More (Better) Storage … Always a Good Thing

Monday, 28 December 2015
Gulf Waters RV Resort — Port Aransas, Texas
Temps: Hi 58F (14C) / Lo 50F (10C)

I try very hard not to add more stuff to what we’re already toting around in the coach.  Why, then, would I want more storage?  Well, as many of you know, the center part of the closet where the sliding doors overlap is very difficult to get into.  Simply put — I was tired of having to pull everything out to get in there when I needed something and wanted some accessible storage.

DIY Projects

Saturday, 23 May 2015
Gulf Waters RV Resort — Port Aransas, Texas
Temps: Hi 83F (28C) / Lo 75F (24C)

The weather gods gave us a break of sorts this week, with just one major storm that dumped 4 inches (101 mm) in about two hours on Wednesday.  No tornado warnings; just thunder, lightning, and heavy rain.

All’s well here at GWRVR; no flooding as a result of that storm, but where the rivers and creeks are in flood stage in Corpus Christi, people weren’t as lucky.  At the moment, we are waiting for some more thunder-storms — Accuweather’s MinuteCast says it will start raining in 43 minutes … LOL!

Enough already with all this wet stuff — but saying so doesn’t make it so.  Sure hope, it will be drier when we get to Colorado in about two weeks’ time.

With nothing exciting happening, I thought I’d write about a couple of Mui’s latest projects.  The first — a home improvement project here at site 408 …

It doesn’t matter if you have sticks & bricks, or a motorhome pad — the work is never done.
In this instance, sealing the pavers to protect them from the elements.
Seems to be helping with the ant population, too.

The next project — the headboard.  We never cared much for the shiny fabric covering it, so when a stain we just couldn’t get rid of handed us an opportunity to re-upholster the headboard, Mui was on it like lightning!

The headboard — the way it looked until just a few weeks ago.
Note the pillow and the valance medallions as well.

What looked like a one piece headboard turned out to be made of three pieces, allowing us to replace the bulk of the fabric while retaining the trim piece to accent the new fabric and keep the cohesiveness with the rest of the décor.  All it took was the removal of a couple of screws hidden under the decorative trim to get the headboard off the wall — oh and there was some glue to contend with, but Mui managed to pry the headboard from the glue without damaging the wallpaper.

With the headboard in pieces, the next step is to get the fabric off the main piece by
removing the staples — pliers and a flathead screwdriver work well for that.

Instead of batting, Mui decided to use thin upholstery foam to add softness to the headboard.

Next came the upholstery fabric.  But Mui didn’t want me to see the headboard until it was done, so I was banned from the patio.  Suffice to say, this part of the project involved stretching, stapling, and making sure the pattern didn’t go askew.

And here’s the finished product.

As Mui was working on the headboard, I had the bright idea of incorporating more of the new fabric into the décor of the bedroom.  Why not change out the medallions on the window valances on either side of the bed while we were at it?  Sure, more work for Mui — but he thrives on this stuff ;-)

Four screws is all that attaches the valance to the wall around the window. …

… and four screws attach the medallion to the valance box; two are easy to get to, but two
are more or less hidden by the MCD roller shades and present a bit more of a challenge.

From this (gold dots) …	… to this (no gold dots)

And here’s the finished, finished project …

The designer’s rule of three successfully implemented … we have the same
fabric on the headboard, the medallions on the valance, and on the throw pillow.

(We don’t have a sewing machine; and even if we did, I’m not sewing-inclined … so we took our old throw pillow to a seamstress and had her alter it for us.)

Well, AccuWeather has changed it’s mind — no rain for 120 minutes.  We have a reprieve ;-)  I think I’ll go for a walk while I can.

From Sofa-Bed to Sofa-Storage

Monday, 1 September 2014
Gulf Waters RV Resort  — Port Aransas, Texas
Temps: Hi 89F (32C) / LO 81F (27C)

A day that celebrates the American labor movement is as good a time as any to write about one of Mui’s labors Phaeton mods.

But first, a quick update on what we’ve been up to since my last post.  Busy with a variety of projects — as usual; the days have been flying by.  The good news is that the frame of our New Zealand trip has been established.  All but one of the many accommodations we need for the six-week trip are booked; the procurement specialist [read Mui] will take care of the last one tomorrow — fingers crossed … it turns out the Cricket World Cup Semi Final is being held in the city on our last day in Auckland and that means prices have skyrocketed!

