RV Campground Setup – Road & Home RV Accessories
Today, I want to talk about getting your RV set up and connected at the campground, utilizing Road & Home RV Accessories. We blogged about Road & Home a few weeks ago briefly outlining the “Ready for the Road Checklist”; you can find that blog post here. Now I want to take you through using these various accessories to get setup at the campground.
Road & Home RV Accessories are available at Lowe’s, Menards and at Amazon.com. Before you head out on your next camping trip, make sure you stop by one of those retailers and pick up the necessary accessories. Utilizing the “Ready for the Road Checklist” is an excellent way to ensure you have what you need to set up your RV correctly.
Setting Up Camp!
Once you arrive at the campground, setting up your RV is relatively straightforward, but there are some necessary steps to consider. Whether you’re a beginner, just starting out or a seasoned RVer, it’s wise to use a checklist to ensure you aren’t missing any steps. It won’t take long before you become a pro at setting up, and you’ll find yourself relying on a checklist less and less often.
The basic process of arriving at the campground, locating the correct camp site and maneuvering around the campground can be stressful. This added stress can cause you to forget even some of the most mundane tasks.
When we started out full-timing a year and a half ago we had some previous experience hooking up RVs but we still used a checklist. Your checklist doesn’t have to be complicated but a simple tool to ensure you set up properly.
Now let’s look at a sample checklist below including utilizing the Road & Home RV Accessories.
Step 1: Connecting Your RV’s Electrical Supply
Most RVs utilize either 30- or 50-AMP electrical connections. Depending on the campground, you may have access to one or both of these connections.
If your required connection is available, simply ensure the breaker at the campground’s pedestal is turned off, plug in your RVs power cord, then turn the breaker on.
If the campground only provides one type of connection, then you may need to utilize various adapters to get an electrical connection.
30-AMP or 50-AMP? That is the Question!
I would say what we encounter the most, with our 50-AMP coach, are campgrounds with only 30-AMP connections. To accomplish “plugging in,” we use a 50-AMP to 30-AMP dogbone to adapt to the campground’s electrical pedestal. On rare occasions we’ve seen where only 20-AMP connections are available, requiring us to utilize an additional reducing adapter.
While not expecting to use these adapters, we have been very thankful to have them onboard when needed. It’s the old adage, “You won’t need the adapter until you don’t have it.”
Additionally, we always carry the appropriately sized extension cord because we never know when the electrical pedestal may be too far for the supplied RV cord to reach. We’ve seen this on multiple occasions and, once again, are very happy we have the extension cord on-board.
As you can see, connecting your RV to the campground electrical pedestal is fairly straightforward and having the proper adapters and cords could make or break your camping trip.
It’s good practice to always inspect your electrical accessories for any signs of wear or damage. You never want to risk your family’s safety with unsafe electrical adapters or cords. Remember to replace any damaged or worn accessories as soon as possible. Good news; Road & Home offers the adapters and cords you’ll need to properly electrify your RV.
Step 2: Connecting Your RV’s Water Supply
Water is a necessity in any situation, but it is really nice to have access to water while camping. Afterall, your RV is well equipped, so you might as well take advantage of all the comforts of home.
Connecting your RV’s water supply is as simple as connecting a water hose from the campground’s water supply (spigot) to your RV’s water connection. But wait a minute; could it really be that simple?
Let’s talk a minute about the various water supplies you may encounter at any given campground. We’ve visited over 50 different campgrounds, to date, and feel compelled to share our experiences with water.
Can You Handle the Pressure?
Water pressure should be your utmost concern when connecting your RV to the campground’s water supply. Traditionally, we’ve found campground water pressures to be somewhat low which is much less a concern. However, on occasion we find high, to very high, water pressures at the campground’s spigot.
RV plumbing systems are generally rated for 60 to 90 pounds of water pressure depending on the products used in the manufacturing process. Our RV manufacturer states that we should never exceed 90 pounds of water pressure, but I would never subject my RV to that much pressure.
That said, how do you ensure that you aren’t over pressurizing your RV’s plumbing system? Easy! Utilize a simple but effective water pressure regulator every time you connect your RV to an external water supply. A pressure regulator will ensure adequate water flow while keeping pressures under control.
