tbutler

Old Buck, Your situation illustrates the problem with having no particular state for a residence. Many people get by without a problem doing this but then if you get caught, you have a difficult time. Win or lose on this one, it is still going to cost you some money. When we went full time, we picked a state, got our drivers license, vehicle licenses, address and consulted an attorney to have our trust documents brought into agreement with that state. We vote in that state on a regular basis. When we have purchased new vehicles we pay excise tax on them in that state. All of these things would be considered by a court if there ever were a question about our state of residence. With things scattered among many states you can pick and choose which ever state has the greatest advantage for a particular need but the courts can rule the same way and it likely won't be in your favor. Establishing a clear state of residence is your best defense against this problem. You might have to pay some taxes but after all, taxes are the price of civilization.

One more thing to check. I had a friend relate this to me lately. His refrigerator had never worked well on gas and he tried a number of things. It wasn't until he had his LP regulator checked and found the pressure on the line to be low that he was able to solve his problem. If you have always had low gas pressure, the flame might look normal to you. Only if you have seen the gas flame when the refrigerator is working well would you be able to make a comparison. Also while talking about refrigerators, it might be good to check the Norcold web site: http://www.thetford.com/HOME/CUSTOMERSUPPO...64/Default.aspx if you have a Norcold refrigerator. They have been adding models with certain serial numbers to their recall list. Models on the recall list have a history of catching fire. Read the list and information carefully as some serial numbers given are on the cooling unit on the rear of the refrigerator.

Several years ago we began using WEB Odor Control Filters with a filter layer and an activated carbon layer. These come in a cut-to-size format complete with a plastic grid to provide backing for the filter to keep it from being drawn up into the air intake. I found these at Lowe's for about $10. You can use them in two ways. I started by cutting them the same size as the original filters. After they became dirty, I would reverse them as half of the filter is not over the air intake and doesn't pull as much air. Lately, I have begun cutting them to half the size of the original filter and using the original filter folded in half for the non-intake area. I can get three of these filters out of one package so the cost of each is about $3. The filters are much more effective than the foam filters that were original and the carbon layer is supposed to control odors. The original filters were always pulled up into the air intake and were thus not very effective. The plastic grid takes care of this problem. I can even use the scrap pieces to make an effective filter when I have collected enough of them. These filters are green in color which makes it easy to glance up at the filter and notice the dirt on the surface of the filter. I recently replaced the filter on the front air conditioner after just three weeks of near full time air conditioner use. During the summer and/or dusty conditions, watch your filters carefully. They can collect a lot of dirt fast. One factor to consider when making a change in filters is the air flow. These filters do not seem to reduce the air flow. A reduction of air flow could cause problems with the air conditioning unit freezing up.

There are wireless cameras on the market now and I would consider one of them with the possible complication of the greater distance between the normal car application and the length of your Class C. Many that I have seen are license plate installations, fitting onto the rear license plate bolts. I would plan to install your rear camera near the roof line of the rig if at all possible. This keeps it out of much of the dirt and spray you will have near pavement level with the Class C. A good rear view camera is essential in a vehicle this size. Even with a good rear camera, there is no substitute for having a team mate watching your back side when backing up. I have had several close calls when backing up without someone watching my rear end when backing up. Once a stick from a nearby tree punctured the fiberglass rear near the roof, out of sight of the camera. Another time a tree limb hooked under the slide out cover fabric and tore it several inches. It is impossible to see everything.

Welcome to the forum cmcgairty, I just checked the Cummins website and quickly found the Cummins Onan site which has an RV Generator Handbook. Here is the web address for that: http://www.cumminsonan.com/rv/handbook/ The handbook has recommendations for oil without reference to specific models so it seems to be a blanket recommendation you could use. This is a comprehensive resource that would be valuable to any Cummins Onan Generator owner/operator. Unfortunately, I didn't find your specific model of generator listed in the listing of generator models. Not sure but suspect that the 2000 hours indicate an older model name that wasn't included in this handbook. However, there are resources on that site that should be useful including contacts for customer support and technical documents. You can also find service centers. I'm betting that if you can't find technical documents for your model that customer service will be able to help you. You should be able to get a replacement owners manual from Cummins. I have always found their support to be quite good. Give them a call or e-mail request, I'm sure you'll get a response.