On the weather front — hot and steamy continues to rule our days.  With one change.  We got some much needed rain this week.  And it looks like more is on the way for next week.  Yay!

Now for the project mentioned in the title of this post.

When we bought the Phaeton in May 2010, it came with two sofa-beds.  By September 2011 — in preparation for fulltiming — one sofa was out to make room for a full-size desk (post here).  Don’t know what I would have done without that desk these past few years!

From this …	… to this.

Fast forward three years — give or take a few days — and the set up is still the same.  The desk on one side; the sofa on the other.  But the sleeper mechanism in the sofa is no more.  Mui removed it and built a storage unit in its place!  What will we use this storage for?  Oh, a lot of things that are now stuffed here and there around the coach — including gear we use on our polar travels ;-)

First step; unscrew the bolts …	… to get the sleeper mechanism out.

Between the two of us, it was easy to get the whole kit-and-caboodle out of the Phaeton.
And a GWRVR work-camper was happy to take it off our hands to use for his guests!

This is the space Mui has to work with.  The gap between the end of the slide
and the inner edge of the sofa necessitates the building of a box with a base.

The back of the box will go up against the side of the fan register (right edge),
leaving a gap between the window / wall and the back of the sofa.  This design provides
space to store things like exercise mats on the far left without hindering air circulation.

Having the bottom, side (2), back, and top (2) pieces of wood cut-to-size at Home Depot, Mui used
his jig saw for the additional cuts needed to customize the pieces to the space under the sofa.

With a hole-saw, Mui cut an opening so that the slide roller adjustment bolt remains
accessible through the bottom of the box.  How did we make sure he cut the hole in
the right place?  We painted the top of the bolt with nail polish (top right inset),
gently dropped the bottom of the storage box over it, gently pressed down to
make a mark — et voilà; perfect placement!  Lipstick would have worked, too.
In any event, I made sure to wipe off the bolt before the nail polish dried.

Hmmmm!  Could fit a body in there, couldn’t I?

A few strategically placed L-brackets and screws, and all but the top of the
storage box is done.  Mui makes himself less-than-comfortable inside to …

… screw in place A brace along the top back edge to lend support to the lid.

A center-beam that spans the back (stationary) and front (hinged) pieces
of the lid, provides support against sagging in the middle.

And we have hidden storage!  Mui considered putting a couple of finger-pulls to aid
in raising the lid, but there’s enough of a lip on the lid that it wasn’t necessary.

With the cushions back in place, no one’s the wiser that the sofa-bed is now sofa-storage.

Mui was going to add batting or foam to the lid for cushioning, but I like a firm sofa; it’s better for my back.  We’ll revisit that option at a later date if I change my mind.

Personally, I think this was a genius idea.  You can never have too much ‘useable’ storage in a motorhome.  And it’s not like we’re adding more stuff to the Phaeton — we’re just re-purposing existing space to better organize what’s already in the coach.

So, you ask what will happen if we get overnight visitors?  The same thing that would have happened had the sofa-bed been intact — we’ll put them up at a campground cabin (if available) or a nearby hotel!

Two More Days … Was it too Much to Ask?

Saturday, 10 August 2014
Gulf Waters RV Resort  — Port Aransas, Texas
Temps: Hi 89F (32C) / LO 82F (28C)

Two days — actually, a day and a half — and Mui would have been home to deal with this afternoon’s electrical emer-
gency.  But no, the transfer switch had to short out today, leaving me powerless — in the ways that matter on a Texas summer day … NO A/C.

Before I tell the story of my emer-
gency … let me assure you that all is well now.  The A/C is on and has already cooled the coach down to a comfy temp.

The Automatic Transfer Switch is the open box with all the wires and other geegaws.      

It all started with a power flicker.  It didn’t last long, and the control panel immediately showed the system in inverting mode.  I had a general idea of what to do, but got on the phone with Mui to verify the steps with him first.  Luckily, he was at dinner with his mother, and I was able to reach him … a few more hours and he would have been asleep.

