It’s always a welcome sign when the buds of spring begin blooming, the sun stays above the horizon later, and the weather begins to warm. Spring means the beginning of RV camping season!
Of course, before you can hit the road in your rig, you’ll want to clean it from top to bottom and from the inside out. Lucky for you, The RV Shop has put this list of tips together to help you get your RV ship-shape for spring.
Spring Clean Your RV’s Exterior
You need to get the winter sludge off the outside of your RV, including any black streaks off the roof. Of course, you’ll need to give your RV a good washing and wax, but here are some other, perhaps less-obvious cleaning tips for the outside of your RV:
- Clean the awnings, slide toppers, and pop-up tents, and make sure everything’s dry before you put it away.
- Treat your roof and tires with a rubber or leather protectant. You can also use this protectant for your RV’s dashboard and leather furniture.
- Wash and clean your outdoor furniture, including your camping chairs, fire pits, and shade structures.
- Clean out the basement compartments in your RV, organizing all the stuff under there and throwing out what you don’t use or need anymore. Remember, lugging dead weight in your basement will result in lower gas mileage on your trips this year.
Perform Spring Engine Maintenance
Even though maintenance might not be technically cleaning, now is a great time to check the fluids, belts, and batteries in your RV’s engine compartment. Check the engine oil, transmission fluid, washer fluid, power steering fluid, brake fluid, and engine coolant, and refill them if necessary. Ditto with the generator oil and hydraulic fluid for your RV jacks. And lube up any rails or handles that you don’t want sticking on vacation.
Finally, check the coach batteries, checking for the proper amount of distilled water in the cells. You don’t want to run out of power while you’re in the middle of nowhere!
Clean the RV Water System
Hopefully, you properly winterized your RV at the beginning of the winter season. Now that you don’t have to worry about busted pipes and other problems from winter weather, you need to get your plumbing ready for spring and summer excursions!
- Flush the anti-freeze from your RV’s plumbing system by hooking up to a fresh water tank or city water connection and turning on the faucets one at a time til each runs clear. Don’t forget about your ice maker and water dispenser, dish and clothes washers, and shower!
- Sanitize the fresh water system by adding 1/4 cup of bleach and a gallon of water for every 15 gallons your fresh water tank holds, adding the mix to your tank, then running each faucet til you smell bleach. Then, fill the rest of your tank so the bleach water makes contact with the whole thing, and let it all sit for at least four hours. Then flush the whole system to get all the bleach out, and replace with fresh water.
- Replace your water filters that have been sitting, unused, in your RV all winter long.
Give the Interior of your RV Some Love
The final, and probably most involved, step of cleaning your RV is its interior. These are what turn spring-cleaning your RV from an afternoon job into a full weekend:
- Organize your cabinets and closets, making sure you have only what you need, and that all of it is still in good quality. When replacing things, think strategically about organization.
- Clear out the kitchen pantry and fridge, making sure to remove expired or ruined food. Take out the drawers and shelves of the fridge and wash them with soapy water, too.
- Clean all the surfaces in your kitchen with multi-surface cleaner or the specific cleaner for each surface. This includes getting into the nooks and crannies of your RV’s stove, microwave, and oven!
- Clean the RV’s bathroom, including the shower curtain or door, the shower drain, shower head, toilet, sink, and even the walls.
- Clean the bed(s) and linens – after all, you spend around a third of your time in bed! Strip the sheets, mattress covers, and comforters off the mattress and wash them, then vacuum the mattress and spot-clean it. Don’t forget to clean your pillows, too!
- Clean everything else, including the ceiling, windows, mirrors, leather furniture, dashboard, floors, behind and around the electronics, woodwork, and more.
Enjoy the Spring RV Season in Your Like-New RV!
Even though cleaning out your RV will probably be a full weekend project, you’ll be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor for the rest of the year, so we think it’s well-worth it.
Of course, if you need any cleaning supplies, expert help, or if you’ve decided you just need to start over with a new RV, come see the fine folks at The RV Shop in Baton Rouge! We have plenty of new and used RVs for sale for our customers all over South Louisiana, from New Orleans to North Shore and even Lafayette! Plus, we carry all the best brands, like Holiday Rambler, Airstream, Midwest Automotive Designs, Thor Motor Coach, Renegade, Gulf Stream RV, and more.
Find your next RV here at The RV Shop! Call, click, or come in today.
