00;00;00;00 - 00;00;26;20
Unknown
So your RV refrigerator just died. What do you do? Do you have a funeral? The Abut? Well, you might not do either. That's what we got to talk about today and staying on the road. But before we get into staying on the road, we're going to look at enjoying the RV life and we're going to talk about RV life, campgrounds and directory actually campground reviews and directory.
00;00;26;22 - 00;00;48;12
Unknown
And then we're going to visit Sharon in Texas and look at the top reasons why you'd want to go there. And then in RV envy, we're going to visit, you'll link hubs and sensors for RVs. So this is Eric Stark with the Smart RV or podcast delivering the Smarts. You need to enjoy the freedom of the RV lifestyle without the fear of breaking down less talk everything.
00;00;48;12 - 00;01;17;03
Unknown
RV today is 100 and episode 152. So let's jump into this. Welcome to the show today, Alexis. Thanks. I'm excited to be here with you. Alexis just bought a new RV. I did not know a used RV near to me, so she took my advice. I certainly did. It's awesome. So they bought an older RV? Yeah, that's perfect.
00;01;17;03 - 00;01;41;03
Unknown
It really is. All right. And how many slide houses it have now and not one slide is one less mudder you got to worry about. Exactly. All right. So cool. So it's a nice, clean, older trailer, good shape. It is. Yep. Yep. Back when they built them, right? Exactly. Yep. Yeah. So we have a friend named John, and he would probably agree with your purchase, right?
00;01;41;03 - 00;02;00;20
Unknown
Yes, I think he would. He'd be there camping definitely prior to 2000. All right, so that's cool. So Alexis upgraded RV. Her and her husband now have a newer trailer ready to enjoy the RV lifestyle a little bit more. Yes. You're in Montana. Mm. All right. So there's one thing I wanted to bring you out. This came out during the week.
00;02;00;26 - 00;02;32;08
Unknown
I don't know, in couple of weeks ago, but when you have an RV, whether it's a trailer, motorhome, sometimes you get things that are made just for that RV. They're only going to fit that RV. For example, if you have a classy motorhome or a classy or B and you have a windshield cover on it that maybe you got from Sun Pro manufacturing, you know, if you're not going to buy the exact same RV, there is no point in keeping that windshield cover because it probably will not fit the next RV.
00;02;32;10 - 00;02;51;09
Unknown
And we hear about this all the time. I bought or you know, we got an RV or now as a go. Yeah yeah we bought this RV has snaps on the front of it for a windshield cover but the people didn't leave it, you know, they sort, they kept that which makes no sense. Yeah. And we hear that all the time.
00;02;51;09 - 00;03;06;04
Unknown
So I know there are some things on an RV when you sell it, you want to keep. I understand that. But things were made for your RV. They're probably only going to fit that RV or your awning. Maybe you have a 12 foot awning. You know you're going to get a longer trailer on. He's going to get bigger.
00;03;06;04 - 00;03;23;08
Unknown
So don't keep the shade. Just let it go. With the RV. Yeah, You know, that's part of getting an RV. You buy a new stuff and re outfit net spending more money, you know? Yeah. You just get a new one for your new RV. But just keep that in mind. When you sell something that's made just for your RV, Just let it go with the RV.
00;03;23;10 - 00;03;47;10
Unknown
Actually, you know, it's a cool thing to do. Yes. All right. So now, as we talk everything RV, let's just get into this and let's hit the RV. Life campgrounds, reviews and directories. What did you like about their website, or I should say, the services they offer? Well, for one, I like to be picky about where I travel to and I want it to be a good place.
00;03;47;10 - 00;04;06;07
Unknown
So what I find really cool about this is that you can see reviews from other actual customers that stayed there. So if somebody similar thoughts like you did, this is what I expected. This is what I got, then you can kind of make a decision about where you're going to go based on that before you even hit the road, which is very, very cool.
00;04;06;07 - 00;04;29;23
Unknown
You can see maybe some amenities that you want, maybe choose a campground over another one based on location or, you know, just various things, depending on what you and your family want from that campground or RV park. That's kind of nice. There are real reviews which make reference. Yeah, they're not just robots or whatever out there doing it right.
00;04;29;23 - 00;04;49;20
Unknown
Flex is probably a good point about those reviews because don't we always shop by reviews? Exactly. You didn't go to that big old giant website that sells all the garbage in the world. Oh, yeah. You know, you look at the reviews and, you know, you can tell there are tons of fake reviews on there. Yeah. You know, And so you really got to sort through them.
00;04;49;20 - 00;05;09;24
Unknown
You really want you want to read two or three, but now you're find yourself reading 50 of them because most of them sound like they're just made by the manufacturer. A robot is doing that or a bot where you want to call it these days. Yeah, you know, and so they're fake, but these campground ones are real. A lot of outdoorsy type things like trail directories, things like that.
