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Fifth Wheels And RVs
Complete guide to tracking fifth wheels, RVs, and trailers in MyGarage with specialized features for recreational vehicles.
MyGarage provides specialized tracking for different types of recreational vehicles:
| Vehicle Type | Fuel Log | Odometer | Propane | Spot Rentals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RV (Motorized) | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Fifth Wheel | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Travel Trailer | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Trailer | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No |
Propane fills live under the vehicle's Fuel tab. For a fifth wheel or travel trailer that tab holds only propane.
Why Different Tracking?
- RVs are motorized - Have engines and odometers, track like regular vehicles. Also have propane systems for heating/cooking
- Fifth wheels and travel trailers are towed - No odometer; propane and spot rentals instead
- Trailers are towed - No fuel, no odometer, no propane and no spot rentals
- Click Add Vehicle from dashboard
- Enter the VIN (required, 17 characters; it may not decode properly) and click Next
- Select Vehicle Type: Fifth Wheel, and fill in details:
- Year (e.g., 2022)
- Make (e.g., Grand Design, Keystone, Forest River)
- Model (e.g., Reflection, Montana, Cougar)
- Nickname (e.g., "Home on Wheels", "Weekend Warrior")
- Add purchase info and photos
- Click Create Vehicle
After adding, you'll see specialized tabs:
- ❌ No fuel log (uses propane instead)
- ❌ No Odometer or Tires tab (non-motorized)
- ✅ Fuel tab, propane fills only (track propane bottles)
- ✅ Financial → Spot Rentals (track campground costs)
- ✅ Maintenance → Service (maintenance and repairs)
- ✅ Media → Documents (registration, insurance, manuals)
Both RVs and fifth wheels use propane for appliances, heating, and cooking. Tracking propane separately:
- ✅ Accurately tracks propane costs
- ✅ No mileage required for propane fills
- ✅ Shows propane spending trends in analytics (fifth wheels)
- Go to RV or fifth wheel detail page
- Open the Fuel tab (on an RV, Fuel → Propane)
- Click Add Propane
- Fill in:
- Date - When you filled
- Propane - Gallons or liters, matching your unit preference (e.g., 7.5, 10, 20, 30 gallons). Or pick a Tank Size and Number of Tanks under Tank Information (Optional) and the volume is filled in
- Price per gallon or liter
- Total Cost - Calculated from volume × price, or type what you paid
- Add optional fields:
- Vendor/Location - Where you filled (e.g., "U-Haul", "Tractor Supply", "RV Park")
- Notes - Any additional details
- Click Create
On a phone, Quick Entry offers Propane and Service Visit for a fifth wheel or travel trailer, with no Fuel Up or Mileage.
To watch tank levels live with Mopeka sensors, see LiveLink: Propane Tanks.
A fifth wheel's Analytics page has a Propane Analysis section (volume and price shown in your unit preference, gallons or liters):
- Total Spent - Lifetime propane costs
- Total (gal) - Cumulative propane purchased
- Avg Price/gal - Average cost over time
- Monthly Propane Costs - Chart of spending by month
Use Cases:
- Budget monthly propane costs
- Find best propane vendors
- Track seasonal usage patterns (winter = more propane)
Track RV park, campground, and storage lot costs with detailed billing entries.
- Go to vehicle detail page
- Open Financial → Spot Rentals
- Click Add Rental
- Fill in rental details:
- Location/Facility Name - RV park name (autocomplete from address book)
- Address - Auto-fills from address book or enter manually
- Check-In Date - When you arrived
- Check-Out Date - When you left (leave blank if ongoing)
- Rate Type - Nightly, Weekly or Monthly, with its rate, plus Electric, Water and Waste
- Amenities - WiFi, Full Hookups, 50amp, Pool, etc.
