Terrible news about my sister Linda

A terrible tragedy in our family has caused us to cut off our trip and head back home from Indiana.

My dear sister Linda was hit by a truck while crossing a street in Hillsboro Oregon on Monday, Aug 1. She was taken for treatment but despite this, passed away later that same night. Linda had commented on most of my blogs under the name Katara. You may remember from an earlier blog that Linda had just completed making a scrapbook of my life as a retirement present. That book and my memories of growing up with my big sister are more precious than gold to me.
My sisters Judy and Linda were coming to FL this fall for a wedding and for my retirement party.

We were with family when we got the news and quickly made the decision to head back to FL to be with my mother as we dealt with the loss and grief.

Linda leaves behind two grown children and one grandson. My sister Judy has gone to Oregon to be with them and help with arrangements.

Here is one of the news articles about the tragic accident: http://www.oregonlive.com/hillsboro/index.ssf/2011/08/hillsboro_police_identify_woman_struck_and_killed_by_truck.html

We are comforted by the kind thoughts and prayers for the family.

Linda, I miss you.

Ron

Linda in 2007

Camping with the Carnies and the Lost Wallet Adventure

The adventure continues!
The remainder of the bluegrass festival was about the same as I wrote of on the last blog.  Very good music and extremely hot weather as well.
The highlights of the festival for me was when IIIrd time out sang "Erase the Miles" with most of the audience singing along (myself included).  On Saturday our friend Cricket (DJ from WMNF) came to the festival with Carl Jackson and his father.  A side note of interest - Carl wrote "Erase the Miles".  We got to hang with them for a bit and watched as they rehearsed with Bradley Walker and Darrin and Brooke Aldridge for the evening performance.  These folks make it look so easy.  I got to visit a little more after the show and picked up a CD of Louvin Brothers songs performed by Carl and others - great road music.
A funny thing happened when Connie and I took our evening showers at the festival temp facilities.  Connie's shower did not have a spray head on it and every time she turned the water on, mine dropped off to a weak drizzle.  She got done and knocked on the door to see what was taking me so long.

We left OH on Sunday about 11, stopping at the Model T Ford club of America museum in Centerville IN.  Had a nice visit with the RV parked at the side under trees.  Didn't know it at the time but Connie left one of her canes there somewhere - a hint of things to come it turned out.
We hit torrential rains most of the way to Indy after that stop.  If you read my early blog, the RV repairs held up well and there were no leaks.
My brother Steve had called around and found campsites at the Johnson County fairgrounds in Franklin IN for a very reasonalble price (107/week full hookup) so we were headed there.  The GPS didn't have the fairgrounds as a point of interest so I got to the town and stopped at Tractor Supply to ask direction (cue the impending doom music).  I hopped out of the truck putting my wallet in my pocket (I thought) and headed into the store.  I saw a couple getting out of their car and asked them.  They gave me a "Duh" look and pointed to the double ferris a block south of the store.  Hopped back in and away we went.
Got to the fairgrounds and found the midway being dissasembled and also noticed no wallet in my pants or in the truck!  Scooted back to Tractor Supply and looked around with no success.  Asked inside and no one had turned it in.  Noticed a white van parked where I got out the first time but the man and boy getting inside didn't say anything and left before I could ask about the wallet.
Resigning myself to dealing with a lost walllet, I called and cancelled all of my credit cards and turned in a police report incase it turned up.  I was sick over this.

AAA to the rescue!  About the time I finished all of this, my phone rang with a call from AAA auto club South in Fl.  They were on a conference call with AAA hosier club and a man who found my wallet in the Tractor Supply where I lost it.  He was only about a block away and brought it to me intact including the cash.  Amazingly he was driving a white van and had his young son with him.  About the same time a policewomen came by to complete the report.  A happy ending all around but we won't have credit cards for a while.  He refused a reward but at the urging of the policewoman, took it for his son's education.

Steve came down from Greenwood and had steaks with us as we celebrated.

The campground was about 50% filled when we arrived with the majority of the folks associated with the fair midway.  They must not have another fair to go to as they took about four days to take stuff down and are removing it with just four semis making trips each day.  Not much drama but they seemed to be tolerant of banjo music.  Most are gone now and the campground is down to six RVs and of them, three have FL plates.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday saw more work on Steve's with the exterior finally completed and water-tight.  We celebrated by going to Johnny Carinos italian restaurant in Greenwook.  There used to be one of these in
Brooksville FL that we really liked but it closed.  I had Chicken Marsala - most excellent!

