What accessory/item do you regret buying?

HR_Taly

Like so many others, I have found this forum invaluable because it helped me narrow down items I've needed for my T@B and saved me a lot of expense in trial and error to find the right thing to fit/work/be useful.

But every now and then you come up with a miss.  What have YOU bought for your T@B that you thought would be fantastic/very much needed that ended up not being that at all? 

I'll start off... because I full-time, I cook in my T@B (320 S) 99% of the time.  I found fantastic ratings and recommendations on another caravan site for a premium stacking set of pots and pans - the Magma Gourmet Nesting 7-Piece set, which sells for around $160.00.  I promptly bought it. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CN7JJ0O/

The verdict?  Well, it fits nicely in the lower cabinet in the kitchen but honestly, I dread hauling it out and taking it apart (not to mention the space everything takes up when separated!) just to get the pot I need. Everything is very big, heavy, and awkward. Even typing this seems silly... these are nice quality pans!... but when you need to do it, you'd be surprised at the annoyance! The quality is fantastic, and the non-stick ideal for boondocking but... I laugh at this, but I find myself reaching for my $3.49 frying pan from Ikea that I had bought on a whim 9 times out of 10! I even heated up soup tonight in the frying pan instead of hauling out the very nice, very expensive pot! 

Ikea: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00267706/

Many might disagree but I wish I'd saved the money.  I think I may find myself ditching the Magma set in the near future...

So what have YOU bought, large or small, that you wish you hadn't??

rkj__

Well, I'm just going to say I am glad I did not invest a lot of money into an expensive solar setup, as I am finding there is a lot of shade in the forest, which severely handicaps any solar setups output.   I prefer to camp in the forest whenever possible.  

I don't regret buying my panel though, because it cost me very little.   

ericnliz

Excellent question, and I'm quite sure, this being a very personal, individual preference question, you'll be hearing a whole array of answers. For us, the side tent. I find our screen room does all the things I wanted the side tent to do with more usable space. I've found the side tent to get extremely warm in areas where shade is at a minimum. I'm sure it more than serves it's purpose for many, just not for us, and our "style" of camping. I have an outdoor kitchen that fits inside, and accommodates the usually provided picnic table as well. Another big plus is...you can see 360*!!!!! Just my opinion.

Tabaz

The digital Alde control panel. It was expensive and very difficult to install. If I could turn back the hands of time, I would have left the analog in place. I'd also like to go back and find my high school guidance counselor. Talk about getting back advice.

ericnliz

, @Tabaz , now, that's a good one!!!

cbarnhill

The mirror extensions for my Subaru. I thought they would be a great help but they really didn't improve the rear vision and they were tricky to put on.

Ratkity

@Tabaz !!

ChanW

Good question.

I went one-accessory-too-far when I bought the Sewer Solution black-water "macerator" system for our Tab.

It works as the promos say it should, but uses bunches of water, takes longer, and complicates a pretty simple chore!

And just try to sell a (slightly) used black-water 'processor'...

Anyone want to buy a Sewer Solution system, cheap?  

jason330i

I like our T@b visor XL way more than our T@b awning.

PhotoJoe

Our PahaQue 12 x 12 Cottonwood XLT.  It's very flimsy and a pain to put up.  It's also available for sale.

Michigan_Mike

Interesting discussion and as noted, everyone has different needs/desires/ideas, etc.  

Things I use less or that we decided to leave home:

• Sewer hose support rack - this is to allow the "stuff" to flow downhill and unless you spend a lot of time in parks with full hook-ups it basically just goes along on trips for a ride.  
• Electric Hot plate - Linda bought one and it went on vacation with us to Arizona and back to Michigan under the bed!  LOL
• Portable camp kitchen rack -  I should have taken this to the swap meet in Ohio as I bought it and we've used it once and it is now collecting dust in the garage.  

I have found that since I no longer have a smaller teardrop trailer that prior items used are no longer necessary for the T@B since we have a shower/toilet in the T@B Max S.  

