Where do full timers do their TV maintenance?

[1SG1971]

Hello all,

The wife and I are looking at going full time next summer and deciding between a Reflection 303 or a 337. This is probably a stupid question, but where do you guys who DIY and full time do your maintenance? Today I did an oil change, fuel filters and transmission service. As I was patting myself on the back for saving $300-500, it hit me, in a few months what do I do? I tried the normal google search and just came up with suggestions such as "just commandeer a parking lot and hope for the best". I guess that is one way, but I would prefer a better alternative. I guess if I have to pay to have service done, I will, but I hate to throw away money. Plus, I much prefer to know it was done properly with the right parts/fluids. I'm sure there is no magical answer, but hopefully someone has a suggestion that I'm just overlooking.

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Many parks prohibit any form of service on your vehicle. If, however, you are in a long-term site for the winter or something, you may be able to work with them. One place we were at for an extended time had a rule on paper, but they didn't enforce it as long as you didn't make a mess. Get yourself a good deal on some Plumbers Mate pads. I use them during anything fluid-related. I did oil changes, transfer case, transmission fluid, fuel filters and differential fluid without making any mess. I also replaced the brakes and performed axle and generator maintenance on the trailer, all without making a mess. That's the key. I also have a pretty good set of tools in the trailer.

We now own a permanent home base site, and I can do anything there that I need to. I have heard of folks finding a vacant parking lot, or even going out on BLM land to do their maintenance. I don't know that I'd recommend that.

[FT4NOW]

If you are authorized to access a military base, most have an auto hobby shop that you can use and they have tools you can use for free. You normally just pay a minimal fee per hour for use of a lift or non-lift bay. Depending on your vehicle you might be limited to what you can do though. We stayed on Ft Eustis for awhile and my truck size and weight exceeded the capacity of the lifts they had, so I could only do stuff that didnt require use of a lift. Also, some prohibit any fuel system maintenance. I changed my fuel filters at the camp site and put a tarp down under the truck, it takes less than 15 minutes, no one ever said anything to me about it. I even replaced all my leaf springs and equalizers on the camper at that camp site, but like mentioned above, some campgrounds prohibit any kind of maintenance.

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[Bungy]

Larger cities usually have businesses that cater to shade tree mechanics. They will rent garage space c/w tools by the hour. Some even have hoists, air tools etc.

[D2Reid]

Everyone else pretty much covered it. Rental bays, and places that are tolerant of routine maintenance. The no maintenance rules a lot of times are designed to keep people from junking their cars in the RV park. Really high end parks are very sensitive about getting oil on the concrete pads. I just changed the oil in the generator in a park that has a rule about no maintenance. It's all about the mess you leave behind, or don't....

Most parks are tolerant of you working on your trailer, so long as it is short term and there is no mess. The key to success is talking with the manager. Explain what you are doing, how you will keep from ruining their campground, duration, etc.

For me, I quit doing my own oil changes long ago, in fact, around the time I messed up my first anti-lock brake job. Now I just pay the big bucks to have the dealership do the maintenance on my new Ford. It's really better for everyone if I do it this way, I'm not a very good mechanic.

[BB&LAB]

I gave up doing tow vehicle maintenance (except for changing the air filter) when we went full-time in part because crawling under the truck, cracking knuckles & skinned hands lost it luster for me. But as a practical side, as mentioned many RV parks do not allow vehicle service. If I had to find and go to a garage that allows people to service their own vehicles, and pay for it, I might as well go to a service facility and have it done and enjoy the luxury of sitting and relaxing or leaving it to do something fun. Another consideration when it comes to oil and tranny fluid changes is taking up valuable space to carry the larger drain pans for diesel trucks, especially tranny fluid and then disposing of the used fluids.

[Second Chance]

We stay on military bases quite a bit (the Auto Hobby Shops mentioned by @FT4NOW). Most Escapees co-op parks have mechanical shops where you can do this type of thing if you're a member (we're on the waiting list at two of these parks). I used to do nearly all of my own vehicle maintenance, including bearing repacks on boat trailer and RV hubs. I don't know about you, but as I get older, I'm less inclined to do any of this myself. Having a Ford, I have found Ford dealerships I trust in several places where we tend to spend time. I especially like a Ford dealership in Augusta, GA, as they have a true truck shop that does fleet work on everything up to the heaviest commercial trucks Ford makes - including the Class C and Class A RVs on Ford running gear. Places like this one can do things (like front end alignments on DRW trucks) that many other places can't. Sure, it's more expensive to do it this way - but my back hurts a lot less than it used to and I like keeping the skin on my knuckles.

Rob

[JCZhome]

When I had the individual wheels weighed I learned that I was 1,025 lbs. over weight in the Momentum. Tools was one of those things that is extremly heavy and so I had to down size in that area, too. Eventually, I just paid to get the service done......just check the reviews of the shops you may be going to.

[traveldawg]

Add me to the category of use-to-do-it-all-myself but now take it to a dealer. Easier, no question about warranties, trust them over local mechanics/garages, can pick and choose services, usually get a car wash included. Kind of interesting tho that dealers (Ford in my case) don't have service records that are shared across the system.

oh - don't have to search all over for a place to return copious amounts of used fluids or make a mess transferring them between drain pans and containers.

[WhittleBurner]

Don't forget to check with the dealers. Sometimes they will surprise you. A couple of years ago we needed a oil change on our GMC diesel truck. After checking with a full service garage which said $170 I checked into doing it myself which wasn't cheap either. I wanted synthetic oil. I called the GMC dealer here in Bradenton Florida. They said $80 with synthetic. Couldn't believe it and asked several times. They did it for $80. They buy their oil in bulk through GM.