- Notes - Any additional details
- Click Create
Address Book Integration:
- Start typing location name to search your address book
- Selecting from address book auto-fills the address
- After creating new rental, you'll be prompted to save location to address book
- Future rentals at same location auto-fill from address book
For a monthly rental (Rate Type Monthly), add a billing entry for each bill:
- Find rental in "Spot Rentals" tab
- Click "Add Billing" button on rental card
- Fill in billing details:
- Billing Date - When this bill was due
- Monthly Rate - Base rent for the period
- Electric - Electricity charges (if not included)
- Water - Water charges (if not included)
- Waste - Sewer/waste charges (if not included)
- Total - Auto-calculated (monthly + utilities)
- Notes - Any additional charges or details
- Click Create
Billing Summary:
- Total Billed - Sum of all billing entries
- Billing Periods - Count of entries
- Monthly Avg - Total ÷ billing periods
- Last Billing - Most recent entry shown by default
Expand/Collapse:
- Click View All N Billings (shown with two or more entries) to see full history
- Edit or delete individual billing entries
- Track utilities separately from base rent
A fifth wheel's Analytics page has a Spot Rental Analysis section, built from billing entries:
- Total Cost - Lifetime spot rental expenses
- Billing Periods - Number of billing periods
- Monthly Average - Average cost per period
-
Monthly Spot Rental Costs - Stacked bar chart showing:
- Monthly rate (blue)
- Electric (yellow)
- Water (green)
- Waste (purple)
Use Cases:
- Budget monthly RV park costs
- Track utility expenses over time
- Identify seasonal rate changes
Tracked Like Regular Vehicles:
- ✅ Fuel tracking (diesel or gasoline)
- ✅ Odometer tracking (mileage-based)
- ✅ MPG calculations (fuel economy)
- ✅ Propane tracking (for appliances, heating, cooking)
- ✅ Service records (engine, transmission, chassis)
- ✅ Spot rentals (when parked long-term)
RV Advantages:
- Complete fuel economy analysis
- Separate propane tracking for RV systems
- Mileage-based service reminders
- Cost per mile calculations
- Detect mechanical issues via MPG drops
Specialized Tracking:
- ✅ Propane tracking (separate from tow vehicle fuel)
- ✅ Spot rentals (RV park billing)
- ✅ Service records (appliances, awnings, slides, etc.)
- ❌ No fuel tracking (no engine)
- ❌ No odometer (towed by separate vehicle)
- ❌ No MPG (doesn't apply)
Fifth Wheel Advantages:
- Accurate propane cost tracking
- Detailed billing for long-term stays
- No confusing fuel/odometer entries
- Analytics focused on relevant metrics (propane, rentals)
Track maintenance and repairs specific to fifth wheels:
Appliances:
- Refrigerator service/repair
- Water heater maintenance
- Furnace inspection/cleaning
- A/C service and filter replacement
- Microwave/stove repair
Exterior:
- Roof seal inspection and resealing
- Awning repair or replacement
- Window seal maintenance
- Slide-out mechanism service
- Tire rotation and replacement
Plumbing:
- Water pump replacement
- Fresh water tank sanitization
- Grey/black tank sensor cleaning
- Faucet and fixture repairs
- Winterization service
Electrical:
- Battery replacement (house batteries)
- Solar panel installation/service
- Inverter maintenance
- Generator service (if equipped)
- 12V system diagnostics
Propane System:
- Propane leak testing
- Regulator replacement
- Line inspection
- Tank certification (every 10-12 years)
- Go to fifth wheel detail page
- Open Maintenance → Service
- Click Log Service Visit
- Fill in details:
- Date - When service was performed
- Vendor/Shop - RV shop, mobile tech, DIY
- A line item for each job: Description (what was done), Category and Cost
- Click Create. To attach receipts or photos, edit the saved visit
Service Reminders:
- Set reminders based on date only (no mileage)
- Example: "Roof seal inspection every 6 months"
- Example: "Winterization by October 1st"
