From the editors of RVtravel.com, “The RVers’ Voice of Reason.”
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
Welcome to another 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, tips on our favorite RVing-related products and, of course, a good laugh. Thanks for joining us. We appreciate you.
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Today’s thought
“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” ―Oscar Wilde
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Bow Tie Day
• Protect your RV’s slideout with this rubber seal lubricant. Learn more or order.
• Attention Big Rig RV owners! This annual road atlas will keep you away from too-narrow roads and low bridges. Learn more or order.
• Camping at Corps of Engineers Campgrounds. Many RVers consider these the very best places to stay. Learn more or order the directory.
Tip of the Day
Finding more storage space in the RV
Most RVers have faced the problem of better utilizing the space aboard their “cramped” RVs. While there are many ways to do it, here are a few ideas that you might put to use … or perhaps they’ll jog an idea!
There are never enough outside compartments, right? Why not hang some items from the top and sides of the compartment? There are any number of brackets available to hang items from different areas. A product called the Quick Fist is a handy rubber clamp system to use for attaching items in this fashion.
Slide trays made for motorhomes and fifth wheels are excellent for keeping stored items accessible. Plastic containers, like those by Rubbermaid, are superb for storing items in basements and on slides. They’re also good for storage under beds in RVs that have them. Small containers work well in cabinets where they do double-duty keeping pests out.
Closet Maid storage systems may be useful in RVs. The shelves can be slanted backward toward the closet wall or cabinet to keep items from sliding off. The options are endless.
Safety Note: Be very careful when screwing, stapling or drilling into your RV. Just like your house, wiring and piping of various kinds run through the wall, violation of which can cause property damage and/or personal injury.
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Helpful resources
• NATIONAL TRAFFIC AND ROAD CLOSURE INFORMATION.
• ROAD AND TRAFFIC CONDITIONS ACROSS THE NATION.
• WEATHER ALERTS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.
• CURRENT WILDFIRE REPORT.
• LATEST RV RECALLS.
- Earn $$$ renting out your RV! In an instant see how much you could make on just one rental.
- An honest RV dealer (and one of our sponsors). Click to learn more.
Random RV Thought
When you sleep in a hotel bed, you never know who slept there before you. In your RV, you always know.
New and interesting finds at Amazon.com. Wow! It’s fun exploring here.
Quick Tip
There is one phenomenon common to all vehicles that most drivers don’t think about; when you turn the steering wheel sharply to the RIGHT, the portion of the vehicle behind the rear tires “swings” LEFT (and vice-versa). In a car, you will seldom be close enough to anything to cause a problem, but remember that a motorhome has a lot more sticking out behind the rear wheels. You must not be too close to a vehicle or obstacle when you turn away from it, because the “swing” is much more pronounced.
Protect yourself and others from sharp edges of RV slideouts!
Cut your head just once on the edge of a sharp RV slideout and you’ll race out to buy these so it never happens again! Camco’s Slide-Out Corner Guards offer a simple solution to the danger posed by a slideout’s sharp corners. Simply place them on corners of the slide to provide a cushion zone. Easy to install, no tools required. Learn more or order.
Popular articles you may have missed at RVtravel.com
• Your Sprinter RV cost too much? Blame chickens!
• In-laws spoiling full-time RVing experience.
#857-F
Up to date on RV Electricity? Catch up on Mike’s recent articles here.
Trivia
Depending on breed, management and environment, the modern domestic horse has a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years. Uncommonly, a few animals live into their 40s and, occasionally, beyond. The oldest verifiable horse was “Old Billy,” who in the 1800s lived to 62. In modern times, Sugar Puff, who had been listed in Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest living pony, died in 2007 at age 56. Horses, by the way, can sleep both lying down and standing up.
Leave here with a laugh
Did you hear about the restaurant on the moon? Great food, but no atmosphere.
Today’s Daily Deals at Amazon.com
Best-selling RV products and Accessories at Amazon.com. UPDATED HOURLY.
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RV Daily Tips Staff
Editor and Publisher: Chuck Woodbury. Managing editor: Diane McGovern. Advertising director: Emily Woodbury. Marketing director: Jessica Sarvis. Financial affairs director: Gail Meyring. IT wrangler: Kim Christiansen.
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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This newsletter is copyright 2019 by RVtravel.com
Gotta see an IKEA. OMG the storage you will see. Is real helpful when it comes to getting a TT under control. We measured and built an over the toilet cabinet. Looks so good and so handy too.
Not sure what to answer, my tastes change depending on my mood, and one day I might want pizza while another day a hotdog or burger might be my choice. You need an ‘all of the above’ category.
Slides, drawers, containers, shelving all weight something – in addition to the extra stuff that can now be stored. Depending on the towable, it’s not too hard to exceed the weight carrying capacity.
Veggie pizza ? with lots of olives and well done not soggy.
Countless things can be done with pool noodles
Re: the Quick Tip in this issue. You’re describing “TAIL SWING”. In addition to HORIZONTAL tail swing (the left & right turning you mention), there’s also VERTICAL tail swing (up & down movement). Many RVs have a “RELIEF CUT” at the rear of their RV (at the rear of an RV, along the bottom edge, the RV RISES a few inches). This is to give a little extra space / clearance when you enter something like a driveway where you might have to go over a curb. Not all RVs have a “relief cut” so, when the FRONT wheels go up a little, the extreme back end of the RV goes down MUCH MORE. It’s not difficult to “bottom out” and scrape the tail cap. When that happens, it’s often a VERY EXPENSIVE repair. Some rigs have “bogey wheels” installed. Bogey wheels are steel rollers which, in a perfect world, would keep the rear of your rig from scraping the ground (the bogey wheels would hit first possibly saving your rig from damage). Owners / drivers need to know HOW MUCH tail swing (both horizontal & vertical) the rig they’re driving has in order to mitigate ALL tail swing. Not knowing and allowing for tail swing will lead to big repair bills.
The problem with “bogey wheels” is that when they hit the ground (pavement/concrete) suddenly you are removing weight from your tires and putting it all at the very end of your frame where the bogey wheels are attached. This may (and has) caused the frame to bend resulting in a much more expensive damage.
If you need more storage space on your RV, you’re obviously bringing too much stuff with you.
Like Stephen I use yellow pool noodles to cover the corners of my slide. I have walked into them a couple of times and it is not a good feeling.
Too many other variables to consider with that survey question.
What kind of pizza?
What is on the hot dog or burger?
Who is doing the cooking?
? that’s what prompted my “none of the above” answer. You and I apparently overthink these questions!!
Kiss!
Ha! I thought you were sending Snayte a kiss, John. Huh? Then I saw his comment that you were replying to, so decided you were actually referring to “Keep It Simple, Stupid!” (Not that you were calling him stupid, but just referring to the acronym.) 😀 —Diane at RVtravel.com
Comment to storage: Basement slide out storage trays have a good amount of room underneath. Slide all the way to the oposite side and store relatively flat items under the slide. We store folding camp tables and the extra floor tiles that came with our motorhome under them. Also the space between the sliding trays is a good area for walking sticks, awning rods, and other thin, long items.
Trailers have basements? I can’t find mine.
Onion, sausage and garlic pizza
Pizza, alright: anchovies, mushrooms, and gizzard bits smothered under melted pepper jack cheese.
I made my own corner guards from pool noodles. A 4 foot noodle cost a $1 and I cut into 8 inch sections to cover all the corners on my 3 slides.
I checked none of the above, because it would depend on what part of the country we are in, No. East I would eat all of them , other areas not so much.