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Jun 16

Driving A Newmar Super C – Super C RV Handling Issues

By Howard in RV Living

Driving A Newmar Super C – Super C RV Handling Issues

Imagine taking the wheel of a vehicle that combines the comfort of a luxurious home with the freedom of the open road. That’s the experience a Newmar Super C RV offers. But before you set off on your adventure, it’s crucial to understand the handling characteristics of your motorhome.

A Newmar Super C RV isn’t your average RV. It’s a considerable machine, towering over many vehicles on the road and equipped with amenities to make every mile enjoyable. However, its size and sophistication also mean it drives differently than a typical car or even a standard RV.

This article is tailored specifically for people like you who are seeking insight into driving a Super C RV. Whether you’re contemplating a purchase, have recently acquired one, or are looking to fine-tune your driving skills; I’m here to guide you through the essential aspects of Super C RV handling in a clear and actionable way.

I can share this information because I have driven large RVs for over two hundred thousand miles and have owned a 2023 Newmar Super Star 4059 since February 2023.

Understanding the Basics of Super C RV Handling

You’re commanding a sizeable machine when you’re behind the wheel of a Newmar Super C RV. Think about it this way: you’re not just driving but piloting. The size and weight of your vehicle greatly influence how you handle it on the road. It’s a departure from the typical family sedan or even a light truck. But don’t fret; size doesn’t equate to complexity once you’re familiar with the basics.

Air brakes and suspension systems are common features in Super C RVs like the Newmar, designed to handle the increased mass. They work to give you a smooth ride and better control. Still, there’s a learning curve, especially if it’s your first encounter with this kind of system. Remember, smooth and timely braking becomes your best friend for safe travels.

Handling your RV will also mean getting used to a wider turning radius. Why is this important? Because it affects everything from changing lanes to navigating campground roads. A good rule of thumb is to take turns wider than you normally would and to always look ahead and plan your moves in advance. This is due to the much longer wheelbase than most class A RVs with a much more aggressive front axle wheel cut angle.

Mirrors are your best friends when driving a Super C RV. Regularly check your side mirrors and rearview camera to stay aware of your surroundings. RVs have larger blind spots, so always double-check before changing lanes.

Due to its width, keeping the RV centered in your lane is important. Practice this by observing the lane markings and adjusting your position as needed.

Driving a Newmar Super C at high speeds can be challenging and less fuel-efficient. Stick to the speed limit and consider driving slightly below it for better control and safety.

Height and clearance are other factors you can’t ignore. The last thing you want is an unexpected encounter with a low bridge or tree branch. Your Newmar Super C stands tall, which is great for interior space but adds another layer of consideration while driving. Always be aware of the clearance levels on your route and at your destinations.

The Newmar Super Star has an onboard GPS system, but we like the Garmin 1090 better. It has a larger 10″ screen and allows the unit to be placed more in line with the driver’s view of the road. It can be programmed with the height, weight, and length of the RV and what is being towed.

Handling Different Road Conditions

Your Newmar Super C is built to handle various road conditions, but each presents unique challenges.

Highways and Freeways

1. Merging: Use the acceleration lane to build up speed before merging. Watch for other vehicles and merge smoothly.

2. Passing: Be patient when passing. Due to the size and weight of the RV, passing other vehicles takes longer.

3. Exits: Plan your exits early. Signal well in advance and start slowing down gradually.

City Driving

1. Narrow Streets: Avoid narrow streets when possible. If you must navigate them, drive slowly and watch for obstacles.

2. Parking: Find RV-friendly parking areas. Parking an RV in a regular parking lot can be challenging and often not allowed.

3. Traffic Lights: Be prepared for longer stopping distances at traffic lights. Keep a safe distance from the vehicle ahead.

Rural Roads

1. Sharp Turns and Hills: Approach sharp turns and hills with caution. Downshift when necessary to maintain control and reduce speed.

2. Gravel Roads: Drive slowly on gravel roads to avoid skidding and maintain control.

Parking and Setup

Parking and setting up your Newmar Super C can be straightforward with a few tips.

1. Choosing a Spot

Look for level spots to park. A level RV ensures the stability of appliances and comfort for sleeping. Many campgrounds offer designated RV spots with water, electricity, and sewage hookups.

2. Backing Up

Use a spotter when backing up. A spotter can guide you and ensure you don’t hit any obstacles. Utilize the rearview camera if your RV has one.

3. Leveling the RV

Use leveling blocks or built-in leveling systems to ensure your RV is stable. This is especially important for the functioning of the refrigerator and comfort during sleep.

4. Hooking Up Utilities

Connect your RV to the campground’s utilities:

Water: Attach the water hose to the RV’s water inlet.
Electricity: Plug the power cord into the electrical pedestal, matching the amperage requirements (usually 30 or 50 amps).
Sewage: Connect the sewer hose to the RV’s outlet and the campground’s sewer connection. Ensure all connections are secure to avoid leaks.

Common Handling Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Driving a Newmar Super C RV offers a unique set of challenges on the road, and becoming acquainted with them is crucial. The size and heft of these vehicles mean that handling them differs greatly from a family sedan or a light truck. Recognizing these challenges is the first step to mastering your Super C RV driving.

A major factor to consider is wind resistance. Due to their large surfaces, some Super C RVs are particularly susceptible to strong winds. This can result in an unnerving sway that might be intimidating at first. To mitigate this, ensure you’re using a sway control system which is critical for maintaining stability. It’s also wise to reduce your speed in high winds and keep a firm but relaxed grip on the wheel.

Fortunately, the Newmar Super C’s at over forty thousand pounds GVWR are not affected as much by strong crosswinds and passing semis.

When it comes to negotiating tight spaces, planning and patience are paramount. Maneuvering in close quarters, such as campsites or crowded parking lots, calls for a slow and steady approach. Use every mirror and camera at your disposal, ask a passenger to assist by guiding you outside, and never rush. It’s better to take your time than to cause damage in a hasty decision.

Another test of your RV handling skills comes with tackling steep inclines and drops. The key is to use the engine braking and transmission to your advantage, allowing them to aid in maintaining a consistent and controlled speed. Remember, going downhill, it’s often best to downshift and let the engine do some of the braking work, conserving your brake pads from premature wear.

We find the engine braking system in the Newmar Super Star to be very helpful when traversing long downhill grades. Its two-level settings are adequate to keep the vehicle at the desired speeds.

Finally, the weather significantly influences driving an RV like the Newmar Super C. Rain, snow, and ice can affect traction and control. I can’t stress enough how important it is to adjust speed accordingly and to avoid sudden inputs to the steering, brakes, or throttle. When in doubt, err on the side of caution and consider stopping until conditions improve. The electronic locking differential on the Newmar Super Star can help in these situations.

Overcoming these common handling obstacles is less about strength and more about smarts. By learning, practicing, and being PREPARED, you can handle your Super C RV with confidence, making each journey safer and more enjoyable.

Key Safety Tips for Driving Your Newmar Super C

When it comes to taking the helm of a vehicle like the Newmar Super C, safety isn’t a suggestion; it’s a REQUIRE ID. These RVs demand respect for their size and power, so here I’ll break down the essential safety tips that need to become second nature to you.

First up is maintenance. It’s simple: a well-maintained Super C is a safer one. This means regular brake checks, tire inspections, and keeping an eye on all fluid levels. Neglect is not an option when your home on wheels also happens to be one of the biggest vehicles on the road.

Ensure that your RV’s weight is evenly distributed. Overloading one side can make handling difficult and unsafe. Secure all loose items inside the RV to prevent shifting during travel.

It’s a Good Idea to Weigh Your RV to Avoid Being Overweight!

Next, let’s talk about the driver’s seat. Adjusting your seat for maximum visibility and comfort isn’t just about luxury; it’s about command and control. Ensure your mirrors are aligned to reduce blind spots, which are significantly larger in an RV than in a car.

The air seats in the front cab make quick adjustments while driving an easy thing!

Speaking of which, familiarize yourself with your RV’s camera systems. Many Super C models come with these high-tech aides that offer a real-time look at what’s happening around you. Use them. They’re your eyes where you don’t have them, especially when reversing or changing lanes.

When navigating around campgrounds and other tighter driving situations, the Newmar Super C has an N360 camera system that allows the driver to have a top-down view of the RV. This has been so useful as we make tight turns or back into RV sites!

Safe towing is another critical aspect. If you’re pulling a vehicle or trailer behind your Super C, make sure it’s properly connected with safety chains and lights. Verify that the towed load doesn’t exceed your RV’s towing capacity – overloading can lead to brake failure or loss of control.

Again, Newmar’s camera system allows so many views around the RV during travel, including lane change views and complete visibility of the towed vehicle and further behind.

Wrapping up this section, remember that these tips are YOUR roadmap to safety. Pay attention, plan ahead, and respect the size and power of your Newmar Super C, and you’ll protect yourself and your fellow travelers on the road.

Maximizing Your Newmar Super C Driving Experience

You’ve now got the ins and outs of safely piloting a Newmar Super C RV under your belt. Mastery, however, is more than just understanding – it’s about enjoyment too. Your Super C is your ticket to freedom and adventure; with the right approach, every trip can be secure and memorable.

Start by stretching your driving muscles on a variety of road types. This hands-on experience will boost your confidence and skill level. Once you’re comfortable, don’t hesitate to escape the highways and explore the backroads.

Remember, planning is paramount. Use tools like RV-friendly GPS apps to chart a Super C-friendly path. Keep an eye out for low-clearance bridges, weight-restricted roads, and suitable rest stops to avoid any surprises and unnecessary stress.

Time to Fuel Up!

Fueling your Super C RV will be a regular event if you drive it regularly. We visit truck stops like Travel America, Loves, and Petro. We use a TSD travel card with a thirty to ninety-cent discount per gallon of number two diesel fuel.

If you want to take advantage of this great fuel discount program, click here! We would appreciate the referral in the referred-by area of the application! Please enter “Howard Jaros” as the referred by name. Thank you!!

Technology can be a powerful ally. From advanced navigation systems to stability-enhancing add-ons, investing in upgrades can pay dividends in the long haul. For example, a tire pressure monitoring system can add an extra layer of safety to your journeys.

We use the TST 770 tire pressure monitoring system on all six tires of the Super C and also on our Silverado truck. We have a constant readout of temperature and pressure during travel. Should things change, we can immediately pull over before a dangerous situation ensues.

Another upgrade that Super C owners can make is to add some upgrades to the chassis. Remember that the larger Super C’s are built on a truck chassis. It is either the Freightliner M2-106 or M2-112. Newmar does a good job creating an air ride cab to help alleviate the truck feel.

However, the front steer axle is still sitting below the engine and is not on an air-ride platform. Therefore, several additions can be made to take the Supr C to the next level in comfort and control. Pam and I upgraded our Super Star with three new systems that we are really excited about. Click here to see what we did!

Finally!

Remember that you’re part of a community. Newmar Super C owners are known for camaraderie and willingness to share advice.

Participate in forums, connect through social media, and maybe join a Super C club. Trading experiences and tips with fellow RVers enrich your knowledge and pave the way for lasting friendships.

Driving your Newmar Super C should be a source of pride and pleasure. With a keen focus on safety, a dash of tech, and embracing the collective wisdom of your fellow adventurers, you’re set for a fulfilling ride.

Here’s to smooth travels in your Super C RV – where every mile counts and every journey is an opportunity to make lasting memories.

Please feel free to leave a comment or question before you go!

Want to make money while traveling in your Super C RV full-time?

Jan 30

Sir Winston – 2023 Full-Year Update

By Howard in RV Living

Hi everyone! Last year, I mentioned that a change in RV home might be coming my way. So, I will share what happened in 2023 with you.

I started our year out with Mom and Dad at a park east of Galveston, TX. Mom likes the beach so we seem to be along coastal areas a lot.

When we are traveling, I take over the passenger seat so I can help Dad navigate to places they want to go. When Mom leaves for potty, I rush in and grab my seat. Sometimes, we share the passenger seat.

Dad is a really good RV consultant, given all his experience. He helps other people learn how to start doing the same. Here was one of the first classes of 2023. These people all have the ability to make a six-figure income if they put in the time.

When not running their company, Mom and Dad travel with me to cool places. Here I am at a Bucee’s, getting to meet the Beave. I was a little scared by that big bronze thing! Passers-by thought I was really cute. We were headed to South Florida on this particular trip to pick up our new RV home!

While there, we were able to see the remnants of the Hurricane damage from Ian. Fort Myers was still cleaning up from the damage, and things were starting to get back to normal, but there were still many visible areas that had much work to be completed before returning to normal.

While we were in Fort Myers, Mom and Dad found a place where they could bathe me. It was sure nicer than our RV shower! After being dried off, I sure looked like such a handsome man!

Once at the RV dealership where they were going to trade Miss Thiffy, we got a chance to hang out and wait for the new RV home to arrive. Mom and Dad custom-ordered this one. They had never done that before, but I heard Dad say that this new RV home was a twenty-five-year dream that was being achieved.

We got some pictures of it just before it was getting ready to leave the factory to ship to Florida. They chose a Florida dealership because Florida is their domicile state, and it’s much easier to purchase an RV in the state you call home when full time RV living.

It was exciting to see the pictures from the factory!

We were expecting the RV to arrive in early February. It was two weeks late due to some parts issues and a poor transport driver who took much longer to get the RV to Florida than he was supposed to. It arrived at the dealership on February 24th. The bad thing was we needed to be 1,200 miles away two days later!

Here are Mom and Dad taking possession of the new RV home five hours later. Everyone at the RV dealership did their best to get it ready for us to hit the road for a long drive back to Texas. It took seven hours to get everything out of Miss Thiffy and into our new RV home, JC. It looked like a bomb hit, but at least everything was inside! We left the dealership at 1:30 AM on the 25th.

Dad drove through the night into the next day and another night. By the afternoon of the 26th, we were in Texas for a new group of clients for Dad to teach how to be RV consultants.

Our next stop was to go back to the beach with JC. It was the first pleasure trip and such fun to take on the road. Dad loves the Super C motor home because of the Freightliner chassis’s safety, stability, and serviceability.

The Newmar Super Star has an air ride cab and air ride seats. That, plus rear airbags, adds to a more stable ride than the Class A gasser that we had.

In May, we ventured further south to the beaches of Port Aransas. We had three weeks before more business commitments, so Mom chose that location. I loved it because they rented a golf cart for me to be able to visit the beach and get some wind in my ears while riding with them.

Here I am, hanging out on the back of the golf cart, watching the seagulls fly by.

Mom and Dad wanted to be sure I would not get sunburned, so they had this thing called a Shibumi. You face into the wind, and it is like a horizontal sail that provides great sun protection while being lightweight and easily transportable. It fits in a small bag that goes anywhere. It is so much better than a canopy that can blow away and is hard to put up and take down.

Dad loves to keep the RV and truck looking new, so he likes the ceramic coating products on the market. At the time of this picture the truck was already a year and a half old, and has never been garaged.

In July we were headed to the Newmar factory to have warranty work done on JC. It is very normal for RVs of this level to need tweaking before the warranty period runs out after a year. On the way to Indiana, we stopped in Nashville over the July 4th holiday. It was a nice KOA in that area. It was tight to get into, but the RV sites were nice, close to each other, but nice.

