Uh-Oh. It appears that ol' man winter is gonna kick some serious heine again! And once again it looks like the Maineiacs are in the wrong place at the wrong time. As I recall - 2 weeks ago it snowed here in Maine on Wednesday - but we were able to shovel the 2-4 inches and hit the road for our travel to New Jersey on Thursday. Last week it snowed on Wednesday while we were in New Jersey - this time somewhere between 10 inches and 15 inches! So we dug out on Thursday and traveled on Friday. It looks kinda like DeJa Vu all over again this week!
Once this storm gets done pummeling the midwest and moves through the northeast - it looks like we are going to get another foot or so of snow before Thursday morning. So once again - I expect we will be digging out and shoveling off the roof of the Winne on Thursday and hopefully traveling south on Friday. Now all I gotta do is find a place to put another foot of snow!?
I see that it is 50 degrees warmer in Summerdale, AL today than it is here in Maine today! I'm not complaining mind you - just noting the facts! Some of us will warm up using the sunshine and balmy temps - others of us will warm up shoveling 10-15 inches of God's gift to those in the northern climes.
As Peggy keeps reminding me - it's "All Good."
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Save Some For Us! - Topsham, ME
I spent most of yesterday working on the Winne. The temps here have been in the teens at night and will be going into the single digits for the next several nights with highs during the days only in the 20s. I really don't want to keep the Winne "warm" inside until we leave again (waay too much propane and/or electricity) but I will leave one electric heater running inside to hopefully keep the inside temp above freezing. So --- to protect the water lines from freeze damage I went through the winterizing process of draining, blowing out with air, and then filling with RV/Marine antifreeze solution.
Once that was accomplished - next on my list was to get the ice/snow off the roof. You may recall that right before we left New Jersey we really got dumped on with about 10 or so inches of heavy wet snow. A good deal of that snow/ice managed to stay on Winne's roof all the way back to Maine. I really didn't like traveling with that snow/ice up there - worried that it would come off in big sheets and damage someones car behind me! I see the big tractor trailer trucks doing that frequently in the winter - and I really don't like following them too closely this time of year. I was really surprised that a 2-3 inch layer managed to stay up there for 470 or so miles! So I carefully (heavy emphasis on the "carefully') crawled up on the roof and cleared off the snow/ice. I know ... it will probably snow some considerable amount before we leave again - but at least the roof is clear for now!
As I mentioned a blog post ago or so ... it looks like the northeast is going to experience yet another snowstorm on Wednesday this week. Thursday is looking pretty good weather-wise so we're planning on leaving then. But then again - I suppose it depends somewhat on how much snow we get on Wednesday and when the snow arrives/quits. The long range forecast looks pretty good for several days after that so I think we have a opportunity-window to get far enough south to escape the snow/ice. If all goes well we should be in Lower Alabama around the 7th or 8th of February.
I see those folks in LA are enjoying some 70 degree weather. Save some for us willya?
Once that was accomplished - next on my list was to get the ice/snow off the roof. You may recall that right before we left New Jersey we really got dumped on with about 10 or so inches of heavy wet snow. A good deal of that snow/ice managed to stay on Winne's roof all the way back to Maine. I really didn't like traveling with that snow/ice up there - worried that it would come off in big sheets and damage someones car behind me! I see the big tractor trailer trucks doing that frequently in the winter - and I really don't like following them too closely this time of year. I was really surprised that a 2-3 inch layer managed to stay up there for 470 or so miles! So I carefully (heavy emphasis on the "carefully') crawled up on the roof and cleared off the snow/ice. I know ... it will probably snow some considerable amount before we leave again - but at least the roof is clear for now!
As I mentioned a blog post ago or so ... it looks like the northeast is going to experience yet another snowstorm on Wednesday this week. Thursday is looking pretty good weather-wise so we're planning on leaving then. But then again - I suppose it depends somewhat on how much snow we get on Wednesday and when the snow arrives/quits. The long range forecast looks pretty good for several days after that so I think we have a opportunity-window to get far enough south to escape the snow/ice. If all goes well we should be in Lower Alabama around the 7th or 8th of February.
I see those folks in LA are enjoying some 70 degree weather. Save some for us willya?
Friday, January 28, 2011
Home Again - Topsham, ME
Another long day.
Peggy and I arose early this morning, got our act together and were on the road, heading north, around 6:30 AM. Our exit was not without its difficulties as the winter weather in NJ was trying to hold us back. Once I chipped the ice from around three of our four leveling jacks so that they would retract, and unfroze the retract mechanism for our living room slideout topper - we were able to make our exit.
As we did on our trip down to Jerzee - we made the trip home - all 470 miles - in one day. This time of year there aren't really many options and as long as we were coming back - we figured we might as well be home. Fortunately the traffic wasn't too bad and we made the trip without incident.
So the Winne is back in the driveway and Peggy and I are back in the house. Most of our "stuff" is still in the Winne but we'll deal with that tomorrow. We had enough time after we got home to unload the frig and bring a few things inside and that was about it before the sun set and we decided to call it quits. I placed an electric heater in the rig and left the propane heater on although I lowered the setpoint to 60 degrees. Once I get the water system drained again tomorrow, put some pink stuff in the drain traps, and blow out the water lines with air - I'll let the temperature get a little lower inside.
The memorial service for Miss Lou is scheduled for Tuesday. The long range weather forecast has some ugly weather coming on Wednesday with clear skies forecast for Thursday. So our present "plan" is to head south again on Thursday and head directly for Alabama. But then again - all that is a week away - and who knows what might change between now and then!
So in the meantime we will try and stay warm in these single digit temps (some of those digits are forecast to be negative!) and we'll keep Winne somewhat ready to roll. She has performed well so far but she sure needs a good bath. That may be first on the list when we make it to Alabama!
Peggy and I arose early this morning, got our act together and were on the road, heading north, around 6:30 AM. Our exit was not without its difficulties as the winter weather in NJ was trying to hold us back. Once I chipped the ice from around three of our four leveling jacks so that they would retract, and unfroze the retract mechanism for our living room slideout topper - we were able to make our exit.
As we did on our trip down to Jerzee - we made the trip home - all 470 miles - in one day. This time of year there aren't really many options and as long as we were coming back - we figured we might as well be home. Fortunately the traffic wasn't too bad and we made the trip without incident.