00;05;09;25 - 00;05;27;22
Unknown
They have real people reviews and they do make all the difference in the world. They do, you know, and you got to read several of them. You know, one might be very negative, one might be very positive. So you have to find that average. Yeah, exactly. So besides the reviews, what other awesome things are found at the RV Life website?
00;05;27;24 - 00;05;49;19
Unknown
Well, another cool feature is the forums. So this is where you can talk to actual people who have been there or get guidance and support from from the actual host sometimes of the campgrounds. So they're going to be a wealth of information. Hopefully if they're on that site, they will be helpful. So you can you can actually ask a real person instead of just reading.
00;05;49;21 - 00;06;11;28
Unknown
And then too, there's tips and advice. There's blog posts that cover topics like maintenance, packing lists, budgeting advice and destination recommendations, kind of like what we do with our next stop. But ours is better. Obviously, you know, reserves for maintenance. You just come here this is the source of them. Yeah. Yeah. Well, there's probably, you know, a few things.
00;06;12;02 - 00;06;39;23
Unknown
Yeah. Who knows why they. Yeah. So it's a good resource to go to. It caught our attention. So obviously we're talking about it. We don't talk about anything that we want to look at or use or do ourselves. And definitely it's on our radar. So go to their Web site and their website, you know, so RV life ecom, but is to get to this spot you go to campgrounds, dot reviews, dot RV, Lifehacker com Yeah I'm sure there's a link on the website.
00;06;39;23 - 00;06;56;16
Unknown
Yeah that's friendlier than that. You know that's just what we had written down here and slots for this what I'm going with. But I'm sure if you go to our relive dot com they're going to have a link like campgrounds or reviews or. Yeah. Or something else you know so just go there. Well I'll take a peek and see what you can find.
00;06;56;17 - 00;07;18;13
Unknown
Yeah, it's free. Why not? You know. Okay, now let's jump into staying on the road and we're going to talk about RV refrigerators. So your RV refrigerator just died. What do you do? Stopped working. Do you have a funeral? Just replace it. Just kind of look the other way for a while. Hope the problem will go away. Or do you do neither?
00;07;18;13 - 00;07;41;22
Unknown
Let's find out. So you're out camping, you're enjoying your RV, and that day has finally come. Your refrigerator just died. I paused there because I was going to say something else, but it's my sense of humor. No one else will appreciate it. So anyways, your refrigerator has just died, so it stopped working. You know, everything's getting warm as you sit there.
00;07;41;22 - 00;08;03;07
Unknown
I don't know. What do we do? So now what? Well, first we have to examine the situation. You have to take a moment and determine if a funeral is really necessary. Or maybe just minor surgery. You know, we hope for minor surgery, but sometimes you got to go to a funeral, right? If your refrigerator is beyond minor repair, such as the cooling have failed.
00;08;03;07 - 00;08;20;12
Unknown
And we're going to get into that a little bit more in more detail. Just a moment. But the cooling unit of failing would be a good reason to buy a new refrigerator, at least from where I sit, there are some very important things we need to consider when we're looking at a refrigerator that's having problems, especially if it gets into a cooling unit.
00;08;20;12 - 00;08;40;21
Unknown
But like I said, we'll jump into that in just a moment. So we hear this all the time that, you know, someone will say, My refrigerator just quit working, or they'll say it died. You only say it died. You automatically think, well, it's time to get a new refrigerator, right? You know, no reviving it. Exactly. It's done and over with.
00;08;40;21 - 00;09;01;14
Unknown
But that's not really what they mean. They just mean it. Quit working so we don't automatically call a funeral home and get things set up for the funeral week. We don't do that right away. First, we determine if the refrigerator malfunctioned and if it can be repaired, which is most often what happens very rarely is a refrigerator beyond repair.
00;09;01;14 - 00;09;21;11
Unknown
It does happen. But most time it can be fixed. So I bring this up because, you know, quite often the first reaction is to replace the refrigerator. It seemed like it stopped working, so we got to just replace it. And quite often that's how the conversation starts, you know, how much is a new refrigerator? And then you ask a couple of questions.
00;09;21;11 - 00;09;45;09
Unknown
Oh, we were just out camping and it quit cooling. Okay. So we might not need a new refrigerator here, you know, and refrigerators are so expensive anymore that it's good to try to repair it and make it work. If you can't, that's the route we always take. So I remember or I recommend to our customers to be sure that is dead and ready for a funeral before replacing it.
00;09;45;09 - 00;10;10;16
Unknown
You know, we want to make sure. So that's where we start asking questions. And the customers, you know, they're not always right in this case. Exactly. And fortunately, the customer is not always right. What a horrible thing to say. Right. And it's not always time for a new refrigerator, but we start asking questions. We start working our way through it and sorting out the events that led up to it.
