The joys of portability

Today was somewhat unorthodox.  Whenever possible, we like to sleep in to 8 or 8:30.  This morning, however, we woke to a buzzing noise that said a cell in vibrate mode was going off somewhere in the kitchen.  It was about 7:45.

I stumble-bunnied my way down, and sonar located the buzzing.  I answer the phone, and Ken's Three Hills daughter was on the line, "Hi, Dad's cell was off, so I called yours.  You'll never guess in a hundred years what happened this morning!!!"

She was right, especially with morning foggy brain, I was beyond even trying.  So....

Apparently, the Prairie Bible College is on an independent power grid from the rest of the town.  Rather, it was.... but due to a huge fire, several explosions, and accompanying smoke and such, it burnt to the ground today. (If I can, I will get some shots.) 

So as they live in residence for students, their power crashed, and the timeline for solving the absence of source is uncertain, she was wondering if we had a spare genset so the contents of the fridge wouldn't die a smelly death.

.... Funny that we had just left the smaller one at her sister's place in Nelson, only about a month and a half ago.....

So we re-secured the utility trailer's contents (Ken had been using them for a week), moved the bikes from the utility trailer where they were parked to the back of Mack for securing for the trip, did a hasty prep and pack, stopped to dump the black water, and were on the road by 10 am.  And that included shaking cobwebs, coming up with a plan, and acting on it.  I really must say I was very impressed.  

If we had planned to move on, it could have been done faster, I'm sure as the utility trailer and bike would have been prepped the day before, and a lot of the shut down and prep for slide retraction as well, but as we were likely to be holding ground for another week, it was no where on the grid of likelihoods.  The only minor misses were that the roll out pantry wasn't latched and the TV antenna was still up (both fixed at a gas stop in Hanna - 1 hour down the road)  Fortunately, that part of Alberta has absolutely nothing overhead, so there was no danger of clipping it.

One thing I had alway liked about this lifestyle is that one can abandon a disaster in a hurry, and live off the grid as needed when a crisis arose.  It never occurred to me that you could equally rush into one...

BTW, no one was in the building so no one was hurt, but half the population of Three Hills is running powerless.

So the plan is that now that we are here, we are leaving Spirit with the genset in her driveway to run the fridge, and we are taking Mack to Bellevue to pick up Smokey.  We are bringing the bike rack with us so it can go on Smokey and we will secure the smaller genset on it.  That way, we don't have to use 2 trucks to get it. (The camper rather encompasses the box after all.  Then we come back to Bellevue, and actually only are driving both trucks from Bellevue back to Three Hills.  We will be back on Friday according to this new plan.

So I sit in my living room with a cat that is confused about having spontaneously hit the road again, and who is also having a slight case of deja vu, having only left this exact site in the exact campsite only one week to the day earlier.

And just yesterday, Ken was commenting that we should really give the genset a good test run.  I also commented to his daughter that next time she wants a visit, just saying she would like to see us would suffice, no need to blow up the power grid.

So as tomorrow is another early day and a long trip, I'm going to bed.

And with that, I bid you,

Adieu.

Power Resolved :-)

Well, Ken examined and tested in the appropriate fashion, and the result was that we needed to top up the distilled water in the batteries.

The lights are shining just as bright as ever.  

And they lived happily ever after :-)

*the matter of locating a carbon monoxide in a low spot is still critically important though, if you have one, have it low or don't bother*

The day went well, I baked bread, did some house cleaning and had some visiting time with friends and family.  What more can you ask for on a sunny Saturday.

*contented sigh*

So now I will bid you,

Adieu.

Power Issues, and Carbon Monoxide Detectors

It is midnight, and we were prepping to go to bed tonight when an unusual beeping occurred.  We tracked it to our carbon monoxide detector in the bedroom.  It caused a bit of worry, but as we studied the device, we noticed that it was flashing red/green, and noticed that this indicates low voltage.

We also noticed upon reflection that the lights were quite dim, and the fridge indicator light was off.

The TV worked, so we were powering just fine off of the breaker of our friends' house, but we nonetheless, traced back to ensure all the cords to the garage were solidly connected, and the breaker was not tripped.  

The lights that were dim run off the batteries when boondocking, but we never quite grasped the difference between running off "shore power" versus the battery.  We noticed that the ceiling of the basement has a large inverter in it, so we deducted that the lights run off the batteries, but that the inverter is keeping them charged off the power line.

Tomorrow we will read the trouble shooting manuals on the system and seek confirmation, but we figure that after all the chills and winter entertainment, our 2 12 volt batteries are probably due for a replace.

