# Calling All Seasoned Campers



## GoodTimes (Mar 9, 2009)

*HERE'S AN IDEA:* What if everyone shared their mistakes here and we could all learn a thing or two from it? Being a Newbie, I've learned so much already just browsing this site. For instance, I read a scary post where someone unhooked the chains before they had put the choks down - it turned out ok, but it could have gone seriously wrong!

So if you've made a blunder or two along the way, would you mind sharing it with us? I think we could all benefit from it - even if it just serves as a reminder to the 'seasoned campers'!

*THANKS FOR SHARING!!!!! *







PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE


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## ember (Jan 17, 2008)

Well I can't believe this has been on for 8 hours and NO ONE has shared a mistake!! I'll go first. Our biggest mistake was being so excited to find an Outback, the ONLY one we had seen or heard of at that point, that we bought it even though the floor plan was not really suited to us, so we ended up trading just 9 months later!! 
Most common "mistake" for us.... Stacey and the GPS unit. Stacey gets up between 3 and 4:30 a.m. I prefer 6, so Stacey puts in a "close enough" address to see generally how long, how far, etc. then we forget to put in the real address and have to wing it for the last few miles with the Abi-one tagging along!! We have actually found some pretty cool things with this "mistake", but we are going to be better about it this camping season!!


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## fourwalls (Sep 21, 2007)

Our very first camping trip I did not pack DHs clothes and he thought I had







It was not pretty. Thankfully at that time we were close to the same size and he could ware my jeans. Had to make a quick trip to wally world for a couple of things. But it was a lesson well learned. He always packs for himself now. That is now a fond memory of 25 years ago.


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## Doxie-Doglover-Too (Jan 25, 2007)

um, well....would you believe forgetting to pack underwear?







Yep, it's true and once again Wally World came to the rescue. Another time forgot to put the remote for the tv back in the trailer. THAT almost caused Rick to have cardiac rest







.I was laughing, he was not, so I was lauging more.I AM evil.


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

We've run over our chocks a couple of times pulling out of a campsite............give it a little more gas, it'll go!!









Mike


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

My big one was learning how far the back end of the camper swings out when you are turning sharply. Sure, the wheels follow you (or to the inside of you acutally), but the back moves outward in the turn. That can cause the back of the trailer to catch posts or trees in campgrounds, or other obstacles, up to and including gas pumps, or the poles protecting them.









I've pulled over a wheel chock also. (There's nothing like the torque of a diesel







)

The other big one I've seen in campgrounds is the old watching the trailer, and forgetting about the TV. Watch the front end to avoid trees and posts.


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## Calvin&Hobbes (May 24, 2006)

Well, lets see. um......... ah.............. ah...............humummm.......Well, I've never made a mistake!









ok ok ok... There was ONE time, I forgot to unplug the TT from the electric hookup. Someone on Rt 44 reminded me, as I trailed 50 feet of umbilical cord and ground the 30 amp plug to _nothing_. Eh, I didn't like that plug anyway.

I now have a quick check list I roll through, and I do a pre-flight walk around before I get into the truck.


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## GoodTimes (Mar 9, 2009)

WHEW! Thanks to all who've shared so far - I was worried that this was going to sink and no one was going to come forward. My favorite so far? Not packing DH's clothes. Lesson well learned I bet!

My mistake? Well I'm a list maker - I like to have it all written down and check it off. I went to pack the ice chest with the food for the trip and it filled up pretty fast. I shut the ice chest - intending to put the rest of the stuff in a smaller one. DH came along and saw the closed ice chest and figured it was ready to load, off it went to the truck. In the meantime, someone interupted my 'train of thought' - and I COMPLETELY forgot about THE REST OF THE FOOD. We got to the campground and I realized once I started unloading that I forgot several important items to most of the meals. My campers were not amused.

TOUGH! Mama's menopause brain ain't perfect! Now, where did I put that list?


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## WIOutbacker (Feb 12, 2006)

I think our worst mistake was when my wife dumped milk in the black tank as we were closing up to go home (we have a seasonal site). The next weekend the whole trailer smelled really bad and I had a hard time getting the tank back to normal. No amount of flushing would help. I ended up filling the tank past the level it was at when she poured the milk, adding a bunch of those additives with the microbes, and letting them do their job for a week or so.

Later,
John


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## Reverie (Aug 9, 2004)

Let's see....

Forgot to put the cap back on the sewer drain.
Left food in the microwave in storage
Forgot to pull in the TV antenna before driving.
Almost ran over a tree (saved by another Outbacker).
Crushed three sets of plastic chocks
Left the storage doors unsecured
Forgot the food
Drove to the wrong campground.
Neglected to put the safety pin in the hitch ball lock
Drilled a hole through an outside storage door.
Forgot to throw the Campground circuit breaker and wondered why I didn't have electricity for two hours.

I could go on and on...

The good news is, other than habitually destroying plastic wheel chocks, I generally learn after the first time. So will you.

Reverie


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

My worst mistake was admitting to the DW I made a mistake









The mistakes that don t do damage are the easiest to admit to. I had a sorta funny one that cost me a few bucks. Funny now, not during.
I was camping at Myrtle Beach and had the awning out thru the night. Woke up around 2 am to the trailer rocking big time from wind and rain. Decided the awning was rocking the boat so to speak and putting it in would be the best thing. I go outside in the dark, lower one corner, start walking under the awning to the other side, trip over my daughters small folding chair which was folded up but laying on the ground. I fell forward and luckily the other awning rail caught my fall. It also bent in half to the ground from my weight hitting it. I now have one side of the awning connected to the trailer and the other side broken and no longer connected to the trailer. Needless to say, the wind and rain did not let up just because I was in trouble. My DW heard me fall, came out, she had to hold one end of the awning while I slid the two sections of the rail apart and support that end while rolling it up against the trailer. I thought the wind was going to make a sail of the entire awning. We were drenched and exhausted but thankful we closed the awning without loosing the entire thing. I now never walk under the awning when putting up or down, I stay on the outside figuring if I trip again, I will fall away from the rails. Its that Murphy s law thing.


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## JLWilson717 (Apr 24, 2008)

One mistake I learned from on our old camper, is to angle the awning down away from the entrance door, no matter what the weather looks like right now. We got caught in a big rain with the awning too level. In trying to lower one end with it full of water, the awning tube collapsed, dowsing me with lots and lots of rain water. We got it rolled up out of the way, and eventually had a new awning installed as a comprehensive insurance claim.


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## rdvholtwood (Sep 18, 2008)

Make sure if you do any shopping while away camping & your clothes are put in a big plastic bag - Do NOT leave them laying around outside the trailer!

We watched as our nephew cleaned off a portable grill and threw the grease in the first plastic bag he saw laying around - needless to say it had new clothes in it and his DW freaked out.


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## jetjane (Feb 8, 2007)

We learned that if you plan on stopping at the Walmart in North Battleford, Saskatchewan to never park the trailer at the bottom of the sloping parking lot, even if it is practically a mile away from everyone else. Someone was nice enough to not put their shopping cart away properly causing it to roll towards our camper, building up speed as it went. When it hit, it left a big dent (about 5"x3") on our nearly brand new Cougar 5th wheel...it was only our 2nd time using it. I nearly cried. Of course, the person who was using that cart was nowhere to be seen...they were probably hiding between some cars until we left.


