RV Accessories For the First Time Camper Owner

Picking up your very first RV?  Walking through the Parts Store can be fun and confusing.  What do you really need to start camping? Many seasoned campers will agree the following is a good list for first time RV owners.

Make sure your tow vehicle is rated to pull the RV you are buying!  Is your hitch receiver the correct size?  Do you have the right Hitch Ball?  Is your tow vehicle equipped with a brake control?  These are questions that need to be answered before you leave with your new camper.

The first thing you need to consider is setting up your camper at the campground.  You will need chocks to keep your camper from rolling when it is unhitched from the tow vehicle.  Many people use wood blocks for this, However, tire chocks are easier to use and can protect your tires. The dents caused by wood blocks can lessen the life of your tires. For campsites that are not completely level, check into levelers. Levelers are available in several styles, including handy building block style, or drive on type.

Most campgrounds offer 30 and 50 amp service on site.  Some older campgrounds only have 20 amp, and you will need an adapter to plug in. A 30 to 20 amp adapter will also allow you to plug in your camper at home for cleaning, packing and unpacking.  Be aware that running your camper on 20 amp is hard on your air conditioner, so do not use air conditioners unless plugged into 30 amp service. Most campers have a electric cord that is 25ft. long. This is sufficient for most campgrounds. If an extension cord is required, it must be a heavy duty, 30 amp cord.

Your camper probably has two ways to use your plumbing. City water is the fresh water hook-up. To use this you need a water hose. Ordinary garden hoses will work, but they tend to give a rubbery taste to the water. RV water hoses are reinforced to lessen swelling, and lined to keep the fresh taste. It is always smart to use a water pressure regulator. This keeps the pressure going into your camper at a safe level for your plumbing. Country or on board water is carried in your water tank for campgrounds that do not have on site water. Your water pump will activate when you turn on the faucets. You can pick up a water tank filler that connects to your water hose to help fill your on board tank. Water filters are available to use at campsites that have questionable water sources.

The last thing to discuss is the sanitation system. You want to have toilet paper and holding chemicals on hand at all times. You may hear that you can use household tissue in your RV. Not so. Household tissue is made to be extra absorbent, and will swell up in your tank, and could cause clog problems. There are some very good RV tissue brands available that are hard to distinguish from home use tissue. RV tissue is manufactured to dissolve quickly. Holding tank chemicals help to dissolve tissue, as well as eliminate odor.

The above contains what you will need to use your new RV. As time goes on, you will find other products that you can use. Talking to other campers and looking at catalogues will give you lots of ideas for other RV accessories that you can use to make your camping trip more fun and less work.

For more information about the RV Parts noted above, please check out RVPartsDealer.com where you will find a huge variety of the newest RV Accessories.

Things to do in Jackson Hole

Located in a picturesque valley in western Wyoming and surrounded by spectacular mountain ranges, Jackson Hole has been called "the last and best of the Old West." The town of Jackson (at the end of Jackson Hole) features a charming square complete with western boardwalks and elkhorn arches, plus a number of designer shops, cafés, restaurants, and art galleries. This frontier-town-turned-ski-resort has over two thousand hotel rooms to accommodate the droves of tourists that filter in throughout the year. With Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park nearby (which attract nearly 6 million people each year), visitors can enjoy terrific fishing, hiking, camping, rafting, climbing and, of course, skiing. Jackson Hole also puts on several great festivals, including a Summer Music Festival and Fall Arts Festival.

Blessed with pristine forests, sparkling lakes, and expansive meadows, the area is an absolute haven for outdoor recreation and adventure. Though Jackson Hole is better known for outdoor pursuits such as fishing and skiing, the town is blessed with one of the best eighteen holes in the country. The award-winning championship course at the Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club has attracted the likes of Bill Clinton and George Bush. Best of all, it's open to the public.

- One of the biggest draws in Jackson Hole is the wonderful fishing that can be found in the nearby rivers, lakes and streams. The 1038-mile Snake River boasts some of the best fly-fishing anywhere and attracts thousands of eager anglers each year.

- The terrain of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is generally regarded by skiing fanatics as the most varied, challenging and breathtaking of any ski resort in the United States.

- The National Museum of Wildlife Art showcases perhaps the finest wildlife art exhibit in the country. Housed in a 50,000 square foot castle-like building, the museum features 14 galleries and over 2,000 paintings by many renowned artists, including John J. Audubon, Charles Russell, Albrecht Durer, George Catlin, Albert Bierstadt and many others.

- If one is visiting Jackson Hole during the winter months, one should take time to visit the National Elk Refuge, home to the largest gathering of elk in North America. Beginning in late autumn, thousands of elk make the long trek from the high country down to Jackson Hole.