00;10;10;16 - 00;10;34;18
Unknown
You know, what happened, how did it die? What was going on? You know, is it taking too many drugs now? Just kidding. No drugs involved, Refrigerator. No. But what happened? You know, why did it quit? Working people will go to YouTube and they'll like, you know, type in refrigerator, stopped working it. Man. It's such a broad term. You're going to get so much stuff back then.
00;10;34;18 - 00;10;53;23
Unknown
It's just going to be confusing. And quite often they grab on to something that's not really the same as their problem, and that's why they might think their refrigerator needs be replaced, you know? So you can't go to YouTube because you're not going to find the exact same problem. In fact, occasionally I go to YouTube looking for stuff, but it never helps.
00;10;53;24 - 00;11;11;19
Unknown
Yo, you know, it's like locked away. What are these morons doing all these videos and the you know, it's not the problem, right? And so many of the videos are just bad. It's bad advice. It is. You know, especially the titles. They make the title sound like it's your problem, but it's not even close. So, you know, if you want to go to YouTube, that's fine.
00;11;11;19 - 00;11;29;03
Unknown
But sometimes people go there, you know, trying to get this resolved, which is great. You know, you're trying to do it on your own or they talk to somebody who has a refrigerator in an RV. Their friend says, Well, I had the exact same problem and this is what I did. It probably wasn't the exact. Yeah. How do they know now?
00;11;29;03 - 00;11;51;06
Unknown
Find out. Well, similar. Well, not even close. So it has to be the exact same problem, same refrigerator. You know, I there's variables there. So talking to a friend sometimes may help, may not help depending on what their experience was. You know, and even technicians sometimes are going to come back with you just need to get a new refrigerator or, you know, they're like doctors anymore.
00;11;51;06 - 00;12;15;19
Unknown
In this PCR testing, you always got COVID, right? So you take you to a dealership, you always need a new refrigerator is dead beyond repair. You know, they don't want to do any kind of research for us to resuscitate. Can't talk today. I'm not a doctor that's why So So anyways, not all dealerships do that, but it seems to be more and more that repairs are not what's being done.
00;12;15;19 - 00;12;59;19
Unknown
They're selling new parts like automotive industry. You know, years ago, mechanics rebuilt brake calipers, wheel cylinders, alternators. Not anymore. Everything just gets replaced. You always get new. Well, not new parts, rebuilt parts or whatever parts and some sort of a semblance of new. So it's different world today. So everybody wants to put in new stuff. You have to be cautious here because what we find is about 85% of the time that the problems are minor, such as it needs a thermostat or maybe a gas valve, a circuit breaker popped and it doesn't work on 110 or a fuze on the circuit board blew or, you know, circuit breaker is RB The circuit board has gone
00;12;59;19 - 00;13;20;11
Unknown
bad. You know, circuit boards are a little more expensive, but it's still a minor repair compared to a new refrigerator. Exactly. Alexis is shaking her head out. Huh? Uh huh. Because she hears me talking to people all the time and quoting these prices. You know, a circuit board, 300 bucks, new phrase, you know, versus a newer fridge over 2000.
00;13;20;11 - 00;13;41;12
Unknown
You know which way you're going to go. Exactly. And so these repairs can add up. And sometimes a refrigerator might have a problem where it's hard to harder to diagnose and maybe end up with a couple parts. But that's okay. You're still money ahead or the refrigerator might have an intermittent problem that makes it more difficult to diagnose.
00;13;41;12 - 00;14;04;23
Unknown
You know, I know that sometimes people would just put a new refrigerator out of frustration. They're tired of dealing with it. Maybe they've taken it to some technicians and they've spent 300 here, 200 there, 500 here, the money service piling up. And it's like, I don't want to deal with this anymore. So they just put it in the refrigerator and sometimes I get it, you know, you just frustrated, put it in new and that should solve the problem.
00;14;04;25 - 00;14;22;05
Unknown
Yeah, hopefully. Hopefully it was a refrigerator or not something else. Okay. We hear it all the time about furnaces, the same type of stuff in water heaters, you know? So I need a new water heater. I need a new furnace, you know, a furnace is going to be at least a thousand by. Oh, yeah, Let's go. Go ahead and repair it.
00;14;22;05 - 00;14;56;29
Unknown
You know, all these things can be repaired up until a certain point. Sure, They all get to a point where they're beyond repair. But until it gets to that point, think about repairing it again. Most of the time, everything can be repaired. Now, there are times that the refrigerator might go beyond repair, for example. It continually has problems, you know, since you bought the RV, whether it new or used, you're just always every year like a new circuit board, a new heating element, a new this, a new that, You know, the burners not working, doesn't work on electricity, doesn't work on gas.
