Hello fellow campers, drop me a line about places to see, things to do, and new gadgets on the market that you would like to tell fellow campers about.

Thanks for your comments.

Camping News

October 2006

Hello October Campers,
It’s still great camping weather, and probably is the best time of the year for campground cookouts,
hot chocolate , chilli and fresh brewed coffee and a little campfire chat….people that don’t camp really miss out on a lot of great stuff.

Getting ready to winterize? Well here are some helping hints.

Don’t put antifreeze in the fresh water tank. It's quite difficult to get the antifreeze smell and taste out of the tank later on. Black water and gray tanks are ok to put in antifreeze just make sure the fresh water tank is completely emptied.

RV plumbing systems are easy to winterize, others require a little more ingenuity. Some folks like to blow out their system with an air compressor. Just make sure you don't exceed the operating pressure of your water system. 40-50 psi . Also, if your RV doesn't have a water heater bypass, get one and install it. It allows you to isolate the water heater during winterization so you don't have to fill it with antifreeze, which is difficult to get out of it in the spring anyway. Removed plug from the outside of the water heater, and open the relief valve, which is also located on the outside of the heater.

Don’t forget about washer/dryers, icemakers, water filters. These need to be winterized. This can be a complicated, follow the manufacturers instructions for winterizing these appliances and if you’re at all uncomfortable with the process, best take it to your local Rv Dealer to have done.

Make sure that every drain has antifreeze in the P-trap and don’t forget the toilet. You should flush the toilet at least once through with antifreeze.

Crumple up some newspapers and put them if the refrigerator to draw any moister and also to deodorize. For products you may need to winterize your unit, visit our winterizing page.

When you are wanting Rv antifreeze you should be able to pay $2.45 to 3.95 a gallon and can be purchase at your locate Lowes lumber or Menards. We can sell you Rv antifreeze but it’s cheaper to by it locale because of the price cost to ship.

A Big thanks to Steve in Crosby Texas. He look at one of are answers to a problem with a refrigerator and gave us another solution to the problem. Here it is and it’s now on our FAQ’s about frig problems, again thanks Steve.

Fridgecool Universal Vent Fan Increases refrigerator cooling efficiency up to 40%! Fully automatic fan only activates when fridge is on. Big D Price: $42.19

Question: My refrigerator gets cold on the top but not the bottom. Why?
A: You probably have a blockage you the coil, you can replace the coil, but it's recommended that you replace the complete refrigerator.

Steve’s comment:
The answer is the outside temp is too hot for the condenser to condense the ammonia vapor back to a liquid; what vapor is changed back to a liquid is used up in the freezer section leaving no or very little liquid for the refrigerator section. When this occurs put a good thermometer inside the refrigerator section and at night when the temp cools the refrigerator temp will drop and the next day when the temp rises so will the temp inside the refrigerator. The cooling unit is good, there is no blockage, it just needs some help. The solution is more air movement through the condenser coils/fins. 12v fans...can solve this problem it is common down here in the Houston area. Thanks.

And for a little humor……..

Larry gets home late one night and his wife,
Linda, says, "Where in the hell have you been?"
Larry replies, "I was out getting a tattoo."
"A tattoo?" she frowned. "What kind of tattoo did you get?"
"I got a hundred dollar bill on my privates," he said proudly.

"What the hell were you thinking?" she said, Shaking her head in disdain.
"Why on earth would an accountant get a hundred dollar bill tattooed on his privates?"

"Well, one, I like to watch my money grow.
Two, once in a while I like to play with my money.
Three, I like how money feels in my hand.
And, lastly, instead of you going out shopping, you can stay right here at home and blow a hundred bucks anytime you want."

Larry is recovering in room 232 at John Hopkins Hospital

Happy Halloween,
Happy Camping,
Jerry Pressley
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