Chalkie

1 hour ago, NDBirdman said:

DW was told by someone that if she signs up 6 months early, even though we start paying early, she will get a 30% discount on Part B cost, have you heard this?  I wondered if that is for life, or just a discount til she hits 65?  

I believe that to be rumor or false info. Do not listen to the neighbors, the whisperers or anyone else, get the information from  Medicare. You can not sign up earlier than three months prior to your 65th birthday month. Visit the the Medicare site to get the correct and current information. 

Same thing goes for Social Security. Visit their site directly. They have a tool there that lets you play with the dates you want to start drawing SSAN so you can see when you might want to start out. The dates you sign up for Medicare and Social Security are not necessarily the same and you can be penalized for not signing up for Medicare on time.

When in doubt about any of this go to the source!

1 hour ago, DJW said:

Pay the $108 a month and thank God you live in a country that gives you those choices.  I went from $237 a year for Tricare Prime for the DW to $2592 for the both of us a year.  Yes it rubs me wrong as well but $2592 a year for 100 percent medical insurance including drugs is a whole lot cheaper than most folks are paying

How true! I could go to the VA but have not, and will not, set foot in one of their facilities. I know folks that are very happy with VA care and at the same time know folks that are not. Too much bad press over the years for me. I know that not all active duty physicians are at the top of their field but over the years we have had many highly qualified and excellent doctors in the military both while I was active duty and since I have been retired. The nice thing about Tricare For Life is that it is good anywhere that Medicare is accepted. Since you do not need referrals to specialists for most Medicare coverage you can see the specialist you think you need as long as they will set you an appointment. 

There have been threads on these forums about folks with VA coverage having to jump through hoops to be seen outside of their area even though they are seeking care at another VA facility. You should carefully do your homework on this subject if you are planning on much travel.

1 hour ago, NDBirdman said:

Good point, I had forgotten about that.  I wonder when turning 65, new ID, no longer Standart/Prime eligible, does a retiree also loose access to military Drs since they all become Medicare dependents now?   I know a few retirees that still use base/post hospitals/medical care.  Will they have to go through the hassle of finding a new Dr or can they stay as is, only the insurance company changes? Not necessarily, it depends on the MTF. Sometimes retirees are forced into the civilian sector and sometimes not and it really has nothing to do with age. The DW and I have the USAF Academy for our Primary Care and have had for years. I do know that the MTF bills Medicare for part of our expenses now that we are over 65.

I like the idea of loosing the social sec. number from being printed on the cards.  It's not been on my drivers lisc. for a long time. My state, Colorado, did away with SSAN on licenses a number of years ago due to privacy concerns. One thing they do on the licenses now is show your status as a veteran and with which service.

One thing I have not seen mentioned in this thread is that when you turn 65 you will need to have your ID card re-issued as you will no longer be eligible for Tricare Standard/Prime. And as an aside if it has been a long time since your ID card was issued, the new cards do not show your Social Security number.

I know several people that have done a full body paint on their rigs to extend the life of them, some of these folks are here on this forum so perhaps they will chime in. All I can say is that compared to gel coat the paint looks amazing and it seems as though it always looks cleaner. When you run your hand over that painted surface compared the gel surface the paint feels smoother, slicker.

Well, I continue to study this issue. 

I think at this point I am leaning towards mounting the main radio behind the back seats (which is where it was in the old truck) and then placing the remote head in the console with the mic coming out under the steering wheel and a remote speaker next to the steering wheel. 

I am not fully satisfied with this solution, but it is better than other ideas I have had and I do not really change frequencies much while driving.

Thanks for the ideas offered. 

On 10/18/2017 at 10:02 AM, rockylarson said:

This is my go to coffee maker when electric is not available:  Coleman Stove Top Drip Coffee maker

I can tell you these are a great choice! We had one for years before we moved up to the 5th wheel. We gave it to our son who hardly ever does any camping but dry camping. He uses it all the time still. 

On 10/17/2017 at 7:45 PM, TXiceman said:

 The radio and Turbo Tuner are mounted under the passenger seat and the control head is on the center console.

I would love a picture of that. The front seats in our truck are the full power one and there is very little room under there. 

Thanks for the replies. 

The Ram mounts are a possibility but the DW complained in the last truck how many "gadgets" were taking up space.

The powerstroke.org link is a good idea. I had looked at the location but thought that reading the face seemed awkward. I will to experiment a bit and rethink on that. 

