RV FEATURE
Keep on top of your tyre pressures
– it should go without saying!
There is one thing you can
expect on every big caravan
trip – the unexpected. Road
and weather conditions
change constantly, accidents
happen and things break. You
can bet on that.
Ensuring you are ready for
these challenges is part of
the planning; it’s also very
satisfying to have a solution
ready for whatever nature and
misadventure throw your way.
Here’s how I prepare for a
big trip, including some tips
gleaned from many years of
long-haul caravanning.
PREPARATION
Michael half-fills his jerry cans.
You’ve heard all this before,
but having your caravan
serviced before you leave
puts a fresh pair of eyes on
anything you might have
missed. Remember, any big
trip in Australia is going to
devour 10,000km or more,
which is longer than the
recommended service interval
on most caravans, so your
brakes, wheel bearings and
tyres need to be ready to
last at least that distance. Of
course, there are good places
‘out there’ to get servicing
and repairs done, but it’s
a good idea to do some
homework first and ask your
usual service agent if they
have any recommendations.
We charge our battery and
pre-cool our fridge on 240V
mains power, because 12V on
the move will do little more
than maintain the fridge’s
internal temperature.
We also download a couple
of good talking books before
we head off on a long inland
trip. The outback is never
boring, but a good book
makes the time fly and helps
to keep us alert.
FUEL FOR THOUGHT
Before we leave, I typically
flush my water tanks and fill
my gas cylinders. I also half-
fill one or both jerry cans
with 10L of fuel at city prices
when I fill the tow car. Why?
Well, when travelling inland
there can often be 200-300km
between fuel stations and if
we were to miss one or it’s
closed, we’d be stranded. Why
half-full? Well, a half-full jerry
is much easier to lift and pour
than a full one, and it’s less
likely to slosh dust-attracting
fuel out of its cap on bumpy
roads!
Having said that, we make
sure that we maintain enough
fuel to get us not only to the
next posted fuel stop, but the
one beyond that for the same
reason. “The tanker didn’t
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