Issue 2292
Welcome to RV Travel’s Daily Tips Newsletter, where you’ll find helpful RV-related tips from the pros, travel advice, RV videos, product reviews and more. Please tell your friends about us.
Today’s thought
“Stories can conquer fear, you know. They can make the heart bigger.” ―
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Shop For Travel Day! Woohoo! Say no more! Here are the best travel deals on Amazon today.
On this day in history: 1909 – Ernest Shackleton, leading the Nimrod Expedition to the South Pole, plants the British flag 97 nautical miles (180 km; 112 mi.) from the South Pole, the farthest anyone had ever reached at that time.
(If you’re interested in learning more, this is an amazing book about his adventure.)
Tip of the Day
Why you need RV roof vent covers, plus cleaning tips
By Cheri Sicard
I’ll confess, until this video I had never considered RV roof vent covers. But my experiences on my Long Long RV Trip combined with the wisdom of Martin from RVstreet, one of my favorite RV vloggers, has me rethinking the proposition.
In the video below, Martin talks about the advantages of installing vent covers on your RV’s roof and how they protect your RV, especially from the elements like baking sun, high winds, or damaging hail.
In addition, RV roof vent covers allow you to keep your roof vents open all the time, even when it’s raining!
Continue reading and watch the video
Ask Dave
How can I test my RV’s “emergency start switch”?
Dear Dave,
How can I test the emergency start switch and then troubleshoot/trace an issue? I used it once several years ago and it operated as intended. I needed to use it again a few months ago and it didn’t operate. Thanks so much! —Grant, 2008 Fourwinds Windsport 35B
Stop RV Repair Bills from Ruining Your 2026 Travels
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RV Tours
Tour the 2024 Jayco Granite Ridge 22T—small RV, big storage
By Cheri Sicard
In the video below, we join Mike Drudge from Vogt RV World in Fort Worth, Texas, for a tour of Jayco’s newest Class C motorhome, the Jayco Granite Ridge 22T. This small RV, filled with useful and innovative features, is not your typical Class C.
You can spot one of the big differences from the outside, where you’ll find access to a HUGE exterior storage bay. I am talking big enough to hold bikes, kayaks, cooler chests, or other large toys.
Video of the day
All about RV convection ovens: when and when not to use
By Cheri Sicard
A lot of new RVs come equipped with RV convection ovens. But what does that convection fan do? When should you use it? Are there times it would be better to leave off the convection option? The video below from Helen Rennie will answer all.
Our top 10 best-selling products for RVers in December
These best-selling gadgets and books are RVers’ favorites for a reason! See what products we sold most of last month in December. If you’re looking for a way to clean your holding tank sensors, test and see how clean your drinking water is, learn how you can camp in city/town parks and county parks, how you can safely RV with a firearm, or get out that stubborn stain on your favorite shirt… this list is for you.
RVelectricity™
with Mike Sokol
DIY generator neutral/ground bonding plug
Dear Readers,
In response to several inquiries about how to make your own neutral/ground generator bonding plug, here’s the full DIY generator bonding plug article I wrote nearly 10 years ago.
Reader poll
What bothers you most, a neighbor’s loud music or barking dog?
Trending RV news:
- Used motorhome prices “drop like a rock,” says wholesale market watcher
- BLM, SEC maneuvering to sell off public lands; future of camping could be significantly impacted
- New RV broke, no help from manufacturer until TV station steps in
- The latest Starlink Roam news digest for RVers
Not just for kids! This RV coloring book is for adults
When was the last time you colored? We bet it’s been a while. Relearn the therapeutic comforts of this pastime and start coloring! This coloring book for adults features hand-drawn designs of RVs of all kinds and beautiful natural scenes. It makes a great gift, too. Give coloring a try again… we bet you’ll love it! Learn more here. (And no, it’s not just for adults—kids would love it, too.)
Quick Tip
Check the wiring behind your refrigerator
Linda posted this recently in our Comments: “I just want to give everyone a heads up on a safety issue. Our fridge died after 11 years in our 2011 Bighorn. We decided to replace it with a residential fridge. When we pulled it out, we found two electrical lines, one for the microwave and the other for the kitchen counter outlet, running behind the fridge. Both lines had been leaning on something hot at the back of the fridge, as they were both burnt through to the copper. The fridge had never been run on propane. Given that fridge fires seem to be a concern in RVs, maybe it’s not the fridge, per se, but the electrical wiring. It would be worth it to check out what’s going on back there.” Thank you, Linda!
On this day last year…
- Ask Dave: What’s the best jack, and where to put it, to change a tire on a travel trailer?
- Video: Best video EVER on how to back up a trailer
Website of the day
Delicious canned tuna recipes
This might not be the most exciting website we’ve ever listed here, but we’re thinking there’s a good chance you have some canned tuna in your pantry right now. Are we right? Here are 31 delicious recipes for that tuna, so get to cookin’!
?? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ??
Okay, so… tell us why every single RVer doesn’t have one of these in their RV or tow vehicle?! It can be used for so many things! Just don’t drive distracted!
And the Survey Says…
We’ve polled RVtravel.com readers more than 2,500 times in recent years. Here are a few things we’ve learned about them:
• 71 percent say they did not end up working in a career that they dreamed of as a child.
