I have drilled what is left of the bolt heads off, hopefully I can get the valve off without destroying the tank.
I have drilled out the mounting screws for the dump valve, and it won't budge. I have tried hitting the side of the dump valve, going inside the black tank and using a punch and hammer to get the dump valve loose, and prying the dump valve from underneath, it won't move. Not a millimeter. For something that won't hold water, it certainly is tight. Are there any "hidden" mounting bolts I am missing? I have drilled out four screws, the ones with lugs that indicate the screws go through into the tank, with zero results. The only thing I haven't tried yet, but I am considering, is clicking my heels together three times, and chanting, "there's no place like Jackson Center" .
Any other ideas?
Even though Goliath (the trailer) is not really ready for serious camping, I have decided to not be blindsided by another hurricane. I don't wish to repeat last August's drama of being the last vehicle allowed out of the area. We have food and water for several days, should we need it, and the campground where we are going has bathroom facilities, so the waste water issue won't be a problem. I have been watching the Hurricane Center's probability estimates, and my area currently has the highest probability of a strike of anywhere on the mainland of Florida. Currently the probability is at 25%, and a 1 in 4 chance is odds I don't like at all. It may change for the better, at least for us, and head up to the panhandle area. Not good for them, they just had a tropical system move through a couple of days ago, and are still soaked. It would be very nice if this storm dissipates in the Gulf, although the possibility of that is remote. I will post again when we get home, and let you know how the trip and camping was.
We got back from getting out of harm's potential way, with no problems to speak of. The trailer towed very well now that I have gotten the WD tweaked to where it should be. There is no swaying, and no "bouncing", even in some vicious cross-winds. No parts flew off, either during the trip, or while parked at the campground. Winds for the most part were brisk, but not extreme.
Everything that worked before leaving, continued working with no problems, although I learned we need to replace the sliding wooden doors that are on the overhead cupboards.
Now if all our friends up in the panhandle area of Florida, and Mississipi and Alabama come through as well as we did, we will be very thankful.
Here are a couple of photos taken at the campground. Counting us, there were 3 other rigs there, one fulltimer, one there for the month of July, and one that did as we did (a brand-new SOB MoHo).
I took a brief break on the interior, and tried my hand at polishing the outside. After working for about two hours, and dirtying all the polishing towels I own, I got one panel pretty shiny. It needs one more pass with clean towels to get the rest of the smeared gunk off the panel, and I will post a photo of it when it is done. Has anyone ever been pulled over by the local Gendarmes after polishing their trailer and told it is a driving hazard because it is so bright and shiny?
I used a plate (paper) of flour to "puff" my rags in while buffing. It really speeds up the process, and I used less rags to boot! Looks great! What are you using to polish with?
Marc
I used a plate (paper) of flour to "puff" my rags in while buffing. It really speeds up the process, and I used less rags to boot! Looks great! What are you using to polish with?
Marc
Thanks for the tip. I am using a product called Noxon 7, I have a case of it NOS. It seems to work very well, a single pass on this panel is all it took. Of course, I didn't know this, having never polished before, and so spent hours re-polishing, trying to get all the black goop off. Now that I know better, the rest of the trailer should go faster.
I finally have gathered up almost all the parts needed to rehab the drain system, both black and grey.
I first removed all the cobbled together bits and pieces of the grey water drain system, as well as the dump valve for the black tank. The drain for the grey water was a collage of field repairs, and inventive gluing, including an old radiator hose clamped to a couple of steel tubes, which were bondoed onto some PVC pipes, which were attached by what looks like good intentions to a couple of cast brass pipes.
First problem I ran into was the dump valve is 2" diameter, instead of current industry standard 3". The hole in the black tank, likewise, is 2". All drain hoses I have seen are 3", so I had to get creative. I went to my local hardware store, and bowed before the PVC gods, and went home with an assortment of 2 1/2" pipes, fittings, adapters from 2" to 3", glue, and cutting tools.
Second problem, I finally got the new 2" dump valve on, and then found out much to my chagrin that the grey water pipes were 2 1/4", again instead of what seems to be the industry standard of 2 1/2". Off to the hardware store I went again to take back all the 2 1/2" PVC, and get a like amount of 2 1/4" PVC...Sigh...