This morning (Thursday) we loaded up and went back to Lafayette to get in some quality visiting with family.  With all of the work I really haven't had much opportunity.  Once again we hit the Dog N Suds for rootbeer and coney dogs on the way in.  We plan to hang here for about a week then go to the state fair before heading to Arkansas and then eventualy home.

Thanks for reading.
Ron

Baking at the MACC

Hi all!
We are camping near Columbus OH at the "Musicians Against Childhood Cancer" bluegrass festival (www.bluegrassclassic.com).  The heat has been and continues to be incredible for the Midwest area.  More about that later.

Since I last updated the blog, we spent last Saturday (7/16) at my cousin Karen's house on lake Freeman near Monticello IN.  It was really nice to visit and catch up with the cousins as Nancy, Roxanne and Aunt Peg were there.  They have a new tri-hull pontoon boat that we toured the lake on.  The last time I was out on that lake was about 1968 or so.  Quite a bit more development since then.
At the end of the day we packed Connie back up and headed back to Indy.

Sunday, July 17 we travelled to the bluegrass festival site.  Our good friends from FL Dorothy and John met us there.  We are very near the spot we camped at last year and had electricity (very limited - not enough to run AC).  We visited with them and explored the grounds and called it a night after having some grilled beef tenderloin and greek salad.

Monday, July 18 - Connie's Birthday!!!
The four of us took a road trip to Amish country NE of Columbus.  We started out at Charm OH eating lunch at "Grannie's Cupboard".  Great meal prepared simple county style.  Afterwards we went up the hill across the street to Kiem Lumber - kind of a home super-store with really nice hardwoods, fixtures and tools.
Leaving Charm we stopped at a farm advertising baked goods (Miller's Bakery).  The house was off the road up a one lane hill and like many in the area, had no electricity.  Connie picked a large dutch apple pie for desert - best we've had in many years.
We then went to the town of Berlin where they have a concentration of shops for tourists.  I parked myself on a shady porch and let the others go shopping.  Connie hit two quilt stores finding region themed fabric.  Dorothy and John hit a natural food market.
We then went to Lehman's hardware in Kidron OH.  It is a very large store that caters to a non-electric world.  They have many tools and things for sale that you might remember your grandparents having.  Last year I was able to find chimneys and wicks for some table lamps I have from the 1890s.
After a long visit we headed back to Columbus with severe weather following us the whole way.  We made it to the campground about 10 minutes before it hit with torrential rain and 60+ mph winds.  My awning would have not survived.  Lesson learned - put the darned thing down to storm configuration before leaving the campground.
Tuesday we hung around the campground area - got groceries, had some prescriptions refilled and had laundry done.   When we sat down to jam, it was just too hot so we called it a day.  Connie talked me into buying some A shirts (we call them wife beaters) and staying a little cooler.  I also bought an Ohio State shirt thus completing my OH camouflage outfit.
Festival - On Wednesday the festival started.  This one has the best "A list" line up of any we have ever been to.  Great music and shady seating area but still so hot we had to actively hydrate every day.  Heat indexes have ranged from 105 to 110F at peak of the day with little breeze to help.  We had a storm interrupt the show on Wed around 6 PM and it dropped the temperature about 15F for the rest of the evening.  I got thoroughly soaked running to the camper to lower the awning and turn on the generator and AC.
Thursday we got no rain and they opened one of the air conditioned buildings at the park for heat relief.
Friday (today) I lugged gas to fill the RV tank to keep the generator running.  It took about 15 gallons to fill it.  The first two cans were 348.9/gal and the price went up to 375.9 for the third (just my luck to have only one can).  Connie is going to spend the day in the AC today and come to the shows after supper.  I don't blame her but I am going to watch all of the shows staying as cool as I can.

That's the news for now - thanks for reading.
Ron and Connie

On the road update (very tardy eh!)

Hi All,
We have been very busy the past week and I am delinquent in updating the log now that I have a good internet connection to use.

Recap of the trip so far...
Thursday, July 7th we travelled from home to the Army Corp of Engineers (ACOE) campsite (Gunter Hills) west of Montgomery AL.  We found this and the other sites in a book I bought on Amazon devoted to these campsites.  Most are near water features and are $20 or less per night with electric and water.  With a senior or all access pass (disability) the sites (and all federal sites) are half price and the pass includes free admission for the car load at any national park (more about that later).  We didn't have a pass so we payed the modest fee.  It was a clean and well maintained campground.