- Example: "Propane certification in 2026"
Store important fifth wheel documents:
- Registration - State RV registration
- Insurance - Fifth wheel insurance policy
- Warranty - Manufacturer warranty documents
- Owner's Manual - Fifth wheel and appliance manuals
- Purchase Agreement - Bill of sale
- Inspection Reports - Pre-purchase inspection
- Service Records - Receipts from RV shops
- Winterization Checklist - Annual winterization steps
- Setup Instructions - How to level, connect utilities
Document Management:
- Go to fifth wheel detail page
- Open Media → Documents
- Click Upload Document
- Select a Document Type
- Upload PDF or image
Save frequently visited RV parks for quick access:
- Go to Address Book in the top navigation (Contacts on a phone)
- Click Add Contact
- Fill in details:
- Business Name - RV park name
- Category - Select "RV Park"
- Street Address, City, State, ZIP Code
- Phone - Contact number
- Website - RV park website
- Notes - Amenities, costs, recommendations
- Click Create
Or: Save automatically when creating spot rentals:
- Create new spot rental with new location
- After saving, click "Yes, Save" when prompted
- Location saved to address book with "RV Park" category
When adding spot rentals:
- Start typing RV park name
- Autocomplete shows matching entries from your address book
- Select entry from dropdown
- Address auto-fills
- Continue with check-in/check-out dates
Benefits:
- No re-typing addresses for return visits
- Consistent location names (no typos)
- Quick access to favorite RV parks
- Notes remind you of amenities and recommendations
Analytics page shows specialized metrics for fifth wheels:
✅ Propane Analysis
- Total spent on propane
- Total volume purchased
- Average price per unit
- Monthly cost trend chart
✅ Spot Rental Analysis
- Total rental costs
- Number of billing periods
- Monthly average cost
- Stacked bar chart (base rent + utilities)
✅ Service costs
- Monthly Cost Trend - Service costs over time
- Cost by Service Type
- Vendor Analysis - Spending by vendor
❌ Fuel Economy (MPG) - Not applicable to fifth wheels ❌ Cost per Mile - No odometer tracking ❌ Fuel Efficiency Alerts - Fifth wheels don't use fuel
- ✅ Fill before travel - Always start trips with full propane
- ✅ Track vendors - Find best propane prices along routes
- ✅ Monitor usage - Identify propane-hungry appliances
- ✅ Winter usage - Expect higher propane costs for heating
- ✅ Add billing monthly - Track each billing period separately
- ✅ Compare parks - Use analytics to find best value
- ✅ Track utilities - Identify parks with high electric costs
- ✅ Long-term discounts - Note any discounts in billing notes
- ✅ Set date reminders - No mileage-based reminders needed
- ✅ Track warranty - Note when warranty expires
- ✅ DIY vs shop - Compare costs for service types
- ✅ Seasonal maintenance - Winterization and de-winterization
Fifth wheels are non-motorized and don't have fuel tanks. They're towed by a separate vehicle (truck). Track the tow vehicle's fuel separately, and track fifth wheel propane in its Fuel tab.
Add them as separate vehicles:
- Tow Vehicle (e.g., Ford F-350) - Track fuel, odometer, service
- Fifth Wheel (e.g., Grand Design) - Track propane, spot rentals, service
Then link them: on the fifth wheel's Overview, click the Trailer & Tow Vehicle card (Edit Tow Pairing) and pick its Tow Vehicle. The tow vehicle then lists it under Linked Trailers.
No - fifth wheels don't have odometers. MyGarage doesn't require mileage for propane or spot rental entries.
Yes - add each fifth wheel as a separate vehicle. MyGarage supports unlimited vehicles.
Set the rental's Rate Type to Weekly (or Nightly) and enter that rate. Billing entries, which the spot rental analytics are built from, are only available for Monthly rentals.
- General Questions - See FAQ
- Community - GitHub Discussions
Next: Learn about Fuel Tracking or explore Service Records.