So the Winne is back in the driveway and Peggy and I are back in the house. Most of our "stuff" is still in the Winne but we'll deal with that tomorrow. We had enough time after we got home to unload the frig and bring a few things inside and that was about it before the sun set and we decided to call it quits. I placed an electric heater in the rig and left the propane heater on although I lowered the setpoint to 60 degrees. Once I get the water system drained again tomorrow, put some pink stuff in the drain traps, and blow out the water lines with air - I'll let the temperature get a little lower inside.
The memorial service for Miss Lou is scheduled for Tuesday. The long range weather forecast has some ugly weather coming on Wednesday with clear skies forecast for Thursday. So our present "plan" is to head south again on Thursday and head directly for Alabama. But then again - all that is a week away - and who knows what might change between now and then!
So in the meantime we will try and stay warm in these single digit temps (some of those digits are forecast to be negative!) and we'll keep Winne somewhat ready to roll. She has performed well so far but she sure needs a good bath. That may be first on the list when we make it to Alabama!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Life Happening - Clarksboro, NJ
Well - the New Jersey wintry mix turned out to be just what they forecasted. It started raining really hard around 5 PM last night, turned to some nasty freezing rain around 6 PM and was snowing around 1-2 inches per hour by 8 PM. We even had a round of "snow thunder" move through around 9 PM.
This morning we awoke to a winter wonderland of heavy snow on the trees and about 10 inches of the white stuff on all the horizontal surfaces in sight. We had pretty much determined yesterday that we weren't getting out today - so we took our time getting up and I then I ventured out around 9 AM to get started on digging out.
As you can see - digging out took awhile!
Fortunately we had pulled in the slideouts last night - anticipating that this mess was coming. This kept the wet snow off the slideout covers and we simply put the slides back out this morning after all the snow had moved on.
Now that we are dug out - we will let the local Public Works Employees get all the roads cleared off today and we plan on getting back on the road tomorrow.
Unfortunately - we will be heading North instead of South. No - our brains haven't frozen - life has happened. We found out yesterday that a dear friend of Peggy's passed away yesterday and Peggy really wants to be there for the memorial service - so we will!
Lou was a very a special lady and well worth our return to honor and remember her life here on earth.
Right now the plan is to keep the Winne ready to roll South again - perhaps as early as Wednesday next week - we'll just have to wait and see what life presents us over the next several days.
So we dig out today in preparation for colder temps tomorrow. The good news - the heater in our house works really well!
This morning we awoke to a winter wonderland of heavy snow on the trees and about 10 inches of the white stuff on all the horizontal surfaces in sight. We had pretty much determined yesterday that we weren't getting out today - so we took our time getting up and I then I ventured out around 9 AM to get started on digging out.
As you can see - digging out took awhile!
Fortunately we had pulled in the slideouts last night - anticipating that this mess was coming. This kept the wet snow off the slideout covers and we simply put the slides back out this morning after all the snow had moved on.
Now that we are dug out - we will let the local Public Works Employees get all the roads cleared off today and we plan on getting back on the road tomorrow.
Unfortunately - we will be heading North instead of South. No - our brains haven't frozen - life has happened. We found out yesterday that a dear friend of Peggy's passed away yesterday and Peggy really wants to be there for the memorial service - so we will!
Lou was a very a special lady and well worth our return to honor and remember her life here on earth.
Right now the plan is to keep the Winne ready to roll South again - perhaps as early as Wednesday next week - we'll just have to wait and see what life presents us over the next several days.
So we dig out today in preparation for colder temps tomorrow. The good news - the heater in our house works really well!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
A Wintry Mix - Clarksboro, NJ
As advertised - the weather has turned warmer. It's all the way up to freezing this morning. Also as advertised the snow has arrived. Peggy and I awoke to about an inch of snow on the ground and still falling but it looks as if it is now turning to a "wintry mix." A "wintry mix" is a nice way of saying it's going to be a yucky day weather-wise. The forecast for today is calling for this "wintry mix" to last through the day and then turn to pure snow late tonight and into the early AM hours before stopping.
Our original travel plans called for leaving tomorrow - but I think we are in the Wait-&-See mode now. If it looks like the roads are going to be yucky I think we may stick around for another day. If not - then we may head towards the I-81 corridor of Virginia. After that - we'll see where the weather is going to be warm and head that way!
Last night we got to attend grand-daughter Alyssa's school band winter concert. Alyssa has been playing the flute for a year or so and seems to be really enjoying it. The concert last night had a big crowd and the band played great! After the concert we traveled back to the home of the NJ Evringham's and had an after-party of ice cream cones. Unfortunately - we left the camera in the car so no pictures for the blog this morning.
If we ever get moving this morning we have a bunch of laundry to do and then we plan on heading back to visit some more this afternoon/evening. We don't seem to be doing very well on the get moving thing!
So the Maineiacs aren't moving very fast or very far today - and tomorrow is looking a bit iffy too. Ya'll will have to stay tuned to see what perils confront the Maineiacs as they continue their 2011 winter escape adventure.
Our original travel plans called for leaving tomorrow - but I think we are in the Wait-&-See mode now. If it looks like the roads are going to be yucky I think we may stick around for another day. If not - then we may head towards the I-81 corridor of Virginia. After that - we'll see where the weather is going to be warm and head that way!
Last night we got to attend grand-daughter Alyssa's school band winter concert. Alyssa has been playing the flute for a year or so and seems to be really enjoying it. The concert last night had a big crowd and the band played great! After the concert we traveled back to the home of the NJ Evringham's and had an after-party of ice cream cones. Unfortunately - we left the camera in the car so no pictures for the blog this morning.
If we ever get moving this morning we have a bunch of laundry to do and then we plan on heading back to visit some more this afternoon/evening. We don't seem to be doing very well on the get moving thing!
So the Maineiacs aren't moving very fast or very far today - and tomorrow is looking a bit iffy too. Ya'll will have to stay tuned to see what perils confront the Maineiacs as they continue their 2011 winter escape adventure.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Not For Wusses - Clarksboro, NJ
Yesterday turned out to be more of a cold weather RVing challenge than I suspected. You may recall that I took care of the frozen water supply hose problem pretty easily by removing the unprotected water pressure regulator - well it didn't stop there.