Friday and Saturday, July 8 and 9th we spent in Nashville TN.  We found lake front capsites at on of the several ACOE campsites on the J. Percy Priest reservoir E of Nashville off of Interstate 40.
We stayed at the Seven Points campground and enjoyed a gorgeous view of the Lake.  Again, the campground was very clean and well maintained,
I took Connie on a tour of local quilt stores where she found some real deals on local themed fabrics (she swears they were dirt cheap and cannot be obtained anywhere else in the universe).  At one of the quilt stores in Watertown we learned about music at Fiddler's Grove.
We had intention of going to the Station Inn but found out about a music event at the Wilson County fairgrounds near Lebanon TN.  The monthly event is known as the Opry at Fiddler's Grove.  It is held in a pioneer village in the county fairgrounds and was very enjoyable.  A local band (Sugar Ridge) was the entertainment and played for three hours straight.  They had a nice supper and fed us for $5 each including beverage.  The music and admission were free but we gladly dropped money in the band tip jar.  Naturally I had to text my sister in CA (bluegrass wastelan) to let her know I was at a bluegrass show.

Sunday, July 10 was travel to Indianapolis.  On the way I asked Connie to find a National Park or Forest Service office while I was working on Steve's RV and get the All Access pass.  She wasn't too keen on the assignment but what should pop into view.....  Mamoth Caves National Park, Next Exit.  Needless to say we went to Mamoth Caves park and got the pass.  It is quite a way off of the intersate and was absolutly packed.  We had no intention of staying at that time but confirmed that with the pass, camping with electric and water was $10 per night and admission to the park was free - sweeeeet!

Rolling into Indy, we hooked up with Steve and followed him to the most reasonable campground near his town.  We got a weekly rate at Indy Lakes RV park and Pay to Fish Lake.  This campground features a (very green) stocked lake for fishing and for you purists,  a separate carp pool!   I know what you are thinking, how was I able to get into this exclusive park?  I attribute it to clean living and just plain good luck.  Did I mention that it is also across the street from a waste water treatment plant?  It's really not a bad little park but I can't imagine eating anything out of either lake.  It reminds me of the lagoon at Columbian Park for those that are familiar.

Monday, July 11 - Miss Connie and I travelled to Lafayette to drop her off to visit with family.  After a  pleasant visit I had lunch with them at Dog N Suds.  Frosted mug root-beer, breaded tenderloin sandwich and coney dog, I headed back to Steve's to work on the RV.

At Steve's, I picked up a package sent to me by my sister. 
What a fabulous retirement gift!  My sis had created a scrap book of my life starting from when I was a nerdy little brat all the way through the job I just retired from.  I was just floored by the creativity and love evident on the pages.  For book markers she had a minature crescent wrench for my mechanical career and banjo picks.  I tried to call her but had to settle for texting.  She replied later in the evening.  I have looked through it each night since and keep seeing more details.  I think she has more creativity in her thumbnail than I have in my whole body.  Thanks sis and I love you.

Did I mention that it was really hot here and the entire area was on a heat stress alert - didn't feel too bad to me so we dug in.
In the initial assessment we located at least five areas leaking  and when the lower sheeting panels were removed, about 60% of the floor foundation wood around the perimeter of the RV were rotted with water damage.  Remarkably, most (but not all) of the wall lower plate was OK having been protected from the water by the vinyl flooring.  We made the decision to replace the entire floor outer foundation and wall sections as required to restore the RV back to level and plumb.  We are replacing the 2x2 wood with 2x4 with the extra sticking under the existing floor (or where it should be) to provide a surface to fasten the new floor to the wall with good structural strength and realative ease of construction.

We continued working on the foundation Tue and Wed and belive we will have the exterior complete and sealed by Friday evening.  The long days have not left much time for blogging but we knocked off at 6 tonight.

As always, thanks for reading.
Ron

The adventure begins - Finally!

Well, we finally have hit the road.  We left on Thursday morning bright and early heading up US-19 towards our goal for the day.
As we passed the plant access road I thought of all the years turning left every morning and for once was not inclined to go that way.  A big hello and thanks to all the folks working so hard out there.

We intended to follow a conventional route but decided to go where the GPS took us.  We entered in Montgomery AL in the device and followed the screen.  We ended up going north on US-27 and then going west through SW Georgia and into Alabama.

