Recommended Maintenance List on a Class C

[PrescillaM]

I am going to be buying a Jayco Greyhawk Class C in the next couple of months and will be a solo RVer. Reading blogs and articles there are a number of maintenance items that should be checked monthly, bi-monthly, yearly, etc. or even each time you fill up for gas. I was wondering if anyone had put together a "recommended" maintenance list that they use. Maybe something I can start with.

I will be a complete newbie when it comes to owning a RV. I have no idea how often to check battery fluids, wipers, etc.

Anything you can suggest will be helpful.
Thank you,

Prescilla
RVing solo.

[sandsys]

If you are buying the rig new it will come with a bunch of manuals. What i did was make a spreadsheet on my computer with column for daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, and occasionally. Then as I read each manual I made entries in my spreadsheet for what needed tending when. So my chart was specific to our rig and what it contained. It's pretty easy to make one of these for your rig but it does require reading the manuals--which I recommend doing anyway.

 

Linda Sand

[Kirk W]

When it comes to the chassis, the owner's manual has a chart of maintenance requirements and that is the best guideline that I know of, particularly during the time that the chassis is under manufacturer's warranty. With any motorized RV you are always running it at near the maximum weights it was designed for so use the shorter time recommendations for things like oil changes and chassis maintenance. Check tire condition and air pressure before every trip and each morning before travel.

 

For the RV side there are also recommendations in the owner's manuals for maintenance and you do need to look through all of them, and Linda's suggestion of making your own list from them is a very good idea. But there are things that are just good practice that may not be in any of those as well. In addition, I annually took an oil sample and sent it off to have it analyzed to know what is going on inside of the engine.

 

You should always inspect the roof and all caulking at least annually for signs of cracking and loose caulk and replace or renew as needed. The maintenance needed for the roof varies somewhat based upon material it is made from, but in general caulk and washing with a mild detergent is sufficient.

 

It is a good idea to sanitize the fresh water system before you start to use it and then again once each year. While many RV owners never bother to do this, I am a firm believer in also flushing out the water heater tank annually to remove any mineral buildup that has taken place and if your water heater uses one (Suburban does, Atwood doesn't) replace the anode that is on the drain plug at this time.

 

There are many different approaches to the maintenance of the waste water tanks, and this was mine. I am a firm believer in having and using a tank flush system installed when the RV is new and using it faithfully, especially in the black water tank. I used mine every time that I emptied the black tank and never leave the black water tank dump valve open when in use. In addition to this, we kept a container of TSP cleaning agent, as suggested by an engineer from Thetford RV Equipment in a seminar, which we would mix with a half tank of water one or two times per year just before traveling and then dump that as soon as we were parked at the next stop, just to remove any buildup of solids or scum in either tank, If the TSP was not available we substituted a good dose of laundry detergent, since that is also low suds. Don't use dish soap as it will fill your tank with foam. We used no commercial chemicals in our tanks but we did always use septic safe toilet paper.

 

Each time that you connect your RV, doe a brief check of your power cord to be sure that it is in good condition. Look for cracks or frayed areas, for any signs of melting on the plug or for burned or discolored blades. That is an indication that you have been plugged into an outlet that was in poor condition and arcing of over heating has taken place and that is sometimes difficult to avoid but if the plug gets too bad it will limit your electrical supply and eventually destroy the plug and cord, requiring replacement. Replacement power plugs are readily available and are not expensive. You can learn to replace one yourself if you wish as that isn't very difficult. Check your water hoses and filters(if used) at this time and always use a water pressure regulator and I recommend a high volume one. It is risky to connect to an unknown water supply without a regulator and I also believe in using a filter on all incoming water.

 

About once each month, check the electrolyte levels in all batteries and add distilled water to bring them up to level. Be sure that the water used is distilled and not one of the other choices available at the local grocery store. I use a specially designed pitcher for adding the water to the cells as it makes if very easy to bring them to proper levels. Once you check on a monthly basis for 6 months or so you will learn how often you need ot add water and you can adjust the frequency. If you do a lot of dry camping and put high demands on your batteries, you should acquire and learn to use a hydrometer as well, but most of us probably don't need to go that far.

 

At least annually you need to check all 120V electrical connections for proper tightness, at least on the inside of your power distribution panel. This should always be done with the power turned off and cord pulled and while it isn't difficult to do, you should probably get an experienced person to show you how the first time. Anyone can learn how to do this and it will keep your faithful power supply happy and faithful.

 

Annually use a vacuum cleaner to remove all foreign matter from all accessible parts of your refrigerator when the outside access panel is removed. Learn where the burner is located and carefully vacuum it. A clean cooling unit will be a much happier and efficient one. Do the same sort of work with your furnace if you have a model that has an outside access panel. At this time, do a close inspection of all parts of the outside skin of the RV, looking for needed caulking, loose parts, missing screws, and just general minor repairs. I always keep a selection of screw sizes available and all screws that are exposed to weather are replaced if needed with one that is stainless steel, for longer life. Examine everything very closely as though you were considering buying the RV to see if anything needs attention at this time. There isn't a great deal of difficult maintenance in most cases but this is a good time to look for signs of things that are beginning to need attention. The sooner that things are repaired, the lower the cost usually is and they will have less lasting impact on the RV life and condition.

[PrescillaM]

Kirk, thank you so much for all of the useful information. There were items that you covered that I had forgotten about. Thank you.