Maintenance Reminder for Full-Timers

[firedude]

Well with the new year here I thought I'd throw out some good 'ol maintenance reminders which basically apply to most RV types. Some apply even more as we live in our RV's. I may go over board (it must be the firefighter in me:) ) but my trailer still looks and performs like the day I picked it up. Feel free to chime in and ad your own as I am only covering a few items that come to mind and my situation. Above all read your manuals and follow the maintenance guidelines in them. I've seen many who "use and abuse" and never do any maintenance and it's not pretty......

Water Heater Tanks...
Don't forget to change the Anode Rod (if you have one). Most Suburban water heater tanks have them. I do mine twice a year and just did it. Boy was I surprised (again) at all the crud that came out of the hot water tank when I flushed it. I'm sure doing this sure extends the life of the tank.

Water Fittings...
Check all your water fittings. They will and can come loose over time and by checking them and tightening them you'll avoid a "flood". It happened to me last year. I even crawl in the basement, pull the wall where a lot of the water fittings reside and check those. That's where I had my leak and luckily caught it before it became a major problem.

TV Antenna....
For those with the Winegard bat wing type antenna. I had developed a small leak down the shaft at the crank handle. Who ever reads the manual and care instruction for these? I didn't lol. It calls for a little silicone spray down the shaft every 6 months or so to keep the rubber o-ring/seal from drying out and preventing these type leaks! Nothing worse than a water leak over your bed lol!

House Batteries...
Should be checked often fopr proper water level in the cells. This prolongs the life of the battery(s) and will insure a proper charge and juice i those things when you need them!

Refer and Hot Water Exterior Compartments...
Check and keep these ares clean and clear of debris for proper operation. Bug, Bees and all kinds of things like to get in there and make a mess.

Tires!...
At least once a month check your tire pressure! Nothing worse than to have your sidewalls cracking because of low air pressure. The host I replaced here had a bad situation. He was here almost a year and never checked his tiires. They were half flat and sidewalls cracked to the point I'd be afraid to pull the trailer any distance. The tread was brand new but the tires were shot! Tire covers help to and prevent damage from the suns ultra violet rays and other weather components. CHECK THOSE LUG NUTS for proper torque. Losing a wheel goi ng down a highway can be costly to say the least.

Slide Seals...
I treat my slide seals with a protectant (Dicor) at least twice a year. It also contains a UV protection. This keeps them from drying out and cracking. Mine still look brand new thank goodness after 2 years.

Rubber Roof...
There are lots of good threads on here regarding this. You should at leat inspect your roof every 3 months or so. It should be cleaned and inspected for any areas where the sealant has deteriorated. Water is the #1 enemy to RV's! Be sure to check around ALL vents (hidden areas) A/C' units, TV Antennas and any other place there is a seal. It saved me. During one inspection I found a problem with my roof which was repaired by Keystone right away. Had I not caught this it would have been a worse situation down the road.

Misc Lubrications...
Don't forget to lube those areas and things you don't think of often. Awning rollers and Stabilizers come to mid as well as anything else that needs lubrication. Locks and entry steps also. It keeps things free and helps with corrosion control.

A/C Unit...
If you are not traveling and stationary for any length of time you might want to cover your A/C unit. This prevents UV damage to the covers, keeps unwanted debris out of the unit and in some cases can prevent damage during a storm. Also if your A/C unit has filters, inspect them and replace as needed.

RV Exterior...
Keep it cleaned and waxed! Makes for a happier RV. Also consider using a UV protection on the graphics such as 303 or ProtectAll. It does work. Mine still look new after 2 years.

Camp Host....
Always be kind to your camp hosts. Be sure and give them lots of goodies, smiles and pies especially. Oh and don't knock on their door for firewood at 2 am! A well maintained camp host goes a long ways.. :B:B:B

Moderators...
Always be kind to your Moderator. Remember they are always looking out for your best interest!:B:)

[ken_burke]

Oh yea . . . . check the plug on your hot water heater. Replace it if it looks corroded. I don't know why, but they put these cheap plastic plugs in the hot water heater and they fail after 2 or 3 years.

Mine was so bad I had to take it out in pieces. Then I screwed up the tank's pipe threads and had to use a tap. This would be a good time to flush out the hot water tank.

[ken_burke]

firedude wrote:
Well with the new year here I thought I'd throw out some good 'ol maintenance reminders which basically apply to most RV types. Some apply even more as we live in our RV's. I may go over board (it must be the firefighter in me:) ) but my trailer still looks and performs like the day I picked it up. Feel free to chime in and ad your own as I am only covering a few items that come to mind and my situation. Above all read your manuals and follow the maintenance guidelines in them. I've seen many who "use and abuse" and never do any maintenance and it's not pretty......

