The Truth About Owning A Travel Trailer

The Truth About Owning A Travel Trailer is to help you be prepared for what you are getting into. We love campers and travel trailers and probably will never not have one. But this video will teach you what you need to know and understand so you are prepared with the knowledge about what your are getting yourself into.
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[kckettridge]

The people who gave this video a thumbs down are either RV salespersons or the workers assembling these things.

[kenthartland]

On metal-to-metal fasteners like bolts, machine screws and nuts, put #2 (blue) loc-tite on the threads. When screwing two pieces of plastic together, put high temp hot glue on the threads before you run it in. It takes a minute or twp for that to cool and acts like loc-tite. If you can get to the far end of the screw where the threads protrude, put a daub of hot glue on it too. This will greatly reduce the number of loose screws.

Don't just tighten a loose screw, take it out, dope it up, put it back in. Don't just fix the one loose screw, go around, remove them all, dope and replace them. Consider pop rivets ti replace screws. Learn about rivet nuts.

When you see wire that is the long tube slit length wise, either tape it all up or replace with the spiral kind. Whichever kind, tape the ends to the wire with electrical tape to keep the looming from coming off or sliding out of place. When you use electrical tape, don't just wrap it around somethings, pull in snug as you wrap so it it tight. Use heat shrink tubing where possible. Cover electrical screws and connectors with so=silicone sealant to keep moisture and corrosion out and to somewhat reduce chance of screw coming loose. Silicone dope peels off when you need to get at the component.

Clean stuff with Goof-Off Pro before you seal it up. When you caulk, work the bead inside the gap not just over it. Re-coat your roof at least one every two years, yearly is better. Never wash your vehicle or trailer with car wash "wax", it is silicone and makes re-painting and touch ups a problem later because Silicone Never Dies.

Invest in a little hand held sand blaster from HF. Hook it to your compressor and blast off the rust before your spray it with rust-fixing primer. Coat that with a good Urethane paint.

Keep an eye on the ceiling/roof, floor and walls for any sign of water ingress. A water stain over here may actually come from a seam ten feet over there. If you have to replace interior wood paneling, check out the 3/16" mahogany flooring underlayment sheets at HD or Lowes. It has a nice color and grain and looks great with a semi-gloss finish, cheap too.

Carry chemicals. Get Loc-tite brand cyanoacrylate (super glue), JB Weld brand two-part epoxy, clear silicone sealant, Contact cement, rubber cement, Gorilla brand wood glue, 3M weatherstrip adhesive, Number 2 Permatex and learn and when how to use them and on what materials. Carry a High Temp glue gun and sticks. Super glue and Gorilla glue are both water-activated so DON'T use then on dry parts. Dampen the parts with a wet rag first. Not so with epoxy but you MUST mix epoxy well for two minutes (I know, it's a pain but you'll live). Spread on Contact Cement, put the pieces together then pull them back a part for a full minute before finally seating them together. Get em straight because this time is for keeps.

Carry a spray de greaser, Goof-Off Pro, lacquer thinner and mineral spirits for cleaning grease, paint, etc. Also the usual household cleaners like Windex, vinegar, a couple Scrunges, Scotch-Brite pads (soapless). Rubbing alcohol, disinfectants, first aid kit. A package of single edge razor blades. Duct tape (You knew that). Roll of all purpose mechanic's wire for temporarily binding up loose pipes, hoses, mufflers, etc. Roll of string or twine, same reason.

Soldering iron, silver solder. Moisture-displacing electrical socket spray. Bulbs, fuses, 12-10 and 8- gauge wire, good electrical tape, spiral loom. Pop rivet gun two or three lengths pf rivets. Drill, drill bits and driver bits. Extra battery and charger. Electrical wire connectors. D, C, 9V, AA and AAA batteries. Asst of zip ties. Flashlight, headlamp. Rain gear. Plastic tarp. 4x4 sheet 3/4" plywood. Because. A few short pieces of 2x4 for chocking, blocking and improvising. Throw in a couple pieces of aluminum or steel bar, flat bar or angle just in case.

4 in. angle grinder with three grades of flap discs plus metal cut off wheel. Good 4-inch knife with whet stone and 3-in1 oil. Dremel kit with asst of heads and bits. Frog painters tape. Black, white and Silver paint pens for marking (better than Sharpies which fade). Spray can of rust fixing primer, black enamel or urethane spray.

