If You Had to Choose Between a Surge Protector, Back-up Camera, or Tire Upgrade...

[Dugoutnut]

Surge protector. No question in my mind. Fried electronics are expensive. If a tire blows, heaven forbid, and you wreck the trailer, there is insurance. Back up cameras are nice, but you have a spotter.

[Malco1]

and had $400 to spend, what would you go with?

We've a 2020 GD 230RL Fifth-wheel, our first fiver, but second camper. Towing it with a F-250. I'm torn between these three optional upgrades. I can think of pros for each one to be the first upgrade: would hate to damage electronics or A/C due to poor electricity, but we normally camp at the same CG that has pretty stable power, back-up camera would be helpful in parking and even while driving, but my wife is usually with me when we're setting up; and finally, Westlake tires are notorious for blow-outs, but our camper is pretty light considering.

So I'm opening it up for some counseling from those with more experience than I.

Thanks.

TPMS and observation camera not a backup camera. The camera helps a little when backing in, but I use it constantly when changing lanes, when I see a vehicle in the camera I know I can cut back in. TPMS will help you keep track of your tires while driving, and you may be able to stop a problem before it happens.
I found TST TPMS to be the best of the lot. They are very dependable. I have 2 other TPMS systems under my desk. 1 Bellacorp(total garbage) and 2 TireMinder (not dependable).
I didn't want to spring for the TST system. So I purchased the BellaCorp and after that the Tire Minder. So the TST system ended up costing me twice the price. Talk about dumb!

[SmallBoxMaker]

TPMS and observation camera not a backup camera. T

Ditto. i can't imagine driving our rig without an observation camera for changing lanes.

[Tom&Trish]

Surge protector. Just my $.02 worth.

On a recent trip to North Carolina the couple traveling with us blew a tire on I-95 going thru Atlanta. On the way home they blew a second tire in Perry, Ga. both Westlake China bombs. This was their third trip!!!! He replaced all 5 with Goodyear Endurance tires. We have 6000 miles on the Westlakes that came with our 303 fifthwheel.

We also run a tire pressure / temperature monitor!!! We have also changed our tires too.

Understand you only have $500 but I would change the tire and buy a monitor. Changing tires on a busy interstate highway is not fun!!!!

[RobW-NC]

I would go with a surge protector. Then tires.

[Jmick35]

I would go with a surge protector. Then tires.

I went with the progressive industries hard wired.
I ran the Westlake g rated 16" tires about 6000 miles.
I checked pressure before each trip.
I laser checked tire and hub temperatures every stop.
I had no problem.
I replaced the factory tires before a trip west.
I went with the Sailun 637.
Travel safe.

[Steven@147]

and had $400 to spend, what would you go with?

We've a 2020 GD 230RL Fifth-wheel, our first fiver, but second camper. Towing it with a F-250. I'm torn between these three optional upgrades. I can think of pros for each one to be the first upgrade: would hate to damage electronics or A/C due to poor electricity, but we normally camp at the same CG that has pretty stable power, back-up camera would be helpful in parking and even while driving, but my wife is usually with me when we're setting up; and finally, Westlake tires are notorious for blow-outs, but our camper is pretty light considering.

So I'm opening it up for some counseling from those with more experience than I.

Thanks.

Well you have received a lot help making your decision and as with everything, to each his own, depending on what others have experienced or had happen to them.
my .02? Well if you only have $400 to spend you are not going to be able to buy tires, so of the three options, you're down to some type of power protector or rear camera. Of those two options power is the most important in protecting your rig. So if it is true that protecting power to the RV is more important, now you have to decide what kind or power protector. I prefer to call them power protectors because just calling them a surge protector may not be an accurate description of a specific products capabilities. Power protection devices can have a wide range of what they do, and do not protect against. open neutral, open ground, line (L1,L2) present, voltage surge, voltage monitoring and power disconnection and the like.

We first had a power protector that cost @ $90. It was a 50 amp power pedestal external device with LEDs for monitoring. It did most everything except protect against low or high voltage or Hz. Now we have a PI hardwired power protector. The reason we went with a more expensive power protection device is that it is likely that your RV will experience more occasions of low or high voltage situations, or open ground / open neutral, than any other at campgrounds and this can kill more devices / appliances in your RV.

once you get that done, now save up your money for the next thing you want to add or change.