After confirming with the GWRVR office that the power wasn’t off throughout the resort, I set to work.  I shut off the 50A breaker and started the generator to get the A/Cs going.  The system showed inverting.  I waited.  The status did not change.  In the meantime, I asked the campground handyman to change out the 50A breaker.  When that was done, I turned off the generator and plugged into shorepower again.  No go; still not budging from inverting.  OK, let’s try the 30A breaker.  Still no go.  I shut the inverter off, and powered it up again … nope, no change.  I even checked the fuses; no problem there.  I suspected the problem might be with the automatic transfer switch, but since I wouldn’t be able to do anything to resolve it if that was indeed the problem, I didn’t open the box … some things are better left to the professionals.

My big issue was the A/Cs of course.  Can’t live without them in the sweltering August heat here in Texas … not even at the beach.  Both units were clicking on, but that was it … no air.  I called a fellow-Phaetonite to see if he had any thoughts.  He verified the steps I had taken, and came to the same conclusion I had — time to call an electrician … and on a Sunday to boot!

You can clearly see the short in the transfer box in this close-up.

I gathered my laptop and cellphone, and sought refuge at the GWRVR office where I could at least work in air-conditioned comfort.  The first call went to voice mail; I left a message.  The second company didn’t answer at all.  The third one — Southern Style RV Service — answered.  The tech was booked solid, but the lady on the phone asked me to explain the problem and what I had done, and promised to call the tech — who, it turns out, is her husband.  She called back a few minutes later … “Dale considers having no A/C an emergency, but he can’t be there until 4:00p,” she said.  No problem, I can hangout for another two hours at the office.  In the meantime, I started searching for a hotel — plan B in the event I couldn’t remain in the rig overnight.

Dale showed up shortly before 4:00p.  He listened to my description of the issue and the steps I had taken to rectify it; he looked at the inverter; and then — just as I expected — he checked out the transfer switch box.  Yup … there it was — the short that was the cause of my problems.  Since friends had experienced a similar problem earlier this year, I was hopeful that Dale would be able to do a by-pass to get power into the rig to run the A/Cs.  And that’s exactly what he did.  Half an hour later, I was signing my name on the dotted line for today’s work — payment to be made after Dale completes the installation of the new automatic transfer switch I’ll be ordering from Tiffin first thing tomorrow morning.  Expedited shipping should have the switch here in a couple of days, and all should be back to normal soon after that.

The cables Dale disconnected to by-pass the transfer switch are capped
and waiting to be reconnected when the new automatic transfer switch arrives.

Phew!  Could have been worse, I suppose.  But I still would have preferred not having to deal with this little emergency today.  I can’t say enough good things about Southern Style RV Service.  Turns out, Dale and his son — if Dale’s the surgeon, his son is the surgical nurse — were working on some rigs somewhere south of San Antonio when they got my call.  He could have just said he couldn’t make it down to work on the Phaeton.  But no; he drove all the way back to Port Aransas to help me out.  I appreciate it — especially since he’s going to have to return to San Antonio to finish the job up there.

Considering this is my first time alone in the rig, I remained surprisingly calm in the face of today’s little emergency.  Yes, I did utter a few choice words at first, but then I buckled down to getting the problem resolved.  I think I even managed to impress Dale with my succinct summary of the problem and what I’d done to diagnose the issue.  Too bad this blog post isn’t just as concise ;-)

Today’s experience was yet another reason to be glad I am in the familiar surroundings of GWRVR.  Peter, the handyman, had checked on me just yesterday to make sure all was well in Mui’s absence, and he stopped by several times today to make sure things were progressing smoothly towards resolving the electrical issue.

And, knowing that our Texan friends, the Zs, were just a phone call away helped my peace of mind immensely.  I knew they weren’t above hopping in the car and coming down to GWRVR had I asked them to do so.  It’s nice to have people around who sincerely care.

As for Mui — he proved himself to be his usual calm self when I called about the emergency and helped me walk through my diagnostic steps.  Many thanks; but, “get your butt home, Mr Mui” before I have to deal with another emergency — like a full black tank ;-)

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On another note … other than today’s emergency, life alone in the rig hasn’t been bad at all.  Until Friday, I was able to maintain my morning and evening walks, but the humidity has been a bit too much for me to venture out for exercise these past couple of days.  I do get to sit in the breezy shade when I take a break from researching and planning for our New Zealand trip — made good headway with a bare-bones plan for South Island … have plenty to discuss with Mui when he returns.

The resident dragonfly of Site 408 entertains me when I sit outside in the breezy shade.