Once in Indiana, we overnighted at a Harvest Host location, north of Napanee, Indiana. THe next day we checked into the Newmar Service Center.

Here’s their large service facility with full-service hookups and coordinated service appointments.

We chose a spot and were to be greeted the next morning by our service advisor, who would be sure Mom and Dad’s list of issues would be addressed. They picked up the RV at 6 AM and returned it at 2 PM. This continued each day during the work week until all issues were corrected.

Mom and Dad caught JC driving through the service center on its way to the spot where it was worked on.

While in the Elkhart, IN, area, I got to meet a fellow Corgi pup. His Mom is friends with my Mom, so we got together and had a meeting of the Corgis.

As we approached the really hot summer months, Mom and Dad took me to an RV Resort with a really nice pool for them to hang out at. It is a relatively new pool, and no one was using it.

The RV sites we nice as well! They enjoyed hanging out in the New Braunfels, TX area for a week.

After that, they headed to Fredricksburg, TX, to hang out in the Texas Hill Country. There are many wineries and distilleries in the area. It was super hot, with temps in the hundreds, so I stayed inside a lot until it cooled off in the evening.

One of my favorite activities is hanging out with Mom and Dad on the patio. I can get in a great nap. I either use the RV park Adirondack chairs or my foldup camp chair.

Because I am into healthy living, which Mom and Dad taught me, I established my Corgi Advisory Board to assist with my efforts. They are always willing to chime in . . . LOL! Mom and Dad use essential oils on me to calm me down when I get afraid. I’m a naturopathic dog.

During the Fall of 2023, we headed to the East Coast. Dad visited with a vendor that he works with to assist in his RV consulting business. We stayed one night in a Harvest Host location before heading to Ashville, NC.

The trees were starting to change color, so the drive on US-40 toward Ashville was very scenic and colorful. The steep grades were exciting, too!

Her’s Dad and me at the Homegauge home office in downtown Ashville, NC. What a cool city. I walked around town with new friends and visited everyone at Homegauge. We even played ball in the big office. Much better than in the RV!

Driving back towards Sevierville, TN was very scenic too.

We hung around Sevierville for a week and checked out the sites. The view from atop the big gondola Ferris wheel was cool.

We finished the year by returning to the beach and spending a few months along the Boliver Peninsula. The weather was cool and windy most of the time, but there were days that reached the low seventies. I hung out on the patio in my chair, enjoying the sunshine.

2023 seemed to go by really fast. Maybe because we were traveling a lot, and the new RV home added to that. I heard Mom and Dad may consult a little less with RV clients in 2024, so we may end up traveling more than in 2023.

Happy Trails and Wagging Tails, everyone!

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Nov 10

Best Enterprise-Grade Mobile Routers for RV Work

By Howard in RV Work

Enterprise mobile routers for RV work are routers that pass three tests: they balance traffic across multiple WAN connections, they can be managed remotely from anywhere, and they have external antenna connectors. A router that misses any one of the three is a consumer or prosumer device, and it will let you down when a client call cannot drop.

What makes a mobile router enterprise-grade for RV work?

For an RV office, “enterprise-grade” comes down to three requirements, and this comparison screens on those and nothing else. Brand reputation, a long feature list, and a rugged case are not part of the test. A router either meets all three requirements or it is dropped from consideration.

The three requirements are:

True load balancing across multiple WANs. The router accepts two or more internet sources (cellular, Starlink, campground Wi-Fi, a wired park connection) and distributes traffic across them by policy.
A remote-capable management interface. You can see the router’s status and change its settings from somewhere other than the RV’s local network.
External antenna connectors. Antennas can be attached to the router, or to its modems, with a cable and a standard connector, so they can be mounted outside the rig.

Each requirement exists for a reason that is specific to working from a vehicle. Load balancing uses every connection you pay for. Remote management lets you diagnose a problem while you are away from the rig or standing in a campground office. External antennas let the signal reach the router without passing through an aluminum or fiberglass shell and a roof full of metal.

A travel trailer parked at a forested campsite in soft morning light, with a small cellular antenna and a flat satellite dish mounted on its roof and thick black coax cables running down the side wall toward a window entry gland.

This article stays on the router itself. If you already have the router and need the configuration side, the failover build guide covers how to assemble a working setup. Specs change with each firmware and hardware revision, so confirm every detail below against the manufacturer’s current documentation before you spend money.

How does load balancing differ from bonding and failover on the road?

Load balancing spreads separate connections across your WANs, bonding combines several links into one session, and failover only switches to a backup when the primary dies. These three terms get mixed up in product listings, and the difference decides what you actually get.

Failover keeps one link active and holds the others in reserve. When the primary stops passing traffic, the router moves to the next link. It protects you from an outage but adds no capacity, since the backup sits idle until it is needed.

Load balancing uses all links at once, but each individual connection (a browser tab, a file upload, a video call) generally travels over one link. Ten sessions might split across three WANs. A single large download will still run at the speed of whichever link it was assigned to. Many routers offer several methods, such as weighted distribution by link capacity, per-session assignment, or rules that send certain traffic or destinations to a chosen link.

Three different colored cables (blue, orange, green) running from separate sources into one compact router, with cable ends fanning out like lanes of traffic merging, shot close up on a wooden RV desk in warm light.

Bonding (sometimes sold as link aggregation or packet-level aggregation over the internet) splits one session across several links. It usually requires a second endpoint somewhere on the internet that reassembles the packets, which means a hosted service or a server you run, and often a license or subscription. Its advantage is that a single call or transfer can survive the loss of one link without dropping.

This matters for screening because many products advertise “multi-WAN” when they only fail over. Read the datasheet for the words “load balancing” and for a list of the algorithms or policies. If the document only describes a primary and a backup, the product fails the first requirement.

Load balancing has one side effect that remote workers should know about. Some websites, banking portals, and VPN gateways tie a login to the source IP address. If a router sends your next connection out over a different link, the site sees a new address and may log you out. Look for session persistence or per-destination rules that pin a given site or device to one WAN. A router without those controls can make a working day more irritating than a single connection would.

Which management interface features matter when you are away from your desk?

The features that matter are a connection to the router that works from outside the RV, alerts when a link fails, and the ability to reboot and reconfigure without being on the local network. A local web page on the router’s own Wi-Fi is not enough, because that is only reachable when you are already inside the rig.

The main obstacle is how cellular networks assign addresses. Carriers commonly place customers behind carrier-grade NAT, so there is no public address you can connect to directly. That means a router can only be reached remotely if it makes an outbound connection to a cloud management service or to a VPN endpoint that you control. When you read a spec sheet, look for which of these the router uses.

Features worth checking, in rough order of importance:

Cloud or VPN-based remote access. This is the baseline. Confirm that it works over cellular connections and whether the service is free, included for a period, or sold as a subscription.
Link status and alerts. You want a notification when a WAN goes down, when a modem loses signal, or when the router restarts.
Remote reboot and remote configuration changes. A router that you can see but not change is only half useful.
Data usage tracking per link. If any of your plans have caps or throttling thresholds, you need to see consumption without logging in to each carrier.
Configuration backup and restore. After a firmware problem or a reset, restoring a saved configuration is faster than rebuilding policies by hand.
Controlled firmware updates. The ability to schedule or delay an update is useful so that nothing changes in the middle of a work week.
Location reporting. If the router has a GPS receiver, location data helps with theft recovery and with working out why coverage differs from one site to another.
Account security. Two-factor authentication and separate user roles matter because this interface controls your whole network. The RV network security guide covers the wider picture, but the router login is where it starts.

A router that meets only the local-interface standard fails the second requirement, no matter how polished that interface looks.

Which external antenna connections should a router have?

A router should have external connectors for every radio you want to improve, which means at minimum separate ports for each cellular antenna, and ideally ports for GPS and for Wi-Fi as well. The connectors let you run cables to antennas mounted on the roof or a ladder mount, away from the metal skin of the rig.

Close-up of the back panel of a black metal vehicle router with four gold SMA antenna ports in a row, two with short coax pigtails screwed on, beside a roof-mount MIMO cellular antenna on a workbench under bright daylight.

What to look for, by radio:

Cellular. Modern cellular modems use multiple antennas at once (MIMO), and each antenna needs its own port. A modem built for two-antenna operation exposes at least two connectors, and a four-antenna design exposes four. Check how many ports are provided per modem, because a router with two modems may need four or eight connectors in total. SMA is the common connector type for cellular ports, but confirm it for your model.
Wi-Fi as WAN. If you use campground Wi-Fi as a source, a router with external Wi-Fi antenna ports lets you attach a directional or higher-gain antenna. Some routers use a reverse-polarity variant of the SMA connector for Wi-Fi, so match the antenna’s connector to the port.
GPS. Required only if you want location reporting or time-based features, but an external port is better than relying on an internal receiver that cannot see the sky from inside a rig.
Router’s own Wi-Fi. Detachable antennas for the access point side let you swap in better ones or relocate them, though in a small RV the internal coverage is rarely the limiting factor.

Two practical points apply to all of these. First, cable loss grows with length and with thinner coax, so a short run of low-loss cable between the router and the antenna is better than a long run of thin cable. Second, if a router has built-in modems but only internal antennas, it fails the third requirement, since you cannot move the antennas outside.

One more case needs mentioning. Some routers have no cellular modem at all and take their WAN connections over Ethernet or USB from separate modems. Such a router can still pass the screen, because the external antenna connectors then live on those modems. The router passes only if each modem you attach has external antenna ports, which you should confirm separately.

How do the router classes compare side by side?

Five classes cover most of what is sold for mobile connectivity, and only some of them pass all three tests. The table below describes typical behavior for each class. Individual models vary, so treat it as a screening guide and verify the datasheet for any product you consider.

The drop-outs are clear. Cellular hotspots and consumer travel routers are designed to put one connection onto a Wi-Fi network for a few devices, and they are the gear this article assumes you are replacing. They are fine for casual use and fail at least two of the three requirements for working use.

The classes that remain have different trade-offs:

Prosumer multi-WAN routers are the home-office or small-business tier. They usually handle load balancing well and often have solid management, but many have no built-in cellular modem, so you add separate modems and need to check the antenna ports on each.
Enterprise cellular routers combine multiple WAN types and built-in modems in one box, with a cloud management platform from the manufacturer. They cost more and are typically designed for fixed 12V or vehicle power, but they are built for exactly this use. Check the licensing terms for the management service.
Open-source router software on a small computer, with external cellular modems, offers the most control and the most work. You build and maintain the remote access path yourself, and nobody provides support if something breaks on the road.

Which type of router fits which kind of working RVer?

The right class depends on how much downtime your work can absorb and how much configuration you are willing to maintain. Match the router to the consequences of a dropped connection, not to the biggest spec sheet.

Full-time workers on live calls or client-facing roles fit the enterprise cellular router class. A dropped meeting costs credibility, and remote alerts and a manufacturer-supported management platform shorten the time to fix a problem. The higher cost is easier to justify when the internet connection is tied to income.

Part-time RVers who work a few days a week remotely can often use a prosumer multi-WAN router with separate modems. They get load balancing and remote access at a lower entry cost, as long as they verify antenna ports on each modem. This setup also lets them upgrade one component at a time.

Technical users who already administer networks may prefer open-source software on their own hardware. It allows precise control over policies, logging, and VPN design, and it suits someone who is comfortable reading logs and recovering a broken configuration from a phone hotspot.

Anyone who stays in one place for months at a time should think about whether load balancing matters at all. If a single strong link and one backup cover the need, failover alone may be enough, and a simpler router that passes the other two requirements could do the job. In that case, the screen above is stricter than necessary, and you can relax the first test.

Anyone who depends on a corporate VPN should check how the router handles persistent sessions when links change. The guide to enterprise VPNs over cellular and satellite is a better place to start for that subject than a router datasheet.

What should you check before you buy?

Check the manufacturer’s current documentation for each of the three requirements, then check power, licensing, and support. Datasheets are the source of truth here, and marketing pages and retail listings often leave out the details that matter.

Work through this list in order:

Confirm load balancing in writing. Find the words “load balancing” and the list of supported methods in the current datasheet or user manual. If the product only mentions failover, drop it.
Find out how remote management connects. Identify the cloud platform or VPN method, confirm it works behind carrier NAT, and read the terms: what is free, what needs a license, and what happens to remote access if a subscription lapses.
Count the antenna ports. Match the number and type of connectors to the modems, and decide in advance which antennas you will attach. If the router has no modem, check the attached modems instead.
Check cellular band support against your carriers. A modem that does not support the bands your carrier uses in the areas you travel will underperform, regardless of the antennas. Compare the modem’s band list to the carrier’s published band information.
Check the power input. An RV runs on 12V DC, so look for a DC input range that covers your system’s voltage swings, and find the router’s typical power draw. Constant draw matters when you run on batteries.
Check SIM and WAN capacity. Count the SIM slots, Ethernet WAN ports, and USB or Wi-Fi WAN options, and compare them to the number of sources you plan to use now and add later.
Read the support and firmware policy. Look at how long the manufacturer has supported its products with updates, and whether the management platform is still actively developed.
Verify the price at the time of purchase. Prices and subscription terms change, so confirm the total cost, including any management license, directly with the seller.

If a router passes the first three items, it has met the screening standard. The remaining items decide whether it works in your particular rig, with your carriers, on your power system. A router that passes all eight is a sound base for an RV office that has to stay online.

A compact router mounted inside an RV electrical cabinet, wired to a 12V DC fuse block with red and black wires, beside a battery monitor, lit by a small LED work light.

Thanks for stopping by our website! Leave any questions that you may have in the comment area.

Nov 06

Microphone and Lighting Setup for Better RV Video Calls

By Howard in RV Work

The best microphone and lighting setup for RV video calls starts with sound, then light, then camera. A close, directional microphone, a soft light in front of your face, and a webcam at eye level will make a small rig look professional on a client call without using much power or taking up much desk space.

What matters most on an RV video call: sound, light, or camera?

Sound matters most, light is second, and the camera comes last. People tolerate a soft or slightly grainy picture, but they stop listening when your voice is thin, echoing, or full of fan noise. A client who can’t understand you will remember that, not your resolution.

Light comes next because it does more for the picture than any camera upgrade. A cheap webcam with good light on your face beats an expensive camera in a dim nook. Light also fixes the problem RVs create most often: a bright window behind you that turns you into a silhouette.

The camera is last because the one you already have is usually good enough once the first two are handled. A laptop webcam has a small sensor and struggles in mixed light, so it may eventually deserve an upgrade. Fix the cheaper, higher-impact problems first.

This guide judges each choice by one test: how it performs on a client call from a campsite, with limited power, a narrow desk, and windows on every side.

Which microphone type works best in a small RV?

A directional microphone used close to your mouth works best, because it picks up your voice and rejects most of the room. In a small RV, you can’t control the room, so you control the distance instead. A microphone a hand’s span from your mouth hears you far louder than it hears the refrigerator, the furnace, or the neighbor’s generator.

A black USB dynamic microphone on a small desk arm, hovering a hand's span from an empty chair at a narrow RV dinette, with wired headphones resting beside a closed laptop. Soft daylight from a side window, warm wood cabinetry, cool gray tones.

Here is how the common types compare for a rig like this.

For most working RVers, a USB dynamic microphone on a small desk arm is the safest first choice. It needs no audio interface, adds almost nothing to your power load, and tolerates a noisy space better than a condenser does. If you take many calls while walking around or standing at a counter, a lavalier is the practical alternative.

