New to the Travel Trailer Life & my Head is spinning

[starchazr]

I'm trying to get a handle on all the in's and out's of a travel trailer, doing a lot of reading, and going over what is needed to maintain ones TT. HELP!!!! What chemicals are really needed, when I go through the RV Catalog, I'm flooded (no pun) with all the different ones, liquid, drop in, powdered... chemicals for the toilet / black water / grey water... maybe I'm just making this over complicated, but I'm just getting my feet wet with a lovely little new to me Used Feather Sport. I just want to keep things nice and simple..... Please direct me to a safe haven for newbies!

Thanks, Starchazr,

[mcfarmall]

Welcome to the forum!!

Go to Wal Mart and buy your favorite flavor of toilet chemicals. I like the orange stuff. Then go down the automotive aisle and throw a gallon jug of car wash soap and some spray on wipe off wax. I use turtle wax soap and eagle 1 wax.

If some tree sap or pitch falls on the awning or tent ends, use some cheap clear hand sanitizer to remove it.

Next fall go to Menards and buy a couple gallons of RV anti freeze for $1.50/gallon and you're pretty much done with the essentials.

That wasn't so bad, was it??

[Rustic Eagle]

Welcome to JOF

I think you will find that JOF in general is a safe and comfortable environment to communicate with others that have the same interests in mind, whether one is a newbie or seasoned RV traveler.

Bob

[Bobx2]

It can be a little overwhelming at first, but don't fret too much. I use one liquid chemical in the black tank. It takes 4-8 oz. per tank. Don't remember off the top of my head. I have also put it in the grey tank on occasion to kill odor in there.
Just pour the required amount in the toilet bowl and flush it down with a gallon or two of water. That's all there is to it. One gallon will usually get me through the entire season.
I pull through the car wash whenever the need arises and give it a good washing, so no need to try and figure out which soaps and such you need to buy either. I also like to keep it simple. This is supposed to be restful, not stressful.
Give it a couple of trips and you will be stress free. Enjoy it.

[nevercominhome]

Welcome to the JOF and enjoy your new TT!

[starchazr]

Originally Posted by mcfarmall

Welcome to the forum!!

Go to Wal Mart and buy your favorite flavor of toilet chemicals. I like the orange stuff. Then go down the automotive aisle and throw a gallon jug of car wash soap and some spray on wipe off wax. I use turtle wax soap and eagle 1 wax.

If some tree sap or pitch falls on the awning or tent ends, use some cheap clear hand sanitizer to remove it.

Next fall go to Menards and buy a couple gallons of RV anti freeze for $1.50/gallon and you're pretty much done with the essentials.

That wasn't so bad, was it??

Holy Cow, no that wasn't so bad at all! THANK YOU! Your shopping list, compared to the RV Stores $$ I can easily save a nice tidy sum! I do thank you for that great advice! :-)

[starchazr]

I've always felt at home with my fellow campers! Thank you for being so welcoming! :-) I'm looking forward to my new adventures, as well as those here in the forum!

[Jmooney]

I use the drop in dissolvable tank baggies

[DMRGMC]

Good advice from mcfarmall! It cuts through the hype. You will decide from advice and eventual experience. I also use the dry biodegradable enzyme stuff for holding tanks that looks like small flakes, in the black water tank (toilet access) and in the grey water drains occasionally to keep them free flowing and odour free. We use it in the household drains as well.

[sask934]

Welcome to the forum and like yourself, I have been reading and ingesting information. I am new to all of this as well and can not wait to finally use the trailer I bought in Feb!

[Bassdogs]

Good answers so far. Real thing to remember is that none of this is rocket science. Do nothing your first couple times out and it will cause no harm and no problems. Just wing it and don't try to be perfect right out of the gate.

Decades ago after acquiring our first popup we ventured out to a near by county park. To prepare we put some cokes in a cooler and hitched up the PU. Arrived, opened up the unit and prepared to camp. Ah forgot a couple things.