00;14;56;29 - 00;15;18;00
Unknown
And it's, you know, a couple of hundred here, a few hundred there, and you're tired to put money into it. It's like the Money Pit. And maybe that refrigerator is just bad. You know, it happens. That happens with cars, right? Yeah, Some cars just are piles of junk compared to their exact same model, same year. You know, in fact, I knew a guy in Arizona had a Ford van identical to mine.
00;15;18;01 - 00;15;36;29
Unknown
Yeah. Spent thousands and thousands of dollars on the front suspension. I've spent nothing. That's so funny, you know, And I had more miles on mine than his, You know, he's just complaining you finally got rid of it. Like I'm not a problem, you know? It's like, whatever. Yeah. So those things happen. So maybe that's the time where you know, it's a money pit.
00;15;36;29 - 00;15;57;18
Unknown
You just get rid of it. Understandable. Or is older, you know, it's an older RV, you're keeping it around. You don't want to let it go. It's your favorite. Everything works in it, you know, except for the refrigerator. Yeah. And maybe the refrigerator could be repaired. But you decide, you know what? This RV is 25 years old is the original refrigerator.
00;15;57;19 - 00;16;17;23
Unknown
We're going to keep this are real issues. Put a new refrigerator in it, then go ahead and do it. You know, it's time to just bury that old dog. It gets to that point. You know, sometimes they just get old or not worth put money into where you don't want to. Parts might becoming harder to get. You know the last time you got a circuit board they had a hard time finding one.
00;16;17;26 - 00;16;39;12
Unknown
So maybe it's just time to go. Let it go. Parts aren't available, door gaskets, things like that. So it's just pouring money into a dead horse, if you will. So you don't want to do that. So my point is, it's not always cut and dry when a refrigerator fails and it sounds odd that people automatically go to the refrigerator need to be replaced.
00;16;39;12 - 00;17;06;13
Unknown
But that's where it goes to for whatever reason. You know, maybe it's just society in general anymore. It's a throwaway society. You know, your home refrigerator breaks, you just get a new one and absolutely, you know, so it's just makes more sense, I guess. But we need to be careful there. So now let's get into the cooling unit because that's the big, expensive part of a refrigerator or one of the most expensive parts.
00;17;06;15 - 00;17;24;18
Unknown
Doors can get expensive, you know, things like that. But the refrigerator is a big one and it's easier to replace a door financially than replace a cooling unit because the refrigerator is working. Yeah, I definitely want to put a new door on here. The hinge broke and they do. On some models, they become a real nightmare. But the cleaning is the heart of the refrigerator.
00;17;24;18 - 00;17;47;17
Unknown
Now that's what keeps it going. You know, when they do fail, yeah, they can develop a leak and you smell that gut wrenching, poisonous stench. It comes oozing out called ammonia, that greenish yellow film that can get on everything. And it smells horrible. If you breathe it in, it can actually kill you is deadly stuff. So you have to be very cautious there.
00;17;47;17 - 00;18;12;06
Unknown
You know, if you smell ammonia, leave it alone. Don't go in there. Start breathing deep. Doing exercises. Yeah. And those are signs you see, you know the smell. You see that film that will get on the back of the refrigerator Sometimes inside the refrigerator. Those are signs the cooling unit has died. It is done with you now. So the refrigerator is not going to function that way.
00;18;12;06 - 00;18;28;21
Unknown
You're not going to be able to deal with the smell. You got to clean it out. It's got to let it dissipate. It can take days or weeks sometimes let smell to completely go away. Or the other thing is a cooling. You can develop a blockage in it. So the ammonia ammonia is not circulating the way it should.
00;18;28;23 - 00;18;51;16
Unknown
So it's not cooling the way it should and your refrigerator stops working. This is going to sound weird, but there's absolutely no amount of Pepto-Bismol that you can use. It's going to clear it up because it's got a blockage, right? Uh huh. Well, some people like to take out the refrigerator and turn it upside down and they call it burping it.
00;18;51;18 - 00;19;11;11
Unknown
Oh, Pepto-Bismol makes sense now, right? That can that can sometimes work with limited success. Yeah. If that's the hobby you want to start every six months or something, then you can go ahead and start that new hobby. But is generally limited success. So it's not something you want to rely on. Hey, I'm going to be able to do this every time.
00;19;11;14 - 00;19;29;17
Unknown
I want to think that way. You're delaying the inevitable. Exactly. You know, you take it out, turn it around, flip it over. It does it, but may work, may not. Now, the other option sometimes people will do is tap on the back of the cooling unit with a two by four rubber mallet and try to break the blockage loose.
00;19;29;20 - 00;19;55;14
Unknown
Sometimes that works well. That block is generally just go someplace else unless it really breaks up into smaller pieces. All that stuff does is delay the inevitable death, you know? Yeah, Yeah. You just prolong Nina's life, but not very well. So the tactics that we just discussed do work sometimes. Not always. We're talking about this, and I'm always all about saving money.
