RE: VCR's after Feb, 09
I think the point of this converaation is that the older devices that have the "old" analog tuners are NOT designed to control an external converter box. So to keep using one of these older devices, you would need to hook up the DTV converter to (say) your VCR and set it to the appropriate channel (3,4 or aux in) You could then record, on that station only. You will not be able to automatically set a recording schedule which calls for recording on more than a single channel unless you are there to manually change the channel on your DTV converter.
RE: When to Winterize
On the "if", the answer is pretty simple: will your RV be exposed to below freezing temperatures?
If you store your RV unheated, then you need to winterize before the water in your pipes freezes and breaks something.
If you keep your RV plugged to shore power and heated, then it is trickier to answer, and depend if your pipes below the RV are exposed and how cold it is. I will let others address that.
On the "when", the most conservative answer is as I have described below in this mail chain, and involves looking up historical weather data for where you live. Most people wait till much later to winterize, and dewinterize much earlier.
Its all a matter of how much risk you are prepared to take with you RVs plumbing and your RV investment.
The antifreeze method is so cumbersome that those who use it tend to do this once a year. Those of us who continue to RV during the freezing period of the year dewinterize at the beginning of each trip, and rewinterize at the end, while in the winterizing period of the year. With the pressurized air method its no big deal. I don't take risks about"when" I winterize, but I do take this risk about "how" I winterize.
With either method (antifreeze or air) if you don't do it right and forget a step, something WILL break.
Hope this helps!
RE: Virginia "Personal Property Tax"
Uma and Papa, doing the math is trickier than you might think. Not sure about you, but in Virginia, we get a reduction of the Personal Property tax on personal motor vehicles, such as the tow vehicle, but not so on trailers (whether TT or 5th wheels).
So that preferential treatment for cars makes the Personal Property Tax impact even worse for RVers (in those counties that do charge that tax)
RE: Best vpn software for wi-fi security
well, this forum does it again. Sometimes we contribute knowledge to others, and sometimes, we are the ones who learned something.
I was unaware that there were "vpn providers". What I said is still valid, but the "vpn provider" provides the other end. Catching up with the debate since my last entry, I agree that MOST pages when one enters user names and passwords are https, and I agree that in those instances, there is nothing to worry about. But I still find some, even from reputable businesses that don't always have it. The few times that happens, I simply refuse to proceed.
RE: Best vpn software for wi-fi security
Unless I am missing something, that is not a decision that you get to make...
For a VPN to work, the matching set-up needs to be there at the other end...
So for example for work, I use a VPN software (and security token) provided by my employer that allows me to connect to my employer`s LAN as if I was directly connected to that LAN. I can use that with my office laptop either from home (on my broadband internet connection) or in places like airports, coffee shops, hotel rooms, etc (some free, some with a fee)
But the point is when I use that, I always connect to my office LAN.
So I don`t get how you could use a VPN on wifi hot spots just to protect yourself. Perhaps some businesses offer that for consumers and I am unaware of it.
RE: Virginia "Personal Property Tax"
Its a bit of a mis-characterization to say Virginia...as the tax amount varies by county (or city if you live in one). For instance, Prince William County in Virginia as a tax rate of zero % on RVs.
RE: When to Winterize
You need an air compressor, and a small fairly inexpensive adapter that you can buy that goes from water hose screw thread to tire air valve.
Unfortunaely this is the a two person operation. for about $6 and a visit to Home depot, I made myself an adapter from water hose screw thread to air hose quick connect, and then that becomes a one person operation.
You merely start with teh most distant faucets and empty these, and work your way back.
RE: When to Winterize
Shapeshifter, let me leave you with this thought...
"winterizing" is about exercising care to prevent frost damage to your unheated RV.
"winterizing" is NOT about putting your RV away for the winter...
I myself keep going out throughout the year, even when the outside temperatures are below freezing, and I have to unplug my fresh water hose at night so it doesn't freeze in place.
All it means is the you have to re-winterize when the RVing trip comes to an end. With the "compressed air" winterizing technique, there is no real need to de-winterize (unlike with the antifreeze technique) and winterizing takes only 15 minutes or so.
