Category Archives: Maintenance

Dry and Dusty

Today started out the way most mornings have lately. Ozark the cat becomes active shortly after sunrise. She leaps off of the bed and runs full speed to the front of the coach. She flies onto the driver’s seat and bounces up to the dashboard. She runs across the dash then jumps onto a narrow counter next to the co-pilot’s seat before hitting the floor and beating feet back to the bedroom. She runs past the bed onto the raised floor by the closet and jumps on the bed to complete her lap. Then she repeats the performance without pausing. This goes on for several minutes as I try to return to dreamland. Eventually she slows down and stays on the bed. I usually manage to doze off again until she starts walking over us.

This morning, as I was trying to go back to sleep, I thought about how many nights I’ve spent in an RV. I don’t have an exact count because I can’t remember the date we started sleeping in our coach in the driveway after we sold our bedroom furniture. I know it’s been somewhere over 750 consecutive nights in our RV though.

We first hit the road on July 23, 2013. That puts us in our 25th month of full-time RVing. During the last 25 months, we’ve covered 17,000 miles and visited 20 states. We’re often asked how long we intend to stay in our RV. Our standard answer is, “We don’t know, but we’ll know when we’re done.” The truth is, we feel like we’re just getting started. There’s so much to see and do. Every place we’ve been has something to offer.

Yesterday was a low-key day. I had a chore to tackle. Our battery banks were very dirty from driving in the rain and driving on dirt roads. Dirt build-up on the battery cases can cause voltage leakage across the terminals when the dirt absorbs moisture. I was also having a problem with a poor connection on one of the starting battery posts. I hosed down the batteries, then scrubbed with a stiff nylon brush dipped in a baking soda solution. This cleaned everything and neutralized any acid build-up. I removed the cable connector from the post that was giving me trouble and cleaned the post and connector before reinstalling it. All is well now.

I think I need to clean the batteries more often

Dirt roads left a lot of dust on the batteries

I also unpacked my mountain bike and pumped up the tires. I took a ride through the park over to the beach area on the Schroon River. I’ll probably go for a longer ride today.

In the afternoon, I prepared four half-racks of baby back ribs. When I bought the ribs at Oscar’s, they had them cut into half-racks. I cooked whole racks before. To prepare ribs, you first remove the tough, thin membrane on the bone side of the ribs. If you don’t do this, the spices won’t penetrate on that side, plus you’ll have a tough, chewy side to the ribs. I spiced the ribs with the rub I bought at Papa Joe’s in Michigan. I like dry-rubbed Memphis-style baby back ribs.

I cooked them on the Traeger wood pellet fired grill. After two and a half hours, I turned the heat down to low heat and cooked for another half hour. I thought they would be fine but they turned out to be over-cooked. I think having them cut into half racks made them cook faster. Oh well, it was a learning experience.

Baby back half-racks on the Traeger

Yesterday was International IPA Day, so I paired the baby backs with Saratoga IPA brewed in nearby Saratoga Springs.

Saratoga IPA

This IPA was more to my liking than the others from this area that I’ve tried. I know you can get good East Coast IPA, like Dogfish Head from Delaware, but I’m sampling local brews.

The forecast calls for a warming trend with the thermometer expected to hit 80 today and move well into the 80s over the weekend. It’s been dry and dusty in the campground. Next week, I’ll try to sneak a wash of the coach.

Balance of Power

We pulled out of Beaver Spring Lake Campground around 11am. I used their dump station to dump and flush our holding tanks – we won’t be on a sewer hook-up for the next week. We backtracked several miles to Oneonta and pulled into the large parking lot at the Price Chopper grocery store. There were a few other stores there as well. I went to Rite Aid to pick up a few items and also to the liquor store while Donna shopped for groceries.

We opted to stay off the bumpy I-88 and drove east on New York State Route 7. This is a typical two-lane highway that took us parallel to I-88. The highway is a mixture of 55mph stretches through open rolling country broken up by small villages along the way. Some of the villages are speed traps – suddenly, without any warning, the speed limit drops to 40 or even 30 mph. Any time it looked like there would be a settlement ahead, I kept a lookout for posted speed signs.

We pulled into the Hide-A-Way Campsites near Central Bridge, New York a little past 1pm (map). Donna’s parents live nearby and we plan to spend a week here visiting them. We’re in a long pull-through gravel site and didn’t have to drop the trailer. The check-in process was efficient and the people at the office were friendly. The layout of our site is strange though. We have a picnic table and grassy area on the driver’s side of the coach where the power and water hook-ups are. On the passenger side, where you would normally find a picnic table, it’s all gravel under our canopy.

Gravel outside our door and under the canopy

Grass Picnic table and fore ring on the "wrong" side

Grass picnic table and fire ring on the “wrong” side

I unloaded our grills and got the ladders out of the trailer. After completing our set-up, including the window shades and wheel covers, I got up on the roof. In the northeast – from Pennsylvania up through New England – our Dish Network needs to be re-programmed. The western arc satellites (110° and 119°) may not work here. I removed the dome from our Winegard Roadtrip satellite antenna and reset the dip switches (dual inline package). The dip switches modify the circuit in the board for the antenna.

Satellite dome – two screws already removed

Antenna controller with dip switches

I reinstalled the dome and went through the tedious process of programming the receiver to tune in satellites 61.5° and 129°. While I was doing this, our power suddenly cut off. I went outside to check the breaker at the pedestal. We’re on a 50-amp service and shouldn’t be overloaded.

I found an error code on our Progressive Industries Electrical Management System (EMS) showing low voltage on L-1. If the voltage supply drops below 104 volts, the EMS will shut down. Low voltage can damage electronic components and electric motors. Things like air conditioner motors may still run on low voltage, but there’s a risk of damage.

I reset the pedestal breaker which, in turn, reset the EMS. I read 107 volts on L-1 and 117 volts on L-2. This isn’t good. About five minutes later, the EMS shut down again with the same code for low voltage on L-1. I reset it again and walked up to the office.

