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Carl -- If I understand your response the cost for your two stand-by generators was $13,500? The current "all-in" cost in the Houston area for a 20,000 watt stand-by generator is ~$13,000 whether from Generac, Kohler or Cummins dealers. And the wait time is at least 3-4 months due to back-log for a generator due to the lack of semi-conductors / circuit boards that is affecting many manufacturing businesses. The cost of the generator plus auto transfer switch is ~$6,000. I'm struggling to understand why the installation cost is $7,000 for two journeymen for 6-8 hours of work. Rather than spend that many $ on a stand-by generator that may not get used often, my next thought is to spend $ modifying my drive-way to handle the turning radius of my coach and have a gentler slope so the back of the coach won't drag on the street. I'll start a different discussion about how to modify a driveway to accommodate a 41 foot coach.

This is probably an "out in left field" question for the forum but I'll ask it anyway (and no I haven't been consuming adult beverages!). The Houston area has experienced more frequent power outages the last four months first with the Great Freeze in February followed by severe thunderstorms the last couple of weeks. The power outages have lasted 2-3 days (Great Freeze) and lasted 24 - 36 hours with recent severe thunderstorms. Hurricane season begins in a week which could bring more power outages. I've priced Cummins and Generac permanently installed stand-by generators and was shocked to learn the "turn key" price is ~$12,000. A large portable generator (such as a Winco 12,000 watt generator) costs ~$4,500 plus the cost to install a manual transfer switch. Like many of you, I already own a nice generator in the form of a Onan QD 8000 watt tucked away in the front of my coach. In my simple Chemical Engineer mind (I am very far from being an electrical engineer / electrician) a "switch" with receptacle et conceivably be installed in my "electrical bay" to use the QD8000 to partially power my home during a power outage (i.e. the switch would disconnect the coach from the generator and direct generator output to the home). Is this thought feasible? Has anyone used their coach's generator to power their home? For reference this article shows how a portable generator (for me the Onan generator in the motorhome) to a house electrical panel --> How To Connect Portable Generator To Electrical Panel 2021 (gelawncare.com) Yes I know I could run several extension cords from the coach to provide power to the refrigerator, freezer, television and oscillating fans. Connecting the coach's generator directly to the house electrical panel would mean have power to operate the 3.5 ton A/C unit or furnace. The forum's thoughts please. It's OK to say if my question is "crazy".

Ray -- Another great tasting steak seasoning I've used is "Bull Sh*t" (actual product name so moderators don't kill me!) made in Lexington, TX and sold at my local ACE Hardware store --> Special BBQ Seasonings BIG C RANCH (specialshit.com) The "Special Sh*t" company makes a no salt seasoning named "No Sh*t" that per list of ingredients contains no sodium nor potassium --> No Sh*t Salt Free Seasoning From Big **** Ranch: Amazon.com: Grocery & Gourmet Food Given that "Bull Sh*t" is a great seasoning (unfortunately contains salt), my guess is "No Sh*t" (with zero sodium or potassium) would enhance the flavor of your steaks, hamburgers, etc. Also, grilling steaks et al on a charcoal grill (rather than a gas grill) I think adds more great flavor. I use Kingsford Charcoal with Mesquite for steaks / burgers, Kingsford Charcoal with Pecan for chicken and Kingsford Charcoal with Applewood for pork chops --> Natural Charcoal & Wood Chips for Grilling | Kingsford | Kingsford® Grilling with charcoal takes more time than grilling with gas and has more clean-up (ashes) but its worth the extra time and effort. Regarding the "no salt" diet for my father, he struggled mightily eating foods with zero salt. So to gain some flavor while minimizing sodium, his cardiologist gave him a cautionary OK to use very small amounts of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) which contains about 70% less sodium than does Sodium Chloride (table salt). Would your physicians allow an infrequent, single shake of MSG on your foods to make then a tad more tasty?

Ray -- Apologies for the late reply. Another good steak seasoning is TexJoy's Steak Seasoning. They make a salt-free version which would be good for you to try if it's available in your part of the country --> Texas Food - Texas Made Foods & Texas Gifts If you can't find this seasoning in your local grocery store, it can be ordered on-line. If you get a little bit of leniency from your cardiologist and can enjoy a "low salt" diet, the McCormick Reduced Sodium Montreal Steak Seasoning is great. Before my father passed away a couple of years ago, he had stage 4 congestive heart failure and has to strictly monitor his sodium intake and retainage of fluid. For a grilled steak once every 6-8 weeks, his cardiologist allowed a "light sprinkling" of this seasoning --> McCormick® Grill Mates® 25% Less Sodium Montreal Steak Seasoning | Grill Mates My father was on a zero sodium diet the last year of his life and that's when we discovered the TexJoy's No Salt Steak Seasoning.

