Half the fun of getting an RV is customizing it with all the fun stuff. But some of the fun stuff is actually kinda mandatory stuff! Here are the things we pretty much can’t live without!
New Mattress
So you’ve got an RV you love, but a mattress you hate (let’s be honest … that paper-thin “mattress” that comes standard in most RV’s is really just a placeholder for you to replace with something better). Problem: lots of RV mattresses are wanky: unusual size, rounded corners, folding, etc. For instance, Elsie came with a “king” bed, but it’s not reallllly a king, it’s 72×75″ (vs. a standard residential 76×80” — cheater cheater pumpkin eaters, RV manufacturers!), and the bottom two corners were rounded. After much research we found Mattress Insider, an online company that can hook you up with whatever you need! Any dimensions, radius corners, specific thickness, specific firmness, everything you’d want to be able to specify! They are compressed, rolled and then shipped straight to your door. We got the 8″ Park Meadow Pocketed Coil RV Mattress, but requested it be bumped to 9″ to match the thickness of the original mattress being replaced. It’s got a 10 year warranty, it was a great purchasing experience, and we love-love-love the new mattress so much that we are hoping the more expensive one in our sticks-and-bricks house wears out sooner rather than later, because we actually prefer the RV mattress now! It was around $700 and worth every penny for that precious perfect night’s sleep after a long day of adventuring!
Safe-T-Plus Steering Stabilizer Bar
This handy gadget keeps you steering straight even when you get hit with side winds, passing semi-trucks, road ruts, and more, thereby saving your hands from the dreaded “white-knuckle effect” and also allowing you to arrive at your destination with your sanity and marriage intact. It also may save you if you ever have a front tire blowout! If you spend a lot of your driving time bracing yourself against the effects of everything around you (drivers, roads, winds), you will love the Safe-T-Plus Bar. Does not guard against farts, or talkative passengers. Just sayin’. Price depends on size of your RV but plan on $500-800 including installation. 
Sumo Springs and Anti-Swaybar
Especially with a taller Class A RV, you tend to feel a lot of sway and rocking over even the smallest of bumps and the tiniest turns, and the steering stabilizer doesn’t help with these problems. Sumo Springs are made of a high-grade polyurethane foam that keep you stable no matter what the territory. We never added these to our previous Class C, but they are the upgrades with the greatest increase to our quality of (driving) life … highly recommend! A rear anti-swaybar was about $1,000 installed; adding Sumo Springs to both front and rear was about $1,700 installed.
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
Nothing is more vital to RV travel than good tires, and nothing is worse than a tire blow-out (trust us, it happened to us twice … in one day … one very bad, horrible, no good day). A tire presssure monitoring system lets you keep track of pressure, temperature, leakage and more, from the comfort of your cab. Sensors screw onto the valve stems and give real-time info on each individual tire, even those on your tow vehicle. We did a lot of extremely confusing research on the various brands and models and eventually settled on the EEZTire-TPMS Real Time 24×7 system with ten sensors, around $500. If your RV is 25′ or longer and/or you also have a tow vehicle, you’re probably going to need to add the optional booster as well for it to operate properly. And, be sure to order a teenager to help you set it up for the first time. (Kidding. Sorta.) But once you’re “ready to roll” (literally), the peace of mind that comes from having a TPMS is invaluable!
Grill Set-Up!
You’re RV’ing and camping, of course you’re gonna want to fire up the grill! We’ve got some suggestions. First of all, the star of the show. The WeberQ propane grill is the go-to for small size, high heat, and portability; yet it’s still big enough to fit lots of yummies. We’ve got the Q1000 model and it’s awesome, but there are other (more recent) models to choose from, as well. Around $179 at Amazon, Home Depot, and other locations.
But grilling in the dark = NO BUENO! How about this handy gizmo … a light that attaches to the WeberQ handle, that comes on automatically each and every time you open the lid to peek on the progress of your din-din! Genius! Search for Weber 6530 1000/2000 Q Series Grill Out Handle Light. About $60 — but the future of your steaks is at risk! Do it!
You need somewhere to put your spatula and that plate of juicy chops while the grill heats up. And let’s not forget someplace for your dinnertime cocktail! A griller’s gotta stay hydrated! Add two side tables, that attach right to your WeberQ, and fold up for easy storage and transport! Search for WeberQ side table kit. About $30.
