When your teardrop isn't in use...

[Gaelen]

I've been moving things into the camper, but am leery of leaving stuff like pillows, my sleeping bag, sheets, towels, etc. in there when I'm not actually camping. Most of the time when it's not on the road, the SunSpot lives under a tree in my sister's significant other's back field. I don't leave any food in the camper, but bugs and mice could be a problem as the weather gets colder.

Do most of you leave linens and sleeping stuff in the camper between trips?
-- if yes, do you just leave it in place (on the bed, in the cupboards, etc.?)

-- if no, what do you do with it?
---- pull it out of the camper when you get home, do the laundry, and pack the cleaned linens/sleeping bags back in the camper after it's cleaned up?
---- store it in spacebags or storage bins in the camper until the next trip?
---- strip out the camper at the end of a trip and load the linens/sleeping bag back in as part of packing for the next trip?

Gaelen (if I can't go camping, at least I can clean and organize!)

[ccdell]

Well, I can't really tell you anything from experience as I haven't finished building my tear. But , my PLAN is to replace everything (clothes, blankets, pillows) except the food back into the tear after each camping trip so it will be ready to go at a moments notice. The food box and cooler will be kept inside the house and be loaded right before each trip. At the end of the season, I will probably bring it all inside for the winter.

[Eunice]

I leave everything in the tear. I do the laundry and put the sheets back on the bed and the towels in the cupboard.
During the winter I think I will bring everything in the house. The galley dishes and everything will stay in the tear.
Eunice

[starleen2]

We Live in East Texas where the summer gets quite hot. - 98 to 100’s is not uncommon. Our tiny trailer is set out in the back yard under a custom cover that we made. (I like to keep the outside from the elements while in storage). We keep most everything inside the trailer (except for food – of course). At first I thought the heat would warp anything plastic, however such was not the case – even the TV survives. We are always loaded and ready to go. We keep the towels and linens in plastic bags folded and ready for use. We have one trunk that we keep clothing and stuff that gets loaded when we are ready to go. We prefer to keep linens, towels, and pillows in plastic storage bags inside the trailer – can’t stand the thought of little critters making their home where we sleep. What we have to worry about is fire ants – they seem to get into everything – however where I kept the trailer, I treat for them about every three weeks and spray around the wheels and jack stand. Seems to work very well

[Ma3tt]

It's 24 sqft of cast iron storage space!

[Arne]

I leave everything inside, close it up tight, with a bucket of damp-rid from h/f in it.... no mold, no smells, no rodents.

Tomorrow, when I head off to Gettysburg, I'll put the lid on the damp-rid, put it inside the shed until I get home and put it back in the tear.

oh, I keep it under one of those covers from Sam's with a pole frame with a white tarp over the top of it.. so it does not get full sun on it.

http://www.amazinghomeproducts.com/

[asianflava]

Right now the tear is in the driveway (my neighbors must love that) but I usually store it in the garage. Either way, I strip the sheets and keep them in the house. We put new bedding in the tear each time we use it.

[Lynn Coleman]

When we lived up North and owned a pop-up, I left most items in the trailer. I didn't leave food, sheets and pillows. I also used camp dry and that worked great, very like the product Arne mentioned. Every year when we opened up the trailer, we would air it out for a couple days before we went camping and give it a good cleaning.

Living in Florida now, I plan to leave everything, including the sheets and pillows in the trailer. But I plan on washing them and setting them in a vaccum sealed bag. I like to be able to leave with very little prep time.

Check with others who own RV's, trailers and such in your area. Each area has different issues.

Lynn

[Bill Fernandez]

I'll tell you more after i go champing but I have to finish My tear first
Bill

[Kens]

We just clean everything and put it back

[Todah Tear]

My tear gets stored under a tarp in my driveway. I usually leave my sleeping bags and blankets inside. Prior to a camping trip, I'll throw the blankets and sleeping bags into the dry just in case some creepy crawlers have gotten in.

The galley stays stocked with the few supplies and can goods that I carry.

Todah

[jeepr]

My tear isn't done yet, but I have been camping in travel trailers for about 20 or so years. We just leave everything inside of the camper that isn't food (except a couple cans of soup and vegetables). I plan on doing the same with the tear. It's nice to be able to grab a box of food and a duffle bag of clothes and head out for the weekend.

[caseydog]

My TD parks in the garage, next to the Zaudi. I keep the linens in the house after I wash them. No reason, it just worked out that way.

I do keep the doors closed tight, even in the garage. We have tarantulas in my area. A stored TD would make prime digs for one. They aren't dangerous, but if one woke me up, I'd probably hurt myself.

The screeded window is open as is the screened roof vent, to keep air circulating.

Most of my gear is stored on shelves in the garage, or in plastic tubs with lids.

CD

[Pam Wright]

Since I plan on camping almost year round, I keep clean sheets on the bed, can goods in the galley, clothes hanging in the tear and she is sitting at the end of the carport, ready for me to load the coolers, 1 dry and 1 cold when I am ready top pull out!

pam

[clkelley564]

We roll up the bedding and put it in space bags under the benches in the T@B. We actually have more in the T@B when in storage than on the road. The table, the portable grill box, the EZ-Ups, the chairs, shower bags, etc. all sit in the T@B in storage, but go in the back of the truck for travel. We also keep a Damp Rid in the T@B during storage, and we have the custom cover for it. We bring it home the night before camping, transfer the extras to the back of the truck, set up the bed, cool down the fridge, and load food and clothing. That way when we pull in to a campground, we can go straight to bed if the hour is late or the weather is bad.