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10 Things I’ve Learned About RVs In My First Month at Pete’s RV Center

Becca McCord Uncategorized

I’ve spent many weekends of my life camping throughout New England, but as someone who belongs to more of a backpacking and car-camping family, the world of RVs was completely foreign to me before I began my position as a marketing admin at Pete’s RV Center about a month ago. In the weeks that I have worked here I have learned more than I could have imagined about campers.

1. What does RV stand for?

This is probably obvious to some, but I really didn’t know! RV stands for Recreational Vehicle. But what can be classified as an RV? 

2. Motorhomes, teardrops, pop-up campers… all of the above! 

Before I started here, I thought “RV” was synonymous with “motorhome”, and that trailers and pop-ups were “campers”. However, all campers are RV’s, and all RV’s are campers! They are interchangeable terms that apply to any trailer or vehicle that has living accommodations. 

3. RV Dealerships can be “exclusive” with one manufacturer 

An RV Dealership may be partnered with one specific manufacturer, so all or most of their new inventory must be of the same brand. In South Windsor CT, Pete’s RV Center is Jayco exclusive. This is great for Jayco fans because our lot has the largest inventory of Jayco RVs in the area and we can show potential customers many different types of units and floorplans of their favorite and most trusted manufacturer. 

4. Hidden features everywhere! 

The first time I opened the door to a seemingly tiny teardrop camper, I was amazed! What looks like it would barely fit a small mattress makes the most of very little space by having incredible design features such as hidden storage, multi-functional furniture, outdoor kitchens, and more. Some even have bathrooms and refrigerators! 

5. All the floorplans 

RV shoppers truly have the luxury of choice when picking out the best camper for their family. Once they land on a manufacturer and the specific model they are looking for, they can then browse through many different floor-plans to pick and choose the features they love. For example, many families with young kids prefer a floorplan featuring a bunkhouse for some extra sleeping space! 

6. Everything is a bed! 

Even if you don’t find a camper with a bunkhouse, chances are there will be more sleeping room in your camper than meets the eye. In addition to a bedroom, many campers have features such as convertible sofas and dinettes. This is a great way to save space in your camper while still providing the option for your friends and family to come along with you on your camping trips! 

7. VIN Numbers 

A quick fun fact that I found interesting when I started here is that motorhomes commonly have two VIN numbers – one for the chassis manufacturer and the other for the motorhome manufacturer, as these parties are frequently different.  

8. Generators

How you will power your RV is definitely something important to consider when purchasing your new camper. Some units have built-in generators, while many others do not. If your RV does not have a generator included, check out this video for some tips on how to choose which generator is best for you.

9. Batteries

Speaking of generators, I was very nervous the first time I had to hook up a battery to a camper. It’s not rocket science! As long as you are careful not to touch oppositely charged cables together, it is very easy and safe. Batteries also have built in safety features to prevent extreme damage to the unit (or harm to you) if you make a mistake. You’ll most likely be down a battery though, so be careful!

10. The size!

When I first stepped into a Class A motorhome, I was shocked at how spacious the living accommodations were. Some of the largest motorhomes can be between 300 – 400 square feet with the slide-outs extended – that’s bigger than some studio apartments!  

While I do still love car camping and backpacking, being immersed in the RV industry for a month has shown me a whole new side of camping that I knew very little about before. Pete’s RV Center can help campers find their perfect new travel-sized home so they can live comfortably in the beauty and excitement of the outdoors. 

Hughes Power Watchdog Surge Protectors | QUICK TIPS w/ Randy Murray

camdenleclair Uncategorized

In today’s video, Randy talks you through some of the basics of surge protectors, and explains why he highly regards Power Watchdog line of surge protectors from Hughes. https://hughesautoformers.com/power-watchdog-smart-surge-protectors/

Transcript:

Hey, guys, Randy with Pete’s RV TV today. Today, I want to talk a little bit about surge protection. So, something that you guys may not know about me is I’m actually an electrician by trade. So, every RV dealer has a guy like me who has been around for a million years and he is kind of the fix it guy or the go-to guy, where the hard questions usually gravitate towards that gentleman. I’m that guy at Pete’s RV. So, they’d be coming to me. But the thing that I bring to the table as I just mentioned is I used to build custom homes and I am an electrician by trade. So, when it comes to the electrical side of things, I really know what I’m talking about from my former life. So, I’m the guy that they bring in when they talk about surge protection and what kind of surge protection that we’re going to carry as a dealer group.