Lastly, who wants to use those little green propane canisters? Nobody, that’s who! They are annoying, take up a lot of space in your precious RV storage, don’t last that long, and don’t get me started on the waste and environmental costs! If your RV’s big onboard propane tank has a quick-connect valve (or you have your service guy install one), you can construct a setup to connect your grill right to your RV, bypassing the little greenies and ensuring a long-lasting supply of propane at all times. Here’s the one we got on Amazon for about $40, or google something like “propane quick disconnect conversation kit for WeberQ grill.” Pro tip: You’re also going to have to remove the regulator from your WeberQ, but there are lots of YouTube videos online that show you exactly how to do this. (The reason? Your RV’s big propane tank also has a regulator. RV regulator + grill regulator = double regulation, meaning not enough heat will get to your grill.)
Inflatable Kayak
For on-water fun that folds up and fits into our RV storage compartment, we chose the two-person Sea Eagle 370 Pro. Some of the features we appreciated: rated for Class III rapids (if we find ourselves in Class III rapids in this boat, something has gone very, very wrong — but it speaks to the rugged durability of the boat); can hold an incredible amount of cargo; sits much higher in the water than a standard touring kayak; room enough that a dog or two can also ride with us; folded dimensions of only 31″ x 19″ x 8″ and weighing only 32 pounds; rated for up to 650 pounds; super easy to inflate and deflate. Inflatable kayaks are not cheap at around $800-1,000, but we use ours frequently and have had so much fun with it, it has been worth the expense for sure. If you are comparing models, you might also look into the comparable Advanced Elements AE 1007 or the Driftsun Almanor 130 to see if either of those is right for you instead.
Snap Pads
These are RV “shoes” that permanently attach to the feet of your hydraulic leveling system, thereby eliminating the need to crawl under your RV every time you set up camp to manually place blocks or wood or plastic blocks. You just “snap” them on one time, and you’re good to go for stabilization. Hubby loves these! Be sure to use the company’s “Submit Your Rig” tool to get the right ones as there are subtle size differences between the many different models. $225 for set of 4, for our size rig.
Dyson Hot’n’Cold Bladeless Fan
We were reluctant to buy this because of the steep $300+ price tag, but it ended up being one of our most-used RV add-on’s, and now we can’t imagine living without it. It’s both a space heater and a very powerful personal fan. We keep it in the bedroom and usually don’t have to use the noisy and inefficient overhead unit while we are sleeping. We have used the fan both inside and outside when it’s extra hot out and has 10 power settings. Conversely, when it’s cold, the heater has a thermostat so it keeps the room at exactly the right temperature. It’s quiet but also jusssst loud enough to serve as “white noise” and drown out any ne’er-do-well’s making noise in the campground. Love it! (2022 Update: Dyson no longer makes this little cutie, but at the moment they are still available on QVC.com.)
EZ Pass Toll Payment Device
If you’re going to be driving in states that have toll roads, you should definitely get an EZ Pass transponder. You stick it on your windshield and it allows you to zip through specially-designated (and faster) toll lanes without having to stop and fumble around for spare change; and if you’re in a taller RV, it can be challenging to reach down and pay the attendant at those little booths. You pre-load an amount of money at your choosing onto your account, and the tolls come off that balance each time you use a toll road. You get automatic monthly statements and can also set up to reload your account from a credit card when it hits a certain low balance. If you have a tow vehicle, you should get one for your RV and also one for the tow vehicle. You can buy this device through any of the states that offer it, but we ended up going through North Carolina after reading this excellent summary of the EZ Pass system and which states are reciprocal with each other.
Bedrug Folding Track Mat
Because we’re old, and because our knees are bad, and because the ground is hard — really hard! — this product is the best, especially when getting down on the ground to look under the RV, place the skids for the automatic leveling jacks, or to clean the gray and black tanks. It’s lightweight coated foam, sturdy as all get out, water resistant, and that one product you won’t believe you ever lived without. Laying or kneeling while working on your RV has never been so comfortable! About $30 on Amazon.
Sewer Weights
These weights drape over the sewer connection and help keep it from popping out of the inlet. It has an adjustable rubber strap any style of sewer elbow or standard 3″ dia. sewer hose. Approx. $15 at Camping World.
Best-Ever Lightweight Pet Sweater
OK, it’s not exactly an RV accessory, but since it’s an important accessory to one of the occupants of our RV, we’re including it here. Gold Paw Series makes custom stretch-fleece pet sweaters that are just dreamy … super-soft, flexibly stretchy, and custom-made to your pet’s exact dimensions and your fabric pattern choice — especially useful if the ones they sell at Petco don’t fit your sweetie well. Sprinkles loves hers and we appreciate that it’s thick enough to keep her warm, thin enough to not suffocate her with heat.
