A palace, some trips and warm weather..

Geo and I went to Vancouver, Salmon Creek and Longview, Wa. yesterday, he to the doctors and I to kill some time, we hit Home Depot and Walmart, ate at Subway and TacoTime.  It was so warm inland that Geo left Bubba home.  It's getting up to 104F in Hagerman where Mom resides, the air conditioning is having a hard time keeping up during the day, so a larger one may be needed these few days of the year where the temp gets so bad.  I am headed down to Idaho today or tomorrow to assist in fixing things, from sprinkler timers, computer CMOS batteries to Air Conditioning. I'll probably leave my travel trailer here in Seaview along with my fifth wheel.

P.S.  I think it got up to 68F here on the Peninsula... 

EternaBond Roof Seal, roofing nails and a design to battle the dreaded rubber roof BUBBLE

  

We worked on Georges Palace (fifth wheel) and his rubber roof on Sunday/Monday designing and laying down waterproof patterns to prevent the dreaded air bubble from popping up during travel and the flaps and flops during windy weather.  The vents, front and back caps were also cleaned and sealed during the long day up and down the ladders.  This process negates having to use a couple of tubes of Dicor every year to catch those nasty cracks and leaks.  This doesn't mean you don't check (and clean) your roof anyway, it just means for the next 12 to 20 years you won't be using much Dicor.

Adding an hour meter to Honda EU2000i - another project file

Another project done, I have a list of projects I would like to do. I have time, and materials, so another project off the list, and a couple added, someday the list may be empty... Then I will have no motivation to get out of bed. :o(

I belong to a yahoo group called Honda EU2000 Generators

One of the discussions has been adding an hour meter, there are many different styles of hour meters, I had bought an electronic trigger LCD meter/tach off Amazon with it's own battery, but found a mechanical hour meter at Harbor Freight Tools. An hour meter gives you an accurate time span so the oil can be properly changed, not just guessed at. It can also help monitor your usage and calculate future fuel expenses.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Here is the working face of the Honda EU2000i genset, including the basically useless 8 AMP 12 volt connector/circuit breaker in the lower right corner. Really who needs an 8 AMP/12 volt charger (and you have to have a "special" connector, a trailer converter/charger will put out 30 to 100 amps of 12 volt power when plugged into the 120 volt outlet.

For those with a Honda Companion model and no 12v connector, try searching for "REDINGTON 722-0001" , "Hobbs 20001-17" or even "AC hour meter" on eBay.. and just connect the available 120v to the AC powered (90-240VAC) Quartz Hour Meter.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

dropping the face reveals the connections and components

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

12 volt connector comes out easily

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

leaving a square hole

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

The 12 volt connector unconnects easily, just press the little pink rectangle tab and the 2 wires just slip out. Make note of the positive (red/white) and negative (red/black) wires.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Japanese for press here to release?

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

depth of meter vs. 12 volt connector, notice the Jan 06 date code on the 12v connector?

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Specs on the Harbor Freight meter #66754 http://www.harborfreight.com/hour-meter-66754.html

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Bonus, NOT MADE in CHINA, hope India is better. We'll see how it holds up.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

sizing ring and meter clamp included, ready to cut, I actually cut the three corners at an angle so the meter wouldn't turn.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Small cuts with multi-tool and it fits

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

clamped in and a bit of permanent marker coverup

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Good physical connection, ready for solder

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Soldered and placed with correct polarity, red/white is positive, red/black is Neg.
Be sure no metal is sticking out, there is a green ground fitting in the back wall of the component enclosure

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

With genset running, hundredths and tenths show, tenths are 6 minutes , and hundredths are 36 seconds.

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

aha, caught the little red blinky LED showing the genset is running, like I couldn't tell. (but I can tell the meter is running)

From Honda EU2000i genset hour meter

Finished project with tools

Workin' on the Lot

A while back I wrote about buying an RV lot in Seaview, Washington, the lot is about a mile from the beach. I've been working on the lot getting it ready for my New Horizons fifth wheel to be moved onto it. Below are the photos from the Safari Associations website, it already had a 1991 thirty one (31) foot Dutchman trailer on it, which is in poor shape, as a tree had fallen on it a couple of years ago, but someone rebuilt the front part of the trailer. I'm making it into a storage area and workshop.





