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Bigblue12v · 09-01-2012, 07:57 PM

Decided to go camping yesterday despite forecasts...
Spent two hours last night screwing with the dish and another two hours this morning. 3 hours on phone with support still no tv. Almost threw dish in lake. Yes I have anger issues.
Things were goin good today. Had the in laws out for a cookout. That went well. Ran to store, came back everyone's around the fire. Stepped inside to put stuff in fridge and found water on floor in kitchen. Followed to bathroom, toilet was overflowing.... Ugh. Hope floor don't rot out. I give up on this trip. Been good between the gentle rain storms just worn out on dumb stuff. Camper for sale. I can't afford to rebuild my trailer between trips.

Hope everyone's havin a good weekend.

RanCarr · 09-02-2012, 12:14 AM

(moderator edit)

The toilet was overflowing? You mean the holding tank had backed up or the flush mechanism was stuck?

Mr_D · 09-02-2012, 12:25 AM

Weather here is great, around 74°, few clouds. No mechanical problems and only one physical one. Wife went to move one of the La Z Boy recliner/rockers and fell. Last time out we brought the DirectTV box and never even hooked it up, the campground cable was OK. Do have the satellite going now though.

sc3283 · 09-02-2012, 12:55 AM

rain in the forecast always makes having the dish setup and working easier on dear ole dad...or it does in my case. Especially if the weatherman was right and it rained.
Takes me about 10 mins to set mine up...OP once you do it a few more times..you won't have a problem to get it aimed in a short period of time

Bigblue12v · 09-02-2012, 07:03 PM

I don't get enough time off work to do anything but go on weekends right now so we take whatever opportunities we can. Next year I'll have 4 weeks of vacation available so hopefully we can go for more than a weekend!
They were forecasting a lot of rain (hurricane isaac spin off) for the weekend so we took the dish to have inside entertainment. Also we hadn't taken it with us before and wanted to see how it worked and how the process would go. Never did get it working, gave up on it..... Tech support said there must be something wrong with the dish itself. Took box from home and a separate dish with portable mount, set to all the correct angles did everything we were supposed to do. Maybe the LNB isn't working right. Never could get signal. The weather was clear and we were away from trees with it as well. The cable is brand new. My dish guy hooked me up with the cable and spare used dish he took down from another house. I'll have him come by and help me trouble shoot it sometime.

The toilet valve stuck. Every great once in a while it does that. Ya hafta let go of it and let itself slam shut or it sometimes trickles water into the bowl. My mother in law didn't know this and apparently my wife forgot to tell her.

I left the a/c on all night on high fan and even turned the furnace on a bit to help dry things out. The linoleum dried out fast but it's what's underneath that worries me. I think the subfloor/decking is treated. The wall studs I know are not and that's my main concern. Oh well. I've heard of dozens of new trailers getting flooded before and they seem to survive. I guess we will keep this one til she rots to the ground and keep all the goodies for another project unless someone else buys it first? I don't have any intentions of selling it but then Everytime I say that someone comes along and insists on buying it at some point (usually a vehicle). I love this trailer. It's mine and I have made it unique and it is exactly the way I want it mostly. However I would love to build one from scratch one day if I ever have a big barn and more funds :-)

Have a great labor day everyone!

Arch Hoagland · 09-02-2012, 07:17 PM

Put a fan by the toilet for a couple days, it will dry out ok.

We've had a few floods in our various rigs.

Every trip out is an adventure.....so when you do a trip and nothing goes wrong you appreciate it, however there's always that thought in the back of your head....Hmmm I wonder when something is going to happen.

chuckinthebus · 09-03-2012, 05:32 PM

It was a toss up as to whether I would have to work all weekend till late Friday afternoon, so no reservations made, then looked at the weather report and said..... maybe next weekend. MH (coach, camper,RV) is in the barn dry and clean and that saved me a day and a half from having to clean it back up, but to OP.....at least you got to go and any day camping sure beats setting in the S&B.

