Setting Up and Packing Up - Page 2

travelingjw · 02-01-2019, 02:42 PM

We enjoy the RV process. Setting up and taking down is is part of the experience. We try to manage the process so that everything is enjoyable and relaxing. Challenges sometimes make it interesting but it always about our attitude. We also try to manage the process based upon weather conditions or time challenges.

Ohiofinlander · 02-01-2019, 04:30 PM

Thoroughly enjoy it in my own little twisted way due to the little guy(my son) shown below. It's like he becomes obsessed with getting the job done from a 50 year old mind in an 11 year old body. It's the only time that I let him give his mother(my dw) orders on what to do. It's quite comical, yet a proud moment for me to see that my kid can take charge when needed. I love, love, love it!!!!

RickAE · 02-01-2019, 04:45 PM

Peggy and I both enjoy the set up and take down of our TT. When we get to the site, Peggy guides me in . She looks to see if we are level side to side and sets the board down if we're not level side to side. Then she goes inside, Which is her domain to set up and take down. The outside is my domain. It takes us approximately 30 minutes to set up and about 45 minutes to take down. Again me outside, Peggy inside. We normally leave early in the morning to go home. This way I can clean out black and gray tanks with usually no one else at the dump site. So I can flush and put in the chemicals.( one less thing to do at home.) Usually works out fine. A good ending to a good camping trip!!

Tonyzsi · 02-03-2019, 09:30 AM

I enjoy towing, backing in and setting up because I'm excited about enjoying the weekend camping trip. I have a hybrid camper and store my cooler, grill and a few other things inside so it seems like our process takes longer than some friends as they have more storage and simple electric slides. I finally got in a groove with the DW with me outside opening our 3 foldout beds and her & the kids inside putting the poles in and making the beds. The kids are helping out more and more each trip.
Packing up is not as much fun since then you're heading home. Not to mention friends we camp with all seem to be in a race to pack up and pull out. We like to take our time and have more stuff to take inside and secure for the ride home. It's all part of the experience though so it's all worth it to me.

loriemoms · 02-06-2019, 01:41 PM

We pack.up the camper at home with clothes in drawrs and closet bed.made etc. I always fill the fridge with food and frozen bottles of water.instead of using a cooler so its nice and cold when we arrive.once we arrive I jump out and we talk over the phone as my husband backs into the spot with me directing him over the.phone. It drives people crazy because he is on hands free and they just see me talking on the phone and he is just zipping into the spot. (Our TT is 38 feet) haha. Anyway I usually plug in electric as he unhitches and levels..we use the drill for our jacks. Once stabilized I put the three slides out he hooks up water and we then have fun "decorating" putting out rug chairs etc. 15 minutes or so setting up. When we leave we do any cleanup the night before depending how long our stay was. That morning just dump and hookup etc. We pretty much just leave everything inside the same and unpack when we get home.

Click_here · 02-06-2019, 01:54 PM

I think for most, "it" is all part of the whole deal, camping with a trailer or MH. I do the driving and backing in, slides and hookups mostly. We use walkie-talkies to get positioned if needed. Wife sets up inside and both of us work on the less pleasant tasks around the ritual of the dump station, unless we are at a full hook up.

We also keep clothes and non-perishables in the RV and will start stocking the refrigerator a few days in advance. If we are staying longer than a couple of nights, I will set up the satellite dish as well. Otherwise, we usually just look for local stations. Never had much luck with camp ground cable.

For me, the more important part is making sure the slides are all in (3), everything is stowed and I am no longer attached to the power, which yes, has happened! Once at home (wife yelled at me) and once at a state park. Luckily, I was turning left and looked out the window to see my power cable happily dragging along side me. Sheesh.

