Posting for the outdoorsy DIYers out there.

Probably not what you’re used to seeing on here, or maybe anywhere, ever... Some love it. Some hate it. Some apparently feel both emotions strongly and equally LOL. Even I wasn’t sure how I felt about it until the first few nights by a lake several hours away. I found it to be a more enjoyable and unique experience than I could have planned for.

To answer the probable first question: It’s a mix of glue, screws, pins, interlocking components, and then bolted down.

My friend is incredibly generous. I always return it with a full tank of gas and meticulously cleaned. Never asks for anything in return. Just a true friend. I'm not an RV owner obviously nor do I know the RV world like all you RV lovers which is why I came to you. What can I do to pay him back? For the record, he doesn't expect anything in return. He just deserves it. He's a good dude, a good friend, and if there is anything I can do to make his trips more comfortable or convenient for his family, I'll do it in a heartbeat. I'm not loaded but I'm not opposed to spending a bit of cash to make it work. He has 4 kids all below the age of 12 if that helps any suggestions. I had thoughts on upgrading batteries or solar panel install? I don't know pricing on those but if those are appealing, would love suggestions. Thanks for your help.

I'll be traveling around the south and southwest this winter. I am concerned about flooding. I've loaded the "Flood Map" app on my phone, and I carry a weather radio, but I'm still worried I could get cutoff from roads when boondocking by a surprise flood. I carry a lot of water, but not a lot of food.

I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock some freeze-dried meals ($$$), but before I spend all that money I wanted to ask here. Does anyone have suggestions for food that's shelf stable that I can use if I get stuck somewhere for a week waiting for roads to open? Thanks in advance.

I know all the horror stories of Forest River. I also know not all of them are bad and this one has everything we are looking for. So I am here to ask for honest reviews of this specific toy hauler. We have a bit of time before we will be buying one so now's the time to find reviews on it. Thanks!

Our fridge works fine on battery or AC but not on propane. Is it normal to see this black char?

I was reading a discussion about upgrading RV batteries earlier, and it got me thinking about all the little things that come with owning an RV.

Big upgrades get all the attention, but I imagine it's the smaller stuff that can get annoying over time.

For those who've owned an RV for a while, what's something you find yourself constantly cleaning, fixing, or replacing?

Especially the kind of thing you never really thought about when you first got into RVing.

Hello All,

My husband is very close to getting a small toy hauler, that will have a small kitchenette and bathroom. I was thinking for Christmas to get him a "starter pack" of items that would be useful. Just need help on ideas, like collapsible dishes, smaller bottles for cleaning supplies, a mini swiffer/broom, pock lights that a rechargeable, etc. Things you wouldn't necessarily think of, but are handy. Any other ideas? Or do they make a pre built kit that I could add to?

Good evening!

I just wanted some input. We have a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban 2500 with an 8.1L engine. Unfortunately due to the age, I am unable to accurately read the hitch rating sticker on the hitch. The GVWR on the Suburban sticker is 8,600 LBS. It is already equipped with trailer brakes.

The camper we are interested in is the Grand Design Transcend Xplor 24BHS. The GVWR on it is listed at 6,995.

We are going to be buying a weight distributing hitch (any recommendations?).

Do y’all see any problems with this set up? Any advice you can give? First time camper buyers who are so excited!! Thanks in advance.

we bought a new camper so we are new to this lifestyle. this camper has only been ours for 3 weeks now and we have constant problems. this one being the main concern. it started out making noise every now and then when too much was on so we started being more aware of that. then it got to where at least one thing needed to stay on for it to not make noise as much, and now it just makes noise off and on all night and throughout the day no matter what. we have someone coming to look at it tomorrow but wanted to hear from other people who may have dealt with this issue?

Our camper (2015 Aliner) door hatch keeps taking damage during travel. This is our first camper and we were locking the door during travel assuming that was the right thing to do but have since stopped doing that thinking the deadbolt was catching on the framing. Was this our mistake?

Our local RV Shop had replaced this piece prior with the thin slide pictured here. But it seems like a cheap piece that couldn’t last and now needs replacing again (I even think they used the wrong screws?). The issue has even started warping the framing too, which is our biggest concern.

Wondering if anyone had any similar issues or recommendations to repair or prevent this damage?