Water Heater Tanks...
Don't forget to change the Anode Rod (if you have one). Most Suburban water heater tanks have them. I do mine twice a year and just did it. Boy was I surprised (again) at all the crud that came out of the hot water tank when I flushed it. I'm sure doing this sure extends the life of the tank.

Water Fittings...
Check all your water fittings. They will and can come loose over time and by checking them and tightening them you'll avoid a "flood". It happened to me last year. I even crawl in the basement, pull the wall where a lot of the water fittings reside and check those. That's where I had my leak and luckily caught it before it became a major problem.

TV Antenna....
For those with the Winegard bat wing type antenna. I had developed a small leak down the shaft at the crank handle. Who ever reads the manual and care instruction for these? I didn't lol. It calls for a little silicone spray down the shaft every 6 months or so to keep the rubber o-ring/seal from drying out and preventing these type leaks! Nothing worse than a water leak over your bed lol!

House Batteries...
Should be checked often fopr proper water level in the cells. This prolongs the life of the battery(s) and will insure a proper charge and juice i those things when you need them!

Refer and Hot Water Exterior Compartments...
Check and keep these ares clean and clear of debris for proper operation. Bug, Bees and all kinds of things like to get in there and make a mess.

Tires!...
At least once a month check your tire pressure! Nothing worse than to have your sidewalls cracking because of low air pressure. The host I replaced here had a bad situation. He was here almost a year and never checked his tiires. They were half flat and sidewalls cracked to the point I'd be afraid to pull the trailer any distance. The tread was brand new but the tires were shot! Tire covers help to and prevent damage from the suns ultra violet rays and other weather components. CHECK THOSE LUG NUTS for proper torque. Losing a wheel goi ng down a highway can be costly to say the least.

Slide Seals...
I treat my slide seals with a protectant (Dicor) at least twice a year. It also contains a UV protection. This keeps them from drying out and cracking. Mine still look brand new thank goodness after 2 years.

Rubber Roof...
There are lots of good threads on here regarding this. You should at leat inspect your roof every 3 months or so. It should be cleaned and inspected for any areas where the sealant has deteriorated. Water is the #1 enemy to RV's! Be sure to check around ALL vents (hidden areas) A/C' units, TV Antennas and any other place there is a seal. It saved me. During one inspection I found a problem with my roof which was repaired by Keystone right away. Had I not caught this it would have been a worse situation down the road.

Misc Lubrications...
Don't forget to lube those areas and things you don't think of often. Awning rollers and Stabilizers come to mid as well as anything else that needs lubrication. Locks and entry steps also. It keeps things free and helps with corrosion control.

A/C Unit...
If you are not traveling and stationary for any length of time you might want to cover your A/C unit. This prevents UV damage to the covers, keeps unwanted debris out of the unit and in some cases can prevent damage during a storm. Also if your A/C unit has filters, inspect them and replace as needed.

RV Exterior...
Keep it cleaned and waxed! Makes for a happier RV. Also consider using a UV protection on the graphics such as 303 or ProtectAll. It does work. Mine still look new after 2 years.

Camp Host....
Always be kind to your camp hosts. Be sure and give them lots of goodies, smiles and pies especially. Oh and don't knock on their door for firewood at 2 am! A well maintained camp host goes a long ways.. :B:B:B

Moderators...
Always be kind to your Moderator. Remember they are always looking out for your best interest!:B:)

You might want to add to flush the hot water tank every year, and to clean out the gas piping on the hot water heater.

It may have been mentioned, but it is very important to change the trailer tires before they blow up and ruin your day. Once every 4 years or so.

[new2traveling]

nickk wrote:
Also change smoke detector batteries and check fire extinguisher gauge.

You missed one. You also need to check your Carbon Monoxide detector batteries. I saw something about that in another forum post.

audreyh1 wrote:
Now the new DP will have the "hydro-hot" system and thus no hot water tank, but I guess it must have it's own maintenance issues....

What is a "hydro-hot"system? :h

[chuck369]

and make sure you keep the little wife happy or she can mess up a WHOLE LOT

[Canadian_Karebe]

I wanted to add to this post as it's something important that I just ran across last year.

Tire wear.

Run your hand along your tires to see exactly where they are wearing.

Apparently some axles may be a little bent, so the wear on the tires is on the inside so it's not readily noticable when you are looking at the RV from any angle.

