Getting Ready To Roll: Do This Before Each RV Trip

Here's how Jim and I team up to get things done each time before we leave...

I usually take care of all the inside chores, and Jim takes care of the outside ones. Then, we check each other to make dang sure everything is done. 

Inside The RV...
On the inside, I start at the back of the RV trailer in the bedroom. I put away all our shoes, caps, and jackets in the wardrobe closet, and make sure the sliding doors are locked. Next, I clear off all the things on the dresser and bedside shelves. Lots of things get tucked into the dresser drawers, so they don’t get thrown around the bedroom during travel. The soap dish and toothbrush holders are packed away, shampoo and conditioner are set on the floor of the shower, and the shower door  gets locked. When all that is done, I am ready to bring in the bedroom slide.

In the living area, we have a wicker trunk that doubles as a coffee table. Before we move, I make sure all the remote controls, the table clock, the flashlight, thermometer, and a few other things are tucked inside the trunk for the trip. I look inside the pantry cabinet and make sure there is no food packaged in glass jars touching each other. At this time, I move things around inside the pantry, rearranging them so they won’t slide around and fall out on my head the first time I open the cabinet door when we get to where we are going. I put the throw pillows from the sofa in this pantry to help keep things in order.

In the kitchen, I put the canisters and coffe maker in the cabinet under the sink. Clean bath towels and kitchen towels are placed between glass casserole dishes and bowls to cushion them. I lower the cover over the stove top and put away the spice jars from the spice rack, packaging them in large ziplock bags.  Once everything is secured in the kitchen, I push the button to bring in that slide, too. The inside of the trailer is now ready to go. This may sound really involved, but it really takes less than an hour to do it all.


On The Outside...
At the same time, Jim is busy on the outside. He disconnects the satellite cable from the trailer and wraps it in a coil. He then puts it with the dish in the back of the truck. Next, he dumps the black and gray water tanks, rinses the sewer hose, takes it off the trailer and puts in a large plastic garbage bag, which also goes into the back of the truck. After that, he disconnects the water hose, cleans off the outside of it, coils it up, and then yep, into the back of the truck it goes. The last thing he does is to unhook the electric cord and push it into the storage compartment. 

All of this usually takes him the same amount of time that it takes me to get the inside ready. When we are both done, we check behind each other to make sure things are where they are supposed to be.


The Tow Vehicle...
Next, we back up the truck and hitch up the trailer to it. Once the hitch is on the ball, and the cotter pin is in place, we raise the electric jack and put on the sway bars. Jim then raises the look-out jacks on all 4 corners, and stows any wood blocks we had under them in the back of the truck. While he is doing that, I walk around the outside of the trailer and truck, and check to make sure all the running lights, the brake lights, and the turn signal lights are working properly. I make sure the entry door is locked, and that the steps are folded up and secured. The very last thing we do is remove the chocks from the wheels.

You might think we’d be too tired to drive after all that work, but it really is just a short time to get it all done. And every single thing we do is done for a reason.

You also might think that each thing we do makes sense, and you’d never have to tell someone to do it, but you would really be surprised at how many times we have seen someone drive off from their campsite, and have their electric cord pulled out of the trailer because they forgot to take the time to put it away; or their sewer hose trailing behind them, spewing ugly black water down the road. 

So, I encourage you to make a list and follow it every time you get ready to go for a drive in your RV. You’ll really be a happy camper when you do.