tbutler

In the process of testing did the windshield gasket get a good soaking test? If the windshield top gasket is higher than the side windows, that may be your source.

We have been back and forth over 12 years and 160,000 miles of motor home travel, most of it full time. We had Good Sam when we were at our first FMCA Convention in Hutchinson, KS. It rained for several days and everyone parked on grass was living in a lake/mud environment. Everyone near us had to be pulled out. There were farm tractors working everywhere. We called GS and I expected that it would be hours if not days before we could get a wrecker. Surprise, it was about 30 minutes and we were out. Then we had an incident in N California (engine ate an exhaust valve) and they couldn't get us a wrecker until the next day. We were in a campground and we had called the day before and tried to make an appointment which they refused to do. That backed us up into a holiday weekend for repair work so it cost us four or five days that wouldn't have been necessary. We dropped them and went with Coach Net. We had good service with them, one incident, stuck in the mud in a campground in N. Dakota and they had a wrecker there, no problem. The next time we were stuck in the Sierra Mountains, broken oil line, and had communication problems with Coach Net. Couldn't call back and get the same agent when we needed to follow up. We changed back to Good Sam. We blew a tire on the interstate in St. Joseph, MO and Good Sam couldn't or wouldn't get us service that could provide the proper tire. They convinced us to have the service company come out and assess the situation. When they arrived we were going to have to purchase a used tire and a new rim. We refused the service. They wouldn't talk to us saying that we had received our service call. We called a shop about 50 miles away in Kansas City and had them come out to put on the proper tire. We bought a tire we could use but had to purchase a rim we didn't need. We also had to pay for the service call. So now we are back with Coach Net. We had a tire problem two years ago, on a Sunday night, interstate highway in Alabama. They had someone there within an hour. We bought a used tire that wasn't the proper size but got us on the road. What is the conclusion you can draw from the above? I guess I would say that you will find that some situations will work out well for you and others won't. If you use these services you will experience some frustration. I think it depends greatly on who you get for the agent to handle your problem. For now we are with Coach Net and just renewed for another 3 years. I guess you could say that I am more comfortable with Coach Net. Either way, I wouldn't be without this service. When (not if) you have a breakdown, they can find you a service provider to take care of you. They don't pay repair costs and their motivation is to minimize their costs for the service call, not to minimize your repair costs. Their solution may not always be in your best interest but they will provide a solution and cover the cost of a tow to the nearest service or a service call. You don't get to choose where that closest service is unless there are several providers an equal distance away, nor do you get a choice of the service call provider unless there are equal cost providers available at your location.

Since you mention looking for alternates to Wal-Mart for boondocking, I assume you are looking for one night stands. In that case there are many other options. We have been full timers for ten years and have used a wide variety of locations for overnight stays. We have received permission to stay at Home Depot and Lowe's, sometimes on large grocery store lots, again with permission. We will park on business and commercial lots of vacant buildings if they are not posted. We have parked on gravel lots next to service stations, checking with the service station to be sure it is acceptable. We have used rest stops on interstate and other highways. We prefer the rest stops that are located some distance from a highway but have parked on lots which are adjacent to roads when they are not heavily used roads. We really don't like parking near trucks as many of them still leave their engines running all night long. Many Cabela's and Bass Pro Shops have designated RV parking and welcome overnight stays, even providing dump stations at some locations. On a few occasions we have spent the night on a shopping center parking lot. One of the funniest was when we were in New Jersey. We got off the interstate to find a place to stop, couldn't find a place to park and ended up getting lost, no idea how to get back to the highway. After a close encounter with a low overpass I decided we would park the next open spot we found. It was well after dark so we pulled in next to a Bed Bath and Beyond for the night. The next morning the manager showed up and asked us to move as we were parked where employees parked. We fell into conversation about our motor home and our full timing lifestyle. He gave us good advice for local traffic conditions. He told us that after 6:30 a.m. the traffic across a certain bridge we were headed for would become completely stalled, stop and go, for about two hours. He gave us directions to get back to the interstate highway. I thanked him, we shook hands and parted friends. When we boondock we try to arrive in the evening, after peak business hours, and we want to depart in the morning before business really gets going strong. There are two reasons for this. Arriving later in the evening means the parking lot will have more open spaces. Leaving early in the morning decreases the chances of getting parked in by a car parked too close to us. In doing this we are ensuring also that we minimize our impact on the business which has agreed to host us. We always check with businesses to be sure we are welcome and to find out where they prefer us to park. We are finding that Wal-Mart stores are more organized about RV parking and many have preferred locations for RV's to park. We always try to respect that. One we stopped at recently had no room on the lot but pointed us to a gravel area along an adjacent road where they said we could park. We have found on occasion a city park which will allow overnight RV parking and a few charming ones that even had electrical hookups for a minimal fee. Some of these are even equipped for longer stays at very reasonable rates. We have seen beach areas and overlooks that allow overnight or even extended stays. If you dare, there are even some beaches were you can pull right out onto the beach and park. Our towing insurance won't pay for being pulled from those kind of locations so we steer clear of them. It could end being a very expensive place to stay! We got permission to stay overnight on the parking lot of the Battleship North Carolina when we arrived just before closing time and told them we wanted to take the tour in the morning. It was a great tour! The later it is in the evening, the darker the night, the fiercer the storm, the better any parking place begins to look. The saying any port in a storm applies here. When things are really bad, people who wouldn't ordinarily allow you to park may graciously grant permission to park for a night. It can't hurt to ask. We stayed on the lot of a small shop one night. We pulled into the lot to turn around. They were closing the store so I asked the owner if we could park there, We filled most of their lot. The store owner said it would be fine if we were gone by opening time at 9:00 the next morning. We had a nice quiet night there and were gone by 7:30 a.m. We've done much the same all across Canada. Even in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia which have a reputation of intolerance for boondocking.

