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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: New Member, need your advice!
Another quick google search shows average rent for outside RV storage in the San Jose area for a 25' RV is $300 per month.
What google doesn't show is that pretty much all storage facilities are at 100% capacity, with a waiting list. We had our RV in a storage facility about 5 miles from our house for the past 30+ years - last year they doubled the rent so we started looking to relocate. The ONLY place we found was about 15 miles away and we grabbed it - within a couple of months he was full, with a waiting list. Even facilities farther away, in Morgan Hill, Gilroy, and Hollister are full.
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Alan_Hepburn
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08/07/22 12:15pm |
Beginning RVing
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RE: Colorado Hwy 50 @ Monarch Pass
We did Monarch Pass east to west a few years ago in our 2007 Fleetwood Bounder 35E Workhorse towing a smart car. Going up we were doing about 25 mph in the right lane and going down we used the Grade Brake built in to the Allison transmission and kept the speed to around 35-45.
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Alan_Hepburn
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07/22/22 12:16pm |
Roads and Routes
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RE: Are RV sewer hose supports necessary?
There are some municipal codes that require the sewer hoses to be elevated off the ground, so it's wise to at least carry a "stinky slinky" for those times where the campground requires it...
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Alan_Hepburn
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07/12/22 12:01pm |
Beginning RVing
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RE: New Member, need your advice!
The RV Park at the Fairgrounds is pretty much a dump, in a sketchy area of the city. I don't know of any trailer parks that do short-term RV parking. For RV parks you need to go south to Morgan Hill and beyond, or over the hill to Pleasanton and beyond.
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Alan_Hepburn
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07/05/22 10:42am |
Beginning RVing
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RE: best way to recover a roof
We just had our roof done by the folks at RV-Armor earlier this year - it costs a bit more, but it's one that has a lifetime warranty tied to the vehicle's VIN so it's transferable. It took a total of 3 days to complete the job, and they came out to where we were parked. Very happy with the results so far.
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Alan_Hepburn
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07/03/22 10:52am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Fuel cost in your area
I plugged my car in five hours while at work today. Not sure what the company cost was. Maybe $4 to pick up 50 miles of range.
So, plugging in for 5 hours gives you 50 miles of range? At 6 gallons per minute (the pump capacity of most commercial gas stations) I can pump 1800 gallons of gas - a LOT better range than yours!
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Alan_Hepburn
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06/28/22 10:53am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Fuel cost in your area
According to Gas Buddy within 3 miles of our home in San Jose, Ca the price for regular ranges from $5.85 to $6.69...
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Alan_Hepburn
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06/27/22 11:47am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: My Microsoft Mail has suddenly been reformated
How would I do a screenshot?
Look on your keyboard for a key that is labelled "PrtSc" - on my Lenovo it's in the top row, toward the right hand side.
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Alan_Hepburn
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06/12/22 11:05am |
Technology Corner
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RE: RV Life RV Safe GPS
Ever think that missing couple that was found, one alive the other dead, might have been following Google Maps and that's what got them into a world of S?????
Actually, they were using a printout from Mapquest, along with an atlas...
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Alan_Hepburn
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04/21/22 11:26am |
Technology Corner
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RE: RV Life RV Safe GPS
If it is 100% "cloud based" then it must have 100% Internet connection all the time and to use it on a iPad that means you would have to have a cellphone Ipad or a Ipad tethered to a cellphone data stream..
It has the ability to download maps for the states you're travelling in so it can be used when there's no cell signal.
Why go through all that hassle and expense, why not just use your cellphone Internet and use Google Maps? Its free..
Can you explain how to input your RV dimensions into Google Maps so that it doesn't route you on roads that are not RV-friendly?
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Alan_Hepburn
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04/21/22 11:24am |
Technology Corner
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RE: Bluetooth question
I just got new hearing aids from the VA about 2 months ago - they are Signia brand and the connect to my Samsung Galaxy S20FE phone with no problem. When I got them my audiologist took the time to call Signia to verify that they were compatible. The 4 year old Signias that they replaced needed an external pendant to talk to my phone - I kind of prefer that because to answer a call I just had to push a button on the pendant; now I have to retrieve my phone and swipe the screen to answer a call.
These new ones also talk to a small streaming box that is connected to my TV set so I don't have to have the TV volume up at ear-splitting levels anymore!
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Alan_Hepburn
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04/20/22 12:44pm |
Technology Corner
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RE: roof seal
Check out the folks at RV-Armor - they provide a lifetime warranty, tied to the vehicle's VIN.
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Alan_Hepburn
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04/08/22 11:44am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Campgrounds around Seattle
Several years ago we stayed at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe. We've been told it can be problematic concerning homeless, but we never had an issue - we spent a couple of weeks there, and it seemed to be used as a meeting spot for RVers taking cruises from Seattle.
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Alan_Hepburn
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03/18/22 11:50am |
RV Parks, Campgrounds and Attractions
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RE: Pinnacles National Park, California question
According to the website, if you're going to the campground, you want to go in the East Entrance only.
The website is correct: the campground is accessed from the East entrance only. Depending on when you go, if you decide to wander through the caves you can expect to see some tarantulas - they make their homes in the caves...
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Alan_Hepburn
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03/12/22 01:10pm |
RV Parks, Campgrounds and Attractions
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RE: Multiple Buyers. Who gets the RV?
All this talk makes me feel like we made the right decision by selling our Jeep Wrangler to Vroom instead of dealing with a private sale! And back when we moved from a fifth wheel to a motorhome we ended up putting our F450 tow vehicle on a consignment lot - got what we wanted out of it and let someone else deal with any issues!