00;19;55;16 - 00;20;32;29
Unknown
You know, money is becoming a big thing today. You have to save it. You. The economy's well, everybody knows this role has gone crazy. Yeah. And so things have become more expensive. And so you don't want to buy a new refrigerator unless you have to. By the same token, you don't want to have a shop or do it yourself, do these kind of tactics trying to keep it alive when really it's just going to die, you know, especially if you're out RV and you're camping with your family and you're burping at work until you get out camping and down the road made that blockage go right back into where it was and know you got
00;20;32;29 - 00;20;54;23
Unknown
out. Stopped working. Yeah. So the dreaded cooling unit failure is probably the biggest reason to replace a refrigerator. You know, that's that's kind of the the reason why now you have a couple of different options, maybe two or three. So we're going to go through these. The best option, just replace the refrigerator and be done with it. Yeah.
00;20;54;26 - 00;21;28;25
Unknown
Yeah. You know, that's that sounds crazy, but it's done and over with. You know, you've taken your lamp, you moved on. Yeah, but replacing the refrigerator does create an issue sometimes a couple. We'll get back to that in a second. And you can always or you can have a new or rebuilt cooling unit install old. Now, I always opt for number one if you're going to do it to have a new cooling unit put in, not a rebuilt one, but I really opt for a newer fridge rater rather than a cooling unit period, you know.
00;21;28;25 - 00;21;44;15
Unknown
But if you put in a new cooling unit, you can, you know, hopefully that new cooling unit will be problem free and you get beyond the warranty point and keep on going for years to go down the road. And that's great. But that's my opinion. And you have to remember that's just my opinion. And I tell them that's what you have to do.
00;21;44;15 - 00;22;08;06
Unknown
So don't go to a dealership. And I was told by Eric and do that, right. Don't do that. That's just my opinion. Yeah. So if you do replace the refrigerator, as I said earlier, there's an issue with it that you'll have to replace the door panels. Most new refrigerators will not be able to use your old door panels and RV refrigerators do not come with door panels.
00;22;08;08 - 00;22;29;12
Unknown
They don't. There are some that have a residential style door and they don't require their panels. But it's a different type of refrigerator. More expensive is not your typical RV gas and electric refrigerator, and so replacing the door panels just adds to the expanse. You know, there are at least 150 bucks. You know, that's kind of the probably the lowball price on there.
00;22;29;15 - 00;22;49;05
Unknown
And from the factory, your RV came with door panels on the refrigerator. There probably would or paneling. They're nicer looking. They match the interior of the RV. Well, when they built the RV, they bought that refrigerator. They had door panels made for it. So they're probably not going to work. As I said, very rarely do they ever work on new refrigerators.
00;22;49;07 - 00;23;12;28
Unknown
So matching them or putting them on the refrigerator is probably not going to be an option. Matching them is definitely not an option. You know, it's pretty limited on what you can get with door panels. And companies have gone come and gone over the years. They have nice while they disappear. The next one comes along. Maybe they only have black and plastic looking stainless steel, so your options get limited, but it's just an extra expense.
00;23;12;28 - 00;23;34;03
Unknown
And what's I find interesting about that is sometimes our viewers, our customers will get more excited about having to buy new door panels and buying a new refrigerator. It's a bigger deal. What do you mean? It's another $150? You know, which to me it seems odd, but it is. That's just the way it is. New refrigerators do not come a door panels.
00;23;34;11 - 00;23;59;29
Unknown
So expect that if you buy a new refrigerator, if you get to that point. Now back to the cooling. Do we replace the cooling unit or buy a new refrigerator? So if the refrigerator is in good enough shape, that's going to warrant a cooling in the sun? Other words, the doors are in excellent shape, the gaskets on the doors close and they seal the circuit boards and things like that.
00;24;00;03 - 00;24;19;24
Unknown
You know, if the refrigerator is having problems starting to act up at the same time, the cooling unit failed just beforehand, you know, would you want to put money into a cooling unit knowing you're going to have to buy some other parts? And that's what I'm getting at the doors, the gaskets, things like that. They're hundreds of dollars.
00;24;19;26 - 00;24;37;15
Unknown
So do you want to add that on top of a cooling unit, if the door seals maybe just they're bad, you know, okay, we do the cooling. You know, we have to do the door seals. You know, that's the shape your refrigerator refrigerators in. Are they available? You would find that out before you order a cooling unit. Have that done?
00;24;37;18 - 00;24;56;21
Unknown
Because door gaskets depend on the age of the fridge. Air might not be available. Like so many other parts, they become obsolete. Do your doors have hinges built into them? Are the hinges cracked? Are they broken? Can you get a new door? Do you want to spend the money on a new door? A new door could be $300.
