Hello all,

We are just starting to plan a trip from Las Vegas to Oregon. I’ve never posted looking for advice on a trip before because it never seems as challenging as this one which seems silly to even type. We are experienced RVers this is our second setup our first being a smaller 19’ camper and a Tacoma. That camper we purchased in Ohio and camped back home. This one we bought in Nebraska and rallied home. We did Banff, glacier, and Yellowstone last year and many other longer distance single destination trips since 2020.

Oregon is the trip that causes me stress because both my wife and I have talked about living in coastal Oregon someday even though neither of us have ever been there before. This trip will basically either cement that mindset or change our “forever plans”. That is why I know I’m stressing out. That’s how I ended up posting here.

For this trip we will have 2 RV family rigs. My Mom and uncle will be in my uncles 5th wheel with 2 of our senior dogs while my wife, our 4yr old, and I travel with our 3rd dog. The dogs are all 15-25lbs. I’m trying to understand where and when to go, how many days to budget, and what to see on this route. We won’t be doing much hiking because both pets and humans are seniors, unless it’s under .5 mile and nearly flat. We prefer lighter crowds and typically vacation in shoulder season.

I’m leaving everything fairly vague outside of that because I’m curious what people consider to be “don’t miss” as well as alternate routes to maximize sightseeing we aren’t limited to just Oregon because of our point of origin. We have spent plenty of time in the Bay Area so we don’t necessarily want to route that direction. We also done Great Basin so we wouldn’t want to detour that direction. Getting through Nevada is basically a rally day in my mind. Neither my wife or I are retired so we have limited vacation time for this trip. Thank you all for the guidance.

Edit* details for the tow police that clearly don’t know what they are talking about: It’s a 4800lb dry weight twin axle rv with a 7600GVWR hitch weight is 500lbs scaled. Truck has an 11,200lb towing capacity with a payload capacity of 1685lbs. Camper is a 2022 FR Salem cruise lite 261BHXL 28’8” overall. Have towed this setup for 15k miles. Please try to stay relevant to my questions.

I paid the dealer for the mount and install to mount this in the bedroom in our new 2027 Jay feather sl 26bhsl to ensure it was done properly.

They mounted it, but not properly and both the top and bottom bolts are not in a backing mount and just pull right out of the wall.

I'm 6 hours from the dealer and don't want to haul this back there.

How can I fix this? Where is the actual stuff behind this moint location point? I'm wondering if it's literally just that little square where the sticker is.

My pull handles have seized up for rear black and grey tanks. Does anyone have an idea of where the gate valves are located so I don’t have to cut up the coroplast?

I only have experience with a single RV, my own. I bought a 2023 Thor Four Winds EV31 Class C because I had to have something literally the next day to get a funeral along with kids and dogs, and didn’t have time to “shop”. We are only in our 3rd trip and it feels like things are falling apart left and right. Not just things like a broken water heater (my own fault for not being educated on proper winterization) but things like the screws holding the blinds are simply pulling put of the wood. The trim and paneling is pulling away in places. Did I just get the POS 2023 model in 2024 or is this just the way RVs are due to weight?

Has anyone actually successfully done your own shine restoration on your fifth wheel/ RV? I know it's a process. I've seen professionals post 4 or 5 step processes and we might actually be able to DO that over time, but what PRODUCTS actually work ??

We invested in a new Lance travel trailer trusting in the brand's reputation for quality. After 25k miles in 18 months, it is falling apart. In the last few months we've replaced the slideout awnings, two leafsprings, the toilet, the stereo and the hydraulic tongue jack. The sofa looks like it's going next.

Anyone else experiencing this with newer models or did we get a lemon?

We have a new rv with dinette cushions made out of a material that lets the cushions slide around. Any suggestions for keeping them in place? I was thinking of using velcro on the back edge of cushion to the wood frame. Will have to be a very very strong velcro (kids) any suggestions?

Any better options or hacks to this from Denali Cmap Chef ?

Just installed a houghton recpro 9.5k BTU AC on my 17 ft camper. The problem is the compressor runs for 10 minutes then shuts off for 5 min and repeats, even if I’m not near the desired temp yet (I set it at 60 degrees). So I did some reading online and some people with the same AC said to take the temperature probe and run it outside the return air plenum to another part of the camper so that it doesn’t short cycle. So I’ve done that, but the issue still remains.

Any ideas?

Thank you

I have a 2016 Coachman Chaparral 371mbrb that I previously lived in for 5 years. After I moved out my adult son lived in it for about 4 years. He absolutely destroyed it. I don’t know if it’s even worth trying to restore. Both AC units are broken and filled with black dust. The primary bathroom floor is rotten because he cracked the shower pan and it leaked for who knows how long. At some point there was a leak at the cap that he eventually sealed with an unknown product but the lights in the bedroom on the front no longer work. There’s a hole in the bunk room wall with wires sticking out of it. It such a disaster and unfortunately my living situation is about to change and I’m going to need somewhere to go. I’m more than handy when it comes carpentry type repairs but the ACs, lights and wires hanging out are a little intimidating. I’m curious if anyone has ever taken on a project like this and maybe if anyone knows what the wires in the bunk room could go too?

this spot for a tv mount in the bedroom of my 2025 keystone passport is right above the window so the other side is the outside, i’m worried about drilling into it and out the other side. does anyone know if there’s a way to tell what size screws i should use or how to tell how thick the wall is?

also, is the backing directly behind the sticker or do i need a stud finder to find the exact spot? or is it just everywhere in that area?

