If you love your RV don't go near the oceans.

[redcolorado]

We carry a small electric pressure washer. I can run it off the generator and use water from the coach tank if I want to wash and can find a place to do it. We spend 3 weeks at a time 4 times a year at a Navy famcamp on the Texas coast within 200 yards of the water. The campground allows "rinsing" of RVs but no washing. I use the pressure washer to rinse everything every other day and the morning we leave.

[rguild]

For the last two years I spent a good part of January and February on the Texas Gulf Coast. This year I learned some expensive lessons that might prove helpful for future visits.

Corrosion V Heavy Duty Rust Preventer comes in a spray can and does a great job of dissolving existing rust and inhibiting additional rust.

If you park your car and/or your RV on the beach wash it thoroughly and often. It is much easier on your RV and tow car to park away from the beach.

Free camping can be very expensive camping. I spent over a week of free beach camping at Magnolia Beach near Port Lavaca, TX and a month at Padre Island National Seashore near Corpus Christi, TX.

My Onan 500 generator stopped working and my propane water heater stopped firing up. I had to replace the carburetor on the generator. One of the brakes on my Jeep rusted enough to lock in the closed position requiring replacement of the entire break assembly.

The Texas Gulf Coast has an abundance of refineries and petrochemical plants that, quite likely, pollute corrosive materials into the air so issues in other regions may not be so drastic.

My bottom line is I will make my future stays short, prepare by spraying a corrosion inhibitor, and wash my motor coach and Jeep thoroughly and often.

[LargeMarge]

Originally Posted by Fiesta48

I went to Galvaston for two weeks. Mistake. In two short weeks my mirror chrome started blistering, my 3 A/C motor bearings got noisy, the underbelly was rusting...

While you were gone to Galveston for two weeks, where did you store your rig?

PS:
Anytime we need to be away from our rig, we make sure to give it extra attention so it knows we love it. Then, upon our return, it jumps for joy.

PPS:
I realize this is off-topic:
As a kid growing-up around all the old folks, I remember somebody asking "Does chrome-plate add to the reliability?"

I think I wanted to mount a chrome-plated air-cleaner on a tote-goat. At the moment, I don't recall any mirrors.

PPPS:
Speaking of the ocean, the old folks were tough. We went after abalone and lobster along the Oregon coast. They were in swim-trunks and nothing else. Water temp? Shriveling.

[Lakeman1]

We camp three or more months a year at Huntington Beach State Park and Myrtle Beach State Park in Myrtle Beach, SC, (200 yards or more off the beach) and have zero rust, salt problems on Motorhome, Harley or tode. Stayed two weeks in Flagler Beach (Daytona Beach) and about rusted away, just across the hwy from the beach and got a lot of salt spray. Never have seen any salt spray in Myrtle Beach, guess its the way the wind blows or something. We have a lot of friends that live in Myrtle Beach and ride Harleys and never have seen any rust on their bikes. So not all beaches.

[Excesses]

About 250 meters from the ocean and have done so since 1979. We have no problems with rust, unless one drives in the sand or salt water. The motorcycles are just fine, our 1990 Supra lives outside and does just fine too.
Of course, here on Vancouver Island we get a fair bit of rain too.
Faster oxidization is probably more a combination of heat and humidity in the salty environment.

We’d never move away from the Oceanside.

[Mimo]

Live on an island surrounded by ocean. Salt is a fact of life. You factor it in to the longevity (or lack there of) of every vehicle you buy here. And yes, keep it clean, undercoated and greased.

[smlranger]

We visit Myrtle Beach, SC at least once every year for 3 - 4 weeks and stay within yards of the ocean. I do have the coach washed and waxed right before we leave.


Getting ready to head out on a trip that will take us from Ocean City, MD down the coast to Myrtle Beach. Stops in Cape Charles, VA, Outer Banks, Emerald Isle and finally Myrtle Beach. I use Fluid Film on hinges and some moving metal parts on the coach and tow bar and generally try to keep the coach washed and clean. So far haven't noticed a lot of damage from salt.

[Steve & Bunny]

I've never lived more than a few miles from the ocean, and mostly within two miles. (I'll be 70 next month). There are only two things salt water won't ruin - fish, and salt water.
And yes, there is "salt air!" With the wave action and air currents lifting microscopic droplets into the air, it gets deposited on every surface. On a good day, you can smell it, on a bad day you wish you couldn't.

[mak1]

That's right cat, fresh water is your best friend, and the sooner the better.

[Washington T]

I lived on the coast of texas outside of Corpus Christi. for 25 years. The wind and water temperature in the cause the air to be filled with salt. A few days of this and you will experience problems of an electrical nature for life along with rust up in area you never thought were accessible. We kept our RV behind the dunes to avoid direct wind. Still had tons of problems but we were protected somewhat. Corrosion X, water spray once inland etc. We had our house for 10 years right on the water first 2 years had nothing but problems with electronics. Big screen TV repair man said to keep windows closed at all times it was rusting the circuit boards. Moved inland for 15 years to acreage only 3 miles from water 75% better but we had just one truck to go on the beach with other never saw the beach.

Where the water is cold you should be ok as long as you do not drive or camp on the beach. Live in Washington state now. No more salt spray.

[Steele]

Originally Posted by Washington T

Where the water is cold you should be ok as long as you do not drive or camp on the beach. Live in Washington state now. No more salt spray.

We have a 10 day stay planned for the end of the month at Grayland State Park on the Washington Coast and the site is just off the beach in the dunes. That is about as close to camping on the beach as you can get. I am thinking we will have to cancel. We have a 14 month old coach and I do not want to deal with electrical and other problems for the life of the coach and car.

I never thought we could have such drastic problems from such a short stay. This is a very timely post!!

Lynn

[TJ]

We've been camping on the Oregon and Washington coasts for 40 years in a wide variety of RVs (camp trailers to motorhomes) and have never had a problem associated with "salt air." Sure, if you park in the tideflats with saltwater lapping at your wheels, I suppose you'd have problems, but use just a little common sense and you'll be fine.

We'll be be taking our 2018 Newmar Mountain Aire out to the Oregon Coast, and I will sleep well; no worries about saltwater issues. When I get back home, I'll do a thorough wash...mostly to get the bugs off, but it will also rinse off any salt residue...if there is any.

TJ

[DryCreek]

Originally Posted by ga traveler

I have worked on hundreds of AC's. The bearings are not sealed. In fact there is a plastic stopper that should be removed and the bearings lubed.

Well, I've replaced two fan motors on two different Coleman Mach 15K units. Both were original (Mexico built) motors and neither had any way to lube the bearings (inboard or outboard) without removing the fans and drizzling oil down the shafts. Am I missing something?

[annmom45]

we just got a "new" 1996 pace arrow with less than 35,000 miles. We did not check the undercarriage as well as we should have because it was parked in an area with ticks. What do you use on the undercarriage?