Protecting your Class B motorhome, just like any other large mechanical system, is of the utmost importance when it comes to protecting your investment.The best part is if you keep up with it, you'll have tens of thousands of trouble-free miles. If not however, your next vacation could be spent in a service center waiting room instead of at your favorite beach.
Exterior Maintenance
Windshields - It was just one rock. It shot out from the tire of the semi just ahead and put a big star-shaped decoration on the windshield exactly where you look out. Before it happens, make sure your insurance will cover it. You might need a special rider. This repair is, frankly, out of the average RV owners skill-set. Find a name you trust in the yellow pages. The cost is around $50.00.
Sealant Repair
You have to keep the outside...well...outside. After all, you are living in a home, even if it is portable. The sealants around the vents and windows of your RV can become brittle or cracked after years outside. Before we go any further, remember to not seal the bottom flanges of windows or doors. The manufacturer left gaps to provide drainage.
Slide-Out Roof Repair
Slide-outs in an RV are a special problem. The components in a roof stay in one place. A slide-out room extension will continually rub against the sides of the RV. Anything that slides will eventually wear and require sealing. The best repair is a special kind of tape that is designed to fix this problem.
Coach Leveling
RV's have to be level so the chef can cook eggs in the morning without everything sliding to one side. If the RV hasn't been driven in 60 days, the leveling system may have to be reset. Follow the manufacturer's instructions. Do this before you leave so you don't have to worry about at two in the morning in the dark and rain at some RV park you've never been to.
Interior Maintenance
Electrical
The electrical system in your house doesn't face constant vibration for hours on end. Vibration produces shorts and failures. Take a basic tool set along with you so you can take out a light fixture to check the connections. Don't forget to charge the RV batteries after you come back from a trip. The alternator attached to the engine isn't designed to do long term deep charging.
Plumbing Systems
The RV has a fresh water pump, holding tanks and a hot water heater which must be drained and cleaned after each trip. Carry a spare pump of the same model as the one in the RV in case you have to replace it. Clean the screen just upstream from the pump after each trip and before the first one. There may be plastic shavings from the installation of the pipes at the factory.
Water heater
Insects can build nests in the pipe leading from the combustion chamber to the outside. Clean the burner tube with a flexible wire brush and use a vacuum to suck out any residue.