Gray Tank Cleaner
Sure, you dump your tanks frequently, but greasy film and various food particles and mold still build up in the gray tank, and there is no great way to flush it out regularly (unlike the black tank, where a hose hookup on the outside of the RV makes it easy). We had tried a variety of “cleaners” from Amazon and Camping World and none of them really worked, they were kinda just like a lemony smell that washed away in an hour. Enter the savior: Tank Techs Rx Probiotic RV Tank Treatment by Just Science! It has actual probiotic bacteria that munch away on whatever is left behind in the gray tank. It really works! It’s amazing! No more funky smell, just use regularly! (A lot of people swear by “Happy Camper, too, but we haven’t tried that one.)
Gasoline Additive
We learned the hard, expensive way that in order to ensure a continuously working generator, especially in the summer months, you need to add ethanol fuel conditioner (available at any auto parts store or Walmart) to your gas tank. The reason (in normal-person terms) is that gas in the summer has a different makeup than other months and the “gunk” in gasoline settles to the bottom of the tank more easily. Then, your generator (which DRAWS FROM THE BOTTOM of the tank) tries to pull that gunk in when you attempt to start it up. It gets clogged and then you have an expensive service call, and/or you can’t use a generator you had been planning on using for power. We put two 16 oz. bottles in every full tank during the summer months or whenever it won’t be driven for an extended period. You can’t overuse the stuff or put too much in, and it’s worth the cost to always have a working generator.
Mosquito Defense
RV’ing is fantastically wonderful, but with all that outdoorsyness you can’t help dealing with pesky mosquitoes from time to time. We have tried a variety of “solutions” and the only one that has worked like a charm is the Thermacell system. It’s basically a unit that emits a virtually odor free (to humans) vapor that keeps mosquitoes away for a 15 foot radius. We got the small unit and a holster (to attach to a belt) but just set that baby on the table next to us when we are outside and shazam, no mosquitos! You need lots of refills (butane cartridges and the pads that have the vapor on them) but it’s totally worth it to be able to be outside without fear of Zika or Dengue Fever.
Fix for Samsung Refrigerators
There is a known problem with RV’s that have a Samsung Residential Refrigerator, but there is also a D.I.Y. fix. If one of your veggies drawers slowly but regularly fills up with water, it’s likely because water is freezing up in the drain hole and blocking the regular flow. The fix involves replacing a little metal gizmo that sticks down into that drain hole and keeps it heated up, meaning the water won’t freeze and back up, creating your messy little problem. You’ll need a replacement clip for just a few dollars, available on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B081JPS7WL/) or there are multiple different brands if you’re the shop-around type) and the instructions that are very well outlined in this YouTube video by T.R. Bowlin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN8Wb3JLok8. It’s not terribly difficult to do, but having two people makes it go much easier. Don’t forget to kill the power to the RV completely first, including the inverter!
Portable Pizza Oven
One of our favorite things to do is make homemade pizza at our campsite! There’s nothing like munching on a perfectly blistered, delicious slice’o’pie under the stars! We love the Ooni Koda 12 Gas Pizza Oven because it’s small and portable (only 20 pounds, and the legs fold up), and hooks right into our propane tank. Ready right out of the box, the super compact Ooni Koda 12 is good to go in seconds. It takes a little bit of practice, but once you’ve got it, that stone-baked pizza experience is right at your fingertips! About $399.
Wireless Thermostat
Because we’re basically lazy people, we upgraded our Coleman thermostat to a wireless model by Micro-Air. In our situation, the model 355 was the proper replacement, but the Micro-Air website has different models to replace different non-wireless thermostats. With bluetooth and Wifi connectivity, it’s pretty nifty to be able to adjust the temperature or program from the comfort of the couch or our bed in the RV (or even when we’re away from the RV), because who wants to walk those entire 30 feet, especially if you’re cozy warm in bed! It controls both of the A/C units from one device, and there are no monthly fees. Installation was pretty easy — just plug into the existing harness of most newer RVs, and then set it up on the MicroAir app. About $250.
Sewer Vent Cover
If nasty odors from your gray or black tank intensify while you are driving, boy do we have a fix for you! The Camco Cycle Sewer Vent Cover attaches the the existing vent pipe(s) on your roof and swivels a full 360 degrees. As you drive, it uses the power of the wind to draw odors up and away … easy peasy! It screws into the pipe, not your roof, so no worry about creating a potential leak hazard on your roof. You may have to cut away existing caulk to get it to set flat against your roof, and then use clear caulking to reseal the connection, but for about $25 each, your nose will thank you! These really work great! Amazon, Etrailer, Camping World, etc.
Keyless Entry Door Lock
The keyless locks from RVLock are expensive, but they go on sale for Black Friday and other occasions, and at the discounted rate ($250 when we got ours), worth snapping up. We swapped it out by ourselves in about 45 minutes. You can use a keycode or the included wireless key fobs to easily lock and unlock your RV — no more fumbling for keys (although you still have keys to the unit as a backup)! It’s sleek, sturdy, and oh-so-convenient!
