How To Winterize And Pre-Clean For Next Season - Work Smarter NOT Harder! 2018

Getting Ready For Winter

    After my last trip of the season a day ago, it came time to shut down all the RV systems. Drain and winterize the water system, unpack the fridge and move all the food out. In addition, I like to clean and sanitize the interior so it's mostly ready to go next season. You would be surprised, or maybe you wouldn't(!), at the amount of mold and mildew that can develop inside an RV over the winter season. I do my VERY best to prevent anything like that from happening and also include critter intrusion prevention to the mix. What works? What doesn't work? And, most importantly, what are the easiest methods to do all of the above?

So Much For My Nice Black Hooded Sweatshirt!

Once the hard core winterizing of all the major RV systems is done I move on to the "pre-prep" items. Let's start with the easiest, and for me, the one I hate the most...cleaning. I get a bleach-based cleanser and some gloves and begin wiping down the inside of the fridge. Pull all the shelves both on the door and inside. Make sure you wipe down any residue you can find and make sure the bleach mixture gets into the nooks and crannies, then make sure it's wiped off. Careful of your clothing as bleach will...well...BLEACH out colors pretty easily. I ruined a brand-new, expensive hooded sweatshirt this year. So I know all about it! Next wipe down the walls, "ceilings" and "floors" of both the fresh and frozen compartments. Once done, wipe down the seals and the outside. Figure out a way to hold the fridge slightly open over the winter months as the air circulation will help reduce mold and mildew growth and keep smells to a minimum. I also have an activated charcoal cube hanging inside as well as a box of baking soda to be extra sure!

Next, work on the toilet. Clean the inside and outside with your bleach cleanser. Make sure you get under the seat and cover as well as the entire outside housing down to the floor. I have a smooth floor surrounding mine, so I wipe all that down as well. Getting to the back can be a bit of a problem, but do your best. Mine had a lot of accumulated dirt and grime back there. It will also give you a chance to check for leaks from the hoses leading to the toilet. Once done, pour in some RV antifreeze over the blade valve to keep it moist and lubricated. Move on to the shower stall. Clean the entire thing, top to bottom. Pull the rubber mats, if you have them, and clean underneath. Lots can grow on and under them! Check around the window (if you have one) for any growths or dirt and clean. Clean the lavatory sink and cabinets. I usually end up with toothpaste remnants in places I didn't know could have them!

In the main living area and bedrooms, wipe down the cabinets and walls to get rid of dust and dirt buildup. Then I move on to the carpets. Vacuum everything you can! So much dirt gets tracked in during your trips, you will be surprised how full your vacuum will get just doing this simple cleaning. Make sure you empty it and clean the filter to maintain maximum suction. This will save you the time of going back over the carpets again and again. I use a 12 Volt canister vacuum that I wrote about a while back. It works great and I really don't have that much floor for carpet anyway. It's also A LOT easier to do the walls and floors with it.

As for Critter prevention...while you are cleaning, check for any leavings and points of ingress. Fill those with steel wool or patch the hole with silicone sealant if it's small enough. Later on, I'll write up an entire article about critter proofing and prevention both during the RV season and in between. Stay Tuned! It's always sad to perform this cleanup, but if you do it now it will be easier to get going again in the spring. I can't wait!

Rich "The Wanderman"
www.thewanderman.com

Emergency Roadside Repair! - Part 2

    Last week I began a trip I believed would be wonderful and relaxing. Likely the last one of the season for me. It started with a bang, and not in a good way! A hose ruptured and put me on the side of the road. Well, that was just the beginning of what the universe had in store. Next up, the incredible disintegrating rear brake. I made it another 400 miles down the road before I decided to stop for the night at a mountaintop rest area someplace in South Carolina. About 500 miles from my destination. While slowing down, my brake warning light lit up and my pedal went to the floor. Now what?