It was really hot outside - while travelling it was between 95 and 98 the whole afternoon.

We targeted the Army Corp of Eng campground west of Montgomery, Gunter Hill campground.
They do a pretty good job of hiding them (as we found out also the next day) but with the directions in the guide book and my good navigator Connie, we found it and checked in.  We called ahead to ensure they had open sites and they were less than 5% occupied.  This is a very pretty campground on the banks of a nearby river (about 20' higher).  The one camper near us was very friendly and was kind of disappointed we were only spending one night.

Did I mention it was hot outside?  We tried to sit outside and play some banjo but the sweat just poured off of me and I threw in the towel..... literally and called it a night,

We slept in and got a late start on Friday heading towards Nashville.  Due to the late start, we opted to take I-65 most of the way.  The only real headaches were at Birmingham and Huntsville with construction.

We called ahead to the Corp campgrounds east of Nashville, finding a site at the Seven Points campground on Percy Priest reservoir.  Again well hidden but in this case, we ended up with a water view that is breath-taking.  This campground is nearly full and we were able to get a campsite that had just been canceled.  We decided to spend two nights here.

A quick trip to town for groceries and we settled in for the night with the intention of doing stuff around Nashville and going to either the Opry or to the Station Inn on Saturday evening.

We will update the log with pictures when I have a wifi connection without having to challenge my data plan usage.

Thanks for reading and Connie says Hi to all.
Ron

Progress Update - Hitting the road soon!

Hi all,
It's been a while since I last posted but much progress has been made.  The interior work has been completed including upgrades (photos to follow).  The exterior is nearing completion with only the roof seal job and wheel bearing clean and pack left to go.  Connie and I have been working on our packing list and will be completely emptying the cabinets and closets to remove winter and kid stuff.

The first picture is the battery rack modification and newly re-painted tongue.

Correctly resized battery rack

As mentioned in an earlier post, the slightly narrower rack was fabricated from 1" mild steel angle with tig welded joints (the mig was harder to get to with more "junk" in the way).  This rack will hold the batteries in marine cases level and secure.  I'm not sure if it makes any difference but I feel better and that's what its all about in this case.

Tongue put back together

One of the modifications done is to install an electric 3500lb capacity tongue jack.  This caused the LP bottles to be moved back 1" to clear the cover but no issues with that since the bottle rack was off already.  I was going to hook it up today but have managed to lose the in-line fuse for the power feed.  Not an issue as they are readily available at the local parts store but I will probably use a circuit breaker instead.

We had a couple of rainy days forcing the work indoors.

Head-banger cabinet replacement

Here is the replacement cabinet - much less likely to hit my head on this but I'm sure sooner or later I will.

Finished cabinet with side panels and hardware installed

The replacement cabinet finished out really close to the original stuff in the RV.  I stole the handles from the restroom and put the new plain ones there.  We almost forgot to put a ledge inside the door to keep sliding items from opening the door while under way but it was an easy add-on after installation.

The original layout of the wiring and antenna connections was made to support the TV cabinet that we removed.  Couple this with a really cheesy radio and CD player and we had a chance to bring the comforts of home into the RV.

New DVD/CD player/Radio

I bought this in-dash DVD/TV tuner/CD player/ AM-FM a few years ago (2008) and never got around to putting it in until now.  It is rated at 60 watts per channel (4) and will likely be less than optimal until I install some good speakers.  It has audio and video output to go to the flat panel LED TV we just got.  The TV is incredibly thin (about 1/2 inch screen), weighs less than 10 lbs and draws less than 20 watts of power at full volume (about the same as three Christmas lights worth of power).

TV mount and new connections

We moved the antenna wiring to this side of the RV and routed it to the TV location.  While I was doing that I also put a 12V outlet and ran audio and component video cables.  The new TV will operate happily on one of the small plug in inverters when we are dry camping.  The hard wires to the new DVD player eliminate having to hook up the player when entertaining the granddaughter (or Connie for that matter).  I am a little concerned about the cable length but will cross that bridge when we get to it.  For the record, the cables will pull out 15 inches from the plate.

Well, thats about all of the updates for now.  We plan to leave on our adventure on Tuesday or Wednesday depending on how quickly we get the remaining task complete.

Thanks for reading - Connie says Hi.
Ron

I aint going to hit my head on that stinkin' cabinet and a visit from the granddaughter

Today I finished the shower and tub installation and caulked up the seams.  It is much nicer than when we bought the RV new.  I caught the roadrunner watching me and admiring her reflection in the mirror.

