Packing Day - Day 6 and counting down

So, here it is Saturday, last day/night at the Cochiti COE.

Friday night was spent breaking bread & wine with Jeff and Linda.We also met our neighbors Jan & Bill. They will be attending the AIBF with the SKP's Boomers Group.

I also like to tell you a very liitle bit about my new toys:
First is my Endoscope Wireless Camera - LINK PRESS HERE .

Mine happens to be 15 Ft, the image is clean and bright, just the right size to get into host hard to reach places, not suitable for turbine engines, but, reaching behind the back of the radiator system?   Yes sir, can't wait to try this baby out.

My next toy, was shown to me by Tom, he purchased this little gizmo in Jan. So far very pleased with it. I have read the reviews and watch a video.

Spent a few minutes setting it up based on our current position. I also have it link to both or our phones. We will be trying it out, when we move to Enchanted Trails RV Resort on Sunday.

One of the important things to remember:

Maximizing your battery life:

In order to understand how to maximize the battery life of your LevelMatePRO, you will need some basic understanding of how the device works.  In simple terms the LevelMatePRO is always in one of two states, either in a “sleep” state or an “awake” state.  When the device is in a sleep state it is using an extremely small amount of battery current and is not able to be connected to by your smartphone or tablet.  When the device is in the awake state it is using a much larger amount of battery current and is able to be connected to by your smartphone or tablet.  So where battery life is concerned the more you can keep the device in the sleep state the longer your battery life will be.

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The other important thing to understand about the LevelMatePRO is how it switches from the sleep state to the awake state and vice versa.  The device is designed to switch from the sleep state to the awake state when it detects motion.  So when you arrive at your camping location the unit will be in the awake state and will be connectable to your smartphone or tablet for use of the system.  Lack of motion switches the device from the awake state to the sleep state after a certain number of hours that is defined by the user through the LevelMatePRO app.

On Thursday we traveled to Albuquerque, for some supplies and other items. 2 of those items were 2 new 6 Vdc deep cycle batteries. Costco, here has Interstate Batteries for $84. A far cry from the $135 I was quoted in Arizona. Now all I need is 2 old batteries as core return.

This now brings my storage up to 880 Amps. I completed the installation in less than a hour. Next week I will redo some of the cables, to make a cleaner look overall. Can't wait to try them out with the solar, that is if the sun decides to come back out soon.

Sun Slowly Rising Up in the Distance

Dale
DaGirls Travels
Aka Dakota & Tilly
Safe Travels and Journeys
http://dagirlsrv.blogspot.com/
You Tube Video - Roadrunner Song

Day 8, and counting

Well, here it is Thursday, we spent Wednesday inside as the rain came along with cool weather. Today however we are on Albuquerque, picking up supplies and packets
So will keep this short. Today turned out to be a warm one.
So we will stay long enough to do the dirty deed and get home.
Dakota is hoping for dog park and of course DQ. So we are in search of places.

On the Road to AIBF - Tisdale's Coach

Ok, so, we have been very busy getting the Tisdale's coach ready for paint. We have completed and painted the driver's side, front and rear caps. The last 2 twos days we have completed the passenger's side prep work.

Today Friday) is paint day.

We decided to stay an extra week to help Dwight accomplish this task and enjoy more time with friends. With this done, Dwight can start working on the smaller things. The coach is looking very good, he has just about taken it all apart, sealed, cleaned and reassembled.

As for us:
Rewired my solar panels to produce 80Vdc instead of 40Vdc. Higher voltage lower current coming down the wire to my MPPT controller.

Susan has made major changes to the bathrooms. She has added back splashes and using the same material made a photo collage wall. I installed a Talavia sink for her that we bought in Rocky Point on last trip. Also added new faucet.

Removed the sink in the toilet room, polished it, and added water cut-off valves. 

I also redid the sewer compartment, never liked the sewer outlet never exit angle. So a little cutting and shaping. My sewer hose now goes straight down. This project took less than a hour. 

And of course many beer 30's, after working, of course, the Brisket Sunday. Andy, Dwight's son-in-law is a very good smoker. Dwight always say's the Traeger was the best birthday present he purchased for is son-in-law. 

And of Course a Photo of Dakota, showing us a new thing she taught herself:

Dale

DaGirls Travels

Aka Dakota & Tilly

Safe Travels and Journeys

http://dagirlsrv.blogspot.com/

You Tube Video - Roadrunner Song

Changes Completed - Battery Frame

You read where we/I started our new battery box configuration changes. Changes you ask? Why? Didn't the Alfa come with Qty. 6, 6Vdc batteries? Yes, but since we dry-camp alot, we really need the extra storage capacity. So, with this change, we can use the following size/type of batteries:
T-105, T-125, T-145 and even the L16 size batteries.

Battery frame on the passenger side:

Battery Frame on the Driver's side:

Here is an excellent example of the different capacity of the battery sizes:

	Length		Width		height		Lbs	$$$
T-105	10.3		7.11	28.44	11.07	447	62	133
T-125	10.3		7.11	28.44	11.07	448	66	165
T-145	10.3		7.11	28.44	11.9	530	72	193
J305H-AC	11.6		7	28	14.5	781	98	210
J305E-AC	12.1		7	28	14.5	645	83	239
L16P-AC	11.6		7		16.7	850	114	319

Time will tell, when we upgrade our batteries, for now we will add 2, bringing up our system to Qty., 8, 6Vdc batteries.

So, I will leave you with a few more photos:

Safe Travels and Journeys 

from DaGirls, Dakota & Tilly

More Changes coming

So, what drove us to Friend, Ne, besides friends? Changes to the Rv. Where else can you go and have a shop of tools to use. The main thing? Battery box configuration changes.

