With the start of Spring just around the corner… On Friday, March 20th to be exact, you are most likely thinking about de-winterizing your RV and beginning to prepare for the upcoming traveling season. It’s very important that your rig go through some careful cleaning, maintenance, and general upkeep to keep you and your family safe this season. An article from fmca.com offers a great list put forth by Gary, known in RV circles as “The RV Doctor”, listing the items that absolutely MUST be done before your wanderlust takes over and you go. While a full and thorough de-winterization is recommended (Find and print a complete list here), Gary says that he recognizes that not all people will have the time or patience to complete all of the items before the desire for travel prevails, so he has put together a comprehensive list of the most important items that you need to take care of before you head out for that first spring time outing.
House and Chassis Batteries
Topping the “must do” list is to charge the house and chassis batteries. Before they can be charged, however, they must be reinstalled if they were removed when the motorhome was winterized.
Check the electrolyte level in flooded batteries, and make sure all connections are clean and tight. Charge the batteries and confirm that all 12-volt-DC devices are ready by operating each one.
RV Propane System
A second item, which may require a service appointment but is vitally important, is to have the propane system and regulator tested by a certified RV service technician. Aside from the fact that this system is required to operate many of the motorhome’s appliances, a leaking or malfunctioning propane system is a safety hazard that must be discovered and repaired prior to operation.
RV Fresh Water System
Third, prepare the fresh water system. For those who winterized the motorhome in the fall using the wet method (adding RV antifreeze to the system), drain and flush the antifreeze from the system and rotate the water heater’s bypass valve to return this appliance to the system.
Next, chlorinate the entire fresh water system using 1/4-cup of liquid household bleach mixed in a gallon of water for every 15 gallons of tank capacity. Pour the chlorine-water solution into the fresh water tank; pump it through all the water lines and fixtures; let it sit for four hours; drain it; and flush until satisfied with the odor and taste.
RV Tire Inspection
Finally, Gary advises that all tires should be cleaned, inspected for damage, and inflated to the correct tire pressures determined by the weight each tire is supporting. This requires that the motorhome be weighed at each tire position using a certified scale.
Each tire should then be inflated to the correct pressures using the tire manufacturer’s weight chart. Traveling on tires that are not inflated to the proper pressures will promote premature tire wear and, more importantly, will affect the handling of the vehicle and could lead to a tire blowout.
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