ROUGHING IT SMOOTHLY
Article & Photographs by RAY WHYTE of Kelowna BC.
whyterj@shaw.ca
Encouragement by my wife and priceless companion: Jacquie ROUGHING IT SAFELY +++
I’m sure you are as excited as I am with the camping season about to start. I want to stress an important issue everyone needs to address: the fi rst thing you buy for your RV and for your family is a new Carbon Monoxide (CO) Detector. With permission, I want to emphasize
Ric Grant’s past letter called “Carbon Monoxide Poisoning” on page 14 inRVT 144. Ric Grant, a Gas Safety Offi cer for the BC Safety Authority (BCSA) in Nelson, BC has shared some dramatic statistics. “Between 2000 and 2006, 111 Canadians died from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. Every year BCSA Safety Offi cers investigate between 1 and 3 incidents involving CO in our province alone.” Don’t let this silent killer claim you, your family, or your
friends as a statistic. Always leave fuel-burning appliances outside; never bring them into an enclosed space like a tent or RV. When using built-in appliances make sure you use the exhaust fan and keep roof vents open. I encourage you to go to the BCSA website and take a few minutes to review the carbon monoxide safety materials provided, it could save your life:
safetyauthority.ca/carbon-monoxide.
To optimize the space in the dishes cupboard: I installed a wire shelf and cup hooks.
I purchased a remnant shelf from a big box store for $6. Now all my dishes are organized behind one door. T e balance of the shelf was used to organize the microwave shelf. We never used this appliance so I removed it and gained
some valuable space. It was excellent to store baked goods in sealed containers .
26 RVT 147 • MAY/JUNE 2012
To save battery power while boondocking
Just replace the second bulb in a
ceiling fi xture with an LED bulb. It will use a fraction of the wattage of a regular bulb and will provide ample light while relaxing.
To keep the light from streaming in the bedroom door or from your overhead vents:
Just cut blackouts out of vinyl, attach Velcro
on the corners so they are easily removed when not required. Make them for the inside of any windows that are interrupting your sleep.
Taking your entertainment with you: T e ultimate in roughing it smoothly is
taking your entertainment with you. I love the great outdoors but spending a few days hunkered down by bad weather can put a real strain on a family. I’m still old school with the 12v/110v, TV/VCR combo. Not plugged in, the TV still works and I keep a few VCR tapes on hand. In the top of my homemade rotating TV cabinet is a DVD player and speaker control box. To the leſt is a satellite radio receiver. I have this radio in the truck when we travel so an extra base station was all I needed to purchase. T e picture on the right shows the satellite antenna bolted to the inside window frame. An amplifi er below provides upgraded sound. Hey, I’m a guy! Jacquie just raised her eyebrows.
Getting it and keeping it together T e drawers and cupboards in an RV are a challenge to
keep tidy and organized. T e constant rock and roll of the rig emulates the motion of a blender. A slick way to combat this is to put like items into plastic trays. I found that old Swiff er containers with clear plastic lids fi t nicely into the bottom of the drawers
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