Since I was feeling so energetic I decided to go up on the roof to take care of a long deferred project.....clean the roof. Even though one cannot see the top of the coach from the ground, and, therefore, cannot see how dirty it is, I knew it was filthy and it had been eating at me for a couple of months. Every time I went up on the roof I thought...."man I've got to take care of this disgusting mess". The last time I cleaned the roof was a year ago in Thibodaux, LA when we were staying on our friends property for 8 days. During our stay in Campbellsville the continual rain we had for days at a time during late November, and into December pretty much cleaned off the grime that had accumulated since the previous March, but since the end of December it has gotten very dirty again.
In the above picture you can see the contrast between the just cleaned rear portion of the coach roof, and what is yet to be cleaned.....it took me the better part of 3 hours to do the entire roof....and it kicked my butt, my back, and my hands, which are quite stiff this morning. BUT, the good news is I found out the roof paint is in much better condition than I thought. The oxidation is not as bad as I thought....I guess that's a testament to the quality paint job done by Newell at the factory. Now that it is clean I'm hoping to put a coat of wax on it before we leave Savannah.
After finishing the roof job I took a not shower, and rewarded myself some chips, salsa and a Shock Top brew.....then slipped into nap mode as I listened to 60's music on XM Radio.........sweet!
As I mentioned at the close of yesterday's entry my son, Chris, messaged me that our passports had arrived at the office, and he was sending them Priority Mail. If all goes well we should have them by Friday, or Saturday at the latest......soooo our written in Jello plans have changed again....we will remain where we are for at least 2 more days, if not 3. Now we will be able to legally re-enter the USA from Canada this July.
Surge/over voltage protector & electronic ignitor
I also received our latest Amazon Prime shipment of a couple items...a surge/over voltage/under voltage protector, and a new electronic ignitor for the BBQ. I wish I had the over voltage part of the protector back in Vancouver when I plugged into a 220 outlet by mistake and fried our microwave, and converter/charger. Love that free two day shipping!
We'll be moving to a new spot (#19) a little later today for our last 2, or 3 days here, so I've got to get out to the trailer and secure everything for the 300 foot move.
We're starting to get "hitch itch" again....looking forward to changing our view again....time to be moving northward to new scenery and adventures......from here we'll head northwest to Augusta, GA, home of Augusta National Golf Course....the home of the Masters Golf Tournament.
Thanks for stopping by!
I am glad you were able to take two concurrent showers!
ReplyDelete"After finishing the roof job I took a shower, and rewarded myself with a hot shower, some chips, salsa and a Shock Top brew..."
S.Smith
Scott, you have such a clever way of submitting your proof reading results....lol! Thank you, and I fixed it.....
DeleteDo you have an expense SS you can share? Thinking about going FT and wondering about the costs
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Mike
I don't remember when you said you will be in Lawrence Kansas but we want to meet you for dinner....our treat. You simply cannot leave the area without having some great Kansas City BBQ!
DeleteRod and Nancy
stitchesinteriors@gmail.com
Hi Mike! No, we don't have and income and expense spread sheet. What I can tell you is the only debt we have is our home in Ontario, California. We own the Newell, trailer and T-Bird out right. We live comfortably on $3500-$4000 per month.....part of our income are residual commissions from my insurance business, which fluctuate from month to month. Our biggest monthly expense is diesel fuel, followed by campground costs. We do a lot of courtesy parking (parking on the property of friends and relatives) and box store parking (Walmart, Lowe's, Cracker Barrel, etc.). I am able to do a lot of the repairs on our coach and trailer, but when the car breaks we usually have to take it in.
DeleteYou can control how much fuel you buy each month by how many miles you move each month.....since December 26th we have traveled a little over 1800 miles, which averages out to about 600 miles a month, or about 1/2 tank of fuel per month. A tank costs around $750 to fill up (180 gallons). Everyone has a unique travel style designed to fit their particular budget.
Hi Rod....as you know, our travel plans are written in Jello and change from week to week. Originally we had planned to be in Lawrence around the middle of May, but now it is looking like the first part of June. My e-mail is chockwald@gmail.com....feel free to e-mail me your contact information, and I will reciprocate....when we get closer we'll be in contact. Would love to meet ya'll!
DeleteThanks for the info Clarke. I was trying to zero in on the MH maintenance. I know you do a lot of it on your own, but what about the regular maintenance on the chassis and engine. I just saw TLE mention it was an 82, I thought it was an 87. Only a Newell would bring so much enjoyment being 30yrs old.
DeleteYep, it is a 1982....we've owned her for just over 5 years now. I spend about $500-600 per year on preventative maintenance. The only mechanical issue I've had since we hit the road was replacing the water pump in Tyler, TX in February of 2012...just a few weeks after we hit the road. I was able to do that myself, and it happened in the driveway at my sister-in-law's property.....had it happened on the Interstate in West Texas it might have been a different story, but all told it cost me a little over $300 to fix it....most of that was to replace the coolant (23 gallons @ $10/gallon).
ReplyDeleteWhen we first got the coach there were some things I needed to fix....1) the cruise control - I had it replace with a more modern electronic one...$1200, 2) The dash A/C....needed a new compressor...$800, 3) replace all four rear tires...$1300. Since then the costs have been about $600 per year. I change the oil once a year, as well as the oil filter, fuel filters, and transmission filter.