I’ve been getting a lot of questions about our 2020 Forest River R-Pod 192. I love that there is so much interest in this model (especially since we love our 192).
I’m happy to help answer questions, and it helps me learn more about my R-Pod, too! And I may have a few affiliate links in here, trust me… I’m barely getting pennies – but every bit helps me keep up my blog hosting.
Make sure you skip to the bottom and watch the video tour we made after six weeks of living in the R-Pod 192.
So here we go…
Q: How big is the shower? Is it cramped?
Answer: For an RV shower in a 20 foot trailer, it’s generous. The shower “tub” (the part you can actually stand in) is about 19 inches wide by 34 inches long. The highest point in the skylight is about 74 inches tall. The lip of the shower is about 4.5 inches deep. My husband is 6’0 tall and can stand in it just fine. I am 5’5 and have no issues. I find there is enough space for me to easily turn around, shampoo my hair with both hands, and not touch the sides. My husband says his elbows touch sometimes, but he still feels like he has enough room.
Q: Does the bathroom get wet when you shower?
Answer: Not really. I say not really, because we do a few things to insure this. As I said above, the lip of the shower is about 4.5 inches deep. This keeps water from escaping at the bottom. The shower curtain is factory installed and is attached to the wall in the back. This helps a lot to stop spray from getting out of the shower.
Now, I say not really because we do some things to insure water stays in the shower. First, we aim the shower wand to the back corner, away from the curtain. Next, when done showering, we towel off and wrap our hair in the shower before stepping out. We also put a bathmat down on the bathroom floor to catch drops once we step out.
Q: Since the shower wall doesn’t have paneling, will it rot?
Answer: I’ve received this question from three people. The truth is – I hope not? But I’m pretty confident it’s fine. Our 1970’s RV we had as a kid didn’t have paneling and lasted 30 years (and maybe still lives on with the buyers fam, who knows?).
But we do wipe the walls after use. We bought a few rolls of Scott’s Blue Shop Towels (that’s an Amazon affiliate link, but you can pick them up for $3/roll at Target), and they are perfect for drying the walls (among other things in the RV).
Q: The bathroom doesn’t have a mirror, is this an issue?
Answer: The 192’s pantry has a mirror and it’s directly behind the bathroom. I suppose you can keep the bathroom door open, open the pantry, and use it as a makeup mirror, or to brush your teeth (and sometimes I do use it for makeup — especially in the proper light). But we installed a very inexpensive mirror with Velcro strips, and I’m very happy we did.
Q: Is the bed in the 192 comfortable?
Answer: So, to be perfectly honest, no — not as stock, anyway. While a residential queen (60″ x 80″ vs. RV queen sizing of 60″ x 74″), it has a split in the bed for easy folding. We added a three inch memory foam topper with cooling gel. We also topped the mattress and foam topper with a mattress protector. Now it’s OK, but I think we’re going to look into a new mattress that doesn’t fold in the near future.
Update: Three months of living in the 192, and even with the topper, we needed a real mattress. We debated between the 6 and 8 inch Zinus Ultima Memory Foam mattress and ultimately went with the 8 inch. We can close the murphy bed with a little maneuvering (though we added a second patio latch to the left side for extra support). And the support and comfort is so much better – and we wake up without back pain and pinched nerves. Read our blog post on how we chose our new mattress, and how we care for our new mattress.
Q: Do you actually put the Murphy bed in the up position?
Answer: Yes. It’s the easiest way to make room and make the coach feel larger, and it really changes the feel of the trailer. One note, no matter how hard you try to make the bed and fold up the Murphy bed, it will not stay that way. So, just make the bed again when you fold the bed back down.
Q: How do you deal with humidity in the 192?
Answer: Can we say, not well? This is a tough one. When you have two humans and a dog in a tiny space, and it’s 95 degrees outside with 95% humidity, it’s bound to get wet and sticky inside. Besides going way north to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula… we had a few tricks that helped while we were boondocking in Kentucky and on shore power in Tennessee. In no particular order:
- Dry your wet bath towels outside
- Use Scott Towels to wipe condensation off walls after a shower
- Use Damp Rid in the bathroom and kitchen
- Invest in a small dehumidifier to use while on shore power or plug into 12v converter on battery (hint — get a quiet model). We put ours on the bathroom floor between the toilet and sink
- Run the AC
- Cook meals on the outdoor range top (including boiling morning water for coffee/tea)
- Wash dishes outside with your outdoor shower and biodegradable soap
- Use USB fans to help dry areas that are wet (and create a cross breeze from the door to the emergency window, while also using the exhaust fan.)
Q: Where do you store dirty laundry?
Answer: We have two collapsible mesh hampers — one large, one small. The small we keep open and store in our shower when we’re not using it. The large is for laundry day when we need two to take our laundry to and from the machines (or laundromat). And as for our laundry detergent, spot remover, and dryer sheets? We keep those under the sink.
