tbutler

You are singing my song! Not that I needed a replacement freezer/refrigerator, we've done that with our main one (we don't have another) already. No, I'm echoing your caution about measurements you find posted on the internet. In particular when dealing with Amazon I've found their measurements (if listed at all) for various products to be suspect. I always go to the manufacturers web site to verify measurements. In your case, I guess even that wouldn't have helped. Anyway, it is a good point, you can't trust any of the measurements. If you find serious disagreement on-line and from the manufacturers web site then a call to the manufacturer might help. If not, find one in a physical store and measure it there. If it fits, I buy it there! The owner of the physical store has provided me necessary verification of dimensions by stocking the unit and they deserve to get the sale. In turn, I've received valuable information from the store owner and am willing to pay for that.

You will see a number of those items in my profile. In addition to what I list, I have a background in the sciences and taught geology, astronomy, meteorology and oceanography (Earth Sciences) for many years. I'm never happier than when I'm looking at a night sky, hiking a volcano, exploring some great erosion features like the Grand Canyon or Death Valley, or doing some nice snorkeling. And yes, I take pictures of everything I see. I also find yoga important for keeping flexible and my balance good so I can really enjoy those hikes.

I have seen flag poles that were mounted on a plate that was pinned down by a tire. Put the plate in front of the tire, park on it. Drop the pole into the open cylinder and you are in business. When ready to depart, remove the flagpole with instruments and stow them, then drive off the plate and stow it. Here is one example. It might be something that you could make or have made for you. Make sure there is sufficient clearance between the coach and the pole so the wind doesn't sway the pole and make it contact the coach. Here is another product. This one came from a page that had plans for a do-it-yourself but to download the plans they required downloading some additional software so I didn't look at that. There are also hitch mounted flag pole kits that will fit the hitch on your coach. On our coach the hitch is busy with the towing hardware but if you don't have a toad, this may be a possibility.

I can't make recommendation as we have only rarely stayed in the Phoenix area and never for an extended period of time. A good source for searching parks is RV Park Reviews. If you don't get recommendations, even if you do get recommendations, you may want to do what I suggest to anyone looking for a park for an extended stay. Make short term reservations (a week or two) at a park in the area you are considering. While staying there, visit other parks in the area to get a look at them. I hesitate to make recommendations for others because what suits me may not suit someone else. I think the best way to select a park for long term stay is to actually visit the park, take a tour, see the facilities and where it is located in the community to see if it meets your expectations. Some parks have quite extensive activities, others are more contemplative. We live in a "party" park. There are always activities going on in the park and people are quite social. Group dinners, street parties, competitive games and dances keep the group interacting and we like that atmosphere. Our park is located in a fairly remote area but is within a half hour travel of almost any "city" convenience including many franchise restaurants and also many unique "mom & pop" restaurants. There are major shopping centers and a thriving outlet mall in the area. We have a variety of nature parks, state parks and wildlife refuges in the area and the Gulf of Mexico beaches aren't far away. Like Phoenix, our area has many retired people and there is a shared culture of Winter Texans in the area. Unlike Phoenix, our community is small enough that retirees represent a significant impact on the economy and culture of the area. We feel right at home in our community.

We travel from place to place regularly and never have called anyone. Our satellite dish is automatic, it locates the satellite and locks on automatically. Once that is done we have all our TV channels. Many of the systems that are available today are automatic. Many years ago we carried a fixed dish with us and I used to go outside and set it up. I knew the general direction to look for the satellite and had an instrument that hooked to the dish to let me know when I had the dish aimed at the satellite. Then we would hook up the TV and Louise would let me know what the signal strength was as I fine tuned the aiming of the satellite. Those were the old days, you can still operate this way and we see some fixed dishes set up by RV's still today. If you don't move frequently, this method isn't cumbersome but if like we, you move frequently you will find an automatic dish to be much more convenient. Of automatic systems there are some you can take outside and place them on the ground and connect the cable to the coach input connection. They allow you to move the dish from one place to another on your campsite. This is useful as trees will block the satellite signal. With a dish fixed on the roof of the coach, you have to move the entire coach to work around trees. Location of utilities, size and orientation of the parking space will limit how far you can move and where you can place your dish. We've occasionally been in campgrounds where we simply couldn't get around the trees and had to live with local TV off the antenna. We don't get local TV off satellite but can get that off the antenna if we are close enough to a TV market. I have heard of people who want local TV off the satellite and you can call the company to get that signal. This would be something that you might do if you moved seasonally or very seldom. Local TV stations are broadcast via spot beam so you can only receive them in a small area near the local market. There are major networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, etc.) which are available nationwide and you can subscribe for those. You have to complete an application and submit it to the satellite TV company to certify that your installation is in an RV or Truck. You will be asked to select which market you wish to receive. That's about it. Get an automatic system that meets your needs and budget, sign up for the services you want with Dish TV or DirecTV and you are set.

