Safe Holiday Travel Tips

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our E-mail Digest or RSS Feed. We will then send you the stories that are posted each day in an e-mail digest. We use a service called Feedburner for delivery of these emails. You will receive an e-mail from Feedburner after you subscribe and you must click on that email to activate your subscription. Thanks for visiting and enjoy all the information! RV.Net Blog AdminForty thousand people in the United States die each year on the road! With the peak RV travel season here I thought this would be a good time to discuss getting to your RV travel destination safely. Getting there can be half the fun, as the saying goes, if you take a few precautions to make your trip safe. Read more Tell a Friend Read More →

Narrow Victory for Energy Bill in the House

By Bob Difley The energy bill that passed the House on Friday will no doubt antagonize a lot of people around the country, mostly those from industrial Midwest, farm, and southern states whether Republicans or Democrats. All the Republicans and 44 Democrats that voted against the bill warn that we are in for economic disaster, that carbon caps will raise energy prices forcing more manufacturers to move to China where there are no caps, and to other countries that do not limit greenhouse gasses. They also contend that energy costs will rise to consumers, jobs will be lost, and the country will sink into such debt that it may ruin the country. On the other hand, those who voted for the bill, all Democrats, feel that this climate legislation would begin to tilt the equation of energy policy in the US. It would cap greenhouse gas emissions for the first time in US history, boost production of renewable electricity sources, create investments in clean-energy technology, create thousands of jobs, and help free us from the grasp of foreign oil producers and their hold on the nation’s economic and foreign policy. You know that it is going to result in higher energy costs, at least in the near future. Fuel prices will rise, affecting our RV lifestyles. But it may also mean that we will buy smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles, and install renewable sources of energy on our rigs, like solar and wind, and maybe boondock more. I guess it all comes down to whether: You think that... Read more

Eleven tips for planning for a road trip

Not all RVers travel full time. If you are not a full-time RVer and plan to be gone for a significant amount of time, how do you make sure you bring everything you need? Here are eleven tips: 1. Create a list. As the trip approaches, anytime you think of something you want to take, write it down. You could have either different lists or have separate categories for personal items for each of you and one for the RV. Also have a things to do list. When it is time to start packing, transfer your list to a computer and print it out to make a checklist. Take the list along on your trip and add to it if you find you have forgotten anything so you can improve your checklist for the next trip. Read more Tell a Friend Read More →

RV Weekly Round-Up (June 20-26, 2009)

Check out these highlights of RV-related news, events and video from this past week. 1. Fleetwood Assets Auction Results: New York equity firm American Industrial Partners was the only bidder on most of Fleetwood’s RV business. For $53 million, less liabilities, the firm agreed to buy Fleetwood’s intellectual property and RV brands in addition to two motor home manufacturing plants, two motor home service centers and the company’s subsidiary Gold Shield supply, all located in Decatur, Ind. The offer was approved by the bankruptcy court and the deal is expected to close by July 10. See the PE story for details of the deal. 2. WIT Celebrates 40th Anniversary Rally with “WITStock” Celebration: Winnebago Industries, Inc. will celebrate the 40th anniversary of its Winnebago-Itasca Travelers (WIT) Club with club members at the Grand National Rally (GNR) scheduled July 19–July 24, 2009. It’s not too late to register!. 3. Maryland City Will Soon Limit Streetside RV Parking: Trailers, recreational and commercial vehicles are subject to $75 tickets in Montgomery County, MD, beginning July 1 if parked on most public roads. Recreational vehicles such as campers, motorhomes and boats will be allowed to park on county roads for 18 hours for loading and unloading, said Capt. Thomas Didone, commander of the 5th District police station. Read the full news release for more information. 4. Get Some Control Over Holding Tank Odors: Holding tank odors can be a real problem,... Read more

Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park

Today we may not think of Nebraska as being the Wild West, but there was a time when the Cornhusker State was the very edge of the frontier. Indian fighters, gold prospectors, outlaws, lawmen, ranchers, and settlers all passed through and spent time in Nebraska. One of the most famous Old West names associated with the state was William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody, the flamboyant buffalo hunter, Indian scout, and showman. Read more Tell a Friend Read More →

