Extended RV Warranties: What parts break the most?

Have you thought about extended RV warranties and how they can help you? This week, we talk about extended warranties for RVs. What parts break the most, how an extended warranty will hep save money and why December is the best time to get an extended warranty because prices will rise come Jan.1 and how some older models will become ineligible for coverage after the New Year. Also this week, lots of RV News, your questions, an off the beaten path report and comments and much, much more. Show Notes for Episode #271 Dec. 4 2019 of The RV Podcast; WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK Our mobile podcast studio in the front lounge area of our new Leisure Travel Vans Unity FX This week finds us snug in our Michigan home for the holidays. We use this time to make all the annual checkups necessary with health professionals that we can't attend to when we're on the road. Plus we'll catch up with family and friends and plan out the next year of adventures. Our RV is sitting in the driveway. We had it winterized last week but that doesn’t mean we don’t use it. I drive it as a second vehicle and run errands with it when Jennifer is out and running around in the family car. And we also camp in it during the winter. In fact our annual winter campout at Tahquamenon Falls in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is coming up in a little over a month. We usually have two-and-a-half feet of snow on the ground for that gathering. It’s so much fun. I can’t wait. But mostly during December, we catch up on the things around the house that we couldn’t do while we were traveling. Even though we are gone for about eight months of the year, we keep our sticks and bricks home in Michigan. We have family nearby and it’s good to connect with them at this time of the year. This is a good time for us to remind the audience to please subscribe to us on iTunes or your favorite podcast app. Just go to iTunes, search for RV Podcast, and subscribe. It’s that easy. New episodes are released every Wednesday and subscribers always have it waiting for them. And don’t forget to leave us a review on iTunes so other RVers can learn about this podcast. We hope you are enjoying what you are hearing in this episode. If so, will you help us get the word out about this podcast? The best way to do that is to share a link to the RV Podcast by email or social media to friends who would benefit from all the RV travel information and advice we put out every week? Thanks for helping us get the word out about the RV Podcast! This part of the podcast is brought to you by Dish Outdoors, which lets RVers pay as they go and watch HD satellite television from wherever they are camped with easy to set up gear made with the RVer in mind. Just go to https://rvlifestyle.com/dish for details on the service and special deal just for listeners of this podcast. RV LIFESTYLE NEWS OF THE WEEK Canada's Prince Albert National Park to permit Christmas tree harvesting to reduce wildfire threats Parks Canada has an interesting plan to reduce wildfire hazards in one town near Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan - Christmas tree harvesting. Anyone wishing to harvest a Christmas tree can apply for a free permit between Dec. 1-24, then choose a tree in a specific area, and carry it away. Spruce trees, conifer, jack pine and balsam fir are apparently among the most flammable types of trees, so park officials are removing them for a section of the park with this method, creating an open green belt. Two children dead, one missing after heavy rainfall floods Arizona creek, submerging their RV Heavy rainfall is being blamed for flooding a creek in Arizona last weekend that swept away an RV, trapping two adults and seven children inside. Rescuers saved the two adults and four of the children, using a helicopter. Two children were later found dead, and as of this writing, a third was still missing. Apparently the RV was crossing a creek, got stuck, and by the time rescuers arrived, the RV was completely submerged in water. The family was visiting relatives for a family reunion Thanksgiving weekend. New RV Toll Pass to work on toll roads throughout the country For those of us who like to travel the country, but get frustrated with the ever-growing areas with toll roads, a story we saw over the weekend on a new RV Toll Pass may be of interest. The RV Toll Pass apparently will offer nationwide coverage under a single account. Sounds like the new pass is designed for RV travelers, allowing those who use it to only activate it for the months they are on the road, and the toll rates will be discounted from cash rates. To learn more click here. No more minimum stay for Louisiana state park campers If you are planning to do some camping at a Louisiana state park, you will soon have a little more flexibility. Reservations during the week will no longer be subject to a minimum stay starting Dec. 9. Louisiana has 21 state parks and officials hope