We started this journey of full-time RVing not as seasoned travelers or campers or even road trippers. Bach and I jumped head first into this life-style as green as you can be. But from the beginning, we agreed that we needed to outfit ourselves with the best, high quality gear and equipment. We weren't going to skimp on the essentials and then have to deal with the headaches of having things break and then spend more money to replace them.
As cool as it would've been (I drool over all the beautifully renovated trailers and buses on Instagram 😍: @mavistheairstream, @trebventure, @trav.elish, @themillermovement, @themayesteam just to name a few!), we also agreed that we would purchase a brand new trailer, rather than renovate a vintage one. Bach's very handy, but me, not so much... I also don't have the patience or design skills to be able to do this. On the other hand, while it's awesome to have all the latest tech and such in our brand new Airstream, the downside is that it has a generic interior. A very nice interior, but I'm having a hard time decorating it so it has a more unique but homey feel.
We don't claim to be experts at any of this. We're only 1.5 months in to being full-time Airstreamers! But, we've done a lot of research and have been taking the advice of those who HAVE been doing this a long time (Long Long Honeymoon, Gone With The Wynns, The More We Explore).
So here's a compilation of the modifications we've made to the trailer and the gear and equipment we've been using:
Modifications
Modification #1: Progressive Industries RV Surge & Electrical Protection Products - EMS-HW50C
Modification #2: Nature's Head Composting Toilet
Modification #4: Torflex Lift Kit (installed by our Airstream dealership. The few inches of extra clearance makes all the difference when you're backing in or out of a steep driveway!)
Modification #5: ProPride 3P Trailer Sway Control Hitch (as first time tow-ers, and being paranoid about Le Twinkie getting stolen, we bit the bullet and got this amazing hitch. It's proven to be well worth the money! We haven't had any issues with sway, even when big rigs go by and it's super secure.)
Gear/Equipment
(in no particular order)
- Valterra T58 Twist-On Waste Valve (if like us, you're using your black tank as a gray tank, then this valve will equalize the water levels)
- Barker 32 gallon 4-Wheeler Tote Tank (filling up the waste tote a couple of times and towing it is so much easier than hitching up the trailer to take it out to the dump station!)
- weBoost Drive 4G-X Cell Phone Signal Booster
- Wilson Electronics Wideband Directional Antenna
- Camco 51600 20' Flagpole Telescoping with Foot (used to mount the antenna on)
- Internet hot spot AT&T (our phones are with Verizon and we also have a T-Mobile backup phone)
- Outland Firebowl Propane Gas Fire Pit (neither of us can ever get a proper wood fire going, so this propane fire pit is perfect!)
- Racor Floor Bike Stand (we don't have a bike rack yet, so for now we're using the bike stand to store the bikes in the trailer while we move)
- Stansport Collapsible Campsite Carry-All/Trash Can
- CGear Sand-Free Multimat
- Camco EVO Premium RV/Marine Water Filter and Camco Universal Fit Plastic Water Filter Stand
- On The Go OTG4-StdSoft-Portable 8,000 Grain RV Water Softener (not a must-have, but it sure is nice to have soft water!)
- Coleman Instant Screenhouse (we set it out in Nashville, but it's been too hot and humid for us to want to go outside and hang out... it was really easy to set up though!)
- Champion 3400-Watt Dual Fuel RV Ready Portable Inverter Generator (we haven't gotten this yet, but will definitely need one before we go boondocking)
