RV Maintenance Tips
RV Maintenance is one of those things we all try to put off until we absolutely have to do it. There are some things that even when we finally get around to doing, most of us are doing wrong. There is one item in this article that I didn’t even know we had to do! The ice forming on the inside of one of our walls could have been avoided, and I’m going to tell you how.
It’s no secret by now that no matter what you spent on your RV, the craftsmanship could be better. That being said, they do twist and bounce a lot going down the road, which can lead to things loosening or shifting.
That exact scenario is what led to ice literally forming on the inside of our camper one January morning, and then having to remove the wall paneling and insulation. All of it could have been avoided with an 8 Dollar tube of silicone, if I had known it needed to be done.
(Don’t Forget To Read: Is RV Life Actually Worth It)
Seal Your Windows And Doors
Check for leaks, often. One thing you can do to avoid a leak in the first place is to reseal your window frames and door. RV Windows are a sandwich style frame where the outside and inside squeeze the window opening and are held together with screws.
Over time the screws will loosen causing the frame to not squeeze the walls as tightly as they did before. Putting a small bead of clear silicone around the top and side of each exterior window frame and around your door can prevent water from getting inside your walls.
In our case when the window frame screws had loosened a bit, water got into the top of the window frame. It then ran down the inside of the wall, soaking the insulation and the inside and outside wall. When the cold January air came in, all of that water turned to ice. The frozen interior wall attracted moisture from the air to build more ice throughout the night.
The following morning is when we saw our new snow flake wall paper next to the couch. This led to several days of removing the interior wall panels. Then removing all of the insulation. Using fans for days to dry the exterior wall panel from the inside, and treating the mold that had apparently started growing inside the wall some time ago.
Checking Your RV Tire Pressure
Probably the most commonly overlooked regular maintenance task that we all should be doing. I’m guilty of it myself really. We have all been in a hurry to get where we are going for the day and just hit the road while saying “eh, they’re round. Let’s go“.