After we retired, we went full time in the motor home. We had insurance coverage through our employers and had to return to that state for our routine medical treatments. Those were the days when insurance companies could refuse coverage if you had pre-existing conditions so we had to keep our coverage in effect of face losing all coverage if we had a serious health problem. In our case, we had family located there as well but it did present a challenge at times. You should be able to get emergency treatments elsewhere but may sacrifice some of your coverage benefits. We were registered out of South Dakota for ten years and we enjoyed being residents during that time. If South Dakota isn't working out for you as a home state, maybe you should move to a new state. Do a little investigating to determine which state might offer better health options and/or be more convenient to visit on a regular basis. We were fortunate to be in good health and could work with a spring and fall visit but if you require more visits than that, a new more convenient state might be your best choice. One of the problems with the Affordable Care Act is that it was a compromise from the original plan. States with small populations, South Dakota being one, are struggling to maintain coverage. A provision was made to assist those states but a lawsuit resulted in that provision being nullified. Florida has a much larger population and should have many more coverage options as well as being a location you cite as being more convenient. Florida has many of the same tax advantages as South Dakota so it might be an alternative. Out of the states that you mention, I believe that Florida may be your best option though I don't know any specifics regarding their health insurance options. You don't indicate your age or health condition. We are now on Medicare and rather than selecting a Medicare Advantage plan which can be state specific, we have opted for the regular Medicare with a supplement plan. Medicare is not state specific, we can get care wherever we are though we like most people always prefer a physician and hospitals that we are familiar with. So when you get to 65, things should get better! In fact there has been some discussion of lowering the age for Medicare eligibility to 55 which would help many older people. Only time will tell how the various plans will develop.

We've been running our residential refrigerator on 4 6V batteries since we installed it in 2010. I replaced the regular wet cells in 2014 with AGM, still 4 x 6V. We have auto gen start but it is a convenience, not a necessity. When we are without electric and living in, using the coach we simply run the generator in the morning for coffee, etc. A couple of hours in the evening and it will last overnight unless the weather is really cold and the furnace runs too much at night. That might involve running the generator sometime in early morning for several hours. Going to more than 4 6V batteries would be nice but I don't see it as a necessity in our case.