2nOZ · 02-06-2019, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loriemoms

We pack.up the camper at home with clothes in drawrs and closet bed.made etc. I always fill the fridge with food and frozen bottles of water.instead of using a cooler so its nice and cold when we arrive.once we arrive I jump out and we talk over the phone as my husband backs into the spot with me directing him over the.phone. It drives people crazy because he is on hands free and they just see me talking on the phone and he is just zipping into the spot. (Our TT is 38 feet) haha. Anyway I usually plug in electric as he unhitches and levels..we use the drill for our jacks. Once stabilized I put the three slides out he hooks up water and we then have fun "decorating" putting out rug chairs etc. 15 minutes or so setting up. When we leave we do any cleanup the night before depending how long our stay was. That morning just dump and hookup etc. We pretty much just leave everything inside the same and unpack when we get home.

This is pretty much our set up and departure routine. When we are ready to depart, we both make two separate inspections to make sure we didn’t forget to do anything.

davolson · 02-06-2019, 02:50 PM

While not doing this "that" long.. we did come up with one rule: My wife and I have assigned each other tasks for this process, and we don't mix them up. Last spring in a hurry to leave a wet and bug infested site in one piece, we both worked on the "outside chores". She got the hose packed up, I the rest.. but we left our "y" adapter and pressure regulator on the spigot at the site. "I thought that was theirs". Owners were nice enough to mail it to us later, but re-affirmed our new rule... do assigned, and not randomly mixed "tasks" !!

Camper_bob · 02-06-2019, 03:03 PM

I'll say I don't mind it as much in my MH as I did in my TT. It's super easy with the MH. And I don't put everything out when we get there. I get equipment out as needed and put it away when I'm done with it. Chairs may stay out, but pretty much everything else gets put away when I'm not using it.

To say I "enjoy" it would probably be a bit of a stretch. I don't mind it too much. I have a process that has essentially become automatic.

It does indicate that I'm on vacation, and so for that aspect I enjoy it.

loriemoms · 02-06-2019, 03:20 PM

The list is a good idea for the stuff that is so easy to forget. Like making sure the antanea is down. We have this flap for the stove vent that if you forget to lock down it will flap like crazy while driving..

gypsmjim · 02-06-2019, 03:21 PM

We did it for about 12 years. And yes, it "could" be a hassle. You set vacation time with the boss, and then ...you go. You never know what the weather might be. Also, sometimes it rained and we got a waterlogged campsite. Also, sometimes we had noisy or crabby neighbors. Yada, yada, yada.

Then, we discovered heaven. We bought a piece of land in the wilderness, and then 3 years later we bought the piece next door at auction. Added a driveway at the onset, and a pond a few years later. Total cost was less than what we paid for the Jayco, and with a few years appreciation we now have a tidy nest egg.

Our taxes are chump change. We splurged a few years ago and put in a power pole. Monthly electric charge is $23.00. We go whenever we want to - no reservations needed. As long as the snow is less than a foot, we can get up the driveway, thus we're almost year-round campers.

No setup required - just lower the awning, bring out the chairs and open the windows. If I want to target shoot, no problem. If i want to fish, I don't even need a licence. If I want to pee in the bushes, no problem. Our neighbors are deer and turkey. If we want to drive into town to pick up groceries, no need to lock anything up or put anything away.

I realize, not for everybody, but it's heaven for us. It's not a "vacation", it's our life. If we want to go on "vacation", we fly to the coast and go on a cruise. Now, THAT's the ULTIMATE vacation!!!

bearkeller · 02-06-2019, 03:29 PM

Been doing this for 40 years. We have developed our own process and find it better if no one “HELPS” us. It’s simple I do all the driving and take care of the outside stuff and my better half takes care of the inside

Camper_bob · 02-06-2019, 04:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bearkeller

Been doing this for 40 years. We have developed our own process and find it better if no one “HELPS” us. It’s simple I do all the driving and take care of the outside stuff and my better half takes care of the inside

Same.

Separation of duties and cross-check are important ingredients to success.

Except I can get DW to drive every now and again. I try not to because she drives too fast.