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## Rob_G (Feb 16, 2006)

Hmmmmm... Let's see...

1. Clipped rear gutter on garage siding.. ripped both off.
2. Left bumper cap off... dragged sewer hose for 45 min
3. Didn't check fire escape window... kids left rear unlocked and started flapping down the road.
4. Left 12v cooler on in TV... had to rip battery from to get TV started

I'm sure there are more but those are the most memorable offhand.


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## GoodTimes (Mar 9, 2009)

Seriously, these are good! I'm learing ALL KINDS of things *NOT* to do. Keep 'em coming!


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## Scooter (May 9, 2005)

1st time out forgot to lift the stairs. Drove 1/2 mile before I realized they were still down.


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## TnFamily (Jun 28, 2007)

Okay so this is with my first camper, not the new outback. Picture this, arrive at campground find beautiful site, unhook, put down jacks, hookup electricity, pull out the awning, grab the water hose and commence looking all over the site for the water spigot....oopps....Michigan State Park sites don't have water. Well no big deal we'll just use the onboard water right? Nope, you guessed it...holding tank empty. So next comes an embarassing trip back out to the front of the campground to the dump station to fill the water tank. Never never again...the water tank is now always FULL.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

The first camp site we were in had a driveway that was perpendicular to the road. It took about a dozen attempts to get the Outback in there. By the time I was done I was so frustrated that I forgot to chock the tires before unhooking. Once the coupler was off the ball the whole thing slid off the linx levelers, into the TV and the coupler got wedged between the equalizer ball and the receiver. I took a lot of leverage to get it free. Only put a small gouge in the coupler but I learned a great deal that day as the other campers watched.


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## Chabbie1 (Dec 3, 2006)

ok, here goes;

Our first trip out and DH was backing into a site and was not sure how far he could turn the vehicle without hitting the bumper and jack kniving. Well, he found out the hard way and now we have a beautiful big scratch on the bumper. All I could say at the time was "I'm glad it wasn't me that did it"

Another time is when we were setting up, unhooked the hitch and put chocks down. i'm inside the trailer trying to set up and if felt like we had a huge earthquake as the whole trailer shook forward! DH forgot to unhook the chains as he pulled away from the trailer. Boy that was scarry. I'll never be inside the trailer until it is completely set up and the Tv is completely unhooked.

I'm sure there are more, but can't think at this moment.


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## Holmes On The Road (Jan 23, 2009)

As a newbie I am thankful to read all your stories and you can be sure that I am making notes.

Fortunately the worst thing I have done so far is forgetting the food in the freezer at home the second time out.

I remembered the beer though!









There was a grocery store not far from the campsite so the DW was not too upset with me.


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## Doxie-Doglover-Too (Jan 25, 2007)

(1) NEVER leave a bunch of bananas stashed in the microwave in the HOT summer months when you are not using the trailer for a month.....









(2)NEVER forget cans of pop in fridge during freezing winter months...


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## battalionchief3 (Jun 27, 2006)

First trip in the camper and my neused 2500 suburban we got stuck, in our own yard. Guess it was softer then I thought. At the time the driveway was not really wide enough so I parked in the yard, got stuck. My son said "dad, just go!" haha, funny son now shut-up before i put you in the dogs cage. So I said let me unhook the camper and I can probally get the truck out. Oh thats nice honey but how will you get the trailer out then







SO after a call to the firehouse up the street they brought a brush truck with a winch and easily pulled the whole thing out. Now I just washed the camper and truck the other day and now they are peppered with mud. 









Now since I work for the county I had them put a replacement drain tube under the driveway since it collasped ( they do that for free ) but I knew the supervisor and had a 30' put in and got rid of the 20'. Now I have no problem.









Other then that I take my time and check everything, twice, everytime.


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

battalionchief3 said:


> First trip in the camper and my neused 2500 suburban we got stuck, in our own yard. Guess it was softer then I thought. At the time the driveway was not really wide enough so I parked in the yard, got stuck. My son said "dad, just go!" haha, funny son now shut-up before i put you in the dogs cage. So I said let me unhook the camper and I can probally get the truck out. Oh thats nice honey but how will you get the trailer out then
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 HEY! That looks like Wolfies Yard!! There is photographic evidence!!


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

Well, I have had the same experience that Nathan had. A little over-confidence on my part. After a while one gets pretty comfortable in towing and manuevering. I was at a gas station in PA and needed to turn around. I swung the whole rig around and caught the last inch of the driver side rear of the camper on a very large boulder. It did very little damage but I cringe to think what it would have been like had I been 12" wider on my turn radius. THAT would have been ugly.

Lesson learned: It's always appropriate to use a spotter with radios in confined areas.

Then there was the North East Spring Rally. Beautiful weather great company wonderful campsite. Calvin and Hobbs, Wolfwood, Doft, Kurtr, Hatcityhosehauler, Ymryl just to name a few. We had my large Hercules tent set up (10X20) Wolfies Easy-Up picnic tables, lights..super set up! Anyway Saturday morning the wind picked up and tumbled the tents. The Hercules Tent was a sail!! And heavy too! the easy up took off like an umbrella, Narrowly missed Wolfie and and hit my 31RQS!

Lesson Learned: Tie downs folks!! Tie Downs!

There was the New Hampshire Highland Games at loon Mountain. Yours truly and Wolfwood (Judi and KB) showed up to duke it out and have some fun at the festivities. Wolfie was backing into a very constricted site. The site itself was roomy but the entrance had several obstacles that made things....interesting. One of those items was a post. KB was doing a great job of directing as Wolfie nimbly positioned Puff to get everything into the site. That post had been strategically placed to be out of the drivers view (Low and Close to the mouth of the site) and to make matters worse this was about 9pm. Very dark, no lights. After several runs at the site KB (very calm on the exterior but I could feel the welling fury eminating) in one fluid motion, KB snatched the post and hurled it. THERE! Obstacle eliminated Wolfie Planted Puff Perfectly.

Lesson Learned: Clear the way. Take a moment to remove Potential Perils that could prove to be Perdicaments when Parking Puff perfectly!

Backing up into a site blind is one of the toughest things to do. Practicing this manuever with the person that will be guiding you will help develop the trust and comfort needed to be succesful. go to a parking lot and use the lines of parking spaces as guides and borders. Have your assistant guide you back into the spaces. start at different angles simulating curves, perpandicular and semi parrallel roads. Wolfie and I have helped a few people with this and its a great confidence builder!

There are some helpful hints!

Eric


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## mswalt (Sep 14, 2004)

So this was a few years ago with the former 26RS. Was setting up and pulling out the queen bed slide and talking to the neighbors at the same time. Only, I forgot to put the rails up first. Nearly dropped that bed slide into my lap!

Mark


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## livetofish (Sep 5, 2008)

First camping trip was over the Thanksgiving weekend on the shore. I could not open the little entry door for the pop up so we jumped over it in the unit. Then I forgot where the power switch was and the heater would not turn on without it. Then as we moved on the way out I hear this really bad metal scraping sound. DW gets out and checks says everything is fine. Drive another half mile with scraping sound, I get out and check. I had forgotten to lift the stabilizer leg up.

