RV Park Review - Holiday Park RV Park Austin Texas

Well located little park within 10 minutes of downtown Austin

Click on THIS LINK for background information on what these RV Park video drive by reviews are all about.

You can't argue location on this little park. But, when you see it, the RV's have MELTED into the land they sit upon. I don't think the park rejects any clientele - and you could potentially have someone next to you who is cooking more than fried potatoes. It looks scary - check out the video. Honestly, I would not judge a book by its cover, but...



For those who prefer a link : Holiday Park RV Park Austin Texas Video Review

RV Basics : Blank Tank Treatment : Orange Power from Camco

Sheri and I tried the TST Orange Power from Camco. It smelled awful all by itself. Sheri characterized it as smelling like garbage, and that is BEFORE we did anything but melt the corn starch material bag in clean water.

I personally do not have a sense of smell (it is true - none at all) so I can't comment. But I trust Sheri's nose.

We cannot in good faith encourage anyone to purchase this product and we will not do so ever again in the future. Someone would have to tell us we got a bad batch or tell us we did something wrong in using it before we'd touch it again.

I can tell you the ingredients read AWFULLY SIMILAR to baking powder and salt, although I don't think that is what it truly is. The orange color is completely artificial - marketing concept only. Then there is something called a 'bittering agent'. I'm not a chemist so I cannot comment.
 

TST Orange Power from Camco

Keeping the RV Clean and Neat

Here is an update to the original post.

Sheri and I no longer recommend these mats at all. AT BEST, they would work for light duty and getting in/out of the RV. Even though we really liked it and the people who introduced us to them really liked them, we have already thrown ours into the trash.

So after about 5 months use, the material starts 'flaking' or shedding, almost like fiberglass particles and you get them everywhere. We left the mat out all the time, but it simply cannot stand up to outdoor use, particularly in the Texas sun (I ASSUME (but have no empirical evidence) the sun).

Our next attempt will be an astro-turf-like rug.



[ Original Post - Jan 2010 ]

When visiting our RV (recreational vehicle) recently Sheri and I ran across a woman who had a fantastic outdoor mat (or rug) under her RV retractable awning.

The mat was this amazing rubbery material, I think polypropylene, and it was reversible. It was brown and white and was very, very light. She said it was very easy to clean - having hosed it off before with just a simple garden hose. She also said she loved how it easily rolled up and could be stored.

We had asked her where she had gotten it and she had said Walmart.

We found one mat at Walmart and purchased it immediately.

The MOST IMPORTANT benefit of having a mat is that it keeps gravel and dirt from being tracked into the RV from the campsite. We have found, more often that not, that the RV pad sites are gravel and not concrete, which means it is very easy to track in debris. The mat solves so much of that.

I tried to find the mat online at Walmart, but you cannot get it from walmart.com, which seems funny to me. You can however find it at amazon.com.

Good luck. We've put it over in our catalog section so you can find it over on that page.

RV Lifestyle : The Bombing Mission

As Sheri and I visit Nebraska we run across many different people. Nebraska is very sparsely populated - approximately the same amount of people live in Nebraska that live in greater Austin Texas! I'm building up to a point so bear with me... We've noticed that there are RV'ers who consider themselves part of the RV community, some who are part of an actual RV club, and then finally, we've now discovered a new group - those that simply own an RV and really don't know anything about RV community 'norms', rules, or even laws for that matter. I think that comes from old age, norms from 50 years ago, and a sparse population.

So we ran across some old timer Nebraskan's who aren't so well acquainted with what I would call the norms and rules of good RV'ing and are probably violating the law. I'm simply a 'reporter' of sorts, relaying what I saw/heard, what it made me think about, and passing it on.

This fellow, and I'll leave him nameless, is an old timer from Nebraska and he has an RV. When I spoke with him about his RV, he said he had to take it out on the road. I asked him what he was going to do and he said he was going to empty his tanks. When I asked him where he did that at, he said, and I quote, " I get going about 60 mph down an old gravel road and then I open the tank. ". I mentioned that I really wanted him to do it on a road where I wouldn't be driving and mentioned that I thought that might be illegal.

He said he even had a local Sheriff camp with him and the Sheriff utilized that method! I asked him more about it and he said that after he did it you couldn't even tell because he used digesters and that it was really liquid.

Of course I can't verify any of his claims, but it does seem that you shouldn't be doing this at all, no matter how remote you are! But he is very, very old and I think I'll just let him get a ticket from the state patrol if they catch him. He is a WWII vet and I can't help this lets him relive his WWII bombing missions.

For the rest of you who aren't that old, will you just use an approved dump station? There is right and there is wrong and you need to keep right on your side.

RV Basics : Clean Pure Filtered Water and a review of a Walmart Filter

In an earlier post about an RV Water Filter we mentioned that we purchased it because the water at many parks tastes funny. Honestly, it is probably that it just tastes different, but we did purchase a filter for Puma because of the taste of the water.

You can see the filter in the link above. I'll describe it here though. It is a blue filter about 3-4 inches in diameter and maybe 12-14 inches long. It screws into the RV park or campground water supply and then you screw your water hose onto it and you have filtered water for your RV.

So we've been using it for awhile (and haven't gotten a new one) which is about 4 months. Here is what I've learned and would like to pass on to YOU!

First, we do not recommend an RV-wide water filter like we have shown in the link. Here is why (see cons) worded as pros and cons to the incoming line water filter :

Pros :

• Filtered water is EASY. You just hook it into your incoming supply and you are done.