I am looking for a place to mount my Yaesu FT-8800 in my '16 F-350. In my previous truck ('08 F-250) an after market radio had been added so there was a pocket/opening below the single DIN radio where I was able to mount the detachable control head. This truck has the factory nav unit, upfitter switches, etc. and there simply in no room in the center area. About the only other place I have potentially come up with is where the overhead glasses storage is. I have no sun roof on this truck so there are 2 glasses trays, one of which could be removed to make room for the control head.

While that is doable it is still not what I am hoping for so I am sure open for other suggestions. Thanks!

11 hours ago, gjhunter01 said:

I can't remember ever staying at a KOA, every time I have checked their CG prices they are always at the higher end. 

I don't find that to be true. Must depend on where you travel. I'll give you an example. I can stay at military famcamps and do on occasion. When we travel through Abilene, TX we always stay at the KOA there even though there is a famcamp at Dyess AFB. Why? Dyess costs $35/night and then you have the hassle of getting on and off the base. The KOA is $38/night and it is easy  in and out right back on the highway. To say they are ALWAYS on the higher end is just not true in our experience. Some most definitely are but to say that they all are is like saying that all Good Sam parks are on the higher end. Some are, some are not. PA can save a ton of money when you find a park that does not place restrictions on its usage such as not on weekends or one night only, etc. 

So to the OP, if you do not find any value in it, then drop your KOA membership. We have not paid for a KOA membership since we bought our first one in 2013 as we use KOA parks just enough that they automatically extend our membership for free and we do not feel like we have ever been cheated on our stays. 

To each his own. 

An additional comment here about KOAs. Their prices vary widely depending on the type of KOA that they are (Journey, Holiday, Resort). In a way much like the price variance of staying in a Motel 6 or a Hyatt Regency. Various levels of amenities command different prices. Also KOA campgrounds are not just randomly placed. They are carefully placed so that they are convenient to good "days end" locations. 

I just went through the list of KOA campgrounds that we have stayed at over the last 4 years and it is a pretty long list. We also have stayed in state parks, PA parks and Good Sam parks but in studying the list the KOAs that we mostly stayed at have been convenient to our daily travel limit. 

The only KOA that I can honestly say we will never again stay at is one very close to our daughters home. They are now a "Resort" and have placed themselves in the stupidly expensive category, which is a shame for us as it makes for parking further away.

On 8/21/2017 at 5:40 AM, Kirk Wood said:

Be careful as we have found that KOA tends to have a bunch of little extra charges once you arrive that push the rate up above what was quoted. Things like $3 extra for 50a, $2 more for a pet, $2 for cable TV, $3 for wifi, and so on. A friend tells me that the letters KOA stand for the words "keep on adding."  

You know I have heard that before but I have NEVER ever paid more than what is advertised online. Yes, there are differences in the price for a 30A or 50A service. Yes, they may also offer sites with cable or no cable. But NEVER have I paid anything other than what is told me when I make my reservation. 

On 9/24/2017 at 12:16 PM, gjhunter01 said:

With double regulated LP pressure, the grill should still work but it will be a lazy flame and not much heat.

I need to test this out. I just added a tap on our RV for a gas grill. I waffled back and forth the double regulator thing and then opted to place the tap on the low pressure side of a 30PSI regulator. 

Researched told me the regulator between the right and left tanks was to prevent a sludge build up in the gas line and should be done on all long runs. Since my gas hookup for the the grill is actually a longer run than just across the trailer that is why I went the way I did. 

The weather has been all rainy and windy since I did this so I have not had a chance to test. 

I looked up that trailer and I do not see that it has a Cold Weather Package on it. Does it?

Our 5er has a cold weather package and we can, and have, occupied it in below freezing weather (once even in a blizzard). I am sure the package made a lot of difference since all the water pipes are in a sealed area that is heated, the water tanks have heating pads, etc. I do not entirely trust the heated water supply hoses and disconnect them when the temperature is going to be below freezing. 

I would examine how and where the water pipes are routed as that will you to make an informed decision.

If you are reasonably sure the pipes are routed in heated spaces you can help things a bit by any cabinets that have pipes in them open where possible. You should also be concerned about freezable items in outer wall cabinets and keep those doors open as well. 

My preferred method to safeguard the pipes, however, remains with winterizing or just not being located in an area where it can freeze. 

