November 2017 pre trip and trip reports

Thanks for having us along Randy. Safe travels, although by now you should be home.

Kris and Bert, safe travels down.
 
We made it to Eagles Roost. It has been a heck of a day. It started fine only left 45 min late which is better than i expected. Got to the RV and they were like your batteries are very low we had to boost to start the engine. It did start with boost though. Hooked up and the speedometer was pinged at 85 mph and we were not moving. The mechanic was still there so he looked at it. Basically said that the batteries may have affected it. He grounded it and it reset. Off we went, it was 11;45 and i was aiming for 11. Hoped to make it in 5 hours but normal should be about 4.5, did it in 4.75. Pulled in it was crowded but i had a ressie. Went to level it and no power to the air leveling. we only have air leveling, no jacks. Bert shut the engine off and disconnected the cord to the panel for the air. At this point i hightailed it to Alliance right down the street. They were closed and service would be open Monday. While i was out bert managed to get the engine to start again and had power to the air leveling. Got level and i came back. Figured at least we are in a campground near RV repair shops. It just happened that this morning one of the latches on the bay door broke. The storage people showed us. The only good thing is we have replaced these before and had spares. One side was latched so we drove. After all the issues getting the rig leveled, bert just wanted to fix something so we did get that replaced.

So the plan for tomorrow was to get up, run 4 miles and hit the road about 9 am. Revised plan is to still wake at 6, run 4 miles but then wait for Napa to open so we can purchase two new chassis batteries. Unfortunately Napa does not open till 10. bets on it being at least 12 before we our on our way. We probably need to do the house batteries too, but doing the critical tomorrow. We know what batteries we need and NAPA here has them. Hopefully we have all the tools. Wish us luck changing batteries. Please note i may have some of you on speed dial if we need help @FtW Mike,@Teamubr, @tiggerdad, @bama_ed.

We did manage to get unpacked and put away and went to the grocery store. This was critical since we will leave a lot later than planned tomorrow. I am still hoping to make my 5:40 TE ressie.

Yeti is having a rough go at it. It is quite difficult this trip. Contributing to that is the sore on his belly from the harness. We are using a sling right now instead to put pressure in a different spot. The sling strap broke tonight getting yeti back in the rig.

Sorry for the long post and no pictures, right now we are in survival mode.
 


Kris I feel and know your pain where battery problems go We needed to get jumped here at home and again the next morning when we went to Lazy Days to get our new one Used a small car charger overnight 2nd night and that kept us alive on day 3 Remember take a picture of how everything looks before you start and make sure it all is the same when you finish See if NAPA has a connection / terminal cleaner as not cleaning cable connectors can cause a problem down the road and you'll have to do it then. Tools needed should be Open box wrench to hold retaining bolt in place Socket wrench to loosen the nut for the cable clamp flat blade screw driver to spread clamp and lift off battery terminal most likely you will need a different socket wrench to free and secure the batteries from where they ride. Disconnect neg cable (Black one ) first to kill the circuit.
Lucille says we got our sling for WookieBear from Foster and Smith on line They are sold by dogs weight and overall size If weather forecast is right I will home ( 20+ mph wind s and Heavy rain so no hunting those beans for me tomorrow ) so I will keep an eye open
 
Tiggerdad the first pic will totally be us. Though I am going with Mike and taking a before and after pic.
 


Hopefully things are better this morning. Battery woes really suck. It seemed I was replacing them every other year in the campers. I used to have 2 big ones (Group 29) when I dry camped and had an on board generator. I think the sitting, even with them disconnected, really takes it out of them. Hopefully yours are located where you can get to them. Mike's advice on the picture is spot on. That has saved me many times. Insulated handles on the pliers or wrench can be handy. Remind me to tell the story of how we arc welded a crescent wrench to the roll cage on a race car one time. :tongue:

j
 
While I have no clue about changing batteries in anything other than the remote control to the tv, I will say I do know the term "survive mode" quit well.

I hope today turns around for you both and all things straight ahead Fort Bound soon.
 
Update number 1. I did my 4 miles. Bert has just left to go to NAPA with two dead batteries. One read 11.3 volts and the other was 10.4. That was not going to start our engine. I talked to registration here and she has us on hold for tonight and are well aware we may not be out at noon. No issues there. Hopefully we get the batteries in and it works. I also got the number for 3 mobile guys I case.

Yeti wants to help
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Hoping the Batteries you need are in stock Based on photos you posted it doesn't look too bad. If you have a roll of that blue painters tape I would consider putting a flag on each wire you take off and number them sequentially as you remove them. When it comes time to replace Highest # goes back first lowest last Now you have a job for the Rock Stars so they can say the helped Last hint have some one take notes of what you did so you have a record for future refernce Taking a photo at step of procedure doesn't hurt either
 
Update number 2. New batteries installed coach fired up. Back to leveling problem again. The controller is flashing red light not a constant red light. Last night unplugged it and it was fine. That trick is not working now. We can probably drive it, assuming we can get it in travel mode but it won’t level at Disney.

Survival mode may turn into defeated mode.
 
Kris take a good deep breath First see if levelers have a dedicated circuit breaker/fuse and are they intact. sounds like if it's not that it "COULD MAYBE" be an issue with the switch going bad
 
Is this update number 3 or 4?

Goonies never say die!!!

Well the good news is I am posting this while we are on 75 south about to hit florida. As for the leveling, after scouting the Internet put it in travel mode and seemed to reset. We checked though before we left to make sure it would level. On the road at 11:45 same time as yesterday but today that is 2 hours and 45 minutes late.

Yes mike the blue tape was for numbering.
 
Very happy to hear you folks are on your way I forgot that computer stuff may have needed to be reset after disconnect Batteries. Enjoy rest of your trip Oh and as a side Don't use up all the fun now save some for us later next month and for your Jan trip
I did a quick map check and provided you don't hit anymore major snags if you are south of I 10 you should be about 4 hrs from EPCOT Drive You TE ADR will be tight but do-able
 
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Kris, hate y'll are having batteries issues, we had a good trip home, no problems. After we made it home I unloaded the cart and put the camper in the barn, took a bath and hit the hay, I was tried for some reason, guess it's that drive home. We've been unloading stuff this morning.

It was a nice trip I tried to do a good trip, wish there was more time in to day to post stuff,
I'll sitting reading along with everyone else
 
Update number 4. A few accidents on 75 we are now on 301 but made the call before we hit the back up.
 
Kris, hate y'll are having batteries issues, we had a good trip home, no problems. After we made it home I unloaded the cart and put the camper in the barn, took a bath and hit the hay, I was tried for some reason, guess it's that drive home. We've been unloading stuff this morning.

It was a nice trip I tried to do a good trip, wish there was more time in to day to post stuff,
I'll sitting reading along with everyone else
Randy thanks for taking us along on your trip Know what you mean about trek home taking more out of you than trip to

Update number 4. A few accidents on 75 we are now on 301 but made the call before we hit the back up.
Kris will PM you about 301 we are considering it in Dec would love your views

Randy am glad you made it home with no issues. It’s been a tough few days.

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Looks like The Rock Stars are exhausted from helping Daddy fix the house on wheels Tell them to take an extra nap for daddy
 
Wow, sounds like you guys got your hands full. Seems like it's all coming together though. You'll be there before you know it. Be safe and keep us posted.
I'm near Chicago, but I have this week off.
It'd take me a couple days, but if need be I sure wouldn't mind driving down to help:rolleyes1
 

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