SeaJay, Lucky you aren't parking at Zales or some other regular jewelery store. Maybe you should try Lowe's or Home Depot, at least Willa would find something you could use! Louise would be happy if we parked at Baskin-Robbins! One thing just came to mind. I was watching the news and there are 5 states that are facing midnight deadlines on their budgets. Most rest areas I am familiar with are state run. In the past we have seen some that are closed for remodeling and sometimes just closed with no repair activity showing. I suspect highway rest areas are likely to be high on the budget cutting list and we may begin to see more of them closed. I don't know of any source that lists closed rest areas other than going to individual states department of transportation web sites. Does anyone have a source that lists those rest areas that or closed? I see that the Next Exit has an on-line version but do they keep up to date on closed rest areas?

jmaz62 and 2driftrs, Thanks for contributing to the discussion. Selling our house took much longer than we wanted. We had it on the market all summer. We moved out on July 7, 2001. By September we had cleaned it out entirely and ready for the next owner. The market took a hit and loans became more expensive after 9-11. We decided to let it ride until we got the price we wanted for it. In truth, if it hadn't sold like it did, we would have become anxious and perhaps negotiated the price down some. You know what your situations are and what you want from your house. I would encourage you to take your time as much as possible with the sale. Selling a house isn't something most people do often and it would be a shame to be caught in a tight market and take a low sale price in the hurry to get out of the house. One possible way to deal with this might be to do some work camping to allow you to get on the road and still maintain the house payments and necessary maintenance on the home. Many campgrounds and parks offer a free site for doing work in the campground. There are also income possibilities for mobile workers. The best source I know for these opportunities is: www.workamper.com I did this for a while but decided it took too much from my travel experience. Others have found employment that they enjoy and consider it an important part of their experience.

There is excellent advice and information above. I'll just add our own experience with rest stops and other stopping places. We have stayed at rest stops along the roads all over the US and a few in Canada. We have never been asked to leave. If an area is posted, we'll not push the issue unless we are desperate for a place to stay. Most rest areas are noisy and too close to the highway for peaceful sleep but we have an eye out for the good ones where you are away from traffic. Then if we can get an end spot next to a curb, we'll put out our slides. We like Wal-Mart if we can find one. We always ask and make a purchase - you always need something from Wal-Mart. On my way in to ask permission, I will round up stray carts near where we are parked and return them to a cart corral. Likewise, any cart I bring out will go back to a cart corral. We have stayed at Casino's, city parks, grocery stores, Lowe's, Home Depot, Linens and Things in a shopping center (there's a story- below) and on a bowling alley parking lot. We've stayed on the parking lot of closed shops and stores, once on the parking lot next to a closed factory. We usually do this when we are traveling long distance and we don't make a practice of stopping until shortly before dark so it isn't like we are staying for half a day. Likewise, we are out early in the morning, not lingering after business starts to pick up in the morning. We usually stop after driving for a while in the morning and have breakfast. On two occasions, we were able to park on museum parking lots before visiting the museum the next day. We had permission in both cases. In all cases, we try to park as far from the store entrance as we can. Think about your exit also. Try to park so that you can't be parked in and not be able to get away in the morning when you want to. We have air leveling so don't have to worry about jacks and can level without worrying about damaging the surface. A previous coach had jacks and if I wasn't careful, they would punch through asphalt. Can't be doing that on a parking lot! If we have a spot where there will be no traffic on the drivers side, we'll put out our slides. We have two slides on the drivers side of the coach. We use our generator as necessary but are careful to try to shut it down before we go to bed for the night. We even do this in truck stops. During the high fuel prices last summer, we noticed many of the truckers were shutting down at night. This was a welcome change. We have never had a problem with vandalism or with any threatening activity of any kind. We are very careful to keep the toad, bays and our door locked at all times. If possible we'll park under or near lights for added security. A recent article mentioned keeping the toad keys on your bed stand and using the alarm button if there is a problem. I consider this a good idea. One word of advice I haven't see above, if you are the vehicle driver don't imbibe in any adult beverages. You wouldn't want to explain to a HP officer that you couldn't drive because you had been drinking and were in no shape to drive. This could be cause for a long discussion and/or a signed note from officer friendly! You could try the line that you are just too tired to drive and wanted to get some sleep. It would be hard for an officer to insist on your driving under those circumstances. We have found excellent parking at rest stops along I-70 in Kansas where they have loops for the dump station and you can park along the loop without obstructing traffic. That keeps you away from the trucks and the loops are usually farther from the highway. There are large unpaved truck parking lots along I-80 in Wyoming. We were parked at one of these one evening and watched a herd of antelope gather together and move up into the hills nearby as we ate our dinner. I-80 in Utah has rest stops well off the highway about an hour west of Salt Lake City. You'll find favorites along your frequent routes of travel and develop an eye for other good spots. Our stop at Linens and Things was in New Jersey, just south of New York City. We were looking for a stopping spot. It was after dark and we were totally lost. We had encountered a RR bridge we just barely got under. We got turned around and back to the shopping center we had passed earlier. This time we pulled in. The emptiest part of the lot was next to Linens and Things. We had a good nights sleep which was ended at about 6:15 a.m. when the manager knocked on our door. He was very nice but asked us to move soon because we were parked where he instructed his employees to park. I told him we would do so. He asked where we were headed and I told him Connecticut. I explained that we were lost in the dark last night and couldn't find our way back to the highway. He gave me directions to get back to the highway and then added that we should be on the interstate ASAP because we wanted to be across the Tappanzee Bridge before 7:00 a.m. or it would take us several hours stuck in a traffic jam to get across. I thanked him and we got on the road in about 10 minutes. Breakfast was in Connecticut that morning!

