Scuba4fun2 Posted May 11, 2016 Report Share Posted May 11, 2016 I'm doing my research for buying an RV (5er's) and truck in anticipation of hitting the road. However, I'd like to understand how to do basic RV repairs and RV maintenance since I will be spending a lot of time in my RV and will likely doing a lot of boondocking. Can anyone recommend any training courses that they themselves have attended, or have closer personal friends or acquaintances that have been thru the training? If in-person classroom is required, duration and location shouldn't be a problem since I will be retired and can travel to where they are offered. Any help would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBH Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 I'm doing my research for buying an RV (5er's) and truck in anticipation of hitting the road. However, I'd like to understand how to do basic RV repairs and RV maintenance since I will be spending a lot of time in my RV and will likely doing a lot of boondocking. Can anyone recommend any training courses that they themselves have attended, or have closer personal friends or acquaintances that have been thru the training? If in-person classroom is required, duration and location shouldn't be a problem since I will be retired and can travel to where they are offered. Any help would be appreciated. I looked into it once about 13 yrs ago. I remember Camping World offered a training course in Bowling Green Ky. It was geared more for the person wanting to be employed as an RV tech and cost about $5000. If you are at all mechanically inclined, there are a couple of good reference manuals for RV repair. These are not complicated devices, at least the house portion of the RV and common appliances are pretty easily understood. I believe Bob Livingston has a good manual for repairs and maintenance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pappy Yokum Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 Pick a topic - and look for it on YouTube. There's everything under the sun there - you just need the patience to watch the videos........some are quite good - others are mediocre.......which may be OK depending on the subject and your ability. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk W Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 As one who made a living in electrical/mechanical repair work for 40 years and who has owned an RV of one type or another from more than 35 years, I'd say that the degree of difficulty involved is a combination of your own mechanical and electrical background and of how deeply you want to go into things. With the background that I have, most of the appliances are not terribly complicated but the refrigerators an air conditioners are a bit more complex, or can be. That same thing is true for some of the systems found in most RVs, such as leveling systems and slide out controls. An RV has both 12V-dc and 120V-ac systems and if motorized it has an automotive 12V system as well. Are you looking to become a certified RV tech, or just learn how to do most work yourself? If you have a reasonable amount of mechanical experience and a basic knowledge of electrical principles, then the one of the published manuals might be a good place to start. You may find a copy of one of Bob Livingston's RV Repair and Maintenance Manuals on Amazon but it has not been print now for some years. The Motor Bookstore has a pretty good selection of currently published books on RV repairs. If you do a Google search for training courses, there are quite a few of them around but none that I have direct knowledge of. Several of them are online, but unless you have a very good background in similar work, I'd have be pretty skeptical of the value of courses with no hands-on work with the things that you are supposed to be learning. Good travelin !...............KirkFull-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ms60ocb Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 You could go get tips how the RV is put together or stacked by visiting the Factory for a tour. Once you decide on your RV MFG visit web site to find tour time. I traveled to Northern Indiana to see our Fifth wheel being built. I now have a better understanding of access holes and etc. Clay MS 38PS3 #8120 Clay & Marcie Too old to play in the snow Diesel pusher and previously 2 FW and small Class C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 While I feel it is good that you want to learn how to repair your RV in actuality go to boot camp, learn how things generally work and if you have problems you can't figure out, search the web or post the question on the forum. When you bought your house did you go to a school to learn how everything worked, same with a car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuba4fun2 Posted May 12, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like Bob Livingston is something worth checking out. And I did find a number of videos on YouTube, specifically RV101.tv, but there are a lot more out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk W Posted May 12, 2016 Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 Sounds like Bob Livingston is something worth checking out. That is the book that I've been using for the past 20 years but unfortunately, Bob is no longer doing updates to the book. Good travelin !...............KirkFull-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rexandrose Posted May 16, 2016 Report Share Posted May 16, 2016 I attended a RV school near Tampa, Fl. a couple of years ago. While most of the people going to the school were going to be RV Tecs, I went mainly so I could work on my own motorhome. I found it to be a very good course of instruction and have used the knowledge I gained several times on my and my friends RVs. The school is RVTC. RV Training Center. There was lots of hands on training on plumbing systems, electrical systems, refrigerators, air conditioning, heating, hot water heaters, generators, just about anything you can think of for RVs. I really enjoyed my time there. I think it was about a 10 week course. The cost was about $6,000.00. The GI Bill helped me out with the $$$. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidAttaway Posted May 25, 2016 Report Share Posted May 25, 2016 Hey I have heard about the RVTC a lot. My friend attended that school and gained lot of technical knowledge regarding the RVs. Whenever I get any probelm with my RV I call him and get my problem solved . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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