Cons :

• I don't see a way to tell when the filter is 'used up'. So you just have to guess. Since it is outside and you never think about it until that last drink of water before going to bed, then you never do anything about it.
• A filter on the incoming line cuts down the available water pressure in my opinion and limits the flow noticably.
• It is incredibly wasteful of resources (in a small way) to filter the water for the toilet, handwashing, and your shower. So you really don't want/need to do the whole RV.
• Your filtered water isn't chilled so you still have to put your water in the fridge to get chilled filtered drinking water.

Sheri and I have ended up purchasing and so far, very much enjoying, a Pur pitcher that filters the water. The water tastes great and its chilled. And our water pressure is much better now.

Video Drive By Review : San Gabriel Motor Inn and RV Park Georgetown Texas

Click on THIS LINK for background information on what these RV Park video drive by reviews are all about.

The San Gabriel Motor Inn and RV Park is located near Georgetown Texas. Georgetown is located on I-35 near Austin, Waco, and Killeen. This is first a MOTEL and secondly an RV Park. The RV park is at best an afterthought and the Motel does not look well kept. All in all, it seems sad because the location is extraordinary (right on San Gabriel River AND 1 block off downtown Georgetown) to really make the place a great spot. But it is not.

RV Accessory : Camco Deflapper Has a Weak Link

When trying to secure our RV awning, one thing you do is to secure the awning edges from flapping in the wind. If you allow it flap enough, it will mechanically loosen screws and other items and eventually the looseness will really allow the wind to catch the awning and potentially break your awning.

We had purchased several flappers made my Camco and on my first try at tightening the flapper I broke the unit. You can see where I broke it. The link that fastens the de-flapper mechanically from the awning to the aluminum awning support strut was made of PLASTIC.

I do not think this is a good design. Apparently the people from Camco are using cheaply made Chinese materials and probably did not even try them out. 

I would not recommend these de-flappers and if you do have them you have been warned. The plastic link is not mechanically sound and won't save your awning at all.

Note : Some of the same Camco's do have metal links, but you just cannot be sure so you should pick up a different de-flapper and look for strong mechanical connections. I cannot stress how much power the wind actually has when it hits  your awning.

Video Drive By Review : County Line RV Park Dripping Springs Texas

Click on THIS LINK for background information on what these RV Park video drive by reviews are all about.

This park (County Line RV Park) looked more like a full-timer RV Park and on first glance I do not recommend it for people just passing through like Winter Texans. Compared to some parks which look downright scary, this wasn't too bad, but there are better choices for the non-full-time RV folks. Dripping Springs is west of Austin and is convenient to Fredericksburg, San Antonio and Kerrville Texas. It is in the Texas Hill Country.

Drive by Review : Hudson Bend and Armadillo RV Park

Sheri and I recently did a drive by of the Hudson Bend RV Park and the Armadillo RV Park.

Before I say too much, there seem to be maybe three or four different kinds of RV parks.

1. Very nice RV Parks which can rightfully call themselves resorts (La Hacienda, Millers Creek)
2. Nice RV Parks (like Fredericksburg RV Park)
3. RV Parks that are friendly but are really RV Parks that are for full-timers. These are usually pretty decent looking, but just are different than #1 or #2.
4. Downright SCARY looking places where the RV's MELT into the ground. One level up from wooden or paper hovels.

So here is a bit of frightful honesty. Hudson Bend RV park and Armadillo RV Park are the #4 category. I would not recommend you stay here. You've been warned.

More on Connecting the Sewer to the RV

UPDATE TO THIS ARTICLE : Overall, Sheri and I really believe in the universal fitting. However, the one from Walmart that is pictured here is not a good one. Here are the reasons this one is not good.

1) The elbow separates from the universal adapter. All in all that is not bad, but the mechanism for taking them apart and keeping them together is VERY FRAGILE and is so easily broken or worn as to basically make it so the elbow won't stay in the universal fitting. Sad to say, but 'made in China' probably  means 'never once tested'.

2) The universal quick attach hose clamp that attaches the elbow to the flexible hose that most people use for the sewer hose is a bunch of baloney.

OVERALL : Don't buy the Walmart universal sewer adapter and elbow. There are better ones. As soon as I find one, I'll let you know.

Here are things we are going to look for in a universal RV sewer elbow in a new one which we'll soon have.

1) I think the unit should be clear plastic. Not so as to be grotesque, but so you can get an idea of the health of your holding tanks. Its like this - you want to know, even if you don't want to know.
2) I think that a lever of sorts should be attached to the fitting so you can get it on and off without tools.
3) The hose clamp that attaches the sewer hose to the elbow should work. It should not be a puzzle for people who do not care that much.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE :


When we were at our first RV park with Puma, what we call our recreational vehicle, we noticed that our flexible sewer hose had a GREAT connection to the RV. Those connections are very standard with special hooks and a quick on, quick off release.

But the OTHER end had nothing.

So to dump our tanks, we pushed the hose down into the RV parks septic system's drain. But we knew that wouldn't work.

It turns out that Walmart has a really good RV department. When we were in that department we found a universal connector for the sewer. It was less than $10.

We immediately used it. I wasn't that impressed with the hose clamp. But we got it working. The universal fitting worked perfectly in the Llano River RV Park so we're 1 for 1 on that fitting working. This was a pretty useful thing so I wanted to post it so people knew these things existed. Also, I wanted to inform people about Walmart's little RV section.