- If one wants to get a bird's eye view of the magnificent expanse of land that comprises the Great Valley, one must take a Jackson Hole Aerial Tram Ride. Located at Jackson Hole Ski Resort, the tram lets one scan the mountains and surrounding area from a dizzying height of 10,000 feet. At that elevation, it can get quite chilly - even in the summer months.

- In Jackson Hole, the shoulder seasons of Spring and Fall are hidden gems. In Spring, solitude and wildlife abound. Great activities include snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. Viewing wildlife is more common as animals come down to the snow-free valley to feed.

- Jackson Hole has several old Wild West watering holes, including the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar which was made famous in the Clint Eastwood film, "Any Which Way You Can." One can hop on one of the saddle barstools and order up one's favorite whiskey or, if one prefers, a soft drink

Jim Hartley recommends that you visit http://www.rustyparrot.com for more information on a Jackson Hole hotel.

Stay Hydrated With a Water Bottle

Water is a basic necessity of life. It is something that helps our body to function properly. But what if we do not access it to fulfill your requirements? Do you know nearly 1.1 billion people around the world do not have access to clean drinking water? Facts say that we will face a crisis in coming days.

Water can be obtained from various sources, like rivers, streams lakes etc. Yet it has to be treated before it is consumed. There are various ways to ensure its quality and bottles are one such way that dispenses water for you in no time.

Water bottles are designed to filter automatically before drinking. People who are into sports or those who regularly exercise are very familiar with such bottles because these bottles keep them hydrated during an intense training regime or exercise.

It is recommended to use both hot and cold bottles as alternatives because heat relieves the pain while the cold diminishes swelling. Thus each option helps you in its own special way.

Water bottles remove sediment, chlorine and bacteria and provide you safe, clean and healthy h20. These also keep it fresh for a long time. Whether you are at home, riding on your bike, camping, or on a mission to some far off place where there is no possibility of obtaining fresh clean water, just squeeze and drink.

You will definitely enjoy every sip. These bottles do not leach harmful chemicals into your water unlike other plastic bottles and are made with 100% aluminum lining inside them in order to maintain good quality.

Water bottles are available in different designs, sizes and colors so that you have a plethora of choices.

They are durable and handy and you can place them in your car, travel equipment, or in your office where you can not take a huge amount of water with you. These bottles have enough capacity and their attractive colors make children like to have them more than elders do.

So this time if you are about to go on a trip make sure you are taking your fresh water supply with you. Do not compromise on your health, just buy a bottle and start your journey.

Click Here to discover the shocking reality about the many traces of harmful contaminants in our water supply. If you don't want to find traces of toxic chemicals in the water you drink, be sure to visit my website to learn the truth that no one else wants to expose.

Water Purification Tablets

Whether you need to purify your water for a camping or hiking trip, emergency use, or military deployments, having the means to purifying your own water is essential. Everyone knows that water is vital for life; the average person will only live two or three days without water. 3.575 million people a year die from diseases related to unsafe water according to the World Health Organization. Even ancient civilizations realized that water must be purified and created rudimentary methods such as boiling or filtering their water through sand. The "father of medicine", Hippocrates thought the body was made up of four "humors" that needed to be balanced in order for the body to be healthy. He created a "filtering sleeve" that water could be poured through after it was boiled in order to improve the taste and therefore supposedly quality.

Currently one common way of purifying water is to add chemicals. Iodine is added to water in tablet or crystallized forms "containing tetraglycine hydroperiodide that release eight milligrams of iodine per tablet adaptation to chronic tetraglycine hydroperiodide." This kills most water borne diseases. While this method should not be used for long periods of time due to the buildup of iodine in the user's system, it is a lightweight and inexpensive way to obtain safe drinking water. Since the taste of iodine is rather strong, vitamin c pills or flavored drink powder may be added to the water to destroy the negative taste of the iodine. Just remember to add these pills well after the iodine so it has a chance to kill the diseases beforehand. For warm water, iodine takes about thirty minutes however cold water takes much longer.

In case of a nuclear disaster, iodine tablets are useful in limiting the negative effects of radiation. Certain companies make iodine pills in the event of a nuclear attack to be distributed to survivors. In addition to iodine tablets, iodine crystals are another option for chemically filtering water. With this method, water is added to the crystals, given about thirty minutes to work, and then the treated water is poured off into another container. The crystals must not be ingested and they have the potential to treat over two thousand gallons of water. The advantage of this method is that the crystals have a virtually unlimited shelf life, while the tablets are only good for three months. Both of these techniques are not suitable for people who are allergic to iodine.

For more information about water purification tablets and other survival equipment, please visit http://www.specialforces.com

Does Boiling Really Purify Your Drinking Water?

When camping, travelling overseas, or even following some malfunction at your local water treatment plant, you are urged to boil water before drinking it. How effective is boiling - does it really make the water safe to drink? And how long do you boil the water for?

Why Boil Water?