After taking my morning shower I decided I better empty the grey water tank. Actually - Peggy decided for me since she pretty much filled up the remaining volume before I took a shower! Sure enough - the grey water tank dump valve is frozen shut! Grrr. No problem - break out Peggy's portable hair dryer and thaw out that pipe. In the meantime I break off the remaining portion of plastic handle for the dump valve handle and cut my finger. No problem - a little soap and water - neosporin - and a band aid and I'm back in business. Once the medical issues are taken care of I figure I better see to a small water drip on the 90 degree fitting on our fresh water hose connection to the rig. You got it - that resulted in a broken fitting! No problem - Camping World is right down the road. But before we head to Camping World I figure we better fill up with propane since we have been using a lot and what better time to fill up than on the coldest day of the year! So we rig the Winne for travel (we had to move about a hundred feet to the propane tank) and top of the propane tank - at $4.38 a gallon! I know it's selling for $2.99 a gallon just down the road at the Flying J - but I suppose the convenience factor drives up the price!
So after all that - and a trip to Camping World - all was well again.
We finished our day with more visiting with the Grandkids - played a few games - made some brownies - life is good.
RVing in the winter in the northeast is definitely not for Wusses.
After taking my morning shower I decided I better empty the grey water tank. Actually - Peggy decided for me since she pretty much filled up the remaining volume before I took a shower! Sure enough - the grey water tank dump valve is frozen shut! Grrr. No problem - break out Peggy's portable hair dryer and thaw out that pipe. In the meantime I break off the remaining portion of plastic handle for the dump valve handle and cut my finger. No problem - a little soap and water - neosporin - and a band aid and I'm back in business. Once the medical issues are taken care of I figure I better see to a small water drip on the 90 degree fitting on our fresh water hose connection to the rig. You got it - that resulted in a broken fitting! No problem - Camping World is right down the road. But before we head to Camping World I figure we better fill up with propane since we have been using a lot and what better time to fill up than on the coldest day of the year! So we rig the Winne for travel (we had to move about a hundred feet to the propane tank) and top of the propane tank - at $4.38 a gallon! I know it's selling for $2.99 a gallon just down the road at the Flying J - but I suppose the convenience factor drives up the price!
So after all that - and a trip to Camping World - all was well again.
We finished our day with more visiting with the Grandkids - played a few games - made some brownies - life is good.
RVing in the winter in the northeast is definitely not for Wusses.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Brrr - Clarksboro, NJ
Brrrr. Man is it cold! I see on the news that the whole country is in winter's cold arctic grip. We certainly are here in New Jersey where it got down to about 10* last night!! But things are looking better over the next few days. At least they are temperature-wise. It always seems to have to warm up to snow and snow/rain is in the forecast for Tuesday night/Wednesday morning with highs back up to around 40*!
So how did my new super-whamadyne heated water supply hose work yesterday? Well it worked great during the day in 20* weather but I noticed we had no water pressure this morning when it was 10*. Actually - the hose worked great - but when I hooked it up to the spigot - I installed a brass pressure regulator which was not heated or insulated. I figured - with the spigot heated and insulated and the hose heated and insulated - that little 4 inch piece of brass would certainly not freeze - right? Well apparently it won't at 20 degrees but it will at 10 degrees! I removed the pressure regulator this morning and re-hooked up the hose and all was well again. I think maybe I'll install the regulator in the "wet-bay" where the hose enters the Winne. It's a bit warmer in there and at least the rig's water system will be protected from over-pressure - even if the hose won't be. Another lesson learned by the cold weather Rver.
After a relatively slow start to yesterday Peggy and I spent the afternoon/evening with the kids/grandkids working on that activities list they made the day before. We didn't get it all done - but we made a big dent in it.
Today is grocery shopping day and then we'll head over for a bit more visiting this afternoon and maybe we'll work on that activities list some more.
As long as the activities are inside. Did I mention it was cooold!
So how did my new super-whamadyne heated water supply hose work yesterday? Well it worked great during the day in 20* weather but I noticed we had no water pressure this morning when it was 10*. Actually - the hose worked great - but when I hooked it up to the spigot - I installed a brass pressure regulator which was not heated or insulated. I figured - with the spigot heated and insulated and the hose heated and insulated - that little 4 inch piece of brass would certainly not freeze - right? Well apparently it won't at 20 degrees but it will at 10 degrees! I removed the pressure regulator this morning and re-hooked up the hose and all was well again. I think maybe I'll install the regulator in the "wet-bay" where the hose enters the Winne. It's a bit warmer in there and at least the rig's water system will be protected from over-pressure - even if the hose won't be. Another lesson learned by the cold weather Rver.
After a relatively slow start to yesterday Peggy and I spent the afternoon/evening with the kids/grandkids working on that activities list they made the day before. We didn't get it all done - but we made a big dent in it.
Today is grocery shopping day and then we'll head over for a bit more visiting this afternoon and maybe we'll work on that activities list some more.
As long as the activities are inside. Did I mention it was cooold!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Science Day - Philadelphia, PA
Yesterday was exploration day. We met up with the NJ Evringham Gang around 10:00 AM and set sail for the big city of Philadelphia, PA. The NJ Evringhams only live about 20 minutes away from Philly - so it's really not that far.
We found The Franklin Institute of Science in no time, parked in their parking garage, and started our fun day of experiencing all the fun science stuff - (shhsh - don't tell the kids they were actually learning stuff while they were having so much fun!). After paying our entrance fee and receiving our arm-bands we were off to see everything we could see, experience everything we saw, and wear out G'Ma and G'Pa as best we could!
We solved puzzles, made paper, created earthquakes, traveled through the human heart, flew airplanes, rode trains, experimented with electricity, and THEN did the rest!
Needless to say - we had a great day!
We may have wore out the G'kids a little - but they recover quick! Before we left them for the evening they were already making the list of activities for tomorrow!!
I did manage to complete construction of Winne's new freeze proof water supply hose last night - and it appears I got it done none to soon as it is supposed to get even colder tonight with a low of 11* forecast!
But we're not complaining too loudly. I see where the high back home in Maine is supposed to be a +6 degrees tomorrow and a low of -8 degrees. Here is a picture of what we saw through our kitchen window right before we left!
So we'll continue to burn up the propane keeping Winne warm and see if G'Ma and G'Pa can keep up with those G'kids for a few more days before heading further south for warmer weather.
Everybody stay safe and warm - that's our plan!
We found The Franklin Institute of Science in no time, parked in their parking garage, and started our fun day of experiencing all the fun science stuff - (shhsh - don't tell the kids they were actually learning stuff while they were having so much fun!). After paying our entrance fee and receiving our arm-bands we were off to see everything we could see, experience everything we saw, and wear out G'Ma and G'Pa as best we could!
We solved puzzles, made paper, created earthquakes, traveled through the human heart, flew airplanes, rode trains, experimented with electricity, and THEN did the rest!
Needless to say - we had a great day!