Progressive Industries EMS

The ladies in the office were friendly and took me over to a house behind the office where several people were sitting on the porch. A guy named Fred was called over and I explained the problem to him. He said, “The only time we ever have electrical issues is when you people with big buses are in the park.” What?

I told him about the low voltage and the error code on my EMS. He was very surly and said, “I can’t make voltage – it’s whatever the power company delivers.” I said, “Maybe there’s a poor connection in my pedestal creating excessive resistance – can you check that out?” He said, “It’s the weekend and I don’t have anyone here to do that work.” He added, “If you can’t deal with it, I’ll give you your money back and you can go somewhere else.” I couldn’t believe his attitude and what I was hearing. I asked him if he was the campground manager and, he said, “No, I own this place.” Wow!

I went back to the coach and shut off the front air conditioner which runs off L-1. Fifty amp coaches are set up with two lines of electricity splitting the loads between L-1 and L-2. Each leg provides 50 amps of current and shouldn’t overload the power supply. There was clearly something wrong with the L-1 power supply.

About half an hour later, Fred was at our pedestal. I walked outside and greeted him. He had a volt meter and told me he had checked the power at pedestals all down the line. He said there was low voltage on L-1 everywhere, thus it was a power company problem and he couldn’t do anything about it. He said no one else was having a problem with it and added that it’s always the guys with big buses that complain. Everyone else here is in a travel trailer or fifth wheel trailer. I told him since he measured low voltage throughout the park, everyone has a problem – they just don’t know it because they don’t have an EMS.

He said they would call the power company and also shut down the pool pump which puts a big load on the power supply.

After thinking about for a while, here’s my take. Most of the travel trailers in the park are probably 30-amp set-ups. The power supply to the park has two legs of 120 volt AC power. Thirty amp circuits only run on one leg of the power supply. When the park power pedestals are wired up, the 30-amp receptacles should be balanced by wiring the first one to L-1, the second to L-2, the third to L-1, the fourth to L-2 and so on. I’d be willing to bet the park wasn’t wired correctly and everyone using 30-amp power is on the same L-1 circuit. This would explain the disparity in voltage between L-1 and L-2.

Around 5pm, Donna’s mother Lorraine and her father Duke came over. We sat and talked for awhile as Donna prepared cumin-toasted tilapia over sauteed mushrooms with lemon parmesan broccoli and black rice. Duke is not fond of fish, so Donna heated a chicken pasty for him. We had an enjoyable meal and lots of conversation.

Meanwhile, I was still trying to complete the programming of my satellite dish and acquire a signal. It wouldn’t lock on to the new satellite settings. I think I’ll reset it back to the western arc and see if it acquires a signal today. I’ve already missed the Formula One race.

Cat House

I got Donna’s bike out of the trailer and aired up the tires before our friend Bill Frahm picked up Donna around 11am. They drove to the parking lot at Onyx skate rink where the Macomb Orchard Trail passes through to start their 20-mile bike ride on the paved trail.

I got my wash bucket and 75-foot hose out and went to work getting the road grime off the coach and trailer. Driving through thunderstorms on Tuesday really left a mess. After two and half hours, I thought it was “job done.” As I installed the windshield cover, however, I noticed that the water spots on the windshield were pretty bad. Then, when I put the tire covers on, I could see the spotting on the alloy wheels.

As the sun moved westward, I could see water spots and streaks all over the right side of the coach. The mineral-laden hard water here at Addison Oaks County Park made the coach look worse than before I washed it! What a bummer.

After their ride, Donna rode with Bill to his house and then he gave her the keys to his Nissan SUV – Bill generously offered to let us use his vehicle while we’re here. On the way back, Donna stopped at Papa Joe’s, a local gourmet market, and picked up a few things.

One of items she bought was a fresh ruby red trout filet. She prepared the trout by coating the fish with a mixture of dijon mustard, mayonnaise, lemon juice and dill. I fired up the Traeger grill and preheated it to 350 degrees. As I explained before, it doesn’t hold the temperature at precisely 350. The temperature swings up and down and averages 350. This is normal. If you could accurately measure the temperature in your oven at home, you would find the same thing happens there.

Preheated to 350 degrees

After lining the drip pan with aluminum foil, I put the fish skin side down directly on the grill. Twenty two minutes later, I removed the fish and cranked the grill to high. Donna also bought fresh baby bok choy at Papa Joe’s. She split the bok choy lengthwise and seasoned it with olive oil, salt and pepper.

High temperature for bok choy

The bok choy cooked quickly – it only took about 12 minutes on the grill. I like a little crunch in bok choy. It’s a favorite side dish for me.

Trout filets and bok choy hot off the grill

Ozark the cat began displaying strange behavior over the last few days. She’s been very vocal and restless, pacing the length of the coach, jumping up on furniture and counter tops, and spending a lot of time looking out the windows. She stretches her body, pressing down close to the floor, tail high and tapping her rear paws in a pedaling motion. Donna did some research and learned that this is textbook behavior for a cat in heat. Donna said she understands where the term “cat house” came from as Ozark struts her stuff in the windows trying to catch the attention of a passing tomcat.

Her behavior is a little annoying but we understand her hormones are raging. We have an appointment with a vet in New York about 10 days from now to have her spayed. The good news is that if she’s in heat, she’s not pregnant which could have been the case as she was a stray when we found her.

Although scattered thunderstorms are in the forecast Friday and Sunday, I think I’ll get the ladder out and clean the coach. I’ll use a waterless cleaner called “The Solution.” I didn’t use this yesterday because I wanted to wash the grit and road grime off with water. Today, I know better about the water here and I’ll go waterless with microfiber cloths.

Hot Rods and RVs

There’s a nice rails-to-trails bike path here in Des Moines called the Gay Lea Trail. After I posted yesterday, I got Donna’s bike out of the trailer and pumped up the tires. She headed out, rode out of the campground and about a mile down Dean Avenue where it became Fairview Drive and intersected the trail.