Our travels have taken a turn for the hot lately. We've been spending most of our time in southwestern Colorado, northeastern New Mexico and northern Arizona. The temperatures we've faced have been moderate to cool. Several weeks ago we decided to visit Louise sister in the Mohave Valley in western Arizona. The elevation is 483 feet alongside the Colorado River. Needless to say the temperature was quite a bit warmer than in the mountains and high elevations we were used to. Temperatures were in the high 90's during the day. We had a nice site at Moon River Resort with a little shade but not too much. We enjoyed three days of visiting. On Saturday we spent the day at Oatman visiting the donkeys that roam the town and doing some shopping before having a fine dinner at the Oatman Hotel. Our next stop was Lake Havasu City. This is where Louise's parents settled when they retired. The state park was almost empty and we had a nice site with a view of the lake. We visited the cemetery where her parents are buried and spent some time around town. In Lake Havasu City, elevation 459 feet, the temperatures at sunrise were 90 degrees and it warmed into the mid 100's. We took the Copper Canyon Sunset Cruise the night before leaving town. The best part was the breeze when the boat was cruising. We left town headed for Williams, Arizona. We had stayed at the Canyon Hotel and RV Park in Williams, elevation 6924 feet, just a week before. Returning, we were delighted to find more moderate temperatures again. We were back to comfortable daytime temperatures in the upper 70's and low 80's. We spent one day in Flagstaff at the Lowell Observatory. The Lowell Observatory was built by Percival Lowell, an astronomer famous for his drawings of the canals on Mars. This is also the observatory where Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto. They have a spectacular program of lectures and tours of the telescopes that are well worth a visit. The next morning we were on our way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. As busy as the South Rim is, the North Rim is uncrowded and very available. We stayed at the Jacobs Lake Forest Service Campground, elevation 7900 feet which has no hookups but has some nice sites the will accommodate large RV's. We ran the generator morning and evening to charge the batteries and only needed to run the furnace at night. Air conditioning was never needed. We were parked among trees and the daytime temperature was in the high 70's while the nights dipped into the high 40's. We drove to the North Rim one morning and came back after dark. There are many overlooks into the Grand Canyon and you can drive to each one. There were plenty of parking places at each viewpoint. There were never crowds at any place until we reached the visitors center and the lodge. After a day of exploring along the northeastern reaches of the canyon we spent the evening at the Lodge and the viewpoints in that area. It was a little early for dinner but Louise wanted to get dinner at the lodge so we asked and were given a table by one of the big windows overlooking the canyon. Wow, was that a fantastic setting for dinner. Louise had roast duck, I opted for the blackened chicken fettuccine Alfredo. Both dishes were gourmet quality and the service was excellent. Following our meal we made our way to the overlook below the lodge. We enjoyed the view and visited with several of the people who were there. Everyone was quite talkative, maybe the bar above had something to do with it. From there we made our way to the Bright Angel Viewpoint to watch the sun set. We drove back to the park and arrived by 8:00 p.m. On the way back we saw a few cattle near the road (open range) and several deer but none challenged us for a spot on the road. The next day we moved on to Hurricane, UT. We stayed at Sand Hollow State Park, elevation 3040 feet. We're back to warm again. With highs in the upper 80's and nary a tree in sight, the air conditioners are running all day. We are headed for Zion National Park tomorrow morning for a little hiking and exploring, then we'll leave for Las Vegas, elevation 1672 feet, on Friday. Once more into the desert heat. Maybe they will have a cool spell while we are there though the forecast calls for highs near 100.

When I replaced our old TV's, I rebuilt the cabinet to fit the New TV. Actually as you can see in this article, I cut down the cabinet height and left the front open. This accomplished two things, I maximized the size TV that would fit in the cabinet and cut the cabinet back several inches and took five inches off the height of the cabinet, raising the bottom of the cabinet five inches. That took a constant threat to my head out of the picture! The rear TV was a little different, that cabinet could not be reshaped easily so I fit the TV inside the cabinet but framed it so the speakers are exposed. If the speakers are on the side of the TV, you could mount the TV so it extends just beyond the cabinet. As the article mentions, when I went shopping for TV's, I did my primary searching on the internet, going to the manufacturer's web site and finding the largest TV that could fit the cabinet. Then I went to retail shops with my tape measure just to be certain the measurements were correct.

That is a listing of free e-mail services. The OP asked for commercial e-mail services.

Here is a link to the Michelin Tire Dealer Finder. These are specifically truck tire dealers. They have the tires sizes we use for our motor homes. You are looking for the dealers that can handle the Michelin National Accounts. Look at the symbols at the bottom of the map. Each dealer found will have a set of those symbols indicating which services they offer. The symbol for National Account Dealers is near the bottom. If a dealer doesn't show the National Account Dealer symbol, they won't be able to help you with the FMCA Advantage Plan.

Consult Canadian Border Services. They allow very specific limits of alcohol you can bring across the border. You have several choices. You can declare it at the border and pay the tax for anything in excess of your allowance, you can dump it or give it away before crossing the border or you can find some place to store it until you return to the US. Don't even think about trying to "smuggle" it across the Canadian Border. The consequences are much worse than paying the tax or dumping the liquor. Read the information from Canadian Border Services carefully. They also have restrictions on some food items and they are very strict about weapons including not just guns but also pepper spray. As the saying goes, know before you go! New Brunswick is a wonderful place to visit. We've been there many times. The Bay of Fundy has some of the worlds highest tides. Up to 50 feet between low and high tide. Viewing the change in tides at Hopewell Rocks is really great. You can walk on the ocean floor and six hours later kayak on the ocean in the same spot. The flower pots are equally amazing. We have friends who operate a whale watching operation on Grand Manan Island. We've taken our coach on the ferry to and from Grand Manan to visit them several times. I just checked their web site and their whale watching tours are not operating this summer. The whale watching is great in the Bay of Fundy and I'm certain you can find other operators to take you out if interested. There is great scenery along the St. John River, Hwy 105 and 165 give great views of the river valley going North. In St. John, the capital of New Brunswick, you can watch the river reverse its flow with each incoming tide. Go and enjoy the experience!