Things we DO enjoy and use:

• T@B Tent Screenroom - GREAT addition, we used it extensively in Arizona and used it a week ago up in Northern Michigan.  Adds extra room, no bugs now, privacy, extra storage, can create privacy with side windows (zip them up, etc.) and it goes up quickly once you figure things out.
• T@B XL visor -  This is priceless in that it goes up/comes down quickly and easily and can be used for shade and does keep rain off the side of the trailer.  This is a mainstay for our travels.  
• 200 W Zamp Solar & 6-volt batteries -  BEST addition and allows us to stay off grid indefinitely. 
• Front tongue sewer hose storage mod -  GREAT idea and makes the dirty job a ton easier with things in close proximity to the duty station.  
• Alde Thermostat -  This really changed things up and when you live in a state like Michigan or are in colder areas it gives you spot on temperature control.  I never did like the analog set-up and with this you can see where things are in real time and it's like having a smart phone on the wall.  Of course I enjoy a good challenge, doing these types of mods and this one was fun.  
• SeeLevel ll Tank Monitor System -  this does make a difference and at least you have a ballpark idea of what is in your holding and fresh water tanks.  This is about an 8 out of 10 for installation difficulty and I accomplished it, but it was a challenge and the easy part was installing the sensors.  Once you get back to the underside of the trailer and are looking at all the wiring in hand it becomes one of them "Oh S%#@!!!" moments!     It's like what the heck did I get myself into taking this one on!!!  LOL  
• Lightweight Folding Table with cupholders -  This is a GREAT little table that can be used anywhere!  Thank you@Verna !!!  This is my latest and greatest addition and I purchased it from the money I made at the rally swap meet.  Absolutely love it and it breaks down and stores easily and is small.  Valuable and travel worthy!  

I believe that most of the items we have purchased were done so with good intent, but it's like anything else, you realize that some items are not needed and when you step up in trailers to a larger unit some items are no longer needed with added amenities within a trailer, etc.  Camping is more or less an art in many ways as you see and use things differently and each setting (RV parks & dry camping) may require different gear and over time you do figure out what items are needed and that some of this gear you can live without.  

rhaspyhonker

We've been in enough downpour rain storms to really appreciate our awning.  We opted for that over the visor and glad we did...we can sit outside comfortably even when the rain is coming at us sideways...which has happened a few times already!  

The one thing that we don't ever use is the porcelain coated steel dish set that matches our decor...who wants to wash dishes all night in that tiny sink!  Paper plates all the way!

Verna

My folding bike, but I sold that at üCamp17. 
A bag of leveling blocks that didn't match my existing ones and were useless because of that, and they were sold at üCamp17. 
A battery switch that was not exactly what I wanted, and that was sold at üCamp, also. 
I think I'm down to what I want and need....maybe. 

You're very welcome, @Michigan_Mike, because I like that table, too.

jkjenn

An extra 25' water hose and extra 30amp shore power cable. I have never used those.

Unlike @Michigan_Mike I have used the sewer support hose at rest area dump stations but am considering leaving those behind. They are about an inch too tall for my new Outback platform storage boxes and I can life the hose if need be, when emptying.

Photomom

The only accessory I regret buying is one of those plastic T levels. Never even stuck it on, the short carpenter's level works great.

That said, we don't take the 4 back cushions when we camp. We sleep in twin beds and leave them made up, and we'd end up leaving the cushions in the SUV. And we don't take the Lagun table either, it was much more trouble than it was worth for he rare occasions we want a table inside the trailer.

Verna

@jkjenn, I have used both of the 25' 30 amp extension cords for my Camp Hosting gig, and I had to buy four 25' white hoses. My original one starting leaking so I had to replace it and I needed a total of 100' of hose to get to the spigot. It sure is easier than remembering to fill jugs and empty them into the fresh water tank. 

Michigan_Mike

Photomom said:

 And we don't take the Lagun table either, it was much more trouble than it was worth for he rare occasions we want a table inside the trailer.

I never used my Lagun table inside either, but it is a mainstay item on the trailer for use with both my XL visor or the screen room side tent.  I love the outside mount and it is like creating a small cafe or diner outdoors and comes in handy for setting things on when enjoying the fresh air.  That's been one of the better upgrades I've made to my T@B actually.  But agree, if you leave the bed up there is no way to use the table unless you were to make room indoors.  

Photomom

Michigan_Mike said:

Photomom said:

 And we don't take the Lagun table either, it was much more trouble than it was worth for he rare occasions we want a table inside the trailer.

I never used my Lagun table inside either, but it is a mainstay item on the trailer for use with both my XL visor or the screen room side tent.  I love the outside mount and it is like creating a small cafe or diner outdoors and comes in handy for setting things on when enjoying the fresh air.  That's been one of the better upgrades I've made to my T@B actually.  But agree, if you leave the bed up there is no way to use the table unless you were to make room indoors.  

We tried rotating it around over the center of the sofa and it was an okay nightstand between our beds, but without it Max can sleep there and leave the floor clear.

jkjenn

Verna said:

@jkjenn, I have used both of the 25' 30 amp extension cords for my Camp Hosting gig, and I had to buy four 25' white hoses. My original one starting leaking so I had to replace it and I needed a total of 100' of hose to get to the spigot. It sure is easier than remembering to fill jugs and empty them into the fresh water tank. 

