Issue 867 • March 19, 2018
This newsletter is brought to you Monday through Thursday by RVtravel.com and is funded primarily through voluntary subscription contributions from our readers. Thank you!
RVing Tip of the Day
By Bob Difley
What are these magic ingredients? White vinegar and baking soda! Don’t believe it? Try this on your oven – one of the toughest cleaning jobs – to convince yourself. Prepare a solution of 1/2 cup each of vinegar and baking soda with 3 cups of water. Wear rubber gloves to protect your skin and apply with a kitchen towel or sponge. Allow the solution to stand for a few minutes, then wipe off. You will only need to scrub the very toughest burned-on food.- Remove stick-on hooks from painted surfaces by squeezing a few drops of vinegar behind the hook.
- Price labels will come off by coating the label with several coats of white vinegar and let soak. After several minutes the label will rub off.
- Lime deposits around faucets can be softened for easy removal by covering the deposits with vinegar-soaked paper towels. Leave the paper towels on for about one hour before cleaning. Leaves chrome clean and shiny.
- Vinegar removes deposits which clog your metal shower heads and sink aerators. Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar and one quart water and submerge the shower head or aerators and boil 15 minutes. Or put the mixture in a plastic bag, secure to the shower head with a rubber band, leave on for about an hour, then remove the bag and turn on the water to rinse.
- For a homemade anti-fogging glass cleaner try 1 part white vinegar to 3 parts water.
- Remove rust stains and hard water deposits by applying vinegar full-strength until spot disappears, then rinse.
- Mix vinegar with salt to create a paste for a good surface cleaner.
- Remove stubborn hard water sprinkler spots and streaks on glass with undiluted vinegar.
- Clean tea pots by boiling equal parts of vinegar and water for several minutes and let stand an hour. Then rinse with plain water before using tea kettle.
- You can cut the amount of chlorine bleach used in your wash by half when you add 1/4 cup to front-loading washers and 1/2 cup to top-loading machines.
- The baking soda will also make your clothes smell clean and fresh.
- Dissolve 4 tablespoons baking soda in 1 quart warm water for a general cleaner.
- Use baking soda on a damp sponge to clean and deodorize all kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
- A paste of baking soda and salt will cleans baking dishes – enamel, ceramic and glass – and coffee stains from cups or counter tops.
- It is a great soap scum remover.
- For sluggish or clogged drains pour 1/2 cup baking soda down the drain. Add 1/2 cup white vinegar and cover the drain. Let set for a few minutes, then pour a kettle of 6 or more cups of boiling water down the drain to flush it. The combination of baking soda and vinegar breaks down fatty acids into soap and glycerin, allowing the clog to wash down the drain.
Read the last issue’s tip: Extra! Extra! Carry an e-x-t-r-a water hose.
Did you miss the latest RV Travel Newsletter? If so, read it here.
IF YOU APPRECIATE THIS NEWSLETTER and others from RVtravel.com, will you please consider pledging your support? Even $5, $10 or $20 is appreciated. Many readers set up an ongoing contribution, typically $5 to $10 a month. Your contributions make it possible for us to produce 25 highly informative newsletters every month. Learn more or contribute.
Endorsed by RV tire safety authority Roger Marble
An excellent tire pressure gauge
The Accutire MS-4021B digital tire pressure gauge has an easy-to-read LCD display that provides pressure readings from 5-150 PSI. It’s ergonomically designed with an angled head and a rubber-coated easy-grip handle. If you forget to turn off the gauge, don’t worry, it will automatically shut off. The included lithium battery never needs to be recharged or replaced. And all this for about $17! Learn more or order.
QUICK TIPS
An easy way to control food costs
Keeping food costs down can also result in keeping time spent in the galley reduced, providing more time for other pursuits. Here’s a tip for the rolling chef: When preparing meals, consider if your menu choices can be prepared in larger portions and reprised at a later date. Can you make double or triple portions, and put the leftovers in the freezer? You’ll save on time, often on ingredients, and later, after a long day on the road, your frozen meals can be popped in the microwave or gently reheated while left in the bag and warmed up in a pan of water.
