Just a quick post to let you know we all still here, but busy, busy. We have seen doctors, the dentist and had great times with friends, Brett and Sandra; and John and Diane. The dentist has consumed 3 days instead of just one as I have a couple issues that need to be taken care of. He has fit me into his busy schedule and it is most appreciated. I am having a problem with an existing crown and just to be sure I didn't need a root canal, I had to see a specialist, thankfully he didn't think I needed it, so I have to get a new crown installed and a bad filling taken care of. Glad to do it here with a dentist, Dr. Mulkey that I trust completely.
So off to spend several hours at the dentist and revisit our storage unit to get the few things we need out and put in a few items we don't need to be carrying around. Before we know it Sunday morning will be here and we will be southbound towards Florida.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
The Second Top 10, Campgrounds
As I promised, here is our list of our favorite 10, really 11 campgrounds, again in no particular order. Over the years we have stayed in hundreds of different places, so these really stand out for us.
Boardman Marina Park-Boardman, OR
This is a city run park and marina. Absolutely pristine, paved sites, large with privacy, but the kicker is, it is right on the Columbia River with a western view, so the sunsets across the river are spectacular! And you can wash the rig.
Las Vegas Motorcoach Resort-Las Vegas, NV
This is a top shelf resort just off the strip on the south side of town. It is a condo park in that each site is owned, and can be rented out when the owner is away. It is totally landscaped and most sites have outdoor kitchens and bars, fire pits, cabanas, etc. The sites are large, and the resort is large but with the individual landscaping it is also quite private. There is a Par 3 executive golf course, numerous pools, activities, live entertainment many nights, a huge club house, and very friendly people. We actually had signed on the bottom line for a lot here, but due to unexpected circumstances, we had to back out, that's how much we liked it!
Big Bear Shores-Big Bear Lake, CA
This also is a condo park with all lots owned and in addition to gorgeous landscaping and outdoor patios and kitchens and fire pits, it is right on the shore of gorgeous Big Bear Lake in California! The view and scenery of rising mountains across the beautiful lake are breathtaking!
Grizzley RV Park-West Yellowstone, WY
This is a fairly large campground in the town of West Yellowstone just outside the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park. All sites are paved with paved patios, large and have considerable room between sites with green, green grass. It is a manicured park with all the amenities you expect in a high line park. It is dark at night, close enough to walk into town, and is well managed.
Willow Tree Resort-Longs, SC
This is a fabulous large campground fairly near Myrtle Beach. It is park-like, and most of the sites are right on the shore of a fairly large lake, some even with hot tubs! There are tons of paved trails including all around the lake. It is quiet and dark with huge sites, all paved with patios.
Alpen Rose RV Park-Durango, CO
As long as you stay in the sites out front, particularly the large pull-throughs on the south side, this is a fantastic campground. Large sites, the ones on the south side are enormous! Lots of green grass, killer scenery with towering mountains all around, fast wifi, good water pressure, and dark at night.
Riverbend-Hiawassee, GA
This is a small family run campground right on a small river in north Georgia. Big, big sites, lots of grass, very private, and nice people. It is dark at night, and feels very comfortable to us.
Caney Creek RV Resort-Harriman, TN
This is a large resort right on the shore of Watts Bar Lake in Tennessee. It is all paved, landscaped with large sites, some of which are right on the shoreline. They also have a marina and lots of paved walking trails. Even as large as it is, it is quiet and dark at night.
Wells Beach Resort-Wells, ME
This a large, high line resort right off Rte 1 in Wells, ME, about 2 miles from the ocean. It is nice with huge very desirable sites way in the back that are enormous and have astro turf patio areas with fire pits. That sounds a little tacky as I write this but actually it is very nice, looks good, and you can walk all around bare-footed and be very comfortable. Very fast wifi, and very dark at night in beautiful coastal Maine.
The Ozarks Outdoor Resorts-Oak Grove, AR
This is one of the Outdoor Resorts facilities. There used to be many of these very high line resorts all around the country. It is near Branson, MO and perched on a hillside overlooking Table Rock Lake. The campground is top shelf, again a condo park, with landscaped sites including outdoor patios, kitchens, fire pits, etc. Since it is terraced on the hillside, virtually every site has a sensational view of the lake and the rolling green hills all around. Big sites, lots of privacy, and dark at night.
