Savvy Camper & RV Tips

The stuff experienced campers know: eco-friendly bug control, campfire cooking, knots, and RV know-how.

Table of Contents

  1. Eco-Friendly Pest Control
    1. Safer Ant Control
    2. Safer Tick Control
    3. Basic Campsite Hygiene (the real secret)
  2. Managing a Campfire for Cooking
  3. Knots Every Camper Should Know
  4. RV & Camper Know-How
    1. Setting Up
    2. Power & Water
    3. Dumping (do it clean)
    4. Bugs & the RV
    5. Breaking Camp
  5. The Savvy-Camper Mindset

Eco-Friendly Pest Control

Don’t pour chemical insecticides on the ground at a campsite. It’s discouraged everywhere and prohibited in many state and national parks. Ground chemicals harm local wildlife, contaminate water runoff, and are toxic to kids and pets. The good news: the safe methods below work better for a campsite anyway.

Safer Ant Control

  • Diatomaceous Earth (DE): Food-grade DE is an all-natural powder that’s highly effective. Dust a light perimeter around your tent or around RV stabilizer jacks. It’s harmless to people and pets but is a natural deterrent to creeping insects.
  • Natural repellents: Ants dislike cinnamon, coffee grounds, and essential oils like peppermint. Sprinkle these around cooking and tent areas to keep them moving.

Safer Tick Control

  • Treat your gear, not the ground. Spray clothing, shoes, and the exterior of your tent with permethrin before you leave home. Let it dry completely—it then repels ticks for weeks (through several washes).
  • Keep the site tidy. Ticks love tall grass and leaf litter. Pick a cleared spot, clear brush from your immediate area, and do daily tick checks (kids especially).
  • Tick tubes: Buy or make tubes filled with permethrin-treated cotton. Mice carry the cotton to their nests, which kills tick nymphs before they ever reach campers.

Basic Campsite Hygiene (the real secret)

The best bug control is not attracting them in the first place:

  • Store all food and trash in airtight containers (or a sealed bin/box). Keep the site clean—no crumbs, no open trash bags.
  • Don’t sleep in the clothes you cooked in—food odors linger and draw insects (and curious raccoons).
  • Keep your tent zipped shut at all times, even for a quick in-and-out.
  • Wipe down the cook area and seal leftovers right after meals.

Mosquitoes are worst at dusk—long sleeves, repellent on skin, and a little campfire smoke help. See more bug/plant notes in Camp Setup.

Managing a Campfire for Cooking

A cooking fire is different from a bonfire—you want coals, not flames.

  1. Build for coals. Use the provided ring. Start with tinder + small kindling, add wood, and let it burn down to a bed of glowing coals (20–40 min). Coals give even, controllable heat; flames just scorch and soot your pans.
  2. Make heat zones. Rake coals so one side is deeper (hot) and one side thinner (warm). Move food between zones like burners on a stove.
  3. Use the right tools. A grate over the coals, long-handled tongs/spatula, fire gloves, and a cast-iron skillet or foil packets. Cast iron loves coal heat.
  4. Mind the wind. Set up so smoke blows away from cooks and tents; block strong wind so heat stays even.
  5. Buy firewood local; never haul it far. Moving firewood spreads tree-killing pests—buy at/near the park, and don’t gather wood in the park.
  6. Keep water and a shovel at the fire. And keep kids an arm’s reach back from the “hot circle.”
  7. Put it out cold. Drown, stir, and feel—douse with water, stir the ashes, add more water, and feel for heat. If it’s warm, it’s not out. Do this before bed and before leaving the site, every time.

More cooking logistics (coolers, food safety, group dinners) are in Camp Cooking.

Knots Every Camper Should Know

A few knots handle 95% of camp jobs—hanging tarps, guying out shelters, securing loads. Practice them at home with the kids before the trip.

Knot Use it for
Bowline A fixed loop that won’t slip or jam—tie off to a tree, ring, or post
Taut-line hitch An adjustable loop for tent/tarp guy-lines—slide to tighten
Two half-hitches Quick, secure tie-off to a pole, ring, or tree
Clove hitch Fast attach to a post/pole (start a lashing, hang a lantern)
Trucker’s hitch A pulley-like cinch for strapping boats/bikes/loads down tight
Square (reef) knot Join two equal ropes or tie a bundle (not for critical loads)
Figure-eight A stopper knot so a line doesn’t pull through a grommet

Tips:

  • A taut-line hitch is the one to teach first—it makes tarps and tents drum-tight and re-tightens after rain stretches the line.
  • Carry plenty of paracord and a knife/scissors.
  • A glow-in-the-dark or bright guy-line (or a bandana tied on) keeps people from tripping over tarp lines at night.

RV & Camper Know-How

For the families towing or driving a rig:

Setting Up

  • Level first, then unhitch/stabilize. Use leveling blocks side-to-side before you drop the jacks; a level fridge runs better and you sleep better.
  • Chock the wheels before unhitching.
  • Hook up in order: electric (check the pedestal breaker first), then water (use a pressure regulator so park water pressure doesn’t burst a line), then sewer if you have a full-hookup site.
  • Pop the slide-outs and awning only after you’re level and clear of trees/posts.

Power & Water

  • Don’t overload the circuit. On a hot day the A/C, fridge, and a space heater/kettle can trip a 30/50-amp pedestal—stagger big draws.
  • Use a surge protector at the pedestal to protect your electronics.
  • Conserve fresh water if you’re not on a water hookup; know your gray/black tank levels.

Dumping (do it clean)

  • Black tank first, then gray—the gray water rinses the hose.
  • Wear gloves, use a clear elbow to see when it runs clear, and rinse.
  • Add tank treatment and plenty of water after dumping; never leave the black valve open on a full-hookup site (you want liquids to carry solids out).

Bugs & the RV

  • Keep the screen door shut, and dust DE around stabilizer jacks and the power cord where it touches the ground—ants climb the “bridges” into a rig.
  • Store food sealed; wipe the galley after meals.

Breaking Camp

  • Walk a departure circle: antenna/satellite down, steps in, slides in, awning in, hatches/vents closed, jacks up, chocks and hose stowed, hitch locked, lights tested.
  • Drown the fire, pack out trash, and leave the pad cleaner than you found it.

The Savvy-Camper Mindset

  • Arrive with daylight to spare. Setup in the dark is how gear gets lost and tempers get short.
  • A place for everything. Bins beat loose piles; label the group gear.
  • Check the weather twice a day and have a rain plan ready.
  • Leave No Trace: if you packed it in, pack it out; stay on durable surfaces; keep wildlife wild.

Back: Camp Cooking Go to the Food Plan →

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Cuivre River Family Adventure © 2026. Made for four families and the summer we spent outside.

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