We are still in Missouri which is unheard of since we began living full time in our motor home. The weather has made us wonder if we need our heads examined. We keep telling ourselves this is why we haven't done this before. We were going to be here later than usual this year and we have two grandchildren with June birthdays we haven't celebrated with them for a while so, why not make the best of it? Kaitlyn is six years old this year. For her birthday she chose to go to the Magic House (www.magichouse.org) in Webster Groves, Missouri. As a teacher I had been there many times before, even taken groups of students numerous times. The Magic House has grown since I was last there! They have a large parking lot and on a weekday it was packed. Inside the place was swarming with children. It was noisy with kids everywhere. Kaitlyn and her brother Ryan fell in with the crowd quickly. There were dress up costumes in story land and a beanstalk for the kids to get from floor to floor. They could navigate that faster than adults on the stairs. There were mysteries to be solved complete with revolving bookcases and hidden rooms. The kids could crawl through the duct work to find clues and then go through the fireplace into the next room. There were slides, puzzles, a shadow wall with a strobe light to record your movements on the wall. The kids and adults played with one thing after another. Both of them enjoyed the rooftop garden. With plastic vegetables in a mock garden, they could harvest their crop and then cook and eat in the kid size house. Kaitlyn did a thorough job of sweeping out and cleaning the house while Ryan re-planted the vegetable garden before we could leave this exhibit. This attraction rivals any I have seen for activities you can touch and do. Louise and I have a tradition of being swept out of places by the cleaning crew at closing time and this was no exception. The children were going to be sure they got their money's worth. Dinner at a local favorite Italian restaurant finished Kaitlyn's birthday celebration. Just over a week later, Ryan had his 9th birthday. Given his choice, Ryan will ask to go to the St. Louis Zoo. Perhaps it was the hot weather and some encouragement from Mom that led him to choose the City Museum (www.citymuseum.org). Located in downtown St. Louis, the City Museum is a unique collection of urban discards from factory machinery, stores, banks, buildings and other items. You can't possibly see everything there is to see here. The ceilings, walls and floor are covered in items from the city. There is an extensive climbing area outside the museum that goes up three stories to several airplane fuselages then on to other items like a crane, tree house, and much more. You can enter this corridor made mostly of tubes constructed of rebar from several points in the museum. Within the museum, every surface is covered with things to see and do. A two story slide is covered with conveyor rollers so as kids slide down they can hold their hands up and spin the rollers as they slide down to the first floor. Ryan immediately headed for the aquarium and we spent over an hour looking at all the animals. There were sharks and rays to touch. Docents brought around snakes and turtles for children to touch. Both Ryan and Kaitlyn were turtle rustlers for the turtle race. Even in the aquarium there were tunnels everywhere for the kids to crawl through. They would disappear in one place and we never knew where they would reappear. Another area had skateboard type surfaces for the kids to run and slide on. Another extended time here. You just can't wear out the kids. Once again, we were among the last to leave the museum. After leaving the City Museum, we stopped at Lambert International Airport to pick up Louise who had been in Kansas City trying out for Jeopardy! This is her second try to get on the program. She qualified last time but they select from the pool of qualified applicants by a random process and she wasn't chosen within the year of her qualification so she had to try out again. Our final stop for the evening was Canoli's Restaurant in Florissant, Missouri. This restaurant has been a favorite of Louise and I for many years. We enjoyed sharing it with our daughter and her family. About a week before all the above started, we spent a Sunday afternoon with my daughter and her family. The four of them, Louise and I all rode about a seven mile stretch of the Katy Trail State Park (www.mostateparks.com/katytrail). The Katy Trail is a rails to trails park that starts in St. Charles, Missouri and follows the Missouri River westward almost 3/4 of the way across the state. Ryan has his own bicycle and did the complete 14 mile round trip on his own. Kaitlyn has a half bicycle that attaches to dad's bike. She can pedal or coast as she pleases. We rode, drank water, ate strawberries and apples we carried with us and picked mulberries off the trees along the trail. As we packed up our bicycles, we decided that pizza was the perfect end to the day so it was off to CJ's Pizza in Foristell, Missouri. One of the treats of living in St. Louis is the excellent theater we have at the Muny Opera (www.muny.org). In an outdoor setting in Forest Park, site of the 1904 Worlds Fair, is a theater which seats nearly 13,000 people. We took the children to the Muny Opera for a production of Annie on Tuesday, the 27th. We were prepared for hot weather with cool drinks and wet cloths. It turned out to be quite a comfortable evening. Both children enjoyed their first theater production. This afternoon the kids came to the door of the motor home and asked me to go for a hike in the woods with them. Ryan had the Rocks and Minerals book that he got for his birthday and he wanted to go find some rocks. We hiked down to the creek and searched for rocks along the creek. We found several but Ryan was most interested in just exploring the woods and stream. Kaitlyn was always out in front, often somewhat off course. I had to keep guiding her back toward the house on our return home. Being with the children keeps us young. We'll be leaving here soon but staying here in Missouri with our children and grandchildren has been a wonderful experience we hope to repeat often in the future.

