Winter is coming… but many of these maintenance steps should be done during the travel season.

Travel Trailer Maintenance isn’t just for winter anymore!  Make no mistake about it, winter is coming, maybe not here in Texas, but it is coming.  So what are the things you will want to make sure you do before putting your travel trailer in a state of hibernation?  Well, these are many of the same things that you should do during the summer months when you are traveling.

Battery –  Check the water level in your battery and fill any cells that are low.  You must only use distilled water for this, as it is free of minerals and other elements that would be harmful to your battery.  Distilled water is available at your local supermarket.  If you are storing your RV for a long time you will probably want to remove it and take it home and place it on a trickle charger.

Air Conditioning – Remove and clean your filters…you really should be doing this often during the camping season as it increases the efficiency of the unit.  It is really quite amazing at how fast they get dirty.  While the filters are off make sure the four bolts that hold your unit snug to the roof seal are tight.  Read your AC Owners manual to know what the torque specification is for those bolts.  My bolts are supposed to be tightened to 40 Inch (NOT FOOT) lbs.

Wheel Bearings – These need to be done (repacked) yearly or every 12000 miles.  This is not a cheap maintenance item so you may want to do it your self.

Adjust Brakes – If you have drum brakes you will also want to adjust them yearly.  It is not rocket science but it involves raising the tires off the ground one at a time to do the adjustment.  If you are having the wheel bearings done at an RV repair facility they will usually do this at the same time.

Tires – Inflating and inspecting your tires before and after each trip is very important. Check for nails or screws in the tires, dry rot (cracking side walls), uneven wear (which may be indicative of a misaligned axle), and loose lug nuts.  If you are storing your unit over the winter you may want to add an extra 5 psi of pressure to your tires.

Suspension –  The leaf spring equalizer;  in this case just do a visual inspection and lubricate as required.  Some of the models that come on travel trailers are not serviceable and quite frankly are junk.

Slideouts – Inspect your slideouts and lubricate the moving parts.  There are a few different types of slides so familiarize yourself with what type you have and follow the manufacturers recommendations for maintaining them.

Slide Seals – look for any cracks or tears and repair if necessary.  Clean and Condition the seals so that they do not become brittle.

Roof and windows, marker lights etc. – Since the RV is going to be stored for a few months this is your last best chance to inspect and clean the roof and seal any voids with lap sealant.  Make sure you know which type of roof you have before you start (EPDM, TPO, Alpha System) because they recommend different sealants and different processes for cleaning/protecting the roof.  For example; Alpha Systems roofs should not have any  UV protectant sprayed on them as it will deteriorate the roof membrane.  Next check the seals around the windows as well as the silicone seal, repair as necessary.  Check your tail lights and marker lights and make sure the silicone seal is in place if not re-seal it.

Hitch – Follow your manufacturers instructions for maintaining your hitch.  During the camping season the hitch bolts should be checked for the correct torque.  Make adjustments as necessary and lubricate.  We have an Equalizer hitch and I clean and lubricate my hitch before every trip. Equalizer also recommends cleaning and repainting any rusty areas on the hitch yearly.

Wiring – There are many wires running to and from the battery compartment.  Inspect the wires for cracks or damage. There are also wires under the trailer (e.g. running to your electric brakes) that may have been damaged, make sure they are not damaged.

Next we get into the winterizing steps which are specific to each travel trailer.  For instance, I have an outside shower that needs to be winterized others do not, therefore I have an additional step I need to perform.  As an example, click here for the steps I follow knowing that your trailer may be different.

If for any reason after reading your owner’s manual you don’t feel comfortable winterizing your unit;  make an appointment to have it done professionally.  Not winterizing your unit correctly will cause hundreds if not thousands of dollars of damage.

A few more things to consider:

Flushing the water heater – After By-passing your water heater to prepare for winterizing; flush it out completely with fresh water.  A wand for flushing your water heater is available on-line or at an RV store for a few dollars.   There is no reason to reinstall the drain plug until spring.  Actually,  after every trip you make with your trailer you should rinse your water heater.  You don’t need to by-pass the water heater when you are using it during the summer.  If you don’t rinse the water heater you may have a bad odor later when you turn your water on.  It takes all of three minutes to rinse it out – well worth it.

Plumbing – check all fittings every year.  Check your water lines to the sink and your P-Traps, make sure they are tight.

Propane System – With your propane tanks valves open on do a leak check by spraying soapy water on the fittings at the regulator, if it bubbles, you have a leak.  Tighten the fittings or take to an RV repair facility and have them repair.  Close your Propane tanks valves for winter storage.

Short of the winterizing steps, many of these items should be done regularly during the year; such as roof, tire, battery inspections and cleaning your AC filters.  In fact ignoring these is a reason for the manufacturer to void your warranty.   Also, make sure you research how to winterize your specific Travel Trailer Model.  We have had eight travel trailers and the set ups for winterizing were all different.  In fact, with the 2007 Coachmen we owned, I had to crawl inside the under bed storage are to by-pass the water heater – that was never fun.

As for the regular, non-winter inspections, remember;  a few minutes of time each trip could save you hundreds of dollars down the road.  You can also view our related video here:  Travel Trailer Nation on YouTube