2010 October » tgif: let's RV

More Work Completed On The Trailer

Oct 242010

It's been a pretty busy week and was able to get a lot of work done on the trailer. Since I really don't have a good place to do major work on the trailer I took it in to a local shop to get a few things done.

They repacked the wheel bearings and installed the electric awning upgrade. It will be nice to not have to worry about the wheel bearings and it's also good to know the brakes are in good shape. Carefree of Colorado has an upgrade kit to change a manual awning to electric. Saves about $800 over installing a completely new unit. I had to give it a try once I got it home, it sure is sweet just to press a button to extend the awning instead having to do it manually.... that 19' awning can be a real bear for one person to handle.

Couldn't ask for a better late October day as it got into the lower 70's so I tackled the wiring. Redid most for the main battery wiring by installing a 2 position main cutoff switch. This will let me just connect the inverter to the batteries, just the main trailer 12 volt system or both.

There Always Seems To Be Delays

RV Day to Day Life No Responses »

Oct 162010

There were a few things I need to get done on the trailer that I couldn't do myself. A small local RV dealer/repair shop was recommended to me so I went over to visit Quality Products in Plainwell, MI a week ago Friday to find out their prices. They were about 40% less then the other area mega-dealers for the same work. I asked them about making an appointment and they said none was needed, just drop off the trailer.

The next Monday I took the trailer up to them and dropped it off. When I went in to let them know what I wanted done I was told that two of their techs were on vacation and they wouldn't be able to get to for a week. I just decided to leave it rather then bring it back home and they haul it back at the end of the week.

You would have thought that they would have at least told me that the techs would be on vacation the next week so I could plan accordingly. Hopefully their work is better then their communications.

Front Hitch Installed

RV DIY & Mods No Responses »

Oct 152010

Today I installed the front hitch on my truck. I have a number of things I want to take with me this winter and I have been trying to figure out how to carry it all. The main bulky items is my Moped, generator, gas can and fresh water container. I looked at a couple of ways to get them all in the bed of the truck in front of the 5th wheel trailer hitch, make sure they don't shift around and still have clearance so the trailer wouldn't hit them when turning. I wasn't comfortable with any of the solutions I tried.

My first option was to have a custom mount made for the generator so I could carry it on the 5th wheel trailer's pinbox. After a couple of estimates for $600 to $700 I nixed that idea.

I then investigated having a mount made for the back of the trailer to mount either the Moped or the generator. A custom mounting system has to be made because the rear bumper is not strong enough on most trailers to carry extra weight and there isn't an off-the-shelf solution for a bolt on hitch. Again it was $600 to $700 to have that done. Two ideas down.

Going Solar

RV DIY & Mods No Responses »

Oct 102010

It was a beautiful weekend for October so I was able to get a lot done on the trailer this weekend. My main focus was getting as far as I could with my solar system.

I was able to get the wiring installed from the roof to basement near the batteries and mounted the solar controller. I also finished up the solar panel mounts and got them mounted on the roof. The solar panel were too heavy and bulky to lift on the roof myself so I called up B to help me lift them up on the roof.

A Treasure Hunting We Will Go

Metal Detecting, RV Activities No Responses »

Oct 062010

I've put away the trailer for a few days while I gather up some supplies for the next round of projects to complete. While sitting here thinking of things that need to be done and try and make a plan for what to do once I get to Quatrzsite, it struck me that I may need a little something to pass the time.

I know last year in Texas that there were times that I looked for something to do. I really didn't feel like hitting any flea markets, or going to a movie and I was biked out. Sitting around enjoying the warm weather is great but you can only sit on your ass just so much.