We stayed at White's City Resort near Carlsbad in the spring of 2008. Rates were $20 for 50 amp, water and sewer. During the night our water went off because a sprinkler head broke and we had a fountain for entertainment until it was capped. They had it repaired in short order and our site remained dry. Other than that, the park was pretty bare bones. If you are looking for a family campground with a pool and playground, this isn't the place. The whole White City area is a dieing enterprise. There was one nice restaurant there and we had a nice meal with adult beverages. The campground was quiet and convenient for access to the park. I believe we were less than a mile from the entrance to the park.

Several Seminars that I will recommend for all RV'ers if you haven't been to them already. These are my personal recommendations. My intent is not to take away from other excellent seminars at the convention. See: Conventions:Bowling Green:Seminars on the FMCA Home Page for a full listing of all seminars. I have attended all these seminars in the past. They are all safety oriented and they are worth your time and in one circumstance, your money. Most of these deal with hot topics on the forum. The convention in Bowling Green will be your opportunity to learn more about these important subjects. FIRE & LIFE SAFETY IN YOUR RV, SEMINAR 14 - Monday 8:15a.m., Tuesday 3:00 p.m., Thursday 11:30 a.m. You must hear this presentation. Mac McCoy is an excellent presenter and the information is of life and death importance. I asked Louise to attend this seminar after I did. She was as impressed as I was with this seminar. SUPPLEMENTAL TOWED CAR BRAKING, SEMINAR 3 - Monday 10:00 a.m. There are lots of questions about this on the forum and here is a chance to get the word from experts. The exhibitors at the convention are the presenters. RV WEIGHT & TIRE SAFETY, SEMINAR 2 - Tuesday 9:45 a.m. If you haven't been to this seminar in the past, it is a must. You will learn how to determine your proper tire inflation pressure. Be sure to sign up for the coach weighing which is done on the last day of the convention. You will get individual weights for each wheel position on your motor home. This is the essential starting point for determining proper tire pressure. RV DRIVING SAFETY PROGRAM, SESSION 1, SEMINAR 13 - 9:45 a.m. Tuesday and SESSION 2, Seminar 13 - 9:45 a.m. Wednesday. This is the best $20 and 6 hours you could spend at the convention. Three hours Tuesday, three hours Wednesday. If you own or drive an RV, you must attend this seminar and take notes! I blew a front tire at 55 miles per hour and suffered very little damage to the coach because I learned what was happening, why it happened and how to manage it in this seminar. Only one of dozens of things that are covered in these sessions. This seminar alone can make the whole convention worthwhile. Have I said enough? You may also be able to get a discount on your insurance with your certificate of completion for this course. Check with your insurance company. Notice there are conflicts so you may not see all these in one year. Good reason to return next year! And just when you think you know it all, things change. If you haven't been to these seminars in several years it might be good to drop in again to find out what is new - or what you forgot you knew! For those new to FMCA Conventions, a reminder: If this is your first FMCA convention, don't miss the ORIENTATION FOR FIRST-TIME ATTENDEES, SEMINAR 11 - Monday 11:45 a.m. One final disclaimer: Check your convention program to verify dates and times of seminars. See you in Bowling Green!