Roadrunner checking on the progress

In the next picture you can see the wall that was replaced in the front of the shower.  I used a fiberglass reinforced panel over underlayment and ended up with a very smooth and strong wall.

Finished shower wall

It was pretty nice working inside the RV with the AC on.  When the bathroom was finished and cleaned I turned my attention to a wall cabinet meant for a TV that I have probably hit my head 50 times on it (I know, I'm a slow learner).  It faces the wrong direction for TV use and with the flat screen mounted on a swivel attachment has become a repository for remote controls, papers and lots of junk.  I was amazed at the number of screws holding the sucker on the wall and how they were hidden.  Never the less, brute force prevailed and the cabinet is gone.

Cabinet before removal - no more head butting on the edge that used to stick out over the couch.

Conne and I went to Lowes in spring hill and bought an unfinshed oak cabinet (30x18x12) that will be made to match the existing cabinets.  They matched Home Depot's 20% discount on "in stock" cabinets.  The savings were enough to pay for supper at Cracker Barrel - Yum Yum.

Today I also got out the tig welder and made some new battery racks out of 1" mild steel angle for the trailer tongue.  The original ones are too wide and the battery sits in at an angle with the battery tilted.  Can't be good for the battery.  I hadn't use the welder in a couple of years (Lincoln Precision Tig 275) but it fired right up and I still had a nearly full bottle of argon.  I will paint it tomorrow and install in the existing rack location.

Tonight the granddaughter came over to spend the night.  We went to supper at the Greek Orthodox church fish fry which was delicious.
When we got home she decided to make some Disney Princess window art "stained glass" to hang in the windows.

The first round of transparent colors drying.  The rest will be done tomorrow.

She says you should clic on the picture to see them (and her) better.

As always, thanks for reading.
Ron

Status update - before and now pictures

The going has been a little slow due to the heat.  Not too bad in the morning but after 12 noon the pace slows considerably.  In the past few days we have completed the installation of trim and clearance lights (led).  Today I finished sealing the transition to the rubber roof and the front is totally water tight (I hope).  Here is a photo from June 4 before starting the exploritory surgery.

"As found" photo before taking the front panels off.

Here is a photo from this afternoon when it got too hot to keep working.  I had just finished installing the ladder and putting the seam sealant along the top front edge where it meets the rubber roof.

The finished front cap.

We still have to trim the vinyl inserts on the edges and trim the sealant where it has squeezed out from the trim but it's looking pretty good in my humble opinion.
I still have to put a bead of RTV at the bottom of the wall where it meets the metal frame and paint the tongue and front frame gloss black.
A very significant benefit from the sealing of the roof is that we can now use the AC unit to make interior work possible.  Right now it would be like doing cardio in a Native American sweat lodge.

The weather man has chances of rain increasing tomorrow and through the weekend.  This would probably be a good time to scrub down the entire RV including the roof and get it ready to coat.  Also dependent on the weather we will turn our attention to the inside and put the bathroom back together.

The granddaughter is over today.  She and Connie went swimming this afternoon and she will stay for supper.  We are grilling big juicy cheesburgers and have ice cold watermellon for desert.

As always, thanks for reading.
Ron

So close I can smell it - and reflections on Fathers Day

Saturday - After a full day working on the RV we now have the roof and right side closed, sealed and trim installed.  Only the left side trim and sealing and installation of the clearance lights is left on the outside repairs.  When that has been completed I will reseal the entire roof and put the batteries and LP tanks back in place.

Panels in place and all but the driver's side is sealed.

The remainder of the work may push our trip departure a few days but what the heck - we have an RV that is road worthy and won't leak.  The top panel seems really plain to me and is crying out for some art work.  Suggestions so far have been:  The back of Mount Rushmore showing presidential hineys, A bluegrass jam and campfire scene and Connies favorite - a quilting bee.  I found a place that can make a large decal out of most any image we send.  Not cheap but pretty cool.

Tomorrow is Father's day.  We will be travelling to my sister's house to have dinner with my Step-Father and Mother.  It's nice of her to put this on where it is close enough for them to drive.
We are going down a bit early to put some flowers in the water at the boat ramp in Clearwater where Connie's fathers ashes were scattered.  We will also go to the National Cemetary at Bay Pines to put flowers at my fathers resting place.