My wife and I are planning on purchasing our first RV, an Alliance Avenue 32RLS to begin exploring the US as we near retirement. I’m hopeful to buy a 2026 model that dealers are motivated to get off the lot to make way for the 27’s. Everywhere I read talks about the importance of an inspection performed by an independent inspector, even on brand new models. I was hoping to purchase the unit in February or March and then have the dealer keep it stored until spring. As I’ve started to dig into the inspection piece of it, it sounds like for the most part they aren’t done in the north from late December till mid-April. My fear is if I wait that long, I’ll be hard pressed to take delivery and be able to get it all set up in time for spring time camping. Curious what others have done in regards to timing the purchase decision

New to the RV life, and have been in Oregon mostly, but now heading south. If travel plans work we should be driving on i50 to Tahoe Valley in mid to late November. I'm just wondering about the weather and road conditions in the mountains at that time. Anyone have any experience? Thanks!

I recently "upgraded" from a T@b 320 to a Thor Vegas 24.1. I just finished my first 2 day, maiden camp in the Vegas. We dry camped. ( as I most often do) We stopped on the way home for my very first ever dump station and "stinky slinky" adventure! :)

The T@b 320 with a cartridge tank was really easy! Every morning after coffee and morning news empty the cartridge and the take out the trash. Just open the hatch, undo the catch on the cartridge tank, wheel it to where ever and empty it, slide it back in. Easy peasy!

Now for my big fancy new rig... Lets see, dump station, line up properly, deal with the slope, hook up the flush water hose, get out the slinky, then I had to get on the ground to reach up under and open the pipe on the rig and connect the slinky (I just ordered elbow and knee pads for the next trip)... go through the machinations, grey water for a second to make sure connection is good, kill grey, start black, let black run until clear water from flush hose is seen, kill black, restart grey and finish it, open black again for the flush water to whoosh out, close black for final time, let enough fresh water in to prevent the dreaded pyramids, get on the ground again to disconnect hose and recap rig, hose off hoses, cap and store slinkys, disconnect flush hose.

HOLY CRAP! (ar) What an ordeal. The good news is it does not need to be done everyday like the cartridge but what a multiplier in the level of effort required! 5 days of cartridge dumps is significantly less work and no laying on the ground.

So yeah, I am really missing the Thetford cartridge toilet right now!

The only irony was with the back flush process I did not get a single whiff of Oder with the slinky and the dump station but I would with the cartridge. So that is one plus for the slinky (with back flush port)

Hello all, my wife and I are considering getting our first RV in the next year and we’re hoping to get some help narrowing our options.

About us: we are new parents in our 30s who both grew up camping and with a lot of outdoor rec. We are planning to have one more kid and would like to introduce our child to camping as soon as possible and think an RV is a great option to start getting out there.

What we are looking for: something simple that is less than 25 feet. We’d like a bunkhouse with sleeping spots for four and a shower/toilet that ideally is good quality and will last at least 10 years if possible with maintenance.

What we want to do with our RV: we are looking to travel somewhere between 1-4 times a year. We don’t have a set camping spot and would like to drive across the country, perhaps putting a few hundred or 1-2000 miles on the RV per trip tops. Think driving 2-3 days to a campsite and then spending a week there. We know this is a bit outside of the normal use pattern and a lot of models can start to fall apart at 10k plus miles.

Models that we are looking at: Lance Evolve 1965 and Jayco Jay Flight 175BH.

The Lance: we’ve heard good things about the quality of the Lance. It is supposed to be much sturdier under the hood than your typical lite trailers. So this is currently our first pick. However, we’ve also heard some quality concerns people have had with more recent builds. We’ve also heard that even the Lance starts to breakdown at high usage (we saw a post on here from a lady who had a lot of issues after putting 25k miles on her Lance).

The Jayco: We have heard A LOT of complaints about the quality and lifespan of the Jayco. However, we like the Flight 175BH because it is so simple and no frills so it seems like it doesn’t have as many failure points. Our concern with this model is that it will fall to shreds in 2-4 years if we try to put a few thousand miles on it and we will have to completely replace it. However if there truly is no travel trailer that will last more than 5 years with the kind of use we’re planning on, perhaps the Jayco is the best bet as it would simply be cheaper to buy a 20k trailer twice than it would be to buy a 35k trailer twice.

So what do you all think? Are the trailers we’re looking at compatible with what we’re looking for? Are there other better options we should consider? Is there any trailer that’s going to offer what we want in the size we’d like and also standup to 25000 miles of use?

If I’ve kept you this long thank you for taking the time to read everything!

I’m looking to buy a camper to pull with my 2025 Tundra SR5. I don’t have any experience pulling one. From what I can tell my biggest limitation is the payload. The sticker shows 1380 lbs. One of the campers I’m looking at has a dry weight of 5600 lbs and the GVWR Is 7400. Is this too heavy? Recommendations?
TIA

Well under the tow limit even with tanks filled. She came with the Curt sway hitch.