The thermometer was within striking distance of 100 degrees for the last week here in Missouri. During the day the air conditioners ran almost continuously even with our sun screens on all our windows. Since we are full timers we had sun screens custom made for all our windows. Motor Coach Designs took the measurements over the phone and we had them installed at the Monaco International Rally before the FMCA Convention in Redmond, Oregon in 2004. We don't use them all the time but if the weather is really hot or if we are parked in warm weather for a longer time, I'll put them on the motor home. They make a real difference. At our winter retreat in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, we have them on all winter long. Where we are now in my daughter's driveway, we have nice shade in the morning but the afternoon sun shines directly on our front window followed by late afternoon sun on the passenger side of the coach. Awnings provide a little relief as well and we use them on the windows that have them. Last year I installed one over the living room window on the passenger side. Normally this window would be covered by the large awning but that awning is a Carefree of Colorado Mirage Awning. It is a very convenient power awning but can't stand the wind. Our winter residence in Texas regularly has winds greater than the 12 MPH limit for the awning. As a result there are many days when the awning can't be out. I finally broke down and installed the smaller window awning under the large awning. It has been worth the expense. Now I have a confession to make. I recently had the large Mirage awning out late one evening to keep the afternoon sun off the side of the coach and out of my eyes as it peeked under the side of the window awning. After the sun set, I thought about it several times but was never up and moving around when the thought crossed my mind. So that night we went to bed with the awning out. I awoke at 3:00 a.m. to a loud crash. During the night a rain shower had come through. Water doesn't drain off the Mirage Awning, it pools on the awning. Carefree has a wind sensor for this awning but it doesn't have a rain sensor. I had several incidents before where small showers pooled water on the awning and I was always amazed that the arms supporting the awning held the weight of the water. This time, there was too much rain and the awning collapsed. One arm was bent almost to the ground. Another was bent slightly and the one by the front door was sticking out straight, right through the canvas that had ripped almost all the way to the door. I was able to bring the awning in to secure it out of the wind which was now blowing strong enough to make it flap. Where was the wind before the storm? It could have saved my dignity. I called our insurance company, GMAC, and confessed that I had failed to close the awning. They took the information and asked for an estimate on the repairs. They would cut the check as soon as they had the estimate. We have never had an argument from GMAC about paying a claim. So I'm off to Freedom RV in Wentzville for some repair work. I downloaded the service manual for the awning from the Carefree web site and set out to disassemble the arms and canvas so I could drive to the shop. I took the motor home in for an estimate on Thursday the 18th, parts were ordered on Friday and shipped from Carefree the following Friday. As soon as they arrive, we'll get in to have the work done and then we'll set out for Monaco International and FMCA in Ohio. The week ahead looks a little cooler so that is a break and the awning repair won't necessitate any painting. All the painted parts of the awning survived without damage as did the side of the coach. It should be a one day job. Lucky me!

I've been reading about the battery cut-off switch which some are calling the Salesman's Switch. The nickname comes from the fact that there is a battery cut-off switch in the power panel near the battery compartment. You have to have a key to get into that compartment. So, Monaco installed a switch by the door so a salesman showing the coach to a prospective customer could walk in the door and turn on the battery power with a flick of the switch by the door. The bottom line on this is that the savvy users are simply bypassing the relay by connecting the two large cables on either side of the relay. This effectively makes the switch by the door inoperative and you would have to cut off battery power at the panel in the rear near the batteries. Why buy a relay that is not needed? Simply bypass it with a loop of heavy wire or remove the relay entirely and connect the two wires together directly.

If you haven't found it yet, everyone reading this topic should also take a look at a recently posted response to an article under Legislative action: Registering an RV using a Montana LLC. The third post by tmoning has links to two articles about motor home registrations in Montana that have backfired on their motor home owners. Certainly something to think about!