00;24;56;21 - 00;25;21;14
Unknown
$400. Do you want to spend the money on that or do you rather just take that money on top of a cooling unit and put it into the cost of the new refrigerator? Those are things to consider. If the parts are obsolete. If you can't get a door, don't buy a cooling unit. Make sense. So replacing these parts on top of the cooling just adds to the price.
00;25;21;16 - 00;25;49;27
Unknown
And you know, it's going to take longer to get it down. In some cases, ordering parts already in cooling units, getting it all together, because sometimes parts can be hard to get on older refrigerator. Well, even our new refrigerators, because they're out of stock, whatever it might be. And, you know, there's always that standby. You can go to that garage sale on the Internet, you know, the online shopping center that sells everything under the sun and they sell a lot of knockoff RV parts.
00;25;49;27 - 00;26;07;07
Unknown
Yep. You could buy some of those and see if that works for you. But I would stay away from non-domestic or non normal refrigerator parts because you don't know what you're going to get. And if you're basing that on buying a cooling unit and putting these parts in there, you might really be just throwing your money down the drain.
00;26;07;07 - 00;26;27;05
Unknown
You can say goodbye to that money. Yeah, pretty much, yeah. If you put a cooling unit in, you know, is your refrigerator going to be able to go for a long period of time, not just days, weeks or months before something else fails, and then you're pouring more money into it after you do the cooling unit, you're committed to that puppy, you know?
00;26;27;07 - 00;26;47;07
Unknown
All right. Now needs a circuit board. Gosh, I wish we would have noticed the door gaskets weren't that good. Technicians said they were fine. But now we get all we really see. They're not, you know. Right? Yeah. So these are things you need to check to. I'll just leave it up to the technician. Now, another type of refrigerator, too, that we have to talk about.
00;26;47;07 - 00;27;09;27
Unknown
Here are the side by side refrigerators where the doors aren't top and bottom, but they're next to one another. So I saw a big refrigerator. Yeah. And those things are more expensive than your typical refrigerator. It has a door on the top and bottom or a single door. There are a lot more. So on those those make great candidates for putting in a new cooling unit look interesting.
00;27;10;02 - 00;27;34;23
Unknown
A new cooling unit. I am anti rebuilt cooling units period. Okay. There's a reason why two so side by side refrigerator because the cost of them sometimes they're a very good candidate for it, especially newer ones. But again, you still want to look at everything else, make sure it's in good shape. There's not any problems, things like that.
00;27;34;26 - 00;28;12;12
Unknown
And then when you're if you're going to do a clean unit, whether you go with a rebuilt one or a new one, check the warranty out your old warranty. Know that warranty, you know, warranties can really bite hard. And especially when someone's just telling you what the warranty says. Yeah. And I'm not trying to knock some in here, but like if you're in a in an RV repair center and you're talking to the technician and he says the warranty cover, you know, it's a five year warranty parts and labor and blah, blah, blah, and he's telling you that he might be telling you that in good faith because the brand actually knows that they were
00;28;12;12 - 00;28;32;23
Unknown
using they had that warranty. Sure. But maybe the parts department decided, well, we're not going to sell that brand anymore. We're going to go to this brand because they're cheaper for us. The warranties last, though, warranties cheaper do, and they don't cover labor or they cover one hour of labor. When you have, you know, three, four or five, six, seven, eight, who knows how many hours later.
00;28;32;23 - 00;28;52;17
Unknown
Yeah, exactly. So you have to be very careful there in the labor. What does it really cover? If it covers labor, does it cover shipping costs to get the new clean to you? They're going to want the old one back as a core variables there. So you have to find out what that warranty really covers. And the best way to do that is to read the warranty.
00;28;52;21 - 00;29;25;27
Unknown
Yes, don't take their word for it. Read the warranty. Yeah. Yep. And now earlier I said I don't care for a re manufactured clean use and I don't when it fails and they generally do if it fails under warranty, how many times can that recalling unit be put in and out of that refrigerator before all the screws are stripped out, things are broken, the plastics worn out, the doors don't work the same because, you know, if a call if a technician has to do a warranty refrigerator, clean it, he's not going to be happy to begin with.
00;29;25;28 - 00;29;47;16
Unknown
He's not getting paid for it or paid very little. If he has to do it a third time or a second time without getting paid, he's going to be less happy. Yeah, and that refrigerator is going to fill the brunt of it. It's not going to be the same refrigerator when you get it back. And that's why I don't like rebuilt cooling units, because they do fail.
00;29;47;18 - 00;30;13;17
Unknown
Now, new corneas do fail as well, but not nearly as often. You know, those you can put in almost you'll forget about it, but they come with a higher price tag. But if you're going down that road, you might as well go down that road. So the choice is yours. So that's the options you have. So just think about that when your refrigerator dies and you could actually apply this to water heaters, furnaces, anything on your RV, in fact, to your house.