I said top 10, but I'm going to include one more, our absolutely favorite campground anywhere, and unfortunately not open to the general public, I know, kind of a dirty trick, huh? It is the Windenskye Farm in Louisville, KY! It is Jan's sister, Karen and her husband Tom's farm that I have mentioned many times before. It is on a rolling, green, treed, and open gorgeous 50 acres of Kentucky's finest land. There are undulating fences and grazing horses, and total peace and quiet. The "campground" is a full 1/4 mile from the house so it's like you are parked out there all by yourself. Full hookup, lots of room, and the ability to mow to my heart's content. Thanks Karen and Tom for making this available to us!
These are our top 10, but obviously other parks may appeal more to you than these. We don't have young kids anymore, so these are not necessarily "kid friendly" campgrounds, they certainly don't all have playgrounds, or pools, or game rooms, but they do have a special appeal to us.
Boardman Marina Park-Boardman, OR
This is a city run park and marina. Absolutely pristine, paved sites, large with privacy, but the kicker is, it is right on the Columbia River with a western view, so the sunsets across the river are spectacular! And you can wash the rig.
Las Vegas Motorcoach Resort-Las Vegas, NV
This is a top shelf resort just off the strip on the south side of town. It is a condo park in that each site is owned, and can be rented out when the owner is away. It is totally landscaped and most sites have outdoor kitchens and bars, fire pits, cabanas, etc. The sites are large, and the resort is large but with the individual landscaping it is also quite private. There is a Par 3 executive golf course, numerous pools, activities, live entertainment many nights, a huge club house, and very friendly people. We actually had signed on the bottom line for a lot here, but due to unexpected circumstances, we had to back out, that's how much we liked it!
Big Bear Shores-Big Bear Lake, CA
This also is a condo park with all lots owned and in addition to gorgeous landscaping and outdoor patios and kitchens and fire pits, it is right on the shore of gorgeous Big Bear Lake in California! The view and scenery of rising mountains across the beautiful lake are breathtaking!
Grizzley RV Park-West Yellowstone, WY
This is a fairly large campground in the town of West Yellowstone just outside the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park. All sites are paved with paved patios, large and have considerable room between sites with green, green grass. It is a manicured park with all the amenities you expect in a high line park. It is dark at night, close enough to walk into town, and is well managed.
Willow Tree Resort-Longs, SC
This is a fabulous large campground fairly near Myrtle Beach. It is park-like, and most of the sites are right on the shore of a fairly large lake, some even with hot tubs! There are tons of paved trails including all around the lake. It is quiet and dark with huge sites, all paved with patios.
Alpen Rose RV Park-Durango, CO
As long as you stay in the sites out front, particularly the large pull-throughs on the south side, this is a fantastic campground. Large sites, the ones on the south side are enormous! Lots of green grass, killer scenery with towering mountains all around, fast wifi, good water pressure, and dark at night.
Riverbend-Hiawassee, GA
This is a small family run campground right on a small river in north Georgia. Big, big sites, lots of grass, very private, and nice people. It is dark at night, and feels very comfortable to us.
Caney Creek RV Resort-Harriman, TN
This is a large resort right on the shore of Watts Bar Lake in Tennessee. It is all paved, landscaped with large sites, some of which are right on the shoreline. They also have a marina and lots of paved walking trails. Even as large as it is, it is quiet and dark at night.
Wells Beach Resort-Wells, ME
This a large, high line resort right off Rte 1 in Wells, ME, about 2 miles from the ocean. It is nice with huge very desirable sites way in the back that are enormous and have astro turf patio areas with fire pits. That sounds a little tacky as I write this but actually it is very nice, looks good, and you can walk all around bare-footed and be very comfortable. Very fast wifi, and very dark at night in beautiful coastal Maine.