Lubricants. Dry Teflon (PTFE) spray, WD-40, 3-in-1 oil with the long slide out tube spout, light white grease. Liquid Wrench penetrating oil! Anti-seize for bolt threads like lug bolts. Block of paraffin (in the canning supplies at the hardware store). "lead" pencil, actually graphite, for scribbling on a metal latch. Quart each of motor oil, power steering and transmission fluid.

Three grades of sandpaper and emery cloth. Wood and metal files. Wood and metal chisels and punches.

Saws, metal and wood. Measuring tape, yard stick, calipers. Spirit (bubble) level. Magnifying glass.

The usual hand tools, SAE and Metric. hammers. Jack (not the one that came with your truck, a hydraulic bottle jack at least 3 ton). Jack stands, chocks. Long steel bar for prying, leverage, just because. Tow strap. 4-way lug wrench. Tire plug kit, tire slime, 12V tire inflator.

Owners manuals or PDFs for all your equipment, tools, generators, etc. Don't assume you'll have the Net when you need it.

THEN... you should be ready for almost anything.

[TC-twzk]

This guy is so dead on!!! This video should be a requirement to watch before you buy!!

[jessetarver]

Buddy, I have watched hundreds of videos of RV-ing and this is THE most honest video I’ve watched. Thank you so much for the practical details you shared.

[NerdyEd]

You are the kind of person I want to buy a used trailer from.

[redred]

That was the best most honest video I've seen so far.

[blueowl]

As a single lady I really appreciate learning about all sides of this responsibility :) thank you

[tnewcomb]

Thanks! You convinced me to skip the RV/trailer purchase and stick with tents and hotels.

[t.p.]

I've owned 2 travel trailers in the past 3 years, 1st one was totalled, and I 100% agree with this! I felt like the words were being pulled right out of my mouth. Totally accurate! RV repair shops are horrible because they have to fix something that's designed to never be perfect! Great video!

[ToTheMoonParty]

I was planning to buy a camping trailer but after watching this video I'm scratching that plan. Thank you for the reality check.

[jembodo]

I agree with the shoddy workmanship that goes into 99% of these RVs and thought exactly of the stark contrast in comparison with vehicle builds. We got our first travel trailer this month and just slowly discovering the type of materials the trailer is made of from fixing things, such as microwave mounts, bed braces, trims, etc. No major issues yet, but I don't see these things surviving in one piece past 10 years even with utmost care. We have no regrets and enjoy the heck out of it though!!!

[salfarado]

This makes me appreciate my tent, that much more now. Thank you.

[jhancock]

17:50. “None of this is hard to fix”. I agree with you especially if you are mechanically inclined and have the time. I like to fix things but spending my weekends working on something that that has inherent flaws and has to be watched like a baby is not appealing. Thanks for sharing. RV Quality is poor to subpar because they don’t have to meet the same standards as cars/trucks. There are no lemon laws for RVs.

[paulschmidt]

As someone looking to buy a travel trailer, this was an exceptionally helpful video. Thank you!

[KevinJonasx]

Excellent video. No fluff, just 20 minutes of really useful information. Great work, thanks for making this.

[Bourbon_Wood]

I'm a semi-trailer mechanic and I definitely recommend rivets or bolts with lock nuts. Great video btw 👍

[tayninh]

This guy has nailed it. We had a 28 foot Pass Port made by Keystone and it was bought brand new. It was the first trailer we ever bought so we really didn't know what questions to ask or what to look for. After a year we found out just how crappy these things are put together. They use the minimum rated equipment on the trailers and Keystone says they do that to save the OWNER some just a big pile of BS. At the end of the day after the warranty runs out, the dealership and the company that built the thing will not have a lot of interest in you any longer. Pay close attention to this video, he is dead on.

[flyingrv]

I bought my RV 20 years ago and still going strong. $49.95 Walmart tent.

[cheriebranum]

❤️ You are the RV Dad I never had, love your way of speaking the truth of the trailer ownership. Your Wisdom is appreciated 🙏

[suzybeebuzz]

Thank you for being HONEST about this process because they shine everything up and make it look real PRETTY and BAM you will be sitting on the side of the road with a hunk of real pretty stuff