This past weekend (4/9 -12) the wife and I had a fabulous time on the "Wine and Wildflowers Journey" in the Texas Hill Country tasting many great wines while enjoying great weather. For a Christmas gift last December, my youngest son gave me a medium size Old Smokey grill with long legs to replace my worn-out "Aussie Walk About" grill. It's been a long time since I've had an Old Smokey and forgot how easy it is to grill a steak to perfection, smoke salmon, etc. on and Old Smokey (picture below from our spot on motorhome row overlooking Goat Creek at Buckhorn Lake RV Resort this past weekend). And yes in the background of the photo is my 30 year old Coleman propane stove that I use to fry bacon or sausage when it's just my wife and I on a trip. The wife does not allow the odor and grease splattering from bacon and sausage in "HER" motorhome! For LSU football weekends I pack my big, heavy two burner Camp Chef camp stove with large griddle to cook breakfast for a large group --> Amazon.com: Camp Chef Explorer Double Burner Stove: Garden & Outdoor --> Amazon.com : Camp Chef Professional Fry Griddle, Single Burner 14" Cooking Accessory, Cooking Dimensions: 14 in. x 16 in : Garden & Outdoor The griddle works also works great for "over easy" eggs, hash browns, etc. My Old Smokey is big enough to grill many burgers for a hungry tailgating crowd. Also, if you want a great seasoning for steaks (or hamburgers), Uncle Chis' Gourmet Steak Seasoning is fantastic --> Uncle Chris' Gourmet Steak Seasoning | Fiesta Spices

18 months ago I purchased a full set of Hankook AH37 tires (275/70R22.5) for my coach to replace four year old OEM Michelin ZXE tires that had pre-mature sidewall cracking (which I have since learned is a problem with Michelin tires). I purchased the Hankook's using the FMCA price discount program that was in place with Hankook at that time. The "all in" cost for the six tires was $2,450 which was 60% lower that prices available from FMCA's discount program with Michelin and Continental. While still being blessed with a full time career, the wife and I only drive our coach ~5,000 miles per year thus I couldn't justify the much higher cost for Michelins/Continentals when my tires will age-out long before they wear-out. I have not noticed any difference in ride nor handling between the Hankooks and the OEM MIchelins and highly recommend Hankooks as great quality tire and a more affordable price. I am surprised and disappointed that the FMCA - Hankook tire discount program came to an end.

Carl - Yes I contacted the RV parks/resorts in the Marble Falls to Fredericksburg area that passed the wife's "Google Earth" views and all are 100% full for the weekend of April 9 or their "big rig" spots are full: Sunset Point RV Resort in Marble Falls 42 on 32 RV Park - new park south of Blanco Big Chief RV Park on Lake Buchanan Peach Country RV Park in Stonewall Heritage Oaks RV Park east of Fredericksburg (nearly 100% full with full timers) Fredericksburg KOA Texas Wine Country Jellystone Park east of Fredericksburg Fredericksburg RV Park in the city of Fredericksburg The Vineyards at Fredericksburg RV Park After going 0 for 9 on these preferred location RV parks, I next looked near Kerrville and was lucky to get a nice creek view spot at Buckhorn Lake RV Resort - they only had three spots available!. The Guadalupe River Jellystone Park between Kerrville and ingram was next on the list if Buckhorn Lake was full. Goggle Earth shows a small RV park named "Lighthouse RV Park" next to the Lighthouse Country Club in Kingsland, TX that from satellite views looks rather nice. However their website doesn't have on-line registration and no one would answer their phone when I called. Not wanting to appear too "uppity", but the Lake Bird Johnson Municipal Park Campground didn't pass the wife test when we physically drove through that park a few years ago. Bottom line, I was stunned that this number of RV parks were full / didn't have big rig spaces with nearly five weeks of lead time as I haven't had that experience anytime during the last nine years.