First remove some batteries and setup outside the coach.

Next remove the frame, clean up the area and change the location of the grounding studs.

And before you know it the right side is cleaned and ready for the build process.

Since you did the right side, you now do the left side faster and wow. All done and cleaned. Next, you begin laying out the template for the frame.

More for later, as I continue to redo the battery box

Safe Travels from
DaGirls Dakota and Tilly

Journey Continues

Just to remind you, we landed in Friend Ne at the Derr Family farm. We spent the weekend with the family at Bluestem Recreation area.

We arrived to do some repairs but mainly to make some additional mods to the Rv.

First on Susan's list: complete the drawer fronts in the bedroom (an addition Dwight built this spring), with stain and finish.

Next on the list, remodel the bathroom sinks, install a new one and clean and install 1/4 turn cut off valves in the other one.

 Start of the Project

Removed the sink, make and layout a template, and start cutting.

Layout looks good and before you know it ?

I also want to state, when using a sink made in Mexico, it is a little more challenging then using a standard sink. So, if you choose to go our way, you have to be creative and seek some different tools and not be afraid to break the sink so to say and start all over with something different.

As we continue to make a few improvements, I also reworked the water closet, it just seem wrong to have a sewer hose at an angle when connecting to the valve. So, after I saw what Dwight did, I then decided to make even a bigger change to my sewer connections.

 Using a vibrator tool and a piece of plastic I moved the access cover to a new location.

I then bought a 3.5 rubber coupling and cut a section of the APS out to center my down spot.

Along the way, Steve and Winnie Howland stopped by. We heard their tale of issues:  when his tow bar broke and hit their exhaust pipe and caused the heat to escape and damage all the wiring.  While here,  we got his generator up and running and had a good time sharing stories including Wonder Woman and Geezers in the Corn.

And of course Wonder Woman made an appearance (posing as Steve).

Susan, then saw a post from Ray and CeAnne that they were heading to Rapid City, but she got them to divert to Friend. So, while they are here we are going thru and helping Ray out on a few items.

Our next adventure was to Friend for the Friend Hot Dog and Champagne Eclipse Event:

Susan was able to capture this shot thru a telescope.

Safe Travels and Journeys

From DaGirls, Dakota and Tilly

Doing a little catch up

July 17^th. Wrap up of the last few weeks. For those of you asking where we are located.
Currently sitting right about here: Link Location or just copy and paste into a browser: 41.642859,-88.624134 .

We have found this to be an ideal location for visiting family
Things have been quite around the family so, on July 10^th, we headed to Indianapolis for an overnight stay, than go in on Tuesday into the Indiana Fair Grounds. The FMCA rally started on July 12^th to the 15^th with leaving the fair grounds on Sunday the 16^th.

We found the FMCA rally to be fun and provide a good source of information. We learned of the various programs FMCA has made available to us, the RVer on the road. Whether we full time or part time, FMCA has something for you.

Now while we were there, we knew our awning would not last, and due to the placement of the slide rail water was pooling on top of the slide out, making it necessary to retract the slide during the rain.

Reading the installation manual I notice instructions for the location of the slide rail. Manual says min., 2 inches above the top of the awning roller; this provides the angle for the water to run down and off the side of the slide out. Ours was even; this allowed the pooling of water on the material.

I saw a Shade Pro truck, and ask the gentleman to come over and quote and look at the angle. He notice right away the incorrect angle. With Susan in charge, she indicated she wanted similar material as on our main awning and color. Cole showed her the same material and color, which she agreed to, he gave us a rough price of $800 to $900, and said he could do it the next day.

At around 10am Cole arrived and I help remove and install new side rails (310 inches long) at a new height and material. The slide awning material is now tight and at a good angle for the water to run down and off, keeping most if not all the water off the roof of the awning. I just want to state, that we, Rver's do not need to keep the same vinyl on our awning. The new awning material matches our current awning material and color.
When all was said and done the total cost was $785 complete. 

Also while we were traveling down the road, the usual happen in a town called  Forest, Il., or right at this address: 899 N Center St, Forrest, IL 61741.

Susan pulled over to allow the girls to take a walk and switch drivers, as we went outside, we both heard this noise, well Susan heard it, but I did something about it. Shutting down the engine. After a few minutes of looking, I saw a shredded serpentine belt, or at least 4 ribs of the belt was missing. As luck would have it, a business called TCS trucks was 50 yards away. So, off I went to talk to them and see what could be done. Do you know, even though they did not have a belt, they worked until they found a belt 10 minutes away at a NAPA store. Who cares that NAPA is the most expensive place to buy one, they worked hard to help out.

So, off we went, bought 2 different sizes, 1 smaller - 1 larger than the size called out, and back we went. Once back, they made room for me to back up into a bay and 35 minutes later and $55, less, we were back on the road. Now of course, the Horton Fan Clutch cable got broken, but hey all that does is continue to run at high speed.

Sorry for no photos but hey were we off and Susan asked me did you ever order the spare items you needed?  Well I had to say no. You see the belt from NAPA was over $75, and the belts she ordered was $10 each. But hey she got to do the happy dance. 

Oh before I forget, that week was the most expensive week we ever had, and why ? 
Well we picked up a 2015 Ford F-150 with less than 15,000 miles, 

and then we needed to set it up for towing:

So, all in all it was very costly for Susan, just so I could have a new toy, to play with.

Anyway, here are a few additional photos of our time at the FMCA rally:

. 
Safe Travels fro Dakota, Tilly, Susan and me.