RVer opens basement storage, finds sewer hose cut in half. What happened?

By Russ and Tiña De Maris
It’s a case for RV detectives. After a day’s travel, this Class A owner stopped to set up camp. Opening a basement storage door, he found his sewer hose cut in half. He’d put the hose away earlier that day, and it was fine then. What happened?

Sleepyhead breaks camp at 3:00 a.m.

We’ll call him Hank. Hank and his wife were traveling through hot country and, sadly, their motorhome’s dash-air unit had croaked. Making the situation harder, the big rig’s generator wouldn’t start, so there they were, traveling without air conditioning. To make things easier on the way to cooler climes, they’d hit the road at 3:00 in the morning to take advantage of cool night air.

So it had been earlier that day. Hank had taken his flashlight and diligently broke camp, putting all his stuff—including his sewer hose—in their storage bays. Soon they were off, down the highway.

Along their route, they heard a loud bang. Blown tire? Nope. Rock tossed against the side by a passing 18-wheeler? That was the only conclusion they could reach, but there was no apparent damage. Giving a shrug of their shoulders, they kept on for their day’s-end destination.

Sewer hose cut in half!

Hank pulled the rig into a Love’s RV Stop and hopped out to take advantage of the utility hookups. On opening the door to his sewer wet bay he was astonished to find the sewer hose cut in half. Hang on! The fool thing had been fine when he put it away in the dark of the morning. But no, it was now a useless stinky slinky.

A little more looking revealed yet another alarming situation. The freshwater hose that he kept in the same bay was … no, not cut in half. His freshwater hose and pressure regulator were simply gone!

Are the lights coming on, you Sherlock Holmes of the RV lifestyle? Here’s one more clue. Hank, in his early-morning befuddlement, had failed to replace the access hatch lid in the bottom of the wet bay. You know, that funny thing some RVers call a “poop chute cover.”

Here’s the surmise

Hank finally figured it out. The weight of the heavy brass water pressure regulator, screwed onto the end of the freshwater hose, must have been vibrating as the motorhome motored down the highway. One can almost picture the end of that hose, slithering like some sneaky snake, right on down to the bottom of the wet bay. Without the lid obstructing travel, the hose end escaped through the access hatch, hitting the pavement below.

From there, the fresh water hose was likely jumping up and down on the pavement as the motorhome sped on, paying out more and more length, until some part of it still inside the wet bay hung up, wrapped like a constrictor around the sewer hose. Maybe the “free” end of the hose found its way under a tire. In any event, enough pulling force was exerted on the fresh water hose that it simply yanked on the unwillingly-embraced sewer hose, cutting right on through. Finally, the fresh hose made its escape. Its “lover,” the sewer hose was done for, like the poor fellow that met up with a praying mantis female.

Hank was left purchasing three new pieces for his utility array. But we’ll bet he never forgets to cover that poop chute again.

How about you? Had any goofy things happen to you in your RV life? We’d love to hear about them. Drop us a line. Russ (at) rvtravel.com. And if you’ve lost your “poop chute cover,” it may be tough finding a replacement. But you can find a variety of the whole assemblies on Amazon.

##RVT1170