[A/S] Re: Full Time

["Maurice Riggins" <maurice.riggins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I joined the Escapees Forum some time ago and have found it very 
useful, if somewhat amusing at times.  Many of these folks will state 
that you need at least 2000 lbs of cargo capacity for full-timing, 
and more than a few bring along 3,000-4,000 lbs of "stuff."  

Obviously, you have to be much more of a minimalist with an 
Airstream, not only from the weight perspective, but from the "bulk" 
perspective as well, considering you don't have huge basements, and 
even that overhead cabinets are curved on the backside, providing 
less space for "square" objects.

Given that any trailer will handle better with weight down low, you 
want to store soft and formable, light items such as clothing, 
bedding, toilet paper, cereals, potato chips, paper towels, etc in 
the overheads whenever possible, and heavy, and fixed dimension items 
such as canned goods, bulk products like flour, sugar, rice and 
beans, liquids, pots and pans, paper files, tools, etc down low.

Not only can you save space (not to mention electricity) by 
downsizing appliances, such as using a small vs large crock pot, 4 
cup coffeemaker, hand vs stand mixer, etc., but you can do things 
like taking crackers, cereal, heck, almost EVERYTHING, out of their 
boxes and storing them only in the inner bag that was in the box.  
This makes them fit more places in addition to saving space.

There are also a number of "unofficial" storage spaces, nooks and 
crannies, where infrequently used items can be put.  For example, 
outside the couch frame, not in the drawer.  But be careful about 
getting things too close to the furnace or hot water heater, though.

Nesting wherever possible is a good idea, and using things like wash 
cloths and towels, or slipping drinking glasses into socks, to pad 
things while underway is better than bringing along dedicated packing.

Being creative, you'll probably find you're limited more by weight 
than by volume.  Anyway, these are a few thoughts I'd pass along.

--
Maurice
WBCCI 5446