The Ozarks Outdoor Resorts-Oak Grove, AR
This is one of the Outdoor Resorts facilities. There used to be many of these very high line resorts all around the country. It is near Branson, MO and perched on a hillside overlooking Table Rock Lake. The campground is top shelf, again a condo park, with landscaped sites including outdoor patios, kitchens, fire pits, etc. Since it is terraced on the hillside, virtually every site has a sensational view of the lake and the rolling green hills all around. Big sites, lots of privacy, and dark at night.
I said top 10, but I'm going to include one more, our absolutely favorite campground anywhere, and unfortunately not open to the general public, I know, kind of a dirty trick, huh? It is the Windenskye Farm in Louisville, KY! It is Jan's sister, Karen and her husband Tom's farm that I have mentioned many times before. It is on a rolling, green, treed, and open gorgeous 50 acres of Kentucky's finest land. There are undulating fences and grazing horses, and total peace and quiet. The "campground" is a full 1/4 mile from the house so it's like you are parked out there all by yourself. Full hookup, lots of room, and the ability to mow to my heart's content. Thanks Karen and Tom for making this available to us!
These are our top 10, but obviously other parks may appeal more to you than these. We don't have young kids anymore, so these are not necessarily "kid friendly" campgrounds, they certainly don't all have playgrounds, or pools, or game rooms, but they do have a special appeal to us.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
South we go
Hope your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as ours! It was a hectic fun day full of fantastic food and fellowship. We all ate too much, but still managed to cram in some pie. And Friday not to be outdone was sensational turkey sandwiches, are they really better than turkey dinner, followed by Kathleen's scrumptious shrimp gumbo for dinner!
Saturday morning started off with Kelly and Todd's departure at 6am followed soon by our departure at 730am with Ray and April following us. After unfortunately ripping up our wheel well pulling out of Karen's driveway again, we were off for a pleasant day of driving back down to the Atlanta area to our old campground at Lake Allatoona. And what a change there! When we left in March, there were perhaps 35-40 folks who basically lived there including us, in other words long term renters. For whatever reason the management has prohibited any stays longer than a month, so now there are only about 10-15 RVs here. After a bit of a fiasco with our site that we had reserved and moving to a different site we are all settled back in for a week. The campground has a completely different feel now, now that a lot of the "permanents" are gone. It is so, so much better.
We had a nice evening with our houseguests, Ray and April, and of course, we ran over and bought a couple PowerBall tickets to win the $325 million, we didn't but no one else did either. Ray and April left for Florida a little while ago, and Jan and I are getting ready for a busy, busy week. Friends to see, doctors to see, the dentist, and a bit of time in our storage unit, are all on our agenda.
Saturday morning started off with Kelly and Todd's departure at 6am followed soon by our departure at 730am with Ray and April following us. After unfortunately ripping up our wheel well pulling out of Karen's driveway again, we were off for a pleasant day of driving back down to the Atlanta area to our old campground at Lake Allatoona. And what a change there! When we left in March, there were perhaps 35-40 folks who basically lived there including us, in other words long term renters. For whatever reason the management has prohibited any stays longer than a month, so now there are only about 10-15 RVs here. After a bit of a fiasco with our site that we had reserved and moving to a different site we are all settled back in for a week. The campground has a completely different feel now, now that a lot of the "permanents" are gone. It is so, so much better.
We had a nice evening with our houseguests, Ray and April, and of course, we ran over and bought a couple PowerBall tickets to win the $325 million, we didn't but no one else did either. Ray and April left for Florida a little while ago, and Jan and I are getting ready for a busy, busy week. Friends to see, doctors to see, the dentist, and a bit of time in our storage unit, are all on our agenda.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Everyone that is coming to Louisville is here now with Kathleen's arrival last night. We are sure looking forward to the big day today and have had a great week already. We sure are thankful for all we have, but especially for our family and friends. Have a wonderful day!
