Issue 2690
Today’s thought
“Traveling—it gives you home in thousand strange places, then leaves you a stranger in your own land.” —Ibn Battuta
Need an excuse to celebrate? Today is National Tropical Fruit Day!
On this day in history: 1914 – The U.S. Congress forms the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, giving official status to aircraft within the U.S. Army for the first time.
Tip of the day
Does your RV refrigerator have a baffle? No baffle = poor cooling
By Andrew Herrick, The RV Engineer
Two- and three-way RV refrigerators (propane/electric) require airflow. This is common knowledge to most RV technicians, but it’s often unknown to consumers and overlooked by the manufacturers (cough, cough).
Fair warning: I do sling around some technical language in this post, which I’ve italicized for your benefit, but you don’t need to memorize all the terms to get the main point: Airflow is critical, and it’s a straightforward (but time-consuming) DIY fix.
RV absorption refrigerators depend on heat dissipation. The ammonia refrigerant absorbs heat from your freezer and refrigerator compartments and exhausts that heat through your absorber coils and condenser fins. Ambient air traveling up and across the backside of your refrigerator transfers that heat to the ambient air. It’s all about the airflow! Continue reading.
Ask Dave
What are metal shavings under RV’s furnace after traveling?
Dear Dave,
The recent talk in your column about furnaces made me think of mine. It works great so far, but there are all these little silver shavings just below it after travel. What could be causing that, and should I try to “fix” anything before it stops working? —Terry, 2025 Riverside Retro 177 Read Dave’s answer.
In the RV shop with Dustin
How often should your RV suspension be lubed?
By Dustin Simpson
I wanted to share this as a reminder if you own a towable unit to check and see if you have wet bolts or grease Zerks on your RV suspension. How often should your RV suspension be lubricated? Well, if your unit is so equipped, you should be lubricating the Zerk every 6 months or 6,000 miles. Continue reading.
Article and video
8 tips to improve and preserve your RV propane system
By Cheri Sicard
Nathan from Access RV has a terrific video for people who have questions about, or who have been struggling with, their RV propane system. Nathan breaks it down to eight simple things everyone should do to keep their RV’s propane system running smoothly and to prevent potential problems. Click here to read the breakdown and watch the video.
RANDOM RV THOUGHT: If you choose a campsite near the end of a loop in a campground, you will have less traffic passing by during your stay than if you choose a site near the beginning of the loop (at least until around checkout time).
Featured article
Use caution when a stranger offers help on the road
By Gail Marsh
A frightening thing happened this week. A young driver was returning home after work. It was dark. As she pulled into town on her way home, a man drove his car beside the girl’s car seeking her attention. She rolled down her window. “Hey, your taillights aren’t working,” the man said. “Pull over and I’ll help you.” This incident is a good reminder for RVers: Be cautious around “do-gooders.” Continue reading.
What unexpected event occurred in New York City on November 28, 2010, after a man donated a sweater to Goodwill?
Scroll down for the answer.
You may have missed these recent popular stories…
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- RV life sounds fun… But here’s what real RVers say behind the scenes
Reader poll
Walmart ‘campers’: Do you ask permission at the store if it’s okay to stay the night?
Quick Tip
Help with after-dark RV backing
“I try to never arrive at a campsite after dark, but when I do, I place 4 LED camping lanterns out: 2 at the back corners, 1 on the slide side where I need to mark any obstruction, 1 on the opposite side so I can see the direction I need to go.” Thanks to Joseph W. [You can find them on Amazon.]
Have a paint nick or chip on your RV? Here’s an easy trick
Nanci Dixon writes, “After many miles and a few gravel roads, our motorhome had a number of paint chips and nicks. The last time we were at the manufacturer’s to have a few warranty items taken care of, I had the paint chips fixed too. They showed me an easy fix—use mini automotive repair paint sticks or brushes. Works like a charm. Here are the paintbrushes I used.” To learn more about the process, read Nanci’s article here.
On this day last year…
- Tip: What’s ready to fall off your RV?
- Ask Dave: RV’s issues not covered by Camping World extended warranty. Have we been “CW’d”?
- RV walk-through: 2023 Thor Scope 18G small Class B van—long weekends and around town
- Video: How to make a fruit platter with WOW factor for your next potluck!
Website of the day
Which is the best U.S. State Fair?
Ready for a state fair? We are! This list from USA Today lists many popular state fairs across the U.S., with a catch! You have to vote for which one is your favorite! Learn about the state fairs while casting your vote. See you there!
? MYSTERY PRODUCT OF THE DAY ?
Are you hungry? Good. Oh, you’re not hungry? That’s okay, you will be! We love these!
Trivia
Demographic data reveals that young male drivers are particularly at risk for being involved in fatal accidents, with 84% of speeding-involved fatalities involving males predominantly aged 16-25.
A) The sweater contained $43,000 in cash, and the donor returned to claim it.
Readers’ pet of the day
“15-year-old Dakota (Braque Francais) has been our camping companion since 2015, when he was just five. Our first trailer was meant to simplify a South Dakota hunting trip—no hotel hassle—but we quickly fell in love with life on the road with the dogs. As for his tripod status: a frozen elbow led to him losing a leg two years ago, but it hasn’t slowed him down one bit.” —Karla Williams
Send us a photo of your pet with a short description. No blurry photos and please do not submit your photo more than once. Thanks!
BUMPER SNICKER: “I’m retired. Go around me.”
Leave here with a laugh
HOOOOOLD YOUR HORSES, PARTNER. Think you’re done reading? Not so fast! You can’t leave until you read yesterday’s brand-new Great RV Accessories newsletter. You can’t!
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Dakota – looks like one happy traveler! RV life suits him well and I hope y’all keep making memories. Don
Trivia- cannot disagree about young male drivers and speeding, but I have seen far too many young female drivers who are oblivious to the world in any direction other than their goal (turn right without looking left, turn left and ignore the car coming at them, and the big one, ignore the vehicle with the turn signal to enter a pump lane and turn right in front of them). Is it because we train girls to not make eye contact with strangers?
As far as the trivia question, the young male drivers ‘may’ speed’ but I noticed more young female drivers weave in and out of traffic, tailgate and not pay attention to their surroundings while driving.
They are also more prone to using their phones while behind the wheel.
I agree.
Couldn’t agree more with you Bob. 20+ years ago I had a young girl plow into the rear of my truck I was at a stand still. They estimated she was driving about 50 mph in a 35. She was on her cell phone. Ended up with permanent nerve damage in the lower back.
We are not Walmart campers per se, so I didn’t answer the question. We did stay at a Walmart for 5 days during a rodeo, and yes, we did get permission.
FIVE days! Permission or not, that doesn’t speak well for the RVer in the future. Sorry, just my $.02.
Dakota absolutely is the reason to RV, both he and his loving family enjoy it 🥰🐶
Thank you, Emily and Diane! Very sorry for Dakota’s loss of a leg, Karla. Very glad he adjusted so well. Have a great day and safe travels!
I use the Walmart app and RVPARKY app to see if overnight parking is ok. Then if I see other campers already there, then I park in the same area. Never had a problem in over 20 yrs. If no other campers or semis, then I do ask.
Regarding the random thought, whatever enters the loop must also exit. I don’t see that being near the end reduces the amount of traffic.
I have attended the Michigan State Fair over twenty years ago. The Police tried to arrest me when I asked them a question, and a Ford Union member came over and saved me from the Police.
I like the bumper snicker