Repair and Maintaining Your RV

Do It Now! You will not have time later!
                             Fighter Pilot's motto...

Yes, if you find something wrong with your RV do not delay fixing it or having it fixed if the repair is beyond your abilities to do so. A loose Awning almost ruined our first RV trip.

Part of any repair is inspection, you need to know what to look for and when to look for it. That is why it is important to do the inspections and use a written check list while doing so.  We encourage you  to print out any portion of this web site to assist you in keeping your RV safe.

This is not a repair manual for your RV. It is a general guide on what and why you should do a repair. If you are a 'Do It Yourselfer' then you will need to get the manuals for your make and model of RV. They may cost a little bit more but keeping in the RV will save you money in the long run.

Although these three manuals are very old and look beat-up they are a gold mine of information. The GMC Motor Home and Maintenance manuals have been out of print for almost 30 years! Keep them in the RV!

Keeping the manuals in the RV will help you fix problems on the road or help a mechanic with the repair you can not do yourself because a small shop will not have all the manuals for all RV's. I guess would be that they would not have any RV manuals at all unless the owner happens to own a RV.

Before you get in the RV and take off to the far unknown you should do an inspection of the vehicle, use the check lists we have provided.

General maintenance is looking for loose items, panels that don't close properly or latches that open too easily. Latches that will not hold the panel closed.

A leak is a good indication that something has worn out. A loud noise that wasn't there the last time you used the RV or develops while you are driving needs to be investigated as soon as possible. Correcting a malfunction when it starts may keep the damage to a minimum.

For a 33 year old vehicle this one is in very good shape. In the classic car class I would call this a high Class 3 or a low Class 2.  It does however have a few things to do. Having restored a few 1970's cars that needed more than this Motor Home I am quite pleased with my choice. (If you would like to know what I am talking about have a look at this site: www.classicarparts.com ).

On the left you will find an index to the other pages of this section, such as check lists for before you hit the road, what you should do periodically, and other tasks that you need to do to keep your RV in tip top shape and a safe vehicle for your family to travel in and enjoy.