Now I read the manual before taking out the Outback and I check the bottom before leaving the parking spot.


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## battalionchief3 (Jun 27, 2006)

This was not really my fault but..... as we were looking to buy a RV the salesman showed us an outback with the pull out bed in the back. It was in the out position and my wife and salesman were kinda in the middle, so I sat on the edge of the bed and guess what....up goes the tongue. Now we did not smack the fulley extended rear bed on the street but It was close. We actually balanced for a second and I told them to walk slowly to the front. They did and it settled back on the tongue jack, not to hard but I felt it. So the salesman went and put the stablizers down so it wouldent happen again....


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Deciding to de-winterize at an Outbacker's rally and forgetting to close the hot water tank pressure valve. My son still likes to tease me about Lake BigBadBrain.

Hmmm, maybe the REAL mistake was taking him along!

Naw.


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## zachsmom (Aug 17, 2008)

Hmmm, there have been posts from some new members and new campers, so it might be time to give this thread a bump!

Lessee, mistakes. We have been lucky so far, and hopefully will continue to be, but we have done some stupid things that could have turned out to be inconvenient or expensive...

My first trip on my own (with the kids and dog, DH was coming down in the late evening after we got set up), I (unavoidably) ran over a board that was in the highway near a construction area. No place to stop and check the underbelly but no honkings and wavings from nearby drivers either so I figured everything was okay, and traffic was pretty nasty so I was concentrating on that and not worrying about what-ifs... Until I got to the cg where I discovered that the right rear stabilizer jack had been totally ripped off by the board! No other damage and we used the jack out of the tv to stabilize that corner for the weekend.

Same trip, on my own with the kids and dog for setup in a newly remodeled area of the cg with no signs to tell you which way was IN and which way was OUT and the rigs already in position were facing in all different directions. I ended up pulling in the wrong way and didn't realize it until I was unhitched. Fortunately the cg wasn't crowded and the office had no problem with me staying where I was.

And when I realized that I was in the site all backwards, I had just taken the L-doodad off the hitch bars. Set it on the bumper of the TV and promptly forgot about it in the flurry to figure out what to do about being backwards. Remembered it on...SUNDAY as we were hooking up to leave. Gravel area, gravel road, little silver L thingy, no hope of finding it. So, came home carefully, with only one bar attached. We now have extra Ls in the TV and the ones that are in use are tied on with 550 cord...

Oh, I just remembered - same trip, as I got out of the truck and headed around the front of it to go to the office to register, I looked back to answer a child's question...and smacked the heck out of the mirror with my face! I wasn't used to it in the flipped up/out position and automatically walked around like I would have when it was down and in the same position as the mirror on my daily driver... No witnesses to that one, fortunately...

I forgot to flip the switch to allow water back into the hw heater after de-winterizing... That could have been nasty but DH figured it out quickly...

Last weekend we set up in the dark and for the first time ever, totally forgot to chock the TT! Fortunately the site was nice and level...

Left too much water in the toilet after cleaning everything and heading for home...slosh slosh slosh...and a mop-up when we got home.

Somehow managed to leave a little container of novelty ice cream in the freezer last month. Missed it when we unpacked but caught it before heading out again last weekend...

Miscommunicated and ended up with no sheets in the OB - he thought I had grabbed them and I thought he had. Fortunately we had an extra comforter and duvet cover, so no problem there.

Forgot to 'trust but verify' on the kids' packing of their own clothes. Kendra ended up with only one pair of 'pajamas' for the weekend, a jingly dancer costume with pretend coin-thingys at the hems. Fortunately we had an extra tshirt or two so we didn't have to listen to her jingle all night...

Like I said, nothing earth-shattering...we've been lucky.

Anyone else need a sign?


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## clarkely (Sep 15, 2008)

Lets see......
2 campers ago putting the trailer level when i knew it needed to be a 1/2" out for a roof leak (85 terry manor/can be seen in my gallery)....to have our infant daughter wake up screaming bloody murder..........to have my wife go to lift her out of the Pac n play and feel everything wet..............thinking it was diarrhea ....but only water ........

Last camper........(Keystone Springdale) knew i needed to weld a hitch receiver.....but tried the u bolt to bumper receiver..........ripped off the bumper.....it only bent and tore..........i knew it was probably not going to work.......so i always put one tire out past the side so i could see it in my mirrors.

New camper is about three feet longer behind the axles..............first big trip to Florida.....got myself in a tight situation when there was only 1 option for fuel.........had to jack it in and around Pivoting it between parked cars and gas pumps.....back swung around and if it was literally 1 foot shorter i would have missed the car.......but the lady graciously accepted the new bumper i had decided to purchase for her









Just this Mothers day.............i only ever use the soft awning light hangers, and now have the hooks on the lights....so no hooks to worry about taking down and easier set up take down..............i took the kids Mothers day shopping the previous week........they got her some cool hanging Prismatic lite reflecting butterflies.....she wants to hang them on the awning........i gave her some s hooks................she takes them off later..............i knock down ....those s hooks are not part of my routine.....tell her to hit the awning retract button,............then scream stop and shake my head







we now have 1 tiny poke through hole...........now i need to invisibly fix that.

But we have so much fun.........no sense in sweating the little stuff


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## 2dayinc (Jul 2, 2008)

Not backing up far enough (After full set up) so as the sewage hose will connect. I hate it when that happens.







Oh well, I'll just dump on the way out.


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## Mrs Crawfish (Apr 1, 2006)

I've enjoyed reading about everyone's uh-oh's, glad to see every one has maintained their sense of humor in the face of adversity. I wish I could add something, but we've not had any problems of that sort









Unless you count the time I forgot to pack underwear. (had to borrow from the DH and granddaughter)

And then there was the time we pulled into an empty parking lot to use the facilities in the TT, Leon went first, I was last and forgot to fold the steps back up. Fortunately, a fellow camper was driving behind us and gave us a call on the cell phone before any damage was done.

Another time, the same fellow camper was traveling with us when he called to tell us something was flapping on the side of the trailer. We found a place to pull over and found that the emergency escape window was loose. I can only assume that I bumped it when making the bed.

I think that's it for us....Oh, Oh except for having to replace the roof top antena once after someone forgot to let it down.

It all makes for good stories to share at the next campfire.

Margaret


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Mrs Crawfish said:


> I've enjoyed reading about everyone's uh-oh's, glad to see every one has maintained their sense of humor in the face of adversity. I wish I could add something, but we've not had any problems of that sort
> 
> 
> 
> ...


For me, a sense of humor is something that develops some time after the event...


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## Collinsfam_WY (Nov 9, 2006)

First time I hooked up our 23RS to my brand new F250 V10, I learned a good lesson. I went to back the camper up 8 feet or so on my crushed limestone parking area. I touched the throttle just like I would have in my old F150 which would have resulted in the camper moving back about 2 feet or so then stopping. Except...I wasn't in my F150. I stopped...because the back wall of my shop did it for me. My shop now has one metal panel smashed in and a "honey - look at what this new truck can do" story to tell for it. DW was not amused. Outback was thankfully unharmed.