As for Mui … his brother-in-law was laid to rest on Monday.  Since then, he’s done a couple of handyman type projects for his sister while she is busy accepting condolences from the large circle of friends and associates who have been popping in daily.  He begins his return trek to the US with a flight from Ankara around 1:00a CDT tomorrow morning.  If all goes well, he’ll be home around 10:00p — fingers crossed.

Dressing Up the Window … for Privacy and Shade

Lake Greenwood Motorcoach Resort — Cross Hill, SOUTH CAROLINA

My favorite spot to sit and read … or blog … or watch the occasional TV show … is the passenger side sofa.  Situated next to a window, that perch allows me to feel like I am outdoors when I can’t sit on the patio while partaking of those activities.  The only problem is that if we have a neighbor on that side, there’s not much privacy unless I close the MCD shade.  Something I don’t really like to do as I feel closed in then.

To solve the problem, we decided to install an awning over the window to match the awnings that were factory-installed on the other windows.  Why one wasn’t installed on this window, I don’t know.  Perhaps Tiffin felt it was unnecessary since there is a huge patio awning on this side of the coach.  Yes, there is.  But it doesn’t afford all that much privacy.  And we don’t — or can’t — always open it.

The before … as Mui preps the slide surface for the awning installation.

So, Mui called the Tiffin Parts Department in Red Bay, and gave them the specifics of our coach and the measurements for the window.  Two minutes later, the technician not only had the part number for a Carefree Awning pulled up, he also had confirmed there was nothing Mui needed to be wary of and could drill as necessary to mount the awning on the side of the slide.  A week later, the awning was delivered to us here at Lake Greenwood, and Mui was ready to get to work.

The after … installation complete.

Those who aren’t interested in the details of the install can stop reading now.

The rest of you … keep scrolling for a photo essay of the install, which turned out to be quite easy.  The instructions that came with the awning kit actually made sense, and Mui had the factory-installed awnings to refer to when he wanted visual confirmation of the instructions.  The entire project took him less than two hours to complete.  And, as the Shake ‘n Bake ad goes … “And I helped.” ;-)

Yes, Mui does read instructions before he gets started on a project.

The awning kit includes: the awning in the roller tube (with protective covering);
the awning rail; the strap catch; the arm assembly; and the screws.

Step 1: measure and mark the position for the awning rail.

Step 2: Tape the awning rail in place and confirm distance from the window.

Step 3: verify that the awning rail is level.
Too bad the laser level is back in storage ;-)

Step 4: drill the pilot holes for the awning rail screws.

Step 5: remove the awning rail and spray silicone lubricant inside the track
to make it easier to slide the awning into the track later.

Step 6: put silicone on the back of the rail to create a seal against the side of the slide.

Step 7: reposition the rail, making sure the pilot holes align with the rail;
tape it in place; and secure it to the slide with the provided screws.

 

Step 8: inspect your handiwork after the awning rail is installed.

Step 9: time to work on the arm assembly; do not remove the spring locking pin at either end yet.

Step 10: slide the arm into the end cap (drill a pilot hole if necessary), and secure
the arm with a screw through the back of the cap.  Repeat for the other arm.

Step 11: carefully edge out the polyrod to make it easier to slide it into the rail;
do this for the length of the awning.

Step 12: gently slide the awning polyrod into the track on the rail.
Sorry about the blurry photo :-(

Step 13: not quite done yet, but the awning is in place and centered in the rail.

Step 14: after making sure the bumper pads on the back of the end caps are properly
positioned, and the arms are perpendicular to the awning, secure each
arm to the slide (drill a pilot hole first if necessary).

Step 15: remove the spring locking pins and unfurl the awning a couple of times using
the pull strap … this is necessary to align the awning on the roll tube, and
determine and mark the position for the strap catch.

Step 16: put silicone on the back of the strap catch to create a seal against the slide.

Step 17: position the catch as previously determined (see instructions that come
with the kit) and mount it to the slide with the provided screws.

Step 18: with the awning open and the pull strap secured by the catch,
mount the lower brackets of each arm to the side of the coach.

Step 19: secure the canopy in place, making sure the screws go through
the canopy, the polyrod, and the  awning rail.

Step 20: remove the protective film covering the roller tube.

Step 21: Installation complete; awning closed.

Open awning from inside … plenty of shade and privacy, and I still get to have a view to enjoy.

There were a couple of interim steps that I did not include since I was helping and I had to put the camera down.  Follow the instructions that came with the kit and you’ll be the proud owner of an awning in no time.