My Work Space Under the Fifth Wheel

office under fifth wheel

One thing we’ve learned, after years of working and homeschooling on the road is that we cannot work/home school in the same, 400 square foot space.

So, each park we visit, my first order of business is to find a corner in the park office or picnic table or tent where I can set up my office during the day.

My favorite is to work outside. But, some places don’t allow tents or there isn’t room or the weather just doesn’t cooperate.

I finally wised up, while we were in Fortuna, and created this ugly, but totally functional, work space under the hitch of our fifth-wheel.

office under fifth wheel
I used Command Line Strips, bungees, and magnetic hooks to secure three tarps. The bottoms were held tight with heavy bins.
work space under fifth wheel hitch
Inside, I arranged a flexible work space, complete with a picnic table, heater, art supplies, lanterns, a trash can, extension cords, fairy garden supplies, etc. etc.

 

 

The downside of this arrangement was the noise…

From roaring truck traffic to constant wind and rain; there was already lot of background noise. But, the crackling and rustling of the tarps certainly didn’t help.

My husband picked up a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones, but they reacted to the sound of the tarps and rain poorly.

It was fun and cozy, but…

As much as I enjoyed my little cubby, it was just annoying enough to get in and out of that I found myself sitting and working for hours and hours without getting up.

Ed would hand me coffee or lunch through the opening in the top, and I wouldn’t stand unless I really had to pee.

That, combined with just enough of a slope in the driveway that my spine kinked up. Lesson definitely learned.

Next time, I would do some things differently.

First of all, I would put down our outdoor carpet, just to fancy up the place a bit. Then, I’d place the command line hooks differently, make sure the table is level, add better lighting, and set a timer to get up and walk around once and awhile.