I've had flexible valve stem extensions on both valves on the rear wheels (factory standard) on both our motor homes and never had a problem with them. I'm currently in the process of replacing the originals, now 13 years in use, with new ones. The flexible extensions are attached to the hub cover and the Pressure Pro sensors are easy on - easy off.

And that is spot on Bill Adams! That is one of about one hundred basic things that every motor home owner should know when they leave the dealers lot. Yes, it's in the owners manual. If FMCA could put together a general owners manual with basic concise information about tires, electrical systems, water, sewer, diesel engines, transmissions, generators, driving tips and a few other basics, dealers could hand out the booklet for a quick read. It would of course have the universal disclaimer, the owners manual from the manufacturer always is the best guide. Maybe FMCA could work together with RVSEF and promote both organizations.

Thanks for the update! I'll keep that in mind, our units are now 13 years in service. They are still working fine but I know the day is coming!

It's a hit and miss kind of thing. I'd put I-40 west of Flagstaff to Kingman, AZ (in both directions) on my hit list. The sign that said rough road wasn't lying! There are sometimes stretches of road that are really good and then you hit a patch that makes you slow down and grit your teeth. The fact is that with the heavy loads (our coaches included - consider our axle weights) will destroy roads and they need to be periodically repaired and rebuilt. The US has roads everywhere, not the case with many countries. Keeping up with the repair costs money and many taxpayers aren't in the mood to contribute. We could generate a whole lot of jobs, good paying jobs, if we would fund the repairs. Ask your state department of transportation about their funding level. Talk to your state and federal representatives and tell them that the DOT needs better funding. Press your representatives with data, how many bridges in the state are in need of repair, how many need to be replaced? How many miles of highway are in need of repair and how many miles are being repaired this year? Use statistics from the DOT to let your representatives know that you know. Get your local FMCA Chapter to work with you. Have everyone in the chapter contact their state and federal representatives. It isn't lobbying if I tell you to write to your representative, the same for your FMCA Chapter. Individual voters writing to their representatives are the most effective communication we can have. If enough of us write, we can get action. But we have to support what that means. We have to be willing to say, I'll pay more to get good roads. Fuel prices are down, now is a great time to increase the fuel taxes which can be used for road repair and bridge replacement. I think that $0.50 per gallon could be added to fuel prices right now and there would be very few places where the price of fuel would be more than $3.00 per gallon. I can still remember paying close to $5.00 per gallon a few years ago. I don't like toll roads and I sure don't support the privatization of toll roads as has been done in some states. I'd rather see funding for roads come from fuel and vehicle licenses (user fees). I really resent driving on toll roads that are in dire need of repair. Significant funding should come from the general public because everyone needs good roads. That means increased income and property taxes. The groceries don't come to your neighborhood store any way other than the road. If you eat, you need roads.

Geico here. We blew a rear tire several years ago, Everything behind the tire came off from the tire back to the rear cap and up to the base of the frame bed. It took the radiator cover but didn't touch the side radiator. The claim was about $10,000. We met the adjuster at the repair shop with estimate in hand. He looked at the estimate and the coach and handed the repair shop a check. I gave them my deductible and parts were ordered that day. Just replaced my second windshield with them. Rates have gone up a little with those claims but still reasonable. We have always loved geckos! We had GMAC through FMCA for many years ago. We moved to Texas and they fouled up the transfer so bad that I finally dropped them. I'd had a few claims with them and they were always good about paying claims and rates were pretty good then but the administration side of the company isn't too smart. I talked to some of the sales staff at an FMCA Convention and gave them the scoop on the problems I had. They were nice, don't know if they could or did pass on the nature of their failure or if it has been resolved. Basically the tech people running the internet part of the business were incompetent. Couple that with administration (customer service) people who fell down on the job. I can't imagine ever going back to them.

