Organizing our sticks & bricks house in preparation for selling it inspired me to want to be Marie-Kondo-organized in the RV.  Amongst my first purchases, were spice racks on which small matching jars would be lined up in pull-out “drawers” that when opened would display the array of herbs and spices.  Surely these would be organized alphabetically and would likely make every recipe that I created taste better than before. I moved them on to the RV before we left the winter storage lot.  They took up an entire shelf in our small pantry.  And on the very first ride from winter storage lot to house to move other essentials, the drawers opened and the cute matching jars scattered across the little space that remained on the shelf.  This pantry needed something to keep us organized and, more importantly, to secure our stuff.   

Of all the things that we’ve used or tried to use to organize and secure our belongings, bins are the best!  The overhead cupboards on our coach are quite deep.  I’m certain that if we weren’t using bins, items at the back of the closet would be lost forever or, at least, extremely difficult to access.  With a variety of shapes and sizes available, we use bins to organize all kinds of things. 

Above the driver’s seat, we have a bin with our walkie/talkies, VHF radio, flashlight, and road safety vest.  Over the passenger seat, a bin holds our dog’s leash, treat pouch, potty bags, night headlamps, etc.  Bins line the interior of cabinets in the salon with bins for games and cards, for camera accessories, and another for charging cables.  Bins reside in the cabinets flanking the dinette.  These bins harbor paper, envelopes, cards, etc.  Brian & I each have a bin in the master bath closet for personal products—soap, hair products, toothpaste, razors, deodorant, etc.  An extra bin stores additional first aid items. 

These bins have been extremely helpful in organizing and protecting the pantry.  Two large bins organized by general food category fit on each of our pantry’s shelves with a little room in between.  While taking up a minimum of total space, the high sides of the chosen bins prevent bottles from falling over and breaking while in route.  They also slide out with ease allowing quick access to items in the back of the pantry.  Now I have one bin with all my herbs and spices in it.  They are labeled on the tops and sides so I can pull what I need easily and it takes less than half the space of the spice racks I returned.  As I recently discovered, they also minimize cleanup.  I’m not sure how long the bottle of vegetable oil had been leaking, but there was at least one cup of oil in the bottom of its bin.  The only clean-up required was to wash and dry the bottom of the other products from the bin and to wash the bin itself.  I know these efforts would have been a lot messier and more time-consuming if not contained by that bin.

We recommend using bins inside all the cupboards that you have in your RV.  Sure, they take up a little space, but not as much as many of the product-specific organizers that are out there.  The best bins are transparent, have handles, and have high sides.  Transparency allows you to see what’s in them.  Handles permit you to pull them out or down with ease. High sides maximize how much you can store in each one and minimize things falling out. 

Speaking of falling out, don’t forget to order some tension rods!  These are unbelievably handy for securing the contents of the refrigerator, medicine cabinet, etc.  Easily installed for travel and removed for daily living, tension rods will prevent other messy cleanups.  The only thing that we’re missing now is an altitude change alarm.   It’s amazing what happens to an upside-down jar of natural peanut butter when you gain altitude.

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