Since hitting the road over three years ago in The Jazz, our 29-foot fifth-wheel trailer, my husband John and I have had continuous need for tools. From fixing little problems with the trailer to building stuff in the campgrounds where we volunteer as camp hosts.
An early fix in our travels included removing the glass shower door in the bathroom and replacing it with a shower curtain liner that hangs from a rod. The shower area was just too confining with the glass door. We tired of bruised elbows.
John put together a mechanical and electrical tool set and a wood working and carpentry tool set before we left Tucson in 2009. It was important to leave the heavy tools behind so as to keep the weight down. If necessary, electric saws or a chainsaw can be rented. Heavy mechanical wrenches were left behind also as we would probably have someone do a repair that needed that size of wrench.
Mechanical and Electrical Tool Kit for a Fulltimer
The mechanical and electrical tool set includes:
• Mechanics wrenches and sockets from 3/8 to 3/4 inches
• Small metric wrenches
• A pair of scissors
• A Sharpee
• Assortment of screwdrivers
• Assortment of pliers
• Wire cutter
• Electrical zip ties
• Electrical and Teflon tapes
• Compact toolbox (fishing tackle box works great) to hold screws, bolts, electrical fittings and nails
• Box cutter
The wood working and carpentry tool set includes:
•Hatchet
•Caulking gun
•Extension cord (25 feet)
•File
•Hammer
•Hack saw
•Hand saw
•Sanding block
•Level
•Assortment of nail and screws
•Heavy duty staple gun and staples
•3/8 corded electric drill (A rechargeable drill is extremely hard to maintain with intermittent electrical service.)
•Carpenter’s square
•Clamp
The most often building project using carpentry tools is a landing to go in front of our trailer door. The landing dramatically increases the comfort and safety at each new longer-term location.
Overall, the tool sets take up about three cubic feet in the storage bay and weighs about forty pounds. If you’re going on the road for an extended time, these are the basic tools you’ll need. Happy Trails!
Author Levonne Gaddy’s book “This Restless Life: A dream chased through California parks in an RV” chronicles her relocation adventures from the Southwest to Central Coast California during the Great Recession of 2008-2009. They encounter many twists and turns including a dead body found near their camp hosting camp site, problems finding work and multiple threats of floods. @Levonnegaddy
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Great tool kit. I used to carry Rescue Tape, heat-shrink tubing, assorted Velcro sizes, high quality duct tape (not silver crap from WalMart).
Nice assortment of tools.
Thanks George. It sounds as though you know something about a good tool kit! Life really is good when we have the tools we need!
I’ve given up a lot of weight so my hubby can have his tools with him. lol But there hasn’t been a problem yet that he hasn’t had the tool to fix it with.
John has really been the “keep it light” motivator on our journey. Left up to me, we might be considerably heavier!
Great list and box of tools. Will be checking it against our box soon. Also I’ll be sharing a link to your post with my blog readers and guests at our RV Park. Thanks. Teri
Excellent Teri! Thank you for sharing the post with your readers and RV Park guests!
I carry a good selection of tools, too and they have saved up several dozen times of their initial cost in repairs I’ve been able to do myself.
If you weren’t handy before you bought an RV, you will be after you buy one.
Hi Paul, Glad to see you here at RVT.com. I have to say that John is excellent in the handy category!