Whichever you pick, wear headphones. If the other person’s voice plays through laptop speakers, your microphone picks it up and sends it back as echo. Wired headphones are the simplest option because they have no battery to die mid-meeting.

How do you light your face when the RV has windows everywhere?

Face a window, never sit with one behind you. Light coming from in front of you, spread evenly across your face, is the most flattering and the easiest for any camera to handle. A window behind your head makes the camera expose for the bright glass and leaves your face dark.

I use this light when these ideas do not solve the issue. It provides a highly adjustable light style and brightness level.

A person seated at an RV dinette facing a bright window, face evenly lit, while a blackout shade is pulled down over the window behind them. Warm interior, soft natural light across the face, sunny campsite glimpsed at the edge of the frame.

If your desk can only face one direction, you have two practical fixes:

Turn the desk or the chair. Even a quarter turn can move the main window from behind you to beside you.
Cover the window behind you. A blackout shade or a piece of reflective sunshade material cut to fit stops the glare.

Side windows deserve attention too. Light from one side makes half your face bright and the other half dark. Cover the window on one side with a sheer curtain or a shade, and your key light will have no competition.

Daylight at a campsite changes quickly. Clouds, tree shade, and the angle of the sun can all shift in the middle of a meeting. That is the strongest argument for using a real light even when the RV looks bright. A steady light of your own keeps your face looking the same at 10 a.m. and at 3 p.m., and you can close the shades and stop depending on the weather.

What lighting gear fits a small RV desk and a tight power budget?

A small, dimmable LED panel on a desk stand is the best fit. LED lights produce a lot of light for the electricity they use, and a small panel draws far less than a space heater, a toaster, or a microwave. Check the wattage printed on the light or its power adapter, then compare it with what your battery system or inverter can supply.

Look for these features:

Adjustable brightness. You will want a low setting in the evening and a higher one on a cloudy afternoon.
Adjustable color temperature. Being able to match the cool or warm tone of the room keeps your skin looking natural.
A diffuser or soft panel. Bare LED points create harsh shadows. A diffused surface spreads the light evenly across your face.
USB or low-voltage power. A light that runs from a USB power bank or a 12-volt source can stay on during a call even when you are not plugged into shore power.
A small footprint. A clamp or a short stand keeps it off the work surface.

If you work on batteries or a portable power station, add up everything that stays on during a call: laptop, router, light, and any monitor. The Hub’s piece on choosing a portable power station for working off grid covers how to size that load. Run the light at moderate brightness rather than full, since face lighting rarely needs maximum output.

How should you position the mic, light, and camera in a cramped nook?

Put the camera at eye level, the light slightly above and to one side of it, and the microphone just below the frame. This arrangement works on a narrow dinette or a fold-out desk because every piece sits within arm’s reach.

A compact RV nook desk with a laptop raised on a sturdy box so the camera sits at eye level, a small diffused LED panel clamped at 45 degrees above and to one side, and a mic arm swung in just below the frame. Short cables clipped neatly along the table edge, neutral cabinet door behind.

Use this order when you set up:

Place the camera first. Raise the laptop or webcam until the lens is level with your eyes. A laptop sitting flat on a table points up your nose, so stack it on a sturdy box or a stand.
Position the light next. Put it about 45 degrees to one side of the camera, a little above eye level, and angled down toward your face. Both of your eyes should have a small bright reflection.
Set the microphone last. Place it close to your mouth but outside the picture. A desk arm lets you swing it away when you aren’t on a call, which keeps the table clear in a small space.
Check the frame. Leave a little room above your head and avoid leaving the microphone or the light in the shot.

Keep cables short and tape or clip them down. In an RV, a dangling cable gets caught on elbows and knocks gear over, and a bump on the mic stand is loud on the other end of the call.

How do you set up the background so it does not say campground?

Choose the plainest, tidiest surface behind you and point the camera at it. A cabinet door, a wall panel, or a closed curtain looks calm on camera. A window showing a view of trees or a neighbor’s rig pulls attention away from you, and it brings back the glare problem.

A few adjustments help:

The view from the camera's side of a tidy RV corner: a plain cream cabinet door with a small green potted plant, a framed print and a small warm lamp, with a curtain drawn closed over the window. Soft, even light and a calm, uncluttered look.

Cover the window behind you. A neutral shade or curtain removes the campground from the shot and fixes exposure at once.
Hide the RV hardware. Thermostats, fire extinguishers, vents, bunk beds, and stacked supplies all signal “camper” at a glance. Move the camera angle a few degrees or clear the shelf.
Add one or two deliberate items. A plant, a framed print, or a small lamp gives the background some depth. Keep it to a few things that look intentional.
Keep it consistent. Use the same corner and angle every time, so clients see the same office each call.

Blurring or replacing the background in the software is a fallback for days when you can’t change the space. A real, tidy background looks better, because software edges flicker around hair and moving hands. If you do use blur, apply it after your lighting is set, since a well-lit face gives the software cleaner edges to work with.

What should you test before every important call?

Run a short recording through the same app you will use for the call, then watch and listen to it. A few minutes of checking prevents most on-call surprises, and a quick routine is easy to repeat at every campsite.

Use this checklist:

Record 30 seconds of yourself talking. Play it back with headphones and listen for hum, echo, clipped loud words, and background noise.
Check what the microphone hears in silence. If you can hear the furnace, a fan, or the refrigerator cycling, turn it off or schedule the call around it.
Look at your face, not the room. You should see even light, with no dark side and no glare off your glasses.
Close the shades that matter. Do this at the time of the call, because the sun’s position will have changed since morning.
Confirm the right devices are selected. Apps sometimes switch to the built-in microphone or camera after an update or after you unplug a cable.
Check your power. Make sure the laptop, the light, and any battery-powered gear will last through the whole meeting, plus extra time for overruns.
Silence notifications and your phone. A chime during a client call is audible and distracting.

Also look at the connection itself. A great picture and clear audio still break up on a weak signal, so check your internet before you join, not after.

What is the smartest order to buy this gear in?

Buy in the same order as the priorities: audio first, light second, camera third, and background touches last. Each step improves the call noticeably, and you can stop at any point and still look better than you did before.

Wired headphones. They are inexpensive and stop echo straight away.
A USB dynamic microphone with a desk arm. This gives you the largest single improvement in how professional you sound.
A dimmable LED panel with a diffuser. It gives you consistent light, no matter what the windows are doing.
Window coverings for the glass behind and beside you. Sunshade material or a simple shade costs little and makes the light controllable.
An external webcam, or a better camera position. Do this only if the picture still looks soft after the light is fixed.
Background details. A plant or a small lamp comes last, because it only matters once everything else works.

Before buying anything, check how each item connects and what it draws. USB gear that runs from your laptop is the easiest to power in a small RV, and anything that needs its own adapter should be compared against your available power before it goes in the cart.

Nov 03

RV Network Security for Remote Work: Beyond Passwords

By Howard in RV Living, RV Work

A hardware firewall at the edge, separate networks for work and everything else, filtered DNS, and an always-on encrypted tunnel to your employer or business make up RV network security for remote work. Together, they treat your rig as a small branch office with its own controlled network, instead of a laptop on whatever connection is nearby.

What does branch-office security look like inside an RV?

A branch office has one controlled entry point to the internet, internal networks divided by purpose, and a permanent encrypted link back to headquarters. An RV can have all of that in a few pieces of equipment that fit in a cabinet or under a dinette seat.

Inside an open RV dinette storage compartment, a small fanless black mini PC firewall with several Ethernet cables, a compact managed switch and a cellular router are neatly mounted and wired, lit by a warm cabin light, with a window showing a campsite at dusk.

The pieces, from the outside in:

Internet sources: a cellular router or hotspot, Starlink, campground Wi-Fi, or a mix of them.
A firewall: the only device that connects directly to those sources.
Segmented networks: one for work devices, one for personal devices, and one for everything else that connects.
Filtered DNS: a resolver that blocks known malicious domains before your devices reach them.
A tunnel: an encrypted connection from the firewall or from each work device to your employer’s network or your own business infrastructure.

You own this architecture, and it travels with you. When you move from a campground to a boondocking spot, the upstream connection changes but your network stays the same. That consistency is the point: your rules, your device list, and your logs do not depend on who runs the parking lot Wi-Fi.

The rest of this article covers the permanent build and the order to buy and configure it. For habits to use on a shared network while you are connected to it, the guide to campground Wi-Fi basics covers that ground.

Why aren’t a strong Wi-Fi password and a VPN enough?

A strong Wi-Fi password only controls who can join your wireless network, and a VPN only protects traffic from one device to one destination. Neither limits what the devices on your network can do to each other or what they reach on the internet.

Consider what typically connects inside an RV: laptops, phones, a smart TV, a streaming stick, tank and battery monitors, a thermostat, security cameras, and sometimes a tablet the kids or guests use. Many of these devices receive infrequent updates or none. On a flat network, a compromised TV can see the same devices your work laptop can see.

A VPN client on a laptop has its own gaps:

It protects only the device it runs on, so a work printer or a second work laptop without the client is exposed.
It can drop when a cellular connection changes towers or Starlink reorients, and some clients then let traffic leave unprotected.
It does nothing about other devices on the same local network probing your laptop.
It depends on the user remembering to connect it.

Some employers also expect more than a VPN client. If your employer has a security policy, read it first and ask IT what they require. Where their policy conflicts with anything here, follow theirs.

Which hardware firewall belongs at the edge of your RV network?

The firewall that belongs at the edge is one you can configure yourself, that supports VLANs and a VPN protocol such as WireGuard or IPsec, and that runs on 12V or on a small inverter without drawing much power. The three common routes differ in effort and control.

A fanless mini PC firewall with four Ethernet ports, a prosumer router appliance and a basic white consumer router lined up side by side on a wooden RV countertop, a 12V power cable plugged into the mini PC, soft morning window light.

For a worker handling client or employer data, the first two options are the realistic choices. A consumer router’s guest network gives you two zones at best, and the rules between them are rarely adjustable.

Whatever you pick, check these before buying:

Number of Ethernet ports. You need at least one for the upstream connection and one for the internal network, and a second upstream port makes failover easier.
VLAN support. This lets one cable and one managed switch carry several separate networks.
Power input. Look for a unit that accepts DC input or draws little enough to run from your inverter without a noticeable load on your batteries.
Update policy. A firewall that no longer receives security updates is a liability.
VPN throughput. Confirm the hardware handles encrypted traffic at the speed of your fastest connection, using the manufacturer’s published figures.

Put the firewall in front of everything. Your cellular router or Starlink should connect to the firewall’s upstream port, with its own Wi-Fi turned off or its built-in routing set to bypass or bridge mode where the hardware allows it. Otherwise, you end up with two routers translating addresses, which complicates the tunnel and leaves an unmanaged network in front of your managed one.

How do you separate work devices from everything else?

You separate them with VLANs, which are logically distinct networks that share the same physical cables and Wi-Fi access points. Each VLAN gets its own address range and its own firewall rules, so a device on one cannot reach a device on another unless you explicitly allow it.

A workable layout for most RVs uses three networks:

Interior of a motorhome seen from above: a work laptop wired by Ethernet at a tidy desk on one side, personal phones and a tablet on the sofa, and a smart TV, a wall thermostat and a small camera across the room, each cluster tinted by a different colored light (blue, green, amber) to suggest separa

Work: employer-issued or business laptops, a work phone, and a work printer if you have one.
Personal: personal phones, tablets, and laptops.
Utility: the smart TV, streaming devices, tank monitors, cameras, thermostats, and anything else you do not fully trust.

Add a fourth guest network if visitors regularly use your connection. Give it internet access only, with no route to any of the others.

The firewall rules follow a simple pattern. The work network can reach the internet and the tunnel. The personal network can reach the internet. The utility network can reach the internet but not the other networks, and ideally only the specific services each device needs. Nothing initiates a connection into the work network from anywhere else.

To broadcast these networks over Wi-Fi, you need an access point that supports multiple SSIDs mapped to VLANs. Each SSID gets its own strong passphrase. A small managed switch connects the firewall, access point, and any wired devices. Wire your work laptop with Ethernet when your desk allows it, since it is faster and removes one wireless attack surface.

What should you lock down in the router and DNS settings?

Lock down administration access, unused services, and name resolution, in that order. These settings do most of the work of keeping an exposed WAN connection quiet.

On the firewall:

Change default credentials and use a long, unique password, with multi-factor authentication if the firmware supports it.
Restrict the admin interface to the work network or a dedicated management network only, never to the WAN side or the utility network.
Disable UPnP, which lets devices open inbound ports without asking you.
Disable remote management on the WAN interface unless you have a specific reason, and then only over your tunnel.
Turn off WPS on any access point.
Use WPA3 or WPA2 with AES on every SSID, and keep client isolation on for the utility and guest networks.
Keep firmware current and set a calendar reminder to check, since an RV network can sit unattended for months.

For DNS, configure the firewall to hand out a filtering resolver to every network and to block devices from using any other. Public resolvers that offer malware filtering include Quad9 and Cloudflare’s security-filtered addresses, and NextDNS lets you set per-network rules and view query logs. Add a firewall rule that redirects or blocks outbound DNS on port 53 and DNS over TLS on port 853 from any source except the firewall itself. Otherwise, a device with a hard-coded resolver bypasses your filter.

Your work network may need to use your employer’s DNS once the tunnel is up, particularly to reach internal hostnames. Ask IT how their setup expects to resolve names, and configure the work VLAN to match.

How do you keep a secure tunnel running over cellular and Starlink?

You keep it running by having the firewall initiate the tunnel outward, keeping it alive through connection changes, and blocking work traffic whenever it is down. Both cellular carriers and Starlink commonly place customers behind carrier-grade NAT, which means you generally cannot accept inbound connections from outside. An outbound tunnel works fine in that situation, because your side starts the conversation.

Choose where the tunnel ends according to your situation:

Employer-managed: your employer may require their own VPN client on the work laptop. In that case, put the laptop on the work VLAN and let their client run as designed, with your firewall still controlling what else the network can reach.
Self-employed with an office or server: run WireGuard or IPsec between your firewall and a firewall or server you control.
Self-employed without infrastructure: a reputable commercial VPN or a small cloud server you configure yourself can serve as the far end, with the understanding that this protects traffic in transit but does not replace the access controls of a real office network.

Tunnels over mobile links need a few adjustments:

A Starlink dish on a tripod beside a parked RV in open desert at golden hour, with a cellular antenna on the roof, and a single Ethernet cable running from the RV window toward the dish.

Set a keepalive interval so the tunnel stays open through NAT timeouts. WireGuard has a persistent keepalive setting for this purpose.
Lower the MTU if you see stalls or slow page loads. Cellular and satellite paths often handle full-size packets poorly, and a slightly smaller MTU on the tunnel interface can fix it.
Enable a kill switch by writing a firewall rule that allows work VLAN traffic out only through the tunnel interface. If the tunnel drops, work traffic stops instead of leaking over the open connection.
Plan for failover. If you have two upstream connections, configure the firewall to switch between them and let the tunnel re-establish over whichever is active. The guide to building a reliable RV internet setup covers failover in more depth.

