April 3, 2019
Welcome to another fabulous edition of RV Travel’s Daily Tips newsletter. Here, you’ll find helpful RV-related, and small-space living, tips from the pros, travel advice, a handy website of the day, our favorite RVing-related products and, of course, a good laugh. Thanks for joining us. We appreciate your readership.
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QUICK TIPS
Cleaning shower door tracks
It’s one of those oft-neglected areas of RVing cleaning – the tracks around the shower door. Given time they can build up a layer of hard-water deposits and even (gasp!) mold and mildew. Here’s a two-fisted approach to de-grunging those nasty little slots.
First, if your tracks have drain holes, put a little duct tape over them to form a solid “trough.” Pour in enough vinegar to fill the slot – white or cider, either one. Let the vinegar stand for a half hour, then sop up the stuff with a paper towel. Now hit the tracks with a toothbrush to scrub the daylights out of it. Vertical tracks? Stuff paper towels in the tracks and dump vinegar on the towels and do as above.
Next, if crud still remains, make a paste of baking soda and water. Apply to nasty areas and let sit for a half-hour. Try the toothbrush. Not good enough? Use a paint scraper (be gentle!) to knock off klingons. You might need to repeat the whole process again to get the stubborn fellows. Now rinse off the surfaces well and get yourself a well-deserved beverage of your choice. More suggestions at the My Real Life at Home blog.
Did you know?
The word Sasquatch is believed to come from the Native American Salish (Halkomelem) word Sasq’ets, meaning “wild man” or “hairy man.” The Sts’ailes people claim a close bond with Sas’qets, and believe it has the ability to move between the physical and spiritual realm. Sasquatch has also been commonly known as Bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest.
MORE QUICK TIPS
Taming a light too bright
Many RVs come equipped with light fixtures tacked under cabinets, often one or two tucked right above the dinette. They can be handy. They can be annoying – you need some light, but at times, it’s just too intense for comfort. One RVer puzzled over this conundrum and hit on a quick, cheap and easy solution. He bought a small vinyl shade roller and fitted it to the front of the cabinet. Need bright light? Shade up. Need to dim it a bit? Roll the shade down. See more suggestions here.
Ward off expensive awning damage
Never leave your RV awning out for any period of time when you are away from the campsite. A quick windstorm or thunderstorm can result in expensive repair costs to the awning and the RV. If your awning is out and it begins to rain, lower one end to allow the water to run off. Water can quickly pool up in the center of the awning fabric and the weight can damage the awning. If the wind begins to pick up at the campground, put your awning in its stored position. Better safe than sorry. Tip from Mark Polk, RV Education 101.
Do you have a tip? Send it to Russ (at) rvtravel.com
WEBSITE OF THE DAY
Camp-California’s Camping Guide
This free 88-page guide lists some of the best campgrounds in California. It includes regional campground maps of CA, park locator maps, amenity grids, an event calendar for each region, and more!
Check out the long list of great RVing-related websites from RVtravel.com.
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With a Harvest Hosts membership, you can stay overnight at more than 700 wineries, farms, breweries, etc., for free! Harvest Hosts offers an alternative to traditional campgrounds, where members can meet interesting people, taste great wines, eat fresh produce and stay in peaceful settings. (RVtravel.com recently stayed in a blueberry orchard.) Save 15 percent by using code HHFRIENDS15 at checkout. Learn more.
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RV Daily Tips Staff
Editor and Publisher: Chuck Woodbury. Managing editor: Diane McGovern. Contributing writers: Russ De Maris, Bob Difley, Gary Bunzer, Roger Marble, Mike Sokol, Greg Illes, J.M. Montigel and Andrew Robinson. Advertising director: Emily Woodbury. Marketing director: Jessica Sarvis. IT wrangler: Kim Christiansen.
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Everything in this newsletter is true to the best of our knowledge. But we occasionally get something wrong. We’re just human! So don’t go spending $10,000 on something we said was good simply because we said so, or fixing something according to what we suggested (check with your own technician first). Maybe we made a mistake. Tips and/or comments in this newsletter are those of the authors and may not reflect the views of RVtravel.com or this newsletter.
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Just an I.A.F.F. RETIRED sticker on a side window.
That “free California Campground Guide” is far from advertising free campgrounds – fake news.? 🙁
Thanks for pointing that error out, alvin.e! The person who wrote that up misinterpreted the info, and the proofreader (me) totally missed the error. I’ve reworded the paragraph so it is accurate now. Absolutely no “fake news” intended — just a huge error on our part, for which we apologize. Thanks again! Have a great day! 😀 —Diane at RVtravel.com
Bumper? What’s that? I put a few small stickers on the RV and car windows to identify my RV clubs and some organizations.
Shriners Children’s Hospitals emblems on both
Never had any stickers on any of my cars, trucks or motorhome. HOWEVER, I may make an exception for a couple years and put a ‘Trump 2020’ sticker on ?. Okay folks, take your best shot. ?
Our Bumper stickers are very small; Good Sam Logo and a USAF Memorial decal. No slogans or other “stuff” stuck on our STS or El Camino – or the garden tractor!
I’ve learned over the years that I never leave camp or go to bed with the awning left out. You don’t have to totally secure for travel and it only takes a few minutes. Besides I’ve never had one problem with any of my Motorhome awnings because of my routine.
Absolutely no bumper stickers of any kind on any of my vehicles.
Window stickers only.
One small round one on the SUV’s back window that says “Proud to be an AMERICAN”
At Northwood Mfg they have what they call “Boo Boo Foxes” which they put on trailers to cover small blemishes. They are actually popular among Northwood trailer owners, and are used as decorative ‘decals’ on tow vehicles AND trailers.
No bumper stickers but we have window stickers on the back of our van for places we visit.
Re the bumper sticker. Mine are on the rear of my RV as the original tire holder ‘died’. There are several expressing my philosophy of life. One picture of a sitting, little dog: Sit Happens
Only one on the RV and it says “I’m retired, go around me.”
Ain’t that the truth? Now that I’m also retired I wonder why people are in such a hurry!
I have 2- they’re on the front of the washing machine at home.
I have 2 bumper stickers but they are on the front of our washing machine at home.
I have a large sticker on the back window of my motorhome “I slow down for curves and bumpy roads” and I do that.
Haha! I love the poll today. My car, 10 years old when we started but with very low mileage, had a few scratches o it that began to rust. I was not about to pay for body work so one day hit upon the idea of sticking bumper stickers over them. Then we just kept going. Been on the road for 4 years now and the car has stickers from everywhere we’ve been that sells them.