RE: Allegheny tunnel
The Maryland law as written:
I took the liberty of putting certain paragraphs in bold. Now I believe that if your are carrying less that 1001 pounds of Class 2, division 2.1 flammable gas that you are okay to go thru those tunnels. Now if I am wrong, your vehicle darn well better be placarded and be properly registered for hauling HAZMAT material and have the proper insurance policy. And I could be wrong on both accounts. But I believe the requirement is to stop and turn off your propane tank valves.
This has been covered countless times on this forum. No propane tanks are allowed in the Baltimore Harbor or Fort McHenry tunnels, period. While some report getting away with it, others report being turned around and/or ticketed. The signs approaching the tunnels make it very clear.
Whether the law as written is equally clear is irrelevant, unless you plan to argue your case on the spot with the state trooper or toll booth attendant.
RE: It's been 17 years; get your ear plugs!
Has it already been 17 years? Seems not that long ago? :h
You're right, it hasn't. The biggest batch in the DC area was last out in 2004. But there are "broods" (as they call them) with different 17-year cycles in different parts of the country, and also some with 13-year cycles, mostly in the south.
RE: windshild problem
Call Tiffin, and see what they say. Regardless of length of warranty, if this is a known problem, they might step up -- or at least have a recommendation for how to fix.
Mandalay had this problem on some early models, and found that the only real fix was a stiffer frame around the windshield, which they did for a number of owners.
RE: 40' Newmar 400HP vs 370HP Cummins
You might also want to check whether each engine has an engine brake, exhaust brake, etc. The ISL generally can have a 2-stage engine brake, but I'm not sure that all do. I would say it's critical to have one or the other, but I don't think the difference between the two would be a deal-breaker.
RE: AC on while driving question
I still don't get why you have to stop driving to start the generator. Don't you have a switch on the dash?
As the the A/C question, I think it depends on your EMS. I trust mine not to let the loads come on until the generator is up to full power. When I (or the AGS) start the genny, I can watch the lights on the panel come on progressively, showing the power available for loads. In hot weather driving, I have left the thermostat set for AC (usually just on the front zone) and flipped on the genny when it gets too hot, with no problem whatsoever. But my rig is not yours.
RE: Thor quality
We've driven a 2008 Mandalay (a Thor line no longer made, but more-or-less folded into the Tuscany line) for over 3 years, and are still pleased with our choice, having no serious issues. It's a solidly built tag-axle DP, on Freightliner chassis, with Cummins ISL 425 and lots of comfort and convenience -- bath and a half, 3 heat pumps, hydronic furnace/water heater, ceramic tile floors, etc. We actually chose it over a Newmar after driving both, because the Mandalay gave us more features for the $$.
For the most part, I don't buy the notion that a particular manufacturer (with the exception of the high-enders like Newell, Foretravel, or the Prevost-based builders) is "known" for quality or not. Most big RV manufacturers (and Thor is, by most measures, the biggest) make a wide range of products, from entry-level to some degree of luxury. You generally get what you're willing to pay for. That said, some manufacturers have a reputation (deserved or not) that lets them charge more for a similar product. Smart shoppers might steer away from those lines toward one that provides more bang for the buck.
Just my opinion, others will vary ...
RE: high test gas in motorhomes
Even the father of ethanol in gas, Al Gore, admitted that ethanol really wasn't all that great for the environment, and that he did it out of "sympathy" for the farmers. Which really means he did it for votes.
Al Gore was hardly the "father" of gasohol, which preceded his time in office by decades. The tax credit for ethanol in gasoline, which expired last year, started in 1978. Its greatest proponents were politicians (of both parties) from the corn belt, bankrolled by the farm and ethanol-manufacturing lobbies. Environmental and energy-independence "benefits" were nothing but a smoke screen.
RE: Lost towbar base plate again
A good point, though, about the safety cables being hooked directly to the frame as opposed to the baseplate. Ours hook to the baseplate also. Interesting....
Just sayin...
Happy travels
Note that there are two different sets of safety cables that should be involved. One pair is the ones you hook and unhook each time you tow, which (on my Blue Ox anyway) hook to your motor home and to the front of your baseplate, right under where the towbar attaches. The other pair (at least I think there are two of these; I can't look right now) secure the baseplate to the toad vehicle frame -- these are put on during baseplate installation, and left there.
RE: Lost towbar base plate again
No safety cables holding your baseplate to the Jeep? Mine (slightly different than yours, on an '08 Liberty) was installed with cables securely attaching the baseplate to the Jeep's frame, to guard against exactly what happened to you. I recall hearing in some past post that the Blue Ox instructions (at least in some cases) note the need for cables, but the cables aren't included. Just a thought.
RE: Where do you locate your outside temp sensor?
We set ours on top of the front passenger side tire, right next to the steps. (Yes, the tire's warm when we first park, but we don't care what the temperature is 'til the next morning anyway.)
