19 Easy Camper Storage Ideas to Stop Rattles in your Motorhome

Camper Storage Ideas- Stop rattles in motorhome & RV

Do you travel in a Camper, RV, Motorhome or van? Are you looking for easy camper storage ideas which will help to stop rattles and reduce motorhome noise while driving?

There’s nothing better than the excitement of setting off on a new adventure! There’s nothing worse than getting 2 miles down the road and the noises from the back of the motorhome as you go over every bump and hump are deafening!


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Camper Storage Ideas- Stop rattles in motorhome & RV
Camper Storage Ideas- Stop rattles in motorhome & RV

Stop rattles in your Motorhome

We have a running joke in our camper. We set off on a road trip… and 30 seconds later we stop again in order to go and fix something which is rattling or making noise. This is often repeated several (or many!) times each trip.

You wouldn’t believe the number of times we’ve stopped in a layby or parking area and then tried to figure out where the mystery noise was coming from. I swear, camper vans have their own special kind of ‘rattle which can NEVER be found until you’re driving!!

I have even gone so far as to sit in the back seats whilst we were travelling so I could hear for myself where the noises were coming from!! 😉 This is where learning how to pack a motorhome or camper properly can really help.

RV-ing with Kids- A Hidden Benefit!

One thing we discovered whilst travelling with our daughter, is she was able to hear different noises whilst in her seat in the back of the camper. We would end up bribing her to be our ‘camper noise finder’ and she got a treat (usually pocket money!) for every motorhome noise she found whilst we were driving!

If you’re serious about motorhome noise reduction, having someone sitting in the back ( only if there are seat belts!!) can really help.

Camper Storage Ideas for Noise Reduction

There are several camper storage ideas and tips which can really help reduce rattles in your motorhome. Once you have the basic principles, you can apply these tips to any item you carry in your RV/ camper van.

  • The tighter you pack things into lockers and cupboards, the better it is. The less space things have to move around, the less noise they will make
  • Put breakable things somewhere secure. I know it sounds obvious- but I’m the idiot who put our wine glasses on a shelf because “they look pretty”. Not for long, they didn’t! (It’s much better now we have these AMAZING magnetic wine glasses which stay in place even when driving!)
  • Keep heavy items as low as possible in the camper and forward if you have a front-wheel drive. ie- put tins in a front locker, not the back.
  • Keep items you use regularly as accessible as possible. The more annoying it is to get to something, the more annoying living in a motorhome will be. Try to make things easy for yourself.
  • Make sure clothes and shoes are stored securely. It’s amazing how much noise these can make in a camper. Here are 5 quick ways to increase clothes storage in your camper.
  • Bathrooms are another easy to miss area. Keep bottles and toiletries packed tightly together and assess your RV bathroom storage to make sure it’s suitable for use while driving.

Stop Motorhome Door Rattles

The doors on motorhomes or RVs are notorious for rattling. Sadly, there’s often not a lot you can do to stop this. Try to make sure the door is secure in its fittings and all screws are tightened.

If the door itself feels loose, or if there is a draft, some draft excluder or foam strip around the edge will help create a better seal, which will also stop the motorhome door rattling.

Normally, the rattles are caused by the fixtures on the door rattling. Try adding a small piece of tape between the fixtures and the motorhome door, which might stop them hitting against each other as you’re driving. Using a foam adhesive strip, like the one below are a good way to make sure cupboards and door don’t rattle against the frame when you’re driving.

Stop RV Windows Rattling & Reduce Motorhome Wind Noise

Another common culprit for camper van rattles are the windows. Again, make sure they are secure- it’s amazing how quickly screws can work loose while you’re traveling.

We have stopped our camper windows rattling by putting a slim foam seal around each edge- it’s also really helped keep the wind out and reduce motorhome wind noise while driving.

 

How to Stop Rattles – Tips for Packing Your RV Kitchen

Let’s face it- the camper kitchen is the worst culprit for motorhome rattles. There are just so many dishes, mugs, cutlery, pans- it’s never-ending noise. Especially if you’re on a bumpy road (which we often seem to be whilst we’re wild camping!)

Watch the following video to see our tips for packing your RV Kitchen and reducing noise.

