Jinx & Wayne

Lots of opinions. We have a solidly built rig with well attached tanks. I also have a flushing system for the black tank - When the tank is open I can attach a hose and spray the inside of the black tank. This removes solids. I do not leave the gray valve open when parked and attached to sewer. I dump black and then gray when either tank needs to be dumped. I like to be able to flush out the hose with gray water after dumping the black tank. That way any drip when disconnecting is less pungent. Also there are solids in the liquid going into the gray tank, despite wiping everything before dishwashing. My feeling is that leaving the gray valve open allows solids to build in that tank, too. I like to get the trailer mostly ready for travel the night before a travel day. I dump tanks the night before traveling. I don't like the weight of an even half full tank (200#). By the time we leave the next day there is a small amount of liquid and solids in the tanks. I like to have that slosh around in the tanks when traveling. About once per month on a travel day I dissolve a cup of borax in three gallons of water and dump it in the tanks before travel. I then dump in 1/2 cup of dawn dish detergent. I do this for each tank. When we next stop and hook up to sewer I immediately dump. This appears to remove buildup. When I first started doing it I got a lot of fatty chunks out of the gray tank. After about six months of this I don't see many solids. Since the rig was used I suspect that was the old buildup. I haven't looked so this is just a suspicion now. Some folks have said the detergent can foam up through the sewer/pipes. I haven't had this happen As for dump frequency my limiting factor seems to be black water. We go five days comfortably for two. Somewhere in day six the tank will burp when flushed. That is a sign that immediate dumping is needed. If you don't dump then the vent can be blocked and the smell can get pretty strong. After dumping the tanks I flush two bowls full of water down the black tank so there is always some liquid in it. I also add a scoop of RV-Digest-It enzyme to each tank after a dump. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

I'm thinking you should carefully look at the means of transporting the mobility scooter and boat if your only vehicles will be the tow vehicle and RV. If you have a chase vehicle you should be fine. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

So you are probably part of the data breach, too. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

I think that the problem with getting air help at truck stops is that the tendency will be to check air less often. I don't know about anyone else, but I check my air every travel day and inspect the tires at stops. There are few things that can make a bigger mess than tire failure. Some RV tasks you can leave to others. I don't do electrical or plumbing. Air is one of those things you need to learn to do yourself. Get a compressor if you don't have one as part of the rig. There are several compressor discussions in this forum for help in that area. Get a good tire gauge. Use them regularly. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

The content is probably not very different, it is the amount and what you can do about it. When campfire or fireplace smoke blows a small amount of fine particles in your face you can do something about it - move, put it out, adjust the fire. When a wildfire files the air with tons of fine particles there isn't somewhere else to go and breathe. Here is a website from EPA about fire smoke dangers. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Thanks to all. I am running with this information. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

My normal MO is to jump into researching new activity. I realize, after watching for some time, that the folks who post on these forums have a lot of experience and a lot of good advice. (Many of us also have a lot of other things, too.) Given this depth of knowledge my first research stop will be here. Jinx and I have been full time for three years. Until now due to health issues we haven't seriously considered working. Recent improvements mean we can stay on the road for a few more years. This leads us to think volunteering for a couple of months might be fun. A month or two might also be a small enough bite to figure out if we like it without committing for a long period of time. We are fully scheduled until 12/1/21. We will in Florida with scheduled volunteering at a golf tournament beginning Nov and will winter in FL unless something interesting turns up here. Next year we are busy 5/6 -8/1 (planned grandchild time and bucket list stuff) but are open after that. We are 90% open beginning winter '22, including where we winter. We've had decades of Maine winters and no longer "do" snow. I like fall but signs that say "Bridge ices Before Road" mean we're too far north for winter. I spent eight years camping with Uncle Sam and had a six week bike camping trip. Those were decades ago. I no longer sleep on the ground. I would prefer some sort of interpreter gig but expect CG host and cleaning bathrooms is more likely. While I can blunder along at rough carpentry, RV repair, solder and turn a wrench, I am not a handyman. I can mow a lawn, drive a small tractor, fell a tree, handle timber including building a cabin, repair boats and have a have a lot of experience being outdoors. Jinx has more office experience. Both of us type. (Given the number of errors I've corrected I'm not sure that I qualify.) We are reasonably fit; she is age 60's and I am 70's. We have no health issues that prevent us from most jobs. We have a 2006 37" Carriage with a major rebuild in 2019. We have and LP generator and refrigerator, but no solar and no inverter. We have almost exclusively camped FHU/50. We can go about anywhere so long as travel to and from that anywhere doesn't involve winter. (Read: Not Rockies or Pacific NW in late Sept to October on). We would prefer not to dry camp but can do 30A and pump or dump (get blue wagon). Withing these constraints (yes, I think we are asking alot.) 1. Can we realistically volunteer somewhere for only a month or two? 2. What resources are available to find volunteer positions? 3. What should be know about volunteering? 4. What should we do or not do? 5. Something I haven;t thought of? A solid plus would be something that would take us by Carhenge, NE. Oh, and thanks for taking the time to read this lengthy post. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Like Linda said, it's the stove. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Welcome to the nomadic life. We look forward to hearing from you here. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Ray, Thanks, I didn't want to hazard a guess about drum brake adjustment. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