Q: Where do you put your trash can?
Answer: We use a small collapsible trash can that fits over our kitchen cupboard. It also has feet to sit on the ground. It’s a perfect fit and we close it down when it’s not full. We tend to reuse grocery bags as trash bags, and take our trash out nightly.
Q: If you have a brand new RV, why did you get new tires?
Answer: This question is from my dad. The tires that come with the RV are known to have issues (if you follow the forums, you can read more about this issue). Since we’re making our R-Pod 192 our home, we decided to spend a few hundred bucks and upgrade to the Goodyear Endurance tires. We noticed a difference right away in the ride and handling of our tires, and hope we’re avoiding a tire explosion (though, still need to check the pressure every trip!)
Q: Do you actually use the central vaccum?
Answer: OMG, yes. I didn’t think the central vac was a big deal, I just looked at it like it is a bonus. But after living in the trailer for four weeks, I loved it so much that I bought the attachments and hose. No matter how hard you try, you can’t keep the 192 clean. Especially when all three occupants (husband, dog, myself) have a lot of hair. I use the central vac daily when hooked up to shore power, and actually use the hose a few times a week to deep clean in cracks and shelving. Note: for the 192 you need the “banded” hose.
Q: How do you get the outside “camp kitchen” hose to work?
Answer: This is such a common question that I wrote a whole blog post about it (with video!). But the short answer, jam a screwdriver in it, and stand back. Yes, for real. Shout out to Jessica (follow her on Instagram at @hope_and_silver) for showing us the trick. Essentially, you jam a screwdriver (we prefer Philips head) until water comes out. Ours sticks if we don’t use it for about 5 days, so we’re doing this a lot. If you know a better way – please let me know!
See how we live in our R-Pod 192
Watch the video we made after living in our R-Pod for 6 weeks. Also, if you’re unsure on where to start with necessities and accessories — I created easy guides by category of all the RV essentials, supplies, gear, and gadgets we use in our R-Pod 192. You can check them out here: https://www.amazon.com/shop/solestraveling.
And if you have any more questions, please drop a comment or send us a note on YouTube, Instagram, or Twitter. I’d love to do a part two to this post.
Very good job of making the r-pod livable and showing us how you set it all up. I’m looking forward to other posts. Thanks
Thank you! I’ve filmed a bunch and can’t wait to post as soon as we’re on better wifi/cell.
Can you recommend a cover that fits the R-Pod 192?
Hi there! We actually don’t use a cover because we’re in it full-time. If you use Facebook — there’s a really good group that would be able to answer this question for you. https://www.facebook.com/groups/354551918901577/
Thank you. I just bought the 192 and this was so helpful. However, I am not seeing the links you spoke of of the items you bought….
Hi there! The links are within the paragraphs (generally in blue/underlined), but also check out the last paragraph in the blog post. On the video, if you click into it so YouTube pops up, there are links to every item individually in the description. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks!
We are planning on buying a 192 for full timing and this completely answered our questions we had and more (the bed crease was a major concern so thank you for the link and I’m so excited for the central vac because we have 3 dogs!), thank you so much!!!
Glad I could help! Yes, the central vac is great and we use it almost daily. Great for pet hair, too! Enjoy your new 192!
Great info. Thanks.
How much trouble is it to close the bed with the 8” mattress? Does it take two people? Would a 6” been adequate?
Hi there. So, if we were to do it again, we’d go with the 6inch. It closes fine with the 8inch, and I can do it alone, but the 6″ would have been comfortable enough and less of a pain to close.
How do you make the bed? You can’t reach the head of the bed.
It’s actually fairly easy. For the fitted sheet: we pull the mattress forward and you can reach the back corner. Or sometimes I pull the mattress back and just get on the bed to put the two back corners on. Once those are on, the two front corners are easy. Everything else can be done from the end of the bed.
Thanks for the great tips! We just bought one and are so excited to use it.
The corners of the bed when down seem like they are sharp, do you notice that or adjusted for it? The vac kit, banded for the 192? Different for other models or all rpods are that way? How often do you have to change the bag?
Thanks again
We actually put tape on the corners. We had those bed bumpers you put on kids beds, but they kept falling off. Just some painters tape seemed to do the trick. R-Pods use the banded kit for the vacuum. And we change the bag about once per month when living full time.
HI, How long does the vacuum bag last? Does it need to be replaced often?
Hi there. Living fulltime, we changed it out about once per month. The trailer is pretty small, and the bag big. You know when it’s time because it just stops sucking things up.
What about a counter top extension? Do you find enough room for meal prep ? Thank you
Hi there! We decided not to go with an extension, since our dogs bed is under it and we didn’t really feel we need it. I do most of my prepping on the sink with the sink cover or actually at the dinette. My husband prefers to do most of his prep outside, which makes a lot of sense because we cook outside on the burners about 80% of the time. I know some have added it and like it, and even see cute corner shelves added in that spot.