intimidated, perhaps even shocked, by maintenance schedule in manual

lauriehart · November 2017

The T@B manual instructs us to wash the exterior monthly, clean wood and wall panels with wood cleaner monthly, and to apply wax to exterior twice a year, and apply furniture polish to interior twice a year, among other things. I gotta admit, my husband and I wash our car about once or twice a year (it rains a lot here) and we have never waxed a car in over 50 years of life. We also never polish our house furniture, and (you guessed it) tolerate a rather messy/dirty house. Yet we are not reckless, and I feel we do pay attention to the important things and to details, and we are quite safety-conscious. We just don't like cleaning much and don't find it worth our whiles. Are we simply not the kind of people who should own a T@B? Is it just resale value and our reputation with imaginarily fussy neighbors that suffer in a small way if we, say, quadruple the time interval between all this polishing and waxing and washing etc, or will we damage our lovely T@B with our indolent ways? Do y'all REALLY follow that maintenance chart in the manual?

pthomas745 · November 2017

If you don't want to, don't.

Mine is a year old, I've washed it once, kept it under cover, and clean it up a bit after every trip. Nobody here will judge. ( I hope!) When I see all the spiffy campsite setups in the pictures I have great respect for the effort, but I just don't have those organizational skills. Me? Friends who visited me at a campground this summer described my site as "nomadic."

Homebodyatheart · November 2017

@lauriehart, I don't. My 2017 320 MaxS is cleaned after each trip inside, but never has crossed my mind to polish the interior. The last morning of each trip I tuck everything away clean, or in a pile to be washed in the house when I get home. I use a cleaning wipe to wipe down the toilet and shower floor just because. I wipe or squeege the shower walls after each use. Vacuum and wash the floor once I'm home and unpacked, wipe out the fridge, counter, etc. Hose down the two small throw rugs and outdoor plastic rug and doormat after each trip. All common sense stuff. As for the outside we use Meguire's Wash and Wax. It was recommended to me and keeps L@dybug looking showroom new, and our TV's, too! That said...she's had two baths this year. The first after her longest trip in May, the second at the end of the season before being garaged for the winter. It was time, and I wanted the smooshed bugs and soot from the wildfires this summer off. I felt a bit guilty about that, but I've had plenty of distractions. Anyway, it's your rig, yours to do with as you please. (Of course, now I have to decide if I'm going to polish the woodwork over winter...a good inside project when the snow is deep! That wasn't even on my radar...

)

rkj__ · November 2017

There are a lot of maintenance schedules for stuff I own, that I do not follow.

Since getting it in July, my T@b got washed once this summer, when we took it to the dealer for service. I probably wash my truck ~10 times a year, and my wife's car a little less.

I find it hard find time and energy to wax my truck, and my wife's car once a year. I did not get to the T@b. Maybe next year...

I do like to care for my stuff when time allows.

DurangoTaB · November 2017

We rarely wash ours (we get very little rain in the Southwest, but a LOT of dust)...maybe twice a summer using my long-handled soft bristle brush that I wash the truck with. I’ve waxed the T@B once in 3 years...still looks new, which I attest to the PahaQue cover. OTOH I would recommend annual maintenance/checking of your wheel bearings. I had ours checked early in the season and one was so bad it had to be replaced.

lauriehart · November 2017

Thanks, as always this group is full of friendly people who make me feel at home!

Homebodyatheart · November 2017

@lauriehart I second having your lug nuts and brakes checked each year. My repair shop did it as a "brake check " for no charge.

Sharon_is_SAM · November 2017

Laurie hart, I agree re not polishing, etc. If you have a couple of adults who are not abusing the trailer, then just enjoy it! I think those directions are more appropriate for extreme use.

jkjenn · November 2017

Washing mine can be a challenge. It either involves several hoses to get a long enough reach it traveling to an area with a manual drive through car wash that will fit the T@b. There are none of those kind of car washes, near me, unfortunately.

Homebodyatheart said:

@lauriehart I second having your lug nuts and brakes checked each year. My repair shop did it as a "brake check " for no charge.

I have an annual safety inspection done to check the brakes, tures, and other parts. In addition, I recaulk, as needed, annually, and check to make sure screws and bolts are tight.

Mouseketab · November 2017

This may be extreme, but once a year, I empty mine down to the bare wood. I mean absolutely nothing inside. I clean everything inside and in the clam kitchen and all nooks and crannies with a bleach type cleaner. I put all the dishes, utensils, pots and pans in the dishwasher on sanitize, put all the linens in the clothes washer on sanitize, inventory spices, food staples, spare fuses, and first aid kit staples for stock and expiration dates, restock all that. Then also hubby sits inside with all the windows and shades closed in the dark, while I crawl around underneath and around on all seams with a flashlight, and hubby makes a note of any light coming in at those seams, and we plug any holes and recaulk any areas that look iffy. I go around with a screwdriver checking tightness on each and every screw on the interior and exterior. (Shades, trim pieces, etc.)

In between, I wash it outside a couple/three times a year, and just vacuum, swiffer dust, and wipe down the interior and kitchen periodically.

newell · November 2017

I washed and waxed out T@B within the first month that we owned it. I wash it after each trip when we return home. That's about it but when we camped in Maine under some oak trees this past fall where it got covered with some kind of tree sap, I was very happy I had waxed it. I'm not sure how well it could have been cleaned without the wax.

dCliffhanger · October 2019

This looks like some old posts. But I have a new T@b. I've had it for 4 months parked under trees. Since I had out the hose to flush and winterize, I attached a brush and washed off most of the spots. Otherwise I think I'm likely to be of the same philosophy as lauriehart. I like to brag that I wash my car for weddings and funerals and, maybe, on a few random occasions if it gets really muddy. I just don't see the point as I view cars and such to be just tools that do stuff I need done. But, I also buy for the long term so I take care of things mechanically. So, if waxing actually would extend the life of my T@b or car I'd consider it. I don't want to give the impression I'm a slob. I like things neat and "reasonably" clean. I do like the idea some have mentioned of routinely checking screw tightness as that extends the mechanical integrity and will support the fact that I will probably not be treating my Boondock gently as its job is to get me into very rough country.

Bayliss · October 2019

We have never polished the wood inside any trailer we have owned, but we thoroughly wash and clean the trailer inside and out after every trip (unless it is a very brief trip.) I wax the exterior at least once a year, but generally do it twice a year.........again, following a trip. I do the same with the tow vehicle and other vehicles we have owned. My 2007 Tundra still looks brand new. Waxing, and regular maintenance definitely cuts down on problems (e.g., fading, cracking of plastic, etc.), not to mention resale value. Every time I have sold a vehicle, I have obtained a very good sum on the sale..........much better than Blue Book.

Cliffhanger · October 2019

Bayliss said:

not to mention resale value. Every time I have sold a vehicle, I have obtained a very good sum on the sale..........much better than Blue Book.

Ha ha! Nearly every time I've sold a vehicle, or boat or... it's to the junk yard. I may buy new but then I tend to run things until they won't. Usually that's for decade(s). That means keeping them mechanically sound. Shiny appearances and resale value become pretty irrelevant. Though they are "just things", I have discovered a slight inclination in me to treat my brand new T@b and Trailhawk with a bit more care than I like to admit. I assume that will pass.....

ScottG · October 2019

Too funny, @Cliffhanger. Part of me hates getting something new because I know how much that first scratch or dent is gonna' hurt. Fortunately, in my case that usually happens within days... :-/

intimidated, perhaps even shocked, by maintenance schedule in manual

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