As an extremely critical aside, a lot of places sell carbon monoxide sniffers that combine with smoke detectors, and in our case (an many others that I have noticed) the rig came with a wired in separate carbon monoxide detector and battery operated smoke detector.  Smoke detectors are best at ceiling level, but:

It is critical for you to note that a carbon monoxide detector MUST be placed at ground level as carbon monoxide is a heavy gas, and if you have a high wall or ceiling mounted one, by the time it detects the problem, YOU ARE dead or lethally poisoned.  

That being said, guess where they mounted ours.... high on the wall. (Which is why its beeping was so concerning...)  We have a second one that we bought and plugged in to a low to the ground outlet near our propane stove (one of the most likely sources should we have a problem)  The trouble with carbon monoxide is that it is scentless, and colourless.  

Anyway, we will likely have to replace the batteries, but they sure earned their keep this past winter!  We don't fault them for weakening now.  Definitely a tomorrow issue... which actually means later today I suppose.....

So good night folks, be safe, and now I must bid you 

Adieu.

The Test of the Blue Boy

I first want to show the lovely spot that we are parked at in a vacant lot owned by and in front of our hosts.

The property is well treed for wind breaking and shade.  Open prairie is the offering at the campground, and highway traffic noise aplenty. (shots pending).  Seems this time I started with digression, but ever forward....

 

Today I got my first opportunity to test out the blue boy.  For those unfamiliar with the term, it is a generic term for a device that is used for hauling sewer when you are at a site without individual connections for waste disposal.

Mine is a 15 gallon 2 wheeled towable model.  The idea is that you simply connect the sewer hose to the portable tank, then seal it and haul it to the nearest dumping station.

  

As we recently discovered that we could drain the grey water without it going through the black water, and since our hosts have us parked next to a parched garden, we simply let the grey run into the garden.  I have 2 20' new sewer hoses connected together to reach the garden.

To start the process, I shut the grey water valve off, switch the hose to the 10' sewer hose (to keep any "black water" contents from getting into the garden watering)  and connected to the blue boy (the large black cap near the wheels on the left in the picture). The blue boys was lying flat on the ground with the  openings facing up.  I then opened the valve of the black tank and the air vent on the blue boy (the small black cap on the right side in the picture). This allows the air in the blue boy to be vented out as the refuse pours in.

I then closed the black valve, and rinsed the RV's sewer connector by running water into the grey tank and opening the valve into the blue boy.  I reclosed the grey long enough to reconnect the longer hose into the garden. 

Next, I disconnected the short hose from the blue boy and recapped the main outlet and the vent, slung the sewer hose around the hitch of the blue boy and then moved it to the moped for the next phase - transportation!!

 It is rather interesting how quickly the flies detect a honey wagon!! :-) but I digress...

I then bungeed the trailer hitch (the metal part on the right of the picture) to the bike rack of the moped, and drove it at 10 km/h or less  the 6 blocks to the campground's central dumping station.  The moped moves faster, but the cheap plastic wheels of the blue boy can't take higher speeds.  The friction of higher speed could prematurely damage the mobility of the blue boy.

I then connected a short sewer hose onto the blue boy while it was lying flat, and also opened the vent.  Once connected to the sewer receptacle of the dump station, I stood the blue boy upright.  

It emptied quite quickly, after which  I rinsed the blue boy.  First, by pouring water in the vent hole, and shaking it a bit.  When it seemed to be empty, I drained the sewer hose and disconnected it.  I poured more water in the big opening to ensure it was well rinsed.  One more rinse of the sewer hose made it free of the last refuse.  Finally, I reconnected the bungee to the blue boy and the moped rack, and headed for home.  

This is a much easier process then moving the whole unit (including drawing in the slides and re-leveling after returning to the site) just for a 5 minute dump, especially when the site is a back in with a jack knife push into the site.  

I am well pleased with this handy device.  Ours was priced at $175 or so, but was thrown in as compensation for the loss of a long weekend camp option due to the dealership's mishandling of a repair back when we first got the rig.  There is also a 25 gallon version with 4 wheels, but I felt it would be too big for easy transport.

It has been living in our basement, but we have been advised that as its usage becomes more obvious, it may not be as welcome in the basement as when it is new.  A lot of people strap it to the roof ladders between the rig and the ladder.

Anyway, with this addition to my experiences, I bid you

Adieu

Slightly Longer Landing

After 4 days in Three Hills and a wonderful time with family, we headed down the road only a couple hours, and landed in the booming metropolis of Cereal Alberta (population of approximately 200).  This is the location where we spent the 2 years preceding our move into the rig, and the residence of several of Ken's family.

I have submitted my resume to the museum in Three Hills, and will do the same in some of the local shops and such.  Depending on the outcome of this pursuit, we shall determine where to hang out for the summer.  

For now the plan is to hang here for a couple weeks before we go to collect Smokey and the camper.  We can then park where ever  employment takes us, and on my off days, we can do a bit of exploring with the camper.