-CC


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## WIOutbacker (Feb 12, 2006)

My two best learning experiences came when we traded our 25rss on our 310bhs. My wife and I went to the campground to get the old trailer cleaned up and ready for pick up. It was a mid February day and about thirty five degrees. Thirty Five degrees feels pretty good after a few months of cold weather so I left my jacket and cell phone in the car as I worked getting the outside stuff done. I started to wonder how long before the guy from the dealership would be there so I went to look at my cell phone. Out of habit, I put it in my pants pocket with my keys. Later, I discovered that as I was kneeling down to remove the chocks from the wheels my keys had cracked the screen of my cell phone. That was a $150 lesson not to put the IPhone in the same pocket as my keys.

The guy from the dealership came to pick up the old trailer (I refuse to pull a trailer with my Durango again!). Our old site had a really nice lake view except that the trailer had to go in forwards instead of backwards. The tv ended up on a grassy down slope. This wasn't bad in the summer but not good during a February thaw. The dealer couldn't get enough traction to push the trailer back out so I hooked up my Durango to the back of the trailer with a tow strap to help pull as he pushed. We got it out OK. Then I went to back up to take the tension off the tow strap. I had never used one before so didn't realize that they hold a lot of energy in them. As soon as I took my foot a little off the brake I went flying back. Luckily the guy from the dealership had fast reaction and was able to jump out of the way. The trailer wasn't damaged at all and my Durango just had minor damage from the spare tire.


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## Dadof4 (Mar 30, 2007)

I broke the Giant Artichoke Resturaunt in Castroville California.

Nuff said!


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Dadof4 said:


> I broke the Giant Artichoke Resturaunt in Castroville California.
> 
> Nuff said!


Look on the bright side, at least it wasn't a bank.


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## clarkely (Sep 15, 2008)

I always say when buying something..............its only new until you take it home...........then its just waiting for its first damage


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## firemedicinstr (Apr 6, 2005)

Just before a thunderstorm rolled in I decided to put away the awning. Kids running around clearing the pool deck and it was getting a bit loud from the thunder. I had forgotten to drop the front support slide all the way down before rolling the awning up so I reached in to release it. BIG BIG MISTAKE, a gust of wind and the tension from the roll up and my hand was interwoven with the two metal pieces. As if I was in outer space no one could hear me calling for help and they were in sight of me!!!. I figured out I could reach the trailer and release the tab holding the awning support to the trailer and my hand was free. Didn't break a bone but it looked like I had been in a fight with a saw blade. 
I am now very careful with the awning and will NEVER put it away without someone else there.

MK


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## 'Ohana (May 20, 2007)

FYI









When removing the "L" pins from the the equalizer brackets do not !! I repete do not lay them on top of the bumper and after disconnect/pull away proceed to open tailgate least you have two dents that resemble " L"s









Oh !! and never completely cover the top surface of your gas grill with foil because you're to lazy to clean it and after a few seconds of trying to light it take a peak under the foil ( to see why it wont light) while pressing the ignite button. Preforming the latter will most likely result in acquiring an instant sunburn face with no eyebrows









Ed


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

'Ohana said:


> Oh !! and never completely cover the top surface of your gas grill with foil because you're to lazy to clean it and after a few seconds of trying to light it take a peak under the foil ( to see why it wont light) while pressing the ignite button. Preforming the latter will most likely result in acquiring an instant sunburn face with no eyebrows


love to see those pictures....


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## anne72 (Apr 27, 2007)

Our second trip out with the camper, which happened to be the Northeast Spring Rally last year, we tried taking out the security gate at the campground. We found out it didn't move yet it tore through the side of the camper and bent the axle. It's a very sickening feeling to realize you just had an accident. It was quite a way to meet all the Outbackers too! The camper had to be flat bedded out of the campground and towed to a dealership in New Hampshire. We were without it for about 8 weeks. We've learned to take turns a lot wider and now I hop out to check when clearance is questionable. The worse part of it all was we were about 4 hours from home, had nothing to get our blankets, food, clothing home in. The truck doesn't have a cap and the back of it was full of bikes. Of course it was raining too! We wound up buying big garbage bags and a cheap cooler, shoved everything around us and where ever it would fit in the back and drove home. A trip we won't ever forget!


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## clarkely (Sep 15, 2008)

anne72 said:


> Our second trip out with the camper, which happened to be the Northeast Spring Rally last year, we tried taking out the security gate at the campground. We found out it didn't move yet it tore through the side of the camper and bent the axle. It's a very sickening feeling to realize you just had an accident. It was quite a way to meet all the Outbackers too! The camper had to be flat bedded out of the campground and towed to a dealership in New Hampshire. We were without it for about 8 weeks. We've learned to take turns a lot wider and now I hop out to check when clearance is questionable. The worse part of it all was we were about 4 hours from home, had nothing to get our blankets, food, clothing home in. The truck doesn't have a cap and the back of it was full of bikes. Of course it was raining too! We wound up buying big garbage bags and a cheap cooler, shoved everything around us and where ever it would fit in the back and drove home. A trip we won't ever forget!


Did you at least get to enjoy the potluck?


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## Dadof4 (Mar 30, 2007)

Nathan said:


> I broke the Giant Artichoke Resturaunt in Castroville California.
> 
> Nuff said!


Look on the bright side, at least it wasn't a bank.








[/quote]
Oh man! I've seen that video. Good thing everyone was OK in that one.
This was the last day of a 3 week trip from southern California to Yellowstone, Banff, Vancouver, and San Francisco. We were spent!


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## hearob (May 6, 2009)

Dead batteries as the 7 prong plug wasn't really connected correctly - in fact was a dummy plug! We found this out in the front of the ferry line-up blocking traffic with the slide out. Now if we overnite in the front of the ferry line-up we leave the slide IN, just in case....
Vancouver Islanders, just bought a RLS Outback 30 foot trailer


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## anne72 (Apr 27, 2007)

clarkely said:


> Our second trip out with the camper, which happened to be the Northeast Spring Rally last year, we tried taking out the security gate at the campground. We found out it didn't move yet it tore through the side of the camper and bent the axle. It's a very sickening feeling to realize you just had an accident. It was quite a way to meet all the Outbackers too! The camper had to be flat bedded out of the campground and towed to a dealership in New Hampshire. We were without it for about 8 weeks. We've learned to take turns a lot wider and now I hop out to check when clearance is questionable. The worse part of it all was we were about 4 hours from home, had nothing to get our blankets, food, clothing home in. The truck doesn't have a cap and the back of it was full of bikes. Of course it was raining too! We wound up buying big garbage bags and a cheap cooler, shoved everything around us and where ever it would fit in the back and drove home. A trip we won't ever forget!


Did you at least get to enjoy the potluck?
[/quote]

Yes and the margaritas too! We said this was actually a good thing, it was the ice breaker that we needed!


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## Bakerman (May 1, 2007)

Quick boating story? Here goes...I'm drifting up to the boat launch area to take the boat out of the water, I can see I'm in 3 foot or so of water so I slide off the front to walk the boat in. 'Cept, my bathing suit gets stuck on a cleat! So, there I am dangling helpless off the front of my boat by my bathing suit (can you say wedgie! After what seems like an eternity it releases, and when I stand it's even still on.

