6 Best Outdoor Electrical Cord Management Reels For RVs That Nomads Swear By

There’s a moment every RVer knows well: it’s pouring rain, you’ve just pulled into your site after a long day of driving, and now you have to wrestle a stiff, muddy 50-amp power cord out of a cramped storage bay. It’s more than an inconvenience; it’s a frustrating ritual that chips away at the freedom of the lifestyle. Smart cord management isn’t a luxury—it’s one of the most impactful quality-of-life upgrades you can make to your rig.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, this site earns from qualifying purchases. Thank you!

Why Smart RV Cord Management Is Essential

Wrangling a heavy-gauge RV power cord is a daily chore, and doing it without the right tools is a recipe for frustration. These cords are heavy, stiff (especially in the cold), and magnets for dirt, mud, and water. Shoving a dirty cord into a clean storage bay means you’re just moving the mess inside, creating more cleanup later.

Beyond the hassle, improper storage actively damages your expensive shore power cord. Kinking, twisting, and tightly bending the cord can break the internal copper wires over time, leading to intermittent power, dangerous heat buildup, or complete failure. A good reel maintains a gentle, consistent coil, dramatically extending the life of your cord and preventing a costly replacement.

Finally, think about efficiency and safety. A well-managed cord deploys quickly and stores away even faster, streamlining your setup and teardown process. This saves you precious time and energy. It also keeps the cord neatly contained, reducing a major trip hazard around your campsite, which is especially important if you have kids or pets.

MORryde Easy-Reel: The Effortless Spooler

The MORryde Easy-Reel hits a sweet spot between manual effort and automated convenience. It’s a permanently mounted spool that uses a simple, gear-reduced hand crank. This design gives you a significant mechanical advantage, making it surprisingly easy to wind up even a heavy 50-amp cord without straining your back.

Because it’s a mounted system, you install it directly into one of your storage bays. This means the reel and the cord have a permanent home, freeing up floor space and keeping things organized. The key tradeoff here is the installation itself. While not overly complex, it does require drilling into your rig, a step some RVers hesitate to take. But for those who do, the reward is a seamless, integrated system that just works.

I’ve seen this system on everything from fifth wheels to Class A motorhomes. It’s a fantastic solution for full-timers who are constantly setting up and breaking down camp. The effortless spooling action makes a daily task feel trivial, which is exactly what you want from a good piece of gear.

Shoreline Reels: A Durable, High-End Choice

When you see a Shoreline Reel, you immediately understand it’s built for the long haul. These are the heavy-duty, often motorized reels you find on high-end coaches and marine applications. They are typically constructed from steel with a durable powder-coat finish, designed to withstand constant use and harsh environments.

This is a premium, high-end choice, and the price reflects that. Most models are motorized, reeling in your massive cord with the simple push of a button. They are built to be the last cord reel you’ll ever buy. If you’re a full-time RVer who values durability and push-button convenience above all else, a Shoreline is a serious contender.

However, the investment is significant, and like other mounted systems, it requires a dedicated space and permanent installation. This isn’t the solution for a weekend warrior or someone on a tight budget. It’s for the nomad who has decided that the daily convenience and bulletproof reliability are worth the upfront cost and installation effort.

Glendinning Cablemaster: The Automated Option

Glendinning takes automation to the next level. The Cablemaster is the system you often see as a factory-installed option on new, high-end motorhomes. It doesn’t just reel the cord in—it also powers it out, making deployment and retrieval a true one-touch operation. You simply guide the cord, and the machine does all the heavy lifting.

The convenience is undeniable. On a cold, rainy morning, being able to retract a 50-foot, 50-amp cord without ever touching the wet, dirty parts is a game-changer. The system is robust and designed to be integrated directly into the RV’s infrastructure, often in a dedicated wet-bay compartment.

The primary consideration with a Glendinning is that it’s rarely an easy aftermarket addition. Its design and power requirements mean it’s best installed during the manufacturing process. While retrofit is possible, it can be a complex and expensive project. This is the peak of convenience, but it comes with a complexity and cost that places it in a category of its own.

