Traveling via RV is a beautiful way to welcome the spring season. If you expect to get the very best out of it, it’s essential you know what type of maintenance needs to be done before your trip. Luckily, we’re here to help with this short checklist of RV maintenance tasks you should do before hitting the road.
Exterior Maintenance
Every solid RV maintenance checklist for a spring trip starts with assessing the exterior features. This requires you to check, maintain and sometimes repair the following things.
Roof and Walls
After a long winter, it’s wise to double-check that the sudden temperature changes haven’t warped or loosened your sealants.
You must also ensure that your vent covers haven’t been damaged by water or frigid temperatures. If they look questionable, take them in for a professional inspection and repair.
Wheels
Checking tire pressure is essential to any RV Spring maintenance list. Ensuring your wheels are at the right PSI can help you avoid issues while on the road.
If you find that they’re not in the correct range, it can tell you whether or not your tires are damaged and if they require repairs before a long trip.
While you’re at it, it’s a good idea to examine the torque of your wheel nuts and adjust them accordingly. Doing so will help you avoid unnecessary wear and tear and keep your wheels sturdy as you travel.
Interior Maintenance
Once you’ve checked and performed the proper maintenance on your exterior features, it’s time to look inside. There are several tasks to add to your RV maintenance checklist for a spring trip in this stage, so we’ll get right to it.
Check Under the Hood
This is perhaps the most critical aspect of your maintenance checklist. Why? Because under your hood lie the internal parts that make your RV function. Thus, when it’s time to peek under the hood, you want to make a point to:
Check your lights
Test your battery
Top off, flush, or replace all fluids
Start Up Your Appliances
Speaking of things functioning correctly, it’s wise to turn on the following interior appliances and check to see that they’re working:
Refrigerator
Air conditioner
Stove and oven
Water heater
You need to do this well before your first trip of the season. This way, you can identify any issues and fix them promptly. After all, you wouldn’t want one of these essential appliances to stop working mid-trip.
Water Tank System Maintenance
No RV maintenance checklist is complete without mention of water tank systems. The water tanks provide your RV with indoor plumbing, running water, and hot showers.
Examine Your Tanks
When planning a spring trip, it’s imperative to examine your tanks to ensure they’re working. It’s also wise to clean and sanitize them.
You may double-check that your gate valves and other tank features like your grey water tank heaters are still pristine.
In total, there are three tanks included in your system:
Blackwater tank (holds solid and liquid waste)
Greywater tank (holds wastewater from showers, kitchen dishes, etc.)
Freshwater tanks (provides fresh water for showers, drinking water, etc.)
These are imperative to the functionality of your RV’s water systems and your comfort overall. So, you must perform the necessary maintenance on each tank well before you leave if you find that there’s something wrong with them.
Part of traveling via RV is knowing what kind of maintenance needs to be done before you take off. And trust us—taking time to work on this checklist before your first spring trip ensures that you’re traveling safely and comfortably.