Expo 2020 Dubai passes ten million visitor milestone
Expo 2020 visitor numbers continue to rise, reaching 10.1 million arrivals as of today. Visitors were wooed by the first Global Goals Week to be held outside of New York among other highlights.
Travel Trailer Packing List For Beginners (Detailed Guide)
When traveling with my 13′ travel trailer, space is of the essence. As such, I’ve had to really learn what truly constitutes an “essential” and which comforts I can do without.
Packing for a camping trip in your travel trailer is quite different than packing for a camping trip with a tent. While you might be tempted to bring more than you need, your travel trailer can easily start to feel cramped with too many unnecessary items.
When preparing for your first travel trailer trip, I recommend making a list of everything you feel you just can’t live without (and use my checklist below to cross-reference). These are the absolute basics that will keep you on the road without having to hit up a store along the way. More often than not, you’ll find that you can make do with a lot less!
From what items to bring to my top packing tips, here’s how to pack for your first travel trailer camping trip!
Travel Trailer Packing List For Beginners
Kitchen Essentials
Plan to cook on the road? These are some of my favorite travel trailer cooking items that I bring with me on every single trip!
Sponges, Microfiber Towels, Pot Holders
Paper Towels
Camping Stove with Fuel (If you want to cook outside of the camper.)
Collapsible Food Storage Containers & Ziplock Bags
Dish Soap
Aluminum Foil
Stovetop Cutting Board (Great space saver!)
Trash Bags
Matches & Lighter
Cooler & Ice (if you don’t have a fridge)
Note: It’s tempting to want to bring an appliance or two when traveling in a camper, but ask yourself if you truly need it. If you really can’t live without your smoothies, this compact blender is perfect for small spaces.
Read more: The Ultimate Guide To Vegan Camping
Bed & Bath Essentials
Given that your bed is built into the camper, this is the section where skipping the tent really comes in handy. With a trailer, you don’t need sleeping pads, tarps, or sleeping bags (unless you prefer those over sheets and a comforter).
Here are some of my favorite travel trailer bed & bath essentials!
Camping Sheets & Comforter (depending on your mattress size, these are great twin, double, and queen campout sheet sets are adorable).
Toilet paper
Toiletries (Shampoo, Conditioner, Deodorant, Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Moisturizer, Face Cleanser, Soap, Contact Lens Solution, Floss, Hair Ties, Make-up, Medications, Brush & Comb, Floss, Nail Clippers)
Camping Essentials
Camping in a travel trailer is just so much harder without each of these items. They come with me on every single trip.
Indoor & Outdoor Mats
Broom or Dustbuster
Portable Speaker (not a necessity, but I bring it on all of my camping trips).
Adapters & Portable Charger
Generator (I love this brand!)
Read more: 20 Genius Camping Hacks Every Camper Should Know
Travel Trailer Safety Essentials
These safety essentials are going to be what physically keep your travel trailer on the road. When I first purchased my trailer, I learned super fast that each and every one of them is absolutely crucial to travel trailer camping.
Read more: 15 Travel Trailer Must-Haves For Your Safety & Comfort
Tips for Packing for Your First Travel Trailer Camping Trip
Plan Your Meals Ahead of Time
Knowing exactly what food to bring and how much of each ingredient you need is going to be a lifesaver when packing your travel trailer. I’d advise you to always slightly overpack your food (you absolutely don’t want to run out), and bring as many dry, canned items as possible.
Additionally, try to avoid any glass storage containers, as things can fall over and shuffle while on the road.
Secure Loose Items
Though it seems almost inevitable that things are going to be slightly moved around after every road trip in your travel trailer, securing loose items before you take off will ensure that they don’t break and you don’t wind up with a huge mess.
Put everything in cabinets and closets, keep any heavy items low to the ground, and use slip-resistant shelf paper or storage containers to keep individual items in place.
Use Bungee Cables
Most camper travel trailers come with cabinet and closet doors that click shut, but you’d be surprised how little it takes for these to fling open. I recommend securing all doors with bungee cables while in transit.
Know Your Trailer Weight Limit
Every camping travel trailer will come with a manufacturer’s weight limit. This is the advisable load that your trailer can sustain without encountering structural issues. You’ll definitely want to know what this limit is and stay well under it for your personal safety, the safety of others, and the longevity of your trailer.
Balance the Load
Once you’ve chosen everything that you want to take on your camping trip, it’s time to pack it all inside the trailer. In doing this, make sure you balance the load throughout the trailer as evenly as possible or put ever-so-slightly more weight near the front. This will help prevent axel strain, tire blowouts, and a lopsided trailer.
Prime Your Travel Trailer
Before you take off on your camping trip, do a walkaround of your rig. Make sure your tanks are emptied, unplug your water hose, pull in any awnings, and take off the wheel chocks, jacks, and leveling blocks. Then, do a quick tire pressure check and ensure that your hitch is secured.
Read More:
Winter Camping Essentials & Cold Weather Camping Tips
Camping Tips and Tricks for Beginners: Everything You Need to Know
The Ultimate Packing List for Campers (Must-Have Essentials!)