Back to camping...two weekends ago we're camping locally, Saturday night by the campfire and the stars are out, dead calm. Fast forward to 4am, the trailer is shaking violently - in my half sleep all I can think is a large bear is attacking it (unlikely but I was mostly asleep here). Wife says I have to open the door so here goes...it was a violent squall with high winds and the awning is out - make that WAS out. Upon investigation it's now on the roof!!! Wind is still howling, no ladder so I grab the picnic table and manage to work it down one end at a time. Broken brackets and such, but other than that its ok and will be reinstalled shortly - in time for the North East rally next week if goes according to plan...


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## psychodad (Dec 9, 2008)

Put in two freshly charged batteries, supposed to be wired in a series of course. I crossed wired them and it was just like welding. Taking the bars off the Equalizer WDH at the campsite and could not get it to slid off the L bracket. Then realized I had unhitched the TT from the ball. This was on the frst trip this year. I couldn't believe how stupid I was.







DW just smiled at me.


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## Acadia Hiker (May 29, 2007)

Somehow, I missed this thread. Here's mine from just yesterday.

I didn't get enough time to check everything out for our first trip of the year before we left, but I did de-winterize into the tanks to be dumped. We put a cover on the OB for the winter and taking it off apparently did something I didn't want it to. We get to the CG and I'm in the process of hooking everything up. Connected the sewer hose to the sewer and had all connections ready to go. I reach over and grab the cap on the OB and twist... Out rushes some NASTY looking stuff all over my gloved hands and bare forearms.







Fortunately, it was the gray tank handle that was pulled by the cover coming off. After a trip to the CG restroom and three scrubbings with anti-bacterial soap for 5 minutes, all was good.

Last night, while getting ready for bed, I pulled the coffee pot out to get it ready for this morning. Apparently, we never emptied out the last few ounces of coffee the last time we we out in October last fall. There was some _very interesting_ mold growing in the pot. A good washing and all is good.









But my absolute favorite moment occurred many years ago when I was camping with my then girlfriend and her parents. We were at Assateague and the skeeters there were pretty bad. I asked the lovely woman of my dreams to spray me with insect repellant. She grabs the can and commences to spray me down. I asked for some in my hands to put on my neck and face. After a quick blast, I begin rubbing the stuff all over my face. _It doesn't smell like bug spray._ I grab the can out of her hands. It was Raid.







The can says it's poisonous and the keep way from hands and face! I'm completely covered in it. Next thing I know, I'm grabbing a towel and sprinting across the CG to wash all of it off of me. 17 years later, the DW still laughs at her first attempt to kill me.







And I still love her.


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## amyk (Feb 13, 2009)

NEVER EVER EVER lean your equalizer bars up against the A frame when unhitching----a 'friend' was helping by lowering the tongue (they were learning as a pair how to hitch and unhitch the camper for when they borrow it while under my watchful eye--ha! blind eye!!!) when one of the bars punctured the stone-guard front of the camper!!! we now have duct-tape covering our new hole!!!

also, make sure to lock all compartment doors when leaving---no damage done, but kinda embarassing lol

and never, never put bleach into your black tanks, for when you use them the next morning, you might find yourself on the floor from the deadly gases produced by the mixture of ammonia and bleach!!!

Be sure to check your fridge door before leaving to make sure it's not only closed, but CLICK! LATCHED or all your food may be taking a walk down your trailer!

I think that's about all, but not too bad for two chicks on the road for three months straight and 11 states so far!!! ;-)


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## Toolmaan (Jan 11, 2007)

Well We left our tool to lower the stabilizer jacks down. Unfortunately we didn't realize this until we pulled into a campground in Springfield Missouri. Those are hard to find on a Saturday morning. Finally found one that goes nicely in my cordless drill.

Left TV antenna up

Forgot to take out trash under sink after storing for winter.


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## Just Add Dirt (May 5, 2009)

PLugged in shore power after a long trip and decided to empty fridge next day, only problem: TT wasn't level







all the food went bad!


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## hautevue (Mar 8, 2009)

This is a HUGE help to me, a newbie. Total experience = two "shake-down" trips of 2 - 3 days. DW, Pooch and I leave for Seattle (from Baltimore) on June 18 for the Seattle 1/2 Marathon, and then on to Vancouver, Victoria, Olympic Peninsula, and Glacier Nat Park before heading back.

Thank you to ALL for your stories. I've learned a lot, printed all out and now have a checklist of "be carefuls."

Best regards.


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

New one to add to the list for me.

We were in Cape May NJ this past weekend and I had dropped the girls off downtown at the beach and drove back to the campsite. I Opened the tailgate and dragged my plastic storage bins to the edge of the gate to do a little maintenance in the peace and quiet. Later on the girls called to come get them and off I went on the 15 minute drive down to the beach to pick them up. Got there and hopped out of the truck to open the gate for them to put their chairs in but there was no need, the gate was already down, fortunately my bins were still on the tailgate but lesson learned









Mike


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## TexanThompsons (Apr 21, 2009)

OK, is it fair to tell a story that didn't happen to you, but you got to see the result?

My dad was unloading his 5er at the dealership for repair. He had stopped the truck and there was a bit of an incline where he had parked. He had the front stabilizers down, but did not chock the wheels. As he pulled the pin on the hitch, the trailer went rolling back, bent the front stabilizer arms and smashed down on the bed of his truck. No one was hurt, but there were a couple of good things that came from this incident...

1) Lucky to have been at the dealership and they just rolled over a couple of forklifts and the trailer was off the truck
2) that new bed and new bedliner sure are nice with no scratches at all!

The only story








of this post so far is walking out of the door of a previous travel trailer in the rain to retract the awning only to have the middle cylinder give and come crashing down on me. praise the Lord I was not where it busted, but it still wasn't easy fighting my way back out of the mangled canvas and aluminum. The canvas had covered the door to the TT so no one inside could come help me. I had to free myself, then free the captives in the TT.


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## bbwb (Apr 4, 2008)

Ok here is mine....I did not want to post this stupidity, but the misses insisted (the husbands in the group can relate).

Before the new Reese Dual Cam installation this spring, I would set up the camper in the site and adjust the tongue jack/camper front back elevation to remove all forces on the hitch ball...then after chocking the wheels, would disconnect all of the chains etc. and then move the truck forward leaving the receiver hitch empty. This would leave the hitch ball and other components hanging from the camper tongue to keep from having to store it or cracking my shins on the hitch while in the truck. For some reason this year (2 trips so far) I can't find that neutral position to remove the hitch pin and assembly. So, to store the hitch out of the way, I'll remove the ball assembly and lock it back into the trailer tongue.

Well, being kind of stupid hooking back up I had the wife move the truck back into position so we could hook up (I wanted the truck close so I would not have to walk very far with the assembly to reinstall on the truck....well to prove that one can be so focused on the task at hand, here I am looking at the whole thing and and intently looking at releasing the tongue latch (mind you the ball assembly is still in the tongue). I noticed that the latch was harder than normal to release but by applying extra pressure it released....the 40 lb ball assembly drops out of the tongue and narrowly misses landing on my foot. As this thing drops out there I am watching in amazement to what was happening. The DW was watching what I was doing in dis-belief. Fortunately no one else saw this so I was safe.