I’ve played with them all. I’ve played with all the big names out there, and we have ended up with the Hughes Watchdog. Hughes makes an incredible product. I’ve actually met with the owner of Hughes, gentleman named Pat. He’s actually a friend of mine now. And the product that he brought to the table I felt was so far superior to the other stuff out there, we took it on. And as I learned more and more about it, I just kept knowing that I made the right choice because it is a great product. One of the things that the Hughes Watchdog does is it protects us from surge. So, if there is a lightning strike down the road or nearby, this is going to protect anything that’s coming in on those negative lines, on the ground wires, or the high voltage is coming over on the positive side of things. Nothing will protect you from a direct lightning strike, but if there’s something nearby and you can be protected from it, the Hughes Watchdog is definitely going to do that.

One of the really cool things about the Hughes Watchdog is protecting you on those surges, is it actually the Joules, the absorption material that takes those hits is replaceable, where with the competitors, it is not. Once those Joules of that absorption portion of the surge protector is worn out, you need to replace the whole detector. Where this guy here, we can just replace the absorption of the Joules portion of it. The Power Watchdog is going to run at equal or better than its competition out there. When it comes to absorption, they’ve actually just changed. So, depending on when you purchased, they’re offering a little bit more than they once did, which again is in line or better than the competitors out there.

The other thing that the Hughes Watchdog does for us with the EPO, emergency power off, and this is probably going to come into play more often than we would with the typical surge on it, is low voltage, high voltage, reverse polarity or no ground. It is going to protect us from all that. All very important things. This guy will shut power off if it doesn’t like something. So, at 103 volts, so say on a busy weekend at a campground, we can see very low voltage. Everybody gets to the campground, everybody throws on all their air conditioners or electric hot water heater. The griddles go on, the coffee makers, everything that you need to go camping that we brought from home, we bring to the campground and we turn it on when we get there, which can actually put campgrounds into a low voltage situation or a brownout.

When I say brownout, I mean below 103 volts. So, electricity is an amazing thing. Electricity will still function at low voltage. It will still pass at low voltage, but at low voltage it creates high amperage. High amperage creates high heat. High heat will prematurely wear out your electrical components, especially your inductive loads like your air conditioner motors and things like that, things that are very expensive to replace. So, with the EPO here, it will protect you from that. It will actually shut power off, not allow power to pass if it doesn’t like something, or it’s in a spot where we feel that it’s damaging your coach. When we can throw this thing into alarm here, also has Bluetooth, so it’ll go to your phone. So, if you’re within Bluetooth range of the Watchdog, it will come right to your phone.

I’m going to hook this device up to my phone right here. And if you can zoom in on this, Cam, we are going to see the incoming voltage on both legs of that 50 amp Watchdog. I’m not pulling any amps right now, because I’ve got nothing plugged into it. And the frequency in North America is 60 hertz, so we’re running right there where we’re supposed to be on that. Let’s throw this thing into an alarm so we can see it come up. So, I have just removed the ground from the Watchdog. We can see the Watchdog is turned red, but immediately it has hit my phone as missing ground. And has actually shut power off going through the Watchdog, so no power is passing to the camper right now. And I have an alert on my phone within Bluetooth range saying what’s going on.

And it will work for you whether you’re in Bluetooth range or not, but it will tell you what’s going on if you’ve got it tied to your personal device. Once power has been restored or it likes what’s going back on, in about 90 seconds it will just make sure that everything is safe and then it’ll allow power to pass again. So, that’s how the EPO works. No ground can put you into a hot skin situation. So, very dangerous situation. And again, why it doesn’t want to pass, high voltage above 132 volts, doesn’t want to see that. It will shut power off. Low voltage below that 103 that I referred to earlier, it’s going to shut it off.