Macpeety · 09-03-2012, 07:17 PM

That's one of the main reasons I go camping. To get away from other peoples observations about how and why I live my life. I like to know how to accomplish a task ahead of time if possible such as checking out my Sat Alignment. I don't wait til everyone is ready for a NASCAR race and say, "This may take a while, I don't know how to set this thing up or I had problems last time and never found out what it was"..... Good call.

Bucksmom · 09-03-2012, 07:41 PM

Sorry big blue, feel your pain. We have the same time off issues, and we love to have our dish for our morning breakfasts while camping. I hope your next trip is less labor and more fun....

RanCarr · 09-04-2012, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bigblue12v

I don't get enough time off work to do anything but go on weekends right now so we take whatever opportunities we can. Next year I'll have 4 weeks of vacation available so hopefully we can go for more than a weekend!
They were forecasting a lot of rain (hurricane isaac spin off) for the weekend so we took the dish to have inside entertainment....

Oh!

TV sure helps when it rains. We bring plenty of DVDs with us that we pick up at WalMart for $5 each. 8 movies on a DVD. But when we're off for over a week or so, we bring the dish with us.

Quote:

Also we hadn't taken it with us before and wanted to see how it worked and how the process would go. Never did get it working, gave up on it.....

When we first hooked up our Satellite dish it wouldn't work either. There was some problem with the cable in the RV itself, at the place where the box is hooked up. It took DH awhile, but he figured it out. No problems since.

Quote:

The toilet valve stuck. Every great once in a while it does that. Ya hafta let go of it and let itself slam shut or it sometimes trickles water into the bowl. My mother in law didn't know this and apparently my wife forgot to tell her.

There could be some crud making it stick, depending on how it's designed. A few drops of oil maybe?

Quote:

I think the subfloor/decking is treated. The wall studs I know are not and that's my main concern. Oh well. I've heard of dozens of new trailers getting flooded before and they seem to survive.

Our bedroom floor flooded when a popup thunderstorm came by and the window was open. I had about 1/4 water on the floor. But in my TT the floor and walls are sealed together with some kind of sealant. I don't think the water can get to our sub floor. I wish RVs still came with those jalousie windows.

Quote:

. I love this trailer. It's mine and I have made it unique and it is exactly the way I want it mostly. However I would love to build one from scratch one day if I ever have a big barn and more funds :-)

I know the feeling.

Dogpatch · 09-04-2012, 06:42 AM

Did your black tank fill and overflow through the toilet? I realize much of it would be clean water but if it filled the black tank, I would look at it as sewage. This is not a great thing to just leave to dry out on its own. It will be contaminated and contain bacteria. I would have a professional restoration contractor look at it and advise you. Contact your insurance co. If no issue, you have not made a claim. Better to be safe than sorry!

tomwalt · 09-04-2012, 07:20 AM

BigBlue - you just need a little more time off to practice to allow you to choose better weather and hone those camping skills

.
Looks like a nice place to camp. Fall is a great time for camping.
4 weeks next year might just be the right ticket.
Don't give up on the TT yet.

KJcachers · 09-04-2012, 07:51 AM

I'm always looking for things to do when camping. I guess I need to get a dish so I have something to tinker with between meals and naps!

Nitrohorse · 09-04-2012, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Macpeety

I just try to "mind my own business". This precludes many problems.

I'm the guy in my neighborhood who will offer help....if it's wanted. I like to think that I'm halfway smart enough to assess whether someone wants that help. I just can't see trying to impose the way I do things on others. Most times my way isn't the quickest or prettiest, but it half-arsed works.

My wife and I were camping this Labor Day weekend. The couple behind us had an old pop-up. Saturday night I was starting a fire and noticed that the husband was sitting outside on one of those old aluminum, nylon webbed folding chairs. He has a very small tube TV with him and was watching the NASCAR race in front of a small fire. I thought to my self that he doesn't have the newest or largest, but he's probably the happiest guy in the CG. I asked him if he needed any firewood as I usually bring a medium sized Ash tree with me. He told me that he can't haul much with his Durango and usually can only bring a few pieces of wood. I grabbed my old milk crates and gave him enough wood to have a good sized fire for the rest of the weekend. That was the best part of the trip.......