The DW will not let me forget this I'm sure









bbwb


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## Livin4weekenz (Aug 26, 2007)

Our second trip out with the outback we went to Holiday Park cg in MD. They put us in a pull through site in the very back with in my opinion had a ridiculous side to side slope.
As this was only our 2nd time out ever with a TT we did not have the wood blocks, lynx levelers, locking wheel chocks, and scissor jacks that we do now.

Anyway I unhook and put out the only 4 wood blocks I have at each corner and begin to level the TT(with OEM stab jacks). The left rear wasn't quite right and hard as heck to crank it any more. So I thought hey I know I can lower the tongue jack, crank up that stab jack more then raise the tongue back. All was going well as I cranked the tongue up watching the bubble stick show level both ways when all the sudden the jack in the back started making angry noises. Then wham! the rear dropped 2 feet twisted the jack like a pretzel. Luckily no one hurt and no damage other than the jack. Lesson learned!

When we got home I pull in the side yard as I always do, not thinking of the dip in the yard and my new pretzel sticking down "rip" there goes the pretzel.

Also another time while turning around in the back yard I ripped the dog runner (cable thingy) off the house and shed.


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## wildeyedandbuckwild (Jan 2, 2008)

On the maiden voyage everything was packed, in place, tide down, and ready to roll. I use my outback for work. So I jump in the truck and I was off, somewhere around the 2nd to 3rd hour into my 10 hour drive I looked down and I was under the " E "! First thought was "O-BEEP "lucky me there was a Texaco on the next exit. So here we go I pull off turn into the gas station and of course the only pump open is on the far side. So I pull the outback ever so carefully to make sure that I didn't hit the canopy I turned the truck and started to line up with the pump and just then, It hit me to check the mirrors, the passager side was good and the driver side was just at the right angle to see the 4" N shaped piece of pipe that protects the pumps was an 1" off of the skirt of the outback. By the time I slammed on the breaks they met! So now the entire gas station is looking at the idiot in the big blue Ford pulling this 32' camper that has the entire gas station blocked in. Luckily there was not even a dint in the outback, but my pride was defiantly bruised since this happened around 12:45 pm in the middle of lunch time. ALWAYS WATCH THE MIRRORS


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## MNoutbackers (Jan 30, 2009)

wildeyedandbuckwild said:


> On the maiden voyage everything was packed, in place, tide down, and ready to roll. I use my outback for work. So I jump in the truck and I was off, somewhere around the 2nd to 3rd hour into my 10 hour drive I looked down and I was under the " E "! First thought was "O-BEEP "lucky me there was a Texaco on the next exit. So here we go I pull off turn into the gas station and of course the only pump open is on the far side. So I pull the outback ever so carefully to make sure that I didn't hit the canopy I turned the truck and started to line up with the pump and just then, It hit me to check the mirrors, the passager side was good and the driver side was just at the right angle to see the 4" N shaped piece of pipe that protects the pumps was an 1" off of the skirt of the outback. By the time I slammed on the breaks they met! So now the entire gas station is looking at the idiot in the big blue Ford pulling this 32' camper that has the entire gas station blocked in. Luckily there was not even a dint in the outback, but my pride was defiantly bruised since this happened around 12:45 pm in the middle of lunch time. ALWAYS WATCH THE MIRRORS


We are in no way seasoned yet, but I do have a couple of "oops" to air. We have a 2007 29BH (which we found out recently by going through all the paperwork, is a prototype and we have all the specs and explains why no one else on this site has the floor plan that we do).

Anyway, we are still having some issues with backing. My Dh is getting better with each trip. How he manages to have to back into a drive in campsite is still baffling to me







on one return trip when trying to park besides the house, he got too close to the garage and hooked the gutter (therefore having to replace the catch assembly for the awning) Ohh. that's what that gray peice of plastic was that I found on the ground.









Last weekend when we came home, backed into the backyard this time to park it and got too close to a pile of wood and wrinkled the the metal by the front corner. Dh fixed it and put in a couple of metal screws and looks much better.

Now I will admit that I am not a very good helper when we are backing this up. It is usually just me and it is hard to watch both sides of the trailer. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

At least the issues have been at home and not at the campground (yet).

I do have to say however, that if it wasn't for this board, we would have many more issues. The information that we have found here has been worth its weight in gold.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

MNoutbackers said:


> We are in no way seasoned yet, but I do have a couple of "oops" to air. We have a 2007 29BH (which we found out recently by going through all the paperwork, is a prototype and we have all the specs and explains why no one else on this site has the floor plan that we do).
> 
> Anyway, we are still having some issues with backing. My Dh is getting better with each trip. How he manages to have to back into a drive in campsite is still baffling to me
> 
> ...


Here's my suggestion on backing up. Practice in an empty parking lot. The driver should get out and survey the area, looking for where the TT's inside tires should go. Next keep experimenting until you get the hang of it. At the campsite , do the same thing but with a spotter. The spotter's only job is saying STOP before the tt hits anything.


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## OBcanOB (Aug 23, 2007)

On our second trip out, we were heading south for 2 months. We took the Port Angeles ferry in the morning, travelled through the day in the rain, but as Murphy knows, not always as planned. Being fresh to the 5er, we made quite a few stops checking out noises, etc. Well, we had planned our travel time to get us to a park in Castle Rock. I'd called ahead to make sure there was space. We were told they were full except one space, so I reserved it by paying ahead with my M/C. We printed out the directions. I had also printed out directions for a few other places, but kept them separate as insurance. It was getting dark by the time we found the turnoff and got to the campsite. When we arrived, I noticed that there were lots of empty spaces.







Being late, there was no one in the office. So, we picked a spot, had a nice evening, slept well. In the morning we planned to leave early, but I hoped the office would be open so I could give them my thoughts on their way to get us to pay ahead! (a little upset







) Went to the office, a nice lady in there. Gave her my name... "No, we never had a reservation from you..." Checked the paperwork... we were 20 miles from the one we paid for. So, we paid twice... and now laugh at it.

We also made a tight corner in a CG, an ran into a water pipe... apparently a common problem according to the manager.


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## Stolenfates (Jun 11, 2009)

these were not with the OB but previously.

Two years ago we went camping in Superior National Forest in May and forgot to check if there was a fire ban. There was, and not even a charcoal grill allowed. This coupled with the fact that we were using my parents 1965 Starcraft pop-up and were prepared for weather in the 60's... the inch of snow in the morning prompted us to leave since there was no way to stay warm. Of course an hour after we left I suddenly asked DW where the keys to the trailer and hitch were, she had left them on the picnic table. 2 hours later lap 1 was complete.

Last year we were camping in our previous 15' ancient but well insulated travel trailer in early April near Lutsen, MN to do some snowboarding. Used the cheap yellow plastic wheel chocks. Of coarse since the temps got up into the upper 30's in the day but below freezing at night I had to smash the fronts out with a hammer and leave the back set behind, frozen in the ice.

I can't even begin to count the number of times we have forgotten various food items, tools, clothes, pillows etc....


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## livetofish (Sep 5, 2008)

Trip 1 - Day 1 - camping on Padre Is. beach in a tent. Big mistake since we knew nothing about wind stopping dead and mosquitoes that can open tent zippers. Day 2 - relocate to location with fewer mosquitoes but forgot to anchor the tent. We watched it roll into the water while we are on fishing pier and get blown in our direction. Just made a long distance cast and hooked the tent.