00;30;13;20 - 00;30;30;18
Unknown
Wow. This is like the RV, the smarter homeowner. So yeah, my goodness. So you can apply it to many things, though. Good advice. So just think about that, you know, before you buy it. Don't rush into anything. If the refrigerator is not working and you don't have a trip, plan the next day. Take your time before buying a new refrigerator.
00;30;30;18 - 00;30;53;20
Unknown
Buy a cooling unit, whatever it might be. Yeah. So that's the simple advice for the smart RV or out there. What I'd like to do is hear from our audience and go to our our Contact US page on the Smart RV or Ecom or send us a text at 44069618688 and tell us that some of the topics you'd like to talk about.
00;30;53;21 - 00;31;12;14
Unknown
We come up with topics. We're looking at things from a different angle viewpoint, and our listeners have a different set of topics, things you guys will work on, your RV, questions you have even with something you've already done. But she does want to confirm you did it the right way or the best way. Let us know. Let us hear from you.
00;31;12;14 - 00;31;38;07
Unknown
You'd like to talk about that kind of stuff. Have it on the show, can contact us, as I said on our website or through our text. Texting 4069618688. Now let's go to the next stop. All right. Alexis is already she's got on her cowboy boots, her cowboy hat she's got. Yeah, a whip. Yeah, sure. I mean, cowboys have whips.
00;31;38;07 - 00;32;02;19
Unknown
Well, gosh, you know, that stuff gets on the news and you know that. All right, so she's got a, uh, a Henry rifle lever action. How is that Annie Oakley style? Here you go. Annie Oakley. I don't know a reason why she's dressed like this is because we're going to Sheridan, Texas, today. Oh, so, Annie Oakley, what's happening in Sheridan, Texas?
00;32;02;22 - 00;32;18;10
Unknown
There's so much there. I actually got into this and I thought it was kind of cool. I always do these articles and then I want to go to these places. So but for what it's got the Colorado River, which is very cool, kind of is the focal point for outdoor recreation. People kind of come there for that. Yeah.
00;32;18;12 - 00;32;41;09
Unknown
Am I right? Am I wrong? Has the Rio Grande. Oh, okay. Must. I don't think the Colorado River goes to Texas. We sure it ends in Arizona. Oh, not so. Okay, well, I'm going to double check that back. Oh, I'm out of here. Oh, boy. Here we go. I love it. Okay, we're good. Really Great. Now go right ahead.
00;32;41;12 - 00;33;01;24
Unknown
I'll keep talking. So we've got Now I'm scared, too. We've got Buescher State Park that's located just a short drive from share. It is a lot of our beers go there because there's so much to do. There's biking trails and hiking and lakes, so you've got a ton of stuff to do. There's there's really good birdwatching there as well, which I always have to mention.
00;33;01;27 - 00;33;29;26
Unknown
And then we've got Fayette Lake. It's a reservoir near Sheridan and a lot of water sports enthusiasts go there. You can do your boating and skidoo ing on. Was I right in Collins Forest? And then there's the Lost Pines Forest. It's a that's a big one for Sheridan, too, because people can go there and do hikes and explore and it's just a really nice adventure for, for nature lovers.
00;33;29;29 - 00;33;55;10
Unknown
All right. So Alexis was right. Okay, good. Okay. It's not the Colorado River. It's Colorado. It's the other Colorado River. Yeah, I figured Texas has their own Colorado. They do? Okay. Yeah, I thought so. So I've never heard of another Colorado River, okay? I've never heard of any river being named someplace else. I'm sure it happens. But. So now we know the other Colorado River is in Texas.
00;33;55;12 - 00;34;22;14
Unknown
In Texas? Yeah. They can call whatever they want. Wow. Sure. Even bad, you know. Hey, I mean, it. Let's me. It's the Colorado River. Something ends up in Texas. You're in Utah and they're in Texas. Exactly Where are you? Oh, all right. So good thing we have Google handy. No kidding. Yeah, well, our reputation has been saved with I'm not, you know, so under if has got more water than the regular.
00;34;22;16 - 00;34;47;21
Unknown
Yeah, I don't know. Colorado River. You guys do that. Okay, Whoever is listening, go look up and see how much rivers and rivers actually in their area go. Yeah. So it's I think catch how many miles long is. But it's quite a big river, so that's cool and lot to do there. Yeah. The RV friendly campgrounds and their stations and then they've got Sheridan which is kind of a cool talent's got a lot of history.
00;34;47;24 - 00;35;05;13
Unknown
So if you're going for that you're going to have a fun time. But see, that makes sense to see it get shared in Wyoming. So why not have a cholera or your own Colorado River? You know, Sheridan, Texas, Sheridan, Wyoming. Wonder Which came first, Sheridan, Texas, or Sheridan? Wow. Oh, maybe so. Maybe someone in Wyoming or Texas could let us know.