I know there are some on the forums here that intentionally winter camp (shudder) and I sure they will have much better advice than mine if they pipe in. 

27 minutes ago, Pug said:

Reason for asking it currently uses 6V flooded batteries and with all the tossing about, acid caused lots of rust damage.

I think I would examine how the batteries are secured. They should not be getting tossed around enough to spill any of the fluid any more than they would be tossed around in a car (well, unless you are doing some hard core extreme off road driving).

Anyone that does Whirlpool service and warranty work should be able to help, I would think. Call your nearest Lowes or Home Depot and ask who they use for warranty work.

Unless you have some different kind of warranty, I would not think this would be an issue for Thor. They (well a division of) built our RV as well, but they do not warrant quite a bit, it is up the different manufacturers of those components (like fridge, stove, microwave, etc.).

You may have a problem there. That thermostat, which I have in my S&B home, operates on 24v.

As far as I know the thermostat you are replacing runs on 12v, since that is what we have in our RVs.

Chalkie, you know you can use voice on Android, Windows, and Amazon OS's right? https://www.bing.com/search?q=How+do+I+change+speech+to+text%3f&input=2&nclid=4D34BFD87795F1669F627D3EE550B1AC&FORM=WNSSSV&cc=US&setlang=en-US

 

 

I do know that. I guess maybe I am old school but sitting there talking to my computer or phone (unless I am driving in hands free mode) feels just a little awkward to me. Voice recognition has come a long ways but just as auto correct can drive you to distraction so can voice dictation/translation unless you actually proof READ it, something that hands free is supposed to eliminate (distracted driving). I try not to respond to texts or messages while driving but there have been times when it is important enough that I will and some of the results have been pretty hilarious.

But that is just me. I introduced a young neighbor to Dragon several years ago and he took to it like a duck to water. He has a learning impediment that makes it difficult to WRITE answers to tests and homework, but he is very bright and with the assistance of the software makes straight A's.

I don't know that any one OS will ever come out on top, but it is a given that computers are getting better and better and so much easier to use than when it all started out.

Windows is not superior to Android in vulnerabilities nor is Android superior because you don't see updates.

 

I am going to say all of them are pretty much hardened and I am not sure I like the amount of bandwidth the Windows telemetry is using without my leave either.

 

Use what you like, and keep it patched when offered.

On this we can certainly agree!

I wish my old arthritic fingers could pound out lines and lines of text like this. Sadly that is no longer the case.

Besides with Android comes Google and their: "We can read all your mail and listen in with machines and not take any personally identifiable information in order to give you a better online experience - tailored to you!"

 

If the data they collect is not personally identifiable then how can they tailor it to me?? I get some blank screens online because I added the "Block Google Tracking" tracking protection Add-On to my IE.

Seriously? This should not become a Windows 10 vs Android debate, but that statement is very misleading for someone that may not know better. Most fairly tech savvy folks know that Google (Android) and Apple collect a lot of personal data. With Windows 10 Microsoft has joined that crowd. Windows 10, unless you take a number of steps to protect your privacy collects a whole lot of information about you, and in the end you still can not totally disable Cortana, which collects most of that data. There are threads aplenty both here and in other forums about how you can no longer (easily) get updates when you want them, not when Microsoft crams them down your throat, which can be bad for RVer's with limited data access.

Tracking blocking is simple in Chrome as well, but it is not foolproof. But neither is it in IE, Chrome, Firefox, Opera or any other browser, which is why I personally run Superantispyware which removes tracking cookies as fast as they get planted.

Windows 10 and Android both have their uses and are both good at what they do. For that matter so does OS X, but I have never been an Apple fan, but then that is the point. A lot of this boils down to user preference and that one or the other is wholeheartedly better than the others.

For those the are interested in learning something about the Windows 10 privacy issues you can read here and here.

For all its privacy faults I personally love Windows 10 even if I have had to work a bit close up some of the privacy issues.

With Android you will have to learn new browsers

 

Not necessarily. I use Chrome on a desktop, my laptop, a tablet and my phone. I like the fact that all my bookmarks are synched across all the devices. Windows 10 on desktop/laptop and Android on tablet and phone.

This is what we have. Does carpet and hard floors, has some attachments. Very light weight, hangs in a closet and works very well.

http://www.costco.com/Shark-Rocket-Deluxe-Pro-Ultra-light-Upright-Vacuum.product.100314502.html