Trip 2 - Early December outing with cold wind coming off the Gulf and first trip with popup. I missed the part on how to open the popup door in the orientation so I am trying this out while two little kids and wife are standing in wind and rain. We gave up and just jumped across the door. Turns out that I did not open the kitchenette properly so the electrical circuit would not close and the gas heater would not start since it has a electrical starter switch. We all slept very tight that night. On the way out a stream of sparks from under the popup told me that I left one of the stabilizers down.

Many stories about the awnings, my attempts to use clorox to get the rv REALLY clean, and many late night attempts at backing into a spot. Hey, now we keep a diary of our trip. It is actually quite hilarious.


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## Outback Steve (Mar 29, 2007)

'Ohana said:


> FYI
> 
> 
> 
> ...


My son did this on the first trip out with my new truck. I bit my tongue and later repeatedly told them not to put anything on the bumper. They still don't listen....
Michelle


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## Rip (Jul 13, 2006)

Came home from camping !!!!Going to rinse the black tank with the quick flush, hooked up the hose turn the water on!!!!! Some time later had forgotten about it till water was coming out the door!!!!Good thing I empty once and rinse at the camp ground!!!!!!! The seal on the toilet must work one way water was pouring out of the toilet !!!!Dumb Me !!!!!!!!!!! Well the floors are now clean!!!! Hope I don't every do that again!!!


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## CA-NYCamper (Mar 30, 2009)

I just did something similar but have a Flush King on the discharge pipe. Thanksfully, I had backfilled it 4 times and I was on my 5th (and last). Had everything timed nicely - 5 mins to fill the tank. OOPS, we were gearing up for departure and I thought I'd hitch up. It was an awkward angle and with the Hensley, needs to be spot on or it won't work. Anyhow, 7 minutes later, I hear a 'cachunk' and water pouring out from underneath. The pressure from the hose lifted the toilet right off the floor. Thankfully there was almost no water inside, it went straight down as the toilet/flange seal separated. All I had to do wsa re-screw the toilet back down and that's it. Everything else seems to be fine.


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## crunchman12002 (Jul 26, 2009)

CA-NYCamper said:


> I just did something similar but have a Flush King on the discharge pipe. Thanksfully, I had backfilled it 4 times and I was on my 5th (and last). Had everything timed nicely - 5 mins to fill the tank. OOPS, we were gearing up for departure and I thought I'd hitch up. It was an awkward angle and with the Hensley, needs to be spot on or it won't work. Anyhow, 7 minutes later, I hear a 'cachunk' and water pouring out from underneath. The pressure from the hose lifted the toilet right off the floor. Thankfully there was almost no water inside, it went straight down as the toilet/flange seal separated. All I had to do wsa re-screw the toilet back down and that's it. Everything else seems to be fine.


Great advice on what bad things can happen here folks. Problem is, we pick up our "new to us" 2005 25rss this Saturday. Our first TT.
So if I follow your advice correctly, 
1) fill up before you go and get there and back on 1 tank of gas or else crush something at gas station.
2) hope to goodness to never pull into wrong camp ground at night. 
3) Never use wife as spotter but make sure she can yell STOP.
4) back into spot within reach of poop hole
5) chock wheels, level trailer, unhook WDH and chains, move TV to safe spot.
6) Do not open awning in wind, clear children's chairs from area at night. 
7) open valve for water heater for water to go in?
8) pull rear queen out into tree due to lack of distance judgement but after putting on support bars?
9) do not flush tanks because toilet has habit of overflowing while disconnecting from floor bolts but easy way to spread water for mopping.
10) do not put face by black water tank discharge but wear gloves.
11) do not attempt to turn trailer around without 500' clear radius
12) do not listen to drunk campers that say " go ahead, you SHOULD make it"
13) do not raise antenna or open windows before travel
14, food goes bad if trailer not level enough, if you remember to bring it.
15) keep 1 bottle whiskey with wash in TV to help drown tears and sound of the campground laughing at first 20 attempts at backing into tight spot.
16) keep spare underpants in van
17) drag power cord, stairs and stab jacks to prep for fresh paint and electrical tape
18) keep phone #'s of siding, gutter guy and flat bed tow service with 30' flatbed and crane on speed dial.
19, last and most important, ask RV dealer how much permanent site is on lot and ask to borrow long cord and key to gun safe to end fear of towing , setting up , enjoying camping and do everything in reverse order at home.

Of course I am just expressing fears here folks but how did you do it without breaking everything and hurting someone? Boy, I have alot to learn.
crunchman


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Crunchman. Funny summary!!!

There were lots of good tips of things to watch out for, but something will happen. I think the more important moral of the story is to be flexlible, try to laugh (or at least not have a heart attack!) when problems occur, and bring along a computer so you can ask for help if you need it!

Also, those campers out watching you struggle have been through it before themselves. Don't feel bad, just feel like a member of the club. If you want help, ask for it, because often your neighbor has been there before and may have a tip, or a spare roll of duct tape, or some roof patch, or .....









Good luck!


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## rock hill (Apr 17, 2009)

Nathan is right, people will always be willing to help. We are all part of this club. The main point of the club is to have safe fun and relax. So be safe, and know that we have all been there before. Next thing you know, you will be helping out another newbie!


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## crunchman12002 (Jul 26, 2009)

Nathan said:


> Crunchman. Funny summary!!!
> 
> There were lots of good tips of things to watch out for, but something will happen. I think the more important moral of the story is to be flexlible, try to laugh (or at least not have a heart attack!) when problems occur, and bring along a computer so you can ask for help if you need it!
> 
> ...


Thanks rock hill and Nathan for your support,
I have 3 of my camping buddies that have a 21', 25' and 33' TT so I plan to rely on them heavily for advice and assistance because we all camp together. Unfortunately they are all camping together this weekend during my maiden voyage home from the dealer. I know we will be fine but nervous. I have a 14' landscape trailer for my quads that sometimes takes 6 tries to get into driveway. I broke my collar bone on the first crash of the season so my buddy had to back my trailer out. He said it was tougher to back it out than his 25' TT because of shorter length and not seeing it until it was jack knifed in the mirrors. Says a TT much easier?
Great advice on bringing a laptop to ask the pros here some OB specific questions if needed. I am sure everyone remembers the their first back in with their first TT. Boy, that would make some good video.








My wife and I have some large shopping malls here so on the way home we are going to pull in and try a few parking maneuvers before blocking my street for an hour. Another great piece of advice from above tips, thank you for the suggestion. 
I will keep you all posted on the tow home specifics and my wife will be able to tell me how many times it took to get into the driveway.

One thing the salesman at General RV said still confuses me though. I have a 2006 E250 cargo van with the 5.4L. I think a 10k class 3 tow bar w/2" receiver, bought the biggest I could for frame mount for the quads. I am having them install a WDH, brake controller and wire a big plug to rear bumper for TT. The display had a nice looking setup with the sway bar on it. I said I want that setup. He took 5 minutes to explain and talk me out of the sway bar, said It would save $100. Would have been the easiest $100 sale all day for him. Is not a $ issue for me to be safe. Said they were more of a pain that they were worth. Talked to a friend at work that said her parents towed a 25" with an expedition and when a semi passed them the trailer swayed out of control and they rolled TT and TV because of not having one. I read almost all tips on towing here but still get a 50/50 answer from what I read. My buddies say drive home first to test drive. 1 has it on 30', no WDH or sway on 25' and WDH only on 21'.
What is right?
Thank you for any responses.
crunchman


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## crunchman12002 (Jul 26, 2009)

"I think a 10k class 3 tow bar w/2" receiver, bought the biggest I could for frame mount for the quads."

