What was your first newbie moment?

[Bill_and_Marie_]

As per BillHoughtin's response to my newbie moment post, please share your newbie moment!

[PSW]

Our first RV was a used Delta Class C about 26 feet long. After a very trying trip and a lot of miles, I pulled into the shopping center two miles from our house to drop off the film from the trip. Yes, before digital there was F I L M. This was early 1980s.

There was a chain called MotoFoto that developed film and they had little metal kiosk buildings set up around in shopping center parking lots. The whole think was probably no more than eight feet long and five feet wide and maybe seven feet tall with a young very, very plump lady sitting in there to take your film to develop and sell you new film. This whole deal was a drive up to the side operation.

I forgot about the overhang and caught the right front edge of the Class C overhang on the upper corner of their overhanging roof. Now, these were very flimsy little kiosk/buildings. I knocked a hole about three inches in the RV and did slight damage to the kiosk roof. BUT, it did raise the building (it was on skids and not permanently anchored)a couple of inches, causing all of the film for sale in front of the gal to come a tumblin' down like the Walls of Jericho.

She hollered and ran out the little sliding door on the opposite side to the drive through window. She was shook but unhurt. I gave her my name and phone number and told her to have her boss call about the damage (which was only a little bent corner). They never did call and so no harm, no foul.

I took the RV on home, sick about the trip and the whole kiosk situation. A few days later, I filled that hole with Bondo and painted a six inch wide stripe with black flat Krylon across the front of the C overhang. Looked pretty darn good !

I took that puppy down and trade it in for a brand new Intervec Horizon Class B and we had it for years with many, many great memories. We have had two more Bs since that fiasco and two more Cs and never had another really bad incident............except when the macerator hose broke out on the Western Slope and sprayed me with naughty naughty.

I have always wondered about the gal in the little building. The look of horror and scream were reminiscent of one of those 1950s black and white horror films.

Thus endeth the tale.

Paul

[eichacsj]

We had a new AF which is 8.6 wide, add a touch more for the slide. First road trip, pulled into a new RV park for the night. The slots were narrow and had curbs on each side of the tt. I told the host we were wider than normal by roughly 8 - 10". He said no worries. It was late, I pulled thru just left the truck hooked up, I went in to take the slide out and it stopped 6" short, hum why is that, I thought. Brought it in and did it again, stopped again, what the @$*&!#. I did it one more time and this time it went out. We went to bed. The next morning preparing to leave I went to unplug the elec and found I took out the elec post, opps. I only had a small nick on the TT slide. Now I stand out side no matter how clear we think the slide is and I watch while the wife slides it out.

We live in AZ, that small nick in 5 - 6 years ended up crawling up the whole side of the slide, delaminating it. No water, just flat-out heat.

[Jayco-noslide]

After 10 years towing a 5th wheel, got a 30 ft. Class C. Stopped by the campground check-in station heading out and needed to make a U-turn to re-enter the campground. Forgot about the rear overhang being up against a log fence and damaged the rear lower corner pretty badly. Expensive body work!

[EMD360]

The awning of course--and definitely help from a fellow camper--universal first and least damaging newbie experience for sure.

I was trying to dump at home for the first time and could not get a decent downward flow--so I backed up on blocks which moved me right into the garage, breaking some roof tile, denting the flashing--and breaking the ladder that I had just fixed.

The first probably was finding rot in the back panel of our new to us RV and figuring out how to fix it. We had looked for rot in all the places they recommend in buying a used RV--overheads, cabinets, etc. Nobody mentioned back rear panel!

Then almost immediately catching the rear corner on I don't remember what and having to fix it again.

Several little things--buying a ton of "stuff" to get started, some of which we no longer use. Also learning to caulk--still not very good at it. Going through batteries, it is way too easy to drain one all the way--repeatedly. Not putting down the antenna--another fellow camper support issue. Leaving the vent open in the rain before I put on vent covers. Not securing everything before leaving camp. Forgetting to plug the cord back into the generator. At least we never drove away connected--but some of these are not so much newbie as ongoing learning curve!

Somehow after you do it once, you add it to the must do list and something else happens! We are six years and counting and loving every minute.

[tenbear]

First time out, couldn't remember how to open the awning. Had to get the instructions out. DW still teases me about it.

[Markiemark32]

Hoooking up city water to the black water flush (hook-ups are exactly alike & on the same side, albeit a small sticker).

Fortunately, I was still setting up noticed the sound of rushing water "into the tank", thought I had a water leak, freaked out, turning off water, to then realize I was flusing the black tank. Whooo...


Markiemark:C

[quingus]

On my first voyage which was a long one. West coast, east coast trip to visit in laws. Made the trip in four days. Not kidding. We were on day 3 and I was tired. Went to fill up at the gas station and hooked a hard right, not realizing I wasn't far enough past the pumps. I rode up on the island curb and ripped off the paper towel dispenser. Ker thud was the noise. Gouged the rear tt compartment door and marker light. Needless to say embarrassing. That was the only problem or issue on the 5400 mile trip. Makes wide right turns is right. Newbie move for sure.

[old_guy]

came home from camping and was very tired. tried to drive TT into camping spot beside house and the darn thing wouldn't move. so put it into 4 wheel drive and still wouldn't move, so I used 4 low and it moved and so did the drain spout on the house.

[Houston_Remodel]

Forgot to look UP and caught a cabinet door in the slide out mechanism. Bent the hinges pretty darn badly.

[TrailerTravele1]

A re-creation of our first mishap, driving down the interstate the sewer hose decided to try and escape before ever being used!

Now after one year and 10,000 miles we're still discovering new mishaps regularly... luckily they're getting a bit less frequent. When are we not newbies? Never? :S



Lessons from our First 1250 Miles

[rockhillmanor]

What was your first newbie moment?

Ahhh the way back machine of the good old days of being a newbie at RV'ing sooooo many years ago!

1. Standing there with the awning instructions in hand trying to get the awning opened the first time!
A VERY nice fellow camper came over and helped me......I knew then and there that I was going to like RV'ing.

2. And of course turning the generator on for the first time and it not powering anything is almost a given right of passage to RV'ing when yet another fellow camper shows you that you have to plug the power cord into an outlet hidden in the cord storage bay! :W

3. Watching the shower floor filling up with water, thinking the drain must be plugged. I.E = learning curve about the gray tank and where the water goes when it is full!

4. Albeit my BEST one is the first little TT I had when I unhooked it on a slight incline without chocks behind the wheels and it started sliding backwards AND down hill from me was a brand new Prevost MH!!

I looked like the scene from Risky Business plastered against my TT trying to stop it just like when Tom Cruise tried to stop the Porsche from going into a pond of water...or at least that's what the rest of the CG said I looked like! :B

[Oasisbob]

Well there was the time I set up in the dark and lowered my tongue down onto the trailer pig tail. Camped on top of it for four days. Had to splice all the wires to get home.

[rekoj71]

Went for a week using the shower house and heating dish water on the stove, waiting for a warranty appointment for a water heater that didn't seem to be working right, while on our second voyage. Then I found that the kids used the outside shower to wash the dog, and didn't turn off the knobs and only turned off the flow control. The cold water was bypassing the heater and going straight into the hot side of the system through the shower faucet.

[bighatnohorse]

Gone camping without matches or any kind of lighter.

[pianotuna]

Taking a class C diesel from 1987 (Ford) into -4 C (25 f) temperatures and not bothering to plug in the engine block heater.