Regarding the "where and when" portion of the this thread, the wife and I plan to enjoy the "Wine and Wildflowers Passport Event" in the Texas Hill Country the weekend of April 9-12 this year. Our desire was to stay a Sunset Point RV Resort near Marble Falls or the Wine County Jellystone or The Vineyards RV Resort both near Fredericksburg. When trying to get reservations last week (a full month ahead of our planned outing) I was stunned to learn the "nice" RV parks/resorts from Marble Falls to Fredericksburg are "full" that weekend! We were able to get a nice spot at Buckhorn Lake RV Resort in Kerrville which is not the best location for touring the wineries but the resort is very nice. Getting an RV resort reservation on weekends in late March / early April in past years was relatively easy as those weekends are past school spring breaks and ahead of the summer RV season. Are other forum members finding nice RV resorts/parks that can handle big rigs full or with very limited space? If "yes" why? I guess I need to make reservations for summer weekend outings now....

I know this thread is old, but I'll confess I was demoted to Motorhome 101 class regarding water heater anodes. My previous travel trailer and motorhome had Dometic water heaters that do not have anodes because the tanks are aluminum. While prepping my current motorhome two weeks ago ahead of the "Great Houston Freeze" I pulled the drain plug on the water heater. I honestly was stunnded to see a "rod" attached the plug and wondered "WTF is that?". I pulled the owners manual out of the "big bag" of manuals and quickly learned my Ventana LE has an Atwood/Suburban brand water heater which has a steel tank and an anode (just like a home water heater). I was then off on a hunt for a new anode (found one at Holiday World in Katy). I hate to show my ignorance but the photo below shows how bad my anode was (i.e. nothing remaining!). I also ordered from Amazon a water heater flush wand to clean out the water heater this weekend before installing the new anode. This website provides good guidance for water heater maintenance --> Suburban Water Heater Maintenance Videos My remedial education for the water heater portion of Motorhome 101 class is completed. Maybe I can return to Motorhome 201 class (?)

My youngest son is a Sheriff Deputy and thus is in the "1B group" of first responders to receive the Pfizer vaccine. His first dose caused some arm soreness for a couple of days he said like a flu shot does. He received his second Pfizer dose this past Monday morning (2/1) and by Monday night he had a terrible headache, muscle aches, fatigue and overall "icky-ness". The symptoms lasted until mid-day yesterday. He felt so bad that he didn't go to work Tuesday or yesterday. He called his primary care physician late Tuesday who told him that the symptoms he was experiencing were not uncommon as a person's immune system "learns" from the vaccine. When I received my first Shingles vaccine dose from a CVS Minute Clinic in early January, I had a sore arm for three days. The nurse practitioner advised that when it's time for my second dose in May to receive that dose on a Friday as I could experience "flu like symptoms" for a couple of days after receiving that second dose. For those who have received the Shingrix Shingles vaccine, did you feel poorly following the second dose? I'm tentatively scheduled to receive the Covid vaccine in March (I'm among the large Group 2 folks) from my employer who has successfully achieved "vaccine distributor" approval for the company's medical offices hence my first Shingrix dose in January, Covid doses in March and April followed by second Shingrix dose in May or June plan.

I concur with Wayne -- there is no place to go, nothing to do for months with no light at the end of the tunnel (yet). My coach has done nothing but collect dust since early November except for its monthly 30 minute ride to keep the parts moving. I'm tired of going to work everyday and then not doing much except chores at home on weekends. So "just to use the coach" the wife and I are making a long drive (by Covid definitions) from Katy to Rayford Crossing RV Resort near Spring, TX (a whoppping 60 minute drive from my home) to spend Valentine's Day weekend bumming around Old Town Spring and its many unique shops and enjoying a nice Valentine's Day dinner at Kirby's or Perry's steak houses in The Woodlands area (far north side of Houston). We're waiting anxiously to hear if the Texas Hill County Wineries will conduct their "Wine and Wildflowers Journey" in April which Covid killed last spring. Supposedly the wineries will make a decision in mid-February about conducting the event or not. Our hope is the month long event will be a "go" as it's been much too long since we've stayed at the Sunset Point RV REsort on Lake LBJ, drinking a nice glass of Tempranillo while watching the sun set in the horizon across the lake (gorgeous view!!) --> Sunset Point on Lake LBJ - Waterfront RV Spaces - Texas Hill Country - Lodging, Fishing, Boating, Swimming, Camping (sunsetpointlbj.com) And it's been much to long since I've played with the Jeep at Hidden Falls Adventure Park east of Marble Falls, TX --> Hidden Falls Adventure Park | The Largest 4x4 Off-Road Trail Park in Texas!

LSU football weekends will hopefully resume this fall. I wonder if I should construct one of these for tailgating??