I removed and replaced the slide out awnings on our coach. They were Carefree of Colorado, no requirement to remove the roller on ours. I suspect that the answer to your question depends in part on which model slide out cover you have. I'm going to have to replace another one and I'm having it done at the factory service center. Just getting a little slower and less flexible.

Be aware that coach manufacturers purchase engines in quantity and then install them in coaches until they run out of that stock. Your 2008 coach may have an engine manufactured in 2007 or even 2006. Don't assume that the year of manufacture of the coach matches the year of manufacture for the engine.

I just installed a KVH R5SL as a replacement for a KVH R4. I have a pair of D-12 boxes and there was no special installation needed other than setting up the antenna type on the D-12 to round and it should work if everything is connected correctly. KVH receivers come pre-programmed for DirecTV so you shouldn't need the unit re-programmed unless it had been changed to Dish for the previous owner. There is no point in having an HD receiver as the 5SL will not support HD with DirecTV. In fact I had an HD receiver that I tried and the picture was not as good as the D-12 using the S-Video connection. The HD receivers have no S-Video connection and with the HD cable the analog picture isn't as good as with the S-Video cable. My results apply for a 36" Sharp HD TV and a 26" LG HD TV.

We have the Pressure Pro system also. I've been using it for four years. The sensors are overdue for replacement but are still working. Replacing the sensors means buying a new set with the Pressure Pro as the batteries are not replaceable. The replacement sensors are sold at 1/2 price with the return of the old sensors. The monitoring unit quit about two years ago and the company replaced it with a new updated unit at a discounted price. One thing I'm planning to add in the future is a repeater unit to help pick up signals from the toad. With a 40' coach we have brief periods when we will lose signal from one sensor or another on the toad. The repeater antenna will solve that problem. The system has saved us extensive damage when we had a rear tire pick up road debris. We were driving after dark and highway work had us detoured onto the shoulder. I was near the end of the detour area when the alarm went off. I could tell right away which tire was affected and the pressure was shown so I knew it wasn't a false alarm. I pulled to the shoulder and walked to the rear of the vehicle where I could hear the air hissing from the puncture. Without the alarm I wouldn't have known there was a problem until the tire (and likely its companion) began to come apart. So I consider the system to have paid for itself. With Pressure Pro the sensors function as valve caps and you remove them when you want to air up a tire to check pressure with a tire gauge. When you replace them on the tire valve they reset to the new pressure as the base pressure. You can tweak the system to make it alarm with smaller or larger changes than the factory settings. There are systems where the sensor has a by-pass so the sensor, which fits on the valve stem, doesn't have to be removed to add air to a tire or check pressure with a tire gauge. All of the external sensor systems have some kind of anti-theft feature, with most it is a special tool for removal or a lock nut that secures the sensor firmly to the valve stem. There are other systems that work similarly but the sensor designs vary significantly. Perhaps one of the best type of sensors is installed inside the tire. They detect pressure and temperature. The down side is that installing them requires dismounting all your tires! Then if something causes a sensor to fail or a battery goes dead, you have to have a tire pulled off to replace the sensor. You will find fans of any system. Take a look at all the systems and decide which meets your needs best. Costs vary considerably. There are new systems on the market periodically so don't rely only on word of mouth. A good place to see these systems will be the FMCA Family Reunion and Motorhome Showcase in Indianapolis in just a few days. One last suggestion. This has been a topic of discussion in the past so you can pick up information from past discussions by entering tire monitor in the search box at the top-right of this page. Any system you choose will pay off either in reducing or eliminating secondary damage from a tire failure or simply in the peace of mind knowing that your tires are in good condition as you drive down the road.

