How to Store Your RV for the Season

The temperatures are starting to drop all over the country, which means the travel season is coming to an end. If you are about to pack up your RV to stay indoors during the winter season, this blog is for you! We will be discussing some tips you should follow when putting your RV in storage. 

1. Drain the Water System
   • This is a crucial step when storing your RV for the winter. If there is any water left in your system, it could freeze and cause damage to the fittings and lines throughout the vehicle. First, you need to drain all of the pumps in your RV and then pump RV safe anti-freeze into the water system. The maintenance guide that came with your RV should be able to help you, but if not, you can bring it to Nacogdoches and we'll get you squared away as well! 
2. Cover Your RV and Tires
   • If you will not be keeping your RV in an indoor storage facility, it is best that you cover your RV during the winter months. Make sure you get an RV specific cover and do not just use a thick blanket or towel. Click here to see what kind of RV cover best suits your needs. Covering your RV while it's outside will protect the exterior from harmful UV rays, bird droppings, tree limbs, and other outdoor elements that could potentially harm your RV. Along with covering the RV, make sure to also cover your RV's tires as well. Most RV covers are not long enough, or designed to cover the RV and tires, so you will need to get covers specifically for tires! Click here to view some tire covers online!
3. Protect the RV Batteries
   • In order to make sure your batteries are well protected, safely remove them from your RV and keep them in a room temperature location. They also need to stay dry while in storage, so do not keep them outside or in an outside unit that could possibly have leaks. It is important that the batteries don't freeze as well because they could be damaged or destroyed do to the harsh temperatures. Also, check the battery life every four to six weeks because a fully charged battery will not freeze as fast as a halfway charged battery.
4. Keep Out Unwelcome Guests
   • Another top concern for people who put their RV in storage is unwanted intruders getting into their vehicle. To keep bugs and other creatures out of your RV, make sure you take out all trash and clean out your cupboards and refrigerators so that there isn't any food remaining in your RV. Make sure to also clean counters and tables with disinfectant so vermin can't smell food either. You can also get animal traps to place around areas of entry throughout your RV. Also it would be a good idea to have security cameras in your storage area to keep an eye out for anyone who might try to steal your RV while it's in storage. 
5. Dump ALL Tanks
   • You should already know to clean out the gray and black tanks in your RV, but if you are going to put it in storage you may also want to get a gray-water-tank cleaning product to prevent odors from forming in your RV. Click here to check out some gray-water odor preventer. Also, make sure you turn all faucets on until all the water in your RV has been removed from the system. 
6. Prepare the Plumbing System for Winter
   • Winter is coming, so you better prepare your pipes for the coldest one yet. Go into a trusted RV service center and get your system properly winterized. You can try and DIY it, but it would be better to get it professionally done so it doesn't cost more money later. 
7. Circulate the Air
   • Keep one of your roof vents open just a little so that air can circulate throughout the RV. You can purchase a roof-vent cover that will keep rain, snow, and dirt from coming into your RV while still allowing air into the vehicle. Click here for a highly rated roof-vent cover. 
8. Schedule Repairs
   • Finally, before you put your RV in storage for the next couple of months, schedule any repairs you might need, now. During the traveling off-season, prices decrease because service centers are not as busy as they are in May or June. Before you close up shop for the remainder of the year, take care of your repairs now, so you can save money later when the temperatures get a little warmer!

Thank you for reading this Winter RV Storage Checklist! If there are any topics you would like us to cover please feel free to let us know by tagging us or messaging us on social media. We would love to get customer feedback! As always, safe and happy travels everyone!