We may have wore out the G'kids a little - but they recover quick! Before we left them for the evening they were already making the list of activities for tomorrow!!
I did manage to complete construction of Winne's new freeze proof water supply hose last night - and it appears I got it done none to soon as it is supposed to get even colder tonight with a low of 11* forecast!
But we're not complaining too loudly. I see where the high back home in Maine is supposed to be a +6 degrees tomorrow and a low of -8 degrees. Here is a picture of what we saw through our kitchen window right before we left!
So we'll continue to burn up the propane keeping Winne warm and see if G'Ma and G'Pa can keep up with those G'kids for a few more days before heading further south for warmer weather.
Everybody stay safe and warm - that's our plan!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Sorry! - Clarksboro, NJ - Day 2
Ah yes - winter RVing - what an adventure. The temperature did manage to make it up to above freezing yesterday - all the way to about 37 degrees in the sun. But then the wind came up and made it feel more like zero again outside.
Peggy and I enjoyed a nice slow morning and then traveled over to visit the gang around 3 in the afternoon. On the way over we stopped by Home Depot to pick up materials for my next motorhome improvement project - but more on that down the blog a bit. We visited with Brian for a bit before the kids starting arriving back home from school. Then it was time for G'ma and G'Pa to get busy. Have you ever played "Spin Sorry?" If not - think about it first. Remember the board game "Sorry?" - Pretty simple - Start at the begining - roll a dice - go around the board - and end up at home. Well Spin Sorry is sorta the same except you pick up cards to see what your "turn" allows you to do. You can go forward, backward - or end up "spinning" the board which is a geared affair that changes every body's position and situation! It's much harder to be a G'Pa these days!
So after a rousing bout with Spin Sorry - we all headed out for a nice dinner at Outback and then back to the house for coffee and conversation. I gave Alyssa the task of figuring out our "fun" outing for tomorrow (today). About the only limitation was it had to be inside. I think the forecasted high for today is about 20 degrees! She thought it would be fun to head to Philadelphia and visit the science museum. It looks like they have fun stuff for kids and adults alike so that's our plan for today. Wish us luck negotiating the Phily traffic!
Meanwhile back at the Winne ... . I came to the conclusion yesterday that if I'm going to be crazy enough to travel in the winter months anywhere north of the Mason-Dixon line for any more than a couple of days - and apparently even south of the Mason-Dixon line anywhere north of Key West - I need to be prepared to deal with a freezing water supply line. I know - all I have to do is put water in the internal fresh water tank and it won't freeze and we can use the DC powered pump for all our needs. Although this works - it is a bit of an inconvenience as it always seems that when we need more water - it is really freezing outside and I really don't want to go outside - hook up the hose - fill the tank - and then disconnect and drain the hose again! So I decided to do what other cold weather RVers do and make up a heat traced and insulated water supply hose. Now I've seen advertisements where you can buy these items for hundreds of dollars - but most folks I have seen or read about make their own for much less $$. During our side trip to Home Depot yesterday I picked up a new fresh water hose, some Electric Water Pipe Heating Cable, and some flexible foam pipe insulation. I have started the project by taping the heating cable to the water hose and then wrapping the hose/cable with the insulation. I need a few more pieces of hardware to complete my new water supply system so it may take another day or so before I get to see how it works.
So that's about the situation here in the winterlands of New Jersey. Trying to stay warm, thawed out, and enjoying our visit with the kids/g'kids.
Hope everybody is having a fun Saturday - wherever you are!
Peggy and I enjoyed a nice slow morning and then traveled over to visit the gang around 3 in the afternoon. On the way over we stopped by Home Depot to pick up materials for my next motorhome improvement project - but more on that down the blog a bit. We visited with Brian for a bit before the kids starting arriving back home from school. Then it was time for G'ma and G'Pa to get busy. Have you ever played "Spin Sorry?" If not - think about it first. Remember the board game "Sorry?" - Pretty simple - Start at the begining - roll a dice - go around the board - and end up at home. Well Spin Sorry is sorta the same except you pick up cards to see what your "turn" allows you to do. You can go forward, backward - or end up "spinning" the board which is a geared affair that changes every body's position and situation! It's much harder to be a G'Pa these days!
So after a rousing bout with Spin Sorry - we all headed out for a nice dinner at Outback and then back to the house for coffee and conversation. I gave Alyssa the task of figuring out our "fun" outing for tomorrow (today). About the only limitation was it had to be inside. I think the forecasted high for today is about 20 degrees! She thought it would be fun to head to Philadelphia and visit the science museum. It looks like they have fun stuff for kids and adults alike so that's our plan for today. Wish us luck negotiating the Phily traffic!
Meanwhile back at the Winne ... . I came to the conclusion yesterday that if I'm going to be crazy enough to travel in the winter months anywhere north of the Mason-Dixon line for any more than a couple of days - and apparently even south of the Mason-Dixon line anywhere north of Key West - I need to be prepared to deal with a freezing water supply line. I know - all I have to do is put water in the internal fresh water tank and it won't freeze and we can use the DC powered pump for all our needs. Although this works - it is a bit of an inconvenience as it always seems that when we need more water - it is really freezing outside and I really don't want to go outside - hook up the hose - fill the tank - and then disconnect and drain the hose again! So I decided to do what other cold weather RVers do and make up a heat traced and insulated water supply hose. Now I've seen advertisements where you can buy these items for hundreds of dollars - but most folks I have seen or read about make their own for much less $$. During our side trip to Home Depot yesterday I picked up a new fresh water hose, some Electric Water Pipe Heating Cable, and some flexible foam pipe insulation. I have started the project by taping the heating cable to the water hose and then wrapping the hose/cable with the insulation. I need a few more pieces of hardware to complete my new water supply system so it may take another day or so before I get to see how it works.
So that's about the situation here in the winterlands of New Jersey. Trying to stay warm, thawed out, and enjoying our visit with the kids/g'kids.
Hope everybody is having a fun Saturday - wherever you are!
Friday, January 21, 2011
We're Off! - Clarksboro, NJ
Well we haven't yet escaped winter's grip - but we're working on it!
We got up at Oh-Dark Thirty yesterday, shoveled another path to Winne's door in our driveway, loaded the last of the provisions, hooked up the Vue, and headed south at dawn.