Nothing to keep me from RVing!!!
I think the few minutes it takes is welcome insurance against the near certainty of frost damage.
I thnk the thread speaks by itself that many who have delayed winterizing until their last outing of the year eventually get "unlucky".
I hope this helps clarify!!!
RE: When does everyone winterize?
If anyone wants to follow a more rigorous process to determine when they should winterize, based on their geographic location, please see my post under a different thread on the same subject here on this same forumwinterizing
RE: When to Winterize
OK, lets cut through the heated basement or not, and go through what I deem to be the safest approach (I need to use that since I store my RV in a storage facility where I do not have access to power).
The date for you will vary by region. Check your local weather historical data, find records for record minimum temperature by date, and winterize no later than the earliest freeze date on record. Do this until you get to the latest freeze date on record.
It is still not an absolute guarantee, but this is about as cautious as you can get.
go to teh official government data hereNational Weather Service
enter your city and state in my case Washington, DC
click on local data records
for the station closest to you choose "Daily normals,means and extremes"
one of the column headings says RMN /YEAR that means record minimum and year when it happened. This goes down by day of the month
So in my case, if I look at October, I can see that for every day of the month, there is a record low below 32F (the years when it happened vary)
If I look at September data, I can see that on September 24 teh minimum was 30F in 1974...it has never gone below 32 before that date in recorded history...
That is the date from which I winterize.
This is a bit wordy, but I described it in enough detail that you can use the same methodology for wherever you are located in the USA.
(Please note that it is still not 100% fool proof. Even though climate is generally warming up, we could still hit a record cold earlier than in the past. Also if you are in a low lying area, it could freeze earlier than your nearest weather station. Still I feel that my appraoch is very conservative...
Note - I have been using the air pressure / no antifreeze method for years with mostly success, but it is as unforegiving as the antifreeze method if you miss one step. In my case I have an exterior shower, and I forgot to drain that last year. The hose between the valves and the shower hose quick connect froze off...fortunately that was a $5 repair.
RE: generator etiquette
As I was reading this thread and all those references to generators running by 7AM to run an electric coffee maker, I was baffled.
MFinCA finally spoke the words: "I boiled water on the stove and made drip coffee by the cup with a filter cone".
I do that too, kind of...we have a 12 cup coffee pot with the matching filter cone. Doesn't everyone have propane in their RVs???
To me, making coffee by first boiling the water is one of my connections with earlier days when I was camping in a tent.
I have a Honda generator, and it's quiet. But at 7 in the morning, I would much rather listen to the sounds of nature before the campground gets busier.
I agree with what others have written below, 9AM is a good time to turn that generator on and recharge the batetries, even if quiet time ends at 7. Not everyone likes to be awaken at 7, particularly on weekends.
So to wrap up, two thoughts.
- Leave the electric coffee maker at home
- 9 is better than 7 to start that generator.
RE: Sprint EVDO internet capping at 5 Gig/Mo
I was in disbelief when I read this, but it appears to be true.
My August statement on page 5 says
$ 5 9 . 9 9 C o n n e c t i o n C a r d D a t a Plan
C a l l s M a d e O n C o n n e c t i o n C ards With
V o i c e C a p a b i l i t y W i l l I n c u r A Charge
O f $ . 2 0 P e r M in u t e
My July statement in teh exact same spot read
$ 5 9 . 9 9 C o n n e c t i o n C a r d D a t a Plan
U n l i m i t e d M B o f D a t a
C a l l s M a d e O n C o n n e c t i o n C ards With
V o i c e C a p a b i l i t y W i l l I n c u r A Charge
O f $ . 2 0 P e r M in u t e
So the metion of Unlilmited MB of data is no longer present as of my August bill
indeed, on the june bill on page 2, there was this entry
Plans T&Cs Change
Effective in 30 days, Sprint reserves the right
to limit throughput speeds or amount of data
transferred and to deny, terminate, modify, or
suspend service if usage exceeds 5 GB/month
in total or 300 MB/month while roaming off
network. Check your rights under the T&Cs on
sprint.com.
