One reader asks

"Is it ok to have non-plastic plates etc. in a motorhome?"

You do not need to use plastic. Remembering that for many this is their home forever we do not want to live with plastic crockery. There are many alternatives. I for one do not like to drink my wine from plastic and usually carry wine glasses.

Some people use their standard China and glasses. For a motorhome that is going to stay on the bitumen there is really no problem with this. Even if you are going off road China can still cope or you can use corelle or melamine.

We have travelled many back roads in our bus with kilometres of corrugations and pot holes with both china and melamine and never had any problems.

Things that will make a difference will be the weight of the china and vehicle you are travelling in. From a weight perspective the less weight in the vehicle the better. Each china plate etc will only weigh a small amount but each kilo adds up to weighing the vehicle down, slowing it down and increasing fuel consumption. From a vehicle perspective a bus with large wheels and wide high profile tyres will vibrate and shake a lot less than a small campervan with smaller wheels and low profile tyres.

If you do decide to take china don't take your best and most expensive set. Most people leave their motorhomes set up all the time and have a set of crockery that lives in the vehicle. Take your garden variety crockery, melamine or corelle so that if you do come across the rare occasion you do crack a plate on a rough road or sudden vehicle braking it wont be the end of the world.