Trip — First trip

DIY Travel Trailer: First Trip!

What Joe did

Towed the trailer on its first camping trip and reports that it pulled well.
Checked the trailer before the Salt River Canyon, where he wanted trailer brakes.
Leveled side to side by digging a small hole and leveled front to back with the tongue jack, leaving the roof sloped for runoff.
Ran the solar and 12-volt system continuously for more than three days, including the cooler, lights, and fan.
Used the interior storage: cabinets for supplies, lockable drawers for kitchen items, and under-bed storage.

What	Value	Where in the video
Trip distance	700+ miles	we travelled 700+ miles in the DIY Travel Trailer
Repair supplies	about 40 pounds	I did take about 40lbs of extra tools
Camping elevation	7 or 8 thousand feet	camping at about 7 or 8 thousand feet
Roof slope	an inch or two	sloped just about an inch or two this way
System test	over three days	continuous operation for over three days
Sleep space	all three of us	actually all three of us can lay on it

Item	Detail as Joe says it
Power loads	Dometic 12-volt cooler, LED lights, charging station, fan
Leveling	stabilizers and tongue jack
Security	DIY coupler lock
Storage	child locks on drawers

He carried repair supplies on the first trip even though he reports no repairs were needed.
He deliberately parked with the flat roof sloping so water would run off.
The charge controller showed bulk charging in the morning and float charging later; he planned a battery monitor for a clearer reading.

Nathan: Do a short shakedown trip with repair supplies and a checklist before a longer trip.
Nathan: Plan storage for bedding, food, and repair gear early; it changes usable interior space.
Nathan: Include a battery monitor in Nathan’s off-grid planning so usage is measured, not inferred from a charge state.