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Top 10 list
While we were visiting Larry and Mary Ellen, Mary Ellen asked a simple question that momentarily stumped us both, "What are your favorite places as you travel?" Seems like it should have been an easy and quick answer, but both of us were silent and stammering. We have never exactly looked at it like that. We enjoy the entire experience, including the drive as well as the destination. It's true we go back to many places again and again so that would indicate it would be a favorite, right? Not necessarily, we may go back to the same place for other reasons, a visit, maintenance, fuel, particular food, etc. Well, Jan and I have been talking about our favorite 10 places and decided to break it up into 2 Top 10 lists, one for the destination and area, and the other for our favorite 10 campgrounds. As we made our lists it was apparent we could not put them in any particular order. Also, we have many more favorite places, but these are what we would put in our top 10.
Yellowstone National Park
The diversity of the terrain, the wildlife, scenery, hiking, and breathtaking beauty.
Durango, CO
The topography, 4wd roads and trails, mountains, proximity to mining history and towns such as Silverton and Ouray to mention two, hiking, biking, and it feels good.
Las Vegas, NV
Odd one, but fun for a visit, intriguing, great people watching, shows, bigger than life, and great food.
Austin, TX
The whole area of the Hill Country, the ranches, the openness, great variety of food, and of course friends, and don't forget the BBQ.
Venice/Sarasota, FL
Our "home", feels like home, comfortable, nice weather, tons to do, family and friends, lots of great restaurants.
Santa Fe, NM
Scenic, artsy, in a good way, nice feel, great food, close to family.
Maine coast, from Kittery to Acadia National Park
Spectacular mountainous coastline down east to wide open beaches down south, the ocean, walking, hiking, biking. Kittery with its shopping and food, Wells with its superb beach, Freeport with its harbor and shopping, Portland, a fantastic city, Casco and Penobscot bays, absolutely beautiful, Bar Harbor, a cool touristy down east town, and Acadia National Park with its scenery, biking, hiking, and Cadillac Mountain.
Banff-Jasper, and the Canadian Rockies
Awesome scenery, rugged, rocky, severe mountains, glaciers, aqua colored lakes, high class town, and quite remote.
Denver, CO
Mountains, scenery, nice comfortable city, lots to do and see, hiking, biking.
Alaska
What can you say? It has it all, scenery, wildlife, fishing, hiking, exploring, absolute serenity, solitude, mountains, glaciers, bald eagles, salmon, halibut, wilderness, extreme weather and topography, the last frontier!
So this is our list, and as I said we have many more favorite places, in fact, everywhere we've been we have been able to find something interesting to explore or experience. But this is a start. Thanks Mary Ellen for making us think about this. What are some of your favorites?
Our top 10 campgrounds will follow soon.
Yellowstone National Park
The diversity of the terrain, the wildlife, scenery, hiking, and breathtaking beauty.
Durango, CO
The topography, 4wd roads and trails, mountains, proximity to mining history and towns such as Silverton and Ouray to mention two, hiking, biking, and it feels good.
Las Vegas, NV
Odd one, but fun for a visit, intriguing, great people watching, shows, bigger than life, and great food.
Austin, TX
The whole area of the Hill Country, the ranches, the openness, great variety of food, and of course friends, and don't forget the BBQ.
Venice/Sarasota, FL
Our "home", feels like home, comfortable, nice weather, tons to do, family and friends, lots of great restaurants.
Santa Fe, NM
Scenic, artsy, in a good way, nice feel, great food, close to family.
Maine coast, from Kittery to Acadia National Park
Spectacular mountainous coastline down east to wide open beaches down south, the ocean, walking, hiking, biking. Kittery with its shopping and food, Wells with its superb beach, Freeport with its harbor and shopping, Portland, a fantastic city, Casco and Penobscot bays, absolutely beautiful, Bar Harbor, a cool touristy down east town, and Acadia National Park with its scenery, biking, hiking, and Cadillac Mountain.
Banff-Jasper, and the Canadian Rockies
Awesome scenery, rugged, rocky, severe mountains, glaciers, aqua colored lakes, high class town, and quite remote.
Denver, CO
Mountains, scenery, nice comfortable city, lots to do and see, hiking, biking.
Alaska
What can you say? It has it all, scenery, wildlife, fishing, hiking, exploring, absolute serenity, solitude, mountains, glaciers, bald eagles, salmon, halibut, wilderness, extreme weather and topography, the last frontier!