My tires had severe wear on the inside, where I didn't notice, until pieces of the tire actually started coming off it.

I took the unit right away to the Tire place and they replaced both tires.

Unfortunately they could not do anything about the axle being bent, but the tires on the RV were from the factory so they were probably not the greatest tires anyway.

The ones I replaced with were steel belted radials.

Im happy nothing bad happened, but upon just looking at the RV there is no way I would have caught that.

[masterdetailer]

Hello to all my name is Tim from Michigan!!! Jeff929 you hit the head on the nail.Maint. is important with any investment!!!I look forward to learning alot from this site!



Tim/detail specialist
Michigan

[do_y_keep_it_re]

Okay This form is great. I'm not A fire dude But I am A 30 year carpenter go to your supply line to your hot water tank and just before put another filter system I have a total of 3 filters to my tank and it work well clean it once A year and never have the smell IE taste.
also To add something to the list Check your trailer brakes at lest twice A year.

[Perpetual_Vacat]

jetenbu wrote:
FullMoonSalem
That checklist sounds like something that would be invaluable to all of us. Have you ever considered making your completed checklist available to all? I know I would love to have a copy of it, expecially if it is in something like Excel that can be modified, added to easily. Please let me know. Thanks, Jim

This question has NOTHING to do with maintenance! Where did you get the cool "been there" map to add to your posts?

[jetenbu]

FullMoonSalem
That checklist sounds like something that would be invaluable to all of us. Have you ever considered making your completed checklist available to all? I know I would love to have a copy of it, expecially if it is in something like Excel that can be modified, added to easily. Please let me know. Thanks, Jim

[RoadXYZ]

"Was pleasently surprised to find an anode rod already installed in our Suburban 10 gal. w/h. Was shocked to see the condition of said rod after only 9 months of living in the 5er. Next stop to CW to get a new sacrificial (?) anode."

We have found the best thing for us is to always buy 2 anode rods .. then if you are in an area where there is not an rv supply store close by .. well, you have an extra ..

And we use a notebook for the mainenance items now .. it is filed with the manuals, etc.

[NewbyRVer1234]

Gang,
From another newbie, I have read through all the manuals that came with my 5er, but because I'm a second owner, and a newbie, I have still many unanswered questions. I have a generic owners manual for the 5er, but not one specific to my unit, er... rig.
I emailed Thor California about my Mirage and they said that the manual is online, but it is the same one that I have in print.
How about lubrication of the slide mechanisms, such as the drive gears? The service department at Thor California suggested white lithium grease, but won't that attract dirt and actually act as a grinding material when the slides are moved in and out?
I don't know if this the proper thread to ask this, but will anyway.
This 5er came without sewer hose or connections. Is there a better product that anyone would suggest?
Thanks in advance,
I love this forum, as there is so much information about just about anything.

[Cruisetime]

One thing I'd like to add is caulk... I just got done recaulking one 5ver and need to start on my other one. We camp in one and have on property... In Texas the sun just destroys the caulk... Plus I could really tell how much the manufacturer skimps on caulk.

One thing we just found out on the last camping trip is the cheap plastic faucets they put in, well I broke the cold water knob one off in the bathroom(a pressure valve Ithink hubby called it broke), are replaceable with standard faucets at Walmart - I thought they would be made for RVs but they are not so if full timing and have plastic faucets you might think of replaceing them with metal ones. Also luckaly hubby had plugs for the water line so we could still have water to the trailer since it was 4th of July and we thought we had to go to an RV place to get a new faucet. They didnt' tell us on the phone so after driving 30 miles to get there they then tell us we could have gone to Walmart but they didnt' want us to so they didnt' tell us on the phone - you talk about no customer service!!

Thanks for the list... 🙂 Debbie

[Lindewoman]

This is such a good thread that I re-check it regularly just to be sure I haven't missed anything.

Someone has asked about a maintanance log, and I have heard about a specially designed log/journal/diary for all RVing needs, but I can't remember the name. Does anyone use it? Can you fill us in if that will keep track of maintance?

Another item to add to the checklist that I just became aware of; Dometic refrigerators need annual professional maintanance of their propane jets, etc.

[firedude]

karmasasha...

You'd be surprised as how many rigs I see here in the campground that are only a year or two old and look 20 years old. I think my point was if you take care of them they'll look new for a LONG time. 😉

[karmasasha]

Good suggestions....but I could not help but crack up at the following....

FireDude, "RV Exterior...
Mine still look new after 2 years."

Only two years old......it SHOULD look like new!!!!!