Below is the same lot, I turned the Dutchman around and have been fighting the weeds, I am down to gravel in some places now. The small Nash trailer will be moved so I can fit the larger New Horizons fifth wheel in it's place. I'll get the fifth wheel set up sometime in mid-July. So Saturday or Sunday I'll be heading back down to Hagerman, ID. to get the fifth wheel ready.

Fridge Fans

I know, it's been so long, I've been busy with everything, it's no excuse. I'm sitting at the Thousand Trails in Las Vegas, Nv, trying to stay cool. I've had a few requests for this when I put "had to add a fan in my fridge coils" on my Facebook wall the other day. As I watched the temperature in my freezer climb, I remembered I had bought a couple of six inch computer fans for the reason of setting up a cooling stack on the refrigerator. The ideal position is above the coils near the roof, to draw the heat up, rather than blow air up. But you have to take the top fridge cover off, stand on a ladder and all sorts of contortions. So mine blow instead of suck.

As you should know the refrigerators in out RV's use an older, more rugged technology, ammonia absorption. Rather than repeat what others have, here is a good explanation.

I thought about mounting the fans on hard mounts, either metal or wood and bracing them in the rear refrigerator compartment, but in traveling down the road the trailer flexes, so I figured the mounts needed to flex, I used nylon flex ties for mounting. (and it was a faster install)


Getting the tools and parts ready..
Crimper, side cutters, wire, #10 push-on lugs, 14-16 push-ons, 75 degree thermal switch (NO) and 12 volt, 4.2 watt 6 inch fan.


Location to place fans


One fan placed to push air UP the stack.


Looking up the stack/absorption coils.


Finished project.


Looking up at second fan..


Thermal switch and ground connector, I can pull apart the ground to open the circuit and stop the fans if I don't want them using power. I'm taking power off the 12 volt lines to the fridge board, a 20 amp fused circuit. Both fans, when on, will use about .6 (six-tenths) amps total (4.2 watts each.)




To sum it up, the thermal switch will turn on both fans about 75 F and push air up through the absorber coils, making the system more efficient. I can disconnect the negative side connecters if I don't want the fans to turn on, or the entire system can be quickly removed and later replaced for service if needed.

Addition (2-4-2012)

I moved the fans to the proper place (above the cooling fins/coils) it was very simple, I added a length of wire to the power portion of the fans and plugged it into the right places.. I also swapped out the thermal switch to a 30 degree C (86F) NO switch. I had a problem with the lower fan creating such an airflow it would suck the flame from the thermocouple making the igniter think the pilot was not on. So it was firing the igniter dozens of times, while the fans worked well during resort/electric operation, during the LP operation the igniter would fire dozens of times..


Closeup of fan in upper fridge flue..


Position of fans, and wire ties to "hang" the fans


One side buttoned up, with small wire ties, wire tie on center bar provided "strain relief" to wire going down to thermal switch/power below.

Christmas (and New Years) with the WIN's

View WIN Christmas and New Years Eve in a larger map



Spent Christmas and New Years with the WIN's, with friends, Diana did an excellent job as usual with reporting what happened in her blog, Life on the Open Road...

Food, bagpipes, gifts, and dancing for all.. special memories.


P.S. Just be aware of the planes spraying stuff in the air, we (Mom, pup and I) feel better now that we left.

How can you travel through the Palm Springs area without a DATE SHAKE?

I've been the in the Palm Springs/Palm Desert area for about 3 weeks, this area is famous for the date shake. My first date shake was last year, when we drove up from the Slabs to Oasis Date Garden and had shakes and many date samples. This year I tried three different stores, all recommended for the date shakes. Besides Oasis, I tried Shields Date Garden and Hadleys Date and Fruit Stand. While Oasis has a good shake and they use date puree, Shields tastes better, more date flavor and you could taste date through the last drop, whereas the Oasis, after a while, you could not taste the dates. Shields uses date flakes, and it's important for them to sit a while in the ice cream for full flavor.

However, neither have the flavor and creaminess of the Hadleys Date Shake, made with real ice cream and date puree, plenty of it, the Hadleys shake was creamy and tasty to the last drop, and then I wanted more, if I wasn't 50 miles away from the store, I would be tempted to have one every day. So far, of the ones I've tried, Hadleys takes the WIN. The sampling room at Oasis make the stop worth while, you can get your fill of dates for free, then you want to take some home too.