Camper Storage Ideas for Your RV Kitchen

  • Stop cutlery rattles in your camper with a tea towel over the top of the drawer. Make sure it’s quite a tight fit
  • Put non-slip matting or tea towels between pots and pans so they don’t scratch or rattle
  • Stop dishes rattling in an RV by putting paper plates between them. Works perfectly!
  • Hanging mugs look pretty- but they’re going to make a lot of noise and possibly break whilst you’re travelling. To reduce motorhome rattles, put things away before you start driving.
  • We carried a lot of tinned foods in our motorhome when we visited Norway (which was a mistake, as Norway wasn’t as expensive as we feared! Still, in order to keep track of them and see them easily, we wrote on the top of each tin with a sharpie marked- saying what was inside and what date it expired. Makes it easier to see what you have
  • Also, group similar types of food together. Put all tins of meat one side of the locker, vegetables at the other. You’ll find it easier to plan a meal if you can see what you have left.

More Camper Storage Ideas for Your RV Kitchen

  • I stack my tins 3 high and I try to stack the same thing on top of each other so I can find things easily. As the locker gets emptier, this gets harder- you also need to pack the locker so things don’t rattle.
  • Write down the contents of your food lockers and try to remember to cross off things as we use them. It helps me see easily what food we have onboard, which helps with meal planning and shopping.
  • Put ‘naughty’ sweets & treats in an inaccessible locker, you’re going to have to REALLY want them to get them out. It works surprisingly well! Here are some healthy road trip food ideas for you to enjoy
  • Secure the oven shelf with THESE- they are amazing for stopping the shelf ‘jumping’ in the oven as you travel.
  • Remove the microwave plate and ring while driving- they create so much noise!
  • Put a tea-towel under the hob metal bit- that can cause rattles in your motorhome too
  • We also put a tea towel in the oven door to help with RV noise reduction.

Planning a road trip? You might be interested in these posts:

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The BEST camper storage ideas and hacks for your motorhome. Want to improve space saving in your RV? Want to solutions for camper organization? These essential camper storage ideas will show you how to pack your RV and make the most of small storage areas. 19 great tips for RV kitchens, camper bathrooms, motorhome living areas and more. Learn the BEST camper storage ideas for RV living. #rvliving #camper #motorhome #storage #packing #rvlife
The BEST camper storage ideas and hacks for your motorhome. Want to improve space saving in your RV? Want to solutions for camper organization? These essential camper storage ideas will show you how to pack your RV and make the most of small storage areas. 19 great tips for RV kitchens, camper bathrooms, motorhome living areas and more. Learn the BEST camper storage ideas for RV living. #rvliving #camper #motorhome #storage #packing #rvlife
Need RV Packing Tips? These fantastic camper storage ideas show you how to pack your RV without all those annoying rattles! These hacks are cheap, easy and quick- stop all the noise in your camper van today! #rvliving #rvtips #rvlife #camper #motorhomeliving
Need RV Packing Tips? These fantastic camper storage ideas show you how to pack your RV without all those annoying rattles! These hacks are cheap, easy and quick- stop all the noise in your camper van today! #rvliving #rvtips #rvlife #camper #motorhomeliving

Last update on 2024-03-28 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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6 Comments

  1. Hi, I’m finding your Norway and general motor home hints and tips very useful. We are new to motor homes, having been caravanners for around 30 years. Just putting my three penny worth in – why don’t you use the oven space for storage? I actually store our oven trays and grill pan in there, nested into each other and covered in tea towels of course. I also use the microwave to store plastic containers – wrapped in Bubble wrap. I did take on board the way you packed your utensil tray – brilliant. We tuck the glass plate out of the microwave under some cushions on the bench seats – it has always been safe. My daughter puts it vertically between the bench cushions. I also loved to hear about how much you managed to get into the gas locker! Very informative, we will be trying those out next trip. We are off to Norway in May for 6 weeks and are hungrily devouring any or all hints on what to take with us. Thanks again.

    1. Wandering Bird says:

      Hi Sue- great tips there!! We don’t use the oven, purely because we don’t need to at the moment- we manage to have enough storage without it. But it’s a perfect space to keep things if you need to- just remember to take them out before lighting! 😉 Hope you have a fantastic trip!

      1. Donald Gillies says:

        We fill the oven too – even manage to get the frying pan in there- handy as you can travel without having to clean it out, so you don’t loose all that delicious bacon fat!

      2. my huband light oven, without opening the door…….. up went several oven gloves, and a clatter of metal tins for baking got thrown out of the outside door managed to save 1 oven glove and now have several new ones from that part of Brittany. He won’t make that mistake again, hehe

  2. Hi Kat

    Thanks for the tips for rattle stops. Just one thing to ask- the oven shelves have some black plastic tubing on the edges to stop rattles- where did you get these from? Seems a perfect solution. ?

  3. I use tension rods (those expanding net curtain poles) to stop things falling out from overhead lockers,also double up as lightweight wardrobe rails.

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