By Mark Polk
There are lots of things to remember and to maintain on an RV. Sometimes we tend to overlook the simplest maintenance requirements on our RV. As the old saying goes, you can’t see the forest for the trees. These simple oversights can result in costly repair bills to correct the problem too. Let’s take a look at some common RV owner maintenance mishaps. 1.
2.
Checking and adding air when the tires are hot. I see it all the time, people checking their tire pressure when the tires are hot. You should always check and inflate tires when the tires are cold, before traveling more than one mile. Hot air expands and will give you a false reading. If the tires are already hot wait several hours before checking and adjusting inflation pressure. Neglecting to periodically check the water level in batteries. 85% of lead acid batteries manufactured in the U.S. die before they should. One of the leading causes for battery failure is overcharging the battery. Overcharging a battery results in severe water loss and plate corrosion. This is a common problem with RV’s.
The RV converter has a built in battery charger and most RV owners are under the impression that if you leave the RV plugged in when the RV is in storage it will keep the batteries topped off. While keeping batteries topped off is extremely important the problem is that many, but not all, RV converter chargers provide a constant charge of about 13.5 volts which is too high for fully charged batteries and the electrolyte is boiled off resulting in an early death for the batteries. There have been advances in converter charger technology and many of today’s converter chargers are 3-stage chargers that will prevent batteries from overcharging. Another problem is during times of high battery usage and recharging the electrolyte is boiled off. Periodically checking and adjusting the water level in the batteries can save and extend the life expectancy of the battery. When you add water only use mineral free water. Distilled water is best and only fill the battery cell to 1/8 inch below the vent well.
For more information of caring for your RV check out our RV Care & Maintenance E-book
More Info Only $12.95
www.rvconsumer.com
27