Everything you need to check on your RV BEFORE winter arrives. The most important fall/winter RV maintenance tasks, RV winter prep steps, RV winter tips, tricks, and hacks!
First, the most important task prior to winterizing is to do some RV roof maintenance. I’ll show you how to inspect your roof, exactly what to look for, and how to fix it!
Next, are the RV window seals, tires, wheel bearings, brakes, engine fluid levels. Here, I’m pointing out what you should be looking for to prevent future repairs and major damage over time.
Finally, you’ll want to give your RV a good wash and wax before storing it for the winter.
(NOTE: After you’ve done these basic Fall DIY RV maintenance inspections, the next step is to move onto WINTERIZING your RV!)
(Don’t miss the “related article” to see my complete RV Maintenance Checklist for FALL!)
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TRANSCRIPT:
Hi, I’m Curtis with The Fun Times Guide. In today’s video I will be going over some of the Fall maintenance items you should be sure to check on with your RV.
The first place to start is up on the ROOF. Up here you have vent covers, satellite dish covers, refrigerator covers. And all these plastic components will age over time. And you need to check to make sure that they are not crumbling or falling apart. This trailer is relatively new, so that doesn’t become an issue until a trailer is 4 or 5 years old.
Beyond that, you need to inspect every area where something protrudes through the roof — to make sure that the SEALANT around it is still intact and not cracking away. One of the major areas is the seam across the front of the trailer. And if water manages to migrate in here, it can do a lot of damage in a short amount of time.
To extend the life of your roof VENTS, I recommend some kind of a vent cover such as these Camco covers. Because the roof vent cover is very light-duty plastic, and it will weather poorly over a period of time. You want to make sure that there are no tears or gouges in the rubber roof membrane. These can be easily repaired. But if they’re left to go over winter, water will migrate in and destroy the structure of the ceiling inside.
On the outside of the trailer, check CAULKING around all edges to make sure it is intact and not pulling away. And it is recommended that around the windows of your RV you apply silicone sealer around the outside edge to seal it to the side of the trailer. Windows are generally installed with butyl tape from the factory, and in time this will dry out and crack and pull away.
TIRES are another important Fall inspection you should make. Not only are you concerned with “weather checking” around the sidewalls on the outside, be sure to inspect between the treads. Because a lot of times you will get cracking between the tread lines which indicates dry rot — and your tires will fail on you unexpectedly.
Another important Fall inspection item is adjusting the BRAKES. These rubber caps right here cover the adjustment port — so that you can tighten your brake shoes.
Lubrication of WHEEL BEARINGS is another important issue that needs to be addressed. If you have Dexter EZ Lube Axles such as these, it is a simple matter of removing the little center hubcap and attaching a grease gun while you are spinning the wheels — with the wheel off the ground and pump grease into it.
It is also important to maintain your tow vehicle OR your motorhome MOTOR AND TRANSMISSION. Be sure to check all of your fluid levels every Fall. And if it is due, Fall is a good time to change the oil so that you are ready for a fresh start in the Spring.
These are just some of the pointers that your particular RV may require. There is likely to be more items that need to be checked. But be sure to give your RV a good once-over during the Fall season so that it is ready to go next Spring. And hopefully no damage will be occurring during winter storage. Thank you for watching!