I have never needed a second 30 amp cord but I have used the second hose, but only once. That being said if I am in a position to need the second hose, it really isn't that much more effort to use the fresh water fill and fill up my 5 gallon jug. 

Verna

@jkjenn, it's 100' to the water spigot over 6" tall roots, spider webs from tree to ground....a forest area. It was cheaper to buy 4 hoses than to pay the co-pays for a fall

jkjenn

Verna said:

@jkjenn, it's 100' to the water spigot over 6" tall roots, spider webs from tree to ground....a forest area. It was cheaper to buy 4 hoses than to pay the co-pays for a fall

Another reason not to be a CG host

ScottG

You people are shopaholics!  :-)

I can't think of anything I regret acquiring for my 2015 (which is not all that much...), nor do I regret ditching the old-style elevator table, the funny shaped side cushions, or the air conditioner. (And, if there was any space to gain from tossing the television, that would probably go next!)

driftless

@ScottG, we have ditched all of those as well with the exception of the air conditioner.  After spending 4 weeks this past May/June traveling in the Southwest, we decided to keep the air conditioner.  We did, however, sell our TV at Ucamp17 and are in the process of installing tile to the former TV wall in our Q.  Then we will be adding some type of additional storage.

JohnDanielsCPA

My 200 watt Zamp solar panel.  I thought with two six volt batteries, I would need it.  When I was out for a long weekend earlier this summer, I plugged it in and it charged my batteries in about four hours.  So, I bought the 120 watt pane.  This last weekend, (Thursday - Monday), I plugged in the 120 on Friday to top the batteries off, and left for home on Monday with 12.4 volts still on my batteries.  So, the 200 watt seems to have been over kill.

TerryV6

I would have to say our generator.  We have yet to be in a situation where we needed it, because we were in a Power site, or in a site where they weren't allowed.. In fact, I only fired it up once.  We had done some camping in very hot weather, so my wife thought this would be the way to go. I wanted a bigger solar than the 40 that came with our camper.  I was outvoted of course...

Photomom

There are a couple things we've only used once or twice. We camped one place last summer where the power poles were shared between pairs of sites and we were on the "wrong" side. We made do with an ordinary extension cord then and now carry a 30a extension cord. Sure enough, our last campsite last fall had the power connection way in the back, behind a tree down a steep slope, so we were glad to have the extension cord.

Most of our weekend trips are at nearby state parks that typically have one faucet per camping loop, and we've ended up using the second water hose a couple times. We rarely use these things but when we needed them we were glad to have them.

ericnliz

@TerryV6, Had to chuckle at the "outvoted" comment. For goodness sake man, vote twice for yourself!!!

TerryV6

Our house is indeed a democracy, but my vote only counts for one.  You'd think after 44 years I'd be wise to this stuff.  In the case of our birthdays, we agreed that from your birthdate, every day after, you would continue to be treated as if it is your birthday.  This ends when her birthday comes, and it is the same till it is my day again.  I thought this was a great idea and I agreed.  My birthday is April 30th, hers is May 19th.  Is there something I'm not seeing here?  She insists everything is even Steven....

TTTab

 
 

Finn12

Two things for me.  First, I removed the T@G style 2-way frig in the back of my 2017 CS-S before the first trip. Too much of an energy hog for my small Group 24 battery.  I invested in a Yeti cooler instead.  Much more practical for this weekend camper.   I use the extra space for dry food storage.   Second, I bought a Weber Q1200 grill.   Great grill but takes up a lot of room in my tow vehicle and you gotta carry extra propane tanks.   I find I can cook everything on stove or over the fire so far.   I guess I'm more of a minimalist when it comes to setup.

db_cooper

Finn12 said: I'll

Two things for me.  First, I removed the T@G style 2-way frig in the back of my 2017 CS-S before the first trip. Too much of an energy hog for my small Group 24 battery.  I invested in a Yeti cooler instead.  Much more practical for this weekend camper.   I use the extra space for dry food storage.   Second, I bought a Weber Q1200 grill.   Great grill but takes up a lot of room in my tow vehicle and you gotta carry extra propane tanks.   I find I can cook everything on stove or over the fire so far.   I guess I'm more of a minimalist when it comes to setup.

Same here with the Weber Q, took up too much room and unless you cover it, it can smell up your TV. Would be better if your TV is a truck.  It's now become our home grill hooked to a regular propane tank, love the way it cooks and there's only 2 of us.