What things did you learn the hard way...or what advice saved you? Please share!

PancakeBill said:

Be sure hose is on the 4" fitting tight before pulling valve.  That is all I am going to say on this.

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duly noted!
Thanks for saving me a shower!

khogle2 said:

I worked a career for an auto company that built your van. It was surprising how many people got car sick riding in the far rear seats on a G van like yours. So keep an eye out for anybody that feels queasy riding in the rear.

Some of those vans are the best tow vehicles around, nice long wheelbase and yours is a one ton, so that's a plus. Just keep the speed down, don't get too comfortable.

Check all the tires and hookups between van and TT at every opportunity. I used locking hitch pins and all because I was always worried somebody would tamper with something when you were in the store or restaurant.

Tire pressure monitoring on the trailer. Already on the van I presume.

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Yes, we have a few car sick kids and they are positioned up front and near windows.  The rest do fine.  And yes, it's a great hauler!  I hook up to our farm trailer when we need to move the cat down to a job or haul equipment around and she does the job with ease.  I have no doubts that she will have any trouble with the TT and since I used to drive Class A (Tractor Trailer, not MH) I don't think it will be an issue.
Thanks Khogle2!

JudyJB said:

If it's chocolate, it needs to go in the refrigerator.  Big lesson learned. 

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Something tells me my wife has that covered 

Simon and B said:

Don't pull into a parking lot assuming you'll be able to drive in a circle to get back out.  (We were lucky enough to find some empty slots that we could back up into, to turn around.  But it was tense for a moment! 

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Point well taken! And thanks!  I'm used to always scanning for my way out back when I was driving 40+ foot flatbeds and would want to stop somewhere for a bite.  I'm hoping those old habbits are still ingrained and sharp!

Howard R said:

Stopped to use the dump station at a rest stop ... looked like last guy was a little sloppy (first clue) ... but dry and apparently useable.  Hooked up dump hose ... pulled handle and as habit, immediately checked that the hose hadn't jumped out of the hole.  Well I was fast and lucky that day ... got the handle pushed back in before I needed a shower after.  There was a blockage down the pipe a ways.  ???   

So now especially if not in a campground, I dump a couple of gallons from the grey tank first ... then switch to the black and back to the grey to finish up.

Clean up took a while ... that outside shower hose did come in handy that day.

Howard

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Awesome tip here, Howard.  Thanks!

Just curious; how did you realize there was a blockage?

Just figured I'd take a moment to tell you all how grateful I am for you guys sharing some of your experiences with me.  I feel like I've learned a years worth (if not more) of good RV-ing tricks and knowledge from you all.  So far you guys are proving this forum's slogan to be true, and I'm humbled by it. 
Thanks everyone 

The Tucker Clan said:

Just curious; how did you realize there was a blockage?

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By habit, as soon as I pull the dump handle I always quickly double check the hose hasn't jumped out of the dump pipe or ??  ... in this case it was the beginning of an eruption from the hole      ???    ... this was the only time I've had a problem ... think there was enough room in the pipe to give me time to look and react ... didn't need a shower afterwards but do recall changing shirts!  ;D

Howard

If your RV has a gravity fill for the fresh-water tank, don't stick a garden hose in the filler spout, walk away and assume the overflow will work. I got my first lesson in hydraulics that way when the fresh-water tank ballooned up and tore the water tank mounting straps right out of the floor and lifted the master bed a foot of its pedestal. It also turned a 70 gallon fresh-water tank into about a 75 gallon tank.

Kev 

Kevin Means said:

If your RV has a gravity fill for the fresh-water tank, don't stick a garden hose in the filler spout, walk away and assume the overflow will work. I got my first lesson in hydraulics that way when the fresh-water tank ballooned up and tore the water tank mounting straps right out of the floor and lifted the master bed a foot of its pedestal. It also turned a 70 gallon fresh-water tank into about a 75 gallon tank.

Kev

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Good advice Kevin! Thanks!

Howard R said:

By habit, as soon as I pull the dump handle I always quickly double check the hose hasn't jumped out of the dump pipe or ??  ... in this case it was the beginning of an eruption from the hole      ???    ... this was the only time I've had a problem ... think there was enough room in the pipe to give me time to look and react ... didn't need a shower afterwards but do recall changing shirts!  ;D

Howard

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Sounds like being on top of your game saved you there  8)

Kevin Means said:

If your RV has a gravity fill for the fresh-water tank, don't stick a garden hose in the filler spout, walk away and assume the overflow will work. I got my first lesson in hydraulics that way when the fresh-water tank ballooned up and tore the water tank mounting straps right out of the floor and lifted the master bed a foot of its pedestal. It also turned a 70 gallon fresh-water tank into about a 75 gallon tank.