We have traveled 6500 miles so far this summer. One of the things we have noticed while on the road is that there seem to be many more motor homes on the road this year than in years past. I can recall the days when we considered purchasing a motor home and then first hit the road. We would drive down any road and see lots of RV's of all kinds. Then the industry fell on hard times. Fuel prices went up and motor homes pretty quickly disappeared from the roads and highways. We traveled through New England in 2005 and saw many RV's sitting by the roadside with for sale signs everywhere we went. We saw very few motor homes on the road. That has been the case ever since. I'm sure other FMCA members have noticed the same thing. Based on our informal observations, this year is different. Everywhere we have traveled we have seen other motor homes on the road. Noticeably more people are out and traveling this summer. We attended a Lone Star Chapter rally in late May and the turnout was considerably larger than in the past. I wonder if this will be reflected in the turnout for the FMCA gathering in Indianapolis this month. We're moving on to a new park tomorrow. We've been in Sequim, WA for two weeks. We'll move to Elwa Dam just west of Port Angeles. A week, maybe more there will give us a chance to explore other areas of Olympic National Park. Most of the park is wilderness so there are only a few roads that provide access to the park. Our days of backpacking are past so we don't get far into the interior. Still each road is an adventure. We drove to the Deer Park Campground and Blue Mountain viewpoint on Saturday. Deer Park Road is 18 miles long from Hwy 101 to the peak of Blue Mountain with the last 8 miles being a narrow gravel road. It is winding, steep and quite scenic. Louise was quite tense as many of the views were out her window on the way up the mountain. She was frequently looking down a very steep slope extending hundreds of feet down the mountainside. I was busy looking for oncoming traffic because the narrow road required negotiating with other drivers to find a place to pass. Fortunately, all drivers were taking their driving very seriously and they were watching for us as much as we were watching for them. Once we got to the top, the view was well worth the drive. We had the mountaintop experience without making the climb ourselves. We did walk a short trail up to the peak. To the south we could see the interior mountains of the park. Even now in August, these peaks up to 7980 foot high are holding significant amounts of snow. To the east we were looking down the steep slopes of Blue Mountain to the foothills of the Olympic Mountains. Off to the north was the town of Sequim where we are staying. Beyond that we could see the Strait of Juan de Fuca and across the strait we could see the southern shore of Vancouver Island. On the horizon to the northeast the snow capped volcano, Mount Baker, stood out above the surrounding terrain. All around us the view was spectacular. The trail guide highlighted the role of rain or in this case lack of it in shaping the flora and fauna in this area. Blue Mountain and Sequim are in the rain shadow of the higher mountains to the west. Those mountains take all the moisture from the Pacific air as it is lifted over them. As the air descends the eastern side of the mountains it is too dry to drop much precipitation, this forms a rain shadow. One of the other delights we've found here on the Olympic Peninsula is the Olympic Discovery Trail. This bicycle and walking trail extends 130 miles from Port Townsend in the east to La Push on the Pacific Coast. Much of the trail in the area where we are is paved. In other areas the trail is unpaved and in many places to the west it still uses the shoulder of roads. We've ridden two sections of the trail here at Sequim. To the east the trail crosses two wooden railroad trestles. One is 410 feet long and stands 86 feet above the stream below. The section passes through Sequim Bay State Park and goes on the Blyn, a community of Pacific Coastal Indians. We ate a snack at the Hwy 101 rest stop next to the trail then went on to the native art shop to browse the work of some local artists. Our return trip was easier than we expected and we enjoyed a happy hour beverage sitting in the shade when we got back to the motor home. Just as we are seeing more RV's on the road, we are seeing parks closer to full capacity. There have been a few no vacancy signs at parks so we are making reservations as we move. This is something we have seldom done in the past. If this is a sign of the times it is a good sign.