Have good jumper cables on handWith electricity expert, Mike Sokol
Cheap jumper cables will let you down, and often at the worst possible time. What you need is something with really thick copper wiring that can provide the several hundred amperes of starting current you need to turn over the engine. The ones I recommend are available on Amazon or at Home Depot – they work great.
Is your roof air conditioner dripping?
Got a dripping roof air conditioner, but it’s not raining outside? If the a/c drips when operating, you’ve probably got clogged drain holes inside the unit. Disconnect shore power, shut off the generator. Remove the shroud from the unit and look for debris blocking drain holes in the bottom plate of the roof-top unit.
HOT TOPIC AT RV TRAVEL.COM How often do you have to recertify propane tanks?
Keep your food cool with this RV fridge fan
Every RV refrigerator should have one of these!
This small refrigerator fan from Valterra Products will help keep the food in your RV fridge cool and from spoiling. It cuts down initial cool-down time by 50 percent. Runs for more than 30 days on 2 D batteries. Don’t leave home without this! Learn more or order from Amazon.com.
WEBSITES OF THE DAY
TaskRabbit
Need some furniture put together? Need a truck to borrow? Need someone to pick up milk from the grocery store for you? Task Rabbit will pair you with someone willing to do your “task” for a bit of cash.
HowToPronounce
If you’ve recently met someone with an unusual name and you, whoops, forgot how to pronounce it, or if you’re traveling to another country and need to learn how to say something (and say it right!) this is the website for you. Good to keep on hand either way.
Dead Man’s Switch
Bad things happen, and sometimes to you. This website allows you to compose and write emails to those to whom you have something to say … after you’ve died. Sort of like an electronic will, the site will check in with you every so often to see if you’re still, well, breathing. If you don’t respond after a few times they’ll send your emails.
Check out the long list of great RVing-related websites from RVtravel.com.
Protect your RV’s slideout
with this rubber seal lubricant
If you don’t take care of your slideout you’re asking for problems including dangerous, costly water damage. This rubber seal lubricant from Thetford prevents fading, cracking and deterioration. It cleans, conditions and shines, keeping seals flexible and protected from sunlight destruction. It is also useful on door seals and window seals. It’s a mineral oil product and also acts as a lubricant. Learn more or order
Ideal hose for your RV? Maybe not
RVtravel.com editor Chuck Woodbury has a tip about a type of compact hose that at first glance seems like a good thing for RVers. You may have seen this advertised in infomercials. Even though it could prove handy in an emergency, it’s not good for regular use, says Woodbury.
Best-selling vent cover!
Keep rain out and fresh air inside your RV
Few add-ons are more enthusiastically endorsed by RVers as MaxxAir vents. This is the original and best-selling model. Install this over your RV vents, then keep them open in any weather. On rainy days, air from inside your RV can exit without a single drop of rain coming inside. Keep your vents open during storage and while driving. Learn more or order.
MORE QUICK TIPS
Stop the microwave turntable rattle
Randy Coleman has this great tip: “I’ve seen many strange ways to stop the rattling of the microwave turntable while going down the road in an RV. What works the best for me is to cut a piece of the non-skid rubberized shelf liner (has holes in it) to full width of the bottom of the microwave, place under the turntable, then replace the turntable upside down on top of it. Works great. You won’t forget to remove it, since you always open it to put something in before starting the unit. No more rattles, safe, effective and lightweight.” Thanks, Randy!
Putting new fittings onto your sewer hose? We’ve all heard the idea of dipping the hose in hot water to make the fittings slip on easier. Here’s the polar opposite: Stick the new fittings into your freezer for a few minutes – they’ll contract and slip in the hose easier.
‘Earthquake Putty’ keeps stuff in place
Do you have items in your RV you like to keep in place — on a table, bedstand or counter? You need this. Quakehold Museum Putty is designed to keep items secure in earthquakes! Hey, a moving RV is a constant earthquake! To use this, pull off what you need, roll until soft, apply to the base of the object then lightly press it to the surface. Later, it comes off clean. RVers love it! Cheap, too! Learn more or or at Amazon.com.
