Dealing with... from mosquitos to clutter

[OTW]

I'm in a holding pattern for a couple of days on the trailer I'm flirting with, so meanwhile thought it could be interesting to ask what things FT (or not necessarily FT) RVers need to deal with that newbies may not think about. My trailer would be fairly small for FT given my own work and hobbies, so I picture spending a lot of time under the awning rather than inside.

Are mosquitos a biggie? If so, what states/regions are the worst and best? And during what times of the year?
Do RVs tend to get mice?
How do you keep on top of the clutter that's not a big thing in a house, but could be huge in a small living space?
What other annoyances are common, and how you deal with them?

[Colliemom]

Well, speaking from a Michigan stand point, we have various bug seasons here. In the Upper Peninsula, they have black fly season which is usually from May into June, some places get them really bad and others hardly at all. So I tend to not camp up there those times. In the northern lower, mosquito's are usually at their worst in May into early June when the first hatch comes out, depending on the weather. Some years we hardly have any and others we do. Southern lower tends to go a bit later, more into June. But other than that, no issues. We have some great camping weather here in June and through the summer months. Bugs are always going to be around in one form or the other, flying or crawling pretty much anywhere. I can for the most part, leave my trailer door open when I camp and not have any problem with bugs other than maybe a stray black house fly. The geography plays a big factor in mosquito's and other bugs too. Swamp lands obviously tend to be a big breeding ground for bugs as opposed to more drier areas.

As to clutter, I keep things in their place when I camp or travel. I do take some hobby stuff with me, but only what I plan to use on a given trip. Others who full time will of course take more. But one can always buy what one needs as one goes along and don't carry any of the, I might do this or that and not do it stuff along. Like if you knit or crochet, you know you want to make a certain item, just take what you need to make that item. Buy more stuff for another item later. If you sew, you find a place to stow a machine and get the material you need to make whatever and that's it. Get more later etc. I don't know if you are on Facebook or not, but there is a thread that you can go on called "RV Storage Ideas" and it's loaded with ideas for storing stuff in our rigs You can join it if you want to post any ideas or questions you may have. It may be online too, I have never checked. I've seen some neat ideas on there even for home. The thing to remember is, you can only load so much, so you try to find light stuff. Keep heavy things like canned goods on lower shelves and light stuff on upper. There are a ton of baskets, containers and other things in dollar stores and other places. Camping World is a good place for RV stuff. My rule is, if I don't use it in the house it doesn't go in the trailer. After a few trips you find out what you use and don't use and then take out what you don't use. On my first couple of trips, I made lists of things I could have used or need to do, so next time I have that taken care. You are only one person and so only need for one person.

[OTW]

That's a neat group! I like the magazine rack for paper plates. That's a definite browse site, thanks for the tip. As for FT and knit/spin hobby, that's going to be challenging, lol.

[JudyJB]

Yes, containers are important. I have literally dozens. First, I find that the underneath areas in the "basement" tend to leak in driving rains or RV washes, so everything underneath is stored either in bins with tight lids or double-bagged to prevent mold. And I have had to throw some stuff out because of mold so I am really careful about storing things like extra clothing and my suitcase down there.

In cabinets in the motorhome itself, stuff still goes in bins. For one thing, there is the "where in the heck did I put it" syndrome. Second things will move as you drive and hit bumps or make sudden stops, etc. I use a lot of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NE ... _i=3744031 or these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CS ... _i=3744031

I had to put little rails on my pantry shelves to prevent stuff from falling on the floor when the doors opened while I was driving. Most of us also use those spring-loaded curtain rods in our refrigerators to keep things in place while driving.

I year or so ago I posted the ten rules of RVing on my blog, but I can't find it right now. The first one was that all chocolate goes in the refrigerator!! I learned that the hard way when a gift box of chocolates turned into a puddle the first week somewhere in Wisconsin or Minnesota. Even chocolate chips go in the refrigerator. And prescription medicines need to be kept at room temperature, so I have a small cooler hidden behind my bed where I keep my 9- day supplies so they do not turn bad. The refrigerator is too cold and these vehicles can get really hot in parking lots, so a small cooler works great, and sometimes I add a tiny cold pack, but not a big one because that would be too cold.

I am a minimalist and try to keep clutter down--nothing sitting around or on my couch because it makes a small place seem smaller.

But I will tell you that for me one of the hardest parts of this life is getting a good haircut. Consider--every time I get a haircut, it is with someone new!!

[JudyJB]

And west of the Mississippi, mostly, bugs are not a problem, but mice and ants are. Ants are much more of a problem than mice, especially the red biting fire ants in dry places. So I carry some Borax to sprinkle on the ground for ants and a full array of mousetraps and other bug sprays.

Where in the country do you live now? That would help us understand what would be new for you.

[OTW]

Judy, those look like great bins. I did see also some neat looking tension rods (doubles) but I'll bet curtain rods are less expensive and basically the same thing. Ants drive me nuts. I'd heard of Borax, do you put a circle of it around each tire and/or other ground-contact things? Heard regular Comet would do the same thing.

For mice, which I can get in my 250-year-old antique (really) farmhouse, I did discover a trap that I really like a lot because there are no half-way catches (e.g., mouse gets caught by its snout or a leg but not killed). That's these. They're $20 at Home Depot but I'm squeamish about mice and these are easy to dump, easier to bait and they work. I'm still using the original three I bought several years ago, so will add this link in case anyone wants to check them out.
https://www.amazon.com/Victor-Electroni ... mouse+trap
Admittedly bigger than a spring trap but you don't have to look at the mouse either, lol.

[JudyJB]

Also, the front opening bins stack.

I don't use the Borax unless I see a big ant hill, and it is close to my hookups. Then, I just sprinkle a little around the hill, and they will be gone fast. Ants often do use water hoses and electrical cord to march into your RV. I will try to hang both up so they don't touch the ground and might even sprinkle borax around. Once, though, I did have ants climb up a front tire, march in a line across my motorhome, and then enter near the electrical connection.

I also keep that gel that comes in a tube to use inside. When I see a marching line of ants, I will just put a tiny dab in places on the floor where it is out of the way. The gel works a lot better than ant traps, at least in my experience.

[snowball]

so far knocking on wood not had a problem with either mice or ants...will try to keep in mind those solutions...
I use bungee cords (small ones) to keep my cabinet doors closed...and so far have not had the refrigerator door open again knock on wood
I would suggest the solutions you use at home will probably work on the road...as to clutter I am the master of having clutter!!! one day will conquer...
until then I will work on it...
sheila

[OTW]

One thing I was picturing for table clutter which I know will be my constant quest to conquer -- work stuff vs. a place to eat -- might be to get a rigid clear plastic chair mat from Staples and cut out a piece that's the size and shape of table so that if I'm going to have stuff laid out on it and want to keep it that way, I could just lift the whole surface as is, place it on bed or whatever, and have instant cleared table. Might be more trouble than it's worth but I really spread out work related papers and ditto for a crafting project that needs space. One small table handling lots of uses... it could be a way to deal with that.