Things I learned - Mostly the hard way

[tswms]

When I bought our MH from a private party, he advised me to always do a final walk around and pay special attention to the TV antenna. Forgetting to put it down was a $100 mistake he learned the hard way. I have never forgotten it, but last year during the big ice storm our antenna was up and I could only get it down about half way. I can't count how many other RV'ers  Honked at me and warned me in rest stops before we got far enough south to melt the last of the ice. RV,ers are good People.

 

[bigdad72]

No Air Conditioner or Microwave.....  last year, last week of a 4 week trip my family and I sweated a few nights because the AC was broke.  Generator ran fine.  TV worked.  Shore line got knocked a little unseated from return plug which I thought I checked.  Felt pretty foolish explaining to my wife why we spent a few days in a sauna.

 

[Dutch100]

This is an entertaining forum! I realized that after staying 10 days in a 23' travel trailer, I had a mishap that might be considered worthy of this group. As a side bar, I moved into the trailer on a friend's property in an all Mexican neighborhood of San Diego, Calif. When my friends learned of this, they said it was like Rockford Files, except that because of the neighborhood, it was the Rodriguez Files -- with great affection for our Mexican friends.

I got home from work at 3:30 a.m. and discovered I had no water. I went out to the hookup and confirmed that the water was turned on, but nothing in the trailer. I dug up the original paperwork for the trailer and looked at a layout of the water and tank system. I spent a half hour reading, then got a flashlight and crawled under the trailer to check things out. Half an hour later I was dirty, sweaty, and -- I'll say it -- very mad. Mad that I had no water and that I couldn't find the problem, let alone fix it.

The next day when I woke up I looked things over in the daylight. The simple garden hose I used had burst. A trip to the RV supply store for a reinforced hose and a water pressure regulator solved the problem. As a bonus, the regulator reduced the pressure greatly, so the water in the kitchen faucet no longer sprays all over me and the walls, and the floor and the window and the blinds.

Is there no handbook for staying in these things? Is it human nature to learn things the hard way?

 

[ArdraF]

Is there no handbook for staying in these things? Is it human nature to learn things the hard way?

Nope.  It's called "Expect the Unexpected."  :  No one could possibly foresee some of the wierd things that happen to us RVers.

ArdraF

 

[PatrioticStabilist]

These are funny, I know some mishaps are expensive and that's sad, but still funny.

I was having the satellite hooked up to Direct TV and also a dish on a tripod.  The installer had worked on it for awhile and I wondered if he was having a problem.  Went out to ask how it was going and he couldn't get the satellite dish to go up.  I said well I've never used it, it could be broken. I got to thinking about it and said I bet I need to set the emergency brake like for the slides and levelers, sure enough it worked, poor guy. 

I know when he first came and I told him where the box went, he said noone told him it was in a motorhome, I said have you hooked up one like this before?  He didn't answer, so I knew, and he kind of had that deer in the headlights look.  I showed him where the various hookups were so other then the above I think it went pretty smoothly.  Next time he will be the expert! No, I did not laugh.

 

[RoyM]

This is great LOL. My first HFWPOH happened last summer, we bought our first rv l and it has been a steep learning curve. The second trip out, the gray water backed up into the shower, the previous owner had not drained the tanks and I never thought to check them. DW was not happy to be without on board facilities.   We were packing up to leave and while unhooking the shore power I noticed a black pipe with a cap close to the trailer. DOH. ;D
Another time I was moving the trailer in the drive way, raised the jacks, moved the blocks out of the way, walked around to make sure everything was clear.... and forgot to lock the fifth wheel. Dent in both box rails to remind me. At least I didn't do that on the new truck.

 

[Flyboy]

bnb144> Did they use you as the mold for the Robin Wiliams movie RV?

I've never done any of the stuff in this thread. Hmmmm....my nose is growing.

 

[glen54737]

I've found out that if you buy a slider hitch for your fifth wheel it doesn't help if you don't slide it. ( see dent in truck)
Also don't let DW arrange the storage in the bed of your truck or else the 4-way lug wrench ends up blocking the slide (see dent in other side of truck).