00;35;05;14 - 00;35;25;19
Unknown
Yeah. Okay. Well, that's what dunces we are here. Start texting, then. Right now? Yeah, we're thin. First, the chicken or the egg and a little bit. All right. So, yeah, that's another cool place. Ferrari's, in fact, Texas is a pretty nice state for Arvin. Yeah, it really is. Yeah. Got your winter time areas. It's got your summertime areas.
00;35;25;21 - 00;35;45;22
Unknown
Yep. A big, giant place to go. One thing my husband drove through there when he was younger. He said it's the the best roads ever there. I guess they're always perfectly paved. He said It's just like the best road system in Texas. So if that's something you're concerned about and just know that road construction is just part of the game anymore for sure.
00;35;45;23 - 00;36;07;05
Unknown
All right. So check out Texas and of course, there's many other places to go in Texas. That's just one of the few. In fact, we've talked about. A few we have. Yep. All right. So now that's going to take us to RV envy. And today we're going to talk about your link hubs and sensors. And you're thinking, what are yo link hubs and sensors going to find out?
00;36;07;07 - 00;36;31;24
Unknown
So it's y0li in k yo link like so many things come to mind. All right, so now yo link on their web site used to have stuff very RV specific and it seems to have disappeared which is kind of unique. Nonetheless, they sell these hubs is kind of like, you know, if you put Alexa or Google or whatever in your house.
00;36;31;27 - 00;36;50;21
Unknown
So the hub receives signals from the AC. It's a water sensor to detect a water leak in your home or a temperature. Sensors outside the hub will receive that information. Then you have an app on your phone and as soon as that information to your app. So if you know 80 degrees outside, you can see it on your phone, you know, typical stuff.
00;36;50;25 - 00;37;08;20
Unknown
So it's kind of cool. They have some neat things like the water leak sensors for an RV so you could put one in your bathroom and they have one with probes on them to see. You can actually make them work better to detect a leak in different areas, whether it's under a sink behind a toilet. That's really what my focus is, the temperature and things like that.
00;37;08;20 - 00;37;25;23
Unknown
That's not as big of a deal, but these water sensors are kind of cool. Yeah, and you don't necessarily have to have wi fi for it to work. The sensor will still, you know, send a signal to the hub, but you're just not going to get that information from it. Okay. So the hub has to be connected to wi fi.
00;37;25;25 - 00;37;45;17
Unknown
Mm hmm. And that's, you know, in an RV that can be difficult If you're RV parks that doesn't have wi fi there, then you're not going to be able to connect it. Then you'd have to be connecting to the different wi fi areas. Yeah. And Yo Link had some YouTube videos about their RV stuff. Like you said, that's not on their web site, but there are some flaws with it.
00;37;45;17 - 00;38;05;13
Unknown
Like the wi fi, you'll not be able to know if you have a problem. You can get a water valve that will actually shut the water valve off your RV. What you get activate on your phone, but you have to have wi fi. So there's some things there. So depending on where you go camping, maybe you go to the same place all the time and they have wi fi there.
00;38;05;13 - 00;38;26;05
Unknown
Then this might be ideal for you. You know, check out their Web site. So go to their website, check it out, see what they have to offer and I think you can find something there. Or maybe you have something similar. You know, maybe you're using a Google thing or whatever, but yelling kind of cool. Everything's very affordable. That's one of the things that caught my attention.
00;38;26;08 - 00;38;46;04
Unknown
You know, even if you use these things in your house, you know, like the water leak function, that's what I really like. Yeah, water leaks just ruined trips, whether it's your RV or your home, you know, Very expensive. Yeah. You know, you're out in your RV all day and you come back water running out the door. That really sucks, you know, So this could help stave that off.
00;38;46;04 - 00;39;14;11
Unknown
So worth checking out. So that's going to bring us to the end of our show today. As a reminder, go to our YouTube channel. We got plenty videos there, Things to watch, learn and see videos where we're explaining things the right way, not just the hillbilly way, but the right way. All right. Right. And so next week we have episode 153 and we're going to talk about maintenance projects that you should have already had done by now, because we're basically in the summer.
00;39;14;14 - 00;39;34;18
Unknown
So that's your roof, your freshwater system in your LP system. So we're going to jump into that a little more details next week. So we had a great show today. We learned that Alexis has come up to the Ladder Summit with a new RV, so look out for her in campgrounds. Her husband. Yeah, Watch out on the other way.
00;39;34;20 - 00;39;49;27
Unknown
Okay. All right. So this is Eric Stark with the Smart RV or podcast. And I want to thank everybody for listening today and hanging out with us. And if I don't see all the road less connected, the smart RV or dot com.