While she was out, I set up my extension ladder, wash bucket, hose and brush and got up on the roof. When I swept the debris from the mimosa tree in Turkey Creek RV Village from the roof, a lot of dirt and dark stains were left behind. The stains extended over the roof coves and were driving me crazy. After I started cleaning, I snapped a photo of a two-foot section of the roof I was brushing to show how dirty the roof was.

Getting started on the roof cleaning

Of course, as I cleaned the roof, dirty water was running down the sides of the coach. So I had no choice but to wash the entire rig. The trailer was just as dirty and needed to be washed as well. While I was on the roof, RVs pulling car trailers were streaming into the park. The Good Guys Fourth of July car show here at the Iowa State Fairgrounds is a big show.

View in front of our coach from the roof

RVs starting to fill the hillside

Our row is packed now

While I was washing the coach, there was a group of people camped behind our site that piled into a van. Then an argument broke out with a lot of shouting. I thought a fist fight was about to happen. They all got out of the van except the driver who sat there with the engine running for about 15 minutes. One of the guys from the group came over and made small talk with me. It turns out they are workers at a carnival near here and their trailer is a bunkhouse with 10 compartments. It must be difficult to work together, then share tight quarters and be around each other 24/7.

Bunkhouse trailer with five rooms per side

Just as I was finishing up the wash job, Donna came back from her 24-mile bike ride. I put everything away before realizing that I didn’t wash the scooter. It’s badly in need of a wash job. I might find a self-serve car wash for that chore today.

As I was packing things up, I met our neighbor, Dave. We chatted for a bit. He’s from Flagstaff, Arizona and is following a car show circuit with his 1967 Chevelle convertible. He is selling the car to someone who will come to get it at either the Indianapolis show or the big show in Columbus, Ohio. It’s going for $66,000. He told me he has nine classic cars in his collection.

While I was washing the coach, I stopped and came inside to get a bottle of water. Ozark, our cat, must not have like the sound of me walking on the roof. She was hiding under the couch and wouldn’t come out. We’ve only been feeding her for a week, but she’s filling out nicely and is no longer the scrawny cat that found us. After Donna came inside, Ozark came out from her hiding place.

When I was at Petco on Wednesday, I bought some catnip. I put that on her scratching post and it got her attention. She’s using the post now, but we still have to keep her from scratching the furniture. Donna puts covers over the furniture if we leave Ozark alone in the coach and at night before going to bed. She also covered some of the more vulnerable valances with clear packing tape to deter the cat from scratching them.

Like many cats, Ozark is crepuscular – she is most active in the evening and at sun-up. She spends the day napping and getting up to eat or play for a short time. Her early morning antics have us getting up earlier. I’m hoping that she acclimates to our schedule and becomes more active in the afternoon and sleeps more at night. Last night was the best yet. She slept on our bed most of the night, but still rose early.

Last evening, I took a walk through the park and took photos of some of the cars here. There are so many nice cars, I was tempted to shoot dozens of photos.

Cars a couple of sites away from us

Our neighbor Brad brought this car

Chevelle convertible – RVs and hot rods, how cool is that?

Another red Chevy

Smooth looking Impala

I'm not sure what this is - it looks like a handfull to drive

I’m not sure what this is – it looks like a handful to drive.

Big bore stroker twin-turbo VW – crazy

This is cool

When I was a kid, this was my idea of a hot rod

This morning, the hot rods started firing up early. The guys all want to be first in line to claim a good spot in the show. They’re required to pull out of the show area at the end of the day and the process will start over again tomorrow morning and again on Sunday. I think I’ll wait until tomorrow to buy a ticket and see the show.

Who Said Iowa is Flat?

When we left Kansas City Tuesday morning and made our way to Iowa, I expected the terrain to flatten. To my surprise, we drove through rolling hills all the way to Des Moines, which is in central Iowa. I’ve been to Iowa a couple of times before but I never drove across the state.

Our cat Ozark started out fine but quickly wore down on the drive. I think there’s too much visual stimulation as we cruise along the highway. She gets unsettled and seems anxious. I stopped about 40 miles short of our destination at a Pilot/Flying J travel center for fuel. I topped up the tank with 62 gallons of diesel fuel. I use the Pilot/Flying J RV Plus card when I fuel up there.

I like fueling at the travel center because I never have to worry about tight quarters. I usually go through the truck lane. I’ve read that most RV collision insurance claims happen in fuel stations where RVs hit pumps, posts or other vehicles. Some people complain the Pilot/Flying J fuel is too expensive. With the RV Plus card, you get a discount off the cash price even though you’re buying on credit. We paid $2.62/gallon which is fair for this area. Even if I had to pay the regular price, it’s worth the peace of mind knowing I can easily maneuver in and out of the station.

During the fuel stop, Ozark calmed down. She was good for about 20 minutes before her anxiety level rose again. She started climbing the screen door which is inside our regular door. Donna had to get up and take her off the screen. She would sit in Donna’s lap for a few minutes then go back to the door and climb it again. It was tiresome. I hope she acclimates to road travel soon.

We found the Des Moines State Fairgrounds where we planned to stay at the RV campground there. The campground doesn’t take reservations but we were assured over the phone that a pull-through site would be available. When we arrived, the main entrance to the fairgrounds was closed. We continued past it and found another entrance off a side street. I drove in and went through a midway area where workers were assembling food vendor trailers.

I had no idea where to find the campground or if I was heading for a dead end, which would be trouble. Donna flagged down a worker going by on a golf cart and asked him where the campground was. He told us to follow him. We drove up a big hill and found the campground entrance at the top.

I stopped at the office to register. I asked for a pull-through site for five nights. I was astounded when I was told it would cost $210. The web site showed 734 full hook-up sites at a cost of $28/night. They also showed about 1,500 sites with water and electricity (no sewer) for $26/night. I asked why I was being charged $42/night. The lady told me that the pull-through sites for big rigs with trailers are essentially two sites. You pay $28/night for the main site and half price – $14/night for the secondary site. If I wanted a $28/night site I would have to drop my trailer in a different lot, well away from our campsite. To make matters worse, she added that our site would be 30-amp service! Out of approximately 2,300 sites, they only have four with 50-amp service and they were all taken. I paid the $210.

