Best Practices for Maintaining Your Toy Hauler Camper

A toy hauler camper offers the best of both worlds. These specialized trailers allow you to not only haul your favorite recreational toys to the woods but also offer you a relaxing place to cook one of your favorite meals and crash for the night.

As is true with any RV or camper trailer, it is important to keep your toy hauler well maintained to enjoy the longest life possible out of the vehicle. By adhering to a few key maintenance tips, you can prevent damage to the trailer and ensure a pleasant experience the next time you take your trailer out on the road.

Check out the following best practices for maintaining your toy hauler camper, and keep on adventuring!

Pay Attention to Leaks

No matter how high quality your toy hauler camper is, a common issue with all RVs is roof leaks. Over time, RVs are exposed to the elements, high winds, and even low hanging branches, leading to the deterioration of the roofing material.

The good news is that if you catch leaks early, repairing them is simple. Each season, before taking your toy hauler out on the road, spend some time checking over the roof.

There are two effective methods for catching leaks:

Visual Inspection: Using a ladder — and a buddy to hold the ladder for safety — inspect the top of your toy hauler’s roof. Look for any signs of distress, such as cracking, holes, pockmarks, or other issues.
Hose Spray Down: Take a garden hose and while someone is inside the trailer, spray down the roof of the toy hauler. Have the person inside the trailer look for any leaks from the interior. If any water is leaking in, take note of where the leak is occurring and try to locate the hole or crack causing the leak.

The roof is not the only section of your toy hauler camper that might leak. Windows and doors can also create leaks as their weather stripping deteriorates over time.

If you find a roof, window, or door leak, take your toy hauler camper into your nearby service center for a quick patch. Tackling leaks early and having cracks and holes repaired right away will prevent further damage to your camper.

Clean Frequently

When you take your toy hauler camper out for the weekend or on an extended trip, the odds are high that you’re focused on having fun and spending time in the great outdoors. During these trips, it is easy for clutter to build up inside your camper, for dirt to get tracked in, and for food to be spilled.

Make sure that after every trip, you thoroughly clean the interior of your toy hauler camper. This will help prevent damage to flooring and countertops. Additionally, be sure to pull out all food after every trip to ensure that you aren’t attracting pests to take up residence in it.

Not only should you clean out the living quarters of your toy hauler camper, but you should also keep the garage space free of debris. If any oil, gasoline, or other fluids from your ATV, motorbike, or other recreational toy has leaked onto the garage floor, clean the area up between uses. This will help keep the garage floor in good condition and prevent any odors from building up.

Keep Moving Parts Lubricated

While toy hauler campers vary in style, every trailer is equipped with at least a few moving parts. These parts need to be properly lubricated to ensure that they keep working as intended. Every season, spend some time going over the following list of parts and lubricate them as needed:

Hitch: Clean up the hitch and kingpin area, ridding it of any debris and dried out lubricant. Coat the area with an appropriate lubricant, ensuring that all mechanisms are covered in a protective layer.
Slide Outs: If your toy hauler is equipped with slide-out features, spend some time lubricating the metal gears and slides. This can help ensure that the slide continues to operate smoothly and is protected against corrosion.
Rear and Front Jacks: Many toy haulers are equipped with rear stabilizer jacks and front power jacks. Clean off all gears and apply lubricant as needed. While lubricating these important stands, take some time to look over each mechanism to ensure that all nuts and bolts are tightened properly and look for any damaged parts.
Power Awning: If your toy hauler features a power awning, keep the joints and height adjustments clean and properly lubricated.
Locks, Sliders, and Hinges: From the garage door to various hinges and locks, walk around your toy hauler lubricating any other moving components.
Trailer Wheel Bearings: Depending on your make and model, you will need to take your toy hauler camper to a local RV service department to have the wheel bearings inspected and repacked approximately once a year.

It is worth noting that you should always follow the recommendations found in your toy hauler’s user manual. Never lubricate a moving part without first checking to ensure that you are using the right lubricant for the job. When in doubt, talk to your local RV service center to determine which parts on your toy hauler need attention and which products are right for the materials on your camper.

Visit Our Service Center Today

Keeping your toy hauler camper well maintained is important to ensure that your trailer will last a long time and continue to operate well on every trip. If you need to schedule some routine maintenance for your toy hauler or have questions about how to take care of your particular trailer make and model, visit our service center at Transwest today.

We will be happy to not only assist you with services, but we will also be happy to talk through any questions you have about keeping your toy hauler properly maintained. With years of experience and a passion for RVs, we are your go-to source for all toy hauler camper maintenance tips.