Which maintenance supplies should you always have on board?

A couple of years ago, I had to fetch my Airstream after it had been left at an RV repair center for five weeks. It turned out to a great reminder of why I always have a box of supplies on board.

First of all, part of the hitch coupler had rusted and wouldn't move until I loosened it up with some silicone spray. Fortunately, I had a can of silicone spray handy, in the "spares & supplies" box.

Next, the truck's brake controller started complaining that there was a bad connection due to corrosion on the 7-way plug. For that, I dug out the electrical connector cleaning tools from our Maintenance Essentials Kit and cleaned up the corrosion in a couple of minutes.

Solving these problems was easy, but I was reminded that if I hadn't had a few simple tools and supplies on hand, I'd have been stuck. 

In my early days as an Airstreamer this sort of thing drove me insane with frustration because I didn't know what to do—and lacked the necessary gear to solve simple problems. 

Which supplies should you always have in your Airstream? 

If you think of yourself as "not handy" don't sweat it. You don't have to haul around a big bag of supplies. About 15-20 small items will help you solve a bunch of annoying problems.

You can guess my general opinion about which ones by looking at what we recommend in our store. The DIY kits we have put together will solve the majority of problems most commonly encountered by Airstream travelers. None of them take a up a lot of space, and all of them are worth their price many times over when something goes wrong. 

The most common problems are the mundane little things like a loose screw, dripping plumbing, a minor leak, rusty hitch parts, dirty electrical connectors, and missing rivets. None of these should be allowed to interrupt your trip, because they're all easy to fix yourself in a few minutes.

Even a mechanically-inept person can learn to change a tire, replace a rivet, replace a fuse, and fix a plumbing leak. Our Rivet Replacement Kit and our Maintenance Essentials Kit both come with instructions, and in some cases we've made videos to show you how, too.

Lubricants, tapes, batteries, bulbs, propane hoses, filters and "consumables"

Having a variety of tapes on board is very useful for minor repairs. We posted a blog about the 6 different types of tape we travel with and how we use them. You can also read about lubricants and where they're needed on an Airstream trailer.

For long trips, I like to have at least one spare of every "consumable" item like these:

• Spare 9-volt batteries for the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors
• A pair of propane "pigtail" hoses
• 12-volt fuses
• Replacement water filters
• If your Airstream is vintage and doesn't have LED lights, bring a few bulbs, too (they're usually 1156 or 1141 type, 12 volt bulbs)

Always have hitch grease with you 

Traveling with hitch grease is a must. Find out what the manufacturer of your hitch recommends. It's often white lithium grease or heavy grease, which can be obtained from any hardware store. Hitches need to be re-greased a lot, since the grease wears off and washes off during normal travel.

In fact, lubing things up is one the easiest and most rewarding maintenance tasks on an Airstream. If you like instant gratification, you'll love lubricating parts, because they instantly start to move easier and stop squeaking.

If you've got a "Relax" powered Zip-Dee awning, it requires a can of white lithium grease spray with a straw, as well as silicone spray. You can see the procedure in Zip Dee's video here.

Certainly, you could add more "just in case" supplies to your rig. But each item takes up space and weight. Keep your maintenance supplies and "consumables" at a minimum by traveling with only the ones you truly need. The day something dramatic happens, like finding a huge puddle of water on the floor, and you're able to fix it with just one thing from your supply bag, you'll look like a hero.