Another guy on a golf cart led us to our site. Actually he led us to our site area and told me I should go with him and look things over before deciding which sites I would take. I mentioned how we drove along rolling hills. Well, the fairgrounds are in the midst of hills. There isn’t a level site to be found. I picked a site that was as close to level as I could find. I put down jack pads and had to raise the front and right side of the coach considerably to get it level.

Our site at the fairgrounds

Our coach is set up for 50-amp electrical service. I had to use an adapter also known as a dog bone to plug into the 30-amp pedestal. I know, going down from 50 to 30 amps doesn’t sound like it’s a big deal, but it is. Here’s why – a 30-amp service has three contacts. One prong is the hot lead, one prong is the neutral and then there’s a safety ground contact. It provides 3,600 watts of power (120 volts X 30 amps). A 50-amp service has four contacts. Two are hot leads (L1 and L2), one prong is the neutral and there’s a safety ground. The coach is wired so the loads are split between L1 and L2. Each of these contacts provides 120 volts at 50 amps – 6,000 watts. You have total of 12,000 watts available. So a 50-amp service provides more than three times the power of a 30 amp service.

Dog bone adapter between 30-amp pedestal and electrical management/surge protector

In simple terms, the 30-amp adapter connects both legs (L1 and L2) of our 50-amp system in series. The cumulative loads demanded by our 120-volt electrical system cannot exceed 3,600 watts or the breaker will trip.

Donna found this out right away. We haven’t been on a 30-amp circuit for a while and she wasn’t thinking about it when she turned on the air conditioners, put something in the microwave oven and then turned on the Keurig coffeemaker which we shut off for travel. Pop! Circuit breaker shut down at the pedestal. Our inverter was charging the house batteries plus two A/C units and the microwave and coffeemaker on top of that was too much load. On 30 amps, we should only run one A/C unit and take care not to operate too many appliances at the same time.

Once we were set up, I took a ride around the fairgrounds on the scooter. I found out what all the workers were doing. There’s a big Good Guys car show here this weekend and they’re preparing for it. One guy told me they expect 500 RVs to arrive by Thursday afternoon and more than 3,000 cars in the show on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A large crowd of spectators is expected. That should be fun.

When I returned, Donna wanted to stretch her legs and get some steps in, so she took a walk. Here are a few photos from her walk.

At the playground area

Sheep barn

Glider transportation to the main midway

First church in Iowa

One of the things I did before hooking up our water supply was change out the cartridges in our filter system. I’ve written about our two-stage system before. The first filter – a spun polypropylene sediment filter wasn’t too bad. The center 1/8″ was still clean meaning it had a little life left. I also changed out the second filter – a carbon block element.

Old filter cartridges

Donna prepared a mango salsa while I grilled blackened chicken. She usually serves the mango salsa over Jamaican jerk chicken. The mango salsa was every bit as good over the blackened chicken.

Mango salsa over blackened chicken with brown rice and green beans

Yesterday I scootered Donna downtown to Meredith Publishing. She spent the day taping videos on cleaning and organizing for Better Homes and Gardens. After I dropped her off, I rode to the west side of town to Petco where I bought a small cat crate and other cat supplies. We’re thinking Ozark may travel better in a crate. I need to have one anyway so we can take her to a vet.

I had the scooter stacked with the crate and supplies. Rain was threatening. I made a quick stop at the beer store on the way home. I unloaded the scooter and put the cover on it. Just as I stepped inside, rain began to fall. I spent the rest of the day reading. It stopped raining before I rode back downtown to pick up Donna at 4:30pm.

Last night, we slept with the windows open and it got down to 64 degrees in the coach. We’ve been running the air conditioning constantly since we left San Diego. Being able to open windows was a welcome relief.

It may rain again, but I think I’ll get on the roof and start cleaning the coach. It’s so dirty from our stay at Turkey Creek, I can’t stand it any longer.

Another RV Conversion

The weather guessers had the forecast for this week all wrong. They called for thunderstorms Monday through Thursday. It was enough of a warning to make me decide to take the Gibson tour on Sunday – when no work is being performed. Well, we’ve only had one small shower and that was on Monday evening. It’s been mostly sunny and warm. There isn’t a cloud in the sky today here at Tom Sawyer’s RV Park on the west bank of the Mississippi River. (Map)

Donna started Tuesday out with a bike ride. She rode a 34-mile loop, clocking herself for the first 25 miles to gauge how ready she is for her upcoming race. Her goal now is to shave off 20 seconds per mile over the next few weeks.

While Donna was out, I washed the coach. I used a waterless method using a product called The Solution from a company called Super Seal. I don’t have any affiliation with this company – I’m providing a link because I really like the product. I was put on to this stuff by our friends and fellow Alpine owners, Lynda and Dave Campbell. The first time I used it, I went through more than a quart to wash the coach. Lynda told me I was using too much, a little spray goes a long way. She was right, I think I can get two washes from a quart now.

Clean and shiny

I spent about two and half hours on a ladder cleaning our rig. It looks great and was worth the effort. The humidity had me perspiring heavily though. I had to take a few breaks and come inside to cool off.

While I was up on the ladder, I saw our neighbor load up his motorcycle with baggage and head out. He had a Kawasaki KLR 650 dual sport bike. These are often called adventure/sport bikes as they can be ridden on pavement as well as off-road. He has an interesting rig. It’s an old work van that he’s converted to an RV toy hauler. The back half of the box is set up as a garage with two motorcycles, a bicycle and tools. The front area, separated from the garage by a wall, is a bunk, kitchen and bathroom with toilet and shower.