So this is our list, and as I said we have many more favorite places, in fact, everywhere we've been we have been able to find something interesting to explore or experience. But this is a start. Thanks Mary Ellen for making us think about this. What are some of your favorites?
Our top 10 campgrounds will follow soon.
Monday, November 19, 2012
Anticipation
Monday of Thanksgiving week and anticipation is building. Ray and April are more than half way and will arrive later today. Tom will get back from work this afternoon. Kelly and Todd are preparing for a very early departure tomorrow for their 780 mile drive! Rachel is supposed to arrive today, but the jury is still out :-)
Lots of folks descending on Kentucky for a great week together with good food and friendship. This is my favorite holiday of the year. It's nice to be with family and friends to remember how thankful you are for all you have, and try to erase any of the bad times. You are buoyed up by good feelings and fellowship. We do wish more family could attend and will be missed, but everyone is so dispersed across the country, it gets harder and harder. Even Karen and Tom's boys won't be here this year, nor Jason and Jessica. As the families grow it is difficult to have a large gathering over a holiday as everyone, especially the younger ones are pulled in many different directions at once with other family obligations. Everyone will be thought about and missed if they were unable to join us.
Let the party begin!
Lots of folks descending on Kentucky for a great week together with good food and friendship. This is my favorite holiday of the year. It's nice to be with family and friends to remember how thankful you are for all you have, and try to erase any of the bad times. You are buoyed up by good feelings and fellowship. We do wish more family could attend and will be missed, but everyone is so dispersed across the country, it gets harder and harder. Even Karen and Tom's boys won't be here this year, nor Jason and Jessica. As the families grow it is difficult to have a large gathering over a holiday as everyone, especially the younger ones are pulled in many different directions at once with other family obligations. Everyone will be thought about and missed if they were unable to join us.
Let the party begin!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
What a set up!
We are just enjoying our time here in Kentucky, could be a little warmer though:-) Got to mow for about 6 hours, got the motorhome washed, just in time for a day of incredible wind and rain, perfect, huh? Jan got her hair cut, a big deal. Been visiting with Tom and Karen, and Steve and Bobbie, just taking it easy and slow. Retirement, right?
Thought I'd share just a couple pictures of the farm to give you an idea of where we are.
Not too shabby, huh? Our "campsites" are a full 1/4 mile from the house. Quiet, dark at night, pretty darn peaceful. Here are a few views from "our" place.
We are starting to anticipate the Thanksgiving festivities next week, starting with some of the plans. We are disappointed Jason and Jessica are not going to be able to come, but are very happy Kelly, Todd, and the grandkids are coming this year. Can't wait for Ray and April to get here, they will probably arrive first. Looking forward to seeing Rachel, and Kathleen, and to meet Joey. Beware turkeys, we are coming for you!
Thought I'd share just a couple pictures of the farm to give you an idea of where we are.
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| Front of the house |
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| Back view |
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| View over the pool closed for the winter |
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| Looking out past the pond |
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| Back pasture |
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| Out front |
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| 3 of the 4-legged inhabitants |
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| Home Sweet Home |
Monday, November 12, 2012
A short post, but a good post!
The Energizer Bunny is still running! Mom went back home today after spending the weekend in the Hospice House. We are so happy! She said she could get used to going away for the weekends and being waited on :-) She is so much happier in her own little house and we pray she is able to stay there for awhile, certainly until we get there in December.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Chillin, but ready to move?
We're in Louisville now at our very favorite "campground", Karen and Tom's beautiful Windenskye farm parked alongside friends and fellow full-timers, Steve and Bobbie. We've had a nice get-together with everyone, and a good catch up. It occurred to us that we haven't had the motorhome here since last Thanksgiving, and our last visit was a quick dash in the Jeep up from Atlanta in January. It's sure nice being back, it is a quiet, peaceful, absolutely gorgeous place.
We got some packages too. We finally replaced the horrible day/night shades in the bedroom with MCD blinds. The day/night shades are a real challenge, hard to operate, hard to keep even, easily break, and oh did I mention, we hate them! So MCD is having a sale, something they have never done before so we jumped on the opportunity and now have two new MCD shades. The MCDs are nice in that they operate like a very sophisticated roller blind, except they go up and down with little effort, and retract with a very measured smooth motion. They also have one shade for day time, and one for night time that completely blocks the light. We are very pleased.