Twelve years ago I purchased "new" the original Winegard Carryout and stand to use for LSU football tailgating during my "pop up tents', travel trailer and first ever motorhome phases of tailgating. When I purchased my current coach 20 months ago it came equipped with a Winegard Travl'r Dish Network "dish" on the roof.Does the forum have any suggestions on how to sell or donate (or even give away) my original Winegard Carryout? I'd prefer that someone use and enjoy the Carryout and stand rather than "tossing them into a bin" at my county's recycling center. TheCarryout is in very good condition and works well. It is currently configured for DirecTV but with the clicks of a few bottoms on the control board it can easily be configured for the Dish Network. Thanks for your thoughts!

ibgboh -- Welcome to the forum! There are many great forum members willing to provide help at any time. I've seen Alpha brand motorhomes at various RV parks but most appeared a bit "elderly" in age. A quick Google search revealed that Alpha Leisure company was a "scion" (off shoot) of Fleetwood Enterprises which is now Fleetwood RV which is owned by the REV Group. The Alpha Leisure Company went bankrupt in 2008 during that economic crash meaning Alfa coaches are now 13+ years old. As others have mentioned, many newer coaches have overhead cabinets included in slide-outs so adding a cabinet to your coach is conceptually OK. The challenge you'll have is learning if the wall framing for your slide-out has the structural strength to support new cabinets and where the frame members are located to attached new cabinets. There is an Alfa See Ya's Chapter within FMCA whose members may have knowledge of how the wall of your slide-out is constructed, where wall framing is located, etc. The Alfa See Ya's Chapter has a nice looking website including sales brochures for various model years --> AlfaSeeYas - index page It would be worth contacting the Alfa See Yas Chapter representative to learn if any members may have the info you need --> Chapter Home Page (fmca.com) When you have a moment, it would be good if you could create a "signature" block such as mine or others above to share more info about your coach, where you are located in this great USA, etc. That info is very useful for forum members to provide the help you'll need in the future. Yes, all coach owners need help from time to time so never hessitate to seek help. Personally I've been in Motorhome 101 class for six years and wonder if I'll ever graduate to Motorhome 201 class.... Again welcome to the forum!

For those that enjoy great wine and live / snowbird somewhere near Texas, this morning I received a notification that the Texas Hill Country Wineries will host their annual "Wine Lovers Celebration" in February this year (Covid cancelled the event last year). This presumes that Covid doesn't mess up the event again! A "wine trail" event for a very reasonable price allows wine tastings at up to four wineries per day during the month of February in conjunction with Valentine's Day. Wine tastings are often conducted in out door pavillions/patio/picnic areas at each winery so "Covid Safety" should not be a concern. The Wine Lovers Celebration would be great experience to help usher in a hopefully much better 2021 --> Wine Lovers Celebration - Texas Hill Country Wineries (texaswinetrail.com) There are several nice RV parks/resorts in the Hill Country including Buckhorn Lake RV Resort and Old River RV Resort near Kerrville, Sunset Point RV Park near Marble Falls, The Vineyards near Fredericksburg and Peachtree Country RV Park near Stonewall to name a few that are all convenient to the Hill Country Wineries.

Thanks Jay. It's nice to see new RV parks/resorts being developed given the significant "Covid Growth" in RV ownership the last 12 months. Looking at the Red Bud RV Resort website, my interpretation of the the "3D design renderings" tells me this new RV park is not Big Rig friendly with what looks to be very narrow drivways and no room to manuver a 40-45 foot motorhome onto a 45 foot long pad. On the few occaisions that the wife and I have visited the Austin area, the La Hacienda RV Resort on Lake Travis is the only one that meets her "RV Park/Resort Connoisseur" requirements.

I'm with Roger's (Tireman's) guidance which is the same that my father who owned three Sinclair Service Stations drilled into me -- check tire pressures each morning when the tires are cold especially when big changes in weather occur. As an example, a few weeks ago the Houston area had is first major cold front of the fall when morning temperatures dropped from a typical 75 F to 35 F. I didn't take the time to check the tire pressures on my Jeep Wrangler and sure enough during my drive to work that morning the TPMS system alarmed with low tire pressures that were down to 28 psi versus the normal 35 psi. Needless to say, I checked tire pressures the next morning and had to add air. For my coach, I keep the tire pressures at 125 psi for front and rear tires. This inflation is quite conservative for the loaded weight of my coach with Jeep in tow. I don't try to fine tune the tire pressures to match my loaded weight / tweak ride comfort. Just simpler fo rme to keep the tire pressure at 125 psi (max pressure is 135 psi for my Hankook tires).

