Issue 1564
Welcome to another edition of RV Travel’s Daily Tips newsletter. Here you’ll find helpful RV-related and 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. Please tell your friends about us.
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Page Contents
Today’s thought
“Wherever my travels may lead, paradise is where I am.” —Voltaire
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Tolkien Reading Day!
On this day in history: 1995 – WikiWikiWeb, the world’s first wiki, and part of the Portland Pattern Repository, is made public by Ward Cunningham.
Tip of the Day
Protect your generator from sprouting legs and leaving the campground
By Jim Twamley
Dry camping in your RV is much more enjoyable with a generator. These portable lightweight generators are great for recharging the batteries and making a fresh pot of coffee. Question is, how do you protect your generator from sprouting legs and leaving the campground? Continue reading.
Do you have a tip? Submit it here.
Today’s RV review…
In today’s column, industry insider Tony Barthel reviews the new 2021 Jayco Eagle 25.5REOK Fifth Wheel. As he reports, “The Jayco Eagle 25.5REOK is one of the two smallest fifth wheel trailers Jayco makes and is part of their ‘Eagle HT’ series. This means it’s the most affordable series of 5ers the company offers. But that doesn’t mean that it’s scraping the bottom of the barrel in terms of features or the quality of components.” Learn more and see how it compares to other small fifth wheels.
Did you read Tony’s review yesterday of the 2021 Winnebago EKKO 22A? If you missed it, you can read it here.
For previous RV reviews, click here.
Is this your RV?
If it’s yours and you can prove it to us (send a photo for comparison), tell us here by 9 p.m. Pacific Daylight time today, March 25, 2021. If it’s yours you’ll win a $25 Amazon gift certificate.
If this isn’t your RV, send us a photo of your RV here (if you haven’t already) for a chance to win in future issues.
We’ll have another photo in tomorrow’s RV Daily Tips Newsletter (sign up to receive an email alert so you don’t miss the issue or those that follow). Some of these photos are submitted by readers while others were taken by our editors and writers on their travels around the USA.
Tip for RV park owners: How to make more money at the expense of RVers
Finding a campsite could get a lot harder if the suggestions made by Brad Templeton writing in Forbes Magazine take hold. According to Templeton, campground owners could reap more business if they started to cater to the owners of electric vehicles (EV) on road trips. Read more.
Yesterday’s featured article: Brats and beer? It must be Leavenworth – Washington’s “Bavarian Alps” town
Reader poll
Do you or your partner enjoy knitting?
Keep calm and carry yarn! Tell us here.
Quick Tip
Check the RV ladder mounts
The ladders on the back of our RVs take quite a beating and sometimes the mounts start to pull away from the wall. This can leave an opening for water to get in and cause rot.
Check the mounts and reseal using window and door silicone sealant. While you’re at it, check all the screws on the ladder for tightness. If the ladder starts to come apart, it’s an easy fix. The parts that keep the ladders together, including standoff nuts and assemblies, are available from your favorite RV retailer or Amazon.com.
Not enough power to run your air conditioner? Think again!
When the summer heat arrives (it won’t be long!) and your 110 power is from a small portable generator or a 20-amp household hookup you’re out of luck running an air conditioner. That is, unless you have a SoftStartRV. It’s inexpensive, simple to install, and makes running your A/C possible when you never could before. Read more and watch the short video by RV electricity expert Mike Sokol.
Website of the day
noteflight
For the musicians in the crowd… This site is neat. If you want to write your own music (and even sell it!) start here. You can purchase sheet music here, too, from people all over.
?????? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ??????
How the heck would you explain yourself if someone walked in on you doing this??
And the Survey Says…
We’ve polled RVtravel.com readers more than 1,500 times in recent years. Here are a few things we’ve learned about them:
• 7 percent are an only child
• 42 percent have never broken down and been stuck on the side of the road
• If one headlight is out, 18 percent say they always replace the other headlight at the same time, even if it still works
Recent poll: Is it harder for you today to obtain an RV park space without an advance reservation than 5 years ago?
Trivia
Harold Hackett, a 58-year-old man from Prince Edward Island, has sent 4,871 messages in bottles out into the ocean. Between 1996 and 2011, Hackett had received 3,100 responses from around the globe. People from France, Germany, the Bahamas and Africa have written back to him. Many of the people who have written back have become good friends with Hackett. In any given year, he receives about 150 Christmas cards from the people he’s contacted.
*What can you do on Mt. Everest at 17,000 feet?
A.) Facetime
B.) Use a flush toilet
C.) Sleep in a permanent igloo
We told you yesterday.
Camping with the Corps of Engineers
Many RVers consider Corps of Engineers campgrounds to be the best in the country. This guide is just for RVers — boat-in and tent-only sites are not included. Of all the public lands, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has some of the best parks and campgrounds available. In fact, it’s the largest federal provider of outdoor recreation in the nation. Learn more or order.
