In this column, we will be sharing some of the not-so-brilliant things we, the RVtravel.com staff, and you, our readers, have done while RVing. We hope that in addition to a chuckle or two, we can learn from others’ RVing mistakes and not make them ourselves!
There have to be many RV mistakes and “oops” moments among both our seasoned and newbie RVers. Please leave your own stories on the form below.
Black tank overflowed through the toilet
Joan C. reported this disaster: “Getting ready for a nap, I used the bathroom and laid down. When I woke up, I found the floor covered with water. The flush valve didn’t close all the way and continued to fill the black tank and the toilet overflowed. Fortunately, the black tank was empty so the mess wasn’t too bad.”
Yikes! Black tank spewed contents out roof vent!
And here’s another black tank disaster from reader Jim S.: “I’ve got one of those cyclone black tank vents atop my fifth wheel. Looks like a weathervane that is supposed to spin and draw odors out. I wanted to drain my black tank, but it was only about a quarter full, so I attached a hose to the tank flusher to fill the tank for a better ‘whoosh’ at dumping. I went inside to watch the gauge to tell when it was full. It was taking forever and the gauge wasn’t moving. Then I heard the screams. The tank had filled and was spewing its contents out the roof vent like a sprinkler system around and around. Funny how fast I was able to get to the spigot! Not funny was the mess I had made at the campsite. Diluted it the best I could, and left the campground in a hurry…”
Syrup came for years!
Catherine T. writes about their sticky mess. “We stopped for gas, at which time I went into the trailer to use the bathroom. On opening the door I saw the pantry had opened, and a Sam’s Club-sized container of pancake syrup had fallen out and was all over the floor! What a sticky mess! We had syrup coming out from under the bench seating for years! To this day syrup is banned from the new trailer.”
A sledgehammer is needed to fix this lesson…
Mark S. was a little too close to turn. He wrote, “First RV and was heading back to Florida from Minnesota. Stopped for fuel but I was too close to the pumps and when pulling out caught the rear bumper on the pole protecting the pump. Fortunately, the ole 95 Bounder had a metal bumper and it was bent out some, but not torn away. Was pulling a toad, and a great trucker helped me edge back and forth until I was cleared enough to safely pull away. Stopped at the next rest area and used a sledgehammer to get the bumper partially back in so it was not sticking out. Learned to always leave room between the rig and the pump for the rear end swing… and clearance for the toad to pass the pumps too.”
Forgot to release emergency brake
David M.’s mistake cost him, but doubts he will forget it ever again. He wrote, “My wife and I were camping and had towed our 2019 Jeep Wrangler with oversized tires for the first time. We were able to hook it up and disconnect without an issue and used it to explore the surrounding area, which was awesome. We usually just have our electric mountain bikes so having an actual vehicle to get around was sweet. When we were getting ready to leave, I forgot to take the emergency brake off after reconnecting the motorhome due to being distracted and did not check to see if the Jeep’s tires were turning freely before driving off. Due to my mistake, I ended up dragging our Jeep the length of a football field, causing the back tires to smoke like hell due to doing the longest brake stand known to mankind and screwing up my back tires by creating a flat spot. That was a $1,000+ fix to replace the tires.”
Please share your RVing “oops” mistake story
Humor can be the best medicine and mistakes the best lesson! Have you had some unfortunate “oops” mistakes during your RVing adventures? We would love to hear them. Please fill out the form below and include a photo if you have one. Thank you!
Thank you, Nanci! These poor people!?! Such unpleasant ways to learn these lessons!?! I hope that we continue to do nothing that makes it into your column. 😉
I would have paid to watch sewage spray out the roof vent!
Yep! A Robin Williams “RV” moment! 🤣
I had that situation when at an RV Park near Portland OR in November. I had attached my water hose AND clean out hose but left the cleanout hose off. The park people came and unkooked the hoses to add insulation around their stand pipe. They hooked both hoses back on and turned the tank rinse hose on and it filled the black tank and spued all over the top of my motorhome and down the street. I went to the office and insisted their people clean up the mess including the top of the motorhomome.
A poop shower…YIKES !!