Thats all for now - more on Monday.
Ron

Making great progress on the repairs - front panels installed!

It's been a few days since I updated the blog and a lot has been accomplished.
After much fitting, trial and error, the lower panel was glued into place on Wednesday.  The cut made at the metal supplier was perfect for the lower end.

Lower panel glued in place and curing.

The shims and 2x4s are to hold the panel against the wood studs while the glue cures.  The objective is to have a tight panel with no fasteners except in the trim strips.  Shortly after this picture was taken, the upper 10 inches was bent inward following the shape of the front panel.  It was a lot easier than I thought it would be.

The next view is the finished lower panel shown by my lovely spokesmodel Connie.

Lower panel after curing 24 hours.

We went to Clearwater for some business on Thursday.  It rained heavily during the night and was starting again as we left - a good day not to be working on the RV.
Along the way I went into a Harbor Freight store and purchased two different power metal shears (electric and pneumatic).  Connie bought a quilting based novel at Barnes and Noble, "The Union Quilters" about what the women were up to while the menfolk were out killing each other in the Civil War.

Connie picked up a quilt that was being "quilted" at a shop in Hudson.  This was a "find" that was made of fabric from the 30s and in remarkable condition.  The pattern is a "Dresdon Plate" design.  I got to  watch the owner of the shop do the last row of quilting.  Pretty remarkable degree of precision for free-hand work.  It was put together without batting and has a flannel backing for use on our trip as a light summer quilt.

Quilted by Pat at "Quilt till you wilt" in Hudson Fl

Friday we got an early start on placing the upper pre-painted panel.  Good neighbor Gerald came over to lend a degree of precision to the process that might not have been there in his absence.  The darn panel was also too heavy for one person to glue up and fasten in place.
We started with the intention of using the old panel as a template for marking the new one for cutting.  It was still wet from the rain on Thursday and we decided we were men and didn't need no stinkin' template.  We took measurements of the roof to the where we needed the bottom of the panel to end up each foot and transferred the data to the back side of the panel.  The electric shears purchased yesterday worked great once we figured out to not run it at full speed.  When we slowed it down it walked through the metal in a controlled fashion leaving very little sanding and smoothing of the edge to remove burrs and sharp places.

Upper panel cut to fit and holes made for the clearance lights.

There are two amber clearance lights on the panel.  We used an electrician's hole punch (from Harbor Freight of course) to make the opening without distorting the metal.
Finally we glued the studs, RTV'd the overlap bottom section and placed the panel.  Looks pretty sweet to me.  We used the same method of bracing using shims and 2x4s holding the metal tight while the glue cures overnight.

Top panel fastened in place and curing.

After about an hour, we installed the lower and transition trim strips using the roll caulking bought for the purpose.  It took more of it than I expected but we have great coverage and a good water-tight seal.
Tomorrow we will fasten the rubber roof to the top and the side trim and finally have a finished exterior.  After that I still have to put the shower and tub back together.  More about that tomorrow.

As always, thanks for reading my blog.
Ron

Oh what a day - Stupid truck, stupid car!

Friday started out full of promise.  Work continued on the RV preparing to close up the wall.  The framework was belt-sanded to remove high spots and dried glue.  The upper section was stuffed with fiberglass insulation.  The call came in around noon from Bray's that the sheet aluminum had arrived and was being sheared to the desired width (at no extra charge).  This seemed like a good time to knock off and make a run to Ocala.

Gerald - without his knowledge and help this would be taking me a month to do!

Gerald had finished his morning manatee and dolphin tours and rode along with me.  About half way there, the "water in fuel" warning came in on the dash message center - not that unusual for diesels and relatively easy to correct by changing fuel filters and cleaning out the water-fuel separator.  The filters were due for changing and I had already bought them.
About ten minutes after that warning, the check engine light came on.  Hmmmm, the water warning is not supposed to set a code and cause the light.

We continued on to pick up the sheet metal and were surprised by the thickness - it was about twice as thick as the shorter panel I had looked at here in Crystal River.  This is good for the rigidity of the front panels but may present the need to have the metal bent to the angle in a brake.

Coming home I spotted an RV body shop and parts supply just West of I-75 on SR-40.  Real nice folks that are associated with Flagship RV in Bushnell and Clermont.  I was able to purchase a new side edge piece to replace the one that was two inches short at the top.

We got the goodies home and stored them in the Garage Mahal then adjourned for the evening.