Camper TD · 02-06-2019, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by klinner28

Curious to know if you enjoy this aspect of RV life, or do you find it tedious, annoying, stressful or fun.

Talking about positioning the RV on the site, hooking up everything, setting the lawn furniture, and then packing it all up and doing final inspections.

I used to

Lake Huron · 02-06-2019, 05:37 PM

If this makes any sense, both the set up and tear down are kind of an enjoyable pain. Each trailer I've owned had their own pains and at different times in the processes.
5 years ago our 34' 2004 Montana mountaineer could be put ANYWHERE on ANY site. First thing was getting it in the wife's desirable position, then came the forward/backward jerking around getting it on the leveling boards, then uncouple, fiddle around with the stabilizers, get it plugged in and other connections if available, slides, A/C or furnace going along with the other comforts, manual awning, party lights put up, rug(s) put out,..... good God it was like an hour process. Packing up went a little faster but not much.

Then when you get home, wife cleans out the inside and I washed it from top to bottom.

Now with the Northpoint, all together different. People see this bug cuss rolling thru the park and it's all eyes on it to see were the snobby, rich idiots are going. The surrounding sites all turn their chairs toward our site for the show to see how stupid the driver is trying to shoehorn it on the site. Most are pretty bummed out due to the show not lasting very long. The rest just sit in amazement and commentless over to us wondering how I got a 44' trailer in there on the first or second try, watch the trailer level itself, all 5 slides and awning go out via remote control, rug(s) out and sitting in my chair with a fresh starting campfire going and beverage in hand all in about 20 minutes.

Then I get the stink eye, no pun intended, in line for the dump station. Big trailer equals big tanks and this guy is gonna take forever. It has 5 tanks, 3 grey and 2 black but has 2 outlets. I can get all the tanks emptied, including slamming 5 gallons down both toilets to flush the tanks out and get out of there as fast or faster than most.

Now comes pain train. Once it gets home the wife clears out the inside. Not too big of a deal there. The big deal is how long it takes to wash down all that real estate. You wouldnt think 10 extra feet would be that difficult. Its got 3 more slides than the Montana had and is nearly 2' taller.

Get things packed on thursday after work, to leave friday after work to come home sunday for more work and all that for a day and a half of fun. Sounds insane, but I've done WAY more work for a lot less fun.

Camper TD · 02-06-2019, 06:59 PM

You should do a YouTube video!
I'd watch! The remote doesn't work anymore, Slide and Feet are always iffy. Yes I'm good at back in, but most Parks make it difficult. It's usually 2/3 hours before beverage on a carpet. And the firepit usually gets out that night.

tinlizzie23 · 02-06-2019, 07:13 PM

We enjoy just about all aspects of RVing, including set up/take down, except loading the 5er before leaving, and carrying it all back in after coming home. Particularly the latter, as it is kind of depressing that we are back to the grind after an enjoyable camping trip.

CamperStu · 02-06-2019, 07:40 PM

good point rain can be a problem - if rain is coming on a Wednesday then i am packing up most of my gear on a Tuesday, maybe i am not leaving until Thursday.. get most of the gear away.

proride · 02-06-2019, 08:39 PM

I have a Jayflight 21QB, so since it's small and no slides, set up/take down are really not a problem and not much stress. The only "stress" sometimes is when we meet the granddaughters (4 and 6) when our daughter and son in law also go in their motorhome. The girls can't wait for me to get set up so they can go in the trailer and find the treats that grandma and I have hidden inside the trailer for them.

redley · 02-06-2019, 09:20 PM

Balance and leveling one’s RV can be the biggest challenge
in setting up camp So, we traded in our 29’ 5th Wheel for a 38’ Jayco North Point equipped with automatic self- leveling system. Can even use an app on my iPhone to activated the trailers self-automatic system to roll out the
20+’ awning. Setting up the utilities take 15 minutes.
Total setup time: 25 minutes

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