Tag: rv travel

The RV Laundry Experiment

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money.

Laundry is a difficult task when you live in an RV. Some of the large RVs have a washer and dryer on board, but when you want to stay small and manageable as possible, you don’t get that option. So, laundromats are the de facto option. Sigh… This prompted the RV laundry experiment.

Laundrymats

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money. The equipment does a poor job, it’s often dirty, and can cost $20.00 and up just to do a few loads. At hundreds of dollars annually, this is an expense the budget conscious can avoid.

Last year, we were learning the ins and outs of this RV lifestyle. This year, with a little experience under our belt, we are learning how to economize.

Portable washing machines
Washer used in the RV laundry experiment

Ken and I did a little research and for about one hundred twenty dollars, found a small washing machine. Made from plastic and light weight, it agitates in one compartment and then you transfer to a spinner compartment. It’s a lot like doing wash in an old time wringer machine. (Which I have had the great fortune of doing when I was newly liberated from my parents home. Thank you, Grandma.). The process isn’t hard. You fill the tub. Agitate the desired amount. Transfer to the spinner. Then repeat for the rinse.

It Works!

I am overjoyed with the results. The portable washer is able to do about one-third to one-half of a regular size load, and takes about half an hour to complete all the steps. The agitator is strong enough to get my clothes completely clean, and I even have the choice of normal or gentle agitation. Currently using it outdoors, but if necessary, the washer can be placed in the bathtub and used inside.

Clothesline
Portable clothes rack mounted on RV ladder

We added a portable collapsible clothes hanger for about eighty dollars. It will hold two loads of laundry for drying.

So, it looks like the RV laundry experiment is a success. The portable washer has been used for three weeks now. The water and electric are provided by the RV park for the wash, and we use solar power for the dry. After about a ten week payoff for our initial investment, our laundry will be free.

What a sweet word that is.

Always grateful. 👫

RV Repair Failure

Pull off the road NOW! The tire is about to go.”

This is not what you want to be screaming into a radio as you start the last leg of your itinerary. And this wasn’t simply a flat tire. No, nothing as simple as that. We had the flat tire the day before. This was much worse. This was a serious RV repair failure that left us shaking in our boots.

One of the problems with RV travel is finding reputable companies when you need work done on your home. This incident was a hard lesson. We are safe. Thank goodness. But we will never let anyone touch the wheels of The Burrow again without checking their work before we pull out. This RV repair failure nearly cost us our home, our pets and our lives.

A rear tire sheared off the lug bolts of the Bigfoot as we were traveling down a busy Interstate 15 between Barstow, California and Las Vegas. We think but cannot prove it happened because of loose lug nuts. We had just had a tire replaced and pulled out of the shop. Had only traveled about 15 miles down the road.

Our Lucky Day

Had just a couple of things been different, we might have had a different outcome. We were not towing Armadillo, which was fortunate. And, we were using two-way radios that allowed rapid communication. Ken was able to move off the road as the first wheel came off — that went flying into the desert — and stopped just before the second one could come off the axle. The tow truck driver suggested, since we had been so lucky that day, that we run out and buy lotto tickets.

We will learn from this very frightening experience and I hope that by sharing, you will too. Check the torque on the lug nuts. Check tire pressures. We are considering installing cameras inside and out for when we must leave our home in someone else’s care. We have to live always on guard. Or, as in this case, guard against putting our lives in danger from malfeasance. Unfortunately, that reality continues even with our new RV lifestyle.

Be aware

This blog post is not meant to frighten you but to make you aware and help you to avoid a serious roadside emergency.

Bitsy and Butter were incredibly frightened but settled down after we moved into a hotel. And, after I quit shaking like a leaf, it was nice to be pampered for a few days with unlimited hot water, breakfast every morning and someone else to clean the room.

We found a couple of quirky little things to do in Barstow while we waited for parts from Los Angeles. Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch on Route 66 was pretty neat and Calico Ghost Town was well, eerie.

We are especially today….Always grateful. 👫

Rusted Jeep surrounded by bottle trees