1] extension cord 2] folding chairs 3] flashlites 4] FOOD 5] pots and pans 6] eating utensils and etc, etc etc.

We took a walk around the park and snuggled in for the nite. Next morning we rose and headed to wally World after a quick stop at the pancake house for breakfast. It has been pretty much all down hill from there but nothing is perfect. Camping is not meant to be perfect,

[Camper_bob]

I try to take a lighter attitude. I figure, that's what I have a credit card and Wally World for. If I forget something I just cannot live without, I'll just pick it up on my next beerrun. DW gets REALLY worked up about forgetting stuff when we travel, but I like to think I've rubbed off on her some. Camping is about enjoying time with friends and family in the great outdoors; if you're constantly worrying about stuff, it subtracts from that. It took me A LOT of years to attain that attitude and be able to let go of the worry and enjoy myself, and I still have relapses now and again

Anyway, I sometimes use "sewer juice" (search it and you'll see) and sometimes use the orange drop-ins; depends what I've got on hand. My in-laws don't take care of their black tank at all and it stinks really bad sometimes...

[my toys]

It's all personal choice. Try one chemical, if you don't like it, try another. Stay away from the dealers. They are pricey. You can get almost anything you need at Walmart or a similar store. We all started out newbies. Maybe take your first trip local. Figure out how everything works. Good luck!

[norty1]

Some don't use any chemicals in the tank. Just try different stuff and find out what works best for your situation

[rugerguy]

Only thing I caution against in the holding tank is clorox.
I had a friend do that and it reacted with the plastic of the tank causing a leak,at least thats what the dealer told him.

[Mspooley]

Yes there is a lot of stuff out there to make your head spin. I go to Walmart andd get an 8-pack of little individual bottles of toilet chemical. Just read the directions on the package as far as what you want - some are for odor control which you may or may not need. Also very important - do NOT use household toilet paper. There are various opinions about some home brands you can use in your TT, but my thought for now is, why chance it. Walmart also has RV toilet tissue and although it is $3 to $4 a 4-pack, I don't use that much and I'd rather be "safe" and not clog my black tank.

[cekkk]

Enjoying your camper is easier if you don't have BW tank problems, but I've used just about every chem out there and never had a problem. I always add at least two gallons of water to it after dumping and flushing. I don't know if your camper has a hookup for flushing both tanks. Ours does and I do that almost every time I dump them.

I add a valve lube occasionally to both tanks and once in a while put in an ounce or so of Dawn. I'm pretty sure that the tanks are sensitive to just about any form of TLC, much like DW.

[starchazr]

Wonderful answers & advise; gives me a lot of different options. I do so appreciate all the advise. I'm looking forward to finding that little nitch that best works for me and my lil' TT. Trial and error, but a learning experience. I know I'll be back for additional advice is so many different areas! Thanks again! :-)

[Scott]

Originally Posted by cekkk

I'm pretty sure that the tanks are sensitive to just about any form of TLC, much like DW.

Did you really just compare your DW to a black water tank?

You're gonna be in trouble if she ever finds out!!!

[Jagiven]

Mcfarmall has the basics down. Each of us has our own likes and dislikes. I like Dawn dish soap to clean the roof and tent ends on my hybrid. When I wash the HTT, I use an all in one liquid carwash with wax. I am lazy and hate waxing my cars too. Toilet chemicals are probably the big item. Most of the time I use Pinesol and that is it. I do have the little drop-ins specialty chemical for the black tank, and use them once in a while. What I have been told the liquid toilet chemicals are better than the powder as they disperse in the tank better. I am not sure if that is true or not, but I have dumped them in the toilet with a lot of water and watched them dissolve away before flushing, so I know the ones I have do dissolve. But if you do not have enough water in the empty tank I would say it could easily be true. Back to being lazy, the only other chemical I use is a product call “Spray Power” by Crown (I purchase it at Menards), I found it works best full strength; it just dissolves bugs off the front cap and the black streaks with no effort at all.

In reality, there is very little chemicals you truly need other than for the black tank.