Starlink’s router can be placed in bypass mode on hardware that supports it, which hands the connection to your firewall directly. Check your model’s current options in Starlink’s documentation before buying anything to match it.

What does physical security mean for gear in a vehicle?

Physical security means preventing someone from taking, tampering with, or reading your equipment, because a vehicle is easier to enter than a house and your devices leave with the vehicle when it is stolen. Network controls do nothing if someone walks away with the firewall or the laptop.

A locked metal-latch compartment inside an RV cabinet holding a firewall box and a switch, with a closed laptop in a drawer nearby, and a blurred campground visible through a curtained window.

Practical measures:

Encrypt every laptop and phone drive. BitLocker on Windows, FileVault on macOS, and the built-in encryption on current phones and many Linux distributions all protect data if the device is stolen.
Require a login and a short screen lock timeout on every work device.
Store networking gear out of sight in a locked cabinet or compartment, not on a visible shelf near a window.
Secure the firewall’s console and admin access. Anyone with physical access to a firewall can usually reset it, so a locked compartment matters.
Put work devices away or lock them when you leave the rig, rather than leaving them on the desk.
Back up the firewall configuration to an encrypted file stored off the rig, so a theft or failure does not mean rebuilding from memory.
Label nothing with employer information on gear that could be seen from outside.

If your employer issues the laptop, report a loss or theft promptly, and follow their process. They may need to lock the device or revoke credentials quickly.

What is the order to build it in, and how do you test it?

Build it in the order below, testing each stage before adding the next, so a problem has only one recent change to explain it.

Read your employer’s security policy, or define your own requirements if you are self-employed, including which data you handle and what you must protect it with.
Buy and configure the firewall at home or on a reliable connection, with admin credentials changed and firmware updated.
Connect one upstream source and confirm basic internet access from a single wired device.
Add the managed switch and access point, then create the VLANs and SSIDs.
Write the firewall rules between networks, with the default being to deny and each allowance added deliberately.
Set filtered DNS and block outbound DNS from everything but the firewall.
Set up the tunnel, with keepalive, MTU, and the kill switch rule.
Add the second upstream connection and configure failover.
Move devices onto their networks, starting with work devices and ending with the utility devices.
Secure the hardware physically and save an encrypted backup of the configuration.

Then test what you built. Each of these checks has a clear pass condition:

Segmentation test: from a device on the utility network, try to reach the firewall’s admin page and a work laptop’s address. Both attempts should fail. A tool such as nmap, run from a personal laptop on the utility network, shows what is reachable.
Outside scan: from a different network, scan your WAN address for open ports. Given carrier NAT, you may not be able to reach it at all, which is an acceptable result. If you can reach it, nothing should respond.
DNS test: set a device’s DNS manually to a public resolver. Queries should fail or be redirected. Then visit a DNS leak test page and confirm that the resolver shown is the one you chose.
Kill switch test: with the work laptop active, disable the tunnel on the firewall. Work traffic should stop completely, and re-enabling the tunnel should restore it without any manual change.
Failover test: unplug the primary upstream connection while a call or file transfer runs. The firewall should move to the second connection, and the tunnel should reconnect within a short time.
Admin access test: try to log in to the firewall from the personal, utility, and guest networks. Each should be refused.

Repeat the segmentation and kill switch tests after every firmware update or rule change. Keep a short written list of the devices on each network, so a new, unfamiliar device in the firewall’s client list stands out immediately.

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Oct 29

Best Monitor Setup for RV Office for Small Desks and Travel

By Howard in RV Work

The best monitor setup for RV office is one external screen added to your laptop, either a portable panel that stands on the desk or a lightweight display on a VESA arm. Dual screens suit work that keeps two full documents open side by side, but only if the desk, battery, and travel-day routine can handle the extra weight.

Which monitor setup works best in an RV office?

For most people who work full time from an RV, a single external monitor beats both a lone laptop screen and a dual setup. It adds real working space, draws little power, and takes a few minutes to secure before driving. The right choice among the three options depends on your work and your desk.

A slim portable monitor standing beside a laptop on a small RV dinette table, with a bright side window letting in soft morning light and a USB-C cable running between the two screens, warm wood cabinetry in the background.

Portable screen Mounted display Dual setup Vibration risk Low when packed flat, higher if left standing Depends on the mount and how well it locks Highest, since there are two screens and two mounts Power draw Lowest, often powered over USB-C Moderate, usually runs from a wall adapter or inverter Highest Glare control Limited, since it moves with you Good, because you can tilt and fix the angle Harder, since two panels catch light Desk footprint Small, and it can leave the desk entirely Small if the arm clamps to the desk edge Large unless both are arm-mounted Time to stow Under a minute A few minutes The longest

A portable screen suits anyone who shares the workspace with a dinette or has no permanent desk. A mounted display suits a fixed desk where you sit at the same angle every day. A dual setup makes sense for work like spreadsheet reconciliation, video editing timelines, or customer support with several tools open, where switching windows costs real time.

How much screen space does your work actually need?

Your work needs the amount of screen space that lets you stop switching windows for your most frequent task. Count how often you flip between two applications each hour. If it is constant, a second screen pays off quickly.

Roles tend to fall into three groups:

Writing, email, calls and browser work: a laptop plus one external screen is enough. Put the video call on the laptop and your documents on the monitor.
Spreadsheets, design review and development: one larger external screen, or one external screen with the laptop as a second, covers most of it.
Editing, trading or multi-tool monitoring: two external screens are justified, and the desk, power and stow plan should be designed around them from the start.

Screen size matters less than it seems, because the desk limits you. A large panel on a narrow RV desk pushes the display too close to your eyes and leaves no room for a keyboard. Measure the depth of your desk before you buy anything, and leave enough distance that you can read the screen without leaning forward.

Keep resolution matched to the laptop where you can. Mixing a very sharp laptop display with a lower-resolution external screen makes text scaling awkward, and windows change size when you drag them across.

What makes a monitor survive road vibration?

A monitor survives road vibration when it is light, supported at several points, and not left standing while the RV moves. Most damage comes from the panel flexing or from a heavy screen swinging on a mount, not from the electronics.

The factors that matter most:

Weight. A lighter screen puts less load on a mount and on your cabinet or wall. Heavy displays loosen fasteners over time.
Panel construction. Thin portable panels have little protection on their own. Use the cover or sleeve that fits them, and store them flat against something rigid.
Mount type. A clamp-on desk arm can work loose on rough roads. A mount with bolts through a solid backing holds better than one that relies on a clamp alone.
Connector strain. A cable plugged into a screen that shifts in transit can damage the port. Unplug before travel.

Screens are most at risk while the RV is moving, so the safest approach is to take the monitor off the mount, or fold and lock the arm, and store the panel in a padded spot. Check the manufacturer’s guidance for your model, since weight limits and mounting patterns differ.

How much will a monitor add to your RV power setup?

A monitor adds a modest but real load to your RV power setup, and the exact figure is on the label or spec sheet of the model you own. Look for the wattage rating, and be aware that brightness settings change what the screen actually draws.

To estimate the effect, multiply watts by hours of use. As an example only, a screen drawing 20 watts for 8 hours uses 160 watt-hours. Replace the 20 with your monitor’s real figure. Do the same for the laptop and router, and you can see what share of the day’s battery the screen takes.

Some practical points:

USB-C portable screens usually pull power from the laptop, which shortens laptop battery life if you are working unplugged. A separate power source for the screen avoids that.
Mains-powered monitors need an inverter or shore power, and the inverter itself uses some power when idle.
Lower brightness reduces draw, and in an RV with lots of daylight, a matte screen at moderate brightness often does the job.
Sleep settings matter. Set the screen to turn off when the laptop locks so it is not lit during breaks.

If you work off battery for long stretches, the monitor is one part of a bigger budget. The piece on portable power stations for off grid RV work covers how to size the supply behind it.

How do you mount a monitor in a small RV workspace?

The most reliable way to mount a monitor in a small RV workspace is a VESA arm fixed to a solid structure, with the screen kept as light as possible. Check what is behind the surface before you drill, since many RV walls are thin panels with little to hold a screw.

A lightweight monitor on a VESA arm clamped to the thick edge of a compact RV desk, the screen angled at right angles to a window to avoid reflections, a hand testing the clamp for play, cream-coloured walls and daylight.

There are three common approaches:

Desk-edge clamp arm. It needs no drilling and suits a desk with a solid, thick edge. Test it by pressing on the arm firmly. Any movement at the clamp will get worse on the road.
Wall or cabinet mount. It frees desk space but needs a backing board or a located stud. Confirm cable routes and clearance with slides or doors.
Freestanding stand or riser. It is easy to remove for travel, and it works on a dinette table. The downside is that it takes up desk space and must be stowed separately.

Whichever you choose, set the screen so the top edge is at or slightly below eye level and the panel is roughly an arm’s length away. Tilt it to avoid reflections from windows. In an RV, there is often a bright window beside or behind the desk, so position the screen at right angles to the window instead of facing it.

A matte screen cuts reflections more than a glossy one. If you are choosing between models, this matters more in an RV than in a typical home office, because light shifts as you change campsites and the RV changes direction.

Which cables, ports and settings keep the setup simple?

The simplest setup uses one cable between laptop and monitor, short enough that it cannot snag and long enough that the screen can move without strain. A single USB-C cable that carries both video and power is the cleanest option, provided your laptop and monitor both support it.

Check these before buying:

Laptop port support. Not every USB-C port carries video. Look for DisplayPort Alt Mode or Thunderbolt in the laptop’s specs.
Power delivery. If the monitor charges the laptop over the same cable, check that the wattage is enough for your laptop under load.
Cable length. Choose the shortest cable that works. Excess cable swings and tangles in transit.
Right-angle connectors. They put less strain on ports and sit flatter against a wall.
Backup cable. A spare of the same type avoids a stalled workday if one fails.

For settings, keep them consistent so you do not rebuild the layout every time you set up:

Save a display arrangement in your operating system so the external screen is positioned correctly relative to the laptop.
Set scaling once and leave it.
Turn on automatic sleep for the external screen.
Lower the brightness and turn on a night mode for evening work, which also saves power.

If you use a dual setup, a dock can reduce the number of plugs to one, but it adds another device to secure and power.

How do you stow your monitors before a travel day?

You stow your monitors by shutting them down, disconnecting cables, removing or locking the screen, and placing it in padded storage where it cannot slide. Do this in the same order every time so nothing gets missed on a travel morning.

A portable monitor slid into a padded grey sleeve and laid flat between folded bedding in a cushioned storage bin inside an RV, with neatly coiled labelled cables beside it and the folded desk arm locked in the background.

A simple sequence:

Save your work and shut down the laptop.
Unplug video and power cables from the monitor first, then from the laptop.
Remove the monitor from its arm or stand. If the arm stays, fold it fully and lock it.
Place the monitor in its sleeve or original padding, screen facing a flat, rigid surface.
Store it upright or flat in a spot where nothing heavy can press on the panel, such as between bedding or in a cushioned bin.
Coil cables loosely, label them, and keep them with the monitor.
Wipe down the desk and stow the stand or riser.

A portable screen is the quickest to put away, because it can slide into a bag with the laptop. A mounted display takes longer if you remove it each time, so some people leave a lightweight screen on a locking arm and secure it with a strap. Whether that is safe depends on the mount and the roads you drive, so choose the more cautious option when unsure.

Do a quick check at your first stop after a travel day. Look at the mount fasteners, the clamp, and the cable ends, and tighten anything that has shifted. A loose bolt found at a campsite is a minor fix. One found after another day of driving can mean a cracked screen.

There is another option that I like that is a bit more non-permanent, but it allows two smaller screens that are each side of the main laptop screen. Check out this tri-screen solution to see if this might work for you, too!

Oct 23

How to Secure Your RV Network on Campground Wi-Fi

By Howard in RV Work

How to Lock Down Your Own RV Network Instead of Trusting Campground Wi-Fi. So, let’s discuss how to secure RV wifi network.

Most security advice for RVers stops at “use a VPN on public Wi-Fi.” That advice matters, but it ignores the network you carry with you: the cellular hotspot, the satellite dish, the router, and every device connected to them. If you work from an RV with no IT department, you are the one who configures, patches, and checks all of it.

This guide covers how to build a secure RV wifi network at the router level. It runs from changing defaults through separating work from smart devices to a monthly check you can repeat at every new site.

Why your own RV network is still a risk even when you skip campground Wi-Fi

Campground sites are close together. Your router’s Wi-Fi signal reaches the neighboring rigs, and your network name is visible to anyone in range who looks. A weak password or a default setting can be tried by someone parked twenty feet away, and you may never see it happen.

Dusk at a crowded campground: several RVs parked a few feet apart with awnings out and warm windows glowing, one rig in the foreground with a small router antenna visible in a window and faint Wi-Fi-like arcs of light reaching toward the neighboring trailers. Blue-hour sky, amber lights.

Your devices are a second problem. A modern RV can hold a smart TV, a tank monitor, a thermostat, a camera, a tire pressure system, and a leveling controller. Many of these get few security updates, and some ship with default logins. On a flat network, one weak device that gets compromised sits on the same network as your work laptop.

The third problem is that the router is a single point of control. If someone gets into its admin page, they can change DNS settings, open ports, or watch traffic. Home users with a router in a closet rarely think about this. In an RV, the router sits in a cabinet that guests, campground neighbors, and anyone you hand the Wi-Fi password to can get close to.

Change the defaults first: router logins, admin access, and firmware updates

Start with the router and every other device that creates a network, including the cellular hotspot and the dish’s built-in router. If you use your own router with the dish, the settings below apply to whichever device is running your Wi-Fi.

Work through this list:

Admin password: replace the default with a long, unique password stored in a password manager. Change the admin username too if the router allows it.
Wi-Fi password: use a long passphrase, not a short word with a number added. Never use WEP or an open network.
Encryption mode: choose WPA3 if all your devices support it. Otherwise, use WPA2 with AES, or the mixed WPA2/WPA3 mode.
Network name: leave out your name, your business, and your rig’s make or model. A name that identifies you tells a stranger who they are targeting.
WPS: turn it off. The push-button and PIN pairing feature is a convenience that weakens the password you just set.
Remote management: turn off any option that allows admin access from the internet side. You can manage the router from inside your own network.
UPnP: turn it off unless a specific device needs it. UPnP lets devices open ports on your router without asking you.

Then check the firmware. Look in the admin page or the manufacturer’s app for the installed version and any available update, and turn on automatic updates if the router offers them. If the manufacturer no longer releases updates for your model, replace the router. Hardware that never gets patches stays vulnerable to every flaw found after its last update.

Your phone or tablet hotspot needs the same attention. Change its default Wi-Fi password and keep the phone’s operating system current.

Give work its own lane: separate networks for your laptop and your RV’s smart devices

Network separation means your work laptop and your smart devices cannot talk to each other. If a smart TV or tank monitor is compromised, it can only reach the other devices on its own network.

Aim for three groups:

Inside an RV interior: a work laptop on a small dinette desk at one end, and across the cabin a wall-mounted smart TV, a thermostat and a tank monitor panel glowing on the wall, with a compact router on a shelf between them. Two clearly separate zones with daylight through the window, warm wood cabi

Work: your laptop, your work phone, and anything else that handles business data.
RV and smart devices: the TV, thermostat, cameras, tank and tire monitors, streaming sticks, and any other gadget you did not choose for security.
Guests: anyone who asks for the Wi-Fi password.

