Personalizing Your RV’s Interior

While many people are happy with their new motorhome, travel trailer or 5th wheel’s interior, sometimes it needs tweaking to fit the new buyer. And sometimes, it doesn’t fit the buyer’s need at all. If you’ve been shopping for a new RV and can’t find one that suits your purposes, sometimes it’s more economical to shop for a used RV and redesign the interior to fit your own needs. That’s what we did the first time we bought a motorhome.

It quickly became apparent that no new vehicle was going to have the furnishings and accessories we desired, so we shopped for an older, top-of-the-line motorhome that we could furnish to suit us. Our “new” motorhome had orange shag carpeting, woven wood blinds, orange striped furniture, and it held an icemaker and a curved banquette that we didn’t need. It had been a party machine owned by a businessman who used it to entertain. Bought at a reasonable price, we felt no sadness at ripping out the previous owner’s favorite pieces and replacing them with furnishings that fit our lifestyle.

First, we ripped out the carpeting and had it replaced with commercial grade plush carpeting in a taupe color with an occasional blue thread. Since we already had the furniture out to replace the carpeting, we sent driving seats and the sofa out to be reupholstered in a taupe, cream and blue patterned fabric. Next, we threw away the dusty woven woods and replaced them with peach colored blinds, and we covered the dark wood paneled walls with a light-colored, textured wallcovering. The kitchen didn’t need much since it had a rust colored tile backsplash, neutral counter tops and good appliances, including a built-in blender and ice crusher (from its party days). We bought an occasional chair in taupe, and moved our computer desk in where the icemaker had been. The dining banquette was torn out (except for the seating section over the furnace), and replaced with a 2-drawer file cabinet. The space over the seat and furnace was used for storage, so we covered the entire top with a counter top (extra working space) and a cupboard door to hide stored items.

We ended up with a motorhome that was brighter by far on the inside than the original, and with a metal body (remember those?) that when polished, shone like a new RV. Plus, we now had space for the desk I would need, and for the computer, printer, and office supplies that were necessary to run my business on the road. It would take a few more years for technology to catch up with us so that we could keep in touch by cell phone, and for the Internet to become public, but until then, we managed by pay phone and snail mail.

Next time I’ll talk about changing a few things inside a new RV to make it more workable for you, and upgrading interiors when they become shabby after too many miles of enjoying them. I’ll also include a few photos of our changes.