After getting some sleep, I awoke and began to try and figure out what happened. Seemed like my vacuum brake booster had stopped working and the pedal was at the floor. I thought that since I could still stop, but I pulled off the hose at the booster and tested for vacuum with the engine running it was fine. The brake reservoirs were very low on the back circuit and BEHOLD I had a stream and puddle of fluid behind one of the back wheels. Well, that was it, the rear left brake was toast. I followed the emergency guys back to their shop and worked out a repair schedule. Little did we know that it would be our erstwhile home for 2 days!

Typical Auto Parts Supplier

It wasn't that they weren't nice nor accommodating, rather the surroundings were...well a bit "repo yard." After a long disassembly period and short diagnosis time, a bunch of parts were needed, Problem was none would get there until the following morning so, stuck again. This time, we had power, but not enough to run the air conditioner. The pace in the shop, was...well...leisurely at best. All I wanted to do was get back on the road. The parts (most of them) arrived near the agreed to time, (most of them anyways) We were then stuck waiting for the mechanics to finish and we waited and waited. Nothing I could do would speed up up the  process, so we waited some more, hoping for a fix to get us moving quick;y. Not to be. After two days most of the parts arrived, bit some didn't. We  finally got out of there and got onto our destination without delay.

The bottom line is not everything that needed to be fixed was. I am still riding on worn bearings (inner and outer) on the rear passenger side. They could fail at any time. I MAY have purchased the correct bearing from an auto parts store but no guarantee they are correct for my Aero Cruiser.

Wish me luck!

Be Seeing You...Down The Road,

Rich "The Wanderman"
www.thewanderman.com

Emergency Roadside Repair! - Part 1

After The First Repair, Before The Second

    As many of you know, I am traveling down to Florida from New York this week with my helicopter in tow. Unfortunately, this trip hasn't been going all that well, mechanically speaking. After getting everything ready and then starting out late we got about 1.5 hours down the road and into the State park lands in Pennsylvania and the rubber hose on my engine water pump ruptured. This was quite a surprise. First the huge vapor cloud that obscured my rearward vision, and the fact it happened at all. You see, I had just had someone replace the pump and I had told them to replace the bypass hose as well. Obviously, they didn't and I didn't check their work. Sad that I would have to...but there it is.

The Offending Hose!

Once stopped on a stretch of I84 at the crest of a hill with my lights/emergency flashers on, I attempted to diagnose the problem. I looked underneath the engine and was dismayed at the large quantity of coolant everywhere. Especially under the BRAND NEW water pump. Of course, the first thing that came to mind was it wasn't sealed properly and had failed. Back up inside the RV I removed the engine doghouse/cover and got a huge cloud of coolant vapor all throughout the RV. Great, I remember how difficult that stuff is to clean off windows. *SIGH* Anyway, as the engine cooled down, I was able to figure out that the underside of the water pump bypass hose at the 90 degree bend had ruptured and sprayed piping hot fluid all over the engine and underside of the cover. What a mess. Usually, I have a spare for every hose. Not this time. Of course, Murphy is the eternal optimist.

The Bypass Hose

After calling the PA State Troopers to apprise them of the situation, they assured me that they could get help to call me in the next few minutes. They did. Outstanding job guys!! A mobile tow/repair person called me straightaway and I explained the problem, he showed up within 20 minutes with an assortment of hoses and extra coolant. Of course, the ONLY one we needed for the fix, he didn't have. He then proceeded to REPAIR the existing hose to get me off the road and to a lot by his repair facility. A new part would be ordered and at his facility by 8:30AM. It got there at 8AM! He was incredibly professional and had an exceptionally friendly demeanor. I was back on the road by 9:30 AM with a freshly bled coolant system and a new friend.

I've been saying (and writing) for MANY years about the importance of carrying spare parts and enough tools to work with them while traveling. Dark and desolate roads with no cell service will leave you to fend for yourself...like it was in the "olden days" of motor travel. It's a good idea to be prepared. Better to "Have it and not need it, than need it and not have it." Don't suffer "tripus interruptus" like I just did. All over a small $1.45 (plus shipping) part.

Be Seeing You...Down The Road,

Rich "The Wanderman"
www.thewanderman.com