Issue 2364
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
“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” —Anne Lamott
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Columnists’ Day! A big thank you to our incredible team of writers and columnists—we are so lucky to have you!
On this day in history: 1930 – The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) announced that “there is no news” in their evening report. (Hah! Can you imagine?)
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Tip of the Day
An easy trick that’ll make RV dumping a lot more sanitary
By Nanci Dixon
I have been storing our plastic disposable gloves for dumping the RV tanks in a bay cabinet next to the water bay for most of our RVing life. They are only a door away, but do you think I can get my husband to get them out EVERY time he touches the sewer hose? Nope, it’s always just an afterthought and often too late. I do nag a bit, “Do you have any idea how many deadly pathogens there could be on that hose?!” OK, I’ll admit I don’t either, but I know it is bad.
The solution, I decided, was this…
Ask Dave
One RV theater seat is flaking. Can I fix it or replace just that section?
Dear Dave,
One of our reclining loveseat chairs with a cupholder armrest in the middle has the material flaking off. Are we able to just replace that one chair? Where can we get it, if so? —Cindy, 2018 Forest River
RV Tours
Tour the affordable, all-electric 2024 Catalina Summit 164BHX travel trailer
By Cheri Sicard
In this video, we join the team from Big Truck Big RV at the Houston RV Show for a tour of the tiny 2024 Catalina Summit 164BHX travel trailer.
For such a tiny space, they managed to pack a lot of great features into the Catalina 164BHX travel trailer. To start, I am amazed that a tiny trailer like this has a substantially larger cargo-carrying capacity than the Bowlus Volterra (base price 305K) or many other larger and pricier trailers.
Video of the day
The best digital thermometer for perfect grilling, smoking, and cooking
By Cheri Sicard
In this video, we join James from Smoking Dad Barbecue as he tries to find the best digital thermometer for grilling and cooking.
In a lot of James’ BBQ videos, he likes to compare the value brand versus the name brand grill tools to see if the more expensive brands are actually better and worth it. Spoiler alert —not always!
How much air pressure is too much in RV tires?
Tire expert Roger Marble received a question from a reader about tire pressure ratings and his concern about the numbers reported on his Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). Roger explains tire pressure ratings and how temperature and speed affect the numbers reported by the TPMS.
An all-metal RV water heater tank rinser wand that works and won’t fly off!
Nanci Dixon shares her new favorite all-metal water heater tank rinser. She writes, “It is practically guaranteed to not come apart in the tank. They had two similar ones and I made sure to pick the one that came with an adaptor to fit a garden hose with an on/off lever. … The wand can go in far enough to cover the whole tank and the nozzle can be turned down to flush out the deposits on the bottom of the tank.” Read Nanci’s story here and order one for your RV.
Reader poll
How long was the “courtship” with your current spouse or partner?
Quick Tip
Having trouble with a stuck-on decal?
Trying to get rid of an unwanted (or worn out) RV decal? Use a “vinyl eraser” mounted to your corded electric drill. The rubber disc erases the sticker without damaging the rig’s finish. Search for these on the internet (or on Amazon) using the keywords: vinyl eraser, or decal remover.
On this day last year…
- Tip: Triple towing: Is it legal? Is it safe? Should you do it?
- Ask Dave: Should Schwintek slide mechanism be replaced with the Vroom?
- RV Tour: 2023 Winnebago Travato 59K Class B, the #1 best-selling van
- Video: 6 different types of RV slide technologies and how they work
Website of the day
Jazz Travel Guide: 25 U.S. Venues You Must Visit
If you love listening to live jazz, you have to check out this list. Some of these places are famous, while others you may have never heard of. Either way, we’ll see you out at some of these!
?? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ??
Well, once again, we got sucked into our own product suggestion and just ordered two of these for two blank (we can’t say the word)-obsessed people on our staff. You might want this too.
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:
• 44 percent say their RV has a traditional oven. 28 percent have a convection oven, and 16 percent have both. 12 percent do not have an oven in their RV.
• 52 percent paid cash for their RV and do not have a loan on it.
• 11 percent have never attended a professional baseball game.
Recent poll: Do you use matches to light fires?
Recipe of the Day
The Best Crusty Bread (Dutch Oven)
by Pat DiMercurio from Saginaw, MI
The next time you want warm, crusty bread, give this recipe a try. The outside is crisp while the inside stays firm and moist. To get the true crust effect, start the dough the night before. The aroma of the fresh bread baking in the Dutch oven will make the house smell wonderful. When you open the Dutch oven, there’s the perfect loaf of bread. This is a very easy bread recipe that can be customized with your favorite herbs, too.
