Annual RV Safety Inspection: Propane, Brakes, Tires and Seals

Propane runs the fridge, furnace, water heater and stove. Start at the tanks or cylinders. Look for rust, dents and a worn collar, and check the date stamped on the cylinder, since cylinders need requalification after a set number of years and a refill station will refuse one that is out of date. Make sure the regulator cover is in place and the vent is pointing down so water cannot sit in it.

The lines and fittings are where slow leaks hide. A simple check is to spray soapy water on each connection with the tanks open and watch for bubbles. Rubber pigtails crack with age and sun, and a mouse can chew a line during storage without leaving an obvious mark. If you smell propane, shut the tank valve, open the windows and do not light anything until the source is found.

A shop can go further with a pressure drop test on the whole system and a check of the regulator output, which is the part most owners cannot measure at home. The propane and carbon monoxide detectors inside the RV have an expiry date printed on them too, so read it while you are at it.

Most travel trailers and fifth wheels use electric drum brakes, and they do their hardest work on the long downhill grades west of Calgary. After a winter of sitting, the first thing to test is whether they work at all. Hook up, set the brake controller's manual slide, and roll forward slowly at walking speed in an empty lot. You should feel the trailer pull back on its own.

The breakaway switch deserves its own test. Pull the pin with the trailer hitched and the tow vehicle off, and the trailer brakes should lock. Put the pin straight back in. If nothing happens, the breakaway battery is likely dead, and that small battery is the only thing stopping a loose trailer. Check the plug and wiring for green corrosion as well, since a bad ground causes brakes that grab, fade or stop working at random.

Inside the drum, the shoes, magnets and wheel bearings cannot be checked without pulling the hub. That is a once a year job on a trailer that gets used, and it is where a shop earns its keep. Worn magnets, grease that has leaked onto the shoes and bearings with a dry or burnt look all show up here, long before you would notice them on the highway.

RV tires rarely wear through their tread. They age out first, sitting in one spot through an Alberta winter, then baking in prairie sun all summer. Find the four digit date code on the sidewall, which gives the week and year the tire was made, and treat the age of the tire as seriously as the tread depth. Fine cracking in the sidewall or between the tread blocks means the rubber is done, even if the tire holds air.

Set pressure cold, before the RV moves, to the figure on the trailer's weight sticker or the tire sidewall. Low pressure builds heat, and heat is what blows a trailer tire on a hot July afternoon. Torque the lug nuts to spec, and recheck them after the first short drive of the season, since wheels that were removed for bearing service can loosen as they seat. Do not forget the spare, which is often the oldest tire on the rig.

Every seam on the roof, every window, every marker light and every slide-out has a bead of sealant holding water out. Calgary's dry air, strong sun and big swings between freezing nights and warm days pull that sealant apart faster than it would wear in a milder climate. Walk the roof, or have someone do it, and look for sealant that has lifted at the edge, cracked, or shrunk away from the fitting it was covering.

Inside, press on the ceiling around vents and in the corners of slide rooms, and look at the wall below each window for a soft spot, stain or ripple in the wallpaper. A small reseal caught early is a cheap job you can often do yourself in the driveway. The same leak found two years later can mean a soft floor, a delaminated wall and an insurance conversation nobody enjoys.

If you would rather have one set of eyes cover all four in a single visit, bring it to Horton RV Services in Calgary. The hub-off brake and bearing check, the propane pressure test and a proper roof seal walk are the parts most owners cannot do well in a driveway, and the result should be a plain list of what is fine, what to watch and what needs fixing now.