Most consumer routers offer a guest network, which is the simplest way to create a second group. Guest networks normally block guest devices from reaching your main network, but check for a setting called client isolation or similar and confirm it is on. Some routers also support multiple networks with separate rules, sometimes through VLANs, which lets you build all three groups properly.

If your router only supports one guest network, put the smart devices there and keep guests off your network entirely, or make a temporary password for visitors and change it afterwards.

Some RV apps and casting features need your phone and the device on the same network. If a device stops responding after you move it, you can connect your phone to the smart device network while you use the app, then switch back. The inconvenience is small compared with an unpatched device sharing a network with client files.

The dish also needs a decision. If you use your own router behind the dish, turn off the dish’s own Wi-Fi where the dish allows it. That leaves one network to secure instead of two, and nothing connects to the dish directly.

VPN on the router or on the laptop: which to use and when

A VPN encrypts traffic between your device and the VPN provider’s server, so the local network and your carrier cannot read it. It does not make you anonymous, and it does not stop phishing or malware. It protects the path your traffic takes.

A VPN on the router covers every device on that network with one setup. The kill switch can be applied to the whole network. The drawbacks are that your router has to support running a VPN client, and a modest router can slow down under the encryption load. All traffic goes through the tunnel, including streaming devices, and some streaming and banking sites react badly to VPN addresses.

A VPN on the laptop protects that device wherever it connects. It still works at a coffee shop or a campground, and it can be set up per application. The drawback is that each device needs its own client, and a device you forget to configure goes unprotected.

A practical rule for solo workers:

Run the VPN client on the laptop. That covers the device that holds your work wherever it goes.
Add a VPN on the router only if the router supports it well and you want phones and other devices covered.
Avoid stacking two VPNs on the same traffic. It slows the connection and can cause hard-to-trace failures.

If a client or employer requires you to use their VPN, run that on the laptop and test it alongside any router VPN before you rely on both. When you pick a consumer provider, look for published independent audits of its no-logs claims. Marketing language alone is not evidence. For corporate tunnels over cellular and satellite links, see our post on managing enterprise VPNs over cellular and satellite.

Set up a kill switch so a dropped connection never exposes your work traffic

A kill switch blocks internet access when the VPN connection drops, so your laptop never sends traffic over the open connection. Cellular and satellite links drop more often than home broadband. A tower handoff, a dish obstruction, or a weak signal can break the tunnel, and without a kill switch, the laptop quietly reconnects to the internet without protection.

A satellite dish on a tripod set up in an open campsite meadow, with a partly blocking tree line behind it and an RV in the background, low golden-hour light. Suggests a link that can drop from obstruction.

On the laptop, open the VPN app’s settings and look for an option called kill switch, always-on, or block connections without VPN. Turn it on. Some apps apply it only when the tunnel drops unexpectedly, not when you disconnect by hand, so read how yours behaves.

Then test it. Do not assume it works:

Connect the VPN and start a continuous ping to a well-known site.
Interrupt the tunnel, for example by ending the VPN process or turning off the connection it uses.
Watch the ping. It should fail. If replies keep arriving, the kill switch is not working.
Run a DNS leak test while connected to confirm your queries go through the tunnel. Check for IPv6 leaks too, since some setups tunnel only IPv4 traffic.

On a router with a VPN client, look for a policy or setting that blocks traffic on the VPN-routed devices when the tunnel is down. Test it the same way, by disconnecting the tunnel and confirming the devices lose access.

Repeat the test after major app or operating system updates, since those can change how the setting behaves.

Handle the times you must use campground or coffee shop Wi-Fi anyway

Your own cellular or satellite connection is the safer choice. Sometimes it is down, out of range, or out of data, and shared Wi-Fi is the only option. In that case, treat the network as untrusted.

Set the network profile to Public on Windows, or the equivalent on your system, and keep the firewall on.
Turn off file and printer sharing, and disable auto-join so the laptop does not connect to networks on its own.
Handle the login page first. Many campgrounds use a captive portal, which needs a browser login before the VPN can connect. Complete the portal, start the VPN straight away, and enter nothing sensitive until the tunnel is up.
Forget the network when you leave, so the laptop does not rejoin it later.
Hold sensitive work such as banking, client files, or admin logins until you are back on your own connection, if you can.

A travel router makes this safer. You connect the router to the campground Wi-Fi as its upstream source and put your devices behind it on your own network. The campground sees one device instead of several, and the router’s security settings and VPN apply to everything behind it. Check that the router supports a client or repeater mode before buying one.

For wider guidance on data protection at parks, see our post on protecting remote work data at RV parks.

Physical security for a mobile office: lock screens, encryption and what happens if a laptop is stolen

An RV is easier to enter than a house, and laptops are easy to carry off. Plan for theft so it does not become a data breach.

A closed laptop with a cable lock looped around a dinette table leg inside an RV, a hardware security key lying beside it on the tabletop, a window with the blinds half-drawn so nothing is visible from outside. Soft morning light, neutral tones.

Encrypt the disk. Full-disk encryption means a thief with your laptop cannot read your files without your login. Use BitLocker on supported Windows editions, FileVault on a Mac, or LUKS on Linux. Check that it is turned on, because it is not always the default.

Lock the screen. Use a strong login password, set the screen to lock after a short idle period, and require the password on wake. Lock it every time you leave the desk, even to step outside for a minute.

Enable device tracking and remote wipe. Windows, Apple, and most Linux setups offer ways to locate or erase a lost device if you set them up in advance.

Back up your data. Keep an encrypted backup, with a copy stored away from the laptop. Backups also protect you from hardware failure, water damage, and ransomware.

Use multi-factor authentication on email, banking and business accounts, with an authenticator app or a hardware key. Your email account comes first, since it can reset the others.

Keep devices out of sight when you leave the RV, so a passer-by cannot see equipment through a window.

If a laptop is stolen, work in this order:

Change your email password and sign out of all active sessions.
Send the remote wipe command if you set it up.
Change passwords for business tools, banking, and cloud storage.
Tell clients if their data was on the device, since some contracts and laws require notification.

A 15-minute monthly security check you can repeat at every new site

Set a recurring reminder and run this at the start of each month, and again after a long stay at a new site.

Router and hotspot firmware (3 minutes). Check for updates and install them. Confirm automatic updates are still on.
Connected devices (3 minutes). Open the router’s device list. Remove anything you do not recognize and confirm smart devices are on the right network.
Passwords and admin settings (2 minutes). Confirm remote management and WPS are still off. Change the guest password if anyone used it.
VPN kill switch (3 minutes). Run the ping test and a DNS leak check.
Laptop (2 minutes). Check for operating system updates and confirm disk encryption and device tracking are on.
Backup (2 minutes). Confirm the last backup finished and the drive is stored safely.

At each new site, spend a minute on the basics before you start work. Look at which Wi-Fi networks are in range, confirm yours is the one you joined, and check the VPN is connected. That takes little time, and it keeps your secure RV wifi network secure after you move.

Also, how to build a reliable RV internet setup for remote RV work.

Oct 22

How to Choose a Work Chair That Fits Your RV

By Howard in RV Work

The best office chair for full-time RV work is the one that fits the space you actually have, so the buying decision starts with a tape measure rather than a product page. A chair that earns five-star reviews in a house can block the aisle in a 30-foot trailer, roll across the floor on a sloped campsite, or have nowhere to go on a travel day. Work out your constraints first, and most of the shortlist chooses itself.

This method has four parts: measure the rig, rank the adjustments that matter in a small space, plan how the chair travels, and test the chair for two weeks before you commit.

Why the dinette bench breaks down after a few hours

A dinette is built for meals. The bench cushion is soft, the seat is deep, the backrest is whatever the wall behind it provides, and the table height is set for eating. None of that suits a seven-hour workday.

A RV dinette in warm afternoon light: a soft, deep bench cushion in beige upholstery against a wood-paneled wall, a low laminate table with a laptop sitting flat on it, and a coffee mug at the edge, showing how low the screen sits and how little back support the bench offers.

Several problems stack up:

No lumbar support. Soft cushions let your pelvis tilt backward, so your lower back rounds as the day goes on.
A fixed distance to the table. You cannot move the bench closer or further away, so you either lean forward to reach the keyboard or sit so far back that your arms stretch out.
A table that is too low for a laptop. The screen sits well below eye level, which pulls your head and neck forward.
No armrests. Your shoulders and forearms have nothing to rest on, and most people end up propping themselves on the table edge.
One position. Without a seat that swivels, tilts or changes height, you have no way to shift your posture, and staying in one posture is what causes much of the stiffness.

A better chair solves some of this, and a better desk setup solves the rest. Both depend on your real dimensions, so measure before you shop.

Measure your RV first

Spend twenty minutes with a tape measure and a notepad. Write every number down, because you will compare them against product specifications later.

Floor space and clearance

Measure from the front edge of your desk or table to the nearest obstruction behind where you sit. That could be a bed, a cabinet, a refrigerator door’s swing, or the edge of a slide-out. This is the room your chair has to work in.

You need enough space to slide the chair back, stand up, and walk past it. If the clear distance is tight, you need a chair with a small base and no wide armrests.

Measure with the slide-outs both extended and retracted if you ever work with them in. A chair that fits when the slide is out may not fit during a stop at a campsite where you cannot extend it.

Also measure the width of the space on either side of the chair, and the width of your RV’s entry door and any hallway the chair has to pass through. A chair you cannot carry in is not an option.

Seat-to-desk height

This measurement decides whether a chair will work with your existing surface.

Close side view of a person seated on a firm stool in an RV, forearms level, elbows bent at a right angle, while a hand holds a yellow tape measure from the floor up to the underside of the elbow, with the dinette table edge visible beside them in soft daylight.

Sit on any firm seat with your feet flat on the floor and your knees at roughly a right angle.
Let your upper arms hang relaxed at your sides, then bend your elbows so your forearms are level with the floor.
Measure from the floor to the underside of your elbow. This is your ideal working surface height.
Now measure from the floor to the top of your actual desk or table, and from the floor to its underside.

If your table top is much higher than your elbow height, you need a chair that raises you, and probably a footrest. If it is lower, you need to raise the work surface with a stand, because lowering a chair does not help. The underside measurement tells you how tall a seat plus your thighs can be before you hit the table.

Floor surface and storage spot

Note what your floor is made of. Vinyl and laminate let hard casters roll freely, while carpet slows them. Slide-out floors can have a slight lip or seam.

Then decide where the chair will live on travel days and measure that space, including height. Do this before you buy. It is the most commonly skipped step and the one that causes the most returns.

The adjustments that matter most when space is tight

Office chair listings advertise a long list of adjustments. In a small rig, a few of them carry most of the benefit.

Seat height range. Check that the minimum and maximum seat heights cover the number you measured, with room to spare for a footrest or cushion. This one decides whether the chair works at all.

Seat depth. A seat that is too deep presses on the back of your knees and pushes you away from the backrest. Look for a seat that slides forward and back, or a seat shallow enough for your leg length. Most people should have a couple of fingers’ width between the seat edge and the back of the knee.

Lumbar support. This matters more than almost any other feature, since it fixes the main fault of the dinette. Adjustable support is best. Fixed support works if its shape matches your back, and you will find out during the test period.

Armrests. The useful kind either fold up, flip out of the way, or come off. Fixed, wide armrests collide with table edges and add width in a narrow space. If you type for long stretches, armrests that support your forearms help your shoulders, but only if they fit under your desk.

Backrest tilt and lock. Being able to lean back a little and lock the position gives you a second posture for reading and calls. Extreme recline mechanisms take up floor space behind the chair that you may not have.

Base and casters. A five-star base is stable but wide. Four-leg or compact bases take up less room. On a campsite that is not level, casters can roll the chair away from the desk. Look for locking casters, or for chairs that come with fixed glides, or plan to swap them.

Features you can usually skip in an RV are a headrest, a very wide seat, and heavy mechanisms with many levers. They add weight and bulk, which both cost you on travel days.

What to do with the chair on travel days

A loose chair in a moving rig can roll, tip, or slam into cabinets. Plan the securing method before you choose the chair, because it influences what you can buy.

A compact black office chair with its base removed and wheels set beside it, laid in a RV bedroom corner on a folded gray blanket and held down with an orange ratchet strap looped around a solid bed frame, bright overhead light and neutral interior tones.

Common approaches:

Fold or collapse it. Folding chairs and stools store flat, and a flat chair is easier to strap down.
Take it apart. Many office chairs let you pull the base off the gas cylinder, and the casters often pull out of the base. Check the manufacturer’s instructions for how it comes apart, and see whether the pieces then fit your storage space.
Strap it to a fixed point. Use ratchet or cam straps around a solid part of the rig, such as a bed frame or a built-in anchor point. Avoid cabinet doors, light fixtures, or trim that could fail.
Wedge it in a protected spot. A shower stall or a bed can hold a chair, padded with blankets, as long as the chair cannot shift.

Keep it out of the cab and out of any exit path. Check the weight as well: you will be lifting the chair in and out, perhaps every few days. Product pages list the weight and the folded or boxed dimensions, so compare them against the storage measurement you took earlier.

Which chair type suits which RV layout

Layouts differ, so here is how the measurements usually point.

Dinette with bench seating: A compact task chair with a small base and flip-up arms, used at the table in place of the bench, if there is floor room to pull it out. Where there is no room, a firm seat cushion and a lumbar support on the bench is the fallback, though it will not match a real chair.
Built-in desk nook: A task chair with a short backrest, a small base, and removable or low armrests. Check the knee space under the desk before the armrests.
Bedroom or bed-end workspace: A folding chair with a supportive back, or a stool with a back, because floor space is usually the biggest limit here.
Slide-out with open floor: A full-size task chair may be possible, provided you can secure it on travel days. This is where a larger, more adjustable chair makes sense.
Dedicated office space in a larger rig or fifth wheel: A standard ergonomic task chair, with the travel plan being the main concern.

If your numbers say two types would fit, choose the one that is easier to secure and lighter to lift. You will handle that factor far more often than you will use the extra adjustments.

Fixing what the chair can’t

Even the best office chair for full-time RV work cannot fix a table that is the wrong height or a screen that is too low. Three other items finish the setup.

Desk or table height. If the surface is too high, raise your chair and add a footrest. If it is too low, use a laptop stand and a separate keyboard so the surface itself matters less. Table risers or a portable lap-height desk are options when you cannot change the furniture.

Footrest. When your chair is raised to suit a high table, your feet need support, or your thighs press against the seat edge. A small adjustable footrest does the job and stores flat. A sturdy storage bin can serve temporarily.

An RV dinette workstation set up properly: a laptop raised on a slim aluminum stand to eye level, a separate keyboard and mouse on the table, and a small adjustable footrest under the table, with a compact task chair pulled in and sunlight coming through a window with a view of pines.

Screen position. The top of the screen should be roughly at eye level, about an arm’s length away. A laptop sitting flat on a table is too low, so put it on a stand and use an external keyboard and mouse. This usually helps your neck more than any chair change.

Keyboard and mouse height should let your elbows stay near your sides with your wrists straight. Adjust these after the chair, because the chair determines where your arms land.

A two-week test routine before you commit

A chair that feels fine for ten minutes can still hurt on the fourth hour of a workday. Two weeks of normal work gives you evidence rather than a first impression.

