Travel Trailer Camping Tips

Your brand-new travel trailer gives you access to the great outdoors, where you can enjoy all that nature has to offer during the day while having a comfortable place to sleep and eat at night. However, being a new owner of a travel trailer can be challenging, and learning to camp with it can also take some time to master as well.

So how do you get yourself and your camper ready for adventure? Lakeside RV Sales is proud to be your local travel trailer dealer, based in Anderson, SC. Here are a few helpful camping tips to ensure that you and your traveling companions have a safe and enjoyable experience in your travel trailer.

Packing For The Trip

The best way to manage your packing is to create checklists for everything you and your family or friends will need on your journey. You’ll also need to stock the travel trailer with supplies, including some emergency gear. 

Certain items that will need to be on your camper at all times include: a first-aid kit, a tool kit for repairs, a spare tire, an air compressor, fire extinguishers (at least two: one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom), dishes, silverware, cooking pots and pans, utensils, spices, condiments, cleaning supplies, bed linens, blankets and towels. 

It’s recommended that you obtain some signal flares, a hatchet and an emergency hand-crank radio in case you become stranded and need help.

Towing Safety

Next, you’ll want to make sure that you are set up and ready to tow your travel trailer safely to your campsite. Mastering the hitch should come pretty easily after a few tries, but you’ll want to further anchor the trailer with towing chains crossed in an X shape under the tongue. This is a precautionary measure that keeps the trailer attached if the hitch fails so that you have time to pull off the road and fix it without a collision.

When you’re towing, you’ll need to be more cautious than usual. Try not to go any faster than 55 to 60 miles per hour, because travel trailer tires aren’t designed for high speeds. Stick to the right-hand lane as much as you can and avoid passing others. Create more space between yourself and vehicles around you to give yourself more room to bring the towing setup to a complete stop when necessary. Signal well in advance of any moves you need to make and watch for other cars that might sneak into your blind spots.

Setting Up The Trailer

Once you arrive at your campsite, you’ll need to set up your trailer. Most campgrounds will have a flat concrete pad onto which you can park your trailer, but if you’re boondocking without any hookups in the wilderness, you’ll have to locate a patch of flat and even ground without rocks or inclines to park on. You’ll then start the process of leveling your travel trailer with leveling blocks and a level to ensure that all its systems function correctly and that you have no instability.

Water System Concerns

Water in your travel trailer comes out of faucets either from water hookups at campsites or from your freshwater holding tank. You will probably want to conserve water as much as you can when drawing from the freshwater tank since your supply is finite. Take short showers and don’t let the sink run while you’re not using it (when brushing your teeth or washing dishes).

Where does that water drain, though? Your travel trailer has two other holding tanks: a greywater tank for shower and sink water and a blackwater tank for your toilet water. Each of these tanks requires regular emptying and cleaning using hoses and the right supplies. Never dump your greywater or blackwater onto the ground! Use sewer hookups at campsites to properly dispose of it.

Power Functions

Your travel trailer is powered either by a generator that runs on propane or by power hookups at campsites. If you have solar panels installed, you have access to a free source of sustainable power. Make sure that you don’t overload your power circuits by using too many electronics at once, and know that some items like air-conditioning units may suck up much more power than you have available. Brownouts and blackouts are common at campgrounds, so installing a surge protector is also a smart idea.

Looking for campers near Anderson, SC? Browse our website to see the wide stock of new and used travel trailers for sale at our dealership location. We even provide financing options to help you fund your purchase. Lakeside RV Sales proudly serves the cities of Charlotte and Greenville, SC.