Saturday morning I set out to fix the truck.  Since I had a check engine light reset at the Ford dealer a couple of weeks ago to the tune of $85 plus tax, I decided to purchase a code reader and do my own diagnostics and have the ability to take care of this myself.  A lot of research and I picked a fairly high end reader (from a home mechanic standpoint).  I picked the Actron CP9580 and found a 20% discount by paying online and picking it up at Advance Auto Parts.

Naturally I didn't want to get the truck all hot so I hopped in the wife's trusty Toyota Avalon.  It barely started turning over slowly - Damn - what now.  Well since it was running I put tools in it to change the battery if required and drove to the parts store to get the code reader.  When I came out, I noticed a shiny metal screw head flush with the tread on the LF tire - ugh!  Did the spit test and it was leaking.

Got home, sent the wife to Firestone to get the tire fixed.  The car was starting sort of ok.  The tire dealer told here she should get the battery replaced and that it was under warranty from Wally World. 

Got the truck filters changed and blew the debris and moisture from the water separator and water detector.  Managed to blow considerable diesel fuel on myself as well.
Cleaned up and hooked up the newly purchased code reader - pretty easy to use.  The check engine light was from the same issue a couple of weeks ago.  I installed a 60 gallon aux fuel tank and if cut in to the system, has to empty before the original fuel tank comes on scale and starts lowering.  It turns out that if the fuel gauge does not lower or goes up after a hundred miles or so it thinks there is a level indicator malfunction and does not want you to run out of fuel so hence the light.  I reset the code and the light went off.  Lesson learned - let the gauge go down a bit before letting the fuel refill the tank after the truck is shut off.

Took the Toyota battery to Walmart and got a replacement for 32 dollars.  The old one was 39 months old and out of the free replacement period.  It really spins over fast while starting now.

Got spiffed up and went to a pool party at our friends Russ and Sherrie's place.  He has a garage as big as mine but more toys.  Great party with lots of folks from the plant.

Sunday morning I treated the wood that I could get to in the front with a preservative that will prevent rot and insect damage.  It was hard to find but I finally found it at Nichols Lumber in Dunnellon.  It is made by Rustoleum and is pictured below.

Copper Napthate 9% solution

Here is a view of the final insulation installation.  We are now ready to fit the panels and close this baby up - tomorrow when it's cooler.

Insulation installed and ready to close up

As always, thanks for reading this blog.

Ron

Structural repairs are complete!

Today we started out cutting the underlayment panel to fit the shower wall.  This had to be completed before assembing and fastening the frame.  With help from Gerald, the panel was accurately cut and put in place.  I then assembled the frame with Gorilla glue and screws and tied the entire wall together and to the lower frame.  It really came out solid and I couldn't be more satisfied.

Competed frame and shower wall underlayment panel in place

Inside view of the shower wall underlayment.

After completing the wall, we cut the FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) shower wall to be glued to the underlayment.  I will wait on this until the exterior is finished and water-tight.  An added benefit will be the ability to use the RV air conditioner while assembling the shower and installing the tub.


I had to run to a phyiscal therapy appt and did not get a picture of the installed foil faced foam insulation that is about 80% completed.  I am using a double layer of 3/4" panels with a combined R-10 value.  You could really feel the difference in inside temperature with the afternoon sun hitting the wall.


The next (unexpected) challenge was getting the sheet aluminum to make the final closure of the front panel.  The two materials I want to use are bright tread pattern for the lower section and prepainted sheet for the upper.  I measured the width of the RV and need 102" or 8' 6" wide material.  The locally available size is 4 x 8' maximum.  A call to a metal supply in Ocala (Brays) found that they stock the sheets in 12' lengths at about $100 more per sheet than the 8 foot version.  I think the complete coverage without a center seam that could leak is worth the extra $$.  I will also have some neat material around in case I can talk Connie into the diamond deck tread pattern for our upcoming kitchen remodel (probably not eh!)

We took the Son, Daughter-in-law and Granddaughter out to supper tonight at a Mexican restaurant in Inverness.  Great meal and we ran into my banjo instructor and another banjo student in the restaurant.

Thanks for reading.
Ron

Construction in progress - Surprise visit by a QC inspector

The last couple of days have been very productive.  The shower wall has been removed to allow installation of the new wall framework and the new fiberglass panel.  Here is a pic of the shower with a great outside view.

Front wall of shower removed

From this point the replacement wood pieces are cut to fit with wider boards used for strength and to add attachment points for the finish shower panel.