Before you buy, check the return policy. Make sure the return window is long enough to cover two weeks of use plus shipping time, and find out who pays for return shipping. Also consider where you will keep the box, since a large box takes up space in a small rig.

Week one:

Set the chair to your measurements and work in it for your normal hours.
At the end of each day, write down where you feel discomfort (lower back, neck, hips, wrists) and rate it from one to five.
Note anything about the space itself: bumping into things, trouble getting in and out, the chair rolling.
Do at least one full travel-day routine, securing and unsecuring the chair, so you know how long it takes and whether it works.

Week two:

Change one adjustment at a time, such as seat height, lumbar position, or armrest height, and keep it for a full day before changing another.
Add a footrest or screen stand if the notes show a pattern in your neck or feet.
Compare week two’s ratings against week one’s.

At the end, decide using your notes. Keep the chair if discomfort has dropped, the space still works, and the travel-day routine is manageable. Return it if the same spot hurts after you have tried the adjustments, or if you dread the stowing routine. Standing and moving every 30 to 60 minutes helps with any chair. If pain persists or gets worse, talk to a healthcare professional.

You may also be interested in this article about creating an RV workspace that won’t wreck your back.

From Amazon, this chair gets high marks for comfort for many hours and is space saving.

Oct 21

Best Portable Power Stations for Off Grid RV Work

By Howard in RV Work

Best Portable Power Stations for Working a Full Day Off-Grid in Your RV. What you need is the best portable power station for working off grid.

If you are shopping for the best portable power station for working off-grid, the useful question is narrower than “how big is the battery.” It is whether one unit can run your whole workday, from the first email to the last call, without you moving a cable or watching a percentage. Capacity, steady output, inverter behavior, and fan noise decide that. Brand and price tier decide much less.

This guide works through that test. First you measure your desk’s power needs, then you place it in one of three setup tiers, then you match the tier to the specs that matter. The picks below are written as spec targets rather than a list of model names, because manufacturers revise capacities, outputs, and noise ratings between generations. Check any unit you are considering against the current manufacturer spec sheet before you buy.

What a full work day actually draws: a quick watt-hour audit of your desk

Every device on your desk has a power draw in watts. Multiply watts by the hours it runs, and you get watt-hours (Wh), the same unit a power station’s capacity is rated in. Add up every device, and you have the energy your workday consumes.

The label on a power adapter shows the maximum a device can draw, not what it draws during a normal day. A laptop with a 100 W charger may average 30 to 50 W doing email and video calls. A plug-in watt meter, sold at most hardware stores, tells you the real figure. Run each device through it for an hour of typical work and write down the reading.

A small plug-in watt meter sitting in a wall-style outlet strip on a narrow RV dinette table, its display lit, with a laptop charger cable plugged through it and a notebook with pencil jottings beside it. Soft morning window light, warm wood cabinetry in the background.

Audit these items:

Laptop, while charging and while working
Each external monitor
Router, cellular modem or hotspot
Satellite terminal, if you use one
Phone and tablet charging
Desk lamp, fan, or any other small load you run during work hours

Two more habits keep the audit honest. Measure the satellite terminal or router over a full hour, because some equipment draws more when it is searching for signal than when it is connected. And note your longest realistic day, not your average one. A power station sized for a six-hour day fails on the day a client call runs into the evening.

Finally, add a margin. Inverters lose energy converting battery power to household AC, and every unit has some idle draw just by being switched on. Planning with 20 to 30 percent more capacity than your audit total covers those losses and leaves the battery from being run to zero.

Three workday setups: laptop only, laptop plus monitor and router, and the full desk with satellite

The figures below are worked examples to show the arithmetic. They are not specs for any product. Replace them with your own meter readings.

Tier 1: laptop only

A laptop averaging 45 W plus a phone hotspot or small cellular device at 10 W is 55 W. Over an 8-hour day, that is 440 Wh. Add a 25 percent margin and the target is about 550 Wh.

This tier suits people who work on a laptop screen and tether to a phone or a small modem. The load is small enough that nearly any mid-size portable unit can carry it, so the choice comes down to weight, noise, and recharge speed.

Tier 2: laptop, monitor and router

Take the same 45 W laptop, add one external monitor at 25 W and a router with a cellular modem at 15 W. That is 85 W, or 680 Wh over 8 hours, and about 850 Wh with a margin. A second monitor adds roughly 25 W, which brings the example to 110 W, 880 Wh, and a target near 1,100 Wh.

This is the most common remote-work desk in an RV, and it is where steady output starts to matter. The total draw is still modest, but several devices plugged into the same inverter all day expose weak inverters and noisy fans.

Tier 3: the full desk with satellite

A compact RV workstation with a laptop, two monitors and a small router on a fold-down desk, a flat satellite dish visible outside the window on a tripod over open desert ground. Bright afternoon light, clean cables running to a single power station on the floor.

A satellite terminal changes the math more than anything else on the desk. Using an example figure of 75 W for the terminal, a 60 W laptop, two monitors at 50 W combined, and a 15 W router totals 200 W. Over a 10-hour day, that is 2,000 Wh, and with a margin the target is about 2,500 Wh.

Look up the actual draw of your terminal on its manufacturer sheet and confirm it with a meter. Terminals vary by model and by whether they are in a heater or snow-melt mode. If you are still deciding between satellite and cellular, the comparison in RV internet failover setup covers how the two fit together, and the power draw of each is part of that decision.

The specs that decide whether a power station survives a workday

A spec sheet lists dozens of numbers. These are the ones that determine whether the unit gets through a workday.

Rated capacity in watt-hours. This is the number to compare against your audit total. Treat it as the energy stored in the battery, and expect to get less than that at the outlet because of inverter losses.

Continuous AC output in watts. This is how much the inverter can deliver steadily. Your combined load should sit well below it, not near it. A unit that runs at 90 percent of its rating all day will run hotter, spin its fan harder, and trip sooner than one at 40 percent.

Close-up of a portable power station's front panel in an RV, with USB-C ports, AC outlets and a bright digital display, a laptop charging through a USB-C cable and a router plugged into an AC outlet. Cool light from a side window, shallow depth of field.

Surge rating. This matters for devices that draw a burst when they start. Monitors, routers, and laptops rarely need much of it. A coffee maker, kettle, space heater, or hair dryer on the same unit is a different matter, and those resistive loads can drain a power station faster than the rest of your desk combined.

Inverter waveform. Look for pure sine wave output. Modified sine wave inverters can cause laptop chargers and monitor power supplies to run hot or buzz, and some sensitive electronics reject them.

Pass-through charging and switchover. On workdays, you may want to plug the unit into solar or shore power while it is feeding your desk. Check the sheet to see whether the unit supports charging and discharging at the same time, and whether it advertises a switchover time if it acts as a backup supply. A unit that cuts power for a moment when the input changes will drop a video call or reboot a router.

Direct DC and USB-C outputs. A laptop that charges over USB-C Power Delivery can skip the inverter entirely. That avoids conversion losses and lets the inverter stay off for much of the day. Check the wattage of the USB-C ports against your laptop charger’s rating.

Idle draw. Some units burn a measurable number of watts just keeping the AC inverter awake. The sheet may list it, and a watt meter on the unit’s own input will confirm it. Over 10 hours, even a small idle draw takes a bite out of your margin.

Fan noise. Manufacturers publish a noise figure in decibels, but note the load at which it was measured. A rating taken at light load tells you little about a day spent at moderate output. Reviews that record noise at the load you will actually run are more useful than the headline number.

Input power and solar input range. Maximum input watts determine how fast you can recharge. The sheet also lists the voltage and current range the solar input accepts, which decides which panels you can connect.

Battery chemistry and cycle life. Spec sheets list the chemistry and the rated number of charge cycles to a stated capacity. A work-from-the-road unit cycles almost daily, so this number affects how many years it stays useful.

Operating and charging temperature range. Lithium batteries often have a narrower range for charging than for discharging. If you work through cold mornings, confirm the unit can charge at the temperatures you will see.

Best picks for each setup tier, and what each one trades away

Rather than name models that may have changed by the time you read this, here is what to look for in each tier and what you give up.

Tier 1 pick: a compact unit at roughly 600 Wh or more

Target about 550 to 700 Wh of rated capacity. A continuous AC output of several hundred watts is more than enough for a laptop and a hotspot, and USB-C Power Delivery on the front panel lets you charge the laptop without the inverter.

What you trade away: capacity for anything else. A monitor added later takes you out of this tier, and a unit this size cannot run a satellite terminal for a full day. The upside is weight and noise. Small units are easier to move between a desk and a storage bay, and a light load keeps the fan quiet or off.

Tier 2 pick: a unit in the 1,000 to 1,200 Wh range with about 1,000 W continuous output

Target 900 to 1,200 Wh depending on whether you run one or two monitors. Choose a unit with continuous AC output of around 1,000 W or higher, pure sine wave output, pass-through charging, and a solar input range that suits the panels you plan to carry.

What you trade away: weight and a longer recharge. A unit in this class is heavy enough that you will want to leave it in one place, and refilling over 1,000 Wh from solar takes a full sunny day or a long drive. This is also the tier where fan noise becomes a real selection criterion, because the unit may run at a third to half of its rating during a full day.

Tier 3 pick: 2,500 Wh or more, or a unit that expands

Target at least 2,000 Wh for a long day, and about 2,500 Wh if you plan to keep a margin. Many larger units accept add-on battery packs, which lets you start smaller and expand. Look for high continuous output, a solar input range wide enough for multiple panels, and a recharge input rated well above what smaller units accept.

What you trade away: a lot. These units are heavy and cost significantly more, and they take real time to recharge. At this size you are close to the point where a permanently installed battery bank becomes the more sensible tool, which the last section covers.

Power stations that fail remote workers: noisy fans, low steady output and slow recharge

Certain spec patterns reliably cause problems for people working a full day.

Noisy fans. A fan that ramps up on every video call is more than an annoyance. Microphones pick it up, and clients hear it. Look for independent test reviews that note fan behavior at moderate load, and look for units that stay passively cooled at low draw. If you have already worked on RV acoustics, the same logic applies as in any soundproofing effort: reduce the source before you try to block it. Place the unit away from your microphone, ideally behind a door or in a storage bay with airflow.

Low steady output. A unit with a large battery but a small inverter can store plenty of energy and still be unable to power your desk. Check that continuous output comfortably exceeds your combined load, and remember that a sagging inverter often shows up as an overload shutdown rather than a gradual slowdown.

Slow recharge. Divide capacity by maximum input watts to get the best-case recharge time. A 1,100 Wh unit with a 300 W input needs at least 3.7 hours under ideal conditions, and real conditions are slower. If you work every day and move between camps, a unit that takes a full day to refill from the wall will not keep up.

No pass-through. If the unit cannot charge and discharge at once, you either unplug your desk to recharge or accept interruptions.

Cold-weather charging limits. A unit that refuses to charge below a certain temperature is useless on a cold morning with a depleted battery. Confirm the charging range on the manufacturer sheet.

Heavy idle draw. An inverter that burns power while idle shortens your day. This is rarely the headline spec, so it is worth looking for in reviews or measuring yourself.

Keeping it running: recharging from solar, the tow vehicle, or shore power between work days

Your power station only helps if you can refill it at the pace you drain it. Three sources cover most situations.

Two portable solar panels propped on the ground beside a parked travel trailer on a sunny dry-grass campsite, a thick cable running from the panels through the open door to a power station sitting on the step. Blue sky with a few clouds, long late-morning shadows.

Solar. Panel ratings describe peak output under ideal conditions. Real output depends on sun angle, shade, temperature and cloud cover. As an example, 400 W of panels yielding the equivalent of four full-output hours would produce around 1,600 Wh before charging losses. Compare that to your daily audit total. If your workday uses 2,000 Wh, that panel array does not replace it in a day. The solar input range on the power station’s spec sheet also limits how many panels you can connect, so check voltage and current limits before buying panels.

Tow vehicle or drive days. Charging from a vehicle’s 12 V outlet is usually slow, and the sheet lists the maximum input from that source. Faster options exist through dedicated DC input cables or a DC-to-DC charger, depending on the unit. Driving days can refill a mid-size unit if you plan for them, but they work best when you treat them as scheduled recharge windows, not an afterthought.

Shore power. When you do have a hookup, whether at a campground, a friend’s driveway, or a work-friendly park, use it fully. Charge at the maximum input rate and top off before you leave. If you move between hookup-free camps, the RV power for remote work habits you build around those stops matter as much as the unit itself.

A simple rule is to refill whatever you used each day, from some combination of these sources. If you consistently use more than you can refill, the setup will run you dry within a couple of days regardless of how good the unit is.

Is a power station enough, or is it time for a bigger battery bank?

A power station is the right tool when your daily total is below roughly 2,500 Wh, you want something portable, and you can refill it each day. It needs no installation, it can move with you between vehicles or campsites, and it can be replaced or expanded without touching your RV’s wiring.

A larger battery bank becomes the better choice in these cases:

Your audit total regularly exceeds what a single unit can store with a margin
You want to run the RV’s own loads, such as a furnace fan, water pump, or refrigerator, from the same supply
You need several days of work without a reliable recharge source
You plan to run large AC loads that a portable inverter cannot support
You are tired of carrying and plugging in a heavy unit every day

Installed systems cost more up front and require wiring, a charge controller, and a properly sized inverter, so they pay off for people who work from the RV most of the year and have a consistent, high draw. If you are close to that line, run the audit again with every device you use during a full week, including the RV’s own loads, and compare the total with what one unit can supply. The sizing guide on this site for solar and batteries covers the next step when the numbers say a single unit will not do.

For most people working a normal day from a laptop, a monitor, and a router, a well-chosen unit in the 1,000 Wh class with a quiet fan, pure sine wave output, and a reliable recharge plan is enough. The audit tells you whether you are one of them.

Depending on when you read this article and the availability of current units, this unit may help with your off grid power needs.

Oct 20

Starlink vs. 5G Hotspot: Best for Working From Your RV?

By Howard in RV Work

Should you use Starlink vs 5G hotspot for RV remote work? Judge Them by Your Actual Workday.

Most comparisons of Starlink vs 5G hotspot for RV remote work stop at download speed, which is the number that matters least when a client is watching your face on a screen. A connection that tests fast and drops for four seconds every few minutes will cost you more than a slower one that never blinks.

This article scores both options on three jobs: holding a video call, keeping a VPN or server session alive, and finishing large uploads. It then matches each to job type and campsite conditions, and ends with a 20-minute test you can run yourself.

Why speed tests are the wrong way to compare these two for work

A speed test measures how much data moves in a short burst. A workday depends on whether data keeps arriving at an even pace for an hour at a time. Those are different properties, and a connection can be strong at one and weak at the other.

Four measurements describe what you actually experience:

Latency: how long a small message takes to reach a server and return. It controls how responsive a remote desktop or terminal feels.
Jitter: how much that delay varies from one message to the next. Video calls cope poorly with high jitter even when the average latency is fine.
Packet loss: the share of messages that never arrive. A little loss produces robotic audio, and a lot of it ends the call.
Sustained upload: the speed you hold over minutes, not the peak in the first few seconds.

Both connections can post an impressive single download number and still behave very differently on these four. Starlink traffic passes through moving satellites, so its quality depends on sky view and on the handoffs between satellites. A cellular hotspot depends on one tower’s signal strength and on how many other people are using that tower at the time. The failures look different, and each hurts a different kind of work.