If you’ve ever experienced a major water leak in your “sticks and bricks” home, then you know what a nightmare it can be. Now imagine a major leak in your RV and everything involved with tearing your RV apart to dry it out. I think you’ll agree using a pressure regulator is cheap and reliable insurance against this nightmare.
As with electrical accessories, it’s also a good idea to inspect your water supply accessories. Water hoses crack due to age and long-term storage and the brass fittings can get damaged. We’ve also encountered difficulty simply connecting to the water supply. Road & Home offers a handy 90-degree adapter making those connections easier.
Remember to check these accessories prior to each camping trip and grab new accessories from Road & Home. Don’t get caught at the campground with a leaky water hose or not being able to connect due to damaged accessories.
Step 3: Connecting Your RV’s Sewer Hose
One of the least desirable parts of RVing is emptying the waste tanks. However, there are a few precautions to be aware of and some helpful tips to make this “dirty deed” less of a chore.
First of all, never, I repeat, never contaminate your clean water hose or RV’s wet bay area with a dirty sewer hose. Your sewer hose is called a “stinky slinky” for a reason, and you never want to allow it to inhabit any clean area.
Second, always have on hand a replacement sewer hose. You never know when your sewer hose may become damaged and “spring” a leak. Leaks in your sewer hose are never good, and in some cities could actually get you kicked out of the RV park. Avoid this altogether by picking up a spare sewer hose from Road & Home.
Third, use a dedicated water hose for flushing your black tank. I use an old drinking water hose and, using a permanent marking pen, labelled both ends “Black Water.” Now I know I won’t accidentally use our clean water hose for tank flushing.
Dedicated Water Hose!
If you’re just starting out and don’t yet have a spare water hose lying around, that’s ok. Simply pick up a new one from Road & Home and replace your existing water hose; it probably needs to be replaced anyway. Now you have a dedicated hose for tank flushing. Remember to label it as I have so you aren’t contaminating anything.
The actual sewer hose connection is straightforward and simple. Each hose and mating adapter utilize a post and cam-type system, making it easy to twist the hose on and off your RV.
After you’ve verified the hose connections are secure, you can pull open the blade valves allowing all that “stuff” to flow from your waste tanks. Remember to close the valves before disconnecting the hoses and rinse out the waste hose to make it a little less stinky.
As you can see here, there are many different adapters available to make those connections simple. You can even connect multiple hoses together using the RVP144 adapter (shown above) and clamps from Road & Home.
It’s also a good idea to have a spare sewer cap on hand. We’ve seen countless RVs rolling down the interstate without a sewer cap. No one wants to see black or gray water dripping from an RV.
Things to Remember!
You’ve probably noticed a theme with these setup procedures. The fact is that setting up your RV is pretty simple, given you have proper tools and accessories on hand.
Remember to use your own checklist and don’t forget the small, but very important, things like the pressure reducer. Always check and double check sewer connections before you open that waste tank valve and never risk your safety with faulty electrical accessories.
Thankfully, Road & Home has you covered with all the accessories you’ll need to properly setup your RV. We’re thankful that Road & Home products are available in Lowe’s, Menard’s and at Amazon.com, making it simple for us to grab what we need without delay.
Using the “Ready for the Road” checklist at Roadandhome.com will outline the accessories we’ve touched on today and ensure you don’t show up to the campground without the essential accessories.
The Fine Print!
Along with full disclosure comes the fact that JonesN2Travel is committed to only recommending products that we have thoroughly used and abused ourselves. We will never recommend a product that doesn’t perform exceptionally well in our full-time RVing lifestyle.
That said, the folks over at Road & Home hooked us up with a very generous and free product sample package which we’ve been using and abusing over the last couple of weeks. We may also be compensated by providing this review to you.
Our review and endorsement of these products is entirely our own. We were not guided by Road & Home in our review, nor was our review overseen by Road & Home. We are simply excited about the products’ quality and durability which are top-notch.
Do yourself a favor and jump over to the Road & Home website to check out its full line of RV parts. Remember, next time you need an RV part, head over to Lowe’s, Menards or Amazon.com and pick up the Road & Home parts you need.