We will always get electric hook-ups if possible. I have been to rallies where there was no electric available. You can make it with a generator. The fuel usage is minimal, ours is a 7.5 KW Onan and uses between 1/4 and 1/2 gallon per hour depending on the load. Do be sure to park with plenty of fuel as most coaches have a fuel cut-off for the generator at about 1/4 tank. Once you get below 1/4 tank, you will lose your generator! One time we parked with less than a 1/4 tank of diesel and the electric wasn't turned on until the next day. It was a hot miserable night! Another consideration for you. If you do plan to use the generator, you may be parked on grass. In this circumstance, we have been asked to place a pan of water below the exhaust pipe for the generator to prevent the possibility of starting a fire. Bring an old cake pan or other flat wide pan to use for water just in case. Some people also use some kind of stack to route the exhaust gases up and away from the motor home. We have never done this but you might need something if you are concerned about the exhaust gases entering your motor home or disturbing your neighbors. You will be parked pretty much cheek by jowl. I can usually get my large awning out to its full extension! The advice on the water/waste tanks is excellent. Last year at Minneapolis we had the best site ever for FMCA. We were in the regular campground for the fairgrounds. The electric was on when we parked and we had a 200' walk to the showers. The shower rooms were nice and clean and we got a good shower every day! I don't expect to get that kind of break every year!

Doug, I've been following your trip on your blog. Thanks for the update on the fuel mileage. Now that you have picked up the toad, we'll find out how it affects your fuel mileage on the return trip! You may be able to offset the additional weight and its effect on your mileage with your anticipated slower travel. Enjoy the trip home.

Here is an interesting web site that addresses your question with a series of analysis you can do to determine where the electric is going! If you go through the processes described here, you can find out if you have something drawing down your battery. One question, were you storing your motor home before taking it to CW for the adapter boxes? If so, I would assume the batteries were holding with no problem. This would make the adapter boxes and their installation suspect and you can start with a close look at them. If you just started storing the coach, then it could be anything. There are a number of electrical resources on this site. For the rest of them go to the bottom of the page and hit the HOME button! http://www.dasplace.net/BatteryPower/Battery.html

I have two things to add to this discussion. First, to Travelingsages, it is possible to adjust the overpressure adjustment on the Pressure Pro but it is system wide, you can't adjust just the overpressure on the toad. I would go ahead and adjust the overpressure limit to 15 or even 20% for the whole system. My motor home tires regularly go up 15 to 20 pounds when driving on a hot summer day. Also, when you are in a warmer area and your tire pressure goes up as it will in warmer locations, bleed off some air. Do this when the tires are cold in the morning, set the pressure where you want it with a tire gauge. When you do this, it should take you over one minute. This will re-set the Pressure Pro to the new pressure in the tire and then you shouldn't have any problem with the overpressure alarm. Pressure Pro monitors your tires but it is not an install and forget it system. You should be adjusting your tire pressures for seasonal changes in temperature. Traveling may also bring about the need for pressure adjustments. Moving from cool mountain temperatures in summer to hot temperatures at lower altitudes also require adjusting tire pressure. Likewise, going from hot summer temperatures like the current near 100 degrees in Texas to mountain temperatures in the 60's and 70's in the summer will require tire pressure adjustments also. Of course these statements apply to the toad and your motor home as well. My second point, I recently had an incident that proved the value of the Pressure Pro. We were parked in an RV park near Springfield, Illinois. We were traveling with our grandsons and planning on doing some sightseeing the next day. As I prepared to go to bed, the alarm on the Pressure Pro went off. I checked and the alarm was for the right rear tire on the toad. The pressure was about 5 pounds low. I wasn't going to do anything with it at that time, I went to bed resolved to finding a flat tire the next morning. When I got up and went outside, the tire was still inflated and the pressure hadn't dropped too much so I drove to a tire shop and got the tire repaired. It was a large bolt that we had run over. Without the Pressure Pro I might not have known that the tire was losing pressure until it went completely flat. I recently replaced the set of tires on the toad and had steel tire valves installed on all wheels. They cost just $4.50 each and seem to be improving the signal strength from the sensors. I used to have a sensor or two drop out on the toad from time to time. Our last trip out they all worked 100%, no occasional dropping out.

