Any Northstar TC800s? What did you do with the wardrobe?

[mkish]

Hi again. All the TC650 mods going on are inspirational. Made me look again at that silly "wardrobe" in my TC800. I currently have it full of plastic bags and pots/pans/lids. It's a little bit of a waste. Has anyone come up with a good use for this tall skinny space (besides hanging clothes)? I guess I could do shelves?

Just wondering if anyone has come up with something brilliant.

Thanks!

(I did pop off that panel under the furnace but not sure what to put in the hole. Our wine comes in boxes and won't fit :ylsmoke:. Maybe the TP since that's where the potty lives.)

 

[Regcabguy]

No,we use skinny hangers and cram quite a few shirts in ours. Bulky stuff goes under the bed. We never have used the table or single bed,so it stays in the shed creating yet another major storage space under the bed.
We did a 3K major run with the camper and I'm still amazed at how much stuff can be stored.
The best feature is the wing doors on the rear. They open up the wheelwell areas for my axe, shovel,broom,snatchem strap,just about anything long.

 

[mkish]

There's a TON of storage in that camper but a lot of it is sort of weird shaped. There are 4 of us so there are lots of clothes--makes sense to keep them together in the cabover because it's a lost cause already. I'd like to organize the kitchen better. Maybe I could even lose the milk crate of food we have to drag along. Probably not, but I can dream. We did a 2500+ mile trip last summer with 4 people and a large dog and we could definitely fit in everything. But making it easy to get to...how cool would that be?

 

[Regcabguy]

Yeah,there's just two of us.
I wonder if a set of deep drawers would help you? You could pull them out one at a time. Everybody gets a drawer!

 

[mkish]

Everybody gets a giant Ziplock baggie!

Which is great until you have to stop at a motel or Grandma's and you realize your luggage is a little embarrassing.

 

[Regcabguy]

Yeah,giant ziplocks work for us also.
I love traveling with the popup,but do lust over some of the hardsided ones in the campgrounds.
We were traveling on I-15 south of Vegas battling a crosswind of 40 mph+ and I was glad i had the popup. SRW owners with hardsided campers were going maybe 40 mph in the right lane with their flashers on.

 

[mkish]

Nah, a hardside is what Grandpa would have! (Not MY grandpa, but someone else's, someone with a cool grandpa). The only advantage to those things is the cabinets. And maybe better bathrooms. And fridges. Yeah a hardside would solve our problems. We got {} this close to ordering a NS Laredo (hardsided 850SC) but it was just soooooo tall. But if I have to go hardside I want one of those. But I'm short enough that it doesn't bother me to use the camper with the top down. Find me a popup with a bathroom that can be used with the top down and I could be tempted to upgrade. I also don't like the coffin feel of the hardsides. Would it kill them to put in a few more windows?

 

[Bill_G_62439]

I'm not exactly sure of the dimensions of the TC 800 wardrobe, but last year when we went cross country in our hardsider, it had a wardrobe that was useless space. The floor area was large enough for the porta potti, but above it was lots of wasted space. I measured the area and went shopping for some storage containers that fit the space. Then I constructed a cheap set of OSB shelves, each with a lip on the edge custom fit to the size of the containers. After everything was assembled, each family member had their own shelf and container. The lip held the container in place. 6,500 miles of travel and not one of them ever moved from its place. It worked great for us. Hope this helps.

 

[mkish]

Thanks Bill--I think I'll try something like that. This wardrobe is 22" deep, 5 (five!)" wide, and one popup size fridge tall. So skinny I can't even get my coffee pot in it!

 

[brian90744]

narrow is right.

I agree the cabinet is narrow. It would be nice if you could cut the wall in to the outside storage box, that way you could load outside and use inside, or a double door refrig.
just FYI brian

 

[mkish]

Yep, the skinny cab next to the fridge. It can also be accessed from the top by lifting the lid over the fridge. There isn't really any exterior storage next to it--over the converter is the water heater and pump and water fill line. I noticed on the NS website they label that area "exterior storage" on the floorplan diagram. Here's their photo--looks like mine but cleaner. :


I think it would be a better pantry/dish cabinet than a pots and pans and trash bag cupboard. It's a lot of space.

 

[olsen_karl]

Has anyone come up with a good use for this tall skinny space (besides hanging clothes)? I guess I could do shelves?

We don't use it for clothes, just use it to store trash bags (grocery bags in a larger plastic bag), paper towels, and toilet paper.

The best feature is the wing doors on the rear. They open up the wheelwell areas for my axe, shovel,broom,snatchem strap,just about anything long.

^^^ This was a big "plus" for this camper for us. One side stores 4 folding chairs, folding shovel, and gray water drain hose (no gray water tank on our camper); other side stores Hi-Lift jack + wheel grabbing strap thing, extra propane for BBQ, folding camp table, propane stove, and fresh water fill hose.

We leave the dining area set up as a table all the time, never use it as a bed. When we take the kids camping, they sleep in a tent -- so we just load their tent, sleeping bags/pads, etc., all on the floor or on the seating area of the camper. It all goes into their tent once we arrive, and this keeps all their stuff out of the way.

Unless the weather is bad, we don't spend much time in the camper other than sleeping & doing dishes -- usually cook & eat outside (have a propane "T" rigged up with a hose to feed the portable 2-burner stove), hang out around the fire, etc.

 

[mkish]

Okay guys. Stop talking about those great doors on the rear! We have the shortbed version with the buttwrap so we don't HAVE that. We even have the megabumper on that (makes it much easier for little kids to get in.)

We prefer to spend time outside which is why we can put 4 people and a dog in there. The kids aren't old enough to sleep in a tent with the dog and I sure as heck ain't gonna! We do dinner outside with the Coleman stove but breakfast is inside. Lunch is usually prepped inside but eaten outside. Having 4 people in a little TC is why I want to maximize storage and get everything put away instead of sitting in a box. Without putting the bread under the mattress.

 

[brian90744]

I think you can make your own (see side pic) by remove the door and get a long ( same lenght as the door) kitchen drawer from Home Depot and make a Pullout organizer and with shelves, build a floor add slides. add the door to drawer. I had a kitchen pullout in a travel trl that worked great for pantry. You may need to cut the sides of the wardrobe 1/2" to fit this unit in. Just FYI=brian


Found on Amazon=Century Components - 6" Pull-Out Wood Base Filler Cabinet Organizer
by Century Components
I'm sure they have your size.

 

[Regcabguy]

I'd love to upgrade to a 2011+ Northstar 850SC. Not in the stars unless we win the lottery.