We also got the replacement air deflector for the Jeep that was broken on the interstate in Georgetown, and the diesel mechanic aka Jan, replaced that herself.
Also while we are here I love to mow the grass. There is plenty of it too! Maybe 30 acres or so. They have a zero turn mower, the "Z", that is a delight to use. I like running it around mowing and just letting my mind go, it is so relaxing just looking at the beauty of the surroundings while going to and fro. Unfortunately, the Z came to a screeching halt yesterday while I was on it:( I have to do some investigation to see if I can repair it temporarily or whether it has to be taken to the dealer. They also have a tractor with a bush hog that is enjoyable but not nearly the fun the Z is.
Into each day a storm sometimes arises. My Mom who is seriously ill had a setback yesterday and was moved into a Hospice House to treat an acute situation that is unrelated to her cancer. It could be a critical turning point near the end of her life. We are praying that she pops out of there and is able to go back home, normally she is like the Energizer Bunny and pops back, but maybe not this time. Time will tell, so needless to say we are ready to run to Florida at a moment's notice if necessary.
We got some packages too. We finally replaced the horrible day/night shades in the bedroom with MCD blinds. The day/night shades are a real challenge, hard to operate, hard to keep even, easily break, and oh did I mention, we hate them! So MCD is having a sale, something they have never done before so we jumped on the opportunity and now have two new MCD shades. The MCDs are nice in that they operate like a very sophisticated roller blind, except they go up and down with little effort, and retract with a very measured smooth motion. They also have one shade for day time, and one for night time that completely blocks the light. We are very pleased.
We also got the replacement air deflector for the Jeep that was broken on the interstate in Georgetown, and the diesel mechanic aka Jan, replaced that herself.
Also while we are here I love to mow the grass. There is plenty of it too! Maybe 30 acres or so. They have a zero turn mower, the "Z", that is a delight to use. I like running it around mowing and just letting my mind go, it is so relaxing just looking at the beauty of the surroundings while going to and fro. Unfortunately, the Z came to a screeching halt yesterday while I was on it:( I have to do some investigation to see if I can repair it temporarily or whether it has to be taken to the dealer. They also have a tractor with a bush hog that is enjoyable but not nearly the fun the Z is.
Into each day a storm sometimes arises. My Mom who is seriously ill had a setback yesterday and was moved into a Hospice House to treat an acute situation that is unrelated to her cancer. It could be a critical turning point near the end of her life. We are praying that she pops out of there and is able to go back home, normally she is like the Energizer Bunny and pops back, but maybe not this time. Time will tell, so needless to say we are ready to run to Florida at a moment's notice if necessary.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Finally, finally, finally fixed
The last two days have been challenging. We ran down to Livingston, TX to meet Rudy, our Aqua-hot service man, a very pleasant gentleman. We both thought my new control box was bad. He checked our unit over, replaced the nozzle, seems there is an upgraded nozzle since I installed ours. He tried to start it to no avail, put his test box on and it fired right up. He concurred that my new box was bad so put on a new box and no dice. It would not light. Even tried another new box he had and no luck. With much troubleshooting he determined the flame sensor was good, the ignitor and electrodes were good, the high limit thermostat was good, the fuel solenoid was good, but for some reason there was no current coming out of 3 new control boxes to light the burner????? He conferred with the Aqua-hot guru and he was pretty stumped as well, but suggested bypassing the high limit thermostat, we did and no light!! Getting very frustrating for BOTH of us! We took a break, did some brainstorming, tried several more things, all with no luck until he finally called Aqua-Hot directly, gave them the situation, and they were perplexed as well, said the only thing left was to replace the control board, the circuit board brains of the system, and boom.....it lit!! With great relief of finally fixing the problem I got the bad news that the control box wasn't bad after all, so $800 down the drain, as Roger Berke would not take it back. Just to be perfectly honest it was made clear to me that the control box was a nonreturnable item. Bottom line, we should have detoured over to see Rudy when we were in Georgetown and had it fixed then. It would have saved me the $800 part. So after 3 1/2 hours of which Rudy did not charge me all of it, I wrote another big check and off we went northbound and ended up in Texarkana after dark, a long, long day, but pleased the Aqua-hot was fixed.
