Issue 1892
Welcome to RV Travel’s Daily Tips Newsletter, where you’ll find helpful RV-related tips from the pros, travel advice, product reviews and more. Thanks for joining us. Please tell your friends about us.
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Page Contents
Today’s thought
“Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.” ―
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Alaska Day!
On this day in history: 1953 – Workers assemble the first Corvette in Flint, Michigan.
Tip of the Day
RV “chain” is as strong as the weakest …
By Russ and Tiña De Maris (but mainly Russ – you’ll see why…)
For years we’ve been talking to the bully pulpit to preach the importance of knowing your weight ratings and scrupulously sticking to them. I don’t know how many obviously overloaded rigs we’ve seen in campgrounds and on highways – sometimes broken down as a result of failing to heed such advice.
Every RV has its own maximum loaded gross vehicle weight rating. If you tow, you have a maximum allowed tow weight. Your tires have their own weight ratings. Every axle has a maximum amount of weight it can safely haul. All of them are important, and as the old saying goes, “The chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” Overload the tires, risk a blowout. Overload the axle, risk a break. All this, even if all other parts are perfectly happy.
So it’s with penitent hearts that this article gets penned.
Today’s RV review…
Heartland Sundance 221RB travel trailer
Tony writes, “While there are really good things about this model, like the storage and rear cabinet, there are also things that seem chosen by accountants rather than campers, like the small oven and cheap vent fan over the bed.”
Uh oh.
For previous RV reviews, click here.
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Ask Dave
Dave Solberg is a leading expert in the RV industry and author of the “RV Handbook.”
Black water tank is clean, but there are still smelly odors. Why?
Dear Dave,
After flushing the black water tank, there are still smelly odors like a sewage smell in the bathroom that seems to come from under the sink in the cabinet. I flush the waste tank until the water comes out clean and there is still a strong smell. Is there a one-way valve or something like that that may be stuck open? Thanks. —Luis, 2020 Winnebago Micro Minnie 1706FB
Tire pressure gauges lose accuracy over time. Here’s how to check them
By Mark Polk
I talk about the importance of checking inflation pressure in the tow vehicle and RV tires all the time, but is your tire pressure gauge giving you accurate information? … A tool every RV owner uses is a tire pressure gauge. But did you know a tire gauge can lose accuracy if it gets banged around in your tool box? Mark explains how to check for accuracy, and recommends the best type of tire pressure gauges here.
Reader poll
Do you enjoy riding scenic railroads?
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Quick Tip
Waste valve out of reach? Build a reach extender!
Ever wish RV designers were forced to use their own products? Might make life a bit easier! For example, how about a waste dump valve located under your slide-out? You end up crawling under the slide to dump the tank—yuck! Here’s a trick from loveyourrv.com that “extends” your reach: “A simple yet effective solution. I bought a section of PVC plumbing pipe and notched out the end in such a way that I can now open and close the galley waste valve from a distance.” Here’s another trick for its use: “Add a line on it at the point where your slide extends too. Now you can use it when arriving at the campground to see if it safe to open the slide without hitting anything.”
?????? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ??????
Now this is something that would be very cool to have. Think of all the ways you could use this! And in a few years, you’d be really glad you had this for your favorite memories.
On this day last year…
- RV Review: Grand Design Imagine 2800BH
- Featured article: Video: How to measure your RV before buying a cover
- Recipe: Strawberry Shortcake Red, White & Blue Bites
Website of the day
80 Best 4th of July Recipes for Your Barbecue or Cookout
Are you ready for the 4th? Get your grocery shopping done early by knowing what recipes you’ll make ahead of time. These 80 recipes from Country Living look delicious!
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:
• It’s a tie! 50 percent believe marijuana should be legalized nationally for recreational use while the other 50 percent believe it should not be legalized.
• When asked what their favorite part of the U.S. is, the highest numbers of voters, 31 percent, say the West (ID, MT, WY, NV, UT and CO). The second highest percentage voted the Southeast (AR, LA, MS, AL, GA, FL, TN, KY, SC, NC, VA) and the third highest percentage voted the West Coast (WA, OR, CA, AK, HI).
• If offered the choice at breakfast between hashbrowns or pancakes, 73 percent would always or most often choose hashbrowns over pancakes.
Recent poll: As of right now, how far in advance have you reserved a campsite?
Recipe of the Day
Watermelon Lime Frosty/Margarita
by CC MCCART-FROST from Guatay, CA
Amp up your summer sipping with this frosty margarita. It’s a refreshing way to enjoy fresh watermelon in a drink. Sweet and tangy, make a batch of these when you’re sitting poolside. This is definitely an adult-only cocktail.
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Trivia
49 feet beneath Paris’ famous Louvre museum, you’ll find a secret laboratory. Well, it’s not so secret now that you know about it… The laboratory contains a particle accelerator known as The Accélérateur Grand Louvre d’analyse élémentaire, the only particle accelerator in the world whose use is devoted to the analysis of cultural artifacts. The researchers use the machine to analyze the material content of artifacts of items within the Louvre. This helps to accurately assess their composition and verify their authenticity.
*A spider discovered in 2012 in the Amazon jungle builds a decoy of what? And how does it do it? The answer is so fascinating! Find it in yesterday’s trivia.
Readers’ Pet of the Day
“This is my boy T Rex sleeping on his bed in the camper. We live full-time stationary in a fifth wheel, but I have a smaller travel trailer to go places with. This was on our trip to Orlando, Florida, to compete in the agility Invitationals.” —Mary Masters
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. No blurry photos, please! Please do not submit your photo more than once. Thanks!
Pet owners: Here are a few excellent resources to find a veterinarian while on the road. Keep this handy!
Leave here with a laugh
Have you ever noticed that bread is a lot like the sun? It rises in the yeast and sets in the waist.
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Contact information
Editor: Emily Woodbury
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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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Now they tell me. Where was the extension sewer drain handle idea when I had need for it. Different RV now. GREAT IDEA, and little cost
I think a better way is to buy an extension and add a waste valve to the end.
maybe buy a better designed RV.
Love the idea of the PVC pipe reach extender! Our dump valves are so inconveniently located under the bedroom slide. They are so hard to reach especially for us older folks with bad knees, I have been using a garden rake to reach them while camping. I will be using the PVC extender on the next trip. Thanks for posting this idea.
I just used a 36 inch piece of 1 inch dowel notched on the end for this purpose. I am sure this will hold up better than PVC in the long term.
tire pressure gauges…..excellent point…I verify mine against my TPMS.
Which is probably less accurate than your pressure gauge.
Most TPMS say +/- a couple psi for accuracy
The article describing the inadequate rating of the hitch was good. I ran into something similar a couple of years ago when I installed a new hitch with equalization. It was longer and I found that my safety chains were no longer long enough. In the process of buying new (longer) safety chains I found a variety of lengths but also weight different ratings. You want to make sure that your chains are rated for at least as much as your trailer weight.
Should be a little stronger than your trailer weight. If your trailer comes loose, the sudden jerk could be more than the trailer weight.