Keeping up with your RV’s maintenance is the best way to ensure that your RV will continue to give you years of enjoyment and mitigate unexpected issues on the road. We’ve been traveling across the country for years in our RV and have learned a thing or two about common maintenance items.
From our experience, these are the most common maintenance items you can keep up with on your own and will make the biggest impact on your RV’s longevity. From RV washing hacks to simplifying more daunting tasks like replacing your water heater tank’s anode rod, check out these tips from our first-hand experience.
#1: RV Wash Hack
While traveling across the country, we learned that the luxury of washing our RV at home wasn’t as easily achieved in most parts of the country. Most campgrounds wouldn’t allow us to wash our trailer to save valuable water resources.
So we created this RV washing hack that helped us work with minimal water usage. We’ve successfully washed our 42-foot RV with a little more than 0.5 gallons of water. The secret tool we use is a common microfiber mop system with an integrated spray bottle attachment, similar to the Rubbermaid Reveal mop system.
What you’ll need:
- Microfiber mop system
- RV wash and wax
- Water
- Foam floor squeegee
- Microfiber towel
- In the removable reservoir, put a mixture of water and RV wash and wax.
- With the clean mop placed on the side of the RV and the reservoir pointed downward, spray several soaking sprays from the attached reservoir. Soak as needed, and mop the side of the RV with the solution.
- Once a section is complete and soaked with soap solution, use a common janitorial foam floor squeegee to clean all the soapy water off the RV.
- Wipe the seams and edges with a microfiber towel
When water is limited, that’s all you need to do. If you have the option to use water, you can hose down the RV before you squeegee, that’s optional in drier climates.
While mopping your RV walls sounds a little unconventional, I often clean our RV in about 45 minutes and with only two reservoirs of water/soap solution (approx. a half gallon). Since most surfaces of the RV are flat, these flat tools work well.
One tip is to make sure you have a clean mop surface (check often) and don’t catch any small pebbles under the mopping surface).
RELATED: Tips for Cleaning your RV Interior
#2: Water Heater Tank Anode Rod Replacement
Part of any routine maintenance schedule should include changing your anode rod within your hot water heater tank, if so equipped. Anode rods are designed to attract corrosive elements in the hot water, thus minimizing corrosion in the steel liner of the tank.
You can do this maintenance in about 10 minutes with a cooled-down water tank. The rod we removed was about 2 years old, but your replacement schedule will vary depending on use, water quality, and the type of anode rod.
What you’ll need:
- Replacement anode rod
- Ratchet and socket (with an extension) or electric impact driver
- Bucket
- Shut off the water supply feeding the water tank.
- Turn off the power switch on the tank. Once the tank has cooled, lift the pressure relief valve on the top of the tank to let out any excessive buildup of water and air.
- Using a ratchet and socket with an extension, begin loosening the anode rod. (I use an electric impact driver in this demo).
- As it begins to back itself out, water will start pouring out. I let it drain out into a bucket on the ground. (Another option is to use a flexible cutting board and roll it up underneath to catch the water and direct it toward the bucket.)
- Take the rod all the way out and let the tank drain.
- If there’s any buildup of corrosion inside the hole, try to chip away at it before all the water drains from the tank, so the flow will push the corrosion out.
- Place the new rod into the tank and tighten it.
- Once installed, turn the water pump back on. Every minute or so “burp” the tank by pulling the pressure release valve. When no more air comes out of the tank, it should be filled.
- Turn your tank’s power switch back on and enjoy that hot water!
#3: Caulk Repair and Seal
Inspecting the caulked seams of your RV will save you many headaches down the road.
If you see a crack in the caulk, chances are the walls or seams have settled a little during transit/aging and that seam is now compromised. Every time it rains, more and more water enters those cracks and causes deep-rooted problems like rot, swelling, and mold. So for the price of a simple tube of caulk (and caulking gun), you can save thousands in potential water damage.
Use an exterior all-weather caulk (it can be silicone or sealant) that’s waterproof and matches the color of your RV’s caulk. When repairing your roof, it’s important to understand what type of caulk you should use on your RV’s roof because not all roofs are compatible with silicone caulk.
What you’ll need:
- Caulk
- Caulking gun
- Plastic scraper
- Remove the cracked or missing caulk. Use a plastic scraper and get out as much of the offending caulk as possible. You can use a metal putty knife, but take extra caution not to scratch your camper.
- Clean the surface—the cleaner the surface, the better the new caulk will fill the seam.
- With your caulking gun, squeeze a small bead along the crack and beyond on both sides.
- With your finger or caulk spreader, smooth out the bead and fill the seam. If you get any excess on the RV you can use a wet rag or towel to clean.
- Check your seams often and keep the rig watertight for years.
Check your seams often and keep the rig water tight for years!
#4: Sterilize Water Tank
Clean water isn’t something to take for granted. We fill our water storage tank with an inline filter every time we fill, but occasionally we sterilize the tank as well to keep bacteria and odors from forming. All that you need to sterilize your water tank is household bleach and water.
You’ll need to know the maximum holding capacity of your water tank and do a little math. The ratio is 0.25 cups of bleach to every 15 gallons of water. (We use 1.5 cups of bleach in our tank.)
What you’ll need:
Clean water is not something to take for granted. We fill our water storage tank with an inline filter every time we fill, but occasionally we sterilize the tank as well to keep bacteria and odors from forming. All that you need to sterilize the tank successfully is some household bleach and water.
- Pour the bleach (at the recommended ratio) into the tank with a funnel. This can be done straight or mixed with a gallon of water. I pour it in straight, then use the hose to fill the tank with freshwater.
- Once filled, head inside the RV and open up all the faucets until you can smell bleach coming out of the faucets. This ensures the sterilized water makes its way through all of the water lines.
- If you have time, let the bleach water sit overnight.
- When ready, find the water line drain (usually the lowest part of the RV) and drain out the bleach water.
- Once the water is drained, close the drain and refill the water tank with clean fresh water.
- Repeat the bleeding of the lines inside the RV by opening all the faucets until the water no longer has a bleach smell.
- Empty out the remaining fresh water in your tank. At this point, your tank should be clean, so fill it up as needed and get out and camp!
You can do this flushing of the system in conjunction with washing your RV to reuse the rinse water to wash your RV.