Best Camping & Backpacking Tents (In-Depth Buying Guide)
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The post Travel Trailer Packing List For Beginners (Detailed Guide) appeared first on Ordinary Traveler.
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How much does it cost to boil a kettle? And does it really make a difference if it’s full?
Whether it’s endless cups of tea and coffee or boiling water for cooking, the average kettle ranks as one of the hardest-working small appliances in the kitchen. But how much does it cost to boil a kettle? And how much energy does a kettle use?
If you’re spending more time at home making hot drinks, you might be concerned that boiling your kettle multiple times a day is really adding to your bills. However, how much water you’re boiling and how powerful your kettle is will affect the cost – knowing by how much means you can decide how often you make a cuppa.
We’ve worked out how much you can expect to spend every time you put the kettle on – as well as ways you can save energy at home.
How much does it cost to boil a kettle?
According to the Energy Saving Trust the national average price (as of November 2021) per pence/kWh of electricity is 20.06p. We have rounded it to 20p for illustration purposes.
Kettles show how much power their element uses in either watts (eg 3,000W) or kilowatts (eg 3kW) per hour. However, as you won’t be boiling a kettle for a solid hour, it’s a better idea to work out how much energy a kettle uses based on a smaller amount of time.
- The majority of kettles have a 3kW element. An example 3kW kettle boils one cup of water (235ml) in approx 45 seconds. This means it uses 1p every minute (60p per hour), so 0.75p to boil a single cup over 45 seconds. If you had a cup of tea every day and only boiled the water you needed, it would cost £2.74 over a year. The same kettle can boil a litre of water in 2 minutes 30 seconds, meaning that it costs 2.5p each time.
- Some kettles have a 2.2kW element. This means that they’ll use less power, but also take longer to boil. An example 2.2kW kettle can boil a litre of water in 3 minutes 10 seconds, meaning that although its cost per minute is only 0.73p, boiling a litre will cost 2.3p, similar to the 3kW kettle above.
Heating larger amounts of water for cooking starts to become more expensive. Fill the example 3kW kettle up to its maximum of 1.7 litres each time and the boiling time for a full kettle rises to 4 minutes, and a cost of 4p every boil.
Image credit: Spike Powell
Are some kettles cheaper to boil than others?
While most kettles use a similar amount of energy to boil the same amount of water, some are cheaper to boil because they’re more energy efficient. Some may not switch off immediately after reaching boiling point, while others have poor insulation that mean they lose heat externally, taking longer to reach boiling point.
The difference can be substantial over time. For example, one 3kW kettle can boil a litre in just over 2 minutes, while another may take as long as 2 minutes 30 seconds. This can mean a 0.5p difference every time you boil a litre of water.
‘We use our kettles more frequently than most other kitchen appliances,’ says Money.co.uk’s energy expert Ben Gallizzi. ‘In fact, the average UK household boils the kettle 1,500 times a year. If you’re in the market for a new kettle, look for rapid-boil models in the 2.5-3kWh range that can boil a single cup of water in under a minute as well as those with insulated casings that keep the water warmer for longer after boiling.’
Image credit: Lizzie Orme
What energy saving features should I look for when buying a kettle?
Buy a kettle with these clever functions to help make using it as efficient as possible. Our best kettle picks will include many of these handy features.
1. Variable temperatures
A choice of temperature is a great option for those who enjoy pour over coffee, green tea and herbal tea. These drinks, as well as others, benefit from brewing with water at lower temperatures than boiling. And, as the water reaches the desired temperature sooner without needing to boil, your kettle will use less energy. Filling your hot water bottle with cooler water than boiling will also prolong its life.
2. Measurements in cups and litres
Kettles without markers inside or on the water fill window mean you may boil more water than you need. Ideally, look for a model that has both litres and cups shown clearly so you can fill it quickly without overboiling.
3. Low minimum fill
Minimum fill amounts vary between models, meaning that even if you only want to make a cup of tea, you may need to consistently heat more water than you need. Minimum fills can be as much as 500-800ml, so look for those that allow you to boil as little as a single cup.
Image credit: Colin Poole
How can I cut the cost of boiling a kettle?
1. Descale regularly
Limescale stops your kettle from working as efficiently as possible, meaning it’ll take longer to boil and use more energy. Keep the inside scale-free by descaling every four to eight weeks in a hard water area and every few months if your water is softer. Pop the kettle’s filter out regularly (if it has one) and rinse that, too. You don’t need to use chemicals – you can descale and clean a kettle with lemon, vinegar and other natural solutions.
2. Only boil as much as you need
While it might be a chore to work out how much water you need to fill a mug or pan, it’ll save you money in the long run to only boil what you need. Rather than do it every time, jot down how much water a few of your favourite cups use and which marker on the kettle this corresponds to.
3. Don’t fill the kettle up every morning
‘Even though we drink a lot of hot drinks during the day, it’s still more energy efficient to boil what is needed each time than fill the kettle at the start of the day,’ explains Matt Manning, Group Carbon and Environment Manager at Currys. ‘This small trick can save around £6 a year.’
The post How much does it cost to boil a kettle? And does it really make a difference if it’s full? appeared first on Ideal Home.
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