We will not be very helpful, however we’re resourceful!
It is frequent for individuals to suppose that full-time RV residing is all about campfires and exploring epic landscapes, and though it consists of these issues, it additionally means mould, tank points, tire blowouts and upkeep.
Living in an RV doesn’t imply it’s important to know tips on how to repair all the pieces that breaks, but it surely does imply that it’s important to know tips on how to discover restore outlets, family and friends, and on-line assist for issues that may come up. We wouldn’t commerce life on the street in our RV for the rest, however we’ve had just a few powerful classes over the past 5 years.
Learning a Tough Lesson
In late October 2019, we have been caught in an surprising rainstorm (in freezing temps) in North Carolina. We determined to seize a last-minute web site at a campground to keep away from driving within the rain after darkish, however the rain had triggered some flooding. We unhitched our tow car and commenced the slippery drive down the hill to our web site. I turned the wheel of our Class A and will inform that the bottom was giving out below us…and we bought caught in a ditch! Both the back and front wheels of the RV have been simply sunk down on both facet of the paved street. We known as and known as, however nobody was accessible to tug us out until morning so we packed up our little household and headed for a resort. The subsequent morning, a tow firm got here and had us out right away, however that is our favourite instance of how awry all the pieces can go! Our RV wanted just a few minor repairs, however we have been all secure and in a position to maintain heading south after just a few days of residing on the restore store. Moral of the story: Be Prepared, Be Adaptable, Be Resourceful.
Sourcing Help for RV Repairs
Knowing that surprising points will come up is a part of RV residing, however determining what to do after they do come up is one other story. We depend on just a few alternative ways to get data and assist once we want it.
Online Support Groups
My first cease for fast suggestions, assist, and assist is our large RV group! We belong to a number of Facebook RV teams, we comply with many different RVers on Instagram, and we subscribe to RV-focused YouTube accounts! This is our first cease when one thing begins to go unsuitable.
Check out Girl Camper or Full-Time Families Facebook teams for a spot to publish questions or share tales. On Instagram yow will discover @geneandshay for data on full-time van life in addition to @essentiallystreaming for RV suggestions and methods. Gene and Shay are a pair with two cats touring of their van and dealing from the street. They supply nice data on distant work, small house residing, and journey. Tanner & Nallely of Essentially Streaming additionally supply Airstream recommendation, an choice to affix their Patreon (the place they share journey locations, hikes, and RV content material), in addition to digital RV tech assist appointments! Right now, they’re ending up their summer season in Canada.
We love connecting with fellow full-timers. We are at all times excited to see the place they go on their adventures and grateful for the assist that everybody offers to the group.
Mobile RV Repair
If you end up in want of RV assist past the group, contemplate choices for bringing out a cellular RV tech to your rig. Most campgrounds have choices for native RV techs that may come proper to your web site! If you might be off the grid, get on Google and seek for native RV restore outlets as a result of typically they provide a cellular choice.
Another approach to discover cellular providers could be to hop onto social media and join with different RVers that may suggest somebody. It’s necessary to belief the individuals engaged on your property on wheels. When we needed to winterize our RV for the primary time, we had a cellular RV tech come out to our web site and present us the method. It was useful to have somebody there to information us by the particular course of for our rig, but additionally to indicate us precisely tips on how to winterize parts akin to our washer/dryer and sizzling water heater. Mobile RV restore will be tougher to return by should you camp off-grid or shifting round fairly a bit, however continues to be a great choice for smaller repairs and upkeep wants.
Finding Reliable RV Repair Shops
Sometimes you simply have to take your RV to the store. This is commonly a final resort, and might trigger lots of stress and nervousness for some RVers. Where will we take it? Will the repairs be coated by guarantee or insurance coverage? Where will we keep whereas the RV is being repaired? These are the entire questions we ask ourselves once we know our RV must go in for restore or upkeep. The solutions can range, relying in your particular state of affairs, however listed here are just a few common suggestions for contemplating common choices.
Utilize Insurance and Warranties
Call your guarantee and/or insurance coverage firm and see when you’ve got your work coated by both. If so, they’ll usually suggest choices for locations that may work in your rig. Large repairs can take weeks to get accredited by guarantee/insurance coverage firms, so checking with them early on can jump-start this course of. Making this name up entrance may even can help you put together for various prices and time frames in your repairs.
Stay in Your RV When Possible
Big service departments, akin to Camping World or RV General, will be troublesome to take care of. They have lengthy wait occasions for service, don’t usually take the time to care in your particular wants, and will be pricey. That being stated, if you must head into a big dealership service you’ll be able to ask them should you can keep on-site in your RV whereas they do repairs. We lately needed to take our RV into the store for a roof leak they usually allowed us (and our pups) to remain within the RV in a single day with 30 amp electrical and water hookups. This saved us tons of cash since we didn’t must go to a resort.
Avoiding Repairs Entirely
While there’ll undoubtedly at all times be points that come up, the time your RV spends within the store could also be much less frequent by maintaining with common upkeep. By taking the time to get in your roof, test your seals, and maintain issues dry inside you’ll be able to keep away from main issues down the road. You can discover upkeep checklists right here or by simply looking your make and mannequin on Google.
Whether your RV repairs and upkeep embody small issues or big-time points, residing this way of life provides you the resiliency to deal with powerful duties. We have discovered, over time, to simply maintain going and know that issues will always come up. Relying on our group for assist and sources is one large good thing about being an RVer. We started providing RV consults for individuals all for and already residing their RV goals, so be at liberty to achieve out to us through e mail if you end up in want of connecting for extra data…and attempt to bear in mind to benefit from the journey!