I've had two cases where we came to a low overpass and we dumped air to get under the overpass. I dumped the air and then put Louise in the drivers seat. I climbed the rear ladder so I could see exactly what was going on. I was just peeking over the top of the rig, hang on tight. Using radios to communicate, I could tell her which way to steer. If it starts to come up too fast, put it in neutral and dump again. That way you can inch it through. Putting it in the garage this way though is going to require bringing it out the same way. That's a lot of work to do every time you take it in and out. I have a friend who does this with his rig, also a Monaco. He is usually only in and out 2 or three times a year. One problem I had to talk to Louise about. When I told her to stop she would step on the brakes hard, the nose would dip and then it would spring back up!

Ours goes into travel mode when I shift into gear. So rev it up, shift into gear and go for broke!

Puzzled by the typo... plonking pro? Let's see, you have a 45 foot motor home weighing 40,000 to 50,000 pounds and you are looking for a decent steer tire. I'd be looking for the best tire I could. You can use decent tires on the rear where one tire failing is not a big deal. Your steer tires are the lifeblood of your motor home. They are a key component that you depend on for directional control of your vehicle. Lose one of these in a blowout and you have a serious control problem. I know I have had a steer tire blow. I didn't lose control of the motor home but it was by no means certain from the beginning of the event. The Cooper Hercules may be a perfectly good line of tires but my primary concern would be that they be equal in quality to the best tires available, not that they are half the price of the best tire. Think about what you are saving and what you are risking.

Have you owned a motorhome before? If so, you understand the upkeep that goes with any motorhome, even new ones. Our first motorhome was a 7 year old Monaco Dynasty diesel. It had about 50,000 miles on it. We kept it for 2 1/2 years before trading for our current motorhome. We found that the two previous owners had made some cheap decisions on repairs. The alternator failed within the first year. One of the previous owners had put a cheaper alternator in and then made changes in the wiring so it would charge the house battery as well as the driving battery. Checking maintenance paperwork we got with the motorhome we found that the alternator had been replaced twice. We decided to purchase a new alternator of the correct type and have the wiring restored to the original. $1000. The dash air conditioning failed about the same time. That was simply a matter of replacing a hose and recharging the system. $300. Then we had a roof air conditioner quit and had to replace it. $1200. Shortly before we traded it in the engine coughed up an exhaust valve which required a new head, piston, cylinder sleeve and turbocharger and a few other parts. $10,000. There were a number of minor things we had fixed as well and constant minor repairs that I did. We had some great times and accomplished what we wanted to do. We determined that, despite what is described above, we enjoyed living full time in a motorhome. In the 2 1/2 years we put about 50,000 miles on the Dynasty so it got a good workout. I would recommend that you hire an RV tech (not associated with the selling dealer or owner) and have them go over the motorhome to give you an expert assessment of its condition, seals, appliances, furniture, plumbing, electrical system, suspension, leveling system, etc. Then take the motorhome to a dealer for the engine and have them hook it up to their analysis equipment and determine is current condition. Do the same for the generator. You could do the same with the transmission as well. This will cost you some $$ which may be out the window if the coach doesn't pass (in your opinion) this going-over. On the other hand if significant problems are found you would have paid that and more. My point is that you should find out from people who are working for you, not take the word of the seller and manufacturer, for an impartial opinion on the condition of the motorhome. That is the only way I know to get a good idea of what problems you might have with this particular motorhome.

My topo map program (Garmin GPS Topo Maps) shows you starting at about 5500 feet in Vernal. You will run some ups and downs, nothing extreme until you reach Duchesne. Then the profile shows that you begin to climb from 5500 feet at Duchesne to just over 9000 feet and then back down to 5500 feet at the junction of 191 and Hwy 10 in Price. The most difficult part starts at about 55 miles out of Vernal and begins to taper off about 110 miles from Vernal. That will be about 30 miles climbing 3500 feet and 25 miles in the descending the same vertical distance.. To put this in context, your trip on 191 into Vernal from the north took you from 5900 feet to 8460 feet (an elevation change of 2560 feet) in 15 miles and then down to 5700 feet (vertical change of 2760 feet) in the next 15 miles. So you are adding an additional 1000 feet of climb and 800 feet descent but doubling the distance of travel in the climb and almost doubling the distance in the descent. We have driven the route into Vernal from the Tetons and know what your dealt with on that drive. I haven't driven the route from Vernal to Moab, that part is purely a paper and pencil (computer) exercise.

