Don't take your hoses for granted

Your good old drinking water food grade hose is more important than you actually realise.  In our case, living, working and travelling Australia full time in our caravan, the hose gets coiled up, placed in it’s bag and rattles along on the caravan A Frame when travelling.  Then at the next site, it’s thrown out onto the ground, clicked onto whatever size tap is provided and that’s it.  We just take it for granted and expect it to perform faultlessly.

Until one day ....

We turn our tap on inside the van and there was no water, but outside there was water everywhere!  Closer inspection revealed that the hot sun had made the hose more pliable.  This combined with good water pressure caused our 2 year old plastic “click fitting” to blow off the hose.
 
The best way to fix this problem is to cut off a small section of the end of your hose which you will find has been slightly stretched by the old fitting.  If the plastic fitting also shows signs of wear and tear, it may need the O ring replaced as well.  Refit the connection taking care to ensure each of the black retaining lugs are not bent over and are in their correct position.  Ensure the hose is pushed up into the fitting as far as possible before tightening the screw on section which helps to retain the fitting on your hose.
 
Another point to consider if using a mismatch of fitting types and brands, they will always cause trouble one way or another and blow apart or continually drip.  This wastes our precious resource and increases the Park’s water consumption and water bill.
 
We are now using a quality brass tap and hose fitting set purchased at Mitre 10 for under $30.  

Let's Ask Some Questions

Pam & Alan have now been travelling Australia for almost 2 years in their home/office 21’Caravan and Ford Ranger.  We ask them some questions –
 

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CAMP CHAIRS

We hit the road nearly two years ago now, with our two existing camp chairs, both Spinnifex non padded high backed adjustable chairs.  Fine for occasional camping and sitting around the camp fire with your feet up on a milk crate, but after two years of use, working full time on the road we were developing “numb bum” syndrome.

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Cooking while on the road

Living full-time on the road in our 21ft caravan we value our eco-friendly DreamPot.  It’s easy to use, efficient and always delivers a hot meal after a long day on the road.

DreamPot is thermal cooking, a portable, easy-to-use, cooking appliance which uses only a fraction of the power or heating source to achieve magnificent meals anywhere or anytime. DreamPot is an Australian family operated company which has made meals for travelers much better since 1964. 

Here is one of our favorite recipes 

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Carrying bikes on your Caravan, Camper or RV

It is great to have your bikes with you when travelling on the big trip or even a short break.  It’s a healthier way to get around and explore the area or visit the shops instead of always taking the vehicle for short trips.  

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Caravan Courtesy

Be Courteous when Towing a Caravan
When out and about on the road remember that you are sharing the road with lots of others.  We hope that these tips will help you and others to stay safe.

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Check your Anode Annually

If your storage hot water systems runs on electricity, gas or solar, it will contain a sacrificial anode. This is a highly reactive metal component which protects the system from corrosion. Most hot water heaters use them to protect the tank and other components which spend most of their time immersed in water. 

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Living on the road with no fixed address

A Residential Address is required for Medicare, Vic Roads, Electoral Commission, Australian Tax Office and Insurance Policies require a Situation of Risk address.  In these cases we have used a relative’s address, our Accountants office address and our Insurance Brokers office address if the computer generated ‘field” will not accept Australia Wide.  

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