The main reason boiling is recommended as a water treatment is because it can be done simply and because the disease causing organisms are destroyed by heat. Holding the water at a high enough temperature for long enough will destroy pathogens. The organisms of interest are cysts such as cryptosporidia and giardia, and bacteria such as E.coli, typhoid etc. Although the boiling does not remove them from the water, it does kill them and thus they will cause no illness.

How Long Should Water Be Boiled?

There are many times suggested: 1 minute, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes etc. Some advocates even suggest adding a minute to the boiling time for each 1000 feet of altitude. So which of these times is correct? After all, the amount of time the water needs to boil determines the amount of fuel needed (to boil 1 litre of water requires about a kilogram of wood). As it turns out, none of them. You do not even need to boil it for one minute - you just need to bring it to the point of boiling. Let's consider why.

According to the Wilderness Medical Society, water temperatures above 70° C (160° F) kill all pathogens within 30 minutes and above 85° C (185° F) within a few minutes. So the higher the temperature, the less time is needed to kill the micro-organisms. Bringing the water to boiling point raises it well over the 85°C mark. Not only that, but the water must then be allowed to cool (unless you are making a cuppa). So the total time the water spends above 85°C is significant and sufficient to kill pathogens.

If it is sufficient just to bring water to 85°C for a few minutes, why are you told to boil it? Basically because that is a foolproof way of guaranteeing the water will be the right temperature. Most people, do not carry thermometers with them when camping so it would be difficult to determine when the right temperature was met - once it reaches boiling you know what temperature it's at within a couple of degrees.

How Effective is Boiling Water?

Boiling water is an effective method for destroying bacteria and other pathogens. If the water is turbid, filter it through a clean cloth, or coffee filter to remove particulate matter before boiling as that will improve its appearance.

Boiling will not provide any safeguard against other things such as heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, pharmaceuticals etc that may contaminate a water supply. It may remove chemicals which have a lower boiling point than water but what about the others? Neither does it remove turbidity, foul tastes and odours.

In short, boiling water does not purify your water. It is certainly effective at eliminating the target pathogens but will not be effective against other contaminants - you really need a decent water purifier for that. However, drinking boiled water is certainly better than dehydration.

With the growing number of toxic substances and the increase in sources of contamination, purified water is more important than ever for continued good health.

More information on water purifiers can be found at http://www.crystalclearwater.com.au/

RV Water Leaks

If there is a way to get in your RV, water will find it. Water leaks on an RV can cause extensive damage and can be extremely costly to repair. When I worked at an RV dealership I saw the damaging effects that water can cause to an RV time and time again. I learned the lesson the hard way. I appraised a unit that was being traded in and didn't identify the extensive water damage, which resulted in a thousand dollars worth of repairs. Hindsight is 20/20 and I quickly learned how to inspect for, and identify potential water damage on RVs. My recommendation is that you inspect for potential water leaks twice a year at a minimum, once in the fall and again in the spring.

Every seam on your RV and anywhere the manufacturer cut a hole in your RV has the potential to allow water in. To protect your investment and your wallet take the time to REALLY inspect all of these seams and sealants. Water damage on an RV is similar to progressive damage to a tire. The outside of the tire looks fine, but the internal damage over a long period of time causes the tire to fail without any warning. The outside of your RV looks fine but the internal damage caused by water over a long period of time can result in the entire roof, floor or wall rotting away without you knowing it. Here are a few things to look for during your inspections.

Always keep safety on your mind when you are working on the roof of your RV You can be seriously injured from a fall! A reader of mine suggested that you use 2 pieces of 1/2"
plywood, 2 foot by 4 foot, to move around on and spread your weight out over the
roof rafters.

* To stop a leak before it starts, thoroughly inspect all roof and body seams. Consult with your RV dealer for sealants compatible with different types of roofing materials.

* Look for any discoloration and feel for any soft spots on the ceiling around roof vents, air conditioners, TV antennas, plumbing vents, and any other openings that were cut in the roof.

* Look for any discoloration or wrinkles in the wallpaper, and feel for any soft spots on the walls around all windows, doors, vents, slide outs, or any other openings that were cut in the side walls.

* Identify the location of items like the water heater, furnace, outside shower, potable water fill and city water inlet on the outside of the RV and then access those areas from the inside of the RV and look for any indications of water damage around these openings.

* Open all overhead cabinets and look in the top corner where the walls meet the ceiling for any discoloration or feel for any soft spots. This would indicate a leak at the seam where the sidewall and the roof attach.

* Check in all outside storage compartments for any indications of water leaks or water damage.

* Check for any soft spots on the roof itself especially around the roof seams at the front and rear of the RV. Thoroughly inspect all sealants on the roof around every opening.

* Some Class C motor homes are notorious for leaks in the cab over bed area. Look for any signs of discoloration and feel for soft spots. Reach under the mattress and feel for water.