Readers’ Pet of the Day
“Heshe helping us drive to our next destination.” —Pamela Jobson
Send us a photo of your pet with a short description. We publish one each weekday in RV Daily Tips and in our Saturday RV Travel newsletter.
Leave here with a laugh
A man lived in a beautiful forest. As he grew older, he started losing his hair. On his deathbed he was bald. He called his children and said, “Look at my hair. It’s completely gone. But look outside at the forest, it’s such a lovely forest with so many trees, but soon they will be cut down and it will be as bald as my head.” The man continued, “What I want you to do, is every time a tree is cut down or dies, plant a new one in my memory. Tell your dependents to do the same. It is our family’s duty.” So, his family did. Each time the forest lost a tree, the children replanted one, and so did their children, and their children…
For centuries, the forest remained as lush and pretty as it once was, all because of one man and his re-seeding heirline.
Did you miss the latest RV Travel Newsletter? If so, read it here.
Oh, and if you missed the latest Sunday News for RVers, make sure to catch up here.
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RV Daily Tips Staff
Publisher: Chuck Woodbury. Editor: Emily Woodbury. Senior editor: Diane McGovern. Social media and special projects director: Jessica Sarvis. Financial affairs director: Gail Meyring. IT wrangler: Kim Christiansen.
This website utilizes some advertising services. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Regardless of this potential revenue, unless stated otherwise, we only recommend products or services we believe provide value to our readers.
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 2021 by RVtravel.com
Bringing you the shocking news of generator rustling. —Jim
Jim, I have always wanted to put one of those “Lo Jack” transmitters under the cowling of my generator. It tracks the movement of a device as it works it’s way to the pawn shop where it now links up with any cell device and communicates coordinates. It would be so awesome to call LE and tell them I know exactly where my gen set is and can I ride with you to go get it. Note: I only mention pawn shops because I saw documentary on theft rings and it was about several nearby small towns that closed down all of the pawn shops in their area and bicycle theft, stolen tools out of work trucks, etc. etc. etc. stopped in it’s tracks when the outlet was removed. Legal issues made city officials lay off the pawn shops, they opened back up and crime went back to where it was.
Read this about taking a road trip in a EV. He spent most of his trip anticipating his power needs. Then to my amazement there are no standard electrical plugs on the EV’s for charging. Tesla has one type on their charging station and you need an adapter to use them if you are not driving a Tesla.
https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/can-you-take-a-road-trip-in-an-electric-vehicle/
Wow! I usually read this in the morning and miss these comments. Sure are a lot of gloomy Gusses out there. Is it something in the air?
No, but there IS something in the heir.
Good play. My smile is back.
Well, well. So I got a lot of input on generators and “heirlines”. I would love to see and article on the crummy engineering and workmanship that all RV’s have. I understand that would be bad for advertisers, but maybe it would be good for them if they had their junk put out there to the public. Just saying.
It’s not only the bad builds it’s also the bolt on crap that goes into them. Most of my issues are with the manufactures of the AC units, toilets, level sensors, slide motors and controllers and etc, way too many components that are cheaply made and fail way too soon!
Joe,
That’s right on. What irritates me is that the manufacturers don’t have their engineers talk with long time RV’ers about what could be better made. I have had to upgrade, fix and modify so much stuff (for a safer word) that I keep wanting to quote my father’s sign in his truck shop. “Yesterday I couldn’t spell “Engineer”, now I are one!”
I’m not taking sides but could it be that the “non Airstream” quality RV’s are made to camp in once a year and not to live in full time. A family member had a cheapy bumper pull that was holding up OK overtime with their spring camping trips and then used it for living in while building a house. It started dissolving from the point they started living in it full time.
RE; Website of the Day…thank you RVTravel !!! You nailed it again! Being a musician, Noteflight is such a great tool, so useful! Inspires me to start writing again!
We have full timed now going on 9 years and have never had anything stolen at the RV site, nor heard of anyone else that had it happen and we heard about it. You do have to be smart, but for the most part, people are normally pretty nice at most RV parks. Oh, you will find the one here and there that will ruin your day, but hopefully, most people know what can happen to them if they steal. Getting shot is one of them! Just saying……………..
I am going to avoid all the negativity that has been posted today. Instead, I will just say that I love Heshe! What an adorable sight! I bet this rig gets looks wherever it goes!😁
sure does
To all the “haters” of today’s edition: my God, every day’s publication won’t be late-breaking, ground-breaking news. Remember, there are thousands, maybe tens of thousands folks that have recently joined the RV community that may find a nugget or two that is useful to them.
I find some of these comments disappointing – – if you’re so quick to condemn, then I suggest you join the team of editors. Or better yet, open up your wallet and make a $$ contribution.
I read the comment by Jeff S and took it to mean that if you can condemn the stories, then join and write ‘better’ ones.
Funny, the English language. :-/
Lighten up folks, we’re almost through the Pandemic. Get outside, enjoy the sunshine, the flowers bursting through and learn to smile and laugh again. Anybody can be a critic, look at DC.