[Malco1]

On a recent trip to North Carolina the couple traveling with us blew a tire on I-95 going thru Atlanta. On the way home they blew a second tire in Perry, Ga. both Westlake China bombs. This was their third trip!!!! He replaced all 5 with Goodyear Endurance tires. We have 6000 miles on the Westlakes that came with our 303 fifthwheel.

We also run a tire pressure / temperature monitor!!! We have also changed our tires too.

Understand you only have $500 but I would change the tire and buy a monitor. Changing tires on a busy interstate highway is not fun!!!!

I have been camping for over 40yrs. I never used a surge protector. I did pick up one recently because I went to a State park in GA, and I figured I might need one. The electric turned out to be fine.
About 10yrs ago I had a class A motor home, I had a front tire go on I95 in Jacksonville. There is nothing more scary than sitting on the side of I95 waiting for service. The tire was destroyed because I rode on it looking for a place to pull over. When the service guy came he said that there was nothing wrong with the tire. The problem was probably a leaking valve extension that caused the problem. That cost me $500 for an new tire, not the same as the other front tire, so when I got home it cost me another $500 for a matching front tire. There was $1000 lost to not having a TPMS system.Safety is more important to me than frying my AC. TPMS and tires first.

[boyscout]

and had $400 to spend, what would you go with? We've a 2020 GD 230RL Fifth-wheel, our first fiver, but second camper. Towing it with a F-250. I'm torn between these three optional upgrades. I can think of pros for each one to be the first upgrade: would hate to damage electronics or A/C due to poor electricity, but we normally camp at the same CG that has pretty stable power, back-up camera would be helpful in parking and even while driving, but my wife is usually with me when we're setting up; and finally, Westlake tires are notorious for blow-outs, but our camper is pretty light considering.

Sir / madam please forgive my being direct but if you have to choose among important upgrades because you have only $400 to spend, you may not be well-financed enough to be trailering. It's an expensive life!

Truck maintenance and fuel bills are significant costs if you're properly-equipped for, and plan to, tow the trailer around rather than park it in one place.

Trailer sites with hookups are often costly, ranging from mid-hundreds of dollars per month for long-term camping at lower-end campgrounds to hundred-plus costs per DAY at nice and well-located higher-end campgrounds. The pandemic has caused an explosion of trailer purchases which may result in sites becoming more scarce with higher prices. Even boondocking on federal lands has costs.

Stocking the trailer with the essentials for living in it costs unless you have or have collected a surplus of things for cooking, eating, cleaning, showering, sleeping, working (if you need to) and relaxing. Odds are that you will want to replace the mattress in the trailer almost immediately - many owners do - so there's your $400 budget plus some gone in one bang on that. Propane fuel is really expensive - the fridge and stove will sip it for ages but the furnace gulps the stuff in cold weather and can have you filling tanks every few days at around $20 per tank (or more). Reliable internet can be very expensive; some people who need it pay well over a hundred dollars per month for it.

Repairs and upgrades to the trailer other than the three you listed will be whispering to you, maybe calling you strongly.

The plumbing system including water pump, vent valves, check valve on the water heater, gate valves for sewage tanks (including adding a nearly-essential one to the dump outlet), and sub-optimum plumbing products (such as soft hose) that are carelessly assembled are common issues that you will want to - or need to - address. So too are electrical issues with cheap connectors and switches, sometimes outlets, and careless assembly.

Stuff breaks often on these trailers, especially in the first year or two.

Warranty, you say? A whole lot of owners end up concluding that it's usually easier to fix something yourself, eliminating weeks and months of downtime at dealers, reducing hassles and frustrations with dealer service departments, and sometimes costing less than the costs of taking it in for warranty service.

Whether you fix it yourself or go to the dealer there are costs in maintaining and upgrading the trailer so that you can rely on it as your home, temporary or not.

All of what I have listed are significant and often-essential costs. All the good advice so far in this thread has clarified the importance of all three of the things you're asking about but you have a budget for just one of them, and maybe not enough budget for so many other things that are going to come up. It would be a shame to get into this life only to have to get out of it again at a loss down the road.

Again, not trying to be unpleasant, sorry for any offense caused.

[TheLexx]

The RV lifestyle can definitely be expensive. But at the end of the day, I still find it vastly less expensive that renting hotel rooms for the family and eating out all the time.

Reading all these posts, it's obvious everyone has a different perspective and experience with the 3 items listed in the OP. I say the the best thing to do is to budget so that you can acquire all 3 eventually. These 3 items really are basic safety items that RVers should all consider.