We had a pretty uneventful travel day except for some snow slop on the roads in Maine, a set of balky windshield wipers that require some troubleshooting, and an hour long delay on the Jersey Turnpike due to an overturned dump truck. In spite of those minor issues - we made it all the way to here in Clarksboro, NJ yesterday - some 470 or so miles. It was dark when we arrived so I only did a partial hookup last night - just the essentials - Power - Cable - and added a bit of water to our internal fresh water tank so I could flush out the "pink stuff" antifreeze, fill up the water heater, and get the hot water heater going.
Shortly after our arrival we were greeted by Brian, Nicky, Alyssa, and Emily who came to welcome us and brought dinner! What was for dinner? What else - Domino's Pizza! Since Brian owns a franchise store nearby they arrived with a couple of Pizzas and an assortment of hot sandwiches. We were pretty hungry - as were they - so we chowed down and visited for an hour or so.
Once they headed home for the evening - it was rapidly night-night time for Mikee. It had been an early start - a lot of miles - and Mikee was beat!
We awoke to a "skiff" of new snow on the ground and a clear but windy day. It's still mighty cold and it looks like that won't change during the week we intend to stay here. I checked the weather up north along yesterday's travel path and it looks like we made a good decision by coming all the way yesterday. It's snowing and blowing along the I-95 and I-84 corridors.
So our 2011 winter warmup trip has started - it just looks like we'll have to wait a bit for that warm part. I know - we'll warm-up with grandkid hugs instead!
We got up at Oh-Dark Thirty yesterday, shoveled another path to Winne's door in our driveway, loaded the last of the provisions, hooked up the Vue, and headed south at dawn.
We had a pretty uneventful travel day except for some snow slop on the roads in Maine, a set of balky windshield wipers that require some troubleshooting, and an hour long delay on the Jersey Turnpike due to an overturned dump truck. In spite of those minor issues - we made it all the way to here in Clarksboro, NJ yesterday - some 470 or so miles. It was dark when we arrived so I only did a partial hookup last night - just the essentials - Power - Cable - and added a bit of water to our internal fresh water tank so I could flush out the "pink stuff" antifreeze, fill up the water heater, and get the hot water heater going.
Shortly after our arrival we were greeted by Brian, Nicky, Alyssa, and Emily who came to welcome us and brought dinner! What was for dinner? What else - Domino's Pizza! Since Brian owns a franchise store nearby they arrived with a couple of Pizzas and an assortment of hot sandwiches. We were pretty hungry - as were they - so we chowed down and visited for an hour or so.
Once they headed home for the evening - it was rapidly night-night time for Mikee. It had been an early start - a lot of miles - and Mikee was beat!
We awoke to a "skiff" of new snow on the ground and a clear but windy day. It's still mighty cold and it looks like that won't change during the week we intend to stay here. I checked the weather up north along yesterday's travel path and it looks like we made a good decision by coming all the way yesterday. It's snowing and blowing along the I-95 and I-84 corridors.
So our 2011 winter warmup trip has started - it just looks like we'll have to wait a bit for that warm part. I know - we'll warm-up with grandkid hugs instead!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
A Wake-Up!
We are just about ready to roll.
The Winne has been dug out from yesterday's snowstorm, most of our "stuff" has been loaded, the house is just about placed in winter lay-up, and we are a "Wake-Up" away from rolling south!
We have a few things left to take care of this evening and our plan is to hit the road pretty early in the morning. Normally when we leave this time of year and travel to New Jersey we take 2 days to do the 500 or so miles. This time we don't have a real long travel window as another snow storm is forecast for the Northeast on Friday. We haven't yet installed the studs in Winne's tires and I refuse to even contemplate Snow Chains - so our plan is to get on the road pretty early tomorrow and travel all the way to New Jersey in one day. We have done it in one day before - and it's a loong day - but I think the long travel day is better than having to deal with driving that corridor in the snow!
As always when we take off this time of year we have several choices to make. Do we pack the warm weather clothes or the cold weather clothes? Do we de-winterize the Winne before we leave - or wait till we hit Jerzee? Do we stop in Jerzee or just keep on going until they have no clue what a snow shovel is for? And as always - we make the same decisions. We take both sets of clothes, we wait until we get to Jerzee to de-winterize, and of course we spend time with the kids/grandkids in Jerzee. RVing in a bit of snow is no longer a challenge for us - we're no wimps - we can hack it!!
As long as they continue to sell Propane - we can keep the Winne warm enough to enjoy our visit with the NJ Evringhams - look out - here we come!
The Winne has been dug out from yesterday's snowstorm, most of our "stuff" has been loaded, the house is just about placed in winter lay-up, and we are a "Wake-Up" away from rolling south!
We have a few things left to take care of this evening and our plan is to hit the road pretty early in the morning. Normally when we leave this time of year and travel to New Jersey we take 2 days to do the 500 or so miles. This time we don't have a real long travel window as another snow storm is forecast for the Northeast on Friday. We haven't yet installed the studs in Winne's tires and I refuse to even contemplate Snow Chains - so our plan is to get on the road pretty early tomorrow and travel all the way to New Jersey in one day. We have done it in one day before - and it's a loong day - but I think the long travel day is better than having to deal with driving that corridor in the snow!
As always when we take off this time of year we have several choices to make. Do we pack the warm weather clothes or the cold weather clothes? Do we de-winterize the Winne before we leave - or wait till we hit Jerzee? Do we stop in Jerzee or just keep on going until they have no clue what a snow shovel is for? And as always - we make the same decisions. We take both sets of clothes, we wait until we get to Jerzee to de-winterize, and of course we spend time with the kids/grandkids in Jerzee. RVing in a bit of snow is no longer a challenge for us - we're no wimps - we can hack it!!
As long as they continue to sell Propane - we can keep the Winne warm enough to enjoy our visit with the NJ Evringhams - look out - here we come!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Fresh out of Temperature - Topsham, Maine
OK - it's beyond serious now. It's no longer a quaint little distraction of New England. It has been extremely cold these last few days. Lows lower than zero make no sense! How can something be lower than nothing?
So let's review:
Today the high in Topsham was about 18 Degrees.
Today the high in Summerdale, AL was about 62 Degrees.
Today the high in Tucson, AZ was about 77 Degrees.
The Patriots, Eagles, and Seahawks are all out of the running for the NFL Championship.
... I might as well head south and warm up!
I did make some real progress these last few days getting ready to roll. The basement storage areas have been inventoried and loaded, the tire pressures have been adjusted, and the tire pressure monitoring system has been installed. Most of the items we need to load except for food and clothes have been loaded. Tomorrow we'll do some more loading in between the snow, sleet, and freezing rain that is in the weather forecast.