Apparently it's not as easy as I thought.

As promised here are some shots of me loading my ATV on the truck. Once I look at the photo, I know this attempt was "DOOMED TO FAILURE" (the majority of my weight (considerable) is behind the rear axle, popping the front end up.) A couple of more attempts just get me sideways as I try to correct the problem, on the last attempt, I get on top, my weight is so far forward, my "dicky doo" is pressing the horn button and I can't engage the brakes, so I roll backwards all the way down. I reposition the truck, stop, and look at photos, and reposition the truck again. (Apparently it's not as easy as I thought...)

I've loaded this damn thing on and off over 20 times now, sometimes it's easy and sometimes not, today was NOT

What's that old saying? "Reposition and try again" (various puns come to mind)

I'm at Delta Shores once again, getting ready to continue my journey and go to Palm Springs on Saturday..

Found a nice place in Ilwaco/Seaview area for my New Horizons fifth wheel

I've been looking for a while now for a place to settle down and think I've found it. I love ocean communities. Since retiring I have ventured up and down both coasts, as well as the Gulf of Mexico. Don't get me wrong, I love the mountains also, but never liked shoveling the snow in the winter, but then again, the skiing was good. Getting older, I've skied less and less. (and started traveling.)

Enough of that, back in 2004, I came across the communities of Long Beach, Seaview and Ilwaco during the Washington State International Kite Festival, as you can see in my blog, I have returned again and again. I have put in an application to buy a place/membership in the "Safari Association of Ilwaco." There are a few wonderful places for sale there and I am looking at getting into one. I hope to place my New Horizons 34 foot fifth wheel on a lot there. I'll still be traveling with the smaller travel trailer (until I can't travel anymore) but would like a place (near the ocean) to settle down. The New Horizons fifth wheel has been a lot of places in the country, I've put 28000 miles on it, that I can track, but with the price of diesel now, it's just too heavy to keep pulling around the country.

Whoohoo, just learned that the Board of Directors has approved my application, now to make offers and get the New Horizons fifth wheel approved (update 9-13-10 12:25p)

On the road near Kamiah, Idaho.(with mom.)

Parked in the driveway of the house in Idaho.

Making a pit stop in Zion National Park. (Utah)

Ocean Mist- K/M Resort

The totem marking the entrance to Ocean Mist from the beach side.

Sand dunes and driftwood...

Beach side of resort.

I'm staying on the coast away from the heat in the interior of the country, so I'm at Ocean Mist, a K/M resort, between Ocean City and Copalis Beach, Washington.

Kite fest again, WIN's nearby

I'm in Chinook, Washington near the Long Beach Peninsula where the International Kite Festival is now taking place. A local remarked today was the sixth day of sun this summer, what a great day to fly kites. The WIN group is nearby and oh boy, do they have a full plate? From kayak trips, lighthouses, interpretive centers and watching salt being made, to campfires on the beach, they are on the go.

Also I got an ATV to test drive, a rather small Yamaha Moto-4 200, shaft drive, after extensive rust rehabilitation and working on the fuel system, it appears to be running fair, there is more work to be done on it although the plastic and rubber is in good shape. There are places all over Oregon to ATV and miles of beach at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. There doesn't seem to be much ATVing area in Washington, or maybe I just haven't found it yet. I have found you CANNOT ride ATV's on the beach, although other licensed vehicles are fine as are scooters.

Northwood Mfg. made a new Friend, and hot cities.

Traveling west again to the Coast where it will be cool, it's too hot here. I was in LaGrande, Or. (96F) at Northwood MFG. getting the hole in my Nash trailer repaired, I got a new front end.... they did a super job for about 1/4 the cost they quoted and in 1/4 the time. It's always great when a company goes "beyond expectations." They also manufacture Arctic Fox and Desert Fox toy haulers, campers, and trailers. I got the trailer to them about 8 am, met with Matt, went and got some donuts, I was just getting ready to get on the internet near a Starbucks, when I got the call about 1030, "It's done" a voice said, "Already, I didn't even get my nap yet" said I, "Come on in and we'll lighten your wallet" says the voice. I checked out my trailer, it's looks better and brighter than when I bought it... I walked into the office and met with the voice (Matt), he lays down a sheet with the price, my jaw drops, I'm in a quandary at this point, you see, I filed an insurance claim after getting the quote. and the price for the repair is the same as my deductible. (way less than the quote.) I'm hopeing that I can cancel the claim and my State Farm insurance will just forget about it and NOT RAISE the cost of my insurance...

