Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Thomason
Hi, My name is Tom and my wife is Barb. We just purchased a used motorhome a 2003 Holiday Rambler Vacationer. Our problem is this is our first and only RV ever. I'm 70 and my wife is 67 and I'm not sure if the old adage ( You can't teach an old dog new tricks ) is true or not but I'm having one heck of a time. The motorhome is in excellent condition and we love it but at this point I just need a little help. So if there is any one in the Paw Paw or Kalamazoo Michigan area who can help me and show us how some of this works (i.e. Shore Power, Generator, Batteries ), I Would happily compensate them.
Thanks Tom & Barb
P.S
I purchased this from an inside Storage Facility and other than slide outs and leveling that was about extent of training.
|
Tom & Barb:
Congratulations! You'll have a lot of fun and experiences with it, I'm sure. Some sage advise... just a few tips:
-- when backing up - have a spotter (your significant other?) watching for you. Trees, electrical pedestals and sewer pipes, oh and other objects like the Oakland Coliseum Bleachers) may become targets ;-)
-- ALWAYS... I Mean ALWAYS... keep the black tank (the poop tank) valve closed unless you're dumping. Varying other degrees of opinion are out there about the gray water tank valve - but keep the black one closed. You need the liquids in there to help the solids flow out! If you leave a little gray water in the gray tank, you can use that bit of water to flush out your hose after dumping the black tank.
-- Oh, and Buy a real heavy duty sewer hose. This is not the place to scrimp and save...
-- If you can afford to, and you do a lot of dry camping (no electric or water or sewer hookups) like at our Nation's National Parks sometime offer, consider switching out incandescent light bulbs to LED bulbs. They use 90% less power and put out almost no heat (unless they're the dimmable kind, but they still only put out modest heat).
-- Your Tire's are probably the most important thing to check before rolling out on a trip. Verify the Dept of Trans (DOT) datestamp on the sidewalk. For tires made in the new millennium - it's a four digit code denoting the WEEK and YEAR the tires were made. For example "5113" means it was made in December of 2013. Also, tires may "look" fine, but they're not like cars... we change RV tires typically by age, not by miles driven. I will look at replacing mine after 5-7 years. I've had a blowout on an inside dual which cost me $250 deductible - for $6,500 damage done to my coach. Air pressure is critical and knowing what your coach weighs and how much each tire is rated for will help you. A). Keep from overloading an area of your coach and B.) Prevent premature failure caused by heat from under inflation.
Not trying to scare you... on the contrary, RVing is fantastic - go enjoy it, but be safe!!
Regards,
Tom Rogers
'03 Alfa SeeYa Diesel Pusher 38'. And
'03 Teton Homes Experience Sunrise 33 5th Wheel
Manteca, CA
troglegs@gmail.com
Feel free to email if you've got questions
Linear Mode