Correction to above statement.
I checked today. It was more that enough for my loaded #2000 lb quad trailer.
I have a Class 3 hitch rated at 7500 with a WDH. My buddy told me everyone uses a 10K class 4 hitch. I still am in range for tounge and tow weight according to the sticker on hitch? Wish it was a 10k class 4 though.
crumchman


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

YOU NEED SWAY CONTROL!!!

Please don't leave without it. Most of us would highly recommend either the Equal-i-zer brand or the Reese Straight-Line (aka dual cam) setups.

I suspect you have a Class IV hitch.

Finally, the good news, it will be easier to back up than your quad trailer!


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## crunchman12002 (Jul 26, 2009)

Nathan said:


> YOU NEED SWAY CONTROL!!!
> 
> Please don't leave without it. Most of us would highly recommend either the Equal-i-zer brand or the Reese Straight-Line (aka dual cam) setups.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your response Nathan. I suspected I needed to purchase the sway bar too. I will buy it tomorrow with the rest of the setup. For $100 can you ever have a trailer tow too good. lol
Thank you!
crunchman


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

crunchman12002 said:


> YOU NEED SWAY CONTROL!!!
> 
> Please don't leave without it. Most of us would highly recommend either the Equal-i-zer brand or the Reese Straight-Line (aka dual cam) setups.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your response Nathan. I suspected I needed to purchase the sway bar too. I will buy it tomorrow with the rest of the setup. For $100 can you ever have a trailer tow too good. lol
Thank you!
crunchman
[/quote]
Best of luck with your PDI!!!


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## bama29fan (Jun 22, 2009)

bumpin up an old thread...

Our old camper (our first camper) we were getting ready to leave the campground after a short weekend trip. I always fill the tanks complete up to get a better dump and the dump station. I would run a hose (not the drinking hose) in thru the camper and stick the end down in to the toliet. DW would watch the hose and tank level as i manned the faucet waiting for her to yell. Only this time when she yelled it was a little different....it was followed by the sound of water hitting the ground. She had got distracted with the kids (getting them a snack to keep em busy for a bit). the tank filled up and over flowed out the toliet and into the camper....big dang mess!!!

New camper....last summer we went to St. Andrews SP in Panama City, FL. for 4th of July week. At this SP you pull up to the guard house and they ask if you have reservations and they tell you to proceed to the right and check in at the other building. Its a hard 90* right turn with a big curb on the right and left. Well i whipped er on thru there and pull up to the check in area and get out of the truck. As i get out the guard is running out yelling you hit the building. I didnt feel a thing so didnt believe her at first....i walk to the back curb side of the camper and sure enough....tail slapped the facia of the guard shack. scratched up the fiberglass a good bit and pulled the metal corner (wall trim) off about a foot. So with rain on the way i was worried about soaking the inside of the camper but they insisted a police report be done. about an hour latter we get to go to our site. luckily the ranger went and got some silicone caulking for us and after we got backed in i had to use a scerwdriver, hammer and a block of wood to get the trim on and get it caulked. about 30 minutes after getting the it caulked the rains came. We had a great trip but it sure dudnt start out well.

Our repeat offender item is we always leave the door handle sticking out. We'll be driving down the road 5 miles from the campground before i'll notice it.

Ive got another one if you want to keep reading....

I park the truck in front of the camper in the driveway. Well one morning i get in the truck and crank er up and the dew on the ground made my shoes (which had seen their better days and had no tread left)slippery. just as she crank up my foot slipped off the clutch....bad part is i left the truck in 1st gear. by the time i could pick my foot back up and get the clutch pushed back in i had already ran in to the tongue of the camper and pushed it about 5 feet back. The DW heard the crash and came out in a panic. the camper wasn't that bad....only messed up the electric tongue jack and the 7 pin power cord....both had to be replaced. The truck on the other hand required a $3000 facelift.


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## Up State NY Camper (Apr 7, 2010)

1. First trip with our first camper I unhitched at the CG, but forgot to un-chain. I pulled away with my step dad in the camper. He was ok, but I bent the bolts where the chain was attatched to the tongue. I never did that again.

2. Pulling out of the driveway , or at least trying to pull out of the driveway, I left the screw type of chalks on the tires. I bent them a little, but they're ok.

3. Sliding out the slides, I forgot to check to make sure the cupboard doors were shut. The slide ripped it right off and bent the hinge. Got it fixed, but what a dumb mistake.

Needless to say, I am very careful about making sure everything is done before mobing the slides or the tt.







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## KosinTrouble (Jul 18, 2005)

My first camping truck with my new leased truck 3 years ago...

Go to unhook the hitch, take off the weight bars, take off the chains, start working the jack. Ball comes out.. TRAILER STARTS ROLLING FORWARD!! OH %$# MY NEW TRUCK! Luckly the jack dug into the ground enough to stop it, missed crushing my leg by 2" and stopped from hitting my new truck by about 4".

Now first thing I do when I get out of the truck, BLOCK THE WHEELS! ALWAYS BLOCK THE WHEELS!

As a serial offender, I would have to say forgetting the sewer cap at the dump station, so bad the one sales men asked if I just wanted to by 6 at a time for a discount. I think I will when I go in after work today to buy yet another sewer cap.


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## GlenninTexas (Aug 11, 2004)

Remember to always close the black tank valve all the way. It's possible (don't ask how I know this) that the next time you go to dump, there'll be a pretty good amount of stuff between the valve and the cap that has no where to go but all over your feet, legs, and hands. Great way to begin a trip home.

Regards, Glenn


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## vdub (Jun 19, 2004)

I don't think I've ever made a safety mistake, but I have made several mistakes, on the advise of others, that cost me money (such as a tripod stabilizer for our 5). I guess my recommendaation would be to generally "ignore the advice of others on what to buy or mod on your rig". I hope that doesn't offend anyone, but when I first started and someone said "you really, really need to get this because you can cook 3 widgets with just one match or whatever". I spent a lot of money buying junk that others thought everyone else needed simply because the item met their needs.

Bottom line, dont' buy everything that people tell you that you have to have. Wait until you have camped a while and when you run into something that needs improving, then see how others did it or how you can do better with your own idea. But for god's sake don't go out and buy anyhthing and everything someone things is a gift from god. Save your money until you think it something you need....


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## Partsman Ed (Aug 26, 2008)

Make sure that your TV antenna is down fully and that your spare tire cover is stowed some place safe (if prone to flying off), had both happen leaving Custer SD headed to Deadwood SD. Luckily wife saw that the antenna was up after walking back to the trailer (thankfully no damage was done) and I was left scratching my head as to when and where the spare tire cover decided to part company with us.


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## vdub (Jun 19, 2004)

I have found that my tv ant works just as well down as it does up, but I rarely use it, since I have a sat dome....


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