We have an HWH leveling system. No one has mentioned any specific system above. When we got our coach one of the first things I noticed was that the sensor for automatic leveling needed to be adjusted. When I was unable to figure out how to adjust it I called HWH and talked to a technician. He talked me through the process, I was in a storage compartment on my back and on the cell phone to him and using our walkie-talkies to talk to Louise in the drivers seat. When I was done I was worn out! I have found that I must occasionally re-adjust the sensor but once done, the system works fine for quite a while. If you need help adjusting the sensor for your system, call the manufacturer of your system for technical help. Make notes so you remember how to do it next time.

In answer to these two questions, there is no easy visual way to check a battery without removing the caps on the individual cells. When you remove the cap and look down into the cell you should see water over the plates of the battery. If water is not covering the plates your water is way too low. Look at the collar that extends down into the battery from the filler cap. Near the bottom of that collar there will be two slots positioned 180 degrees from each other. It looks like this ( ). The water level should be up to the bottom of the collar so that you can see it touching the collar but not filling the slots. When properly filled the water looks like it is curved up against the collar but flat where the slots are. The slots allow the gases produced by the battery to escape without forcing the liquid out of the battery in the process. If you fill the battery too full escaping gases will cause the battery to bubble over and the excess liquid will cause extreme corrosion. Corrosion is not evidence of the battery bubbling over, the escaping gases themselves will do that to any unprotected metal surface. Each cell in a battery (a 6 volt battery has 3 cells and 3 caps) is filled independent of the other cells. The water/acid solution from one cell does not flow to the other cells. As a result you must check each cell and fill them independently. You must use distilled water for filling your battery. Water that contains minerals will significantly shorten the life of a battery. Distilled water (do not confuse with drinking water) is available at all grocery stores. Likely your spouse is using it in the iron so you may find it under the kitchen sink or in the laundry room. Water from a faucet or garden hose is not suitable for use in batteries. I use a long necked funnel available at auto stores to get the water into each cell without spilling large amounts of water in the process. It also allows me to see into each cell as I fill it. That way I can fill the battery just to the bottom of the collar and not overfill the cell. There are more expensive systems that can be used to fill batteries if you want to simplify the process. Google automatic battery filler to see some examples. How often should you check your batteries? No less than once a month is advised. During periods of heavy use it is wise to check them more frequently. After you have done this for a while you will learn what is normal water use in your batteries. Then when the normal amount changes you will know to start looking for a cause and anticipating possible trouble.