Trivia
In 1902, Nabisco began selling animal crackers, which they called Barnum’s Animals, named after P.T. Barnum, one of the country’s greatest showmen. The familiar circus-themed box they come in was originally designed to be a Christmas ornament. After you were done eating the crackers, you were supposed to take the string and turn the package into an ornament. And that string? Well, each year 8,000 miles of string are used in the packaging! Each shift at their New Jersey factory uses about 30 miles of string. Wow!
Readers’ Pet of the Day
“Marley (Shih Tzu x French Bulldog) is our camping dog! She loves nothing more than to sit outside and soak up the rays.” —Donna Joyce
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.
Leave here with a laugh
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Contact information
Editor: Emily Woodbury, editor@rvtravel.com
Help desk: Contact us
Mail us at 9792 Edmonds Way, #265, Edmonds, WA 98020.
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. RVtravel.com is a participant in many affiliate programs, including the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Regardless of the potential revenue, unless stated otherwise, we only recommend products or services we believe provide value to our readers. This newsletter is copyright 2024 by RV Travel LLC.
Did I miss an announcement or something? I’m no longer getting any of your newsletters delivered to my email account.
Look in your scam folder…..that’s what happened to mine.
Sorry, Pat. I think it’s those danged gremlins again. I just looked at your account and there were only a couple of things checked that you subscribed to, but not the Saturday newsletter or the RV Daily Tips newsletters. I’ve added those back in. If there’s anything else you want to subscribe to, just click on a Subscribe button in any of our posts and check what you want to receive. Sorry for the inconvenience. Have a great day. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Regarding the “Quick Tip”.
No No No. with the wheels you can/will damage the-clear coat and very time consuming.
“GraphXOff” is the best and easy way to remove your decals.
How about a heat gun? That is my next project since the dealer name sticker has succumbed to 12 years of Nevada sunshine.
It was great to read this news letter without all the pop up adds. Are they gone ( hopefully) or are they permanently gone, hopefully also.
Not getting in my email account either. Wonder how I got removed.
Good morning, Robert. I just looked at your account and the option to received email alerts for our RV Daily Tips newsletters wasn’t checked, although it had been up until a couple of days ago. I can’t see why it got removed in the past couple of days. (Must be those danged gremlins again.🤔 I’ve added the Daily Tips back in, so that you should again receive the email alerts for those newsletters. Sorry for the inconvenience. Have a great day. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Diane, you are the absolute best. It’s greatly appreciated by everyone.
Wow! How nice of you to say that, Impavid.😊 (Huge blush.) You lookin’ for a favor or something?😉😅 Just kidding. You’re very sweet. (Your check is in the mail, BTW.🤣) You got me all flustered, so I think I’ll shut up for now. But I’ve been planning on emailing you for a few days, so watch for incoming. Have a good evening/night.🤗 –Diane
re: Amazon pick — I didn’t know cancer was cured. I don’t believe ANYTHING that Big Pharma has to offer — NOTHING! I don’t even take aspirin. Good food, exercise, regular massage therapy and chiropractic. So far so good — I’ll be 85 next week and still pull our 5th wheel with MY truck.
Confirming what Wayne and Tommy noted below: Damage with an eraser to remove decals can be costly and permanent. I removed all of mine with my wife’s hair dryer and a single edge razor blade in a windshield scraper holder, or plastic one. Keep the edge shallow to the surface and heat just ahead of the scraper. Be patient. Replace the decals with painted designs. (Make templates before you remove the decals if you wish to keep it the same. Careful cleaning/preparation and following directions required!
Thank you, Emily and Diane! 😉 I don’t recall the survey on pro basketball, but I did go to an exhibition/pre-season game decades ago. But, no regular-season, or play-off games. Thanks again and safe travels! 🙂
Good (ball) catch, Neal! That’s because it should have said “baseball” instead of “basketball”. I’ve corrected it in the newsletter. Thanks! Have a good afternoon/evening. 😀 –Diane
You are very welcome, Diane! 🙂 I am extremely pleased anytime that I can help in any way. 🙂 Good afternoon, Diane! 🙂
👍 Thanks, Neal.😊 (I should know better than to take someone’s word for something when I’m proofing. But then I’d never get any sleep!😲😉) –Diane
Your survey on “courtship “ might have included a DAYS option….I proposed after 11 days…32 years ago. She is still my Bride.
If you ever find yourself on Mount Desert Island in Maine, head to Southwest Harbor where there is a sourdough bakery that makes the best sourdough bread ever. All flavors. Can’t wait to head back there and get more.