Southwire Cord Caddy: Simple and Effective

Moving into the portable world, the Southwire Cord Caddy is a popular and practical choice. This isn’t a mounted reel, but a freestanding plastic caddy with a spinning handle. You simply place it on the ground, feed one end of the cord through the center, and crank the handle to wind the cord into a neat circle inside the caddy.

Its beauty lies in its simplicity and portability. There’s no installation required, and you can store it wherever it fits best. It keeps the cord organized and off the ground, and the center handle makes it easy to carry. For many RVers, this is all the cord management they need.

The tradeoff is that it’s still a manual process. You have to bend over and crank, and it doesn’t offer the same effortless experience as a mounted, geared system. But for its low cost and zero-modification approach, it provides a massive improvement over wrestling a loose cord by hand.

Bayco K-100: The No-Frills Manual Reel

If the Southwire Caddy is simple, the Bayco K-100 is minimalist. This is essentially a skeletal reel on a stand. It’s a lightweight, no-frills tool designed to do one thing: hold your cord in a neat coil. You wind it by hand, using the integrated spinner knob.

This is the go-to option for the budget-conscious RVer or someone with very limited storage space. It breaks down for flat storage, taking up minimal room. It’s inexpensive, lightweight, and gets the job done without any complexity. It’s a significant step up from having no system at all.

Of course, it’s the most labor-intensive of the reel options. There’s no gear reduction or fancy caddy—just you and the crank. But for many, that’s a perfectly acceptable tradeoff for the low price and tiny storage footprint. It proves that effective cord management doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.

Camco Power Grip Strap: A Minimalist Solution

Sometimes the best solution isn’t a reel at all. The Camco Power Grip Strap is a heavy-duty strap with a built-in handle, and for many nomads, it’s the perfect tool. You simply coil your cord by hand—using the "over-under" method to prevent twisting—and then secure the bundle with the hook-and-loop strap.

This is the ultimate minimalist, space-saving, and low-cost option. It adds almost no weight or bulk to your gear. The handle makes carrying a heavy 50-amp cord much more manageable, and the strap keeps it from turning into a tangled mess in your storage bay.

The obvious limitation is that it doesn’t help you wind the cord; it only helps you store it once it’s coiled. This solution is best for those who don’t mind the manual labor of coiling and are primarily concerned with tidy storage and easy transport from the bay to the power pedestal. It’s a testament to the fact that sometimes the simplest tool is the right one for the job.

Key Factors in Choosing Your RV Cord Reel

Making the right choice comes down to your personal travel style, your rig, and your budget. There is no single "best" reel, only the best reel for you. Before you buy, think through these key factors.

First, decide between mounted vs. portable. A mounted reel (like MORryde or Shoreline) offers incredible convenience but requires permanent installation and a dedicated bay. A portable reel (like Southwire or Bayco) offers flexibility and no installation but requires more manual handling and takes up floor space. Your comfort with modifying your rig and your storage layout will be the biggest driver here.

Next, consider the mechanism: manual vs. motorized.

• Manual: Lower cost, simpler, no power required, but more physical effort.
• Motorized: Highest convenience, minimal effort, but significantly more expensive, heavier, and adds a point of mechanical failure. Your budget and your desire to eliminate physical chores will guide this choice. A manual reel with a gear-reduction crank, like the MORryde, can be a great middle ground.

Finally, look at the practical details. Ensure any reel you choose is rated for the length and gauge of your cord. A 50-amp cord is much thicker and heavier than a 30-amp cord and requires a larger, more robust reel. Also, consider your budget honestly. You can spend anywhere from twenty dollars on a strap to over a thousand on a motorized reel. The goal is to find the solution that removes the most friction from your daily life for a price you’re comfortable with.

Ultimately, managing your shore power cord is about making life on the road simpler and more enjoyable. Whether you choose a fully automated system or a simple strap, the right tool eliminates a daily point of frustration. By investing a little thought into how you handle this one crucial connection, you buy back time and energy that is better spent on the adventure itself.