2018 Casita Liberty and a 2026 AWD Hybrid Maverick with tow package.

We started in Las Vegas headed to Minnesota, 15N to 70E we stopped overnight in Green River Utah. Left Green River and now we are stopped North Platte, NE. 70E has got to be one of the worst highways for a bumper pull, the 5th wheel guys were passing me like I was not moving, my wif and daughter were following behind me and they called me several times to ask if everything was alright because the trailer movement was so violent. I was anywhere from 10-15 mph below the speed limit. No wind and my WDH is dailed in. Once we got through Denver and onto 76 I was able to run the speed limit. I am running a 2026 RAM crew cab 8' bed 6.4L gas and a 38' Heartland Eddie Bauer 34BHS, I scaled up before leaving Vegas and am 250lbs under cargo capacity and 1000lbs under max GVWR for the trailer and it was the most white knuckle violent experience of my life. I don't know how full timers cross the country without tearing their rigs apart.

I can’t find this anywhere- it’s 3 1/4” total width, presses into screw cover C channel, is one piece, the wiper and bulb come together.

Every spring we de-winterize rigs and find the same handful of freeze breaks. Almost none of them cost much to prevent. Most of them cost a lot more to fix, and a big part of that is where they hide and how much has to come apart to reach them.

No shop prices here, since those vary a lot by area and rig. The point is the gap between prevention and repair.

1. Low point drains
   - Where it hides: the lowest run of water line, usually under the rig near the water pump. If the drains never got opened, water just sits there.
   - Prevent it: open the hot and cold low point drains and let the lines empty before you put in antifreeze or air. Close them when you're done.
   - What drives the repair bill: the split is often in a line behind a cabinet or up in the underbelly. A lot of the cost is labor just getting to it.

2. Water heater
   - Where it hides: the tank itself. It holds more water than anything else in the rig.
   - Prevent it: turn it off and let it cool, open a hot faucet to take the pressure off, then pull the drain plug or anode and let it drain. Set the bypass so the tank doesn't fill with antifreeze.
   - What drives the repair bill: a tank that cracks from freezing usually means a new water heater, not a patch. This is the most expensive one on the list.

3. Water pump and filter housing
   - The pump head holds water and can crack. Run antifreeze through the pump (or blow the lines out) so it isn't sitting full of plain water.
   - If you have a water filter, pull the cartridge and empty the housing. A full housing can split.
   - What drives the repair bill: the pump is usually easy to reach, so it's mostly the part.

4. The ones people forget
   - Outdoor shower, both hot and cold
   - Outdoor kitchen sink
   - Toilet: hold the flush pedal until you see antifreeze in the bowl
   - Ice maker and washer lines, if you have them. Follow the manual for those.
   - City water inlet. The check valve can hold a little water.
   - P-traps. Pour a little antifreeze down every drain.
   - What drives the repair bill: each one is a small part. The trouble is a cracked valve can leak into the floor the first time you pressurize in spring, and water damage is where a small fix turns into a big one.

5. Check it in spring before you trust it
   When you de-winterize, pressurize the system and walk the rig. Look under every sink, behind the toilet, at the water heater, and in any basement compartment. With every faucet off, the pump shouldn't keep kicking on. If it does, something is usually leaking. Finding a drip in the first ten minutes costs a lot less than finding a soft floor in July.

Prevention vs. repair, plain terms
- Prevention: a few jugs of RV antifreeze (the pink kind for water lines, never automotive), a bypass if you don't have one, and an hour or two.
- Repair: the part, plus the labor to reach it (often the bigger piece), plus any water damage if it leaked before anyone noticed.

When to have a tech look at it
- Soft floor, stains, or a musty smell near any plumbing. That's water damage and it's worth a proper inspection.
- Water coming from the water heater tank body itself.
- Anything on the propane side of the water heater.

Do you wait till the temp is freezing, or is it ok to turn them on sooner? Nights are getting in the 30's Fahrenheit and days in the 60's. Any reason not to turn it on now and not forget or be surprised while camping?

Edited to add more information……
I am looking to purchase smaller motor home RV . Around 26 foot ? Newer, maybe 5 years old? I don’t know much about diesel, and am concerned about finding someone to work on the engine if I get stuck somewhere? I appreciate your input!

Took my new to me rig to a remote island for some fishing. What an upgrade and game changer from my rooftop tent.

We have a 2014 Thor Freedom Elite that we bought used last year. The previous owners painted the interior. It's cute but definitely needs to be redone. There are places where the white paint is more yellow than white. What kind of paint works best for the interior?

Anyone recommend this small 20 to 24 foot trailer? It’s a 2018 model. Thanks