(Well, at least it starts...)
Category: Burn
Bernie's visit has come and gone. We were able to sort through a lot of issues regarding times, dates, and milestones (stuff like 'when is the last day we'll jack with the RV and go rent one instead,' that kind of thing). The time spent, though short, was very productive from a planning standpoint.
The actual working portion of our time did not go so well. We couldn't start the RV to save ourselves. Or the generator. Or anything. Frankly, I'm surprised our flashlights worked and nothing exploded when we sneezed. We tried all sorts of methods, as the batteries are only two years old and really shouldn't be shot. Trouble is, after we got the RV to Granny's new place in Glenpool, we never performed any preventive maintenance on the thing. It just sat. For two years.
We messed with it all day Friday. Saturday we took a day off to take care of some other stuff, and Sunday we were back at it. While fiddling with it alone on Saturday, I decided the best course of action would be to take the batteries out and take them to O'Reilly's for testing. Even though our time was short, I didn't want to jack with it right then, and subsequently put it on "the list" to take care of in the coming week.
Then the news reports started talking about the upcoming ice storm. Man, that would be maximum crap to be out of power and heat. But then I thought, Wait! I have a freakin' RV! With, like, heat and power and stuff! And so the fire beneath my buttocks was lit. Bernie and I pulled both batteries early Sunday afternoon, took them to O'Reilly's, found that (no surprise) they were hosed, and bought some new ones. We took them back, installed them, and...
It worked.
Everything. The engine, the electronics, the refrigerator, the AC, all functioning. The genset would cycle up and down (called "hunting," as I discovered), so it's going to need some cleaning and adjustment. But the main thing is, I accomplished my goal: to start both the Brown Beast and the generator. I'd say "Mission Accomplished," but I don't want the generator to take seven years to fix and cost 100 billion dollars. You get the drift.
I'm going to crank it up tomorrow morning and try to find a nearby place that sells LP gas to fill the tank and check that out. If all goes well there, we're set for most anything Momma Nature can serve up over the next few days. If not, we've still got power. Unfiltered, variable, wacky power, but power nonetheless.
It's about to get interesting.
Category: Burn
Bernie's visit has come and gone. We were able to sort through a lot of issues regarding times, dates, and milestones (stuff like 'when is the last day we'll jack with the RV and go rent one instead,' that kind of thing). The time spent, though short, was very productive from a planning standpoint.
The actual working portion of our time did not go so well. We couldn't start the RV to save ourselves. Or the generator. Or anything. Frankly, I'm surprised our flashlights worked and nothing exploded when we sneezed. We tried all sorts of methods, as the batteries are only two years old and really shouldn't be shot. Trouble is, after we got the RV to Granny's new place in Glenpool, we never performed any preventive maintenance on the thing. It just sat. For two years.
We messed with it all day Friday. Saturday we took a day off to take care of some other stuff, and Sunday we were back at it. While fiddling with it alone on Saturday, I decided the best course of action would be to take the batteries out and take them to O'Reilly's for testing. Even though our time was short, I didn't want to jack with it right then, and subsequently put it on "the list" to take care of in the coming week.
Then the news reports started talking about the upcoming ice storm. Man, that would be maximum crap to be out of power and heat. But then I thought, Wait! I have a freakin' RV! With, like, heat and power and stuff! And so the fire beneath my buttocks was lit. Bernie and I pulled both batteries early Sunday afternoon, took them to O'Reilly's, found that (no surprise) they were hosed, and bought some new ones. We took them back, installed them, and...
It worked.
Everything. The engine, the electronics, the refrigerator, the AC, all functioning. The genset would cycle up and down (called "hunting," as I discovered), so it's going to need some cleaning and adjustment. But the main thing is, I accomplished my goal: to start both the Brown Beast and the generator. I'd say "Mission Accomplished," but I don't want the generator to take seven years to fix and cost 100 billion dollars. You get the drift.
I'm going to crank it up tomorrow morning and try to find a nearby place that sells LP gas to fill the tank and check that out. If all goes well there, we're set for most anything Momma Nature can serve up over the next few days. If not, we've still got power. Unfiltered, variable, wacky power, but power nonetheless.
It's about to get interesting.