* Look and feel on the outside of the RV for any signs of delaminating. Delaminating is caused by water getting between the exterior fiberglass and the sidewall. When this happens the exterior fiberglass separates from the sidewall of the RV. You can stand at the front or rear of the RV and look down the side for any noticeable ripples or what looks like a bubble. You can also press on the sidewalls. If you feel the exterior fiberglass move it is delaminating. Often times delaminating starts around where an opening that was made in the sidewall.

Don't just inspect your RV for water damage; REALLY inspect your RV for water damage. If you do this on a regular basis you can locate and repair the source of any water damage before it has a chance to do a great deal of damage. I think I'll start checking our motor home more than twice a year.

Happy Camping,

Mark

Copyright 2006 by Mark J. Polk owner of RV Education 101

RV Expert Mark Polk, seen on TV, is the producer & host of America's most highly regarded series of DVD's, videos, books, and e-books. www.rveducation101.com/

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How to Prevent Infection

Preventing infection means preventing sickness and disease. Infection, when left unchecked for too long, may turn into a more serious condition with accompanying complications and worse, even death.

There are several ways for you to keep protected from infection and from preventing infection. Most of them are pretty easy to remember and can be integrated with our daily habits. Here's how to prevent infection from getting to us.
Sanitize Your Hands

Washing your hands is the number one method to prevent infection. Your hands make the most contact with different items and people everyday. Your hands also make contact with different pathogens everyday, and when you touch your eyes, mouth, nose, your hands provide a bridge where the pathogens can cross over to your body. Infectious diseases such as colds and flu can pass from hand-to-hand contact. Food infection like salmonella can also be caused by dirty hands handling food.

To wash your hands properly, all you need is soap and warm water. Hand sanitizers are also good to clean your hands, but soap is still the best. You do not have to use antibacterial soap as they will simply make the bacteria toughen up against the sanitizing agents.

Wash your hands by wetting your hands and lathering soap all over them. Keep lathering for around 15 to 20 seconds, scrubbing all parts of your hand, especially between your fingers and under your fingernails. Rinse your hands and dry well, either with a towel, tissue or a hand dryer. Use a tissue when turning off the faucet or touching the doorknob out of the lavatory.

To sanitize your hands, you must use half a teaspoon of alcohol or sanitizer and rub all over your hands until completely dry.

Sanitize your hands after they have contact with anything unsanitary-public toilets, diapers, trash and animals. If you are sick, it's also recommended that you wash your hands after covering your mouth as you cough or sneeze. You should also wash your hands before and after handling food to prevent salmonella and other food infection.
Don't Share Personal Items

What are personal items? As a general rule, personal items are those that you use exclusively, repeatedly and have direct contact to your skin, mouth, eyes, and bodily orifices. That would put towels, toothbrushes, lipstick, razors, socks and even clothes under the general category of personal items. By keeping your personal items personal, you lessen the risk of spreading infection (if you have it) to others and getting infection from someone else that used your personal things.
Keep Wounds Clean

Open wounds and scratches are potential sites of infection, no matter how small. To clean a wound, wash your hands first and put on sterile gloves. Use disinfected water (1 oz of povidone iodine in one liter of water, set aside for five minutes) to wash away excess dirt and blood. Dab the wound dry with a sterile cloth, and use a clean bandage to cover it up. Replace the bandage after a few hours, or until the wound is completely dry.

If you have an infected wound, it's best to keep to yourself for a few days until the wound is completely healed. Avoid doing sports, going to the gym or going out to high-traffic spaces (such as a club) to prevent a spread of infection.

For more serious wounds, go to a hospital for immediate treatment.

Shower

Sports or working out in the gym exposes you to germs and bacteria. Shower immediately after a game, and throw all the clothes and towels you used straight in the laundry. The same goes following outdoor activities such as camping and hiking. Showering after strenuous activities outdoors ensures that all the pathogens you may be carrying with you are washed off as soon as possible. A quick shower daily is actually a great way for you prevent pathogens from hanging around after your day-to-day activities.
Be Hygienic

Being hygienic not only means keeping your body clean, but keeping your surroundings clean and sterile as well. Personal hygiene means washing your hands regularly, brushing your teeth, flossing your teeth and not sharing your personal items, among other things.

Keeping a hygienic environment means not giving bacteria and other pathogens an opportunity to breed and multiply. Throwing out your trash, cleaning up your bathroom regularly, sweeping the floor, dusting, cleaning out filters and keeping a regular laundry schedule are some of the many things you'll need to do to keep your house truly clean.

For more on How to prevent infection and other how-to do stuff, please visit Monster Guide. Wisdom is the sharing of wise experiences and knowledge, but a lot of it is common sense. The difference is how we apply this common sense - we all have the ability to keep going even when we face challenges in our lives - basically it comes down to your attitude.