Storing the RV in the summer

[John Laninga]

Normally we head for cooler climates in the summer, but this year we will be on an extended overseas trip. So our motorhome will be parked at our permanent site near Houston. It has partial shade, and 50A power.

My thinking is to leave power plugged in, but empty the fridge and leave the fridge door open. Further, put reflective shields in the windshield, retract the slides, leave the bathroom vent open (but the fan off) and the kitchen vent open with the fan thermostatically controlled. Leave all cabinet doors open. Cover the tires, windows closed and covered, water off.

I had thought of setting the AC at 80 or so but I am concerned about running the ACs unattended for 2 1/2 months....

Any other ideas? I'm open for any suggestions.....

== John

[Kirk W]

I'd probably do about what you are. We'll only be gone a month, but will do pretty much the same.

[AFchap]

I would leave the roof vents cracked a bit (I have covers over mine). I would NOT trust one to be "thermostatically" controlled as I have seen mine go beserk and go through repeated closing & opening for no discernible reason. Fridge off & open. Yes, heat shields in the windows, especially the front (all my other windows are heavily tinted and have shades I would pull). I would not leave the ac on.

[bobsallyh]

Unless somebody is going to check the rig for you weekly or a couple of times a week, I'd never let the power plugged in. Too many things can happen to a rig left unattended and the power on especially in storm areas.

[Chief 62]

We have left our 5'r closed up in Fla. every summer for the past 4 summers. Slides in, ac set to 83 and place a number of damp rid containers around. Friends check on it every couple of weeks. Knock on wood no issues at all. Enjoy your trip!

[oldjohnt]

While leaving it plugged into shore power is likely fine and hey that's what you do while living in it, I would just be worried if no one is there long periods. Problem is unless you have solar, the house batteries could (subject to a lot of things) become discharged and remain in that low state which isn't good for them. Or if the charger has a problem they may be over charged???

 

I don't think I would leave any fans on or even on T Stat (especially if not plugged to shore power) just leave the vents open for natural ventilation.

 

I would prefer the tires NOT be left on the ground, at least drive up on boards for long storage. And have them well inflated so it doesn't sit there with the tires bulged out.

 

I would add a ton of Fuel Stabilizer and run it so it gets into the entire fuel system including any generator.

 

If not plugged in, do you have a master house battery cut off switch/relay??? If so I would leave it OFF or even disconnect the house battery bank to avoid any parasitic discharges, that's an easy thing to do and re connect.

 

It would likely be fine either way (connected or not) but that's just my method, others may be better. I don't know much about "stuff" to absorb moisture, but if it works all the better.

 

John T

[folivier]

IMO humidity is more of a problem than heat. Living in southeast Louisiana with similar humidity (if not more) than Houston area I've either left one air conditioner on at 85 and fridge on or kept the motorhome closed up with a dehumidifier running. If you have partial shade during parts of the day then the interior will be cooling and warming up at different rates and could cause condensation which will cause mold to grow.

I did have a trailer I tried leaving with the a/c off and closed up and after a couple weeks it had mold growing on quite a bit of the interior surfaces. But hey here in Louisiana I've seen mold growing on mirrors.

[mickhoss]

I would leave the fridge off and the door open , the vents open a bit and maybe a window open a bit as well (it might get a bit dusty inside) cover the tyres on the sun side,

I would remove the batterys and take them to a mates place and hook them up to a maintainence charger and have your mate keep an eye on them.

 

around here the sun does more damage than anything else in summer.

 

A couple of months standing on the tyres shouldnt do too much harm

 

mick

[LindaH]

I would not leave the roof vents open unless you have covers over them...if a strong wind comes along, it could rip the vent lids off the rig.