We've been on a discovery tour for the last month. We left familiar territory at Coulee City, Washington. Traveling south we decided to stop in Yakima. The decision was more about taking a breather than exploring. We had arranged to have our mail delivered there and we decided to stay a week just to catch our breath and wait for a service appointment. So we played golf at one of the most beautiful golf courses we have ever seen. Apple Tree Golf Resort is a resort housing development in an apple orchard. You play a hole or two and then drive through the orchard to the next hole. You are encouraged to help yourself to an apple from their trees. There are fountains in the water hazards, a waterfall beside the 14th green, flowers everywhere and the 17th hole par 3 has a tee 60 feet above the green. But the 17th green isn't just any green, this one is surrounded by water and shaped like an apple with a leaf-shaped sand trap on the left top of the apple and a bridge to the green on the right top that makes a stem. So there is a gem we weren't expecting. On the way to Yakima we stopped at a scenic overlook on the Columbia River. Information at the overlook mentioned two dams on the Columbia just below that area, Wanapum Dam and Priest Rapids Dam. It also mentioned Ginkgo State Park and petrified wood. So that became a Sunday outing for us. The first stop was Ginkgo State Park where a wide variety of trees were petrified in a shallow lake. Petrified logs were discovered by a geologist in the 1920s. During the depression, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) helped excavate the site and built a visitors center to display some of the logs. There are dozens of logs at the visitors center, many pieces of petrified wood inside and some logs left in place and protected that can be viewed by hiking over the area where they were found. It turns out that the number of tree species at this site are larger than at any other petrified wood site in the United States. There are also petroglyphs which were relocated to the park when the dams flooded the area where they were located. Gems on top of gems here. We had packed a picnic lunch and ate that before hiking the 2 mile trail around the park grounds to veiw the logs that were left in place. Then we drove south to view the two dams. Wanapum Dam is named for the Wanapum Indians who lived in this area. Their fishing grounds were displaced by the dam and the visitors center highlights the tribe, its heritage and traditions. The museum is well worth a stop. The dam itself is undergoing remodeling and is not open for tours at the present time. Construction also kept us from seeing the Priest Rapids Dam from close range. Both dams were sending large amounts of water over their spillways. This only happens when there is much more water than they are able to hold back or send through the turbines to generate electricity. The scenery along the Columbia River in this area is spectacular, the Hwy 243 runs alongside the river which is in a steep sided coulee. Further south, Hwy 243 joins Hwy 24 which takes us past the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, site of one of the first nuclear reactors. Hwy 24 also takes us back to Yakima and gives us another surprise. As we approach Yakima we see huge fields of hops, a key ingredient of many if not most beers. The fields here are extensive, I estimated that there must be something like 8 to 10 square miles under cultivation here. Yakima was giving us surprise after surprise. We left Yakima traveling Hwy 12 which runs between Mt. Ranier to the north and Mt. St. Helens to the south. A short scenic drive bring us to Chehalis, WA. Chehalis is a small town on I-5 about 80 miles south of Seattle. We wouldn't have thought to stop there but that is where Cummins NW has a shop which could do repair work on our generator and the chassis air conditioning. We've been working on the air conditioning repair for almost two months. The generator quit on us several weeks ago. We got an emergency appointment for the generator at Cummins in Billings, MT. They found the problem and patched up some burned wires but they didn't have time nor parts for a proper fix. We had the parts for both repairs sent to the Chehalis location and had an appointment for the repair. Trent welcomed us and got work under way. We had one of the most welcoming friendly experiences we've ever had at any repair facility. Trent kept us informed on progress and explained the repairs. Our stay in Chehalis before our repair appointment was at the Riverside Golf RV Park. We were parked backed up to the first hole with a screen behind us to stop stray golf balls. We played the course, it is almost 100 years old and a challenging course. We had dinner on the deck overlooking the ninth green. The campground is a parking lot type campground. There are full hookups. You park on sturdy, clean concrete pads with gravel between pads. There are no other facilities, no showers, no playground (unless you count the golf course) and no store. We had a nice view of the road and the Chehalis airport. Being a pilot I wasn't complaining about that. After our day of repair we headed for the Glen Ayr Resort in Hoodsport. This beautiful resort is located on US 101 and Hood Canal which isn't really a canal. Hood Canal is actually a fjord, formed by a glacier, it is 60 miles long, several miles wide and as much as 600 feet deep. Our site was up the hill in the campground. From there we can see Hood Canal over the roof of the resort hotel. We are able to watch the boats and see the tides change from the motor home. We took a day to drive north on US 101 to the Walker Mountain viewpoint. You get a nice view of Puget Sound and Seattle on a clear day. Then we did wineries for a day. A scenic drive along Hwy 106 which borders Hood Canal led us to Belfair. We turned south to Shelton and then north again to Hoodsport. Along the way we netted a little over two cases of wine, stores for the winter. Olympic National Park is a primary objective of our trip and we finally made it when we drove from Hoodsport to the Staircase Ranger Station. A day hike with Ranger Jeff introduced us to the forest and streams of this wonderful wilderness park. Our last day in the area we drove to Olympia to see Paddle to Squaxin. This is a celebration and gathering of the Pacific Coast native Americans from Mainland Canada, Vancouver Island and the US. We watched as 94 ceremonial canoes arrived from as far away as southern Alaska. Rowing their large canoes for over three weeks, crews of 10 to 20 or more in a single canoe paddled into the harbor at Olympia for their final landing of the trip. The host tribe, the Squaxin people, welcomed the canoes with drumming, chanting and singing. The next four days there will be a Potlatch on Squaxin Island as representatives of many different tribes gather to renew acquaintances, much like an FMCA Rally! After a week we moved further north on the peninsula to the town of Sequim. We left the motor home at the Gilgal Oasis RV Park and took the Blackball Ferry to Victoria, BC on Vancouver Island. We have friends there and they showed us around the island for three glorious days. We visited art galleries and helped our friends open the art show sponsored by their art society. One day was devoted to a trip to the western side of Vancouver Island to see the Pacific coast. Along the way we saw lakes, mountains, forests and the town of Alberni which was partially destroyed by the tsunami from the 1964 Alaska earthquake. Our last day we visited the Kinsol trestle, a 1920's railroad trestle restored for the Trans Canada Trail. The wooden trestle built on a curve makes quite a spectacular sight. We finished the day in Parksville to see the results of the 30th annual sand sculpture contest. We ate well (perhaps too well) and had a great visit with friends. Our ferry ride back to Port Angeles led to our latest adventure. We drove west from Port Angeles to the town of Joyce. We enjoyed Joyce Daze and Wild Blackberry Festival in Joyce, Washington. A pancake breakfast served up by the Blackberry Princesses was followed by a tour of the history museum, visits to vendor booths and live music. We saw lots of classic cars but skipped the pie eating contest. We did conduct our own personal test of the blackberry pies and they were judged to be wonderful. We are looking forward to at least another month here on the Olympic Peninsula. We've already had a spectacular summer. I wonder what the next month will bring.

