RV Experience

I had a potentially disastrous event happen on a visit to Las Vegas. It had been freezing and I was concerned that the water hose would freeze up. I had heard that if you leave a trickle running through the hose, it wouldn’t freeze. I had hooked up the drain hose, opened the gray water valve and turned the bathroom sink on at a trickle. There is more to know.
I went out that evening and fortunately returned a couple of hours later. When I returned, the bathroom was just beginning to flood. The toilet bowl was full. After opening the black drain valve I cleaned up the spilled water and dried every thing out. It’s a good Idea to carry a wet/dry vacuum for just such needs. Fortunately nothing was permanently damaged but it did take a while to cleanup. Fortunately, the water that spilled looked clear but it had been through the mill so everything was disinfected as well.
What the heck had happened? The manufacturer had routed the bathroom sink to the black tank for some reason. It could have just as easily gone to the gray tank as I had thought. They must have done it to balance the tank use?
What was learned? Know where everything drains to. Don’t use that stupid trickle idea! Just use the water from your tank and the water pump and don’t even install the hose except to fill the tank. Wait for warmer weather.
Actually, we now tend to not even hookup the drain except when the holding tank needs to be drained or we know we’ll be at this site for a while.

We have a macerator that provides a means of draining our RV’s holding tanks when we’re at home and wherever the drain inlet is difficult to access. Our RV drain outlet is very low so we often can’t drain into the park drain inlet. We also have run across some parks that must believe water flows up hill since they place the drain inlet as high as our bumper on occasion.
A macerator is like a garbage disposer. They can be either permanently installed or portable. Ours is portable. It is attached to the drain outlet of our RV. The macerator requires a good power source. It uses about 20 amps. Since it would be used regularly, I installed a pair of #10 wires to a power connector that terminates next to the drain outlet. The macerator is carried in a plastic case for easy, neat storage. To use the macerator, just attach it to the drain outlet like a drain hose. Connect the power cable. Attach the drain hose to the macerator outlet. I have a 75′ long 5/8″ hose with shutoff valves and caps for each end of the hose. Remove the caps and attach the hose. Secure the male end of the hose at the drain point such that it won’t move when the flow begins. Use a weight or good old duct tape. When the hose is attached, the valves on each end can be opened. Hook up a second hose to the water faucet and attach it to the hose inlet on the macerator. Turn on the water and the macerator to check that the water arrives safely to the drain with no leaks (I use a short 10′ hose that I normally use for cleanup of the conventional drain hoses). If it does, turn off the water faucet and macerator and open the black drain valve, then turn on the macerator. Check that all is going where it should. When the black tank is empty, close the black valve and open the gray valve. When the gray tank is empty, close it’s valve, turn on the faucet to add clean water to purge the pump and drain hose. When the hose has cleared, shutoff the macerator. Be sure not to run the macerator without liquid to pump. Coil the drain hose as you drain the water from it then close the valves on the hose. Install the hose caps. Wipe down the macerator and place it back in the case.
The shutoff valves on the drain hose are for emergency shutdown in case something goes wrong.
We haven’t yet used it where we are dry camping. If you use it where there isn’t a good source of clean water to purge the macerator and hoses after use you would end up with a dirty macerator and hose to store. I’ve always just used the conventional hose for those locations. The macerator is saved for use where other means won’t work as well.
We got the macerator kit from Camping World when they had a good sale. I think it was about $170 on sale but is usually less than $300.

Above left are the closed storage boxes for the macerator and the drain hose respectively. Above right they are open. It’s kind of important not to mix-up fresh water and drain water hoses. All the drain water hoses are gray, both the one above that is used on the macerator outlet and the hose used to connect water from the faucet to the macerator. The later hose is used to clean the conventional 3 inch hoses as well. All fresh water hoses are white and never used anywhere near the drain system not even just to extend the water toward the macerator. Not shown is the anti-syphon coupler that is part of the connection from the faucet to the macerator.