this will give visitors greater flexibility when making reservations. Vermont state parks offering creative camping gift packages Vermont is offering some creative gifts for outdoor enthusiasts who like exploring the Green Mountain state. Vermont State Parks has created gift packages that include passes for visiting a park, camping in a park and more. For example for $99 a person could purchase a gift basket which includes two nights of tent, lean-to or RV camping in a state park, a coupon for a free armload of firewood, two Vermont State Parks wine tumblers, and an LED lantern. It looks like a creative way to bring in a little money for the state park, and give a unique gift. This part of the podcast is brought to you by RadPower Bikes,an electric bike manufacturer offering direct to consumer pricing on powerful premium electric bikes. Now with free shipping LISTENER QUESTIONS OF THE WEEK Here are the questions we answer on the podcast, phoned in on our 586-872-6990 Voice Mali message line: QUESTION: Hi Mike, this is Jim from Chicago, Illinois suburbs. My wife and I really enjoy your podcasts and videos and we have a question. I noticed on your one of your recent videos that your leisure travel van is a licensed in New Mexico, and just wondering the the reasoning behind this. We're in the process of getting a new class C and looking for maybe an alternative ways of licensing and titling. So appreciate any insights. You might have. Thank you. QUESTION: Hey, Mike, and Jennifer. How are you guys doing? This is Chris from Pennsylvania. My wife and I just this year got our very first travel trailer and we absolutely love it. I also picked up an inverter generator. I got a question though. And this is kind of a sticky situation obviously not at night time. But can you please speak to proper etiquette when running your generator? Is it okay to do it around noon time first thing in the morning and early evening. Like I said, obviously not overnight when you're going to disturb people. But when is it proper and when is it not proper to run your generator if it's not specified by the campground or even if you're in a free camping like a BLA area like that. Okay. Thank you guys love the podcast Happy Thanksgiving. Do you have a question you’d like us to answer, or a comment on the things we’re discussing. If so, we invite you to leave us that question or comment on the special voicemail number we have for the podcast – it’s 586-372-6990. If you are driving and can’t write it down right now, just go to the RV Lifestyle travel blog at rvlifestyle.com and scroll down the page. You’ll see that number prominently posted on the blog. This part of the RV Podcast is brought to you by Battle Born Batteries, maker of quality, safe and reliable lithium batteries that can be installed in just about every RV. Get in touch with Battle Born to find out what lithium batteries and an upgraded energy management system can add to your RV Lifestyle. Check them out at https://rvlifestyle.com/lithium RV INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK As the year comes to an end, many have their RVs in storage for the year. If that’s you, and you have or are thinking about getting an extended warranty for your RV, there are some things you need to take into consideration before Jan. 1. First, you may want to have your RV inspected now by an extended warranty representative to protect you against the things that often go wrong when an RV goes out of storage in the spring. Second, if you have a unit that will be 20 years old next year, or a travel trailer that will be 15 years old, if you don’t get that extended warranty before the end of the year, it will not be eligible for coverage. Third, prices are going up. If you renew or activate that extended warranty before Jan. 1, you’ll get a lower rate. To help us sort through all this we have invited Staci Ritchie-Roman of Wholesale Warranties to come on the podcast and help us understand the ins and outs of extended warranties and why December is the month you should take action. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON WHOLESALE WARRANTIES, CLICK OUR AFFILIATE LINK AT https://rvlifestyle.com/warranty Here’s a transcript of the interview with Staci: Mike Wendland: Joining us right now from San Diego, Staci Ritchie-Roman from Wholesale Warranties. Staci, how are you? Staci Ritchie:Roman: I am doing wonderful. Thank you so much for having me. How are you doing? Mike Wendland: I am doing awesome. You know, this is such a great lifestyle, this RV lifestyle, how can you not? Well, let me start. It's the end of the year and everybody I know is very busy come December it's just crazy time, but if someone has an extended warranty, or is thinking about getting one why is this time of year a must time for them to do some serious checking before the first of the year? Staci Ritchie:Roman: Sure. So the big thing that changes at the first of every year is that your model year on your RV is considered one year older. When that happens,