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It's even more important if you're using a city water fill valve.  The vent line is typically a 1/4" or so line and sometimes is plugged or kinked and won't handle the air expulsion when the tank gets nearly full.  If I'm filling the tank to the top, I open the gravity fill to give a larger vent and let any excess water run out if I'm not paying attention when the tank fills.

Always get to your campsite before dark. It's very hard to spot the little campground signs out on the highway especially if the campground is in the countryside.  And backing into the site in the dark is nerve wracking.

#1 tip The black tank valve always stays shut even when camping.  When at least 3/4 full open valve, dump black tank, flush and shut the valve.  With you clan you should be dumping about once per day maybe every other day.  Water is your friend.  You can leave the gray valve open when camping.

tonyandkaren said:

Always get to your campsite before dark. It's very hard to spot the little campground signs out on the highway especially if the campground is in the countryside.  And backing into the site in the dark is nerve wracking.

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Thanks guys!  Hopefully we can make it to camp before dark but I'm sure there will always be "that one occasion...".  Great tip though.

Bobtop46 said:

#1 tip The black tank valve always stays shut even when camping.  When at least 3/4 full open valve, dump black tank, flush and shut the valve.  With you clan you should be dumping about once per day maybe every other day.  Water is your friend.  You can leave the gray valve open when camping.

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I think this is the one area that I really have reservations about.  I'm grateful for any and all advice in this area.  Thanks Bob 

We leave our grey and our black water valves closed.  When we're ready to dump, we dump the black water first, followed by the grey.  This helps push the "Yucky" stuff through the hose.  Also be aware that over time your little tank light sensors that indicate how full the tanks are often get covered with stuff and don't register correctly.  After time you'll get a feel for how full the tanks are and know when to dump.  There are a couple of tricks to help keep the sensors clean, when you are ready just ask or do a search.

Have fun!
Marsha~

Forgot...are you using load levelers with your van/trailer?  If not, consider getting them as they will help keep the entire rig more rigid and you will travel down the road much easier, handle passing vehicles better and will have a better ride.

Marsha~

I keep seeing the advice to not dump your black tank until it's 3/4 full. Which is great advice on it's face, but extremely impractical in practice without a few caveats and explanations. Our MH has a 40 gallon black tank. Our MH has two people with average bathroom habits. It takes more than 2 weeks of full time living to fill the black tank.

So, am I really being told that if we use the rig on weekends only, to wait 2 months to dump the black tank? Let's just say that those months are July and August in Phoenix......... Do you see where the advice to "never dump unless 3/4 full" could be bad advice to someone new asking for advice?

Solids or semi-solids in the bottom of the tank are the problem. Diluting them with water is the solution. Large quantities of water flowing out of the tank (that 3/4 tank thing) helps flush remaining semi-solids out. Keeping some water in the tank at all times helps keep semi-solid from becoming rock solid. This is important if the RV is stored between trips. (Buffalo chips come out of the factory semi-solid. They dry out while sitting on the prairie until they are solid. Solid buffalo chips won't flush out the little hole in the bottom of the tank. If the buffalo deposited his daily efforts in the same place each day, he'd wind up with a buffalo chip pyramid, since there isn't a lot of rain on the prairie to wash the pyramid away.)

For me the practical side is that I dump when it's most appropriate. Before leaving the full H/U site and heading our to a site with no sewer dump, I empty and flush the black tank regardless of level, knowing that we'll be putting more liquids back in immediately and my semi won't become solid. I also know that there will be more liquid coming and that the next empty cycle will probably be a full tank after dry camping for 2 weeks.

Knowing WHY you need to do a particular thing allows the new person to understand that there is no absolute rule. You need to know when you can safely break the rule.

Ken

There is no rule, so nothing to break.  If the tank is less than half full, just add water until you think it's full enough, then dump it.  With the 2 of us when we were full timing, I would dump the black tank once a week.  We have a 40 gallon tank and it would take about 10 days to fill it up.

The Tucker Clan said:

Sounds like being on top of your game saved you there  8)

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Luck over skill is not always a bad thing !!  ;D

Howard