Checklist Alternative?

[topgun2]

I've tried checklists but I've never found them to be as easy as they should be.  Carrying around a clip board or dry erase board just doesn't do it for me and, somehow, I'd miss things even though I could swear that I checked it.  So, I tried to just get into a routine and do the same tasks the same way every time - that way certainly I would not forget something.  Yep, that didn't work all the time either.  I tried "sticky notes" - what a disaster that was - think rain and surfaces that those little buggers don't stick to let alone ALL of those bits of paper laying around on everything.

 

Here is a new idea I'm trying - "slap straps".  Get a bunch of these, write the thing that should be checked on one, and attach it to either the steering wheel of the truck or the screen door grab handle.  As I take care of the item noted on the strap, I simply remove it from the steering wheel (or screen door grab bar).  When I set up camp I place the strap back on the wheel or door when I take care of that chore.

 

Sorry that I don't currently have access to my Oliver to show the straps in action, but here are what these things look like:

 

 

 

The black storage tube was made out of an old golf club storage sleeve and a couple of caps from used small tubes of grease.  I got the slap straps from Amazon:

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011DFG4W8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

I originally got the idea from You, Me & the RV on YouTube.

 

 

[Overland]

Not a bad idea.  I attached a few orange 'remove before flight' streamers to a few things I thought I'd easily forget, like chocks and the crank for my XO jack.  I don't know if they help or not.

 

We have a collection of shared notes on our phones that we use for all sorts of stuff, and they seem to work pretty well for us.  We've also gotten into the habit of both going through the checklists to make sure we haven't skipped anything.  That alone probably makes the biggest difference.  There are still times we'll forget to close the shower drain or put the bungees on the kitchen drawers.

[Rumline]

I like it!  Reminds me of the "remove before flight" safety flags, although with the added bonus of not making your trailer look like it's covered in little ribbons.

 

I also dislike checklists.  Too cumbersome to deal with.  We don't have many issues with my wife being in charge of all the interior preps and me being in charge of the exterior preps.  Occasionally we will leave the bathroom vent open, or worse, the maxx air vent.  Those errors always occur after quick breaks from driving like lunch or potty breaks.   One time we drove 200+ miles through Arizona with the maxx vent open.  Whoops!

 

So I like your system because like you mentioned walking around with a clipboard or whiteboard is annoying.  But for me there's still the issue of remembering to set a snap bracelet each time you used one of the items on such quick stops.  Setting up camp is easier since you can just set them all.

[Mike and Carol]

Bill, looks like a good reminder method. We don’t like checklists either. Carol takes care of inside stuff, I do the outside. Then, she checks me and I check her. So far, so good. She has caught me forgetting my water pressure regulator still on the faucet and things left on the bumper. I’ve caught an open vent inside once or twice. Mike

[DavidS]

She has caught me forgetting my water pressure regulator still on the faucet

 

I have come close to that same error several times.  I have now adopted a preventative solution. I put my hose wraps on the pressure regulator. When I coil the hose and grab the hose wraps and remember “Oh yeah, the pressure regulator.”

 

Occasionally we will leave the bathroom vent open, or worse, the maxx air vent.

The consensus from this post is that it is okay, even desirable in hot weather, to drive with the Max Air vent open.

 

 

[topgun2]

Since I travel alone most of the time I don't have someone to help "check" things.  Like Overland, I too used to use those "remove before flight" ribbons - particularly on things like motorcycle disk brake locks.  But, as Rumline points out, having a bunch of flags hanging about on the Oliver just doesn't appeal to me.  On the one trip I've used these slap straps they worked out great.  But only time will tell.

 

Bill

[geokeg]

I think if you have a checklist of things that need to get done before departure and follow a flow pattern around the tv and the Ollie, both interior and exterior, you can just do a walk around, looking, thinking, and doing the items.  When you are complete with your walk around review your checklist to verify items completed.  The key thing for me is the visual and the walk around  inspection.  You are more apt to see something that needs attention if you are not using your list as a read and do, but also noting general condition of things.  The same concept can be used for arrival and set up but those items usually sort themselves out without the same sense of urgency.

[Ray and Susan Huff]

On 3/22/2019 at 1:36 PM, geokeg said:

I think if you have a checklist of things that need to get done before departure and follow a flow pattern around the tv and the Ollie, both interior and exterior, you can just do a walk around, looking, thinking, and doing the items.  When you are complete with your walk around review your checklist to verify items completed.  The key thing for me is the visual and the walk around  inspection.  You are more apt to see something that needs attention if you are not using your list as a read and do, but also noting general condition of things.  The same concept can be used for arrival and set up but those items usually sort themselves out without the same sense of urgency.

We use the "do and then visual check off" method which often catches something missed.  I secure the inside; my husband the outside; then we check each other's work!  I do like a check list for the more important things (those that will cause damage if neglected) and items that are easily left behind.  It helps me to do everything in the same order each time; less apt to forget something.  Also, make a final sweep of the campsite for items that might be left behind.