The day started off wrong....oh so wrong....with the guys at the satellite dish install shop showing up at 5:30 am and waking me out of a sound sleep (that I had been enjoying for ONLY a few hours) as they came in to pick up tools for an early install. Wouldn't have been so bad except for the garage doors they DRAGGED open. LOL! Never did fall back to sleep completely so at 7:30 crawled out of bed and got dressed.
After walking BoBo we headed over to my friend Herb's house where my bike and trailer were stored. I did a pretty slick job of backing up to the trailer, if I do say so myself), by using the backup monitor. Herb made me a badly needed cup of instant coffee and then we headed out to hitch up the trailer.
First things first....test the lights. Hmmmm, problems already. One directional appeared, at first, to have a burned bulb. Further investigation showed that the directionals were reversed as well as one not working at all. Herb opened the non-functioning one up and we found it full of water. Turns out it's a sealed unit that you replace, not just the bulb. Good news is that it's a standard item at all truck stops. Fortunately for me Herb is quite the handyman, he switched the wires at the plug and then proceeded to drill drain holes in the bottom of both rear lights (the right one was dry).
I headed on my way, nervous about the trailer following behind me like a lovestruck puppy. Since there was a truck stop within a couple miles from Herb's house, I headed there to get the bulb unit replacement (and what do you know, there was also a McDonald's there <g>, can you say COFFEE?). The cashier let me take the unit out to be sure it would fit (it did and it worked), I went back and and got a second one for a spare (just have to remember what bin/tote holds the other spare bulbs...<g>).
Finally got on my way, never wrote down the starting mileage or time....so much for tracking this part of the trip. Maybe I'll just wait till I leave Elkhart....LOL! The trailer pulls nicely, I really don't know it's back there. If anything, it helps me better judge where things are in relation to the rig. I even managed to pull up far enough to get gas. Speaking of gas, I am definitely using more with the added weight of the trailer and the final weight of the RV.
The weather was okay, swapping sun with clouds and misty rain. The temperature was in the 60's most of the day. I am now in a KOA just outside Indianapolis and will stay one more night. It's pricey but comfortable and with the lows in Elkhart forecast for FREEZING Monday morning, will wait the extra day. Only supposed to be mid 30's here early Monday. I need to continue organizing the "stuff" sitting in bags around my bed as well as figure out how to use the compressor I have to air up all the tires. The front right looks a little soft and both trailer tires do as well. So, once the sun comes up and warms it a bit tomorrow, I'll find my tire gauge, pull out the instruction book for the Husky Jump-starter unit and see how much trouble I can get it. LOL!!
Oh, the electrical problems continue with variations....the steps have stopped working completely. Yesterday when I got ready to leave they stayed halfway out, like they did on my first trip to Indiana. They eventually retracted completely but there was a clicking sound (like a relay) for several hours. That has stopped....but I'm sure it has something to do with it. The other interesting thing came to me when I realized that even though nothing works off the coach batteries, the car radio was still working when I was driving and it IS connected to the coach batteries. That gave me a thought.....I wondered if the other things (lights, outlets, etc) worked when the engine was running.
Next rest stop I tried it out...yup, everything worked. I could even start the generator. So I am guessing that when the engine is running, the solenoid that connects the engine and coach batteries is open (for charging purposes) and that lets me use them. Engine off, solenoid closes and nothing works (thanks to the flaky disconnect switch).
Oh, the other discovery is that if the hard-wired carbon monoxide detector is turned off, nothing on propane will fire....discovered that on Thursday night when I turned on the heat. Lots more to learn.....you definitely remember the ones that "catch" ya!
Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna
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Stu and Donna
You are doing a good job of sleuthing. Those kind of observations can help a lot for the techs to figure out what what the problem is. I think electrical problems can be the worst kind to solve.
ReplyDeleteHi Donna,
ReplyDeleteAccording to Bob Livingston's RV Book,..."Most RV manufacturers use solenoids with copper-to-copper contacts. If you find that you are experiencing a voltage loss (preform voltage drop tests), replace the solenoid with one that has Silver-to-Silver contacts. Many auto parts stores, including NAPA, sell this type..."
They are "better"...and do hold up way longer than the "stock" item ones.