That, my friend, is a grizzly bear lunch wagon. Imagine being in a traffic jam in YNP with grizzly's in the road. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

It is a good idea to check the operation of the brakes every time you roll out. I have it on my roll out checklist. On my 5er checking the brake operation simply requires squeezing/sliding the brake controller to maximum while sitting still and then gently applying pressure to the accelerator. The brakes should hold the rig in place. This may differ for a smaller trailer but you need to know the brakes are working. People with drum brakes need to check the setting of the brakes periodically. I will let someone else explain that because I have electric over hydraulic disc brakes that don't require this, so I don't do it. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Lambright. Here is the link. We have two recliners and a hide-a-bed sofa. Love'em. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

If you have a medicare plan you should check out SilverSneakers. They have online programs and access to thousands of fitness clubs nationwide at little or no cost. You can use a club in one area one week, and another club elsewhere the next. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

My 5er was built in Sept '05 and is officially an '06 model. I've had a couple of parks with that policy that want to see the rig, first. I send them a picture. Never a problem so far. Just did that in Manistee, MI last month. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Chad Heiser is correct. This is a post office policy. They will not forward beyond six months. I think the logic is that you then have six months of free forwarding to change your mailing addresses. When you do change things make a list of the places you changed (bank, etc.) That way if you go back to your old address or a new one you can make changes all at once. Another good thing to do is to stop getting mail from a lot of the places. As Chad suggests, "going digital" will help, too. I'm down to about 8-10 pieces of mail per months and should reduce that further in the near future. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

I don't think that necessarily follows. This is a club. There is a public posting of membership rates. Those rates are for a period of time. It isn't much of a leap to conclude that in a club members pay money for memberships that expire. A skilled scammer finds out a lot of information abut the target before embarking on a scam. Check out this article on how they do it. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

One last thing - July thru early October are the best months in northern New England, May and early June are unpredictable months, weather wise. They can be nice, or cold and wet. In northern VT and NH, and central and northern Maine, May thru mid to late June is Bug Season. If you've not experienced black flies you will discover they make mosquitoes seem like gentle doves. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

My pleasure. I've been looking over my notes. On NY-74 there is a 7.5% grade for 2.5 miles eastbound. We were going west and climbed it. I don't recall the road being particularly winding or difficult. US-2 W of Gorham, NH has an eastbound 8% grade for 2 miles. It is good road with winding turns. Thee is a runaway truck ramp partway down the grade. Safe travels and drop a line if you have Maine questions. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