Only issue is whether we remember to bring it in before we drive off. Haven't lost one yet ...
RE: Retirement accounts
I'm no tax expert, but money sitting in an IRA (unless it was nondeductible in the first place) is income that no tax has been paid on -- yet. I don't know of a circumstance where the government will let anyone take that money out without paying taxes on it. Unless, of course, it goes to someone whose total income for that year is low enough to be in a zero tax bracket.
If by "your kids won't be taxed on the money" you're talking about estate taxes, you're right ... but they'll still have to pay income tax.
If I'm wrong about that, please tell me where in the IRS documentation it says so.
RE: IRA Question
Let me try to be more clear about "pre-tax" and "post-tax" money put into IRAs. The IRS calls them "deductible" and "non-deductible" contributions. In publication 590, "Individual Retirement Arrangements," they use this example:
Tony is 29 years old and single. In 2012, he was covered by a retirement plan at work. His salary is $57,312. His modified AGI is $69,000. Tony makes a $5,000 IRA contribution for 2012. Because he was covered by a retirement plan and his modified AGI is above $68,000, he cannot deduct his $5,000 IRA contribution. He must designate this contribution as a nondeductible contribution by reporting it on Form 8606.
This is more or less what happened to me. Since I could make an IRA contribution, but couldn't deduct it, I now had a mix of taxed and non-taxed money in my IRA. So at withdrawal time, I face the following scenario (also from IRS Pub. 590):
Partly taxable. If you made nondeductible contributions or rolled over any after-tax amounts to any of your traditional IRAs, you have a cost basis (investment in the contract) equal to the amount of those contributions. These nondeductible contributions are not taxed when they are distributed to you. They are a return of your investment in your IRA.
Only the part of the distribution that represents nondeductible contributions and rolled over after-tax amounts (your cost basis) is tax free. If nondeductible contributions have been made or after-tax amounts have been rolled over to your IRA, distributions consist partly of nondeductible contributions (basis) and partly of deductible contributions, earnings, and gains (if there are any). Until all of your basis has been distributed, each distribution is partly nontaxable and partly taxable.
So yes, you can mix taxed and non-taxed money in an IRA, but you make your future reporting much more difficult by doing so.
RE: IRA Question
Yes, you can mix pre-tax and post-tax money in an IRA, but from my experience, DON'T.
Before I retired, for a few years I was in a situation where I was maxing out what I could contribute pre-tax (via my 401k), but for whatever reason followed someone's advice to make contributions of post-tax money to my existing IRA (which had come from a previous 401k rollover). I guess I must have assumed that I could just keep track of the post-tax portion, and take it out first.
Now that I'm past 59-1/2 and considering my future options for withdrawals from my IRA, I find out that every withdrawal for the rest of my life will be considered to consist of a mixture of pre-tax and post-tax funds, and it will be an accounting/tax nightmare. Hindsight is indeed 20-20, so ... don't do what I did!
RE: I-95 TRAFFIC
Just came up that way (I-4 and I-95) from Dizzy World last weekend. Had no problems either way, in fact, thought traffic was light and easy. Jacksonville was no big deal.
But then, I spent 20 years commuting via I-270 and the Washington beltway, so I'm kind of numb to traffic ...
RE: "super slide" on coaches 42' to 45'.
I should add that, with one full-wall slide (curb side) and two shorter slides on the street side, our bath-and-a-half plan is fully useable with all slides in. (Well, except for some drawers and one side of the fridge.) Comes in handy for quick stops on the road, or for Wallydocking, especially in really cold weather.
RE: "super slide" on coaches 42' to 45'.
Have a "full-wall" (I'd say around 30 feet long) slide on ours, have never had a problem with it. For some reason, the kitchen slide (maybe half as long) has been less well-behaved.
It's an adventurous piece of engineering to have on a rolling house, but worth it for the space it provides!
RE: Traveling through/around Norfolk, VA
use 113 in MD.
a couple more miles but almost NO lights in comparison.
Yeah, I should have said that -- we live off DE 24, and will get onto 113 at Millsboro, and take it south to where in joins 13.
Traveling through/around Norfolk, VA
Heading from southern Delaware to Disney World next week. Will be taking U.S. 13 south through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, then emerging from the Norfolk area on U.S. 58 over to I-95. My question is, what's the best way to get through the city -- I-264 through the middle of town, or I-64 around the south side? I'm guessing 64, but don't know about the condition of the road, etc.
Any other thoughts about this route are welcome, too ... Fort Wilderness, here we come!
RE: Spring trip to Cherry Hill Park, College Park, MD
The Metro does stop at Cherry Hills several times a day and takes you to the Metro station for connections.
In case anyone is still confused ... The "Metro" in DC area includes both Metrobus and Metrorail. Metrobus picks you up at Cherry Hill and takes you to the Metrorail station at College Park, which then takes you all over the area.