Join us: On RVillage • Facebook • Twitter • YouTube.
LEAVE HERE WITH A LAUGH
A wife complains to her husband: “Just look at that couple down the road, how lovely they are. He keeps holding her hand, kissing her, holding the door for her. Why can’t you do the same?” The husband: “Are you mad? I barely know that woman!”
Today’s Daily Deals at Amazon.com
Best-selling RV products and Accessories at Amazon.com. UPDATED HOURLY.
SIGN UP FOR THIS OR ANY OF RVTRAVEL.COM’S NEWSLETTERS.
Pot of Gold
We have put the Pot of Gold contest on hold after another winner on Saturday. Here’s why.
RV Daily Tips Staff
Editor and Publisher: Chuck Woodbury. Managing editor: Diane McGovern. Staff writer: Emily Woodbury. Contributing writers: Russ De Maris, Bob Difley, Gary Bunzer, Roger Marble, Deanna Tolliver, Mike Sokol, J.M. Montigel and Andrew Robinson. Advertising coordinator: Gail Meyring.
ADVERTISE on RVtravel.com and/or in this newsletter. Contact Gail Meyring at Gail(at)RVtravel.com .
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.
Mail us at 9792 Edmonds Way, #265, Edmonds, WA 98020.
This website utilizes some advertising services. Sometimes we are paid if you click one of those links and purchase a product or service. Regardless of this potential revenue, unless stated otherwise, we only recommend products or services we believe provide value to our readers. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc . RVtravel.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
RVtravel.com includes links to other websites. We cannot control the content and/or privacy policies of those sites. Please be aware when you leave this newsletter or any other section of RVtravel.com to read the privacy statements of any of those websites that collect personally identifiable information. Our own privacy policy applies only to RVtravel.com and its affiliated blogs.
This newsletter is copyright 2018 by RVtravel.com
Love all your comments on baking soda & vinegar. I’ve used baking soda for many years to neutralize battery acid. Just sprinkle a little on the acid, watch it bubble wait a few minutes & rinse off with water, but be sure to rinse it completely off. I do it twice to make sure I get it all off. When I do the final rinse I make sure that I get all surfaces rinsed to make sure I got it cleaned.
Dave
I agree with your comments about not drinking through a Pocket type hose. But as you suggest, they have some use. I have two of a better rated brand on Amazon, a 25 ft and a 50 ft. I use them for back flushing my black tank and washing vehicles or my motorhome.
From my research of the reviews, you don’t want to leave them in the sun or under pressure, they are just not that hardy, so you want to put them away after use. The most annoying feature is that if you use a full spray, the pressure drops inside the hose and they then tend to shrink back in size. I find myself tugging it back towards me.
I put up with these annoying features because they both fit in a bag about the size of a loaf of bread and don’t take up any noticeable room in my wet bay. Best is to store in a mesh bag so they can dry out. If one fails, I’ll just buy another.
Chuck,
where can I find a load/ pressure chart for bridgestone r500 HD duravis LT 235 80 17 tires?, I have contacted Bridgestone and have gotten no response.
Thanks,
Ray
I use that type of hose for my black washout, and for washing vehicles….never touches my fresh water outlet….works great!
We have one of the Zero G hoses that we use for our drinking water.
https://www.amazon.com/ZERO-G-1-2-X-50/dp/B01N1FB9EE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1521468515&sr=8-3&keywords=teknor+apex&dpID=51fhucf7BEL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
And it’s REALLY good when the temperature outside is COLD. I doesn’t stiffen up like the customary white hoses where you can barely roll them up to put them away.
Great article, I’ve been with Coach for years kept coach in top shape , how long is these tapes good to keep on hand in case need at a later date. Thanks keep up the great job. Joe Port St Lucie Fl.
Watched your pocket hose story, and it’s probably true what you ireported. However, your story kacked comprehensive review of thus category of products unless you just wanted to you indite their product. There’s another product that’s fir safe drinking water use and it’s a specific model of the zero gravity hose hose brand. You can find that on Amazon too.
I generally agree and like everything you do however I have to call you out on this.