Montie, The bubble level next to the drivers seat must be at odds with the doors and/or floor. My preference is for doors that swing neutral when level but that depends on the construction of the motor home. It is possible for the doors to be off vertical from the floor. This will result in a condition where the floor is level but the doors still swing. Use a good carpenters level and place it near the refrigerator on the floor. Level the coach using this level. Then mark the new "center" on your level by the drivers seat using a suitable marker. Or, you could realign the bubble level near the drivers seat if it can be adjusted by inserting layers of paper or other thin material (shims) under one side or the other until the bubble centers when the carpenters level shows level. Or you could carry a carpenters level and use it rather than the circular level. Why the refrigerator you ask? Because the most critical item to be level is the refrigerator. It's operation is dependent on its being close to level. Still, if it is within a degree or two of level it will work fine. So if you want to level using the doors as an indicator, do so and you should be OK with the refrigerator. If you choose to use the doors, level until they hold steady in any position and then adjust the circular bubble level by adjusting it or remarking it. In my case, I have two swinging doors, the door to the toilet and the shower door. I know we are off level if they swing strongly in one direction or the other. I'll tolerate a slight tendency to swing but not a strong swing in one direction or another. Mine are conveniently sensitive to left-right level (the shower door) and front/rear level, the toilet door. Both seem to be very close to vertical in relation to the floor.

One of the basic of tenants of towing a toad four wheels down is that the tow bar should be horizontal. I saw a motor home today towing a toad with the tow bar decidedly sloping downward toward the toad. This is a very dangerous condition. If your tow bar is above or below horizontal, you have an unstable system. The most dangerous condition is the tow bar sloping downward toward the toad. In the event of a sudden stop, the tendency of the motor home is to dip at the nose and rise at the rear. This increases the angle of the tow bar downward toward the toad. If the toad has no brakes to assist in stopping, it will push upward on the rear of the motor home and may lift the motor home enough to slide beneath the motor home. When the rear end of the motor home comes down, it will impact the toad. This will result in serious damage to the motor home and the toad. Only slightly less dangerous is a tow bar sloping upward toward the toad (also less likely). Still, in this situation, the toad could ride up over the tow bar and impact the motor home in an emergency stop. When your motor home and toad are in road ready condition, examine the tow bar to see if it slopes in one direction or the other. It should be within 5 or at the most 10 degrees of horizontal. If not, adjust the angle by installing an vertical offset in your receiver. Be sure that the strength of the adapter will match your toad weight. If an adapter isn't available, a modification of the receiver on your motor home may be necessary to adjust the angle of the tow bar. In the case which I saw on the interstate highway traveling in the opposite direction, it was a gas motor home with a front engine which further increases this tendency to dip at the nose and raise the rear of the motor home. Also, the toad was a smaller toad, likely to be without supplementary braking. Despite the smaller weight of the toad, the lighter rear end of the motor home makes this combination more likely to cause problems. Consult the installation instructions for your tow bar for verification and act accordingly.

I have the Flying J fuel prices page bookmarked and use it frequently as we travel across the country. I also have bookmarked other diesel fuel suppliers, Pilot http://www.pilotcorp.com/, TA http://www.tatravelcenters.com/, Love's http://www.loves.com/, and MSN gasoline at http://autos.msn.com/everyday/GasStationsBeta.aspx. In addition I have bookmarked a number of web sites for truckers that list all truck stops by state. These are helpful if I need to find the nearest station along my route. Trucker.com at http://www.trucker.com/TruckStops.aspx, AITA at http://www.aitaonline.com/TS/Locations.html, Truckers Choice (covers central US and some of east coast) at http://www.truckerschoice.com/truckstops.shtml, Truck Stop Info at http://www.truckstopinfoplus.com/. None of these sites have price information. What I really want to know is... are other retailers like the Mr. Fuel located just a mile from where I am parked beating Flying J consistently on diesel prices? If they are, let us all know your local information so we might look for better prices. I have never found retailers, even quick shops, beating FJ on diesel prices. Being from the area where Mr. Fuel and Flying J (Warrenton, MO) are, I knew their prices were almost always identical. But now Mr. Fuel has been consistently lower. Jim Tate might be right and if so, I need to quit going to Flying J by default and start shopping for diesel again. Meanwhile if you are traveling through Missouri on I-70, stop at Mr. Fuel at exit 203 for the best price on diesel for miles around. Prices remain at $2.399 as of today, June 23, 2009!

Welcome to the forum lp5151. I can only guess about what your problem may be. When we start our generator we have a 12V supply that is momentarily interrupted. I know that because our XM radio receiver shuts off and won't come back on until we turn it on again. I don't know what supply that is, the XM was installed by an auto shop and I think they just picked a wire and used it! For us it is a minor irritation. The awning I understand would be a more irritating problem. It could be that the awning senses a momentary interruption in electrical supply and is programmed to retract when that happens. There might be a way to wire the awning to a non-interrupted electrical supply to stop this activity. You haven't told us what kind of motor home and awning you have. Doing so may help you get linked up with someone who has had the same problem. Is your awning operated (extend/retract) on 110V or 12V? Are the control circuits 110V or 12V? The more information we have, the better answers you will get.

