Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 01-01-2013, 11:30 AM   #1
4 Rivet Member
 
2008 16' Safari
Destrehan , Louisiana
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 395
Angry Parts on the road; HELP

Ok, we made our trip from New Orleans to South Carolina. 1500 miles on the trailer and over two weeks living aboard. We had a great time but the trailer was not so happy.
The water heater quit, the water pressure regulator sprang a leak and there was no dump station near by.
We made one trip to a major city and picked up a tote tank. We made adjustments for the water leak and I did a temporary fix to keep the hot water going.
I tryed to have parts shipped to us but nothing came in due to the holidays.
Just what do you do for parts whaen your 200 miles from the nearest major RV store? Should I doudle up on the parts that failed and keep spares? Should I have made a shout out for help on the forum?
dlb435 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 11:42 AM   #2
Rivet Master
 
1974 Argosy 20
2014 20' Flying Cloud
Kooskia , Idaho
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 4,591
No matter what parts you decide to stock, something else you don't have will fail. I doubt that there is any real solution other than trying to keep things replaced and repaired as well as possible and living with the fact that sometimes failure will occur at inconvenient times and you have to wait it out. Smile, and remember you are camping with a few inconveniences always possible.

I know, it can still make you unhappy....lol. Does me.
idroba is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 11:48 AM   #3
Site Team
 
GCinSC2's Avatar

 
2007 30' Classic S/O
Somewhere , South Carolina
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 6,436
Where are you? What do you need or what needs fixed now to help with the trip?
__________________
S/OS #001 2005 Dodge Ram 2500 5.9L 6 Speed
16" Michelins, Hi Spec Wheels, Max Brake, Dexter 4 Piston Disc Brakes, Carslile Actuator, Equal-I-Zer, Dill TPMS. Campfire cook. BMV-712. DEMCO 21K Lb Cast Iron coupler
GCinSC2 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:01 PM   #4
4 Rivet Member
 
2008 16' Safari
Destrehan , Louisiana
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 395
I'm home now and the parts are on the way.
This was a little aggravating but it did not spoil our trip. A few adjustments and we were fine.
I checked out everything in the trailer before we left. We were on the road for over a week before the first failure occured. I'm more interested in what to do next time.
It seems that both failures (the city water pressure regulator and the water heater temp switches) are fairly common. Do you carry spares on these items?
We also had the microwave fail on one trip but it whould be crazy to carry a spare microwave. I'm looking for your recommendations.
dlb435 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:12 PM   #5
Rivet Master
 
FreshAir's Avatar

 
1966 24' Tradewind
Placerville , California
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 3,328
Images: 2
Quote:
Originally Posted by dlb435 View Post
I'm home now and the parts are on the way.
This was a little aggravating but it did not spoil our trip. A few adjustments and we were fine.
I checked out everything in the trailer before we left. We were on the road for over a week before the first failure occured. I'm more interested in what to do next time.
It seems that both failures (the city water pressure regulator and the water heater temp switches) are fairly common. Do you carry spares on these items?
We also had the microwave fail on one trip but it whould be crazy to carry a spare microwave. I'm looking for your recommendations.
As it happens to me that the 'spares' that I carry guarantees that those in use DO NOT fail. Others will.

Neil
__________________
Neil and Lynn Holman
FreshAir #12407

Avatar;
Kirk Creek, Big Sur, Ca. coast.

1966 Trade Wind

1971 Buick Centurion convertible
455 cid

1969 Oldsmobile Ninety Eight
455 cid
FreshAir is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:13 PM   #6
2 Rivet Member
 
pullswitha40's Avatar
 
Vintage Kin Owner
ogden , Utah
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 63
Reminds me of my brother and his boat.
The spare parts he carried would stock any well equipped auto parts store..., but after spending one or two days chasing parts during his summer vacations at Lake Powell a few times...

Funny thing was.....once he carried a spare it seemed he never needed that part...
pullswitha40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:21 PM   #7
4 Rivet Member
 
2008 16' Safari
Destrehan , Louisiana
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 395
Hmmmm....
Sounds like our old friend Murphy at work here.
Murphy's Law: Anything thing that can break will break.
Murphy's Postulate: Anything that does break will do so at the worst possible time.
I guess we should add Murphy's Therum: If you have a spare part; that item will never fail.
dlb435 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:36 PM   #8
Rivet Master
 
Jim Flower's Avatar
 
2012 30' International
1997 25' Safari
1967 20' Globetrotter
Burlington , Ontario
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 1,499
Quote:
Originally Posted by dlb435 View Post
I'm home now and the parts are on the way.
This was a little aggravating but it did not spoil our trip. A few adjustments and we were fine.
I checked out everything in the trailer before we left. We were on the road for over a week before the first failure occured. I'm more interested in what to do next time.
It seems that both failures (the city water pressure regulator and the water heater temp switches) are fairly common. Do you carry spares on these items?
We also had the microwave fail on one trip but it whould be crazy to carry a spare microwave. I'm looking for your recommendations.
Forget about trying to carry parts. Bring tools and some odds and ends left over from previous fixes. Rivets, duct tape,electrical tape, wire, screws, oil, grease, an iPhone, and knowing that most likely something will break and will require a road fix. Sometimes the fix will also involve others and more time than you counted on. It's one of the reasons I travel with full water, empty holding tanks, and solar power. I can't recall an extended trip that did not require some kind of fix. Last week it was a broken bracket on the Hensley. (Too many shoes) An iPhone, coat hanger, pair of nippers and a local welder contributed to mitigating down time. A rv shop in Charleston provided a control valve for the toilet and a flashlight provided alumination on a loose cable connection for a holding tank monitor. It must have been WP Kinsella who said "if you use it, it will break". That's the way I see it, anyway.
__________________
Jim
Jim Flower is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 12:49 PM   #9
65th Anniversary CLIPPER
 
masseyfarm's Avatar
 
1996 36' Clipper Bus
Tub City , British Columbia
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 3,309
Images: 61
If you are living in a traveling home the maintenance will probably triple from the brick house back home. Its part of the excitement of travel in your own RV. Try to deal with the problems yourself as much as possible, and then when you have the job done you can join the rest of the group at the camp fire, and you will have a story to tell.

ps: today nobody really cares what your problem is anyway unless they can make money from it.


Dave
masseyfarm is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-01-2013, 01:45 PM   #10
Rivet Master
 
switz's Avatar

 
2014 31' Classic
2015 23' International
2013 25' FB International
Apache Junction , Arizona
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 6,215
Images: 9
Old saying:

Telling folks your problems - 50% don't care and 50% are glad you have the problem,
switz is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Airstream, Inc. or any of its affiliates. Airstream is a registered trademark of Airstream Inc. All rights reserved. Airstream trademark used under license to Social Knowledge LLC.



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 06:41 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.