Stop Tossing Your Drawers On The RV Floor

Ever turn a corner in your RV only to hear the silverware drawer come crashing onto the deck? These old school fasteners don't always keep your drawers secure in the RV environment. I personally built our two person desk in our RV and while I was at it I also tore out all the existing drawer rails and replaced them with full extension rails. It's nice being able to open a drawer and actually have access to the whole drawer. Some RV drawers only come half way out - ooooh that drives me crazy! The only drawback of these full extensions rails is that they ride on ball bearings and are too smooth. If you get too much momentum going into a corner they can shoot out of the cabinet frame like a cannon ball. I've tried several types of drawer keeping hardware and some are better than others. The absolute best drawer keeper for the RV environment is the sliding bolt. You can pick these up at Home Depot or any hardware store in the cabinet hardware section. The trick is to use the sliding bolt key-hole as the drawer holder. Determine where you want the key-hole and mark where you will pre-drill the holes. Drill two holes being careful not to drill through the face of the drawer. These holes are important because they will allow the retaining screws to go in easy and prevent the wood from cracking. Once the key-hole is mounted re-install the drawer and measure where you will put the sliding bolt. Slide the bolt handle down revealing the top hole. I just held the bolt in place where I wanted it while I drilled the top hole. Screw in the top of the bolt before you drill the bottom hole. Fasten the bolt in place and slide it over the keyhole to make sure you have a snug fit. These sliding bolts look nice and work like a champ. With these babies installed there's no more, "Clean-up in isle one." Helping keep everything in your drawers where it belongs - Jim Twamley, Professor of RVing

RV Desk Does Double Duty

What do you do if you need two desks in your RV but don’t have the space? Here’s the desk I recently completed. I used 9 ply birch for the drawers (check out those nice dovetails - RV manufactures take note). The desk is made of walnut (gold is cheaper) and stained to match the rest of the aged walnut in the coach. I wanted to utilize my passenger seat while we weren’t driving, so I decided to make it do double duty as an office chair. I have three deep drawers on my side and Mrs. Professor has two drawers on her side. Why was I stingy with her? The explanation lies in the heating vent that passes through the desk where she would have otherwise had a drawer. I offered her the comfortable chair, but she wanted a straight back chair to better support her back. So, I have to suffer with three drawers and the powered leather chair. The middle drawers sport a lateral file on the bottom and a printer and supply drawer on top. The electric is secured on the wall of the desk behind the bottom drawer. The keyboard trays are on standard full extension drawer glides. The mouse extension tray is mounted on drawer glides and installs with ease. To close the keyboard tray just lift off the mouse tray and push back the drawer glide supports. If you have a few carpentry skills and access to an adequate wood shop (like at a relatives house) you can make any custom RV furniture you need. Now I have a nice work center where I continue to crank out great articles about the RV lifestyle. From the Desk of the Road Scholar - Jim Twamley, Professor of RVing

Iron Out Your Problems With This RV Computer Table

We are still in the process of obtaining a permanent computer desk for Marilyn, but in the meantime we found that a conventional ironing board serves the purpose well. It's a long surface so you can pile stuff on it and it adjusts to any height you need. It also folds up and stores under the couch when not in service. Not a bad use of space in a pinch. Jim

Stub Your Toes No More!

RV furniture can be brutal on the tootsies! So here is an idea that recycles a couple of plastic water bottles and saves your toes. Simply drink the water from four water bottles (have some friends help you if available – recommended) then carefully cut the top off the bottles and insert them over the ends of the offending furniture. Now you are hydrated and have toe friendly furniture. This idea was from Evelyn Culver - Thank You Evelyn! Jim

Extra Outside Tables Help With RV Entertaining

RV Hide-A-Table may be exactly what you need. You can use this extra table space for a buffet food table, craft table or a work bench. When using it for a work bench where you will be using power tools, saws, utility knives etc. I would cover the table with a piece of padded plywood to protect the finish on the door.Phillip and Marilyn Ellis show off his new invention at the Perry, Georgia FMCA convention.This invention converts outside storage doors into tables. The price is $85.00 plus $10.00 S/H. It can also be used to make two tables. There are two models to choose from depending on what type of coach you have. Visit their website here: RV-Hide-A-Table

Prototype Driver and Passenger Chairs Have Customers Relaxing Instead of Fussing!

When you look at a typical motorhome driver or passenger chair, you think to yourself, “Do I need to go to a seminar to learn how to operate this thing?” Not any more, introducing (the yet un-named) prototype remote control (in the armrest so you can’t loose it) chairs. Villa International engineers are trying hard to make life easier for us and came up with this idea which they were trying out on customers at the Georgia FMCA convention.Sales representative Robert Long demonstrates the comfort of this top of the line chair. You know it's not easy to get a salesman to "sit down" on the job.

If you want more information you may contact the company here: www.villainternational.com

Custom RV Desk

John and Evelyn Culver are full time RVers who travel in a very nice 2003 Monaco Windsor. As you can see by the stained glass, John served our country proudly as a Marine Corps Officer! This fabulous desk was designed by John and Evelyn and constructed by Mr. Tom Bradley (you can email him here marisco12@cox.net ) Several engineering problems had to be overcome in order to make this desk the marvel that it is. They had to route the heater vent under the desk and out the left pedestal. Since electronic equipment is stored and running in the left pedestal of the desk, a fan was installed as well as a ventilation screen on the cabinet door face nearest the left pedestal.
John has a PC tower, a printer, power cables and other assorted electronic equipment neatly concealed in this left pedestal. The top drawer is indeed top drawer. When extended it is a laptop desk. Under this drawer is storage for those oversized atlas books. There is ample storage under the desk that will accommodate full sized three-ring binders. The spacious two drawer hanging file system on the right pedestal is very convenient for filing. The top is covered with plexiglass under which is a map of the united states, very handy when planning your next trip. The chair is a Lazyboy swivel, glider, recliner which was reinstalled on a round base with a cut-out to enable it to fit neatly under the slide lip when retracted. They use this chair for a desk chair and also for a card playing or dining chair when they have extra company. They simply swing it around and place a portable table between the driving chairs and the Lazyboy, add a dining chair to make a foursome and they have a cozy and comfortable game table space. This is a great desk in all respects and it fits where they took out a couch which John says was uncomfortable - click on the video and watch how the slide opens around this desk.