I happily pay my share, wave goodbye, (blow kisses at the women) and sail into the sunset.. (oh... thats another story)

On the way from Seattle to LaGrande, Or. I had planned on boondocking, casino-docking or whatever so I could hit Northwood Mfg. early Monday morning for my appointment. While in the planning stages, I got an invitation from a new friend, he said I could stay at his place in Cove, Or. just 12 miles from the Nash factory. I gratefully accepted and was amazed at the little slice of heaven, he and his wife have carved out for themselves (and wandering AFP's*.) Phrases like "salt of the earth" and "good people" do not do justice, they fed me, gave me wonderful well water, powered the trailer, let me wash my trailer and truck and many other things. We laughed, fixed things, and watched nature take it's course. Deer and birds abound and wander around his place. The last evening dropped a gorgeous sunset on us as we looked out over the valley. Truly wonderful people and "Thank you"

It was 102F in downtown Pendleton, Or. 100F in Hermiston where I stopped for lunch, and 108F at Three Mile canyon near the Columbia River. I'm at TT Sunriver-Bend for a couple of days before I hit Coos Bay, Or.


*AFP's =Arctic Fox people (and other Northwood products too)

Not a good day, View from the Front...

While traveling through Boise Idaho heading out from the Northwood Rally, I... well I'll let the photos talk first.











A semi-truck in front of me tossed "something" into my lane, not able to avoid it completely, I ran over it and kicked it up into the trailer. I checked when I stopped and found this.

A few pictures and an email to Dave Mann/Northwood brought back the quick response, of an $800 job. Looks like I'll be heading back to LaGrande, Or. But for the moment, I'm in Hagerman Id. and will be doing my yearly Bratwurst sales with the Moose(Lodge #305,) in Buhl ID. for the Fourth of July Celebration at the Park.
Mid-July I'll be heading to Seattle to see a close friend, back to LaGrande, Or. for a July 26th appointment to get the trailer fixed, then over to the Coast (Or.-Wa.) again. Aug. 11th, I'll be in the Long Beach, Wa. area, I'll meet up with the WIN's again.

As usual, the plans are written in Jello, (green you know.)

A valiant sacrifice, my Hughes autoformer dies...

I am in Rock Springs, Wyoming, at my friends place, the one with the shop and all. If you remember, I blogged about the voltage problems last year while staying here. At the time it was low voltage, and the electric company changed a tap on the pole transformer to make things better.

My line voltage alarm went off while sitting in my trailer today, I was taking a rest, from a small welding project I did. I checked the alarm and it showed 137 volts, my inverter circuit had kicked in protecting my TV and computer, but the Norcold fridge is on the circuit and a few other things. I heard a pop and a hiss, and white smoke started filling the trailer, I have heard the pop hiss before working in electronics, and the smell was reminiscent of fried capacitors and/or transformers, I ran around flipping off circuit breakers and the main battery switch, the smoke continued filling the trailer and forcing me outside. I unplugged the trailer and waited for the smoke to disperse, rushing in to open my electric area, and rushing back out when throat and eyes started burning. My fans wouldn't work (I had turned off the 12v power.) Since I could not see flames nor smell burning wood, I waited a bit with extinguisher in hand. The smoke cleared and I could see my autoformer was smoking and had left some goo splattered around. I pulled the autoformer out, still hot and smoking and took it outside.


I pulled the autoformer apart, and checked the wiring and circuitry, I am unhappy, there were no MOV's in the unit, it appears they were not installed. MOV's are small self sacrificing components to protect from over-voltage and voltage spikes. Instead the autoformer sacrificed itself to protect the trailer. The goo is the transformer potting material that was heated into liquid goo and smoke.


The autoformer got hot enough to melt the vinyl flooring making it stick to the autoformer, the wood underneath is not burnt but has some goo on it.


If I had a Surge-guard inline this would not have happened, or if the autoformer had overvoltage/undervoltage protection. I have been very happy with my Hughes Autoformer and undervoltage problems up till this point, it seems it was an older unit that did not have the MOV surge/overvoltage protection. After my research it seems that Franks RV voltage booster has under/over voltage protection built in.

Also see I'm tired of RV resort excuses for Voltage