RV conversion

That’s a hang glider strapped to the side

Kawasaki KLR dual sport bike

I met him later. His name is John and he hit the road three days ago. He’s a software developer and can work from the road. He plans to travel to interesting hang gliding destinations. He also has a road racing motorcycle and wants to ride track days along the way as well. His RV is a work in progress. He told me he’s thinking about putting signage on the van that say something like “Simple Septic Solutions.” That will make it look like a nasty work van and deter thieves from breaking in. Interesting concept.

After he pulled out of the park this morning, we noticed he left his laptop table out on the picnic table. Within minutes, a woman came walking over from a few sites down, picked up his laptop table and started to walk away with it. I went outside and said, “Ma’am, John’s coming back – he wants his table.” She said, “Oh, I wondered why someone would leave a nice table like this behind. Thanks for telling me.” Then I walked up to the office and told the attendant that John left his table behind. They had his cell phone number and called him.

Last night, I grilled chicken sausages stuffed with poblano and cheese for dinner. While I was out manning the grill, I enjoyed the view of the Mississippi River.

Our backyard view last evening

We’ve had a good time here in West Memphis. Today I’ll organize and pack the trailer. I’ll clean our wheels and set the tire pressures and take down the front window covers. Tomorrow we’ll pull out and head over to the Turkey Creek Escapees Park across the river from Branson, Missouri.

Beale Street

After writing my post yesterday, I set up my Cycle Pro Mechanic bike stand and worked on Donna’s bike. Donna has been complaining about erratic shifter operation and the chain jumping gears on the few rides she’s been on since her crash. With her bike suspended on the stand, I could turn the crank and shift gears to see what was going on. I went through the rear derailleur set-up, adjusting it until it shifted properly. Without the bike stand, that job would have been impossible.

By the time I had it done, she was ready to go for a ride. She rode south and made a 26-mile loop. Part of her ride was on the Mississippi River Trail which stretches 85 miles from West Memphis to Helena. It was hot and humid out and that was the longest ride she’d done in months. Although she had plenty of water while she rode, she needed nutrition and hydration when she returned.

While Donna was out, I took care of a few chores. We made plans to head over to Beale Street in downtown Memphis. Nowadays, Beale Street is a major tourist attraction in Memphis. Beale Street has a long tradition of being a place where you can hear blues music. In 1909, W.C. Handy wrote Memphis Blues and later wrote Beale Street Blues. The list of blues musicians that performed on Beale Street is long and includes such famous names as Louis Armstrong, Muddy Waters, Albert King and of course BB King.

The Marines sent me to school in Millington, north of Memphis in 1975. I came down to Beale Street with a couple of buddies to check out the blues bars. It was a different scene back then, not the tourist attraction it is today. Very few white people came to the blues clubs. The street was filled with thieves and con men. We stuck together and treaded carefully. Back then, we would usually go to Overton Square on Cooper Street where the rock and roll clubs were. The city adopted a plan for gentrification of Beale Street back in 1973, but it didn’t gain traction until the 1980s.

Today Beale Street is closed to vehicular traffic from 2nd Street to 4th Street. There are street entertainers and musicians everywhere. Handy Park has outdoor concerts and the clubs lining both sides of the street have live music. Donna and I took an Uber cab from the RV park and were dropped off at the corner of 2nd and Beale.

2nd and Beale – BB King’s club on the right, Blues City Cafe on the left

Our first stop was the Blues City Cafe. We both ordered the half rack of hickory-smoked pork ribs. It was seasoned just right and the meat literally fell off the bones. I would rate it as the best barbeque ribs I’ve ever tasted. It came with small sides of baked beans and cole slaw and a large side of steak fries plus Texas toast. I paired it with locally brewed IPA from Ghost River Brewing.

On Beale Street, some laws don’t apply. Every bar and restaurant serves adult beverages in plastic cups to go. You can walk out the door, drink in hand, and make your way down the street to your next stop.

Beale Street

As we walked down the street, we could hear a band jamming incredibly loud. The music was coming from Handy Park. I haven’t heard a band play that loud since the ’80s.

Jamming loud music

We watched them perform a couple of songs, but it was too loud for Donna, so we moved on. After we crossed the street, we heard another band. The gal singing could’ve been an American Idol winner, she was that good.

She could belt it

A corner open air bar had a pair of guitarists playing. Their arrangements were well thought out and they covered songs expertly. The guy on the right could sing – he sang Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’ perfectly.

The guy on the right can sing

The talent and musicianship were amazing. There were great musicians everywhere. It was early – we arrived at 5:30pm and none of the clubs had cover charges until later in the evening. We continued to hop from bar to bar and check out the music. At our next stop, the band did a brilliant cover of Bob Dylan’s Positively 4th Street.

You’ve got a lotta nerve…

We found a club with a table on a patio next to the Blues City Cafe and sat for a while. There was a group of youngsters performing acrobatic gymnastic feats on the street for tips. We people-watched for a while there. Along the way, I found another local IPA from Wiseacre Brewing. This was top shelf IPA, the best I’ve had in a while.

Donna at a street side table

After people-watching for a while, we moved again when we heard a band playing in the courtyard next to the club. The guitarist was from Australia and he knew how to play blues.

Australian bluesman

I ordered one last beer while we watched the band.

Beale beer

Around 8pm, it was starting to get dark. We’d had our fill and it was time to go home. Beale Street is definitely a great time if you like live music. We requested a ride from Lyft and the driver arrived in about 10 minutes.

Beale Street at sunset

On the way home, a thunderstorm rolled in. It was pouring rain by the time we got to our coach. Wind had knocked limbs off trees in the park and the power was out. I switched the inverter on and we were able to watch an episode of Homeland before we went to bed.

This morning it’s overcast but calm. Power was restored in the night. Today will be hot – near 90 degrees with a 20% chance of a thundershower this afternoon.

Last Stop in Texas

The heavy rain in the forecast didn’t happen Sunday afternoon. Instead, weather-wise, it was one of the nicest days we had in Rockport, Texas. I had already loaded the trailer, including the scooter. We thought about unloading the scooter, but decided against it. We didn’t need to go anywhere and I didn’t want to get it out of the trailer when the weather can change in an instant.