We were there several years ago. According to WikiTravel there is an RV park 2 miles south of the visitors center but the entry at RV Park Reviews indicates this is actually the parking lot at the visitors center. Check out the WikiTravel web site for more information. This is an incredibly beautiful drive and an interesting stop at the visitors center. It took a while to find information on the RV park referenced above so here is the link for Icefields Centre RV Park on the RV Park Reviews web site.

Mike, I should have said the Pilot/Flying J benefits card for FMCA members. The card (Frequent Fueler) is issued by Pilot/Flying J as a benefit for FMCA members. I don't know if these cards will continue in effect given the Pilot/Flying J Good Sam card. As far as I know, the Pilot/Flying J card issued for FMCA members is still in use. I agree with those who point out that you can often find prices at other stations which are even better than the Pilot/Flying J prices even including their discount program. As a result, we shop all the possible suppliers for the best price subject to how accessible the pumps are. The credit cards I referred to are not FMCA cards. We have credit cards from Discover, Bank of America, Citi and Chase that all offer fuel rebates. Our Chase card currently is offering a discount at 5% with a maximum of $300 cash back during this quarter (July through September). Bank of America had the same deal last quarter (April through June). The $300 cash back maximum covers fuel purchases up to $6000 in a quarter so that works for us. Louise also has a separate Chase card and each has a $300 rebate limit so we have access to as much as a $600 rebate for fuel right now. You might find others. These offers keep changing and having several cards allows me to use the card with the active offer for my fuel purchases. On a $400 fuel purchase you get $20 cash back credit, most cards require $50 minimum to process the rebate. It doesn't take long to rack up $50 when traveling often. One other thought on fuel prices and discounts. As a service station attendant in high school, I pumped gas for 19.9 cents per gallon! A penny per gallon was a 5 percent difference at that rate. Now we are looking about prices of $3.50 to $4.00 per gallon. That makes 20 cents equal to what 1 penny was many years ago, just 5% on the fuel price. Whenever we are in a high price area as we are now, I remind myself that 3 or 4 cents isn't really that big a deal in the whole scheme of things. A 3 or 4 cent difference is 1%, not worth driving out of our way very far when we use a gallon of fuel to go 8 miles.

The new card through Good Sam is a charge card (not a credit card). It is like the Sears Card which is only good at Sears. The Good Sam Card, can be used only at Pilot/Flying J. There is an on-line guide to Pilot/Flying J stations with guidance as to which ones accept the card and which don't. You can also get a paper copy of the guide at Flying J. You will get a monthly bill from Pilot/Flying J when using that card and the entire balance will be charged to the checking account you authorized with your application. Again, this is not a credit card, you must pay the entire balance and it will not work at other stores, only Pilot/Flying J. Using the FMCA card with its benefits allows you to use a credit card. We have several cards that give a 5% rebate on fuel purchases. Some are conditional, limits on maximum benefit, certain periods when you can use them for discounts on fuel, etc. A 5% cash back rebate amounts to a savings of 20 cents per gallon at $4.00 per gallon retail price. This far exceeds the benefits of the Good Sam-Pilot/Flying J card. Of course to take advantage of the 5% cash back rebate you must pay your entire bill. If you don't pay off the full balance the interest rate on the unpaid balance will quickly eat up your rebate and then start chewing on your wallet. We all know what it starts chewing on once it finishes offf your wallet! With the FMCA card, you can stack the 5% rebate on top of the discount benefits the FMCA card offers. Because of the above, the only time I would find the Good Sam card to be an advantage would be when I don't have a 5% discount on fuel available due to card restrictions. If you don't have a credit card that offers a 5% fuel rebate, get on-line and start searching!

