Saving Money on Must-Have RV Gear: Home Depot Vs Walmart Vs Amazon

1. Sewer hose

I’d recommend a 20-foot and 15-foot hose. The 360 Revolution 20' is $38.99

2. Sewer hose support

A sewer hose holder keeps the hose off the ground. Some RV resorts demand that you keep your sewer hose off the ground. This one is $33.59. 

3. Disposable gloves

These are $7.49 for a pack of 100 gloves.

4. Drinking water hose

A 25-foot drinking water hose is $17.58. It’s out of stock in the store.

5. Water filter

Never leave home without a water filter. This one is $24. You can buy two for $36, making this about $18 a filter. Not a bad price. 

6. Water pressure regulator

Here’s one for $8.97. This allows you to run your water at a pressure between 40 and 50 psi. You want this because sometimes the campgrounds have a higher pressure of water which would blow out your water houses inside your RV. You don’t need fancy ones with gages, just use a basic one for your first trip.

7. Surge protector

I don’t see one at Home Depot, but you need one to protect your electrical system. Get it instead at TechnoRV online with free shipping. Ask if they have any open items, which will cost you half.

8. Dogbone adapters

A dogbone lets you go from a 50 amp to a 30 amp or from a 30 amp to a 20 amp plug. It allows you to plug into a 30-amp pedestal and allows a 50-amp RV to plug into here to run off 30 amps.

This is important if your RV site doesn’t have 50 amps. If your RV site only has a 50 amp plug-in, you use a dogbone to plug in your 30 amp cord so you can get electricity on a 50 amp pedestal.

9. Leveling blocks

We use Anderson levelers (bottom photo) to level our rig from side to side. They have 10-packs at Home Depot but they are out of them.

10. Leveler

Why do you need a level RV? It allows your refrigerator to run efficiently. A titled fridge won’t run well. We use a 6-foot leveler but you can buy smaller ones here. A two-pack is $8.97. A bubble leveler is $3.28. A larger level does give you a more accurate reading, though.

11. Stabilizing jack pads

Two for $18.99 here. But these may not be thick or high enough so you may need two packs. 

12. Wheel chocks

Chocking before you unhook is important. A wheel chock at Home Depot goes for $3.97 and you need four. 

13. RV toilet paper

You need RV toilet paper only so it can break down easier and it won’t clog or stick up against the walls and harden. $2.58 for 4 rolls.

14. RV toilet treatment

Along with RV toilet paper, you need chemicals to break down the paper. Camco RV toilet treatment is $6.98 for eight treatments. We use Unique RV treatment, it’s the best one but the Home Depot product will be good in a pinch.

15. Jack

Find it in the automotive department for $34 for a small hydraulic jack. I’d prefer a 2-ton trolley jack. 

16. Big wheel crossbar

This is an important wrench to take the tire off.

Jack pad hack

This isn’t part of the list, but I thought I’d share what I use for a jack pad. I get a 12-foot piece of wood for $31. I have the store cut them for free into 1-foot sections. 

Price comparisons

We want to share what we found when we compared prices. There’s a huge saving if you buy items at other places than a dealer. But it's best to comparison-shop if you have time. For example, RV toilet paper was much more expensive at Walmart and Amazon than it was at Home Depot.

Here’s the final breakdown:

• Home Depot: 16 items on the list cost a total of $441.39. With the 10 percent coupon (you have to have a credit card to use this coupon), the total was reduced to $397.25.
• Walmart: $405.42 for all these 16 items. 
• Amazon: $444.28 for all these 16 items.

Must-have RV gear

Usually, dealers are far more expensive. A dealer may give you a start-up box, but it may not be what you need. We hope this helps you get on the road with some cool, must-have RV gear for less money than you thought. Let us know what you think in the comments below. Let us know if you have a great deal you can share!