That is pretty much the trip we are doing this year, although not at whirlwind speed. We left FL the first week in May and are in Ohio now. We get to ME 7/25. The thing I would say about timing is that "dropping down to Ann Arbor" implies that you will be in northern Michigan in early to mid-May. That is definitely not summer at that latitude. Late spring and bugs. We came across the FL Panhandle and generally up the Mississippi River Valley. Vicksburg, MS was very nice and the National Military Park was worth visiting. We stayed at Rivertown Rose CG there. Easy access, big sites and good cell service for Verizon. We went to Hot Springs NP and were not impressed - way too crowded. There have been two gems, so far. The James N. McNally park in Grantsburg, WI was great. Level, easy access, FHU and large sites. Note that there is a 13' 2" on WI-70 west of there but easy truck route around. Activities nearby were somewhat limited - we did golf and bird watching. Lansing, IA is beautiful. We stayed at Red Barn CG and thoroughly enjoyed except for poor cell service. Breakfasts on the Mississippi at Coffee on the River was spectacular - great food and great view. We took the ferry from Manitowoc, WI to Ludington, MI and avoided the Chicago drive. WI state highways are terrible. It seems they are poured in 8'-10' sections and are BUMPY. The US highways in WI and MI were very good. This was true of US highways in most states although MI state highways were usually very good - US-127 in MI was a very nice road. For visiting VT, NH and entering ME I suggest I-87 in NY north to NY-74E to NY-22 (Ft. Ticonderoga) to NY-903 crossing Lake Champlain to VT-17 to VT-22A to US-7 and the Burlington, VT area. Good roads and pretty country. From there US-2 across to Bangor is mostly good road with a few lumpy areas. From there US-1A will take you Downeast. Pumpkin Patch is a nice RV park in the Bangor area. If you want something quieter and on the water, Parks Pond in Clifton is very nice. If you like ice cream, Morton's Moo has what I consider to be the best anywhere - it is in Ellsworth, ME (between Bangor and BH). The coast east of Bar Harbor is amazing and US-1 along that area is not heavily traveled. Be sure to visit the Schoodic Point section of Acadia NP, too. Very few people do that. Heading south in Maine, US-1 south of Brunswick is an absolute zoo. I recommend traveling it only weekdays before mid-October. US-295 and US-95 parallel it and are better for N/S travel and just connect to the coastal area for things you want to see, or see it in your TV or toad. Going south to FL I from Maine I always avoid I-95 from Boston to DC. I use I-95 S to I-495 in MA to I-290 to I-90 (Mass Pike) to I-84. In CT taking CT-2W from I-84 to I-91S to I-691 (in Meridan) back to I-84 avoids Hartford. From there we take I-84 to I-81 in PA and, depending on where we are going from there, stay with I-81 until VA or take US-15/I-70 to MD to see the grandchildren and then US-301 down to I-95 in VA. Let me know if you have other questions. I lived mostly in Maine from age 17 to 68. My eldest daughter owns a B & B in Bar Harbor. As an aside, I normally never correct spelling or pronunciation. In Maine, however, few things will make the locals less helpful than saying A-R-cadia and Banger. It is Acadia (no R) and Bangor (pronounced Ban-Gor). Happy travels. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

We have a 34 gal regular tank and installed a 50 gal Transfer Flow Trax 3 tank - about $2500 installed when I bought the truck. It will take me several years to pay off that cost. Even if it does not pay for itself in fuel costs, however it is worth every cent in convenience and peace of mind. Like you I get 9-11.5 mpg towing with 10.5 being usual number. We generally do not run more than 300 miles per day, but some times we run two days in a row and stay hooked up for the travel night. Having the extra tank means I don't have to fuel up with the 5er attached. If I run into detours or some other unforeseen event (there was a line of major storms we outran a couple of years ago) I don't have to worry about finding a fuel station that will fit me. It also means I'm not confined to the big stations with the big prices. We just did a two day run from Manistee, MI to eastern OH - about 480 miles. I filled up two days after arriving in Manistee and drove about 200 miles in MI for the rest of the week. I did not fill when we left. Diesel fuel on the OH Tpk was $3.419. Other stations along the route ranged from $3.299 to $3.439. I will fill tomorrow at $3.189, drive around here for 8 days, and then go 300 miles to MD where diesel is currently $2.999. My best savings so far was $.46 per gallon on 70 gallons. Usually it is $.10 to .20 per gallon savings. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Congratulations! Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

👍 Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

We made a reservation. I don't know if it was necessary because you cannot see the vehicle deck from the passenger area. We called two weeks ahead because it was the week before July 4. The ferry itself wasn't too busy but there were some big trucks an oversized load semi and two chase vehicles. There were three HUGE oversized load vehicles (est 90' length) waiting on the dock in Ludington going west. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ

Hmmm. Six years is a good test. My Ford's GPS (we've named her Bong-Bong) has a wicked sense of humor that will take you through a mile of residential streets to save 50' of travel. I will read some more on the Garmin. Wayne & Jinx 2017 F-350 diesel, dually 2006 Carriage Carri-Lite 36KSQ