We're very similar to you: We're waiting another year or two to buy; that is, we want to buy at the point we become empty nesters, and with our youngest a college sophomore, that's on the horizon.
Like you, we have decided that we do not want the stove or the sink. We aren't interested in recreating a home kitchen (which is a different entity altogether -- what works in one place doesn't necessarily work in the other); rather, we've analyzed what we like and don't like while camping, and we are quite certain about this decision. We know this is a minority decision don't really care whether other people agree or disagree, but here's our reasoning:
- We have no interest in camping "off-grid" or in Walmart parking lots. Our comfort level is sleeping in an established campground with showers and toilets nearby. As such, we'll always have water available in the campsite. We have "nesting" water containers that we use now for camping; they will require little space /essentially no weight in the trailer.
- Water in the teardrop creates more work (refilling, emptying, hooking up, winterizing) and the possibility of leaks ... perhaps even the possibility of damage to the teardrop itself. In exchange for those negatives, you're using a tiny sink, its size making it of questionable value. We prefer to carry several larger water containers and use them in whatever place seems to make most sense at the moment. It's considerably less effort.
- We don't like the idea of cooking in the clamshell of the teardrop. We don't want to splatter grease, etc. onto the teardrop, requiring that we then wipe up all the surfaces in the teardrop ... and we really don't want to slide the used stove into a small and difficult to clean compartment. We think it's easier to use our grill on the picnic table. This also means the cook is at the table with the group, not stuck facing the teardrop.
- In our minds, the teardrop is for food storage, while cooking should be done on the campfire or on the grill. If you remove the stove and the sink, you gain fairly significant storage space.
- We are very into cooking on our MiniMax Big Green Egg grill (and, in fact, are attending EggtoberFest next weekend, a celebration of these fantastic grills), which is small enough to be portable in a heat-proof container. This will transport in the trunk of our tow vehicle. We also enjoy using our pudgie pie cookers over a campfire; we wrap them in aluminum foil before we cook, eliminating all dishwashing.
My best advice: Think about the type of camping meals you personally prefer to create, and mentally "walk through" the steps you'd take -- consider them both with and without the stove and sink. Only then will you be prepared to say with confidence what you want in your teardrop.
PBaker, I totally agree with you that one reason to buy a teardrop is that you can keep it "packed" all the time, so you're ready to camp on a moment's notice -- but I don't think this changes by removing the sink/stove. It just alters the tools you pack.
