First time seasonal.. question on tanks and slide?

We leave slides open (no toppers), dump and rinse black tank, dump grey tank and close awning. With slide toppers I would probably close them.

I always left the tank as the maintance guy who put the trailer on site and hooked up the PVC for the sewer said that is how most at the campground did it. The though was since you are not towing and letting water swish around in there then that was the next best thing. Worked for us for 11 years. The awning we left out to protect the table, chairs and whatever else we had under there. We only had an awning a few years and upgraded to a hard awning.

I've never been a seasonal camper, but I'll add my 2 cents worth! If I had a seasonal site, I would put the slide in when leaving and lessen any chance of a leak as well as protect the seals from the elements. Likewise, why leave an awning out and exposed to the elements if you aren't there? And, you really have to know the area where your seasonal is located to even contemplate leaving an awning out.

As to the black tank, I would probably use my flush king and keep it emptied while not there...being sure to keep some water in the tank. Yes, it shouldn't be a problem leaving the tank for a week, but I would just rather empty it and know that I have an empty tank when I return the following weekend. But...that is really just a personal quirk!!

Black tanks should NEVER be emptied until they are nearly full. If you don't want to leave it partly filled then fill it with water THEN empty it. Emptying with a partly filled tank WILL leave lots of solids behind and can eventually lead to clogs. This is true for ALL RVs with holding tanks, not just those on seasonal sites but it may be even MORE important for an RV that does not move.

Concerning the slide, it's pretty much YOUR own opinion that matters. It will work either by closing it or leaving it open and each has some advantages. Closing it prevents a lot of sun exposure to your topper and also prevents flapping around in wind storms. It also works the slide mechanism which is beneficial over leaving it static all the time. The advantages of leaving it out are mostly convenience like no need to move furniture around to accomodate a closed slide (if that's an issue with your RV) and the need to be sure debris has not collected on the topper or the slide roof UNDER the topper before closing it. If there are sticks, tree fruit etc. on your roof seal damage can easily occur.

We have had a seasonal site since 1993. We are basicly weekend campers. We open the slides April 1 and close them October 15. We haven't had a problem doing this. The awning is ALWAYS closed when we are not there. I also finish filling the grey and black tanks and then dump before we leave Sunday afternoon. The black tank I fill and dump twice then I close dump valve and add around 10 gallons of water to it.

We've been seasonal for many years now and we leave the slides out all season. Close awning and dump tanks when leaving.

We live in upstate NY too and have a seasonal site for out class A.
I close up the slides and the awning after every weekend. In the beginning I used to leave them out until we decided to use it to go on a trip. Noticed that our slide toppers held some water and was growing some algae on it. Also I wasn't a big fan of the spiders that built a web between the topper and the slide and then decided that the inside of the MH was there new home when I closed up the slide.
Don't want to take the chance of the awning coming down when one of those summer thunder storms come through either.
We dump our tanks after every weekend. By then they usually have a good amount in them anyway plus if you miss a week in the hot summer sun they can become a bit ripe when you flush. After I dump I fill them up with 10 gallons of clean water and then dump them again. Then a gallon or so with some chemical and they are always clean.
For maybe 30 minutes of work you know your rig is in good shape just in case you can't make it back when you planned.

We traveled full time every week/2 weeks for 7 yrs. closing and opening 3 slides.

Waste tanks......dump them when they get full. Even if it takes a couple of weekends.
Odors.......there should be no odors inside the RV. If you smell odors find and fix the problem letting the odors come inside.......seals, 'p' traps, gaskets, vents etc.
When the waste tank system is correct odors don't happen.

yankeeslover wrote:
this is my second season with a camper and the 1st at a seasonal site(tired of towing after one season). We will be weekenders at our seasonal site. im just wondering if others always flush and clean the black tank sunday before they leave or if I can leave it be until it starts to get full(2 weekends or so).
Also, what about the slide. is it ok to close it on sunday and just open it again on Friday night when we come up? I do have a slide topper.. opening and closing once per week shouldn't wear out the slide or motor will it? and I guess I should ask the same about the awning? I notice a lot of seasonal campers keep there awning open and leave things under it, I don't know if I like this idea, rather just close it... thanks...

We've kept our camper at a seasonal site when not towing it for the last 5 summers.

I don't like to leave the black tanks full or partially full when we leave ... especially in the summer time ... because it may be a couple weeks before we get back up there. It's usually pretty close to full after a 2-3 days anyway so I dump it. I usually flush it my flush king about once a month.

For one thing, it's hard enough to keep the smell down without giving it 10-14 days to ferment and the longer it sets the more chance the contents of the black tank have to solidify.

We don't have a slide on this camper (the next one will have 3) and a lot of people at the camp grounds leave theirs open, but I would think that's just asking for trouble especially if you're in a shaded area.

As far as the canopy...two of my buddies up there USED TO leave theirs open, but both of them now have new ones (one has a new frame and all). Neither leave their canopies open anymore.

Just my 2 cents

My trailer is at seasonal site and its tank valves remain closed - until it needs emptying. re: Our TT's tanks can remain "as is" up to 4 weeks before I need to open its valves. For its rear slide, it goes out in spring and it comes in at fall time. And to help keep critters out of TT, I inject spray foam within its lower corners. For its front awning, it goes out in early summer (after windy May) and rolls up in early Sept. Our awing has both 3rd horizontal and 3rd vertical post. Without these extra support posts, it would go out on Friday Night and back in during Sunday night.

At your seasonal site, "ask around" on their slide, awning positions. At my seasonal sites, the beach front TTs cannot use awnings. re: The wind off lakes eats awnings each weekend. But in some bush locations (like my TT), its slide and awnings remain out - without damage risk. Each TT's exact site does vary...