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Alan_Hepburn
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02/01/22 10:16am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: new towed vehicle - Jeep Wrangler
Hmmm.....I read some bad reviews on that one, saying that when they bolted the blue ox brackets on, it deformed the bumper and cause the powder coat to flake off. That was other reason I was a bit afraid of that one. Have you not had any issues with that? That, and I read where the company that made it openly admitted their bumper was not designed to do such.
I'm not sure how the bumper could deform - it's basically a solid piece of steel, placed between the brackets and the frame horn, with the mounting bolts going straight through into the frame. The only deformation I could think of would be possibly squeezing it, but that would take a LOT of torque on the bolts! Once the brackets are installed any force from towing would be placed on the mounting bolts and not on the bumper.
When I contacted Rugged Ridge they didn't say that the bumper wasn't designed for towing; rather they said they had not tested it for towing - a subtle difference. Since the bumper is really nothing more than the center layer of a 3-layer steel "sandwich" there should be no problem - it's the mounting bolts doing the work.
Hadn't seen those, but looking at it, not sure how you'd attach Blue ox style Clevis attachments to it?
They offer the adapters, which apparently replace the ends of the Blue Ox tow bar arms and mate up with the loops.
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Alan_Hepburn
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01/28/22 01:00pm |
Dinghy Towing
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RE: new towed vehicle - Jeep Wrangler
I doubt the Blue Ox base plate will be any lower than the differential is right now.
Well, no, but it's not ground clearance so much as it's the approach angle that is a concern.
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Alan_Hepburn
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01/27/22 01:05pm |
Dinghy Towing
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RE: new towed vehicle - Jeep Wrangler
We went with this silver 2018 Unlimited Sport model (JK). I wanted one that was built on a ladder frame (not unibody), so that was why we didn't look for anything newer than 2018, and wanted a JK model.
The newer JL and JT models still use the same ladder frame. I don't think that will EVER change so long as the Wranglers are in production.
At any rate, that brings us to what I wanted to talk about here: Setting up a Jeep Wrangler for flat towing. We use the Readybrute/Readybrake on the Taurus, so will be setting up the Jeep with the Readybrake and Readystop cables. I will probably get a Cooltech wiring harness and wire in the Jeep tailights for flat towing. Any hints, suggestions on installing the wiring harness and readybrake cable, would be welcome. :)
For me, the hardest part about installing the Ready Brute cables was getting up the courage to poke the holes in the firewall in a brand new vehicle. Once I got that under control it was a simple task to install the cables. Similarly with the wiring: I liked the CoolTech harness, but didn't like the price so I sourced my own wire and switch and built my own version. I put the switch in the dash rather than under the passenger seat so it's more convenient to reach from the driver's seat, but it required routing the wire up behind the dash. I think I spent less than $30 for everything for that harness.
What I'm mostly struggling with right now has to do with the base plate set up in the front. I see a couple options:
1. Replace front bumper with one that allows you to bolt the Blue Ox brackets directly to the front, like the Rock Hard 4x4 Patriot or Rugged Ridge Spartan bumper. Really like this idea, but problem is, unless you spend a ton of $$ on an aluminum bumper, you are looking at a steel bumper that is very, very heavy. Don't want to make this jeep any heavier than it already is if I can avoid it. Are there any bumper options out there, that you can connect blue ox brackets to, aren't so heavy, and not so hard on the wallet?
On my Gladiator I went with the Rugged Ridge Spartan bumper. It won't add too much weight up front because it's replacing the OEM bumper, not adding to it. I don't recall the actual weight of the bumper, but it wasn't much more than the OEM one - I had no problem installing it by myself.
2. Blue Ox base plate, installed right under the bumper - Really leaning this direction, but hate that it sits so low under the bumper, and vulnerable to a rock or something hitting it, as we do plan to do some off-roading now and then.
On my wife's old Wrangler (2107 JKU) we used the Blue Ox base plate - it did hang down from the front and while we never had it impact the ground the thought was always there because it DOES reduce your approach angle a bit.
3. Currie Rock Jock tow bar mounting kit - This one replaces front air dam/chin under the bumper with a steel piece that has tow hooks incorporated into it, that tow bar would attach to. Like this one, too, and its definitely the least expensive, but questioning how strong it'd be, given the way it attaches. Its just bolted on top to the stock bumper, and on bottom to frame cross member. Doesn't bolt directly to frame rails like other ones do, so not sure if it'd be as solid. That, and the position of the tow hooks has me concerned it'd make the tow bar clevises rub up against bottom of the (stock) bumper.
I don't have any knowledge of the Currie system, but on my wife's new 2022 Wrangler we're going with the Maximus 3 Tow loops - they hang below the bumper, but not as far as the Blue Ox base plate. She decided she didn't want to change out the bumper...
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Alan_Hepburn
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01/27/22 01:04pm |
Dinghy Towing
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RE: Satellite Dish question
Remember that you will be able to receive high-def reception for Direct TV ONLY with the $2200.00 Traveler dish. The domes will NOT receive HD for Direct TV.
That's not true. You can also use a manual portable home style antenna which costs a few hundred bucks for a good setup. Also, a company called RF Mogul makes a fully automatic roof mounted antenna but it costs even more!
The Winegard can be had for about $1900 and it can be self installed.
While the Winegard is certainly less expensive the RF Mogul I feel is a better value. One big factor is servicing: the RF Mogul is completely field-serviceable while the Winegard has to be shipped back to them for any service.
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Alan_Hepburn
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01/18/22 11:14am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Air & Space Museum in DC to Close
An air museum I really enjoyed was the Military Aircraft Preservation Society (MAPS) Museum in Canton, Ohio - many of their planes are open so you can "try them on for size"...
And the museum at Hill AFB in Utah was pretty nice also...
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Alan_Hepburn
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11/24/21 10:43am |
RV Parks, Campgrounds and Attractions
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