We've been using Earthlink for our e-mail since... forever! I download my e-mail to my computer using Mozilla Thunderbird. That gives me control of my e-mail. I don't have to go on-line to read old e-mails and can archive the important ones on my computer for reference later. Louise prefers to maintain her e-mails on-line and the storage limits are generous if you don't want to keep tons of e-mails hanging around. I've never had a problem sending or receiving large files including photo files, other than the speed of the internet server I'm connected to. I'm sure that there are file size limits but I've never hit them. Earthlink has a filter system, you have an address book, e-mails in the address book are allowed through and others are put in a holding file (suspect e-mail) which you can view and route to your in box, delete or report as spam. They have a reporting process so you can report fishing attempts and you can simply block an e-mail address entirely, never to be allowed through again. You can always go back and unblock later if you change your mind. They also will flag and isolate any message which contains malicious software. You still have the option to view it if you want to live dangerously or if you are certain that it is something you need to see or have. Service costs $4.15 per month if you pay for it for the entire year at one time. Otherwise I believe it is $5.00 per month. That covers 5 e-mail addresses so you can have several e-mail addresses per person or everyone in the family can have an e-mail address for that fee. I use one of the addressees strictly for administration of the account and then we have personal accounts for each of us. You can also use Earthlink as your internet provider. I haven't needed that since the days of dial-up service became obsolete but they still have dial-up service in many locations if you needed that.

We had friends who had their AC/Heat Pump unit replaced several years ago. Professional job, reversed two of the control wires. It must be easy to do that so I would start by double checking the control connections, end to end. If the unit is functioning (heating in this case) and not responding to the thermostat, that also seems to be a control issue.

Here are some references regarding Zika and effects on older adults. AARP Bulletin The Washington Post The New York Times The New York Times - Reference from Centers for Disease Control This article specifically refers to Florida. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) - Zika Home Page From what I am reading here, there doesn't seem to be a great concern about older adults and how Zika affects them. It seems to be generally a flu like disease with some joint pain. The main period of illness is a week or less though some effects are reported to last for months in a few cases. The bottom line is that we don't have enough data to really know but what we do know seems to support the above. The really frightening effects are related to the developing brain. My brain is way beyond that! Prevention is mainly avoiding mosquito bites. Florida for it's part has been proactive with mosquito control efforts and based on my experiences, their expertise should be the best in the world. They have been spraying and taking other steps to control mosquitoes for over 50 years. Use a personal mosquito repellant when outdoors particularly in mosquito prone areas.

I-70 is a fine drive east out of Denver, across Kansas, downhill all the way . You'll encounter some city driving around Kansas City and again in the St. Louis area. I would avoid peak (rush hour) traffic if at all possible. If you want, both cities have circle routes to avoid downtown, take the southern bypass around KC (I-470) and the northern bypass around St. Louis (MO 370 to I-270). Traffic across Missouri will be heavy at times but nothing that you wouldn't encounter on i-80. Illinois used to have a 55 MPH speed limit for motorhomes and trucks, not sure if it still does, it's been several years since I've been through there. Indianapolis has some sharp turns on the direct route through town. The southern bypass I-465 is best for avoiding downtown. Columbus, OH, take the southern bypass, I-270. Kansas has some nice rest areas with circle drives for RV's. You can park along the circle as long as you leave the pavement open for traffic you can stay all night. They also have dump stations at their rest stops. Kansas has the only toll road, about 70 miles into Kansas City, until you get into Ohio or Pennsylvania. Missouri rest stops are OK for overnight parking. Illinois has restrictions on overnight parking at some rest stops though you will find them choked with trucks parking for an indeterminate period of time. Walmart along the route generally has unrestricted parking except in urban areas. There are also a fair number of RV parks along the route that are close enough for an overnight stop. We use AllStays Camp and RV App for finding Walmart, rest areas and campgrounds for trips like the one you are taking. Travel Safe!

Here is a link to the trademark information. This lists it as a Roadmaster product. Spell it without the hyphens to get links on Google. Here is a link to the AddaBRAKE owners manual on line at the Roadmaster web site.

