Traveling Vanlady said:
I recently purchased a used class b van. Calling it a motorhome seems a little pretentious. I bought it n Alaska as it was a trade in by a couple who drove it up from Arizona and decided it was too small. RV season is over in Alaska so the dealer wanted to get it off the lot. I drove it from Anchorage to Texas in October. My son drove with me and luckily he wasn't familiar with the roads. We came down the Cassiah and had temps from -17 to 90. I slept and showered at Flying Js all of which were firsts for me. I have since stayed in some lovely state parks and a few driveways . I hope this prepares me for Quartside.
ANy hints or suggestions for newbies are more than welcomed.
I am traveling with my dog and wondering about storing dog food. If I have it in an airtight dog food container , can I store it outside? She is 90 lbs so is not a delicate eater?
It sounds like you'd probably have some great tips for the rest of us! Driving from AK to TX in temps from -17 to 90, it sounds like you've got it figured out! What kind of B-van did you get?
I'll add my $0.02 though with a couple of tips... if you're going to be anywhere near seriously freezing temps carry a gallon of water system antifreeze, and don't hesitate to drain your fresh water tank and water heater, bypass the water heater, and pump your lines full of antifreeze. Leave it that way until you're out of the freeze zone. A hard freeze can burst water lines and water heaters. I had to replace the water heater in my B-van when I bought it because it had ruptured from being frozen with water in it. One twenty-degree night with daytime temps above freezing likely won't be a problem especially when you're in the van and running heat... but any 24 hour period of time below freezing can be a problem; and it can be a problem even when you're driving with the dash heat on, it may be cold enough under the cabinets to allow the plumbing to freeze.
Never park hooked up to sewer and leave your black tank valve open. Gray water will just run through the system, no problem, but the solids in the black tank will harden and be like concrete to remove. Use non-formaldehyde, enzyme additives for your black tank, and let it fill up before you dump it. If you can, flush it every time you dump. If you can't, a bag of ice dumped down the commode right before a day's journey will help clean the tank.
And last, if your furnace, water heater, or stove smell really awful when they're lit, you're likely nearly out of propane. The oderant tends to concentrate in the bottom of the tank, and the propane at the bottom of the tank will burn with that oderant smell.