Not so fast! We left the diesel on for our hot water and it was performing super, but it was cold in the morning so I turned on the heat in all 3 zones and...........nothing! No heat, no fans running, no response of any kind. What the hell? I have a service manual for the unit so I went digging, still way too early to call Rudy. I find out that there is a small jumper on the circuit board that has to be set a particular way for the interior heat to work, could it be that? So in the dark at 40 degrees with flashlights, Jan and I go out to pull out the circuit board and check, and absolutely the jumper is not in position! I correct it and boom all the fans come on. Yippee! We go back inside figuring we are done, although when it gets a little later I want to call Rudy and let him know. Except that while eating breakfast we notice that the air coming out of the heating radiators in the front living area is COLD! Now what? It's light now so I want to determine exactly what is happening before I call Rudy, so with Jan inside adjusting the 3 thermostats I monitor what is happening at the control board. Each zone has a set of radiators with fans that are heated by a loop with a circulating pump, and I can readily monitor the system as Jan calls for heat in each one. First the bedroom, Zone #1 and Pump #1, ON, check. Second the bathroom, Zone #2 and Pump #2, check. Finally the living area, Zone #3 and Pump #1, what the heck? Where is Pump #3? No wonder there is no heat, but the fans run, now it's time to call Rudy. He apologizes and apologizes, we were so relieved when the burner lit he didn't do due diligence on the new control board and I was remiss in not checking out the ENTIRE system before we left. He said I had done the right thing with the jumper, but there were 3 other jumpers that needed to be positioned correctly as well. I did that and this time I kept him on the phone until we had operated each zone, cycled the diesel on and off, and made sure the engine preheat loop was working. Then Rudy did a very honorable thing, he said he would send me back $50 to pay me for doing his job with the control board. Everyone makes a mistake now and then, but very few people stand up and take responsibility anymore. Rudy did a great job, was careful and meticulous and very courteous, and even though we had this issue I would recommend his work to anyone, and can be assured he will never let another repair go without a very thorough check again!
So after a 2 hour delay yesterday morning our plans for a 500 mile day vanished so right now we are in Sikeston, MO with about a 250 mile drive today into Louisville. Oh yeah, the Aqua-hot is working like a champ!!!!!
Not so fast! We left the diesel on for our hot water and it was performing super, but it was cold in the morning so I turned on the heat in all 3 zones and...........nothing! No heat, no fans running, no response of any kind. What the hell? I have a service manual for the unit so I went digging, still way too early to call Rudy. I find out that there is a small jumper on the circuit board that has to be set a particular way for the interior heat to work, could it be that? So in the dark at 40 degrees with flashlights, Jan and I go out to pull out the circuit board and check, and absolutely the jumper is not in position! I correct it and boom all the fans come on. Yippee! We go back inside figuring we are done, although when it gets a little later I want to call Rudy and let him know. Except that while eating breakfast we notice that the air coming out of the heating radiators in the front living area is COLD! Now what? It's light now so I want to determine exactly what is happening before I call Rudy, so with Jan inside adjusting the 3 thermostats I monitor what is happening at the control board. Each zone has a set of radiators with fans that are heated by a loop with a circulating pump, and I can readily monitor the system as Jan calls for heat in each one. First the bedroom, Zone #1 and Pump #1, ON, check. Second the bathroom, Zone #2 and Pump #2, check. Finally the living area, Zone #3 and Pump #1, what the heck? Where is Pump #3? No wonder there is no heat, but the fans run, now it's time to call Rudy. He apologizes and apologizes, we were so relieved when the burner lit he didn't do due diligence on the new control board and I was remiss in not checking out the ENTIRE system before we left. He said I had done the right thing with the jumper, but there were 3 other jumpers that needed to be positioned correctly as well. I did that and this time I kept him on the phone until we had operated each zone, cycled the diesel on and off, and made sure the engine preheat loop was working. Then Rudy did a very honorable thing, he said he would send me back $50 to pay me for doing his job with the control board. Everyone makes a mistake now and then, but very few people stand up and take responsibility anymore. Rudy did a great job, was careful and meticulous and very courteous, and even though we had this issue I would recommend his work to anyone, and can be assured he will never let another repair go without a very thorough check again!