Peggy focused on getting the bedroom ready today. Peggy really likes to get in a warm bed on cold evenings and we have typically taken the electric blanket we use as a mattress pad off our bed at home and put it in the Winne for our winter travels. We decided to buy Winne her own electric mattress pad for Christmas and so we got that installed and tested today. As long as we have some power we ought to be able to stay nice and warm in bed anyway! I noted that the mattress pad only consumes 70 Watts. At that rate we ought to be able to power it off the Winne's batteries if necessary.
So that's about it from here in the frozen north. The good news - it will warm up a bit tomorrow during the snow/sleet/freezing rain. Hopefully it all won't amount to much and we can get dug out and get far enough south before the frigid temps return.
2 and a Wake-Up!
So let's review:
Today the high in Topsham was about 18 Degrees.
Today the high in Summerdale, AL was about 62 Degrees.
Today the high in Tucson, AZ was about 77 Degrees.
The Patriots, Eagles, and Seahawks are all out of the running for the NFL Championship.
... I might as well head south and warm up!
I did make some real progress these last few days getting ready to roll. The basement storage areas have been inventoried and loaded, the tire pressures have been adjusted, and the tire pressure monitoring system has been installed. Most of the items we need to load except for food and clothes have been loaded. Tomorrow we'll do some more loading in between the snow, sleet, and freezing rain that is in the weather forecast.
Peggy focused on getting the bedroom ready today. Peggy really likes to get in a warm bed on cold evenings and we have typically taken the electric blanket we use as a mattress pad off our bed at home and put it in the Winne for our winter travels. We decided to buy Winne her own electric mattress pad for Christmas and so we got that installed and tested today. As long as we have some power we ought to be able to stay nice and warm in bed anyway! I noted that the mattress pad only consumes 70 Watts. At that rate we ought to be able to power it off the Winne's batteries if necessary.
So that's about it from here in the frozen north. The good news - it will warm up a bit tomorrow during the snow/sleet/freezing rain. Hopefully it all won't amount to much and we can get dug out and get far enough south before the frigid temps return.
2 and a Wake-Up!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Time to Get Busy - 4 and a Wake-Up
Yesterday was Gumbo Day again. The last batch was so good I decided to try it again. This time I went for chicken and kielbasa gumbo. Yum-yum once again. It takes me several hours and at least one martini to finish a batch - but it sure is good and it will last for several days - getting better every day!
It was below 0 degrees Fahrenheit here this morning. How far below? It doesn't matter - once it gets below 0 - it's far below brrr cold and there is no reason to measure.
So since it was the coldest day of the year so far I decided to go start the Winne and bring her home to start the load out process and get her ready to roll. She didn't like waking up - but she did it anyway. On the way home I decided to take her over to the local propane filling station and get the propane topped off. I figure I'll need a lot of it over the next few weeks so I might as well start off full! After getting her home and parked I started the preps. First job - get a heater running inside. I put our 1500 Watt oil filled electric heater inside and after 5 hours of running full force - it's all the way up to 46 degrees inside. I think I'll leave the heater running all night and see where the temp stabilizes. I think it will take a long time for all that cooold material to warm up.
I also managed to take care of a couple of other maintenance items like installing my modified inverter swap over system and replacing two of the gas springs that hold open a couple of the basement compartment doors.
Time to get busy - 4 and a Wake-Up!
It was below 0 degrees Fahrenheit here this morning. How far below? It doesn't matter - once it gets below 0 - it's far below brrr cold and there is no reason to measure.
So since it was the coldest day of the year so far I decided to go start the Winne and bring her home to start the load out process and get her ready to roll. She didn't like waking up - but she did it anyway. On the way home I decided to take her over to the local propane filling station and get the propane topped off. I figure I'll need a lot of it over the next few weeks so I might as well start off full! After getting her home and parked I started the preps. First job - get a heater running inside. I put our 1500 Watt oil filled electric heater inside and after 5 hours of running full force - it's all the way up to 46 degrees inside. I think I'll leave the heater running all night and see where the temp stabilizes. I think it will take a long time for all that cooold material to warm up.
I also managed to take care of a couple of other maintenance items like installing my modified inverter swap over system and replacing two of the gas springs that hold open a couple of the basement compartment doors.
Time to get busy - 4 and a Wake-Up!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Goofing Off & Earning Gas $$ - 7 and a Wake-Up
Peggy and I declared a goof off day on Monday. We really didn't have anything schedued for the day and although we thought of a few chores we "could" do -- we decided that a goof off day sounded better. So we got ourselves ready to go and went for a drive. First question - which direction. We settled on south since that sounded warmer. But we frequently drive south down I-95 so that would be boring - so we decided to take Route 1. Now if you've ever done this you know that it certainly isn't the fastest route as you go through every little southern Maine coastal town - but it's certainly more interesting than driving I-95. So after cruising for an hour or so south we decided that we needed some food. Peggy had noticed that a Captain Newick's seafood restaurant had recently moved into South Portland - and we used to like their fare when we had visited other locations - so we decided to try it.
Unfortunately for them we have become pretty spoiled when it comes to good seafood. We tend to compare everyplace we go to either Captain Mike's here in Brunswick or Big Daddy's in Alabama. Since the fare at Captain Newick's was more in line with the menu at Captain Mike's - that was our comparison point. So Peggy had the broiled scallops and I tried the baked stuffed shrimp - bottom line - both were good - Captain Mike's was better and Captain Newick's was more expensive.
All-In-All our goof off day was a fun distraction.
Yesterday was more of a wierd day. On Monday I had received a call from some folks at my previous work location wanting me to attend, by phone, a planning meeting they were going to have on Tuesday. So I agreed - that couldn't take too long - right? Well maybe not. As it turned out - I sat in my home "office" pretty much all day listening to a meeting - throwing in a comment or two here and there - while never getting out of my Jammies. And I get paid for this! Not only that ... but the meeting is continuing into today and I'm doing the same thing as I type. I did get dressed today however.
So here we sit - the snow is blizzarding, I'm earning gas money, and it's 7 and a Wake-Up!
So that's pretty much life with Mike and Peggy. As soon as the blizzard gets done - we'll dig us out - then we'll go dig out the Winne and bring her over here to the house to get her prepped for leaving.
So you folks in the south (including southern New Jersey) better start warming things up a bit - it won't be long before us Maineiacs will be back in Motion.
Unfortunately for them we have become pretty spoiled when it comes to good seafood. We tend to compare everyplace we go to either Captain Mike's here in Brunswick or Big Daddy's in Alabama. Since the fare at Captain Newick's was more in line with the menu at Captain Mike's - that was our comparison point. So Peggy had the broiled scallops and I tried the baked stuffed shrimp - bottom line - both were good - Captain Mike's was better and Captain Newick's was more expensive.
