HW277 - Has anyone ever added a hatch to access the rear hallway when closed?

[sticcino]

Is there anyone out there who has added a hatch of any form to access the rear void (the hallway between the shoilet and the counter) when the trailer is fully closed? How horrible of an idea would it be to try doing this? Trying to find better ways to utilize that space when traveling and storing the trailer.

[GalsofEscape]

when i had my HW277 i stored a sewer tote (a 25 gal blue boy) there in that space that i used for the gray water (the waste tanks were too small for us so we always used a tote). and a table was able to lay on the tote. so these things went into the camper before we closed it up and i had no need to get into that space when the camper was stored.

the only place for a hatch would be the back wall making sure to avoid the kitchen space on the passenger side and the bath on the driver side. but i think that the spare tire would also interfere??

[Campworthy]

I agree with Gals. The only possible place for a door/hatch would be on the rear panel, which would be a huge job! Also, you don't want to load it up too much back there, as it might created a lot of sway when towing.
You'd be better off being creative with packing/stowing your items, something all pup owners have to learn because lets face it, space is at a premium! Come up with something/item that you can get into the habit of stowing in that space, when packing away. I have a small stand alone shelf, that I use for the counter top, that gets stowed in the back hallway. Cushions/pillows are under the dinette table, the rest of the bedding in the front hallway.

[HONDAMAN174]

I also kept a small tote in that area of dry stores that we packed up from last trip. We would also store our easy down between the slide out and the sinks cabinets along with the roof lockers. Cooler and/or generator would go in the front area.

But in answer to your real question, no idea!

[sticcino]

Yeah, right now we only store cleaning and shoilet supplies in the area, since those things don't need to be unloaded for cleaning when its closed... I was just hoping to have a way to put a few things like bedding etc back there so that we can more easily access the refrigerator when traveling, and to help keep it 60/40 balanced.

I will probably just go with my original plan to figure out a pass-through method from behind the outdoor kitchen, was just thinking out-loud on other possibilities.

[Campworthy]

Originally Posted by sticcino

Yeah, right now we only store cleaning and shoilet supplies in the area, since those things don't need to be unloaded for cleaning when its closed... I was just hoping to have a way to put a few things like bedding etc back there so that we can more easily access the refrigerator when traveling, and to help keep it 60/40 balanced.

I will probably just go with my original plan to figure out a pass-through method from behind the outdoor kitchen, was just thinking out-loud on other possibilities.

I was going to ask you, if you use your outdoor kitchen? If you didn't you could remove it, add access panels at the back to get to the hallway. Would be a little tricky reaching in and back there tho.
My previous pup-up, Fleetwood Westlake I could use the whole hallway for storage when it was popped down, as there was no dinette slide. Pop up owners definitely have to be organized and creative with packing, that's for sure!

[sticcino]

Originally Posted by Campworthy

I was going to ask you, if you use your outdoor kitchen? If you didn't you could remove it, add access panels at the back to get to the hallway. Would be a little tricky reaching in and back there tho.
My previous pup-up, Fleetwood Westlake I could use the whole hallway for storage when it was popped down, as there was no dinette slide. Pop up owners definitely have to be organized and creative with packing, that's for sure!

Its usefulness is still questionable to me. My last camping trip (which was my first multiday trip) we actually used it and the griddle for almost all of our meals, but it could still be more space efficient for me to just pack our big camp chef and make a QD hose for it to utilize that gas outlet. Still using this summer to figure out long-term plans for our trailer.

As far as organization, yeah as a kid we had a normal tent trailer so I remember using the whole hallway for things like coolers etc - and it's quite an adjustment coming from the larger fifth wheel I used to have.