Going On The Road with Monte & Rose

November 23-30, 2014

Gold Head Branch SP, Keystone Heights, FL

Sunday-

We were still not certain if the water in our bedroom slide was coming in through the window. The only other place Monte thought it might be coming in was through the bracket holes where the slide topper is attached.

The First thing I did was to begin removing the slide out topper.

After inserting a pin in the tension spring I was able to

remove the end tube of the topper roll.

Then I removed the mounting brackets

that hold the slide out topper assy.

I had to remove the brackets to clean and reseal the screws.

I used a solvent made by 3M to clean automotive finishes

designed not to damage the clear coat finish of a car. This

solvent also leaves no residue.

Here are the two brackets nice and clean.

This also allowed me to clean both sides of the fabric of the topper.

After cleaning all of the residue off the sides I was

ready to apply a bead of rv sealant ( sicaflex) to the seams of the

outer edges of the slide.

I proceeded to apply the sealant to the screw holes.

I then applied sealant to the back of the topper mounting

brackets and put sealant on the screws and reattached the

brackets to the side of the bedroom slide.

The brackets are now sealed properly.

Reattaching the slide out topper to the slide

mounting brackets.

Remounting the deflection shield to the mounting brackets.

The job is now complete. Hopefully no more bad water.

My next project was to remove the bedroom window and reseal it.

I cleaned the window frame and outside of the bedroom slide where

the window is mounted.

I used a strip of butyl tape to outline the inside portion

of the window frame.

I reinstalled the window frame and another possible leak sealed.

I also used sikaflex sealant around all of the seams of the slide out frame.

The water had managed to leak into the bottom of the bedroom slideout. A major

flaw in the design of the Keystone RV Bedroom Slideout Floor. Water leaks in and

causes the wood to rot, causing the carpet in the floor to get wet and get moldy.

Monday-Now to fix the brakes in the parks GEM Electric Car.

It finally warmed up enough to wear shorts. Monte called me to ask if I would help him bleed brakes.

I finally got the brake parts that were ordered and Rose was going

to help me bleed the brakes.

I don’t know what that means but I said sure, come pick me up. I was bored so the prospect of doing some “work” perked me up.

Basically I had to pump the brake pedal on command, stop and then pump some more.

I had to constantly change pumping from my right to left leg-it was actually a pretty good workout-so much so that when I was done my legs were a little wobbly.

Rose pumped the brake pedal and I continued to add brake

fluid to the master brake reservoir.

I had to bleed each brake cylinder at a time to remove air

from the brake lines

All done the brakes all work and the brake pedal now is working and the

GEM Car had good brakes and is now safe to drive in the park.

Tuesday-

It was overcast all morning.

After lunch Monte planned on pulling out the toilet to install the waste ball seal kit we had purchased at Camping World last week. Just as he was about to go out to dump the tank in preparation for removing the toilet, it began to rain. Oh well it will have to wait until tomorrow.

The rest of the day it poured. We were very disappointed to discover there is still water coming in from somewhere in the bedroom slide. We just can’t figure out where it is coming in because everything has been sealed and re-sealed. RRRRRRRRRRR!

Wednesday-

The sun finally came out.

When Monte came home from work we tackled a job we have been putting off-installing a new waste ball seal.

Had to pop off the plastic caps from the screws holding

the toilet to the floor.

I next removed the water line, so I could remove the toilet.

DON'T FORGET TO TURN OFF THE WATER.

Out comes the toilet and now to plug the hold with

some plastic bags to stop odors and keep parts from

falling down the rabbit hole.

I think everyone should carry your toilet through your

rv and out the door.

Out the door with the little Jonny.

Fixing your toilet can be very rewarding.

New seals and gaskets ready to install.

First you have to take the toilet apart.

Remove the pedal.

take the water line from the base off.

Having the proper tools helps the job go easier.

Remove the screws holding the base together to the bowl out.

Turn the toiled over and now remove the base.

Clean the base.

Remove the old ball seal from the base of the toilet.

If all else fails, read the instructions.

Here is the old gasket seal.

Here you can see how the ball seal fits over the waste ball.

Now you can clean the ball with a good cleaner.

Below you can really clean the bowl more cleaner.

Below are some new o ring seals for the water valve.

You can find replacements at your local ACE-Hardware Store.

Lubricate the o ring with silicone grease before reassembly.