• 48 percent of wine drinkers prefer red over white. 21 percent prefer white over red, and 13 percent like them both equally.
• 3 percent say they have owned more than 20 dogs in their adult life. That’s a lot of dogs!
Recent poll: What do you call it: a signal or a blinker?
Recipe of the Day
Aunt Lynda’s Cream Cheese Filled Banana Bread
by Kim from Boston, MA
Classic recipes are the best! This recipe takes classic banana nut bread and adds a cream cheese filling that elevates this to extraordinary banana bread. The bread is tender and full of flavor. It’s a neat surprise when you first cut into this loaf. Perfect for a light dessert or a snack with coffee.
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Trivia
Oh, say can you seeeeeee…. Can you guess which country has the longest national anthem? It’s Greece! The Greek National Anthem, known as “Hymn to Liberty,” is so long that it’s rarely sung from start to finish. The anthem is actually a poem written by Dionysios Solomos and it’s 158 stanzas long! When Nikolaos Mantzaros put the poem to music, he wrote two scores: one for the full poem and one for the first two stanzas, which is usually the part that’s sung in public.
Readers’ Pet of the Day
“Rocky is our 7-year-old Lab mix rescue that loves everyone and all dogs. He loves going to doggy daycare and playing with all the other pups.” —Gary Pratt
Send us a photo of your pet with a short description. We publish one each weekday in RV Daily Tips and in our Sunday RV Travel newsletter. No blurry photos, please! Please do not submit your photo more than once. Thanks!
• RVing with Dogs group on Facebook. You’ll love it.
Doctor’s order: Coffee!
This coffee mug is hilarious! It’s perfect for yourself or the coffee-lover in your life who just cannot live without coffee. This high-quality mug is made from ceramic and painted to look like a prescription pill bottle – it’s just what the doctor ordered! You can’t order this from a barista, but you can order one here.
Leave here with a laugh
If a cow doesn’t produce milk, is it a milk dud or an udder failure?
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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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The mystery product is a nice idea IF you are sitting still. However, too may people will use it while driving. Just another distraction while going down the road!
Yes, it’s common sense not to use it while moving, but!
So are stereos/radios, windshield wipers, your spouse and/or kids talking and the vehicle behind you that’s tailgating…… but good luck getting rid of any of those things. I think of the mice in the movie’Babe’ singing “the way things are is the way things are.”
Agree, IMHO many people doing too many things while driving. As they say multi tasking is just doing several things poorly.
I know where every knob and switch is on my dated motorcoach, and can activate each without taking my eyes off the road. But my new car has a touch screen for these functions and are dangerously distracting trying to do something as simple as changing the radio station. Sometimes newer isn’t better!
I agree about the touch screens. Mine has pop up that says taking your eyes off the road is dangerous. I have to reach and press the OK button on the screen. Stupid!
As far as radio controls, my truck and my wife’s car has buttons on the steering wheel to change volume and channels and set the cruise control. Talking to a passenger does not require you to turn your head!
Turn signals, high beams etc., become second nature and don’t require you to take your eyes off the road.
Reaching over and picking up food from this tray means you have to take you eyes off the road. Eating, drinking, texting on a phone or putting om makeup ( yes it does happen) are considered distracted driving.
Leave here with a laugh answer is “hamburger.”
That’s probably the most accurate answer, unfortunately, Leonard.🤔😉🐮 Have a great day. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Well that poor cow could also be lactose intolerant. On a more droll note she could have been a “bra burner”, who forgot to remove the garment first. 🤨
Another possibility: “hamburger”
Thank you, Emily and Diane! 🙂
I’d like to start a survey. Is it just me or does it bother you too.
Every time I follow a story link away from the body of this letter when I come back the letter scrolls back to the top at least two times. Especially annoying if it happens when reading near the bottom of the letter.
Does this happen to you?
It happen to me a lot as well. I have started holding my finger on the link and choosing “Open in a new window”. On my iPad (which I usually use at breakfast when I’m reading this) the second window opens on the right half of the screen. Smaller, but still large enough to easily read the article.
Yes. I don’t enjoy reading the articles as much as I used to.
I agree. But I notice if I wait a second, many (but not all) times, the screen will drop back to where I was on the newsletter. I consider it a minor glitch to a great newsletter. Thanks
Nope. I’m back where I left. This is likely browser specific behavior. I am using the latest version of the Chrome browser on an up to date Windows 11 PC.
Dale, Warren, Leanne, Jeff and Jim,
We had to do a few things to clean up the site and having links not open in new tabs was one of them (we put a note about it in the Saturday newsletter a few weeks ago where we explained it: https://www.rvtravel.com/rv-travel-newsletter-issue-1135/ ). I know it can be frustrating and annoying.
If you would like a link to open in a new tab, all you have to do is right-click, “Open in new tab.” That’s what I do every time on every website. If you get in the habit of doing this on every link click, on every website, it will make things a lot easier for you.
Thank you, and thank you for your readership. We appreciate you! –Emily
I haven’t advanced to right clicking on an iPad.
This has been asked and replied to multiple times by the rvtravel crew. I recommend that you just get use to it and enjoy this great rv newsletter. I have as I just open another link in a new tab. Simple.
Cream cheese stuffed banana bread? I’m in!