RV Maintenance !!

Being a single woman, things like maintenance and upkeep on vehicles (and homes) can become a problem.  Someone (a guy) needs to write a short "maintenance" list for us women who travel.  If I knew what needed to be done when, I might be able to do some of the work myself.  At least I would know when to have the work done in order to have fun and safe trips with no worries.

That said ... my RV mentor told me to have the oil changed in my diesel pusher at about the 6,000 mile mark, and that I should occasionally start the engine and run the generator under power.  I'm getting ready for a month long trip back to Southern California/Arizona, so have been checking tire pressure, running the generator, just generally making sure things work.

Tire pressure:    FIRST, you need a "truck" tire gauge.  Got it!!  SECOND, you need a way to put air in the tires.  Got it!!! (a compressor)  THIRD ... tire gauges don't always work on all the tires. One tire read 20 pounds instead of the 110 I need.  FOURTH, let the pressure build up in the compressor!!!  Otherwise it takes a very long time to put air in!!!  I'm sure that the tire is not flat however.  After several phone calls, I got a friend to bring THEIR tire gauge to check it out ... 91 pounds.  Maybe a NEW "truck" tire gauge is in order!!  (I AM going to Quartzite soon!!)

Start Generator:  It's been cold here, so it took a little while to get it going, but it worked great.  I turned on both heater/ac units and let them run.  Everything is good.

Camera Check:   Back works great ... left works great ... right is black.

I'm at 6,000 miles, so time to make an appointment at La Mesa RV in Davis, California.  That done (two weeks ago) I drove  up to Davis Tuesday.  On the way I discovered the CD player is locked up.  Add that to the list.  For the third time in three visits, I have a new service manager.  Seems they don't last longer than 3 or 4 months.  That's kinda scary!!!!  "When do you need it back Ms Kissack?"  This Saturday please.  "Well we are closed Saturday and won't be able to get parts for the camera or the CD player for at least two weeks.  The plants back East close down for Christmas."  REALLY???  Why didn't someone tell me that when I made the appointment??

Good news is that after two days, they called to say the camera had just come unplugged.  They fixed that and "taped the heck out of it" in the hopes it wouldn't happen again.   "The CD player is trashed and we will order another one".   Hmmm not very professional.  The bad news is that the oil change is costing me a cool $300.  Does that sound right to you???  I have no idea how often to change the oil now ... hoping it's not too often ... I'll definitely be cutting down on my grocery and heating bills!!!

So maybe one of the long time RVguys will write up a small list of all the things to check and maintenance required in order to keep us woman on the road.  I know we have a reputation for bad driving and maybe you would rather we NOT be out there.  But trust me, it's better to have us out there in safe RV's that have regular maintenance,  than going 25mph down the freeway possibly causing an accident cuz we "think" somethings wrong ... or parked on the side of the road desperately flagging you down.   Thanks in advance ... it is greatly appreciated!!!