Below put the parts back in the water valve holder.

Below lubricate the bowl seal and reinstall on the ball assy.

Put the base together with the bowl.

Reattach the water hose to the water valve intake.

Reinstall the pedal, being careful to make sure all

the moving parts go into the right pockets of the pedal.

When finished the ball valve with open and close with ease.

Every thing should work with little effort.

Below now you carry the potty back inside for reinstallation

and testing out.

Reattach water line and turn on water. Make sure your

assistant is there to watch for any major leaks.

Toilet is now ready for bottom testing.

Thursday-Thanksgiving

I didn’t feel like making a traditional Thanksgiving meal for just the two of us.

I make turkey roll-ups (turkey sliced meat rolled up with stuffing inside), gravy, sweet potato, corn and cranberry sauce.

The entire meal took a half hour to prepare using microwave/convection oven and it was delicious. No leftovers.

We ate a little earlier than we normally would eat dinner so it was still light out when we finished giving us a great opportunity to take a walk.

The amphitheater

We took the path along the water to the bathhouse.

Monte surprised me when he pulled out his GPS that he had loaded with a few geo caches in the park.

We are getting warmer

Warmer still

No-not under here

Here it is but darn it, we didn’t bring anything with us to put inside.

Luckily there was a pen inside so we could sign the log.

After putting everything back in, we returned the log covering the hole.

We left it just like we found it-ready for the next person.

On the walk back to our site we took a trail we hadn’t taken before where I noticed these large tracks. I’m not sure what creature made them and I don’t want to find out.

I can’t end this entry without giving thanks for all the blessings in my life-my health, my family (parents, children, grandchildren, extended family and my soul mate, Monte) and being able to live out one of my lifelong dreams of adventuring.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Friday-

Treasure hunting AKA geo caching-

We had so much fun discovering the geo cache on our walk the evening before so we set off again today.

We took the path along the lake where we encountered a guy wearing shorts standing in the water fishing. BRRRRRRR

The route for the first geo cache took us up the hill from the lake.

Along the roadway for a short distance

Down a trail

We are within a hundred feet

Fifty feet

This one was too easy

We came prepared this time-I put in one of our cards and a little jar of peppermint.

The next cache was less than a half a mile away near the Old Mill.

Too easy

This cache was a popular one having been signed by many people including some earlier today.

There were lots of little trinkets inside.

The next cache proved to be a little more difficult to locate. We crossed the bridge leading away from the Old Mill.

It had warmed up considerably

The route took us along the Ridge Trail.

When the arrow pointed down the ravine I thought there was some kind of mistake.

But Monte began descending so I followed him

Down and down we went.

I was not looking forward to climbing back up the hill

Could this be it?

Sure enough there it was hidden under some leaves in an ammunition box chained to a tree.

We took all the trinkets out-

I got my eye on you!

Monte signed the log and then returned treasure to its box

Climbing up wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be but I was happy there was a bench at the top to take a wee little break.

Since we were already more than halfway along the Ridge Trail we continued along knowing we would have to climb the stairs leading out of the ravine.

Huffing and puffing along.

At the top we walked back and forth trying to find the next cache.

According to the GPS we were right on top of it. Monte read the accompanying notes to the cache and discovered it was an earth cache so we really were right on top of it because the ravine was the cache. DUH

We were getting very thirsty by this time because we hadn’t brought along any water so we decided to search for only one more cache on our way back located near Sheeler Lake.

Down the path to the lake

This way

We are within ten feet.

The notes indicated the cache would be closed with a combination lock. Clues for the combination would be on a metal disc.

We located the disc but could not find the cache. Darn.

Could it be under this bench? NO

Time to give up-we still had two miles to walk back to our rig.

At six we made our way to one of the other volunteer areas in the park.

We were invited to share a campfire.

What a lovely way to end a fun day of treasure hunting.

Saturday-

Prior to embarking on our great adventure Monte and I used to spend many a weekend going to garage sales and flea markets. We would delight in finding a real treasure. But now that we live in such tight quarters we have become accustomed to having the bare necessities and therefore we very rarely go to flea markets.

SO we mainly went to the Waldo Flea Market just to walk around and get some fresh air.

The vendors at the market sell everything from antiques (mostly old junk) to new kitchen items. There were a few stalls offering fresh vegetables and several hardware booths.