Zoom and Teams calls: what actually breaks on each connection

Video conferencing software adapts to a weak connection by lowering video quality and compressing audio harder. That adaptation hides small problems. What it cannot hide is a gap in the data stream, which is what you get when a connection stalls.

On Starlink, the typical failure is a brief interruption. With a clear view of the sky, a call can run for long stretches without trouble. Obstructions are the usual cause of trouble: a branch crossing the dish’s field of view produces short dropouts that arrive in a repeating pattern. In a call, that sounds like a word cut in half every minute or two. Heavy rain or snow on the dish can add to it.

On a 5G hotspot, the typical failure is congestion or a marginal signal. A strong signal near an uncrowded tower can give you a call that feels like a home connection. A weak signal, or a tower shared with a full campground during the evening, produces rising jitter and quality that drifts down gradually, without a clear break. Calls tend to degrade instead of cutting out, which some people find easier to manage because you see it coming.

Two practical points apply to both:

Join calls on a wired connection from your router to your laptop when you can. Wi-Fi inside the RV adds its own jitter on top of whatever the internet source does.
Turn off cloud backup and large syncs during calls. Your own uploads can cause the stutter you blame on the connection.

Our guide on how to setup a reliable RV internet setup for work may also be useful to you!

VPN, SSH and remote desktop: how latency and IP changes affect server access

Server work punishes a connection in two ways that a video call does not: it notices small delays on every keystroke, and it breaks when your public IP address changes.

Latency. A remote desktop or terminal session sends each keypress and mouse movement across the network and waits for the response. A steady, moderate latency is comfortable to work in. Unsteady latency is not, because the cursor lags in uneven bursts. Cellular connections with a good signal often show low, stable latency. Starlink latency is generally usable for this work, though the variation from satellite handoffs can show up as a momentary freeze.

Dropped sessions. SSH, RDP, and many VPN clients hold a single long-lived connection. If the underlying link stalls for a few seconds, some sessions survive and some do not. A stall that a video call recovers from in moments can kill a terminal session and lose unsaved work.

IP changes. Neither service reliably gives you a fixed public address. Both commonly place customers behind carrier-grade NAT, which means many customers share addresses and the address you present to the internet can change. On a hotspot, moving between towers or between 4G and 5G can change it.

On Starlink, a reboot or a service change can do the same. If your employer or a server allows access only from specific IP addresses, this matters a great deal. Check how your plan handles addressing before you depend on it, and ask your IT contact whether the VPN can be the only allowed source instead of your home IP.

Software helps with the problems hardware cannot fix:

Run terminal work inside tmux or screen on the server so a dropped connection does not end your running jobs.
Use mosh instead of plain SSH where the server supports it. It tolerates stalls and address changes much better.
Pick a VPN client that reconnects automatically and restores the session.

For longer-term protection of client data on shared networks, see our piece on RV security and privacy for remote work.

Where each one fails: trees, terrain, towers, congestion and weather

Each connection has a physical dependency, and the campsite decides whether that dependency is met.

A Starlink dish on a short pole set on the ground beside a parked travel trailer in a wooded campground, tall dark evergreens crowding the edges of the frame while a bright gap of open sky sits directly above the dish, soft late-afternoon light.

Starlink depends on the sky. The dish needs an unobstructed view of a wide section of sky. Trees are the main enemy, especially tall evergreens close to the site. Hills, canyon walls, and neighboring rigs also block the view. A site that looks open at ground level can still have branches in the dish’s field at the height of your roof.

The dish can sometimes be moved on a pole or placed on the ground away from the RV to find a clear spot, which helps in wooded campgrounds. Heavy precipitation can reduce performance, and snow or ice sitting on the dish can stop it from working until cleared. Since using Starlink starting in 2021, we have had no issues finding a clear view of the sky. When necessary, the fifty feet of cable allows the dish to be placed away from obstructions.

Cellular depends on the tower. Trees and terrain weaken a signal too, but the larger factors are distance to the nearest tower and how much traffic the tower carries. Remote public land often has weak or no coverage. Popular campgrounds and towns can have strong signal but heavy congestion at peak hours, especially evenings and holidays. Carriers may also slow down heavy users on some plans once they pass a usage threshold, so check the terms of yours. An external antenna can improve a marginal signal considerably.

A rough pattern follows from this:

Campsite condition Likely better option Open sky, no cell service Starlink Heavy tree cover, good cell signal Cellular Open sky, good cell signal Either, decide by testing Busy campground at peak evening hours Whichever is less congested that night, test both Heavy rain or snow forecast Cellular, unless signal is weak

The table is a starting point. Your own test at the site is better evidence than any pattern. For picking sites with a better chance of a good connection, see our guide on RV workspace campgrounds.

Power draw, mounting, and setup time when you move every few days

Moving often changes the comparison, because the best connection is the one you will actually set up correctly each time.

Starlink involves a dish, a router, and cables. Setup means finding a clear spot, placing or mounting the dish, running the cable inside, and waiting for it to connect. The dish and router draw noticeably more power than a hotspot, and the exact figure depends on the dish model, so check the specifications for yours. If you run on batteries and solar, that draw matters during long workdays. Our guide on RV power for remote work covers how to budget it. Dish placement also needs stowing and protecting before every drive.

Side by side on a small RV dinette table: a Starlink router with its thick cable coiled next to it, and a palm-sized cellular hotspot plugged into a USB battery bank, warm interior light and a window showing a desert campsite behind.

A cellular hotspot is a small device that connects in a minute or two. It can run from USB power or its own battery. A router with an external antenna, mounted on the roof or a pole, takes longer to install once but then needs little attention at each stop. Hotspot hardware draws far less power, which makes it the easier fit for boondocking on limited batteries.

Questions to ask yourself about your routine:

How many nights do you stay at each stop? A one-night stay makes a ten-minute dish setup a larger share of your time than a two-week stay does.
Do you work from the RV’s batteries or from shore power?
Do you set up in a spot with a good view, or wherever the RV was parked?

A 20-minute test routine to run at your next campsite

Run the test during your normal working hours, not at midnight, because congestion changes with time of day. Test each connection in turn from the same laptop, wired where possible. Write down results in a notebook or spreadsheet.

A laptop wired by an Ethernet cable on a fold-down RV desk, a terminal window with scrolling ping replies on screen, a paper notebook with handwritten times beside it and a kitchen timer set to twenty minutes, morning light through the camper window.

Minutes 0 to 3: baseline. Run a speed test and note download, upload, and the latency it reports. Treat these as a reference point only.

Minutes 3 to 8: stability. Start a continuous ping to a reliable server (for example, ping 1.1.1.1 on a laptop). Leave it running while you do the next steps if you can, or just watch it for five minutes. Note how many replies are lost and how widely the response times vary. A few lost replies out of several hundred is a warning sign, and a steady string of them is a failure.

Minutes 8 to 13: a real video call. Join a call with a friend or colleague for five minutes with video on. Ask them to tell you when audio or video breaks up, and note the times. Also watch whether your own screen share stays smooth.

Minutes 13 to 17: server session. Connect to your work VPN. Open an SSH or remote desktop session and type or scroll continuously for a few minutes. Note any freezes. Check your public IP address at the start and again at the end, using any “what is my IP” site, and write down whether it changed.

Minutes 17 to 20: upload. Upload a file of a size you typically send, such as a large video or a set of project files, to your cloud storage or a client’s server. Time how long it takes and calculate the real upload rate. Compare that to the speed test.

Repeat the call and ping steps at a different time of day if you will stay more than a night, since the evening may differ sharply from the morning. A connection that does well at 10 a.m. and badly at 7 p.m. is only half useful for people who work evenings.

Which to choose by work type, and when to carry both

Match the connection to the work that pays you.

Client calls and video-heavy work (consulting, coaching, sales, teaching). Choose the connection that gave the steadiest call in your test. In places with strong, uncongested cellular, a hotspot with an external antenna is often enough and is lighter and cheaper to run. In open locations with weak cell, Starlink is the better primary.

Developers, sysadmins, and anyone on SSH or remote desktop. Prioritize stability and predictable addressing over peak speed. A strong cellular signal often gives lower, steadier latency, while Starlink works well when the dish has an unobstructed view. In either case, use tmux or mosh and a reconnecting VPN, and confirm whether any IP allowlist applies to you.

Upload-heavy work (video editing, photography, large file delivery). Look at your sustained upload from the test, and at your plan’s data limits. A hotspot plan with a monthly cap or slowdown threshold can run out mid-project. Check how your plan treats heavy use before you commit.

Work with strict deadlines or contractual uptime. Carry both. When one fails, the other lets you finish the call or the delivery, and the cost of the second service is small next to a missed deadline. Our article on building an RV internet failover setup explains how to connect the two so the switch is automatic.

Flexible or part-time work. One connection can be enough. Choose the one that tested better at the places you stay most often, and keep a phone tethering plan as a backup for emergencies.

Whatever you choose, decide using your own results at your own campsites. Specifications describe a connection in general, and your test describes it where you work.

Before you buy or cancel anything, run the 20-minute campsite test from this article at your next stop and write down which connection held up through a full video call and a VPN session. Then use those results to decide what your primary and backup should be.

Our Experience with both

We use both a Stalink Mini and a 5G mobile hotspot from T-Mobile. We have used this combination for years. When static, we set up our Starlink Mini and use that for online business activities and streaming movies. When we are on the move, we like the 5G hotspot for use in the truck and for nights that we boondock.

Hopefully, this content will help you discover the best equipment for your RV remote work!

Oct 19

How to Build a Reliable RV Internet Setup for Work

By Howard in RV Living

Most remote workers in an RV do not lose a call because their main connection is slow. They lose it because that connection stops, and nothing else is there to take over. An RV internet failover setup fixes this by putting two or three independent connections behind one router that switches between them automatically.

When the primary link dies, the router moves your traffic to the next one, and you rejoin the call instead of spending twenty minutes diagnosing a modem.

This article assumes you already have one working connection and want to make it dependable enough that a client deadline can rest on it.

Why a signal booster alone is a single point of failure

A cellular signal booster amplifies a signal that already exists. It pulls in a weak signal from one carrier’s tower, strengthens it, and rebroadcasts it inside the rig. If that tower is down, overloaded, or out of reach, the booster has nothing to work with. Boosting improves one link. It does not add a second one.

Several other failures happen regardless of how strong your signal is:

The carrier has a regional outage or is congested in the evening when a campground fills up.
Your plan runs out of high-speed data and gets throttled to a speed that cannot hold a video call.
The modem or router overheats, freezes, or needs a reboot.
The 12V supply drops, a fuse blows, or an inverter trips.
An antenna cable gets damaged or a roof-mounted antenna shifts.

A booster addresses none of these. Each one calls for a different remedy, and the common answer is a second connection that does not depend on the same carrier, network, or piece of equipment as the first.

What failover and bonding actually do, and which one you need

The two terms get mixed up in product listings, and they behave differently.

Failover keeps one connection active and watches it. The router sends small test requests, called health checks, over that link. When enough of them fail, it moves your traffic to the next connection in priority order. Your public IP address changes in that switch, so existing sessions such as a video call or a remote desktop usually drop. Most apps reconnect within moments, but you will notice the interruption.

Bonding (sometimes sold as link aggregation or SD-WAN) splits your traffic across several connections at once. A remote server that you subscribe to or run yourself reassembles it, so the outside world sees one steady address. If one link dies, the session continues. The costs are a monthly service, more complex setup, and a little added latency from routing everything through that server.

A third option, load balancing, spreads separate sessions across links to use more total bandwidth. It does not keep a single call alive when its link fails.

For most people working from an RV, failover is the right starting point. A five-second hiccup that recovers on its own is acceptable on a client call. Bonding makes sense when even that hiccup is unacceptable: live broadcasting, trading, a monitored support queue, or anything with a contractual uptime requirement.

Pick links that fail independently

Two connections are only redundant if the same event cannot take both down. Choose links for how differently they fail, not for how fast they are.

A white travel trailer parked in a sparse pine campsite at golden hour, with a flat satellite dish on a tripod pointed at open sky beside it, a roof-mounted cellular antenna pair visible on the trailer, and a distant campground Wi-Fi pole between the trees.

Cellular on different host networks

Two SIMs from two different brands can still be on one network. Many budget carriers and data-only resellers run on a larger carrier’s towers. If both of your plans use the same host network, a tower outage or local congestion hits both. Check which network each plan runs on, and pair plans from different host networks. Then look at each carrier’s coverage map for the areas you actually stay in, because the best carrier in one region is often the weaker one in another.

Satellite

A satellite terminal does not depend on cell towers at all, which makes it the strongest backup for remote sites. It needs a clear view of the sky, so trees, awnings, and nearby buildings can interrupt it. It also draws its own power and needs its own mounting. If you stay mostly in places with poor cellular coverage, satellite may belong in your primary role instead of the backup. Our guide to the best satellite internet options for RVers covers the choices in more depth.

Campground and park Wi-Fi

Campground Wi-Fi is the cheapest backup and often the weakest. It is shared with every other guest; it tends to slow down when people stream in the evening, and the signal may not reach your site. Even so, it fails independently of cellular and satellite, and some parks have solid connections. Treat it as a fallback that sometimes turns out to be excellent. Because the network is shared and unmanaged, run a VPN over it and keep file sharing off.

Sensible combinations

Two cellular networks plus campground Wi-Fi: a good fit for people who move between towns, parks and well-covered areas.
One cellular network plus satellite: a good fit for people who often stay where only one carrier has signal, or none.
Two cellular networks plus satellite: the most resilient setup, and the most expensive to run.

The core hardware: a multi-WAN cellular router, antennas, and SIMs

The router is the part that makes failover work. A multi-WAN router accepts several internet sources (“WAN” connections) and decides which one carries your traffic. For an RV, look for these features:

Close-up of a compact multi-WAN cellular router mounted on a shelf inside an RV cabinet, with two thick black antenna cables, a blue Ethernet cable and a 12V power lead plugged in, two SIM cards laid beside it, warm interior lamp light on pale wood.

Two cellular modems, or at least dual SIM support. A router with two modems can keep both connections live, so a switch is nearly instant. A dual-SIM router with one modem only runs one SIM at a time, and switching means the modem has to register on the other network first, which takes longer.
An Ethernet WAN port to connect a satellite terminal or any other wired source.
Wi-Fi as WAN, meaning the router can join a campground network and treat it as one more connection.
Configurable health checks and priority rules, so you control when and why it switches.
VPN support and a way to reach its settings remotely, which helps if you leave the rig for a day.
12V-friendly power, since you will run it from the coach battery and want it to survive a shore power loss.

Antennas deserve as much thought as the router. External cellular antennas mounted on the roof generally outperform the router’s built-in ones, and a long, thin cable loses signal strength along its length, so keep runs short and use cable rated for the frequencies you need. If you use two carriers, give each its own antenna pair so one failure or one bad placement does not affect both. For campground Wi-Fi, an external Wi-Fi antenna that can reach a distant access point makes the difference between usable and unusable.

For SIMs, read the plan terms before you buy. Some plans restrict hotspot or router use, throttle video, or deprioritize traffic after a threshold of data. A plan that works well on a phone may behave differently inside a router. Our guide on how to choose the right cellular data plan for RVers explains how to compare those terms.

