Essential first outing checklist.

kadman

I,ve just bought my first camper, and looking foreward to my first outing. I want to tap into your expertise, and ask you, what should be on my checklist, or more to the point whats on yours that should be on mine. The obvious, and the maybe not so obvious.

I want my first run to be a memorable one, for all the right reasons;)


Thanks

kadman

peasant

right ...I'll have a stab at this;

1) the blatantly obvious:
enough gas, full water tanks, empty waste water tanks, extension cable and connectors

2) personal comfort:
your favourite foods/drinks, toys for the kids, a good book/DVD's for when it rains, changes of clothing, your favourite music, etc

3) all the niggely little things:
the universal tool kit ..duct tape, superglue, WD40 and a screwdriver
gloves for filling up with diesel, an old rag
kitchen roll ...lots of kitchen roll
plastic bags for waste
some window cleaner for the windscreen (gets manky really quickly)
a little brush for brushing out the sand and dirt
a flashlight


I'm sure there's lots more ...but that's all I can think of right now

BENDYBINN

people forget that shops supermarkets and petrol stations are either on route or nearby.You are not going into the dessert for forty days!

3ps

I went to Lough Key on my first ever trip. At 10pm I realised I had forgotten all towels and all my clothes including my coat.

Edit: I was obviously wearing clothes at the time.

paddyb

i have a set of towels, bed sheets and toiletries just for the camper. they only time i take them out is to wash them

*Kol*

Bring a bike. It's a pain to have to put everything away to drive to shops if they are not an easy walk away.
Seats and a table for sitting outside (if its not raining for 5 minutes).
Leveling blocks. You can never find a level spot when you dont have them.
Covers for the cab windows (unless you don't mind the whole MH being bright from sunrise onwards).

Other than that bring your wallet!

Malta1

a good sense of humour.....most definately a good sense of humour especially if its your first trip

Have fun

zoltar_boi

A box of matches!

How else can you light the cooker to brew up - I learned the hard way.

Best of luck - was in your place last year - still learning what to bring.

Some have been said already but...

• Cards
• Books
• Colours / Colouring books
• Batteries for games / torch
• paper and pen (to write down what you forgot to bring!)
• Raingear - unless your first trip is to Spain!!
• Chargers for Mobile phones
• plasters / medicine (headache tabs!)

*Kol*

Insect repellant- We were eaten alive in Doolin the other weekend!!

kadman

Looks like I best get me checklist printed and organised. Lots of stuff there alright. Some obvious....and the not so obvious...you are a smart bunch indeed:D:D


I did not see any one suggest spare right hand mirrors for me left hander:p

I kid you not. My family has 2 campers, plus mine now is 3. Between them they have had 4 right hand mirrors nipped off. And before you say anything about their driving habits, there is a courier driver, and a psv driver in there, with decades of accident free driving. Are lh campers prone to this, or is it just bad luck.

I was behind my brother when he was bringing mine home, and was well in to the left. Some ignorant lorry driver flying along, surgically removed it from me new purchase....aaarrrgghhh:eek::eek: My brother was as close to the ditch as he could get, any nearer and he would be cutting the hedgerows for free;)

Any one else had mirrors amputated.:D

kadman

*Kol*

As it happens the glass on my right hand mirror is broken ( was broken when i got the MH). I have never gotten close enough to anybody to actually hit the mirror thankfully.

chrisblack

Come on guys... no one mentioned the corkscrew and bottle opener????

I've started up a small list that I keep on the notice board for when I'm filling up the van.

Most of what is on the list are foodstuffs.. bread, butter etc... the stuff you won't leave in the van, or will go off if you do...

I also find "throws" (the things you put on settees) very useful... I improve the darkness by hanging them from the overcab bed area to down behind the drivers seat (thus cutting down further on the amount of sunlight in a morning), to make sure the kids lie in in the morning and they are also handy for wrapping up in to keep warm on a cool evening..

Chris

Chris

*Kol*

chrisblack wrote: »

Come on guys... no one mentioned the corkscrew and bottle opener????

Good point!! Though always remeber there is bound to be someone close by who will be better prepared than you to borrow a corkscrew or anything else that you are missing.

boyoh

Hello,
If you are going any distance,don't fill your water tanks,it cost a lot of diesel to pull them along.Just keep enough water in your tanks to get you to your first nights stop.
boyoh