Above left are the drain hose couplers and caps. Above right is the macerator pump. The red button at the end of the cable is the push on/push off control. It’s kind of cumbersome. I’ll probably replace it sometime with an inline switch without all the extra wire. The blue at the top of the pump is a coupler with valve where the clean water attaches. It can be turned on to clean out the drain line and to clear the impeller is it clogs. At the bottom center of the macerator is where the drain hose connects.

If you enjoyed the company of a cat in your stick house, you’ll probably want to bring them along with you in your travels. Some preparation is needed as well as some orientation for the cat and its people. Our cat was eight years old before his first trip and hated to ride in the car because it always meant he was going to the vets office. Preparing him to travel was possibly more important than for a kitten.
Our cat was already trained to walk on a leash. Obtain a good harness and attach identification tags. One thing to note, it is important to use a light weight leash cord to minimize the strain on the cats neck.
Prepare a new nest.

The cat needs a place of their own. Someplace to get away and feel safe. We prepared a nest in the space under our couch where the cross bracing prevented good use as storage. We cut a cat sized opening into the couch base cabinet about the center of the cabinet. There are two drawers on either side of the cabinet and the new cat nest in between. We padded the nest for comfort. Other places that might be used are a shelf in a kitchen or bathroom cabinet with an opening for the cat to enter.
We also provided a perch. A shelf was added by the passenger side window above the couch. This allows the cat to ride in comfort and watch outside as desired.
Find a good place, out of the way, where the cats food and water can be placed. It will need to be out all the time so a good location choice is important. We placed it by the wall under the table in a high walled tray. Spills or scattering of the cat food is contained in the tray. It also helps to keep the our feet out.

A cat needs a litter box. It needs to always be available so again, a good location is important. We placed ours in the bathtub. Our tub/shower has a shower curtain so it is easily left open for cat access. It is important to keep the litter out of the drain since it will expand, cling and clog the drain. We obtained a good secure fitting plug. When we shower, we place the litter box in the hallway. We sweep out the kitty litter that gets kicked out with use, then wipe with a damp cloth. and are ready to shower. When we’re through showering, we wipe the shower walls and curtain dry and return the litter box to the tub. If you have swinging shower doors you may not be able to use this location. If your shower doors slide, you may be able to use the shower. Other locations could be the sacrifice of another cabinet but this will require fitting the litter box into the space available. Remember, the cat needs some head room to do their business.
We leash our cat whenever he’s outside. In order to allow the screen door to be left open for ventilation, we attached a bungee cord nearby and use it to secure the screen door closed when needed. We also installed side window louvers to allow the windows to be left open but not allow the cat to get through the screen.
Speaking of ventilation, it’s important to keep the inside cool for the cat. Our air conditioner sometimes trips the breaker or stops working for other reasons. In general, air conditioners can’t be relied on unless someone is there to monitor the operation. The ceiling exhaust fan is much more reliable as well as are open windows. We set the exhaust fan on manual and open our side windows and ceiling vents. If it’s really warm, we also turn on the shower exhaust fan.
Practice RV living with your cat before you leave. We camped in the RV in our driveway for a week or so. Each evening we would go out to the RV with the cat and watch TV or eat dinner for a couple of hours. We would run the generator occasionally and do other noisy activities like running the range hood vent so the cat became used to the RV noises. We slept in the RV with the cat. We also went on short trips in the RV with the cat, like to the market. When we did leave on longer trips, the cat was ready.
Due to the limited space, the cat may need to be exercised. Be sure to have cat toys and to play with your cat. Our cat also likes to take a walk outside whenever we arrive. That usually is the only time he wants outside. We encourage him to go outside and take a walk occasionally.

Our cat has adjusted well. Toward the end of our first long trip, he learned to ride the dash, leaning into the turns to stay on the dash. He likes to ride on the dash when we’re driving at night because he likes the lights.
Also, prepare copies of the cats medical records including shot records to keep in the RV.
Before we drive away from our campsite or other parking place, we take inventory of our cat to be sure of where he is. This is also important before activating slide-outs if your RV is so equipped.
Our travels with our cat have been very enjoyable. Our methods may or may not apply to you and your cat, however, you and your cat can probably develop your own methods. A little preparation and effort makes everyone happy.