On a different note, we decided after a bit of time in Three Hills hunting around for hot spots and fighting sun glare across the truck dash that we are not content with that approach anymore. (Okay, we are spoiled, but we want to be able to use our own living room rather than driving hither and yon in the mad hunt.)  We do have the Wi-Fires, and they do improve reception of the signals, but the absence of signal can't be fixed by increased range.  

Instead, on Friday we ordered an air card from Telus.  They have 3 different levels of service, but it is defined by byte usage, and I haven't the slightest clue how it translates into online usage.  We are starting at the lowest level for now, and will upgrade as needed.  The price choices are $25, $30, and $60, but the megabyte levels elude me right now as they meant nothing to me.

We were told it would take 3 to 5 business days to arrive, but it actually got there (to our Cereal address) on Monday.  We were very impressed.  So far it is working out fine, we are sharing it between the 2 laptops.  You can set a password on it for safety.  That way, if your air card should be lost or otherwise acquired by the uninvited, they can't use your air time without a password.

As for the RV site in Cereal, we stayed for one night at $20 for 30 amp and water.  They have a central dump site, but especially with the size of rig we have, and when compared with Three Hills having the 30 amp, water, individual sewer, and wifi (by now it should be set up) for $25 (or pay 6, get the 7th free works out to $21 if you stay 7) it felt a bit insulting to pay.  

Instead, we have landed in a friend's yard.  Here we have water, 15 amp service, and although we still have to move the black water to the dump station, the grey we can just let run off into the parched raspberry patch.  We do have what my parents called a blue boy for hauling the undesirable effluent, and we will just hall it to the campground's dump station.  

Pictures pending of this area.  

 :-)

But for now I will bid you,

Adieu

In the meantime, 

Guzoo

As promised in an earlier post, I am attaching a video file from 2006 when we visited the Guzoo in the Three Hills Area.  We aren't going this time as we are focusing on family visiting, but it was a fun outing when we went.

We are off to get a few things done, and connect again with Ken's daughter, so I will bid you, 

Adieu

Entry into the Darker Side of RVing

We had some free time yesterday, so I went on the roof to confirm that the kayaks were secure, and in the process discovered that the removable ladder on the back of the rig lost one of its anchors.  We should be able to order a new one though, but the bigger discovery was that the bikes had an unwanted visitation.

We figure it must have happened in Revelstoke as it was the only place where we left the rig site until now.  Also, when we were setting up, the neighbour across the way seemed particularly interested in our goings on.  I just assumed it was because we were definitely pulling off the look of first timers, retracing our steps and redoing and adjusting settings with the inefficiency of rookies.  I ignored it.

We decided to unbag the bikes and take them down since we are here for 4 days.  We were disappointed to see that the rack that was rated for 500 pounds had bent down a bit, but the roads were in rather rough repair state.  Ken will weld a reinforcement for it in Cereal, but the biggest upset was noticing that his helmet which was in the basket wasn’t there.

I figured it must have bounced off, though it baffled me how. Nonetheless, the ladder clamp had shaken off, I suppose it is possible...

 Then we took mine down.  My helmet was actually chained into its basket, so it should be fine. .... And I’m sure it was safe in the basket...and likely in the same location as Ken’s was.  I had used heavy duty electrical tie wraps to secure the milk crate to the rack at the back as I had on Ken’s bike.  Ken’s basket was just as secure as it had been when I fastened it, but my basket was gone, and therefore the helmet as well.  As my bike was on the inside, it was less exposed, and even if the basket had shaken off, it would have likely snagged on the rack or ladder.

It seems our curious neighbour found a five finger discount on helmets, then left the next morning.  So we are out about $550 between the 2 of them.  There is no point in submitting an insurance claim as that would cover about $50 after the deductable.

The lesson seems to point to not putting the weather bags on them while travelling.  That way, with visibility, any impropriety would have been discovered sooner.  Bagged, we were a full 3 days past before we noticed their absence.

As we can’t afford to replace them properly, and since we see bikers riding around with helmets that look like starched Yamahas, and since we are only going to use them for short jaunts, we have decided to get good bicycle helmets.  We aren’t happy about it, but until we can set aside the money to buy proper ones, we can’t ride without something.

The sad thing is that we probably look like people made of money with the trucks and sundry, but what isn’t seen is that it is the total sum of our possessions, and we, like most other people live from cheque to cheque.  Our savings went into Spirit so that we could safely travel, and it was saved for exactly that purpose.

So many people in the community of RV travellers are awesome people who are co-operative and wonderful helpful instant friends.  But there are always the exceptions, and we just met one of them, it seems.  :-(

We refuse to let it kick us down though.  Today is another day.  So with that, I bid you,

Adieu