Check out lock-type devices with motion alarms. A piercing, unexpected alarm will scare any thief off. (Amazon)
Good morning! On the ladder tip, might I suggest that silicone should rarely be used on th exterior of an RV. Products like ProFlex Geocell or Dicor products are much more appropriate for use on the exterior of an RV. Silicone is very difficult to remove and reapply *when* (not if) it starts to let go. While I know many have used silicone successfully, there are better products for sealing the exterior of an RV.
I agree with Scotty. Silicone sealant will not stick to it’s self and can be difficult to remove. No matter what the mfg says. Even the military stopped using silicon sealant on their shelters.
I thought it was cute that on the Amazon link page for generator locks there was also two listings for battery operated angle grinders, the preferred tool for cutting chain locks.
my thought, exactly. 😉
Nothing like giving the thief a great idea!
Zephod, bolt cutters are out, I have a Ryobi angle cutter with the 1/32″ cut off blade, it will go through a lock or a chain faster than you can get your keys out of your pocket. We have had to use it at the ranch where someone has “short locked” the chain full of locks defeating other peoples locks.. And it doesn’t seem to matter if the components are hardened or not.
New England RV and Camping association show sounds like fun. Too bad Texas doesn’t have anything like it.
I could see the idea of having recharge ports for cabins, or even in a parking area for campers using existing tent spaces. It makes good sense; there will be more electric cars going forward and the market will be there. But the idea of wedging tents between existing rv sites is asinine and demonstrates the author’s ignorance concerning campgrounds.
I don’t think we will see a great influx of EVs over the next decade. Elon Musk even said the electric grids will not support massive EV production. It’s going to take a major overhaul of the grids before that can happen. CA can’t even supply households without rolling blackouts due to their “green” energy power plants so with the current administration wanting green energy I think the EV market is not dead but on life support.
They are alive due to government subsidizing. Electric cars don’t pay any road maintenance tax either.
As things currently stand the worlds supply of lithium is not healthy. Also people need to look at the environmental impact lithium mining has. A lot of so called green energy is not what it seems, most time just trading one pollution for another.
Joe you are so dead on…Look at diesel engines that require DEF, the fluid is packaged in a gallon plastic jug surrounded by a cardboard box. So for a few miles of lesser polluting exhaust, a 14″ square box goes into a landfill…
Not necessarily. I have 175,000+ miles on my diesel that uses DEF and have never used a drop of boxed DEF. Truck stops (Pilot, Flying J, Love’s, etc) has DEF at every diesel island. It is vastly less expensive also.
That’s good for you Gary but you are missing Sink’s point! The fact stands that besides the cardboard their is the plastic jug that is partly made with oil and takes energy to produce it and the cardboard box. Then we have the energy it takes to dispose of it and recycle it into a park bench and transform the cardboard into a coffee cup from McDonalds and for the ones that are not recycled well…… they end up in the landfill polluting for years to come.
I dont mean to be too critical, but did I miss something in the article about stolen generators? Lock it up out of sight and put some identity on it. You could use the same advice on anything in your campsite. Your camp chair, a portable grill, favorite fishing rod. I guess I was hoping for more than just ‘use common sense’.
Any more, Common Sense should be considered a Super Power.
True, but a little harsh. He did remind people that chains are easily cut with a boltcutter and that a bicycle type lock may work better. That may not be too well known given the number of chained up generators I see.
Me too! Where’s the suggestions for keeping it safe? I already do all the things suggested. As we talk I’m in Quartzsite at a RV park and my generator sits outside chained to my rig… no problem for over two months!
But I was hoping for some mind boggling ideas on how to keep it more safe when I’m not around…
zero effort put into this article, nothing new in it
It’s a pathetic article with no useful information.
A dying man’s last wish is not laughable due to his reseeding hairline. Quite insensitive!
It wasn’t hairline, it was heirline.
Lighten up, gFab.
I’m almost bald and I laughed.
Really? It’s a joke (Leave Here with a Laugh), not a biography.
Leave here with a laugh gives you a laugh and a truth. Where I live, farm fields are being turned into high density apartment complexes. South Florida will be unrecognizable in just a few more years. So sad.
Going south on I-75 from Sarasota county to the toll at Aligator Alley, farmers are growing concrete and wood structures. They are doing a good job too, because before they are complete and harvest them, they are planting new ones. They are going to run out of space soon.
What a shame!
South Florida of today is unrecognizable from the South Florida of my youth of the 60’s and 70’s. You’re right, it is sad.
That was a humdinger of a tip to keep your generator from growing legs, use a good strong lock!
Out of sight out of mind sounds best. The best lock you can buy will not stop the thief and his battery operated angle grinder…….he will just cut the chain. Just pointing out the “weakest link”.
Mr. Templeton, writing in Forbes Magazine, should stick to his area of expertise such as financial analytics, market forecasting and whatever other activities transpire on Wall Street and leave the the RV’ing to us Rv’ers.
A great tale but I don’t consider a “Leave where with a laugh” subject.
You obviously missed the the pun…smh🙄