We've been wintering in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) since 2001. We obviously love the area. There are plenty of RV parks to choose from and they range from the really nice with paved parking and ready storage sheds for your outdoor supplies to simple gravel and dirt parks. So you can go as inexpensive to as expensive as you desire. Parks are located generally from Mission to Brownsville along US 83 and US 83/77 and also out toward Port Isabel and South Padre Island. You can find several sources of information on parks in the RGV. Selected RGV Parks, Many More RV Parks in the RGV, You might find other references, there are something like 70 different parks. The cost of living in the RGV is really low. We now have a lot for a mobile home and can park our motor home on the same lot. Rent is less than $4000 for the year. RV lots in our park rent for less than that but you have to pay your electric bill. You can of course get a lot for a day, a week or a month. Many people decide to make improvements to their lots and thus rent them for the annual fee. You won't find that arrangement in every park but some allow individual improvements. Another reason to go seasonal is that if you are staying for four or five months the difference becomes smaller and if you like the location, the annual is the way to guarantee your lot. You will find parks that have many organized activities to keep you a busy as you want to be. Likewise, if your idea is to relax, enjoy the sun and warm weather and maybe make a few friends, you don't have to go all out chasing every activity. Some parks have heated pools, others have dance halls with a regular schedule of dances. There are parks located near state parks and parks located right near the beach on South Padre Island. Some parks are located in or near cities and others are in rural areas. The RGV is a major metropolitan area with plenty of shopping, dining, entertainment and recreational activities within an easy drive from almost anywhere. We play golf once a week almost all winter. There are always a few days when it is too cold for us (but not the Canadians). If you play golf you'll benefit from the experience you have gained with the wind in the Panhandle. You will have no problem finding people to join you in golf, tenns, instrumental and vocal music, theatrical performance, and a host of other activities. Fishing opportunities abound with the ocean fishing out of South Padre Island being the deluxe version. If you are interested in wildlife, the RGV is a major destination for migrating birds. They come from all over North America, some winter here others pass through in fall and spring as they journey to Central and South America. In addition there are quite a few birds that come from Mexico and are found nowhere else in the United States. Numerous nature centers as well as the State Parks feature the wonderful variety of birds and people come from all over the world each fall for the RGV Birding Festival in Harlingen. The RGV also features the National Butterfly Center in Mission. Butterfly enthusiasts journey to the RGV as well and the wide variety of North and Central American butterflies can be see There are several college campuses, multiple quality hospitals with many specialists in senior care. The valley is definitely multicultural and as far as we are concerned, this is a delightful experience. There are many immigrants from Mexico here, some have been here for generations and others have very recently arrived. You will find several languages spoken almost everywhere. I always recommend that you come south without reservations or with reservations for a short period of time in one park. Use your time at the first park to go out and explore the valley and visit several other parks to get an idea of what is available. In recent years parks saw a decline in visitors with the increased prices for fuel but that has now passed and there are more visitors. The peak time is in January and February, at other times, most parks have some spaces available. The hot summer weather begins to abate in early October. We usually return sometime in late October, family schedules dominate our timing or we would be there in early October. Our winter months are December and January. During those months temperatures will frequently be in the 50's and 60's during the day with night temperatures in the 40's and 50's. There are usually a few days when the temperature drops below freezing by a few degrees. Last year we had no freezing temperatures and several years ago we had three periods of freezing temperatures for two or three days. We even had snow one Christmas Eve, about 3 or 4 inches that melted by the next afternoon! February usually sees temperatures starting to warm and by March days are usually around 80 degrees and nights in the 60's. April and May it warms up by the end of May we are long gone for the summer. April generally begins the real retreat of the snow birds, Easter and tax schedules drive people back to their northern homes. We pack the motor home and head for cooler weather, family visits and exploring the USA and Canada.

Now that the problem has been resolved, another issue is present in the picture. The tank flush is hooked up to a garden hose. Unless flushing the black water tank is in progress, this can be a problem. I had a friend who was parked for the winter in a campground and simply kept the flush hose hooked up to the coach. One day the water was shut off in the park and everyone was cautioned to turn off their water. When the line was repaired and water in the park turned on, campground workers, trying to be helpful came by and turned on the water for everyone at their post. They also turned on the flush hose. The result was new flooring and a real mess to be cleaned up. I would never leave that hose connected, you just never know who is going to try to help you by turning on the water for you!