What’s the Hangup?

One of the things I enjoy about buying a new RV is the customization of storage areas in the galley, pantry, closets and — maybe most importantly — the outside storage bay. You know the scenario: You “just have to have” tools and stuff that might come in handy someday, even if space is limited. I’m guilty as charged. But while I try to go through all the stored items and remove anything that hasn’t been used for a year or so, the process almost always gets undermined by second thoughts and “what if’s.”

If you want to maintain some semblance of order, you just have to be smarter than the stuff. It should be easy, right? Famous last words.

Since my new fifth wheel has less space in the main storage compartment than the old one, though, the challenge was on. Fortunately, you can get just about anything you want on Amazon, so with a little research — to discover new ideas on how to store frequently-used items like tools — I found some fantastic hooks that could be easily mounted in several locations and adapted to hold cordless tools while clearing out the clutter on the floor of the compartment.

I can’t even count the accumulative number of hours that I’ve wasted trying to find the drill, impact driver or grinder that got buried in the pile of other items strewn around the compartment. I originally thought about building shelves — but all that does is provide more areas to get cluttered.

Fortunately, the “TORACK Garage Hooks Heavy Duty” from Amazon looked perfect for my project. An assortment of 15 hooks in five sizes from 2 ½ to 6 inches were only $27.99 and they looked like they would be perfect to handle different size tools (they are rated to hold 30-75 pounds, depending on the size). These hooks are made of powder-coated steel with the ends covered in orange rubber-coated sleeves that help keep the tools from sliding off — something that’s even more important when on the road.

Of course, you can’t just screw a hook — or anything else — haphazardly into the thin side panels of an RV, but I found that hanging the hooks from the aluminum rafters in the storage compartment did the trick.

At first, I was going to hang a row of the hooks all the way across from right to left, but when I held them in place temporarily it was clear that configuration would make it difficult to reach the center of the compartment to pull out a needed storage container or a toolbox. Finally, I mounted the various-size hooks along both sides to accommodate the various types of tools.

I also wanted to hang a wash-brush pole and a shovel in the same manner, but had to use L-brackets to change the orientation of the hooks. That was an easy task using hardware that is readily available in home-improvement stores. Since the rafters are only about 2 inches thick, I wound up drilling another hole in the base of the hooks to close the spacing needed to get two screws through the hook bases and into the rafters, which prevents unwanted movement. I even had enough hooks left over to hang a broom and dustpan.

I love to hang things on walls for quick access. Over the years, I have added small hooks for cables, rolls of tape, bicycle parts and other items that seem to get disheveled in the compartment if they are not restrained — and I’m far from done. Myriad hooks found on Amazon encourage creativity and I’ve always been infatuated with magnets, so a future project is already in the making.

If you’re a packrat, you’re going to love hanging things up and provide access without moving other items out of the way. And just think about what you can do with all that floor space that just opened up.