I got all the pipes run everywhere it needed to go, finally, and moved inside to install the "newsed" toilet I got from the Argosy 22 I have stashed in a swamp in an undisclosed location near here, where I was once again stopped by yet another problem.
Third problem, I hooked up the toilet, and turned on the water, ostensibly to make sure the black tank didn't leak. However, I found out that the toilet has a previously undetected leak in it, actuated by the flush valve.
I found myself liberally doused by, fortunately, clean water when I pushed the valve. While I am not averse to multifunction devices, a toilet that gives me a shower when I flush is not something I wish to employ. I see a new toilet in our future.
After several unsuccessful attempts to hook everything up in the waste plumbing system as it was originally, I have scrapped that idea and come up with a new plan. At least for now, the galley sink will have a separate drain from the tub and bathroom sink, which will drain into the main outlet. It would almost be less work to install a grey tank, and run everything into it, but I don't want the extra weight on the back of the trailer. After I got everything hooked up, sewer-wise, I decided I would hook LP up to the water heater. Cold showers are great if you just got done mowing the lawn on a 95 degree day, but I don't want to impersonate a popsicle while out in Goliath, it isn't my idea of fun.
So, a trip back to the hardware store for some 3/8" copper line for the LP, and some fittings, and I was in business. Well, almost. It seems that the 3/8" copper tubing on the trailer has thicker outer diameter than the stuff available today, so I had to really work to get the fitting on the original tubing, and double-flare it to connect via a fitting to the new tubing.
After hooking up the new line to the water heater, I naturally decided to make sure the water heater works. This is where I found out that RV storage lots are not entirely secure (imagine that). I flipped the cam lock to open the access door, and the door fell off in my hand. It seems someone had a water heater like mine, and needed the little hinge clips more than I did, as they are both gone. Great. Now I have to try to find replacements for them. Hey! Maybe I can just go steal them back...If I only knew which of several hundred RV's now has my hinge clips.
Oh, well. I can't fix it right now, I may as well proceed with the test firing of the water heater. Next problem, no gas coming out. Not a whisper. Hmm, maybe we are out of Propane. I checked. Nope, we still have propane, and all 4 burners of the stove, as well as the oven lit with no problem. That means the problem is most likely within the control valve, whre the thermostat and gas controls are. Sigh. The plumbing, in one incarnation or another, seems to be fighting me all the way to the bitter end. If nothing else, I may get an award for the most creative use of PVC in a sewer.
And the fun continues...
I have been out of the picture having a knee replacement, but am back. Poor Terry, he has been helping me, working, and spending his days off working on Goliath, and Goliath looks great.
I'm back in the action, sort of, and have ordered the sheets for the beds, they are a wedgewood blue color. I'm looking for chenile bedspreads, but may have to uses something else. I may use quilts, getting 3 twin sized and use one to cover the sider panels that are located on the side walls over both beds.
Still working on the curtain issue but I have some ideas. Terry picked up the rods for me, and now we only need the curtains. Thinking of using tab curtains, and putting black out fabric on the back to help with the heat and keeping the sun out when in storage.
Marie
__________________
Take a chance, you just never know!
After a bit of tinkering, I was able to get the pilot lit on the Bowen water heater. Not only did it light, but when the main burner fired, it lit in a spectacular fashion, vomiting flambe'ed mud dauber carcasses, mud, petrified dirt, and spiderwebs. I also have no hair on the back of my right hand, either. I think a little tweaking is needed .
Now, on to replace the galley faucet. Now that we have hot water, the hot water inlet side is leaking on it. Naturally.
Maybe I'll have a chance to polish the trailer at the forum rally next month. Maybe.
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We have food and water for several days, should we need it, and the campground where we are going has bathroom facilities, so the waste water issue won't be a problem. I have been watching the Hurricane Center's probability estimates, and my area currently has the highest probability of a strike of anywhere on the mainland of Florida. Currently the probability is at 25%, and a 1 in 4 chance is odds I don't like at all. It may change for the better, at least for us, and head up to the panhandle area. Not good for them, they just had a tropical system move through a couple of days ago, and are still soaked. It would be very nice if this storm dissipates in the Gulf, although the possibility of that is remote. I will post again when we get home, and let you know how the trip and camping was.
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