Call Monaco RV LLC at 877-466-6226, ask for technical service. Be prepared to give your coach number. They should be able to help you.

Regarding the question of a screen over the refrigerator vents, one caution. We were in an area where there were cottonwood trees. The seeds from cottonwood and some other plants will be pulled by any draft and as the air enters the refrigerator vent, these seeds will be drawn in and the fine fibers will stick to the screen. If you do put a screen on the refrigerator you should check it frequently. When you are in an area where you see seeds floating in the air, check the screens daily. Refrigerator fires are already way too common in RV's.

Frank (aka kingfr) makes a good point that I failed to emphasize. If you are going to do full timing right, and many people don't, you should be straight up with your address. That means your credit cards and bank accounts all have that address. The account doesn't have to be in that town, just use that address for the account. We had a credit union account in Missouri for years but the address on the account was our South Dakota address from the day we had that address. Get your drivers license in the state with your PMB and have that address on your license. Vote, pay taxes and license your vehicles using that address. Doing this gives you enough ties to that address that it can hardly be questioned. If you have vehicles licensed in one place, drivers license in another and then a PMB in a third location you are creating constant problems for yourself. We had our estate re-written for our new adopted state when we went full time. When we recently set up housekeeping in our new home we did the whole thing again. Our attorney in South Dakota had a handout for us listing all the things that courts look at when they decide where someone lives. This will be more important to your heirs than to you! There are true vagabonds who have few resources other than perhaps a bank account or just a social security check. With few resources and legal ties you can get away being a person without a home. You can license your vehicles in one state, get a drivers license in another state and collect your mail through another location. But you aren't a drifter. If you have a brokerage account, you need a solid address, no funny stuff. Pick your address and commit totally to that address.

I'm old school. We've used Roadmaster Brakemaster for 10 years now. It has been moved from one coach to another but is still on the original toad. We've never had a problem with the system in all that time, not one. It hooks into the air brake line (no problems here with either coach) so when you apply brakes with the brake pedal (doesn't engage while using the engine brake) it proportionally applies the toad brakes. We've replaced the toad brakes once in 10 years and over 100,000 miles towing as well as 120,000 miles driving. I've got a light on the panel that tells me when it's engaged and you can add a break-away system with just a small reserve air canister inside the engine compartment of the toad. I'd look at other systems if/when I have to replace this one but it would have to be really good to match what we've had. Hook up involves the air hose and the break away cable from coach to toad and installation of the actuating cylinder to the brake pedal on the toad. I do the air hose and cable and Louise does the cylinder. She is usually done before I am and it takes me two minutes. I'm not a master mechanic so we had the system installed by a dealer. They had the toad for a day and then we brought the coach in. We left by noon with a working system. I did have to prompt the dealer to relocate the break away cable attachment on the toad as they put it on the license plate holder (which Brakemaster specifically prohibits). Reading instructions is apparently optional for some experts!

Shortly after we got our first motorhome we parked under a tree. A limb was lightly touching the roof but I didn't think too much of it. Then we found ants on the bedspread and sure enough ants had invaded the air conditioner. It didn't take too long to get rid of them but it did take some persistence to keep checking and finding the last few. I believe ants could be responsible for this kind of damage also. My experience with beaded styrofoam, actually expanded polystyrene aka EPS, has been that it tends to deteriorate slowly over time with beads coming loose on a more or less continuous basis. Exposure to atmospheric gases and ozone in particular can result in degradatiion of the polystyrene itself. At any rate, I would expect that there will always be a few beads escaping their bounds and coming from the vents.

Carl mentions a ticket in his message from May 2012. I would not call that an old thread. Carl doesn't mention the date of his ticket but if it is recent then that means the actions of the Van Horn community continue. I'm betting Carl doesn't fit the lot lizard and drug dealer profile. Whether they are singling out RV'ers or not, they are ticketing our members. Jim in his April 2012 posting indicates sending a message to Patricia Golden and apparently hasn't received any response. I won't spend the night there.