So, this thing is going to work continuously for you to protect your investment and make sure that you don’t end up in those service bays, which we all know are a little bit cumbersome to get into and sometimes take longer than what we’d like to get back out of them. So, I recommend the Hughes Watchdog for any camper out there. I personally like the hardwire version, because it is working for you all the time. It is wired permanently into your camper. It can’t be stolen. It is not in the elements. It can’t be damaged for transport. So, the hardwire version would be my recommendation and definitely the Hughes Watchdog. Thanks for watching Pete’s RV TV with Randy today. I look forward to seeing you on the road.

Follow The Yellow Shirt on social media to stay up to date on all things Pete’s RV!

Pete’s RV Center is an exceptional dealership group serving the United States and Canada since 1952. With multiple locations, Pete’s RV provides sales, service, parts, accessories, and education to our community of RVers all across North America.

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Just Arrived: Cortes Campers Joins Pete’s RV Center’s Inventory

Sophie Scheer Uncategorized

Pete’s RV Center is delighted to sign with US Lighting Group as a Cortes dealership. Our Vermont, Indiana, Connecticut, Massachusetts, South Carolina, and Virginia locations will all carry Cortes Campers’ state-of-the-art, fiberglass travel trailers. 

These units are ultra light-weight and have four season capability—with an interior and exterior shell of molded fiberglass, they are models are constructed without any wood or carpet. Meaning no corrosion, mold, or rot in your camper.

Cortes Campers are built like a boat—durable and strong, ready for an adventure.

Currently in stock, with more models on the way, is Cortes 17. This travel trailer, which comes in an array of vibrant colors, is 17 feet long and 8.11 feet wide. It sleeps two with a rear dinette that converts into a double bed. At its middle sits an additional, smaller dinette, as well as a kitchen with a sink, 8.0 cu ft fridge, microwave oven, and three burner stove. A bathroom and closet space are at Cortes 17’s rear. 

Cortes 17 also has double pane acrylic windows, a marine gelcoat, anti-skid floors, all stainless steal fasteners, plug and play wire harnesses, and a patented gray water dump system.

View our current selection of Cortes Campers:

✦ New England ✦ Virginia ✦ South Carolina ✦ Indiana ✦

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Learn more about Cortes 17’s additional features and add ons here! 

nuCamp Releases Teardrop Signature Series in Collaboration with Leaf + Linen

Sophie Scheer Uncategorized

In partnership with Leaf + Linen, nuCamp has recently introduced the Signature Series Tab Teardrop Camper. Leaf + Linen is an Ohio-based clothing and home goods company with a clean, elegant aesthetic—offering a ‘calm, restorative feeling’ to this new edition of the Tab trailer. 

This unit follows the same layout as their current 320S teardrop floor plan with a front galley kitchen, adjacent wet bath, and dinette that easily converts into a sleeping area at the rear. 

On the exterior of the Signature Series Tab is a metallic vinyl of Leaf + Linen’s letter and pictorial mark—giving the interior room to reflect the brand through its serene palette of coastal teal cushions, sandy driftwood flooring, and alabaster countertops. 

The 2023 Signature Series Tab Teardrop Camper includes standard features of a Tab camper, such as the Alde heating system, central AC, Nautilus water management system, and Goodyear tires. This unit, however, sets itself apart with wood cabinetry that has the premium feel of typical Class B motorhomes.

“We aimed to combine the quality nuCamp build with Leaf + Linen’s clean style and sophistication,” says nuCamp CEO Scott Hubble, “to make a travel trailer you will fall in love with every time you walk in.”

Contact our New England, Virginia or Indiana locations for information on acquiring your very own Tab Signature!

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Learn more about the Signature Series from nuCamp here.

Pete’s RV Center Will Now Carry Brinkley RV

Sophie Scheer Uncategorized

Pete’s RV Center is elated that Brinkley RV’s luxury campers will be joining our extensive inventory. Brinkley currently offers two models—Model Z 3100 & Model G 3500, with more on the way. Model Z 3100 is a mid-sized fifth wheel with, amoung many features, has H-rated Cooper tires, flush floor slides, and class-leading 79.5″ bed & bath interior height. Model G 3500 is a luxury toy hauler that ‘offers dozens of intelligently designed features, an automotive exterior, and a true residential interior’.