Donna took a long morning walk. She went out Copano Ridge Road to Harbor Point on Copano Bay. Her round trip was about five miles. After lunch, we went out and walked together around the park. We went out on the fishing pier – there was no sign of the jellyfish we saw there before. The wind was light and it was getting hot out. The temperature reached the upper 80s.

While it was dry out, I decided to take care of one more maintenance task. I should change the fuel filter for our Cummins ISL diesel engine annually. I had put this off because I couldn’t find my spare fuel filter. I always like to have a spare filter on hand in case I get a load of bad fuel on the road. I ordered a replacement filter when I bought the air filter element. My intention was to install the spare filter I’d had for a year at that time and rotate the new filter into the spare role.

On Sunday, I got serious about finding my spare filter. Normally it would’ve been in a bin in the trailer where I keep things like that, but I remembered putting it into a basement compartment where it would easier to retrieve when were loaded up and traveling. If I could only remember where I put it. Donna suggested that I take everything out of one of the compartments. Way in the back, there was a cardboard box I didn’t recognize. I opened the box and there it was! It was in an Amazon box – I was expecting to find a Cummins Fleetguard box.

Changing the fuel filter is always a messy deal. Fuel drips when the old filter is removed. You have to be sure the rubber seal in the center comes off with the old filter, then install the new seal before screwing the new filter in place. Once the new filter is tightened, the fuel will stop leaking.

New fuel filter with date marked on it

I marked the new filter 6-15 so I won’t have to remember when it was changed. The last step in the replacement procedure is to turn on the ignition key for 30 seconds. This activates the lift pump and pumps fuel into the empty filter. I repeated this four times for a total of two minutes fuel pump run time. The next time the engine is started, it will purge the air from the system at low idle, then it will run normally. This procedure works for CAPS injection systems and high-pressure common rail (HPCR) injection systems found on Cummins diesel engines. This is better than pre-filling the filter. Pre-filling the filter with fuel runs the risk of introducing unfiltered contaminants into the injection system. It doesn’t take much to ruin a fuel injector.

Around 5pm, a few clouds were passing overhead. We heard a sudden crack of thunder as lightning struck nearby and the rain began to fall. It rained off and on most of the night. Donna made fish tacos with fresh tilapia for dinner. They are so yummy with blackened tilapia.

Fish tacos

On Monday morning, the sun came out and we had mostly clear skies. I dumped and flushed the tanks while Donna finished packing the interior items. When I fired up the Cummins, it stalled the first time. I restarted it and it settled into a normal idle and ran fine. I checked the fuel filter one more time for leaks as I did my walkaround before we hit the road.

Our route took us up TX35 along Aransas National Wildlife Refuge to TX185. We followed TX185 through Victoria, then hit TX77. This took us north through La Grange. I couldn’t help but sing parts of the ZZ Top song about a cat house in La Grange.

Rumour spreadin’ a-’round in that Texas town
’bout that shack outside La Grange
and you know what I’m talkin’ about.
Just let me know if you wanna go
to that home out on the range.
They gotta lotta nice girls.

Have mercy.
A haw, haw, haw, haw, a haw.
A haw, haw, haw.

Well, I hear it’s fine if you got the time
and the ten to get yourself in.
A hmm, hmm.
And I hear it’s tight most ev’ry night,
but now I might be mistaken.
hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm.

Have mercy.

Further up the road we came to a screeching halt. Many Texas highways have high speed limits even though there are driveways and cars stopping to turn or cars entering the highway without an acceleration lane to allow them to merge with traffic. Apparently some one had pulled out of the gas station on our left and a car coming down the highway collided with it. It looked bad and was obviously a high-speed collision.

Car crash ahead

It was a reminder to stay alert and ready for cars entering the highway or braking suddenly. In an RV, keeping your distance is imperative. I can’t stop 33,000 pounds in the same distance as a 4,000-pound car.

We made our way to Bryan, Texas. I stopped at Big Gas Travel Center and pumped 60 gallons of fuel to top off our tank. In this humid climate, I like to keep the tank full when we are parked to minimize condensation in the air space of the tank. I also added Biobor JF to the tank.

When I went inside to pay, my Chase credit card was declined! I tried it twice, then I used my debit card to pay the fuel bill. When we arrived at Primrose Lane RV Park, my credit card was declined again. This happened frequently when we first started traveling cross country. The security folks at Chase thought all the charges in different states were suspicious. I talked to them last year and they added notes to my account indicating that frequent travel and large fuel bills were normal.

I called the number on my Chase card and through their automated system, I was able to authorize the charge for two nights at the RV park. I also added travel information. The system only allows me to indicate travel for up to twelve months. So next summer, I’ll have to go through this again. We have a 90-foot long pull-through site on a concrete pad. It easily fits our rig and I didn’t have to drop the trailer. The site is narrow though, only about 12 feet wide.

Once we were set up, I went online to pay my Flying J fuel bill. I charged $534 for fuel at Flying J during the month of May. I have my account set up with Flying J to pay electronically. It wouldn’t go through. I tried a couple of times but kept getting an error message telling me to call customer service.

I called and was put on hold for 15 minutes. When the representative picked up, I could hear some background noise but he didn’t say anything. I said, “Hello?” Then he said, “Hi, how are you?” I said, “Fine, is this Flying J?” He said it was – seemed pretty unprofessional to me. I told him what my issue was and he said the system was down for maintenance and I should try again tomorrow. Really? The system is down for maintenance and you give people an error message telling them to call? Why not have the message say the system is down for maintenance until XX? Or record a message to that effect for incoming calls? End of rant.

Our long, narrow pull-through site

We plan to head over to College Station and have a look around today. Donna would like to get a bike ride in, but the roads around here in Bryan don’t have much shoulder and it may be too dangerous. We’ve booked two nights here at $18/night for full hook-ups with 50 amp service with Passport America. Tomorrow we plan to head east to Shreveport, Louisiana.

