DON'T Be an RV IDIOT! 6 Must-Know Fixes For Common Problems

In this video, we are going to walk you through some common RV problems that can arise when living the RV Lifestyle and how to fix them.

And I would be willing to bet If you have an RV and you’ve used it a few times you might have already encountered some of these issues.
After you’ve watched this video until the end, you will be better prepared to tackle some of these common RV issues on your own and quite possibly save hundreds of dollars by not having to call an RV tech.

00:00 Intro
00:28 Dead Battery
02:13 Leaky Roof
03:23 Clogged Toilet
05:36 No Hot Water
07:34 AC Not Cooling
09:58 Fridge Not Cooling


🏔 Originally from Colorado, we dreamed of living a travel and adventure lifestyle but stuck in a 9-5 grind, we had no clue how we would break out of the mold. In 2017 we bought our first RV and it all changed!

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[dobermanpac]

Hey RV folks!!
Have a pre trip check list and a shutdown check list. Eliminates forgetting THINGS. 💯👍🇺🇸

[joannejohnson]

A few times over the years I have found moisture or a puddle inside the rv cabinet under the sink. Each time it was that the drain pipes had become loose. Each time it was a simple matter of hand tightening the plastic fitting. Don’t overtighten as you could crack the pipe. Now we check and retighten periodically.

[hermes]

We went with a composting toilet years ago, so easy to use and maintain, no black tank issues and smells and environmentally friendly no wasting water. Before we installed the composting toilet, we found the only commercially available tank treatment to consistently work well was Happy Camper which was also cheaper to buy. We then went to the Geo method which was very effective and cost effective.

[sydneylau]

Wow! I was thinking about buying an RV …. But there is so much you need to know!!!… it’s not as simple as getting in an RV and going in a road trip!!…it’s kind of intimidating… but the information is so helpful!!😅

[terrianthony]

We’re newbies in the RV world. Good stuff! Thanks for sharing ❤

[Arnie-cn]

Came across your vids today and enjoyed. Thank you for sharing.
We do a lot of boon docking in remote areas with our Chaparral 370FL. Rarely at full hook ups.
Another check for a hot water problem is to make sure you're outside shower taps are closed. We have had this issue. Our outside shower wand has a shut off and was closed but both taps were open causing a cross flow which gave us only warm water in the RV. If it's heating off propane (as with any propane appliance not firing) it's possible the valve on the propane tank was opened too quick. Propane tanks have excess flow valves.
Another nasty issue is the black tank pyramid. We are fortunate (or are we...haha) to have a direct drop from toilet to tank to see whats going on. Have had the pyramid a few times when I didn't put enough water in the tank before using, when all the grandkids stay with us and inexperienced guests used our bathroom. It usually takes a stir with a stick and lots of water to get back in business (dealing with the stick after is another issue). Black tanks are a holding tank not a septic system. They need lots of water. For us only going out for a 3 - 4 days at a time chemicals are a waste of money. Lots of water when using and a good flush into and up into the tank (using a shut off valve with hose fitting) when dumping has worked for us. Doing this my level gauge has always showed 0 after (not that we need a gauge).
Our A/C did not work well from the factory. I found the intake and exhaust air flow dam was non existent inside the unit and air flow leakage at 90% of the hose connections to vents and wide open to the nose cone.

[HiSpeedDrifter]

The voiceover of Alaska is wonderful and funny.

[michaelfinley]

Another common issue with the a/c is freezing up in very hot climates. Sometimes the condensation will freeze and you will need to shut it off and let it melt.

[DN-gzij]

Best ideas for precipitation building up in the rv?? I thought if using a dehumidifier. Thoughts

[nancyjordan]

Excellent video I'm learning so much you guys are so funny

[johnwinter]

Basic common-sense stuff, but still worth reviewing. Thanks for the tips. I had knee surgery four weeks ago and your video has prompted me to have the roof on our TT checked before we put the unit back into service for the summer. I would normally do this, but not this year. Good reminder.

[imallierambles]

I live in my class c RV and mostly dry camp on public lands. My main battery went dead while out in the middle of nowhere but luckily I had my solar panel cuz it charged up my battery and I was good to go!! Dead batteries are no fun.

[vaasnaad]

I LOVED ths skits! I can't even decide which was my favorite! The Twilight bit and the spit take were great but the cat in the AC... LOVIN IT!!

[Rockhound]

On the hot water issue, make sure your outside faucets are turned off. WE had this problem and it turned out our outside faucet, both hot and cold were turned on and for some reason that doesn't allow for hot water to get going. Once I shut them off in like 30 seconds we had piping hot water.

