Storage solutions make life easier inside the RV

Finding storage in little-used spaces

Question: Do you have any suggestions for gadgets or accessories for small-space living?

Answer: Just like those big empty spaces on the outside, when you get your new RV there are big empty spaces on the inside—maybe not as big but just as empty: cupboards and drawers with no shelves or dividers and no place but the closets to hang anything. Somehow you need to add shelves and dividers and hooks to make those empty spaces useable.

Cupboards

Even if there are lots of cupboards, they seldom are set up to hold what you want to put in there. Thank goodness for those wonderful smaller plastic boxes and storage containers. In our first fifth wheel we could stack two smaller storage containers end to end. That managed to give us twice as much space as well as keep canned things in place when we were travelling. One suggestions is to label what the container holds (unless they are clear and you can see into them), so you don’t need to find out that the last container you look into holds what you have been looking for.

Plastic-covered open shelving works well to give you extra shelf space in the cupboards. We use one bottom level to store our shorts and trousers and the top for t-shirts and sweatshirts. A desk file holder works in the kitchen cupboard to hold cutting boards and pot lids.

Drawers

Often the drawers don’t need dividers because there aren’t enough of them or they aren’t big enough to partition. We did find that the cutlery drawer is often deep enough to accommodate two levels, so we stack the cutlery trays one on top of the other. We mounted a slide-out container to hold all the larger utensils like flips and large spoons.

Hooks and pockets

I call these the RVers’ best friends. Hooks and pockets can fit on to all those wall spaces you never thought of using. 3M Commander Hooks come in a multitude of sizes and shapes that can hold up to 15 kg. We have a number that line the walls in the bedroom. We use them to hang anything from small objects we don’t want to lose to clothes.

You know the pockets they use for shoes? We have modified a set to hang on the wall in the bathroom to hold brushes, shavers, etc. to keep the counter uncluttered.

Other commercial gadgets

The Skooba Travel Organizer helps you get control of all those cables, chargers and doodads that accompany all of your electronic toys. It is the size of a medium phone book and tucks neatly into a corner of the cabinet. Available from TechnoRV. 

Silicone bakeware rolls into a tube shape (great for RV storage). It is non-stick, safe and easy to clean. There are flexible silicone liners for cooking scones and cookies, silicone spatulas and all-around standard pieces of cooking equipment. It can be purchased online or in any housewares or kitchen store.

Sticky lint roller can be indispensable in controlling pet hair around the RV. There are all sizes and shapes available in all sorts of retail outlets. Mr. Sticky is one online resource.

Soap and shampoo dispensers that attach to the wall of the shower keep liquids in check and eliminate the need for other containers in the shower.