All-In-All our goof off day was a fun distraction.
Yesterday was more of a wierd day. On Monday I had received a call from some folks at my previous work location wanting me to attend, by phone, a planning meeting they were going to have on Tuesday. So I agreed - that couldn't take too long - right? Well maybe not. As it turned out - I sat in my home "office" pretty much all day listening to a meeting - throwing in a comment or two here and there - while never getting out of my Jammies. And I get paid for this! Not only that ... but the meeting is continuing into today and I'm doing the same thing as I type. I did get dressed today however.
So here we sit - the snow is blizzarding, I'm earning gas money, and it's 7 and a Wake-Up!
So that's pretty much life with Mike and Peggy. As soon as the blizzard gets done - we'll dig us out - then we'll go dig out the Winne and bring her over here to the house to get her prepped for leaving.
So you folks in the south (including southern New Jersey) better start warming things up a bit - it won't be long before us Maineiacs will be back in Motion.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Wild Card Weekend - 10 & a Wake-Up
Here we are - NFL Wild Card Weekend! So far - so good. Kaj is from Washington State and is a die-hard Seahawks fan - They won yesterday. Then the NY Jets won so they will play our Patriots next week. We really like beating the Jets! Tonight the NJ Evringhams will be rooting for their Eagles. We Maineiacs will be rootin' for them too!
The Maine weather has become "seasonal." In January that means highs around the mid 30s and lows in the low 20s with a bit of snow thrown in sometime every week just for good measure. We did get about a half inch last night. Just about enough to whiten up the landscape. We plan on heading south on the 20th (10 and a wake-up) so I'm hoping for very little snow between now and then. It sure would make getting the Winne ready to go a lot easier! The biggest problem may be the weather in the Phily area! Those folks have been getting a bunch of snow - much more than us Maineiacs! Hopefully it melts away fast!!
We plan on joining Eric & Jen and Kaj & Stacy for dinner tonight in Auburn. It's Mexican food night so we're headin over to Margarita's - not bad fare for Maine.
Mikee stayed out of trouble the last few days by installing a battery powered backup sump pump system here at home. Us Mainers tend to have houses with basements - and although ours has been mostly dry over the years - if we get a lot of rain in the spring - especially when we still have a bit of snow on the ground - the groundwater can leak in between the basement floor slab and the concrete walls. To keep that from happening - about 10 years ago I cut a big hole in the basement slab, dug a sump pit, and installed a sump pump to keeps the groundwater pressure off the slab. It has worked great since we installed the system - but it has one downside that has always made me a bit nervous. That big hole in the floor will definitely let in a lot of water in if the sump pump or its power supply fails at the wrong time. My main concern has always been losing power during a bad rain storm in the spring - so I purchased a generator to take care of that problem. Well ... that idea works great - if we are home at the time we lose power so we can get out to get the generator running and powering the house. This obviously doesn't work well if we aren't home. We did have that problem last winter/spring while we were gone and we lost power here at the house for several days. Fortunately Kaj and Stacy made it over to the house on day 2 and powered up the generator for several hours to warm up the house and pump some water out of the sump.
So to give us a little more "piece of mind" while we are gone - I installed a second DC powered pump in the sump which is powered by a pretty big Marine/RV Deep Cycle Battery. The battery is kept charged by a multi-stage charger to make sure the battery is kept ready to go. So that kept me pretty busy these last couple of days. Why did it take you so long you ask? Because nothing ever goes as straight forward as the instructions assume, because there were several football/basketball games in the way, and because I'm retired and I tend to take my sweet time. Anyway - I finished up the project this morning and the operational test was satisfactory! If the system specs hold true - the battery system ought to give us a day or so of protection if we lose power - depending on how much rain & snow-melt we are experiencing.
Now I can hope that the system is never called upon to function!
Hope ya'll are having a great day!
The Maine weather has become "seasonal." In January that means highs around the mid 30s and lows in the low 20s with a bit of snow thrown in sometime every week just for good measure. We did get about a half inch last night. Just about enough to whiten up the landscape. We plan on heading south on the 20th (10 and a wake-up) so I'm hoping for very little snow between now and then. It sure would make getting the Winne ready to go a lot easier! The biggest problem may be the weather in the Phily area! Those folks have been getting a bunch of snow - much more than us Maineiacs! Hopefully it melts away fast!!
We plan on joining Eric & Jen and Kaj & Stacy for dinner tonight in Auburn. It's Mexican food night so we're headin over to Margarita's - not bad fare for Maine.
Mikee stayed out of trouble the last few days by installing a battery powered backup sump pump system here at home. Us Mainers tend to have houses with basements - and although ours has been mostly dry over the years - if we get a lot of rain in the spring - especially when we still have a bit of snow on the ground - the groundwater can leak in between the basement floor slab and the concrete walls. To keep that from happening - about 10 years ago I cut a big hole in the basement slab, dug a sump pit, and installed a sump pump to keeps the groundwater pressure off the slab. It has worked great since we installed the system - but it has one downside that has always made me a bit nervous. That big hole in the floor will definitely let in a lot of water in if the sump pump or its power supply fails at the wrong time. My main concern has always been losing power during a bad rain storm in the spring - so I purchased a generator to take care of that problem. Well ... that idea works great - if we are home at the time we lose power so we can get out to get the generator running and powering the house. This obviously doesn't work well if we aren't home. We did have that problem last winter/spring while we were gone and we lost power here at the house for several days. Fortunately Kaj and Stacy made it over to the house on day 2 and powered up the generator for several hours to warm up the house and pump some water out of the sump.
So to give us a little more "piece of mind" while we are gone - I installed a second DC powered pump in the sump which is powered by a pretty big Marine/RV Deep Cycle Battery. The battery is kept charged by a multi-stage charger to make sure the battery is kept ready to go. So that kept me pretty busy these last couple of days. Why did it take you so long you ask? Because nothing ever goes as straight forward as the instructions assume, because there were several football/basketball games in the way, and because I'm retired and I tend to take my sweet time. Anyway - I finished up the project this morning and the operational test was satisfactory! If the system specs hold true - the battery system ought to give us a day or so of protection if we lose power - depending on how much rain & snow-melt we are experiencing.
Now I can hope that the system is never called upon to function!
Hope ya'll are having a great day!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
It's all Peggy's Fault - 13 and a wake up!