Model Z 3100 interior photo.

Brinkley RV is owned by Ryan Thwaits, Ron Fenech, Micah Staley, Bill Fenech, and Nate Goldenberg, who came together with years of respective RV experience to build a brand that focuses on customer satisfaction. They say, “Due to the industry’s noticeable shift in focus away from customer experience and product design, [we] saw a unique opportunity to recreate the RV experience for dealers and customers”. Brinkley aims to put customer feedback at the center of their production work to create campers that are truly for their audience.

Model Z 3100’s bedroom.

Check out the current selection of Brinkley RV’s in our inventory.

nuCamp’s Fiberglass Barefoot Officially Rolls off Production Line

Sophie Scheer Uncategorized

If you’re familiar with nuCamp, you may easily recognize their teardrop, clamshell, or cirrus campers—all uniquely shaped travel trailers designed to accommodate those interested in an off-the-beaten-path type of camping experience. These RVs are compact, easy-to-tow and the epitome of tiny-living. 

This line-up will soon have company as nuCamp is finally sending their long-awaited Barefoot travel trailer off to production. Diverting from the brand’s usual style—this camper has a bold seaglass colored exterior and round fiberglass body. It sets itself apart with its ‘retro-chic’ aesthetic and more spacious interior.

This is an incredibly unique product we are sure you will love!

nuCamp CEO Scott Hubble

nuCamp initially announced plans to manufacture Barefoot in 2019 when they partnered with the British company Barefoot Caravans. It took two years to “Americanize” the trailer for North American patronage due to COVID restrictions, and the first official unit was produced only this past December. 

The brand is excited to finally release this product now that they’ve finished fine tuning. nuCamp CEO Scott Hubble says, “Our goal was to take the beautiful UK Barefoot and transition it to the U.S. market. We wanted to maintain the look and feel of the unit all while adding in components and features the North American market has come to think of as a standard. The high quality you have come to expect with all the nuCamp products will be no exception with the Barefoot. This is an incredibly unique product we are sure you will love.”

10 Things I’ve Learned About RVs

Sophie Scheer Uncategorized

Prior to joining the marketing team at Pete’s RV Center, I could name maybe one RV manufacturer and thought the word ‘motorhome’ was interchangeable with ‘camper’. After just a few weeks, however, I can name at least five or six manufacturers off the top of my head and I know the main difference between a travel trailer and a fifth wheel. But, the learning doesn’t stop there, so here’s what Pete’s has made me contemplate about RVs and the RVing lifestyles so far.

1. RVs come in all different shapes and sizes

Growing up, I’d be invited on the occasional camping trip with friends or family members who owned your standard travel trailer or expandable unit. These experiences led me to associate camping (on wheels) closely with these specific types of trailers. Pete’s RV Center, however, has opened my eyes to the wide selection of units the RV world has to offer. 

2. They’re made to fit different lifestyles

From massive fifth wheels or class A motorhomes to your more compact nuCamp Cirrus or Airstream Basecamp, RVs are made to fit a range of lifestyles and camping journeys. A solo traveler that prefers to take trips in the mountains or deep wilderness may enjoy a smaller trailer that is made to endure rougher terrain. While a retired couple who are planning a long term road trip around the country are probably more interested in a fifth wheel with lots of space and amenities. 

3. Small space ≠ small amount of possibilities 

When you consider furnishing a small space, it may seem like the options are limited—and depending on the dimensions, they can be. But looking at just a handful of RV floor plans from different models and manufacturers makes it apparent that ‘small space’ does not necessarily equate to a small amount of possibilities.

Just because a trailer is on the tinier side doesn’t mean it can’t still have a spacious rear bath with a full tub or a large pantry closet. Living in a compact environment doesn’t necessarily mean limiting your options or letting go of amenities that are important to you.

4. RVs are versatile

Contraptions like murphy beds, convertible u-dinettes or jack knife sofas allow you to have functional living areas without giving up space, or needing more. There are also units such as toy haulers, which have a garage at the rear, making your trailer an even more adaptable vehicle. 