The RV Trivia 4 - Destinations and Attractions

The Lug_Nut RV Trivia Challenge 4 is focused on destination attractions.  Many you have probably heard of, but do you know where they are located?  Well, we are about to find out.  Get a pencil and paper so that you can record your answers as you go through it.  You will then be able to check your answers against those displayed at the very bottom.  Be sure to share your score and any other comments you may have in the comments section following the answers. So, give it a go!  Happy Travelling.     1) If you wanted to RV to an area, in North America, where you might be able to see crocodiles in the wild, where would you go?  A) South California B) South Florida C) There are no crocodiles in North America 2) If you were at Dollywood, what town would you be in?  A) Los Angeles, California B) Las Vegas, Nevada C) Branson, Missouri D) Pigeon Forge, Tennessee 3) If you were at the “Four Corners”, which states would you have to be in?  A) Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico or Utah B) Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico or Colorado C) Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama D) California, Nevada or Arizona 4) Travelling and camping in the Cabot Trail requires you to get to what Province in Canada? A) Ontario B) Quebec C) British Columbia D) Nova Scotia E) New Brunswick 5)   No vehicle over 21 feet long is allowed on this scenic mountain road called Going-To-The-Sun Road.  This is a toad road for many of us.  Where is this famous road?  A) Whistler, British Columbia B)... Read more

VIDEO: Gear to Get with Brian Brawdy - Xantrex PROwatt SW Inverter Series

Starting my second year as a full time RVer and boondocker, I needed to find a better way of accessing power. In that I’ve used my six solar panels and wind turbine to capture those natural enegies and store it in my six 100 AMP Kinetik Power Cells, I needed to learn how to let the genie out of the bottle. In searching for an affordable soultion to supply portable AC power for all my electric devices including video and still cameras, computers, cellphones, Duracell backup batteries and iPods, I turned to Xantrex. I first learned of Xantrex when I installed the RS3000 Sine Wave Inverter/Charger and C Series Charge Controller on the Green RV. In this video you will learn about the new Xantrex PROwatt SW Sine-Wave Inverter Series. _______ To learn more about Conservation thru Exploration and Greening your RV, visit BrianBrawdy.com Tell a Friend Read More →

Extended-Stay Maintenance Checks

Normally when you plan a trip in your RV you conduct some type of pre-trip checks to make sure the RV is properly prepared for travel. When it’s time to leave the campground you perform these checks again for the return trip. But what happens when you find that perfect campground or RV Park and stay put for extended periods of time? Do you conduct routine maintenance checks on the RV to make sure it is in a safe and operable condition while it’s parked? Most likely you do, but if not here are some extended-stay maintenance checks to consider performing. Read more Tell a Friend Read More →

New Converter and Charge Wizard upgrade!

Progressive Dynamics Converter 9160 and Charge Wizard Project After getting tired of adding water to my batteries and them never getting an actual full charge I decided on a change. After research I found that many 5′ers and travel trailers come with a “less expensive” basic converters. Many do not manage the charge to your batteries well in that when you are plugged in they constantly charge your batteries and never give them an actual full charge. In addition the constant charge means you have to often check and ad water to the batteries. With the Progressive Dynamics 9160 Converter combined with the Charge Wizard you get great DC power management along with proper battery charging and maintenance resulting in a managed charge to your batteries and less water loss. The install went pretty smooth and here is a link on such a project. A must see! The Charge Wizard is fantastic and you can read more on it here. Below are some pics of what I bought and installed. The new reconditioned converter and new charge Wizard were approx. $225 delivered to my door. This along with 2 new Trojan SCS 150 batteries I have plenty of power (over 200 amp hours) and my batteries are well maintained. Batteries were approx. $120 each. The batteries are fully charged in about 2 hours with my Honda 2000 generator. What a big difference in battery and power management! A couple years ago I spent nearly 6 weeks on a dry camping trip to test everything while I was dealing with a family... Read more

Hybrid Vehicles Gaining Acceptance

By Bob Difley Johnson Controls, a leading producer of lead-acid batteries for passenger cars and trucks, including batteries for hybrid vehicles, commissioned Harris Interactive to conduct a survey on Americans’ attitudes toward buying a hybrid vehicle. The online survey contacted 2,309 adults 18 years and older with the results weighted to reflect the composition of the US population for gender, education, income, ethnicity, and propensity to go online. The survey was conducted between March 9th and 11th, 2009 and revealed some interesting results. Read more Tell a Friend Read More →

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