Peggy and I have had a pretty busy first week of the year attending to medical checkups. I started the chore on Monday with a trip to the optometrist for a biannual eye exam. Not much to report on that experience except that I continue to be amazed at the cost of eyeglasses. I know I need them, I'm far past the denial stage here ... but I don't understand the cost. I suppose Ben Franklin had to pay a lot for his as well but you would think the price would have come down by now!
Peggy made it to the dentist for her semiannual cleaning/checkup on Tuesday and has her physical checkup next week. So it won't be long before all our checkups are done for awhile.
I have started to complete my pre-travel check-off list. The oil got changed in the Vue yesterday and the tires got rotated today. I took care of our mail forwarding (using the USPS temporary mail forwarding process) on Monday and ordered an additional 3 months of prescriptions yesterday. The fuel oil tank got filled yesterday so it's good for several months as long as we turn down the heat and turn off the water heater when we leave. So one-by-one the list is being worked off.
I even managed to sorta fix one more item on the Winne. On our trip back to Maine from California last year the inverter died. Now the inverter only supplies power to the entertainment system (TVs, DVD player, Satellite TV receiver) and is only needed when not plugged in to an external power source - but in those few instances - it would be nice to have it work. I did purchase a replacement inverter on the trip but it requires unplugging the items I want to power and then plug them into the inverter. Now you all know I am much lazier than that. With the original inverter system I could set up the system to automatically swap over to the inverter on loss of external power. At the worse I might have to operate one switch. So I took apart the original inverter system, removed the parts that didn't work anyway, and modified the system to allow my new inverter to work with the automatic swap over portion of the original system. Works like a champ!
Now I know I'm going to get some comments opining on how spoiled I have become. And I'm going to get harassed by my RVing buddy Darrell because I laughed at him when he wanted my help installing a switch so he could swap over his inverter with the flip of one switch. So I'm spoiled. I admit it. It's all Peggy's fault.
Peggy made it to the dentist for her semiannual cleaning/checkup on Tuesday and has her physical checkup next week. So it won't be long before all our checkups are done for awhile.
I have started to complete my pre-travel check-off list. The oil got changed in the Vue yesterday and the tires got rotated today. I took care of our mail forwarding (using the USPS temporary mail forwarding process) on Monday and ordered an additional 3 months of prescriptions yesterday. The fuel oil tank got filled yesterday so it's good for several months as long as we turn down the heat and turn off the water heater when we leave. So one-by-one the list is being worked off.
I even managed to sorta fix one more item on the Winne. On our trip back to Maine from California last year the inverter died. Now the inverter only supplies power to the entertainment system (TVs, DVD player, Satellite TV receiver) and is only needed when not plugged in to an external power source - but in those few instances - it would be nice to have it work. I did purchase a replacement inverter on the trip but it requires unplugging the items I want to power and then plug them into the inverter. Now you all know I am much lazier than that. With the original inverter system I could set up the system to automatically swap over to the inverter on loss of external power. At the worse I might have to operate one switch. So I took apart the original inverter system, removed the parts that didn't work anyway, and modified the system to allow my new inverter to work with the automatic swap over portion of the original system. Works like a champ!
Now I know I'm going to get some comments opining on how spoiled I have become. And I'm going to get harassed by my RVing buddy Darrell because I laughed at him when he wanted my help installing a switch so he could swap over his inverter with the flip of one switch. So I'm spoiled. I admit it. It's all Peggy's fault.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Fix-It-Fox - 16 and a Wake-up
OK - here it is January 3rd - the new year is well on its way - Mikee has been kickin' back just enjoying the season - but now it's time to get busy. I haven't really been goofing off every day. I did manage to go visit the Winne the other day to exercise the engine and the generator, charge the batteries, and generally check things out. Everything checked out OK ... so far so good.
I even fixed a couple of items I've been meaning to tinker with. Way back in 2009 y'all may remember that the starter in the Winne had been acting up and finally failed completely at a rest stop in Connecticut. So after removing the starter and performing some quick troubleshooting I decided that replacement would be the quickest solution. So after several phone calls, a 30 mile trip to Springfield, MA., $250, another 30 miles back, and about 15 minutes of work - the Winne was back in service. I kept the old starter and have been "fixin' to" see if I could find the problem and fix it for some time now. So yesterday I took the solenoid off the starter, determined that it had been the culprit all along as I suspected, found and repaired the corroded part that was keeping it from working, put it all back together - and now I have a working spare starter!
Since I was on a roll I decided to try another fix. Remember last year when I had to replace the solenoid switch that controlled the charging for my "house" batteries? Well - I kept that old one too! (I'm not really a pack rat - I just like the challenge of fixin broke stuff!). So I found a way to open it up, cleaned up the contacts that had seen a few too many arcs - put it back together - and now I have a spare one of those too!
Now you all know why Peggy refers to me as the Fix-it-Fox.
I guess the bad news is - now that I have spares - I have to carry them with me! And I'll more than likely never need them.
Peggy and I will be taking care of various medical checkup appointments over the next two weeks and taking care of all the other "stuff" that needs doing in order to head south.
Time to get busy - 16 and a Wake-Up!
I even fixed a couple of items I've been meaning to tinker with. Way back in 2009 y'all may remember that the starter in the Winne had been acting up and finally failed completely at a rest stop in Connecticut. So after removing the starter and performing some quick troubleshooting I decided that replacement would be the quickest solution. So after several phone calls, a 30 mile trip to Springfield, MA., $250, another 30 miles back, and about 15 minutes of work - the Winne was back in service. I kept the old starter and have been "fixin' to" see if I could find the problem and fix it for some time now. So yesterday I took the solenoid off the starter, determined that it had been the culprit all along as I suspected, found and repaired the corroded part that was keeping it from working, put it all back together - and now I have a working spare starter!
Since I was on a roll I decided to try another fix. Remember last year when I had to replace the solenoid switch that controlled the charging for my "house" batteries? Well - I kept that old one too! (I'm not really a pack rat - I just like the challenge of fixin broke stuff!). So I found a way to open it up, cleaned up the contacts that had seen a few too many arcs - put it back together - and now I have a spare one of those too!
Now you all know why Peggy refers to me as the Fix-it-Fox.
I guess the bad news is - now that I have spares - I have to carry them with me! And I'll more than likely never need them.
Peggy and I will be taking care of various medical checkup appointments over the next two weeks and taking care of all the other "stuff" that needs doing in order to head south.
Time to get busy - 16 and a Wake-Up!
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