Organizing the kitchen

71Overlander · 07-11-2003, 08:05 PM

Hi all,

I am going to be spending some time this weekend and next week preparing for our maiden voyage in our 'new' Overlander next weekend. This is our first experience with a TT so I have some silly questions:

1) Where do you put your larger kitchen necessities - dishes, bowls, wine glasses, etc. (yes, wine glasses (plastic) are a necessity for us!!)

2)What do you put in the overhead cabinets?

3) Do you stock your fridge before leaving? How do you keep everything from rolling around?

Thanks!

Cyndi

j54mark · 07-11-2003, 08:28 PM

1) Where do you put your larger kitchen necessities - dishes, bowls, wine glasses, etc. (yes, wine glasses (plastic) are a necessity!!)

We don't find wine glasses, or wine, to be necessary, or even desirable, but I do like real glass plates and drink glasses. My wife took a small cardboard box and made simple cardboard dividers sized to hold the glasses in place. The plates are separated one from another by a piece of that non-skid shelf liner.

2)What do you put in the overhead cabinets?

Very little, so far. Blankets and towels over the bed, cereal and snacks over the galley, dinnerware and glasses over the refridgerator. Most of them are empty.

3) Do you stock your fridge before leaving? How do you keep everything from rolling around?

We not only stock the refridgerator, but when it is empty that is our clue to come home. Everything will migrate to the front of the coach, so place items in the fridge accordingly.

Mark

Roy B · 05-21-2005, 06:39 PM

We are leaving on our maiden voyage this coming Thursday and I was wondering also about wine glasses, I can't stand the thought of drinking wine but my lovely wife likes a glass of wine at night. I think I will go out and by some new tube socks :-) I liked the idea of throwing it the whole thing away if it breaks.
I wonder how organized we will be on this first trip. 8-10 days away ...... We can't wait til Thursday gets here.

roy

norbert · 05-21-2005, 08:26 PM

i will briefly depart from wine consumption to say that i pre-freeze what i can, as i dont have the liberty to start up my reefer prior to departure. large joints of meat(like a ham dude..) are placed in the bottom of the reefer to pre-defrost and maintain refrigerated items while the reefer attempts to reach operating temperature....i use my wine for cooking, and i dont have to worry about my aluminium receptacles breaking..

norby

**Janet** · 05-21-2005, 09:42 PM

we found these nifty containers at the craft store - they save loads of room if you carry many spices. They screw togehter and are about 7 inches tall when assembled - they come in several sizes.

Gen Disarray · 01-01-2006, 08:17 PM

I will be moving into my Trade Wind at the beginning of March and expect it to be my home at least a couple months, maybe until fall. This use will be different than my short trip usage last year (new years messes me up) where two weeks was the long trip for me. Accordingly, I am trying to anticipate long term issues with the kitchen and what not. To this point I have relied on a very basic kitchen setup, but I am considering some extras. So my question is this, does anybody here carry things like bread makers and crockpots along with them? If so how does it work out? I also have a rotisserie that Im thinking could live in my pickup when not in use….Anyway your thoughts are appreciated.

myoung · 01-01-2006, 08:47 PM

In our new Safari 25FB there is a cabinet directly below the refrigerator that holds a case of Two-Buck Chuck Cabernet Sauvignon, the best of the six offerings of the world-famous Charles Shaw Winery.

Perhaps other models have this same cabinet, too. I am trying to find the best way of securing the bottles upright when the cabinet is less than full, a fairly common occurance at the rate that we drink this fine wine. Perhaps a series of Velcro loops attached to the back of the cabinet will do the trick.

Our "crystal" wine glasses are suitably thin plastic glasses found at party stores packaged by the dozens. Quick, easy, disposable, and clear enough to appreciate the color of the wine. These are the conical shaped kind with flat bottoms and a low center of gravity so that nothing of the nectar of the grape spills.

Pahaska · 07-11-2003, 08:52 PM

For wine glasses, my wife gave me last Xmas two lexan glasses from REI. They are unbreakable and the stem unscrews from the bowl and nests inside the bowl. They take very little space when stored in this manner.

I have all my hiking gear under a seat. We put our wine in there and cushion the bottles with soft things such as my pack. I do intend to put a 2 or 3 bottle rack on top of the refrigerator when time permits.

Heavy stuff goes low. I have some expensive cookwear for the reason that good stuff cleans up easier. Under the sink, I have all the baggies, foil, plastic wrap, etc. I was able to make a pocket off to the side where I can stuff plastic grocery bags. These are indispensible for garbage and for unloading the refrigerator when we drop the trailer at the storage yard.

Glasses and dishes go in the upper cabinets along with things like measuring cups and coffee pot. We carry both paper plates and regular plates, plastic and regular cutlery. We often put a paper plate on top of a regular plate so that we can just throw away the mess rather than doing a lot of dishwashing.

I'm lucky to have a big Lazy Susan pantry for all the items that don't have to be cold. Again, heavy items like soft drinks go on the bottom shelf, condiments and such on the top shelf.

I put a rack on the end of the upper cabinet that holds 4 Chicago knives. We also carry can opener, bottle opener, wine opener, and measuring spoons.

I cool the refrigerator for at least 12 hours before leaving. I put in pre-cooled soft drinks and bottled water. We almost always carry steaks to cook out. The refrigerator is most efficient if it is fairly heavily loaded; the thermal mass keeps it stable. One thing that helps is to put one of the battery-operated fans inside the refrigerator. They keep the temperature consistent top to bottom. Batterys last about a season. I set the fan on the bottom blowing upward.

71Overlander · 07-11-2003, 09:05 PM

I found the wine glasses on the REI website...perfect! I am going to order them. The ones I have right now are a hard plastic from WalMart....they're too tall to fit in the overheads.

Hopefully the new ones will arrive before we leave next Friday.

Silver · 07-11-2003, 10:44 PM

Pahaska,

Do you drive (tow) with your refridgerator on---running on gas? I am new to camping and do not know if I am supposed to turn it off when I drive, and what about when I fill up at a gas station

Thanks!

Pahaska · 07-11-2003, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Pahaska, Do you drive (tow) with your refridgerator on---running on gas? I am new to camping and do not know if I am supposed to turn it off when I drive, and what about when I fill up at a gas station

Yes, absolutely I do. No other way to keep food in a 2-way refrig safe in Texas summer heat. Actually, I run it on gas while travelling all year round. I never run with it off except maybe in the last leg of a trip coming home or if I gas up very close to my destination.

There are a number of threads endlessly discussing the pros and cons. IMHO, that's what the refrigerator is designed to do and any risks are vanishingly small. Obviously, refuelling requires turning it off before moving to the pumps and turning it on away from the pumps.

Silver · 07-11-2003, 11:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Pahaska

Obviously, refuelling requires turning it off before moving to the pumps and turning it on away from the pumps.

Ok, that's what I thought. Thanks!

LuminumTraila · 05-20-2005, 07:22 PM

We like to drink wine, but not from acrylic or lexan glasses. Does anybody have a good way to store their wine glasses so they don't get broken while traveling?

-J

myboyburt · 05-20-2005, 07:36 PM

I also was a "real" wine glass kind of girl until I got sick of cleaning up the broken glass. I've switched to plastic ones I purchased from Campingworld, not beautiful but functional.

That being said I know of folks who wrap their glasses in bubble wrap or kitchen towels for travel. They tell me it works out great. I don't have a ton of storage space in my Airsteam so tacky plastic wine glasses work for me

plus I've switched to wine in a box when we are traveling. Black Box makes a decent white wine, check them out!