5. You can accessorize

Upon purchasing an RV, many come with add ons for an additional cost—such as extra TVs, a security kit, extra furniture, solar panels, etc. They are a great way to upgrade your camping experience. You can also install accessories later on, and Pete’s parts department carries plenty. 

6. If you’re handy…

Buying used and renovating is always an option. Like most things bought secondhand, the severity of wear and usability varies from trailer to trailer, some may be ready to go while others require major updating. And while accessorizing is one thing, reconstructing is a whole other ball game. But if you’re up for a challenge, purchasing a significantly cheaper option and reselling down the road could be a great investment.

7. RV names mean something

The names of RVs break down into five different parts. For an example we’ll use the 2022 Forest River Alpha Wolf 388BHRD. The number at the front, of course, refers to the year. The next phrase is the manufacturer, ‘Forest River’, followed by the model, ‘Alpha Wolf’, and the most interesting part (in my opinion), the last sequence of letters at the very end indicate the model’s floor plan, ‘FK’ meaning ‘front kitchen’. Floor plans that end in RB mean ‘rear bathroom’, BH means ‘bunkhouse’, SLX/XLT are ‘lightweight or ultra-light’, and the list goes on. Additionally, numbers that come before these acronyms refer to the model number, or in some cases, the length of the trailer. 

8. There are RV-specific navigation tools

When driving an RV, it’s best to use an RV-specific GPS or GPS app. The average navigation system doesn’t account for the larger dimensions of a trailer, and may lead you to lower clearance bridges or roads with weight limits. Many RV GPS devices also come with resources from other RVers regarding where the best places are to stop, fuel up, or get a repair. 

9. Just because summer is over, doesn’t mean camping is

Much like actual birds, ‘snowbirds’ migrate south for winter. When the temperatures start to drop up north, those who enjoy the warmer weather and want to prolong their time camping head to warmer destinations. And those who don’t have to winterize their RV to avoid internal damage. 

Women in yellow shirt holding toilet paper in front of her.

10. RVs need specific toilet paper

If you already own an RV, it’s very concerning if you don’t already know this, but RVs need toilet paper that disintegrates quickly. Unlike regular toilet paper, RV-friendly paper dissolves faster to avoid clogs in your holding tank or sewage system. 

Just as learning about anything unfamiliar is..getting to know more about RVs is a bit overwhelming. There are so many different types, brands, models, accessories, not to mention the inner workings of how they function—how to take care of them, what sort of maintenance they need. RVs are complex in many ways. But, the more interesting things in life are, and I can think of far less compelling things than entire homes on wheels!

NEWS RELEASE: Pete’s RV Center Acquires American Family RV in Virginia

petesrvblog Pete's RV Center News, Uncategorized

On July 22nd, Vermont-based Pete’s RV Center officially assumed ownership of American Family RV with dealership locations in Chesapeake and Salem, Virginia.

Opened in 2012 by Layne and Carol Rowland, American Family RV grew into a reputable dealership for sales and service in the Hampton Roads area and into the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  In 2018, American Family RV continued to grow with the opening of a dealership in the Roanoke Valley.  The Salem dealership is centrally located on eight-plus acres with twelve service bays, and carrying premier lines including Jayco and Grand Design.

With multiple dealer groups showing interest in acquiring American Family RV over the past year, Layne welcomed this changing of hands, “Pete’s RV embraces the family concept, and is the dealer group we felt would continue to build the existing team–maintaining the values that were intrinsically American Family RV.”

In gaining the Virginia locations, Pete’s RV takes their first step into the lower Mid-Atlantic States.  “My business partners Todd McGinnis, Scott Borden, and I relish the opportunity to build upon businesses already well-established in their local and surrounding communities,” added Pete’s RV co-owner Chad Shepard.

American Family RV is Pete’s RV Center’s eighth and ninth dealership locations in seven states.  The original location in South Burlington, Vermont has been operating since 1952.

Pete’s RV co-owner Chad Shepard shown in the attached photo (left to right) with Layne Rowland.