Power is part of the hardware too. A router that reboots every time the inverter hiccups defeats the point. If your setup shares circuits with the rest of the coach, see our posts on RV power for remote work for how to keep your office equipment steady through long workdays.

Set your failover rules so a call survives a dropped connection

Default settings on most routers are built for a house, not for a moving rig with flaky links. Review these settings before you rely on the box.

Priority order. Put your best everyday connection first, and place the metered or expensive link last. If satellite data is costly, make it a last resort. If campground Wi-Fi is fast but unpredictable, decide whether it goes ahead of your second cellular plan or behind it.

Health checks. Configure the router to test each link against more than one destination, such as two or three well-known public servers. A check against a single target can fail because that one server is unreachable, which triggers a pointless switch. Set a failure threshold that requires several missed checks in a row. Too sensitive, and the router flips constantly. Too lax, and you sit on a dead link for a minute while a client waits.

Failback behavior. Decide what happens when the primary link recovers. Switching back immediately can cause a second interruption in the middle of a call. A short delay before failing back, or a rule to stay on the backup until you choose otherwise, avoids a second drop.

VPN settings. If you run a VPN, check that it reconnects on its own after an address change. A kill switch that blocks all traffic until you manually reconnect will turn a five-second switch into a dead connection. Our post on securing your remote business data while traveling goes into VPN choices and the rest of your data protection.

A call plan. No failover setup is truly seamless. For important calls, keep the meeting’s dial-in number ready, and know how to join by phone audio from your cell connection. Our guide to handling professional video calls on the road covers camera, audio, and the etiquette of rejoining after a drop.

Test the system before a deadline depends on it

An untested failover system is a guess. Run the following checks when you have a quiet afternoon, not when a client is waiting.

A hand unplugging a coaxial antenna cable from the back of a router on a small RV dinette table while a laptop beside it shows a paused video call with a friend, a notepad and pen next to it, soft morning light through the window.

Measure each link alone. Disable the others, then check download speed, upload speed, and latency on each connection at your current site. Upload speed matters most for video calls. SpeedTest.net is a great source for this test!
Pull the primary during a live call. Start a video call with a friend or colleague, then unplug the primary antenna or disable the link in the router. Note how long the call freezes, whether it recovers on its own, and whether audio or video returns first.
Test failback. Restore the primary and watch what the router does. Confirm it behaves the way you configured it.
Kill the backup too. Disable the second link, then the third, to confirm that each switch works and that the router does not get stuck on a dead connection.
Cut the power. Turn off the inverter or disconnect the router, then power it back on. Check that it boots with your settings and brings the links up without you touching it.
Test with your VPN and work tools running. Remote desktop sessions, cloud drives, and any client software may react differently from a plain video call.
Write down the results. Keep a short note of switch times and any quirks, so you know what to expect during a real outage.

Repeat the test after any firmware update, any change to your antennas or plans, and whenever you move to a region with different coverage. A setup that worked in one state can behave differently somewhere with weaker signal on your second carrier.

Match your redundancy level to the work you do

More layers mean more cost, more equipment, and more to maintain. The right level depends on what an hour offline costs you.

Light redundancy. If your work is mostly email, writing, or tasks with flexible deadlines, a primary cellular plan plus a phone hotspot on a different carrier may be enough. You switch manually, and the occasional drop costs you minutes.

Standard redundancy. If you take client calls most days, run a multi-WAN router with two cellular networks and add campground Wi-Fi when it is available. This level handles most outages without any action from you.

Heavy redundancy. If you host live events, staff a support line, work under a service agreement, or present to clients who will not tolerate a drop, add satellite as a third independent link and consider a bonding service so single sessions survive a link loss. Add battery backup for the router and modems too, so a power interruption does not undo the rest of the work.

Check whether your employer or clients specify connection requirements. Some remote jobs state a minimum speed or require a wired or secondary connection, and your setup should meet that requirement before you decide how much redundancy to build beyond it.

Keep the backup affordable: plans, pausing service and what to skip

A backup connection sits idle most of the time, so paying full price for it all year deserves some scrutiny.

Right-size the backup plan. A link used only when the primary fails does not need the largest data allowance. Be aware that devices still use data in the background, such as cloud sync and software updates, so use the router’s data usage tracking and set rules to keep heavy tasks off the backup.

Pause what you can. Some satellite and cellular providers let you pause service or switch to a lower tier during months when you are not traveling or working remotely. Terms differ by provider and change over time, so confirm the current policy before you count on it, including any fees for pausing and restarting.

Read the hotspot and router terms. A cheap plan that blocks or throttles router use is not a bargain when you need it. Confirm that the plan allows the way you plan to use it.

Skip what you do not need yet:

A third cellular carrier, if two on different host networks already cover your usual areas.
A bonding service, until you have run failover for a while and found a real case where a brief drop cost you work.
Stacked boosters and extra antennas on a link that already tests well.
Premium or unlimited tiers on the backup, if its main job is to carry a few calls.

Start with the layer that removes your most likely failure. For most people, that is a second cellular network on a different host, connected through a router that switches automatically. Run the tests above, keep your notes, and add satellite or bonding later if your work and your travel routes show that you need them.

What We Use!

We have been full time since 2008, and internet access has evolved over the years. It has gotten so much better!

We use about 500 GB of data a month as full time RVers who work from the RV and love to watch movies. 😁 We have settled on using Starlink and, as a backup and for travel days, an unlimited-usage MiFi unit. Those two currently cost us $235/month.

Both run at 100 Mbps or better and provide seamless streaming of movies and videos.

If you want to read more on this subject, please check out my other article.

Oct 18

How to Build an RV Workspace That Won’t Wreck Your Back

By Howard in RV Living

Most RV dinettes were designed for eating, not for eight hours of typing. Your RV office ergonomics are important for your success living the full time RV life and working on the road!

The table height, the seat depth, and the bench angle are all set for a 30-minute meal. Put a laptop on that table and keep working for a full day, and your body ends up in a posture the furniture forces on it.

RV office ergonomics comes down to three adjustable heights, and a few inexpensive changes can fix most of what is wrong with a dinette. This guide treats the rig’s fixed furniture as constraints and works around them, with fixes that stow quickly on driving days.

Why your dinette is the worst desk in the rig, and what it does to your body

A dinette creates problems in a predictable order. The bench cushion is usually soft and deep, so you sink into it and slide forward, and your lower back loses its support. The table is often a fixed height on a pedestal leg or wall mount, and you cannot change it. The laptop sits flat on that table, which puts the screen well below eye level.

Your body compensates. Your head tips forward and down to read the screen, your shoulders round to reach the keyboard, and your lower back curls into the soft seat. Many dinettes also have a pedestal or table frame that stops you from sitting square to the screen, so you end up twisted to one side for hours.

Inside a compact RV at midday, a laptop sits flat on a fixed pedestal-leg dinette table beside a half-finished mug, with a soft, deep beige bench cushion slumped behind it. Warm window light falls across the table, and the laptop screen sits well below where a seated person's eyes would be.

Common results are a stiff neck, tight shoulders, a sore lower back, and tired wrists. Those complaints are common among people who work at poorly set up desks, and they tend to build over days rather than show up at once. If you have numbness, tingling, or pain that does not ease with rest, see a clinician rather than trying to fix it with gear.

The good news is that every one of these problems traces back to a measurable dimension, so you can fix them one at a time.

Measure first: the three heights that decide your posture

Before you buy anything, grab a tape measure and a notepad. Three numbers determine nearly everything.

Seat height. Sit on your cushion the way you normally do, so it compresses, and measure from the floor to the top of the cushion.
Surface height. Measure from the floor to the top of the table or whatever surface holds your keyboard.
Screen height. Sit upright and measure from the floor to the top edge of your laptop screen, then compare it to your eye level.

The general targets are easy to remember. Your feet rest flat on the floor or on a footrest, your knees are bent at roughly a right angle, and your elbows sit at roughly a right angle with your forearms level over the keyboard. The top of the screen should be at or slightly below eye level, about an arm’s length away.

Now compare the numbers. Sit with your arms relaxed at your sides and measure from the floor to your elbow. If your table top is higher than that, you have two options: raise your seat, which then usually calls for a footrest, or lower your keyboard. If the table is lower than your elbow, raise the keyboard and screen on a riser.

Write the gaps down. Each section below fixes one of them.

Fixing the seat: cushions, lumbar support and swapping the dinette bench

The seat is the cheapest place to start, because most fixes are a cushion.

A firm cushion on top of the soft bench cushion raises your seat height and stops you sinking. High-density foam cut to the bench footprint works, and so does a firm seat pad with a flat base. A wedge cushion tilts your pelvis slightly forward, which some people find helps them sit upright.

An RV dinette bench with a slab of firm gray foam laid over the soft cushion, a rolled towel wedged in the curve of the backrest, and a sturdy storage bin under the table as a footrest. The scene is lit by soft daylight through a small camper window.

For lumbar support, test with a rolled towel placed in the curve of your lower back before you buy anything. If it helps, a dedicated lumbar roll or a strap-on support will do the same job and stows in a drawer. Dinette backrests are often upright and flat, so a roll fills the gap between your spine and the backrest.

A footrest solves the problem when you raise your seat. A sturdy storage bin, a folding footstool, or a low box under the table all work, as long as your feet rest fully on it and it does not slide around.

If the bench is the core problem, replace one side with a freestanding chair. A chair lets you sit square to the table and adjust your position, and it removes the twist caused by the bench layout. A folding chair with a proper backrest is the simplest option. A compact adjustable chair is better for long days, but it must be strapped or folded on travel days, because a rolling chair loose in a moving rig is a hazard.

Check before removing or modifying any bench. Many dinettes hide storage, hold tanks or wiring underneath, and some serve as travel seating with seat belts. Do not alter anything that is structural or used for passengers while driving.

Raising the screen: laptop stands, external monitors and keyboard setups that survive travel days

A laptop has its screen and keyboard attached to each other, so you cannot get both at the right height. The fix is to separate them. Put the laptop on a stand so the screen reaches eye level, and type on a separate keyboard with a mouse or trackpad at elbow height.

Test the idea for free first. Stack books or a sturdy box under the laptop until the top of the screen sits at eye level, then plug in a keyboard. If that setup feels better after a day, buy something that folds.

A small RV table with a laptop raised on a thin folding aluminum stand so the screen reaches eye height, with a compact wireless keyboard and mouse in front of it and a slim portable monitor in a padded sleeve leaning nearby. Bright morning light, with wood-grain cabinets behind.

Options that stow well:

Folding laptop stands. Many fold nearly flat and fit between the laptop and its case.
Compact wireless keyboard and mouse. They pack into a sleeve or pouch and use little space on a small table.
Portable USB-C monitors. These are thin and light, and they slide into a padded sleeve for travel. They draw power, so factor that in if you work on batteries.
Full-size monitors on a clamp arm. These give the best screen position but need a table edge that suits the clamp, and the monitor must come off the arm and be stored padded on driving days.

Whatever you choose, leave room for your forearms. A raised screen and a keyboard at the table edge should let your elbows stay near your sides with your shoulders relaxed.

Desk surfaces that fit: fold-down tables, swing-arm mounts and converting a slide or bunk area

If the dinette table height cannot be changed, a different surface may suit you better. The aim is a flat top at roughly elbow height that disappears when you drive.

A wall-mounted fold-down table in an RV, swung out level with the elbow height of a folding chair, with a laptop on it. An articulating arm mount is folded flat against the cabinet face beside it. The setting is a narrow rig interior with warm wood tones and cool daylight from a side window.

Fold-down tables. A drop-leaf or fold-down table mounted to a wall folds flat against it when not in use. It can sit exactly where you want it, at the right height, away from the dinette.

Swing-arm mounts. An articulating table arm attaches to a wall, cabinet face or pedestal and swings a work surface into position, then folds away. Some can tilt or adjust height, which solves the fixed-table problem.

Adjustable pedestal legs. Some replacement dinette pedestals are height-adjustable. If your table is on a pedestal, check whether an adjustable one fits your mounting plate and floor.

Slide-out or bunk conversions. A bunk or a corner of a slide can hold a board resting on brackets, with a chair or stool in front. This works best when you give it a permanent spot so you do not rebuild it every morning.

When mounting anything to an RV wall, find the framing behind the panel. RV walls are thin, and a screw into paneling alone will pull out. Also check for wiring and plumbing before you drill. If you are unsure, use a mount that clamps or rests on existing structure instead.

Working from a couch or bed for a full day is the hardest to fix. If it is your only option, use a firm lap desk, put a cushion behind your back, keep the screen raised, and set a firm limit on how long you stay there.

Sitting, standing, and moving in a few square feet

The best posture is one you change. Even a good setup gets uncomfortable if you hold it for hours, so plan movement into the day.

Your kitchen counter may work as a standing desk. Counter height is often higher than a dinette table, so check that your elbows can sit at a right angle with the keyboard on top and the laptop raised on a stand. Standing all day is no better than sitting all day, so alternate.

A few habits that cost nothing:

Set a timer and stand up every 30 minutes or so, even for a minute.
Take calls on your feet or walking outside when you do not need the screen.
Every so often, look at something far away to rest your eyes.
Roll your shoulders and stretch your chest and hips between tasks.
Step outside between meetings rather than moving from the dinette to the couch.

Movement breaks are easier on a campsite than in an apartment, since a short walk around the loop takes a few minutes. For a broader look at staying well on the road, see the guide on health and wellness strategies for RV digital nomads.

A one-hour setup order and a stow-and-secure checklist for driving days

You can fix most of this in a single hour if you work in the right order. Seat first, because it sets the heights for everything else.

Minutes 0 to 10: Take the three measurements and write them down.
Minutes 10 to 25: Fix the seat. Add the firm cushion, lumbar support, and footrest, and recheck your elbow height.
Minutes 25 to 40: Raise the screen on a stand or stack, and connect the separate keyboard and mouse.
Minutes 40 to 50: Adjust the surface. Raise or lower the keyboard to elbow height, and clear space for your forearms.
Minutes 50 to 60: Work normally for ten minutes and note any strain in your neck, shoulders, back, or wrists. Adjust one thing at a time.

Expect to keep tweaking over the first week, and change one variable at a time so you know what helped. For the broader office layout, including power and connectivity, the guide on setting up your first mobile office in an RV covers the rest.

An RV interior prepared for a driving day: a laptop stand folded flat on the bed beside cushions, a keyboard pouch half-closed on a dinette seat, a padded monitor sleeve upright in an open closet, and a folding chair strapped against a wall. The table is bare, with soft late-afternoon light.

Stow-and-secure checklist for driving days

Fold the laptop stand flat and store it with the laptop.
Remove monitors from clamp arms and store them padded, upright or flat in a secure spot.
Pack the keyboard, mouse, and cables in a pouch and put it in a closed drawer.
Lock or latch swing-arm mounts and fold-down table leaves in the stowed position.
Strap or fold any freestanding chair, and never leave a rolling chair loose.
Move loose cushions, lumbar rolls, and footrests to the floor of a closet or onto the bed.
Put heavy items low, and leave nothing sitting on the table.
Take a photo of your setup before you tear it down so you can rebuild it quickly at the next stop.

I hope this article will be helpful to you as you seek comfort while working out of your RV home!

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