So after a 2 hour delay yesterday morning our plans for a 500 mile day vanished so right now we are in Sikeston, MO with about a 250 mile drive today into Louisville. Oh yeah, the Aqua-hot is working like a champ!!!!!
Monday, November 5, 2012
NOT FIXED!
Well instead of heading north to Louisville so we could watch the election results with Tom and Karen, we are heading SOUTH 150 miles to Livingston, TX to meet Rudy who is going to try to fix our Aqua-Hot. As I said we left it on diesel for the last few days and it had been working fantastic right up until I was taking a shower yesterday morning when the water got colder and colder! Then it wouldn't light again. Tried 5 or 6 times with no luck. Got on the phone with Rudy a repair service in Houston and set it up for him to meet us in the Walmart parking lot in Livingston, TX to see if we can't save a little time. He is about 1 1/2 hours away from there, so hopefully he will get us fixed up and on our way. It sure is looking like our new $800 control box is bad. This way we should arrive in Louisville on Wednesday.
Friday, November 2, 2012
New part's in
We ended up getting the new control box a day early, thank you UPS. It went in this morning with great anticipation. We turned the diesel burner on and..............nothing. What???????? We cycled the switch and it lit right off, then we cycled it about 6 more times and it lit each time. Is it fixed? I called Roger the guru and asked him if this was normal, he said sometimes on the first attempt with a new box it doesn't light. So we hope it's fixed, we are going to make all our hot water with diesel over the next few days and see what happens. Keep your fingers crossed!
The grandkids went Halloweening and were very successful, about 20 pounds of candy each! Jan and I aren't big on Halloween so we begged off while Kelly, Todd, and the kids went to a get together first, then trick or treating. The kids were cute though.
We have had a great time visiting with our grandkids, they are growing like weeds. Kelly and Todd have made their house a home and are surrounded with friendly neighbors with lots of kids. It will be a great place to grow up.
Jan and I went to the Eastern Texas Oil Museum and found out the biggest oil field in the lower 48 is right here in the Longview, Kilgore area. More than 12,000 wells were drilled in this area and it is still producing and expected to produce for years to come. Some 6 Billion barrels of oil so far! It is probably responsible for us winning WWII as we had tons of fuel mostly coming from here to supply our ships, aircraft, and equipment as the Germans slowly ran out. The museum is in Kilgore and is fantastic, really well done. It is a reenactment of a street in Kilgore at the height of the boom as they began pulling oil out of the ground some 3700' down! They have many shops with extraordinarily realistic dummies that talk to you, like the banker in the bank, an electrical worker up a pole, the barber, you swear they are real people! We spent a very enjoyable and knowledgeable 3 hours there.
The grandkids went Halloweening and were very successful, about 20 pounds of candy each! Jan and I aren't big on Halloween so we begged off while Kelly, Todd, and the kids went to a get together first, then trick or treating. The kids were cute though.
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| Snow Queen and Harry Potter |
Jan and I went to the Eastern Texas Oil Museum and found out the biggest oil field in the lower 48 is right here in the Longview, Kilgore area. More than 12,000 wells were drilled in this area and it is still producing and expected to produce for years to come. Some 6 Billion barrels of oil so far! It is probably responsible for us winning WWII as we had tons of fuel mostly coming from here to supply our ships, aircraft, and equipment as the Germans slowly ran out. The museum is in Kilgore and is fantastic, really well done. It is a reenactment of a street in Kilgore at the height of the boom as they began pulling oil out of the ground some 3700' down! They have many shops with extraordinarily realistic dummies that talk to you, like the banker in the bank, an electrical worker up a pole, the barber, you swear they are real people! We spent a very enjoyable and knowledgeable 3 hours there.
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