Corner wall pieces cut to fit and in place for dry run.



I then turned attention to fabricating the corner framework for the other side.  The pieces were cut to fit and then installed using 3 inch screws and gorilla glue.  After the installation of the interior wall structure on this side, my work instructions had a QC hold point.  Imagine my surprise when celebrity QC inspector H. Simpson entered the work site.  He examined the repair quickly and signed of the step.  We then adjourned for donuts and coffee.

Inspection completed - Homer signed it off

The next step requires cutting the underlayment plywood to size and putting it in place then installing the remainder of the front shower wall and corner - that will be tomorrow when it's cooler outside.

After that the entire panel will be insulated with foil faced rigid foam.  The area where the wall joins the roof had absolutely no insulation in it from the factory.  It will be well insulated when I am done.

Thanks for reading my blog - comments are always appreciated.

Ron





Light At The End Of The Tunnel!

Nope - just a hole in the corner of the RV.

We made great progress on Sunday.  With the help of my good neighbors Gerald and Paulina, we quickly removed the rotted wood leaving the sound material to attach to.  With the bath tub out it was easy to get to the material to be removed.  A 16 x 16 section of the floor as well as the supporting material was removed.

Our goal for the day was to remove the rotted material and get at least the flooring repairs so that we could end the day with construction.  We accomplished this by piecing in the floor with new supporting wood on the side.  The thermometer inside the RV (with fans running) read 97.7 F at this point.

We finished by cutting the main front floor beam (if you can call a 2 x 2 x 97" stick a beam) to be installed on Monday.

Here is the floor patch installed.

We decided to celebrate the milestone by taking the team to Margarita Grill on the Homosassa river.  We had grilled octopus and blackened Mahi-Mahi - most excellent.

The goal for today is to install the lower wood in the front and re-attach the wall to the frame.

Thanks for viewing and commenting.
Ron

Best Laid Plans - A Minor Setback

This started out as what I thought would be a simple project to reseal and water-proof the RV before heading out on our big adventure.  I noticed that the front end cap upper section had some "ripples" at the sides and was not sealed very good.  After consulting with a few folks and a night of research on the internet I concluded that the original material (resin laminated to luan plywood) was delaminating as a result of minor moisture intrusion at the seams over the years we've owned it.

I checked on availability of replacement materials and settled on 0.063" pre-painted aluminum sheeting.  Knowing that the advertised construction of the RV was aluminum tubing with walls bonded to it, I felt confident that the front walls would also be made this way and it would be a simple swap out and seal.

As my pal Homer Simpson would say "Doh!"  I couldn't have been more wrong.  As you can see in the pictures below, the water leakage had rotted portions of both corners.



The damage at the side posts and middle should not be too bad to replace.  The material is readily available 2x2 (actual 1.5 x 1.5) yellow pine.  I can get this in PT as well but I'm not sure how well it will glue or epoxy in to the existing interior paneling.  I will have to remove the bath tub and replace right front corner of the floor as it is rotted at least six inches in from the wall.

This whole episode has me a little bummed but it is what it is and I have plenty of time to make the repairs properly.  If we leave a little later, we will get back a little later from our trip - not much down side to that eh!

In true Florida hurricane survivor fashion, The front is covered with a tarp as an afternoon rain shower is not unlikely.  It's 94 F outside and too hot to work on it any more today - must be time to clean up and pick a little bluegrass.

Thanks for reading our blog.

Ron and Connie

Homer Simpson and the banjo are obvious - why the roadrunner?

Not long after we moved to the Crystal River FL area in the early 1980s, Connie became very involved in scouting with our son.  She was on the road so much and put so many miles on her car that her best friends husband gave her the nickname "Roadrunner".  The name stuck and later another friend presented her with a stuffed one that has proudly ridden in her car ever since.  Unfortunately that one is bigger than Homer and a plastic toy one based on the cartoon series with the coyote has been selected to travel with us.

Our Adventure Begins

Welcome to our travel adventure blog.  After 30 years working in the nuclear power industry I have finally retired and will be sharing our travels with friends and family.
Our original plans were to cross the Mississippi river several times as we head north.  Mother Nature has cause us to revise the plans somewhat as our truck and RV probably aren't real stable when floating.
We will be looking at an RV friendly trip up the Blueridge Parkway to VA and then take the old crooked road (58) to KY.
More later when we have firmer plans.