After taking our grandsons on a 10-day tour of three states, their younger sisters deserved a trip of their own. We took the recommendation of my sister and took them to the Toy and Miniature Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. The girls are 6 and 4, so the trip was a short one. This was for their sake and ours! Since we were traveling to Kansas City, I offered my mother, 85 years old, a ride to KC to visit my sister who lives in Liberty, Missouri. Mom said yes, then no, and finally yes, so she traveled with us. We put her in the copilot seat for the ride so she could ride in comfort. The girls were buckled up on the couch with a supply of toys and games between them. This kept them happy during the trip. We hooked up and left my daughter's home about 10 on Friday morning. We picked up my mother about 20 minutes later. The trip to Kansas City from Foristell, Missouri, is about 200 miles. We stopped for lunch at a rest stop near Boonville, about halfway across the state. After eating, we didn't hear much from the girls. I had a nice conversation with my mother during the trip. My wife, Louise, was napping in the back after the girls went to sleep. My sister met us at an interchange on the highway, where we transferred Mom from the motorhome to her car. Mom would stay with her for the weekend and then return home with us. We continued on to Smith's Fork Campground below the Smithville Lake Dam to our campsite. There were numerous sites to choose from. The first request of the girls was to make the bed for the night! Apparently the boys had been impressed by this chore we assigned them and the girls wanted to get with it right away. While I hooked up, Louise took the girls to the playground. The girls did finally get their chance to turn the couch into a bed. After trying about four different arrangements, they finally settled down and went to sleep. We had some rain during the night, but we woke to sunny skies on Saturday morning. The Toy and Miniature Museum was interesting. They had an extensive display of doll houses, which the girls explored from one end to another. They really enjoyed the room of marbles. They liked the story time and drawing their own pictures and coloring them. Much of the museum was more adult oriented and we passed through those areas quickly. By the time we got to the gift shop, the girls were more interested in finding something to eat than shopping. So it was off to KFC for lunch. We discussed an after-lunch activity at the Kansas City Zoo, but the rain showers were back, so we abandoned that idea. We returned to the motorhome, where we had an abundance of indoor activities for the girls. An evening barbecue with my sister and her family went on as planned. The rain stopped late in the afternoon, so we got to visit outdoors. A niece adopted the girls for the evening and they had plenty of playtime. Overnight, another good rain shower ended before I had to disconnect utilities. The trip home on Sunday was uneventful and the girls were happy to be home with their parents again.

For several weeks now, diesel prices in Missouri have been "abnormal." The old standby for low diesel prices, FJ has prices that are 12 to 14 cents per gallon above some other suppliers. At exit 203 on I-70, an independent supplier, Mr. Fuel (has dedicated truck/RV pumps) has had diesel prices at $2.399 for the last several weeks. Meanwhile, FJ prices have been around $2.50 and higher. I have noticed that QT stores also are advertising diesel at $2.399 across the state. I won't be going into a QT any time soon as the quick shops are just too difficult to get in and out of the pumps for a big rig. If you are traveling through the mid-west, check the local prices as compared to the FJ prices. Are locals in other areas noticing the same thing in other parts of the country? Should I be looking for fuel suppliers other than FJ? Is there a fuel price web site that gives fuel prices for dealers other than the major suppliers? Share your secrets to finding the best fuel prices. If anyone has information that explains why this unusual situation exists I would love to hear it.

I have a Garmin eTrex, not an in-dash installation but it allows me to select my preferences for routing. I program it for "bus" when I want the main highways and specify fastest route. Between those two it usually stays with the main roads. When I am adventuresome, I'll select car and shortest route and then the roads get more interesting, sometimes too much so! My co-pilot/navigator keeps a trusty Rand McNally Truckers Atlas (Flying J has several versions) on her lap and we discuss what the GPS is planning and she gives me "suggestions" as to improving the route. I've learned to listen to her "suggestions" so I don't have to look at her smug "I told you so" smile! It takes a while to learn how any GPS works best. Until you feel confident with yours, keep a good road atlas handy and use it as a means of modifying any route you don't feel confident about. The thing I like most about the GPS is that it gives me a way of finding places I wouldn't know how to locate without stopping for directions and we all know about the male aversion to doing that! I also enjoy being able to know how far it is to the next turn and the total distance to our destination. I use it even when I know the route well, just to give me an idea of how we are progressing and when we may arrive.