[wendy_says_so]

Missed a most major preventative - ALWAYS test your stuff before you go! Its pretty easy to make sure your winterization shut-offs are on, that the water heater heats (btw, don't heat an empty water heater), your furnace and/or A/C is working and your fridge cools. it may not be in time to fix some of that stuff, but its certainly in time to buy some last-minute-things to tide you over (e.g., a camping shower bag to provide hot water for showers, a block of dry ice for your fridge/freezer, a backup heater).
Topping off your battery is a good idea - but a good pre-trip thing to do is load test the battery before you go. Many a near-dead battery will hold a charge after charging, but have zero capacity when called on. I charge my batteries, but I also put them through a few long desulfating cycle on my charger to help keep them well conditioned.

[deepanshumalhotra]

Saw a video of a guy that cleans tanks on rvs says additives are bad. If anything calgone and pinesol mixture lubes it, his main point is its a holding tank not a septic use lots of water and don't leave gray tank open

[wesalexander]

I resemble many of these! Got up one morning before my wife, made the coffee - ZAP! Power goes out in coach! Said to self, maybe a fuse or circuit breaker, looked in all pertinent electrical closets, nothing tripped, nothing blown. Swell, now what do I do? Looked through 1, 000 pages of owner's manual, nothing specific. Called telephone number for "customer service" for our brand of coach, "well, it could be this or it could be that". Yeah, thanks! Wife finally gets up, calls our RV dealer and spoke with service tech: "Oh, I know exactly what it is, go into your left forward storage bay, there is an electrical box on the ceiling, on the bottom is a reset switch - press and hold the switch for 10 seconds". So, I go to that storage bay - oh, it's full, have to unload it. Crawl on back into bay, find box, press and hold switch, VOILA! problem fixed! Store that one away in my sieve brain memory cells!

[amypletcher]

We have black tank and now our gray tank reading full and 1/3 full respectfully after we dump. We have an outside kitchen tied in with our inside kitchen sink gray tank and our bathroom shower and and bathroom sink on another gray tank. Our camping weekend was pretty awful because we were always dumping our tanks with our portable sewer tank and with our black tank saying full all the time did not make it easy even though it came out clear every time. So have you used the Unique Senor Cleaner? I'm going to use it very soon while I'm recovering from surgery and we won't be camping for 30 days.

[judyross]

I just watched this for the second time. The first time was last year when I first got my RV. I found that the reason my water heater didn't work was because Forest River installed it backward and what appeared to be the intake valve was actually a flush valve for de-winterizing the water heater. No amount of fiddling got it to work. The RV tech took it out completely, turned it around, and installed it correctly.

As for propane, although the dealer was supposed to fill the propane tanks, they were delivered empty. They did rebate us the cost, however, that was (I'm guessing) because they felt guilty for not doing a pre-delivery inspection and sending us an RV with many items cracked, dysfunctional, and literally falling off the ceiling and walls.

Yes, we did find puddles but that was because the connection to the Fisher and Paykel dishwasher was loose and soaking the area under the kitchen sink. That was an easy fix as the connection just had to be secured. The dishwasher is one of the best "glamping" additions to this RV and is even ahead of the Splindide Combo washer and dryer (which, so far, does not leak.)

The HV/AC with a heat pump never worked and had to be replaced with a new unit. I asked about changing the filters (the ceiling on this RV is about 9' high) and he said "The more people and animals you have living in the RV, the more often you need to unscrew the panel, take out the filter, wash it and replace it." I had to laugh because I am 5'2" and wouldn't climb on a ladder if my life depended on it.

The toilet sensor shows 2/3 full even after it's just been emptied and I have been using the black tank treatment you suggest attempting to make it right.

The GFCI kept popping. That was because Forest River cut through the connecting wires when they stripped them. Any little jiggle would trip it and although we kept resetting it eventually the wires shorted out and the power wouldn't turn on. So the battery went dead and the 12-volt fridge dependent on the battery quit working. But since no one was here full-time (can't live in an RV with no air conditioning) we didn't realize it until the freezer contents had defrosted. The wires were cut and spliced and the power to the batteries charged them and we got the fridge working. But we also had to pull the fuse and replace it to get the fridge to reset.

You have no idea what a mess (some) of the new RVs are when they come off the factory floor. This 2024 FR Cedar Creek Cottage 40CFK2 has been repaired to within an inch of her life. It's a shame that such a beautiful RV should have been so ineptly built. I love her, anyway.

[deepsea]

Great tips! A note on RV (and also gas grill) propane regulators: most of them are cheaply made and will "stick" closed very easily. As you mentioned, turning off and then on the propane gas supply will usually unstick the gas regulator.