The Road to Copano

I mentioned in my last post that we had a plan to back the coach out of our tight site and hook up the trailer. The plan worked perfectly and Donna had me lined up exactly where I wanted to be to connect the trailer to the coach. Pre-planning maneuvers like this is a good idea. Communication is important. Donna understood what I wanted to do and was able to direct me into position with a handheld Cobra CB radio.

I had programmed our GPS to route us from north Houston to Rockport and avoid tolls. I didn’t want to repeat the situation in Austin where we were on a toll road that didn’t have toll booths. You needed a TxTag pass or know how to pay via mail on that road.

The slog through Houston wasn’t much fun, but at least the rain had stopped. Large urban areas are never fun to drive through in a big rig. Houston is the fourth largest city in the USA and has the traffic to prove it. After about an hour, we we were on US59 and heading out of the city. From there it became rural and we rolled along on Texas highways. The traffic was light. The speed limits are a little over the top on some of these two-lane Texas highways. A 70mph speed limit with gas station and restaurant driveways and no slow down lane to exit the highway or acceleration lane to enter the highway doesn’t seem too good to me.

Unlike west Texas, the highways have few rest areas or roadside tables to stop at in this area. I drove for more than two hours before pulling over in the town of Palacios for a comfort break. That’s the nice thing about motorhome travel – if you need a restroom break, just pull over and walk back to the restroom!

We made our way 200 miles to the Copano Bay RV Resort and pulled in. The entrance is poorly marked without any directional signs telling you which way to go to stop and check-in. There are two roads into the park, one to the right of the entrance and one to the left with a building in the middle. I saw the office to the right and cranked the wheel hard right at the entrance, but there was a stone planter in front of the building in the center that made it too tight to complete the turn. I started to back up but was mindful of the trailer jack-knifing and also needed to know if the road was clear.

A man and a woman came out of the office and signaled us to go to the left. Donna got out of the coach to check if the trailer was in danger of jack-knifing against the right rear corner of the coach. The man told Donna he would direct me, so Donna didn’t signal me. The man also didn’t give me any signal, so I didn’t move. The guy looked irritated by my lack of movement. Donna could see this wasn’t working, so she came back inside and picked up her handheld CB radio. Aha – communication. She told me to back up slowly and stopped me when the trailer was close to touching the corner of the coach. At that point I had enough room to crank a hard left and enter the park on the left side of the building.

We walked to the office to check in and the lady asked if I would like to be moved into a long pull-through site instead of the back-in site that was reserved for us. I said that would be perfect. She set us up in what is essentially two back-to-back sites on a continuous concrete pad. She told us both sites were ours for the next two weeks and no one would move-in behind us. Nice!

Our double pull-through site

It was nearly 90 degrees out with high humidity. I hooked up our power so Donna could start the air conditioners and we were set up in no time. Later we took a walk to the west end of the park where there’s a small (very small) swimming pool and a fishing pier. We saw a number of jellyfish in the Salt Lake, which is really a cove off Copano Bay.

On Tuesday morning, it was time to remove 1,500 miles worth of grime from the coach. Traveling in rainy weather left a real mess on the coach, not to mention all the bugs on the front cap. I went to the office and paid $10 for the privilege of washing my own coach. I can understand RV parks not wanting everyone to pull in and wash their coach – it takes a lot of water. But I don’t think it takes $10 worth of water. I think they charge that much to discourage people from washing in the park. We really needed a wash though. Donna went for a 5-mile walk and then hit the exercise room to do strength training while I worked on the coach.

I spent the next 135 minutes hand washing the coach with car wash soap and water. It looks much better but the hard water left spots. I’ll go over it again in a few days with a waterless product. I use a product from Super Seal called The Solution. It works really well – it will remove the water spots and leave a nice shine. With the coach clean, I installed the front window shades and tire covers.

Donna made a salad for lunch and served it with a soup she made Monday night. The soup is a carrot-ginger soup with dollop of coconut cream. It was delicious – you wouldn’t know it was carrot-based. It tasted like something you would get in a Thai restaurant. She got the recipe from her mother.

Carrot-ginger soup

After a shower and lunch, I rode the scooter into town for a look around. I bought a case of water at Walmart. Later, Donna and I took another scooter ride and checked out the funky downtown area and waterfront in Rockport. We stopped for groceries at HEB and found it to be a nicely stocked, large store. Much nicer than the HEB in Austin. Donna bought New York strip steaks that I grilled for dinner.

New York strips hot off the grill

Donna served it smothered in sauteed mushrooms and onions, a baked potato with crumbled bacon on top and steamed asparagus on the side.

There’s a steak under those mushrooms and onions

We’ve had mostly cloudy skies with 70% humidity and temperatures in the mid 80s. The skies are supposed to clear up this afternoon but there’s always a chance of a thundershower around here. Since I just washed the coach, I’m guessing we’ll see a thundershower soon.

Tiny House Intervention

Although we didn’t really have a plan yesterday, Donna had a few things to do. First on her list was an appointment with her doctor. She had a minor procedure scheduled and the appointment was a pre-surgery consultation. Her doctor noticed the recent road rash scars on Donna’s leg and asked her what happened.

Donna told her about her bike crash and said, “I had a concussion too.” Donna went on to tell her about an odd thing that happened on Friday and Saturday. Her speech was scrambled a few times. At one point she was talking to someone and said, “I see you got the memo.” What came out was, “I see you got the menu.” She repeated it twice, then with much effort was able to say the word “memo.”

Later, she ran into Deann Bolinder at lunch. They had chatted on the phone when Deann heard about her bike crash. Her husband had a bike crash 11 months ago and is still experiencing issues related to concussion. Donna was telling Deann about her word issue the day before and asked her if that was a symptom. What came out was, “Is that a system?” Again, she repeated it twice before she could say with great effort “symptom.”

