Whether you use your RV for just a few excursions a year or live year-round in it, you’ll no doubt be keen in keeping it looking at its’ best both inside and out.
With space at a relative premium it can be hard to have everything on hand needed to keep the RV looking showroom-new, while the rigors of outside from the weather to the road conditions can all take their toll on the appearance of your home away from home.
Even having an open window allows dirt and dust to get in, while dirt can be trailed inside from outdoors, leaving RV owners with something of a task to keep on top of the cleaning. For some it might feel never-ending cleaning from one end to another and having to start the process again to keep on top of the grime.
Here’s a few tips to help make the chore of keeping your RV clean and uncluttered as possible.
These days there’s a cleaner for everything, from cooking surfaces to window glass, bathroom tiles to wooden floors. Rather than have a separate cleaner that is marketed to a specific surface to hand, buy a multipurpose cleaner that can tackle multiple surfaces with little or no detrimental effect.
And you’ll save some money into the bargain having a single cleaner rather than different sprays and cleaners for each where the cost can quickly mount up.
Using a mop that has interchangeable heads saves space and can be used to keep floors gleaming. A wet head can be dampened with water or a multipurpose cleaner and used to wash the floor surfaces; while the dry head can be used to capture dust and dirt that might get under furniture and would be difficult to reach with a vacuum cleaner.
A dry mop can also be used to mop up condensation that forms on bathroom walls following a shower, helping to prevent moisture damage from creeping in. Once used, the heads can be laundered, dried and ready to use again and are more hygienic than fixed head mops.
For the outside of the RV also, using interchangeable RV brushes can also help in washing away dirt and grime by reaching those higher areas that perhaps are difficult to access without ladders. Larger headed mops can quickly make light work of even the dirtiest of circumstances from mud to bird poop.
Sometimes you don’t need to treat full surfaces with an all-purpose cleaner, or laziness might have set in; but having disinfecting wipes on hand can help quickly mop up minor spills or quickly treat places where germs are likely to breed such as on toilet seats, sink faucets and food preparation areas.
Microfiber cloths have many uses for cleaning and can be used time and again by washing either by hand or in a machine. Once dried they are ready to be used again.
More hard wearing and practical than other cloth materials, they don’t take up a great deal of space, are useful for most tasks and inexpensive into the bargain.
Using closet shelf hangers can help to make better use of limited space. These organizers hang on existing closet rails to provide a number of shelf units that can be used to store shirts, pants, underwear, towels and even shoes tidily away out of sight and without clutter.
Use a toothbrush to get down and dirty in hard to clean areas such as between the folds of seats, in between window blinds and even to scrub the underside of faucets and the toilet bowl rim which is often a safe harbor for germs.
A toothbrush can reach quite far into the underside of the toilet bowl rim and can be used to scrub out any harmful bacteria, helping to eliminate odors and keeping the toilet smelling fresh.
Bear in mind though that an RV toilet isn’t the same as the toilet found at home; it often has rubber seals and gaskets that can be adversely affected by some chemicals. Waste storage can often be limited also and may require regular emptying of the waste tank unless the disposal of waste can be plumbed directly into a sewer system.
Of course, plumbing a RV toilet into a sewer system isn’t an option when on the road so it is a good idea for comfort to have adequate toilet facilities at hand for any journey. Is the existing toilet suitable for a long journey where disposal might be a problem? Older toilets too may also be showing signs of age, retaining unpleasant odors that might have seeped into the material and might require being replaced as a matter of course so before a long journey it may be an ideal time to take a look at the types of RV toilet available for replacement or addition.
If space does allow then it might be worthwhile adding a second toilet, especially if there is consideration for disabled or elderly passengers. An existing RV toilet might not be entirely suitable to meet their needs and might require changing for height, flushing method or ease of access.
That’s just one of a number of considerations into an RV toilet with others extending to ease of keeping it clean and pleasant to use, its’ practicality towards those who will use it, as well as its’ waste management capability and the amount of space it occupies.
Adding a second RV toilet is no easy task where space is limited or the layout of the RV doesn’t easily lend itself to a second facility so if exploring the addition of a second RV toilet be sure to do some research into the various types of units that are featured on the market to ensure you get the one best suited for your needs and fits best with the design and layout of the you RV. For example, here’s an informative compilation of some easy-to-use RV toilets for you to check out.
Happy RVing!
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