East Coast RV Campgrounds to Retire In

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Ever dreamed of camping for a lifetime? Getting yourself a parking spot in a warm weather campground for full-time RVing is a great way to keep the camping going, and an ideal retirement option. These East Coast RV parks are a quiet destination for retirement RVing full-time, with many holding an aged 55+ rule for entry to keep noisy visitors away. Check them out and fulfill your dream camping scenario. 

Waters Edge RV Resort, Punta Gorda, Florida

With 210 RV sites for rent and sale, this centrally located resort surrounds a 20-acre fishing lake and boasts a community feel. They also have one and two bedroom vacation rentals for when the family wants to visit, along with biking trails and a library. 

Waters Edge RV resort (Age Restricted 55+) - Zephyrhills, Florida - Campspot

Lakewood RV Resort, Flat Rock, North Carolina

Marketing themselves as “The Top-Rated, Adults-Only, 55+ RV Resort In Scenic Hendersonville, NC. Your new home away from home in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains.” Can be a tough legacy to live up to, but rave reviews say they aren’t exaggerating. Located 30 minutes south of Asheville and an hour away from The Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Lakewood’s peaceful spot in Hendersonville offers pull-thru RV sites and apartments. 

Olde Mill Stream RV Resort, Umatilla, Florida

With 427 sites, this is the largest resort on this list, but one of the best cared for. “Each spacious site measures from 40′ x 60′ up to 50′ x 100, with an 8′ x 20′ pad, picnic tables and full hook-ups (20/30/50 amp service).  We are a pet friendly resort, dogs under 40 lbs. are welcome (limit 2 per rig).” The resort sits proudly next to the beautiful spring fed Lake Pearl, and is located about an hour from both Tampa and Orlando. 

Hilton Head Harbor RV Resort & Marina

Known for its sheer beauty and Dolphin Tours, Hilton Head Harbor isn’t strictly for retirement campers, but maintains a quiet and relaxing atmosphere that retirees desire. They have a significant water sports program, with jet skis, boats, paddle boards, and kayaks all welcome by their “sea monkeys”. 

pho_880000461_10.jpg

Lake Hartwell RV Park

The smallest RVing destination on this list with just 20 sites, this beautiful place is adults only 18+ and is now accepting annual campers. The park is close to the Georgia – South Carolina border and praised for its excellent location, scenery, and atmosphere.

For more RV tips, travel insight, and news, be sure to follow our Pete’s RV Info Blog for weekly updates!

How to Properly Use The Air Conditioner in Your Camper

petesrvblog RV Maintenance & Service, RV Owner Tips, Uncategorized

On the Pete’s RV-TV YouTube Channel, Randy Murray gives a quick important lesson teaching us that air conditioners work by removing warm air and moisture from around the room, which then gets sucked outside leaving the room cooler.

In order to make sure your AC is running properly, Randy shows us how to remove and check the air filter to make sure there isn’t a buildup of dirt and dust hindering performance. Making sure the fan is on will increase efficiently with the AC system, as well as making sure that all doors, windows, and shades are closed to prevent heat from working its way back inside the camper.

Randy advises turning on the AC when temperatures are cooler (typically early morning) for optimal air flow and a cooler camper throughout the day. By using the quick cool option to restrict airflow from the ducts, the AC can effectively cool the room faster and when it reaches a temperature to your liking, airflow can be redirected back through the vents for everyone to enjoy.

To learn more from Randy and stay up to date on all things Pete’s RV be sure to visit and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Video Transcript | How to Properly Use The Air Conditioner in Your Camper
Randy: Hey guys, Randy with Pete’s RV TV today, another quick-tip segment for you. Today I’m going to talk about air conditioners and the proper way to use them. I’ve been taking a lot of calls around the country and we’re in the middle of our warm season in Vermont, the little warm season that we get up here in the northeast. But people are having trouble with their air conditioners freezing up. People are saying they’re not cooling properly for them. And sometimes that’s the case, but usually it’s operator error about 99 percent of the time.

When I went to RVIA school back a million years ago when I first started in the industry and got certified to do this kind of stuff, one of the first things they taught me about air conditioners is they don’t make cool. They remove heat and they remove moisture, as well. cool just happens to be a byproduct.