I also note that they make no helpful effort to tell you how to get to the terms of service. Thanks to a previous contributor to this thread for making it easier to find
edited for typos
RE: Removing tires for the first time
Southwind 85, the physics or your statements are correct.
However, once your wheels have been set to proper torque, I have never seen anyone suggest to loosen your lug nuts to get to have rotation while getting them back to proper torque.
I like your idea of putting a mark a lot once they are set at proper torque.
But failing that, if one of the lug nuts has become loose from settling between the brake drum and the rim, after rolling a few miles after initially remounting the wheels on the axles, then believe me, you will get rotation. I have experienced it myself, and many others have experienced it as well.
Besides, I was merely quoting from what I read in the manufacturer's instructions for my RV's axles, and I have read similar instructions from other manufacturer's.
RE: New RV Court Advice
atb,
about your turn radius question yesterday evening, I was reading recently in one of the RV magazines about a new set of "RV friendly" signs so that RV drivers to not have bad surprises in the parking lots of businesses who want to attract the RVer business, and they were saying that their certification standard includes 50ft turn radiuses.
Maybe someone out here is a civil engineer and could offer further guidance. I know that with my 40ft 5th wheel, 52ft bumper to bumper when hitched, I have taken turns tighter than that. But a 50ft radius would help avoid people complaining that you aren't "big rig" friendly.
RE: New RV Court Advice
Seems like everyone wants to talk about how many amps you should provide for the hookup...
I'd like to go back to your original question. Sounds fantastic.Currently planning to become a fulltimer in just a few years. All I can do and speak for myself, but I can assure you that the view is always a big factor for me whenever I choose a campground. Even the campgrounds that are in a nice setting are sometimes too tightly packed in to let you enjoy the view of the surroundings, so I love your plan the way you describe it!
I have a 40 ft long 5th wheel, so when I am unhitched, I occupy 60 ft in length (I hate having to park the truck besides the RV). So I think you have your dimensions right.
I think you are astute to use this forum to refine your plan!
RE: Removing tires for the first time
And for those of us too chicken to DIY to jack up the RV, remove the tires to inspect brakes and repack/grease the bearings, remember that you still have to do yourself the point raised by 4X4Bob: after driving for a while, use a torque wrench to verify that your lug nuts are at proper torque. When you see one or more of the nuts turn before you hear the torque wrench's click, you will be happy you did!!! (I know I was).
You should check this before every trip we are told. But typically, once you get no rotation on any of the nuts, you should be OK until next time you remove a tire. Still a good idea to check things from time to time, but I no longer do it during every trip.
RE: Are LP tanks considered hazmat?
On the road, the quantity of propane carried in an RV is insufficient for the vehicle to be considered hazmat. As pointed out below, the are exceptions for tunnels. Two exceptions I have personal experience with are
I64 tunnel near Norfolk VA. Before entering the tunnel, you MUST stop at an inspection station, and an attendant will ask you if you shut your propane tanks off
I 95 tunnels through Baltimore - Signs indicate you MUST use the 695 which is a ring road around Baltimore. It goes over the water rather than through a tunnel.
As we all know, propane is heavier than air, and therefore could potentially accumulate at the lowest point in the tunnel.
RE: APOLLO 1/2 TIME MICROWAVE
dixiesmama, that is bas news. You have evidence that you have power to the logic board, but its not responding to keyboard inputs...
No choice but to take it down now.
2 options. Buy a new one or check if this one can be repaired.
With the price of parts and labor these days, chances are its going to be marginally more expensive to buy a new one, but they you have a warranty on your unit.
Sorry...
RE: APOLLO 1/2 TIME MICROWAVE
OK here's a shot in the dark. I have this exact unit in my 5th wheel, but its been working great. As you know, you see the two dots after plugging in on shore power, and before you go through the motions of resetting the correct time of day with the clock function. Can you at least do that much? That would tend to demonstrate (I think) if the logic board is still working OK.
Was your unit plugged in when a storm with lightning hit power lines? If so, some parts of it could have gotten zapped, and the most likely to get zapped while the microwave is not working is the logic board rather than the actual microwave generator.
Try that and let us know