 

For a couple of years, we left our fifth wheel in Arizona during the summer. Of course, our problem was the opposite of what you will experience...hot and dry rather than hot and humid. We did not leave our rig plugged into power. We did clean out the refrigerator and left the doors open. We had one roof vent with a cover over it, so we left that one open. The sun blocking foil was put over all the windows, we covered the tires after inflating them to their maximum. We also put four jacks (two on each side) under the frame so that the entire weight of the rig wasn't sitting on the tires (but we left our fifth wheel for 6 months at a time, not just 2-1/2 months). We also partially filled quart freezer bags with water and put them over all the drains to keep them from drying out and put several layers of saran wrap over the toilet bowl, after filling it with water, to keep the seals from drying out. Several large containers of water were set out inside to provide some humidity...you will, of course, want to lessen humidity in your rig.

[whj469]

I also live in the Houston area, about 35 miles NNE, and that is exactly what I do, even if I am here with my fiver.

If you don't leave the AC (s) on about 80 F it will get to hot inside. Good Luck and have a good trip.

[TRACKUM]

I would prefer the tires NOT be left on the ground, at least drive up on boards for long storage. And have them well inflated so it doesn't sit there with the tires bulged out.

 

I'm interested in knowing why it is better to put the tires on a board.

 

Also should we inflate the tires beyond the max psi during storage?

[xctraveler]

 

I'm interested in knowing why it is better to put the tires on a board.

 

Also should we inflate the tires beyond the max psi during storage?

We recently attended Camp Freightliner and were told it is best to separate the tires from contact with ANY organic material which would include wooden boards for any stop over a day or two. This prevents chemicals from leaching out of the tire compound. I am no chemist organic or otherwise, but I just went to WalMart and bought 6 plastic place mats for $12 total and drove my coach tires onto them to keep them off the asphalt, can't hurt, cost little, have never bothered in the past 15 years, but darn those 22.5 inch tires are expensive!

[Yarome]

Some good suggestions. Personally, I would pull the batteries into the garage, stick a battery tender on, drain and blow out water lines and leave the coach unplugged. I would also give it a good wash and wax if it hasn't been done recently.

 

Other than that.. pretty much what others and yourself have mentioned.

 

Have a great time on your trip!!

[oldjohnt]

Mornin Dennis and Carol, GREAT QUESTIONS, you ask ......

 

"I'm interested in knowing why it is better to put the tires on a board."

 

I cant offer any scientific proof or evidence, Im NOT a tire or rubber expert, in my opinion driving the RV up on boards just has to be better on the tires versus letting them sink deep down into the moist earth with the tire bottoms remaining encased there in wet earth for months (this assumes parked on earth NOT pavement)

 

"Also should we inflate the tires beyond the max psi during storage?"

 

In my opinion if they are full inflated AND EVEN BEYOND MAX SINCE THEY GO DOWN WHEN SITTING LONG PERIODS that's better then low pressure where the sidewalls are bulged out and tires are squatting down. If they are low and sides bulged out and they are squatting and remain in that position for months, in my opinion that just has to be harder on them versus if full inflated where that's NOT so much the case and they aren't all distorted with sidewalls bulged out for a long period. AGAIN I figure if you start out at a pressure reasonably beyond max, as time passes they will be at max or normal or even LOW since they tend to go down some when setting. But hey if you got out and check and air them monthly or so, no need to have much if any above max. I was assuming where you store and forget it and don't check back often.

 

AGAIN IM NOT A TIRE EXPERT but this is my opinion and how I would store an RV UNLESS AND UNTIL IM SHOWN IM WRONG. Im sure people could say I let them sit on the bare ground and sink down with low tire pressure and they were all bulged and squatted down and never had a problem FINE DO AS YOU PLEASE.

 

John T

[AFchap]

Tires will absorb moisture so it is bad for them to sit in water puddles. That makes being parked on boards or something that keeps them above the surrounding surface preferable to parking on dirt where they will settle/sink and water may puddle. On my concrete pad, my rig is parked on mats made from recycled rubber (cut from horse stall mats). That prevents water from puddling around the tires, and shields the tires from the concrete (which tire experts say is one of the worst surfaces for tire storage). I also extend the levelers to take some of the weight off the tires. I have had the rig 12 years and have had the jacks down virtually all its life except for the 90k miles we have driven it. I have never wiped down the rams or lubed them in any way, and the HWH jack rams have no corrosion, and have no problems going up or down,