Within Texas I've driven my motohome on HOV lanes / Tollways in Houston and San Antonio with no problems. Those HOVs/Tollways do not have a different speed limit that the "free" main lains of a freeway. I have a "TxTag" for my motorhome and personal vehicles that gets scanned as I drive on tollways. The TxTag also works on tollways in Oklahoma, Texas, Florida, Georgia and North & South Carolina. HOV lanes in Texas are generally for two or more people in a vehicle.

For my previous motorhome I had a loan from Bank of the West for 4.1% interest rate. For my current motorhome I have a loan from Bank OZK for 3.8% interest rate. Both banks provide good service!

I'll echo Five's comment about FMCA program for Hankook tires pricing and Southern Tire Mart (Katy, TX location) for their service. Continental and Michelin tires with the FMCA discount were considerably higher price than the FMCA discounted Hankook tires which are great for a motorhome owner like me who travels 3,000-5,000 miles per year.

Metfan -- Welcome to the forum! There are many great forum members willing to provide help any time? An old forum posting from October 2014 asks the same question you have --> The original poster of that question purchased a Demco KarKaddy for their 2014 Town & Country. Per their website, Demco now has a robust looking KarKaddy X for larger vehicles --> https://www.demco-products.com/rv-towing/tow-dollies/karkaddyss-1 I did a quick Google search for your Town & Country owners manual which was found at this website --> http://cdn.dealereprocess.com/cdn/servicemanuals/chrysler/2014-townandcountry.pdf Page 559 of the manual says towing a front wheel drive Town and Country using a dolly is "OK". Page 560 of the manual provides direction on how to use a dolly to two the Town & Country. Presumably the paper version of the owner's manual in your T&C has the same guidance. Hope this info is useful !

Storage -- Welcome to the forum! There are many great forum members willing to provide help at anytime. I don't quite understand your question so could you add some additional clarity? The G&J Moving Company link you provided is for the state of Virginia, not Texas where I reside. With regards to storing my motorhome, I continue to use the Grand Parkway Boat & RV Storage facility in Richmond, TX near my home for the on-going cost of $195/month for a 50 feet long covered storage space. On some rare occasions I do wish the facility had more amenities than 120 volt, 20 amp power at each storage spot but when I spend time doing some minor maintenance I bring some drinks in a small cooler and a couple of snacks. If mother nature calls, I make a quick 1/2 mile drive to an Chevron convenience store to answer the call. I still can not justify spending $295/month for enclosed storage in Rosenberg, TX that is several additional miles away from my home. Also, to get better responses and help from forum members, please create a "signature block" like mine or Carl's that provides info about your RV (motorhome, travel trailer or fifth wheel), tow vehicle or towed vehicle, where you are located, etc.

Herman -- My and Cindy's prayers are with you for a successful surgery and for a quick, full recovery!

jpeto -- Welcome to the forum! There are many good forum members willing to provide help anytime! What is the current HP rating for your 6.7L ISB? Reason for asking, is I have a 6.7L ISB (2017 version) coupled to an Allison 3000 transmission in my Ventana LE that is rated at 360 HP which per Cummins is the the high end of the ISB engine --> https://www.cummins.com/engines/b67-2017 The Cummins website shows that 400 HP can be obtained from the ISB engine but different, higher rating parts and pieces are needed --> https://www.cummins.com/engines/cummins-67l-turbo-diesel-2019 Thus far I've been pleased with the performance of my engine while towing a Jeep Wrangler in the Texas Hill Country which has some reasonably steep hills in the lakes area of the Hill Country. Those hills however are not the long climbs in your part of the country.

While my question is Texas specific I do hope other forum members will find it interesting. With no LSU football weekends this fall, the wife and I are looking for other opportunities for long weekend adventures. One "venue" we haven't visited in many, many years is the annual Texas Renaissance Festival which is open this fall despite Covid-19 and everything else happening in this very weird year. The festival starts this coming weekend (10/3/20) and continues through the end of November weekend --> https://www.texrenfest.com/ The festival will have the usual Covid-19 prevention protocols in place. My question is in two parts: 1) For those that have visited the Renaissance Festival during the last couple of years, is a weekend at the Festival a fun, enjoyable time? 2) A new RV resort in Magnolia, TX by the name of Leisure Lane RV Resort is offering "daily reservations" for the Renaissance Festival (typically they only offer week and month reservations). This resort is ten miles form the Renaissance Festival site. The resort looks quite nice from their website and Goggle Earth. Have any forum members stayed at the Leisure Lane RV Resort in Magnolia, TX ? If "yes", what is your opinion of the resort and its services? Thanks for you thoughts and comments?