So, when we allow our coach to heat up inside, we go to the pool all day, we’re out shopping or doing, visiting the sights around the area and we’ve got the air conditioner off, we go back to our camper at 5 o’clock at night. It’s 100 degrees inside the camper. We turn that air conditioner on. That air conditioner actually has to pull the heat out of the carpet, out of the bedding, out of the couches, out of everything inside before we start to feel cool.

So what I want you to do is I want you to do is turn that air conditioner on in the morning. it’s a little bit cooler at night, so when it’s a little bit cooler at night, of course, the coach stays a little bit cooler. So when you get up in the morning set that thermostat at about 65 degrees, 67 degrees. Let’s maintain that cool from the night before. Now, if we never let our coach heat up, the air conditioner is going to have to work a lot less hard to maintain that cool and we’re actually saving energy.

The other thing that we want to do with our air conditioner, too, is while we maintain it while we’re using it is we want to make sure that the filters are clean. So we can remove that very easily on this guy here and we just want to take this guy out and make sure it’s vacuumed. If it starts to turn brown that usually means there’s a lot of dust.

Another thing that makes an air conditioner work very effectively for us, or makes them work better, is more air flow. So with a clean filter we can get more air through this air conditioner, especially on those [00:02:00] hot, humid days.

the other thing we’ll, we’ll want to do is we want to set our fan on high. I usually use the auto setting on mine, if you let the air conditioner run all day. Again, the more air that we’re moving, the more heat we can take out of the coach and expend outside and put the cold air back inside the coach. So fan definitely on high.

We also want to make sure our doors and windows and vents are closed. I went to a camper on a campground the other day. A lady says, “My air conditioner is not cooling very well. Can you take a look at it?” I went inside. I put my hand up to the air conditioner, it was cooling just fine. What she had was both of her doors were open. She had some vents open, a couple windows open. So what that air conditioner was doing was pulling the heat from the outside and just getting rid of that and returning it so it could never bring the temperature of the coach down because it was just kind of maintaining.

What these guys will do is they’ll actually do about a 20-degree air differential, air temperature differential. So, it sucks in here, blows out here or out through our vents, and it’s going to be about a 20-degree differential. Now, if it’s just pulling air from a door, it’s never going to really bring the temperature of the coach down, so make sure all windows and doors and vents are closed. and again, that high air flow moving through the air conditioner is going to get that heat escape faster and help us with freeze up a little bit, too. The moisture will actually pass over the evaporator coil a lot quicker and not have a tendency to grab on there.

Another thing, we just got to our campgrounds, its 5 o’clock at night, we’ve been traveling all day, inside the camper it’s very hot because it’s a hot day out, so you got to turn your air conditioner on to cool this guy down. Instead of forcing it through the vents, if you’ve got a ducted air conditioner, open up the quick-cool option. This way we’re going to get a lot of airflow and we’re going to cool the coach down a little bit quicker.

Once we bring the temperature down, we can go ahead and close this and we can go through the ducts. The ducts are going to restrict the airflow a little bit, but once we bring the coach down the air conditioner is running efficiently, then we can go ahead and put it through the vents in the ceiling.

So if you try out my quick tips here, run it on high, set it in the morning, let it run all day to keep that cool inside so we don’t have to remove all that heat from building up in the sun all day. Also, if you can close your shades and things [00:04:00] like that, keep the UVs down, that’s going to help out a lot as well.

But all these should help you make your air conditioner work a lot more effectively for you. Save a phone call to me and just have a better camping experience, keep you guys cool. Now, out there having fun, you get hot, you want to come into a cool area, at least I do, and it makes it a lot more fun when you’re drinking a soda or whatever while you’re watching TV, as well.

So thanks again for watching Pete’s RV with Randy today. keep an eye out for our quick tips. Join us on our Facebook page. Sign up [ 00:04:26] on Youtube and happy camping (laughs). Have a great one.

Pete’s RV Center is an exceptional dealership group serving the United States and Canada since 1952. With multiple locations, Pete’s RV provides sales, service, parts, accessories, and education to our community of RVers all across North America.