be organised

It's easy to go mad, buying all kinds of special equipment for your Motorhome. But you'll get better value if you improvise to start off with, and work out what you really do and don't need. (See What else do I need? )

Keep a list / notebook / electronic list of useful information, checklists and measurements.

My personal preference is to use electronic lists, as I'll always have my phone with me and can update anything whenever I think of it; I can also share the information with my partner. Whatever works best for you is fine, but keep a note of useful information somewhere.

Start local

If you possibly can, make your first trip away a very local one. That way, if you've forgotten something important, you can go home for it. You can even have a weekend "away" on your own driveway at home.

Your first trip should ideally include some driving while you're "away", so that you can get the hang of where all the rattles are - there will always be rattles - and how to prevent them. It will also help you to work out how to pack everything safely, so that nothing ever falls out, falls over, or breaks (this is where your tea-towels and other multi-use equipment earns its keep). You don't need to go far: you could drive to the supermarket and back to learn the joys of being able to put your shopping away in cupboards or the fridge before you even leave the car park.

Whilst you're in camping mode, try to use all the equipment in the Motorhome that you expect to use when away (both with and without hookup). It will be far less exasperating to have some time to familiarise yourself with it all when you're not completely relying on it. You'll want to cook, wash, use the loo, use the hot water, use the shower if you have one (assuming you plan to use it while you're away), use the heating (if it's not already sweltering outside), be able to open and close the skylights, make up the bed (if it's not fixed), safely use the ladder to any overcab bed. And don't forget to empty the freshwater, grey water and black (toilet) waste tanks afterwards.

By the way, if you're not on hook-up, don't expect your 3-pin 240V sockets to work.

Measure and photograph everything

Well, maybe not everything, but it really is useful to be armed with photographs and measurements of mundane things like the insides of cupboards and the length and width of your seats and corridors. That way, the next time you find yourself staring at something that might be just the very baskets, door mat or picnic crockery you need, whether it's in your local pound shop or Selfridges, you'll know whether it will fit in the spaces you have available.

The kitchen area

Fridge

The most common type of fridge in a motorhome is known as a 3-way fridge. The three ways refer to what's supplying the power to it, and are:

Electric hook-up (EHU)
Gas
Battery

Note that the battery will usually be your vehicle battery, not your leisure battery, and will almost certainly only work while the engine is running. It will be enough to keep the contents of the fridge cool, but I'd advise pre-cooling the fridge before you leave, using either mains electricity on hookup or gas.

There are other types of fridge designed to work efficiently from big leisure batteries on vehicles equipped with solar panels, but they're less common.

Most conventional looking fridges in a motorhome can lock in one of two positions - closed (when in use), and ajar (when not in use). Locking the door open will prevent mould from growing inside - not a nice thing to have to clean out when you're about to go away.

Some fridges (especially in day vans) are more like a powered cool box, and may even be removable.

Get to know your cooking equipment

Depending on the equipment in your Motorhome (which can vary enormously), your budget for eating out, and your attitude to cooking, have a think about what kind of food you'll want to eat while you're using the Motorhome.

You may decide that you'll make it easy for yourself, and live on a combination of takeaways, meals out and ready meals. You could batch cook and freeze or vacuum-pack meals at home and take those with you (but bear in mind you probably won't have a lot of room in the freezer on board). Or you may like the challenge of cooking a full Sunday Roast in a limited space.

Until our third Motorhome, we'd never had an oven, so were limited to what we could cook on the hob or under the grill. Then when we did get an oven, its settings were ... optimistic. It usually took a lot longer to cook anything that we expected.

Ovenware and utensils

My suggestion would be not to start shopping for any additional food-related equipment until you've stayed in the MoHo a few times. One of the joys of Motorhoming is that it's NOT like being at home, so don't be afraid to do things differently while you're away.

We have

A Vango 1.6 litre whistling kettle with folding handle (the only thing we wouldn't have been able to find in our kitchen at home)
the smallest two from a set of Swan non-stick saucepans that I've owned for 40 years
2 or 3 oven trays of various depths and sizes
a rectangular ridged non-stick frying pan with a folding handle bought from IKEA, which we use mostly under the grill (it's a perfect fit, and ideal for cooking bacon) - but any frying pan or grill pan will do.
a tin opener
lightweight plastic tongs (for turning the bacon)
a small-ish lightweight plastic serving spoon
a set of normal cutlery
a couple of sharp kitchen knives
a pair of scissors
a wooden spatula
some knickerbocker glory / sundae spoons, used as long-handled teaspoons with our tall insulated mugs
the tiny grill pan and rack that came with the grill (just about large enough to toast 2 slices of bread)

If you're staying on a campsite with hookup, some people love to use a slow cooker. With the correct cable conversion it can be left behind on your pitch, gently cooking your evening meal while you go exploring in the MoHo; note that it will only work on hookup though ... and anyway, driving around with food sloshing around in a slow cooker wouldn't be wise.

Others swear by outdoor cooking using various types of Cadac (a popular brand of portable kettle-style barbecues). It you plan to use any kind of outdoor cooking equipment on a campsite, please make sure that it's permitted in the site rules. If you're off grid, make sure that whatever you use poses no risk of starting a fire.

Washing up

If you're doing your washing up on board, rather than using central washing up facilities on a site, I strongly recommend wiping everything as clean as you can before you start. That way, all the food waste goes into your bin rather than forming a nasty smelly sludge lurking in the bottom of your grey waste tank. If you're the type of person who likes to rinse after washing up (I am), either use two bowls, or the sink and a bowl - one filled with soapy water, and one with fresh. Wash in one, and rinse in the other. (Remember that water is one of your most limited resources on board.)

We have a folding draining rack that opens into a Z-shape, with top and bottom rack. (I have no idea where I got it from, but I went through a selection of small / folding options before finding one that works the way I want it to and folds down small.)

By the way, many campsites are pretty good at recycling, with separate bins for glass, paper, plastics and landfill waste, so please do your best to be as green as you can.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse