Leaving the Camper to Go Home Checklist
1. Dishes washed
2. Floors swept/mopped if needed
3. Hot water heater off
4. Check fridge for items that need to go home and place in ice chest
5. Laundry taken to van and any clean clothes needed to go home
6. Bathroom cleaned and trash removed
7. Beds made or linens removed to be washed at home (depends upon stay)
8. Garbage taken out
9. All electronics/chargers unplugged
10. Fans turned off (including ceiling fan)
11. A/C or furnace turned off *
12. Shades down and check that windows are closed. (add vents if not covered)
13. Black tank dumped and black tank flushed ** Then empty gray tank.
14. Awning in
15. Outside gear put away ***
16. After black tank has been flushed, close the valve. Go inside and add the black tank chemical with water to the toilet and flush. ****
17. Check and make sure all storage compartments are closed and locked.
18. Lock the door on the way out.
19. Turn off water at the spigot.
20. Make sure dogs and leashes are in the van!
* Some people like to set their A/C to a higher temp and leave it until they return. I have only done this a couple of times when we would be back in a couple days and it was going to be super hot. I will have the A/C set to 80F. The amount of electric it uses to keep it at 80F wasn't anymore than if we came in and tried to get the rig cool and comfortable when it was over 90F. It was much easier to cool from 80F to 72F. If the weather was going to turn out exceptionally cold with a freeze, we would leave the furnace turned to 50. This way the pipes were protected. We have only done this once on purpose and once on accident our first year. Didn't have the check list and well, he thought I turned it off and I thought he did.
** I use the black tank flush every time we get ready to leave. Keeping the black tank clean keeps odors away and avoids the poo/tp pyramid that many have experienced. It took two years to convince my dad to do this. He was having issues and after I cleaned his tank very well, he finally realized it was much easier to spend another five to ten minutes running water at the end of camp. !!!Remember to never leave your black tank open during your stay at camp!!!
***This happens to be the hubs' and the boy's job. (Sometimes hubs doesn't come up to camp.) Our first year, it drove me crazy with him trying to help do the inside things and tanks. It upset my methodical rhythm and surely I would forget something. So, I assign him the outside chores and carrying things I place on the landing to the van. Once we established the routine things hummed right along.
**** I hold down the foot pedal and count to 30 slowly to make sure enough water is in the holding tank to keep any residue from sticking to the bottom of the tank. Taking care of the black tank happens to be a thankless job that no one really seems to care about until there is a problem.
I hope this checklist helps you out and makes life at a seasonal camp a little easier. We go to enjoy and relax, not take care of issues due to an unkept camper. By myself, it takes about 40 minutes to complete my checklist tasks. The reward is opening up a nice, clean, and organized camper each trip.