That evening, Donna phoned me. She was telling me about her word issues. She said she thought it might be due to stress and the busy, noisy conference setting. Except what she said instead of “noisy conference” was “noisy concert.” Then she laughed and said, “I can’t believe I said concert – I meant to say concert.” She able to say conference on the third try.

After telling her doctor this, the doctor asked if Donna had seen her primary care physician (PCP). Donna told her that she went to the emergency room the day of her crash and had a CT scan that was negative. Her doctor told her to see her PCP before she could schedule the procedure, which requires anesthesia.

Donna came home and spoke with her PCP’s office. Her PCP was concerned about brain injury and instructed her to go immediately to a hospital emergency room for another CT scan. Because of the trouble with words, Donna’s doctor was concerned that she might have a late subdural hematoma. I drove Donna to Scripps Mercy Hospital on Washington Street. While she was being admitted, I drove over to O’Reilly Auto Parts and dropped off the old chassis batteries from our coach for recycling. That was something I needed to do while we still had the rental car and O’Reilly was just down the street from the hospital. They actually gave me a $10 store gift card for recycling the batteries!

I came back to the hospital and found Donna in an exam room in the ER. She went through a few questions and an exam with a nurse practitioner, then waited for about an hour before someone came and took her away for the CT scan. After the scan, we waited for another hour before the nurse practitioner came back and said her scan was negative – no sign of brain bleed or stroke. We had to wait another 15 minutes before a doctor came into the room and went over the results. The consensus is that Donna was exhausted from preparing for and working at the conference. That coupled with a lack of sleep at the hotel and the noisy environment caused post concussive symptoms where her brain was misfiring. A period of rest should allow her to fully recover. She has a follow-up appointment with her PCP next Monday. At that time, Donna and her doctors will decide if she should have the surgery next or postpone it to allow her brain time to heal.

Meanwhile, I had phoned Enterprise Rental Car and told them that we were at the Scripps ER and wouldn’t be able to return the rental car by 4pm as scheduled. They were very good about it and told me it would be okay If we could get there by 6pm, there would be no additional charge on the weekend special rate. When we returned the car at 4:40pm, we were also a few miles over the 300-mile limit. They waived that as well.

We walked back to Mission Bay RV Resort along the Rose Creek Trail. Donna wanted to go with me to return the car because she felt like taking a walk after spending the afternoon cooped up in a small exam room in the ER. I showed her how to access the trail from the neighborhood to the south of Garnet Avenue.

When we walked back into the RV park, I saw a cool looking travel trailer in the overflow area. It has a riveted aluminum skin like an Airstream but it’s painted, not polished. It was all closed up with the windows shuttered. I don’t know for sure what it was.

Cool looking travel trailer

Another cool trailer came into the park Sunday night. We found it parked on the west end. It’s a tiny house on a trailer chassis. We met the owner and builder, Jen, last night. She bought plans for the tiny house and attended construction classes before she built it. Jen was in town for a tiny house Earth Day show. She towed her tiny house down from Salt Lake City. Her house isn’t quite complete – it’s a work in progress. She gave us a tour of the interior. I would guess it’s no more than 130 square feet plus a sleeping loft and a small storage loft.

Front door at the rear of the tiny house trailer

Tiny house on wheels

Jen said this was her first trip with the trailer. I looked the trailer over and asked her if she had checked the lug nuts. She said she didn’t, but planned to go to a tire store to have them done. I told her I had a torque wrench and would check the lug nuts for tightness. This is important on trailers. The lug nuts loosen from undamped vibration. Most trailers aren’t equipped with shock absorbers, just stiff spring suspension. Jen was leaving to go to a meeting of tiny home enthusiasts. I told her I would check the lug nuts and check her tire pressure as well while she was out.

While I was tightening the lug nuts, her neighbor came out of her Airstream trailer and asked if I was supposed to be messing with the tiny house. This woman was well into her 70s and looking out for Jen. I told her what I was doing and she said she had an air compressor if I wanted to use it to air up the tires. We chatted for a few minutes. She’s a widow and as it turns out, went to Point Loma High School here in San Diego in the 1950s and travels alone with her Airstream full-time. She has kids in San Diego, Monterey and Seattle. So she travels up and down the west coast from San Diego to Seattle. We meet the most interesting people in our travels.

Back to the trailer lug nuts. I had the torque wrench set to 100 ft-lbs. All 24 lug nuts needed to be tightened. Some of them were very loose and needed more than a quarter turn to tighten properly. After setting them at 100 ft-lbs, I went over them again at 110 ft-lbs. Both Dexter Axle and Lippert (the two biggest suppliers of trailer axles) call for 90 to 120 ft-lbs torque on 1/2 inch axle studs. I don’t understand why they specify such a wide range instead of giving a number and a plus/minus range. I go for the middle of the specification.

Her tires call for 66 psi. I found all four tires were 14-15 psi too low and reset the pressure. Low pressure is a killer – it’s the leading cause of tire failure such as blowouts. With that done, Jen is ready to hit the road and head home to Salt Lake City this morning.

Last night, Donna prepared walnut-crusted tilapia. We haven’t had tilapia for a while because 90% of the frozen tilapia on the market is farmed raised in China. From reports I’ve read, it’s questionable whether this is a healthy choice because of the farming practices in China. Donna found fresh tilapia from Mexico at Sprouts. Again from reading, I learned that 70% of the fresh tilapia on the market comes from modern Mexican facilities such as Regal Springs. Most of the rest comes from Equador. We feel better about eating this fish than Chinese farm-raised tilapia.

Walnut-crusted tilapia with asparagus & red onion saute

The fresh tilapia was delicious. It’s Tuesday, so that means pickleball this afternoon at the rec center. Donna is planning to stay home and rest.

Flying The Koop

…from real estate to wheel estate and back again

Category Archives: Maintenance

Dry and Dusty

Balance of Power

Cat House

Hot Rods and RVs

Who Said Iowa is Flat?

Another RV Conversion

Beale Street

Last Stop in Texas

The Road to Copano

Tiny House Intervention

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