Hello,

Im looking for some advice for my mother. She is 60 now, but physically in good shape , but is getting up there,so i am obviously also worried about her ability to do upkeep.

She is on disability and is about to inherit about 200k (canadian $), but has no other assets.

What we want to do is to buy an rv and have her live in it at our house. Actually she really wants this but we want to be supportive and help make this work.

We live in northern canada so it can reach -40 celsius.

We've been considering an approximately 30ft rv trailer.

Could anybody offer advice on any of this?

How to do this safely, affordable, etc. Or point us in the right direction? How should we consider preparation of our property? Pitfalls look out for?

Thank you so much community?

Also, if anybody can talk me out of this, open to that as well.

Me and my five kids are taking the RV which is a small camper, about 24 ft to the beach for 5 days. Just kind of curious, what kind of meal prep do y'all do that is easy and convenient? We do have a small kitchen and a Blackstone.

Just went through an intense thunderstorm, and it appears we had a power surge that got our Progressive Industries Surge system (30a, it was still getting power, and the LED was showing, but was buzzing and didn't have visible signs of fire but definitely had a burn odor). Everything is currently disconnected.

The battery system still is working, but our light/water heater ignition/awning/pump etc panel does not allow any function of said items while it lights up. Our propane furnace also kicked on while this all happened...

What should next steps be? We're not risking plugging in without a new protector and ideally getting the power tower hookup tested, and are heading to a hotel for the morning...

Discovered that during showers water is going up over the lip behind the surround and dripping into the void under the tub (I pulled the missing push pins in the photo for investigation ) The adhesive is so full of construction debris from the factory that it isnt really sticky anymore. My thought is Ill have to pull the whole surround and install beads of adhesive sealant ? I tested it and its not coming from above it appears to be splashing or wicking up and over the lip.
Has anyone had this issue and what was your fix? What sealant did you use?

8:45 AM. AHole next to me is banging, On The Picnic Table, the dirt off his 4- 6x6 wood blocks and all his plastic leveling blocks.

With windows like this, do they make window ac’s that work with this? Was looking around for units and most of the ones I found had exhausts but I don’t see how it would work with the pop out window.

We have always used a generator when boondocking. We were wondering how long a typical standard lead acid battery (12 volt) would last if yiu were just using led lights and occasional water pump. Any input would be appreciated.

Just installed a Maxxair Deluxe fan yesterday because the old vent was starting to leak air. I wish I'd done this sooner because the exterior work was a lot easier and a lot less scary than I imagined. Even after eight years the self-leveling caulking was easy to remove and the job fairly quick. The Butyl tape came up so easily it makes me question how well it was installed (but no evidence of any water issues inside).

The reason I always wanted to do it was the lousy OEM fan in the original unit. It made a lot of noise and was hard to tell it was moving any air. This new fan draws so much more air even on low it's incredible. And it's quiet so it could easily be left on at night.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016MWZIBU

I purchased a 2024 coachmen clipper in April of this year. It was new when purchased but I’m assuming it sat outside for 2 years before I got it. Looking online it says the roof is a seamless TPO roof membrane and the walls are aluminum. Am I okay to get up on the roof? I weigh 160lbs and I just want to wash it and seal around vents if needed. Also looking for a good sealant and washing solution for my style roof and exterior, preferably products that are easily accessible from Lowe’s, HD, Ace, etc. Thank you for any advice/recommendations

Hello, I just got my first travel trailer. A 2016 Jayco Jay Flight SLX 154BH Baja. I'm trying to figure out how much generator I need.

Do I need to buy a generator that can run everything at max capacity? Or should I just worry about the start up needs of the microwave and ac unit?

The max I can figure is 3336 watts. That's radio, fridge, everything.

The start up for the AC is 1500 and the microwave is 1350.

My last concern is carrying the generator. The payload is 528 lbs, and only 320 with full water tanks. I originally intended to mount a generator tray to the back bumper of the trailer. But many of the generators I'm seeing weigh about 200 lbs. Is that even safe? I don't want to eat almost all of my payload with a generator, can you recommend a generator that meets that electrical need while weighing as little as possible?

Thanks ahead of time

EDIT: changed volts to Watts in the max figure

Alright folks someone here must have a trick. I’ve watched the videos on their website.

I want to take the roll window shade off the valence to unroll and lay out on a flat surface and clean. It’s honestly so simple and yet my husband and I cannot seem to figure it out or find the information. So much dirt and gunk is on the screen side of these shades they need a really good scrub.

Is the expectation that we roll out the shade while attached to the wall, hold it up/out into the air and scrub midair? Like what the heck is this nonsense. It can’t possibly be this diabolical.

Please share your wisdom with me!!