RV Experience

With the coming elimination of analog TV come February of next year I knew we would hve to do something eventually. In the RV, hqlf the problem was eliminated when i broke our existing front Tv last fall. We enjoyed seeral months without the TV and barely missed it. Ieventually bought a replacement Tv and it has thee digital tuner built in so half of the problem was solved.

I haven’t broken the bedroon Tv yet so I got an RCA converter box at walmart. It works well. Here at home we get 50 channels over the air so its almost like cable. Most of the channels aren’t worth watching so the quantity helps.

I have noticed an interesting effect of the digital TV’s and converters as opposed to the Analog. The digital TV’s  each preent the picture at their own pace. Two TV’s sid-by-side each show the same program at slightly different times. This has to do with the processing of th signal. Some are fast some are slow so there can be up to a second difference in when the signal arries so if you hae multiple TV’s you can easily get the echo effect due to the delays.

You can easily see the effect when you visit a TV display at the store if they have audio on more than one Tv turned on. Cute. I’m not sure that is an inprovement.

All in all, no real problems in preparing for the change.

Our electrical system is described in another article. Here are a couple of additional thoughts.

If you are going to add panels to your system they should be compatible with yourexisting panels. The wattage of the new panels doesn’t matter. All that does is change the amount of charge current provided. The voltage rating of the new panels is critical. This usually means you shouldn’t mix different manufacturers panels in the same circuit. The charge controller can’t individually optimize for different rated (voltage) panels and the lower voltage panels would not provide as effective an output as the same wattage panel of a matching voltage.

Having panels that can provide more current than the rated output of the charge controller isn’t a problem since the charge controller can limit the maximum output. It isn’t necessarily a good idea though since you may waste some of your expensive solar panel output current. In our case, we do have more panel (400w) than is needed for our charge controller rated output of 25 amps. t does allow us not to have to raise the panels to still get some reasonable charge to the batteries. When our travel style changes to longer stays, a bigger or additional charge controller will probably be beneficial.

If you want to mix panels with different voltage ratings (different manufacturers) you should feed the panels to two different charge controllers either to the same or different battery banks and you’ll get more charge for your panel investment. Assuming two 120 watt panel cost $1600 and you get 75% efficiency due to a voltage difference you would realize maybe 38 amps of charge per day.If you invested another $200 for another charge controller  you would get 100% output or maybe 50 amps of charge per day (more if your charge controller uses MPPT). Pardon the short cuts on math and the wild guesses on outputs. I’ll try to add actual figurs when i get a chance but the estimates are close to our experience per my memory.

What this all really relates to is the same thinking as is used to get more output using Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) charge controllers. If you match the controller to the panel you can get the maximum output. The method of matching is using the voltage.
You can choose panels with different wattage ratings from the same manufacturer to allow the panels to fit more easily on your RV’s roof in order to avoid roof top obstacles. Our Kyocera panels are all the same width but the length changes with the wattage rating.

To get the most from your panels and generator use it is best to estimate the potential charge available in the morning (is it cloudy, how much charge have you been getting recently, etc) and run you generator in the morning to bring the batteries up to the point that the solar will top off the batteries. Our freedom inverter/charger charges at 75 amps when I run the generator on discharged batteries. The higher the charge on the batteries, the less output the charger will provide to the batteries. The solar charge controller does the same, as the batteries are closer to fully charged, the charge current is reduced. But, running the generator in the evening for 1.5 hours to top off the last 30 amps at 20 amps doesn’t seem as effective as charging at 75 amps in the morning for a total run time of 30 minutes. The solar charge current is closer to what the batteries want to receive in the afternoon.

In November of 2007, I bought a new laptop, the Asus eeePC. It is a small, very small, cheap laptop with all the features an RVer needs. As delivered, it uses Linux rather than Windows but you can load windows if you like. There’s really no need to do that and it will work better and faster if you don’t. The computer boots up and shuts down much faster than a windows PC. It doesn’t have a hard drive rather it uses 4GB of flash memory which is plenty. It doesn’t have an optical drive either. It does have three USB ports, an SD slot, an XGA video connector, Mic in and earphone out jacks, and a LAN port. There is a camera above the screen facing the user and speakers on either side of the screen. It has built-in wireless b and g. The screen is only 7 inches diagonally but plenty big enough for most use. It has a small touch pad as well. The keyboard is reduced in size so it takes a little getting used to but is infinitely easier than a PDA. It has a lithium Ion battery that lasts more than three hours, more if you dim the screen and turn off the wireless.

It comes with all the necessary software Firefox browser, Open Office word processor and spreadsheet, acrobat reader, media player, photo management, and more. These applications are not overly full of features but provide everything that is needed. If you’re near a hotspot you can use Google’s online word processor and always be able to continue your project whether you are on the eeePC or another computer without having to keep all the files in sync. This wont work in the boondocks but WiFi is becoming more and more available. You could easily add USB wireless modem and connect via the cell phone high speed networks.
It is a Linux computer so it does take a little getting used to and may require a little more user technical abilities. But I think it’s worth the effort.

Of course there’s the fact that Bill Gates doesn’t get richer unless you load Windows on the thing and then buy all the related software. But there are more reasons it’s ideal for RVer’s. It’s size and weight are two benefits. It weighs less than two pounds and can be carried like a book with no strain. It will fit in a fanny pack if you like. You can easily take it on a hike.

It is easily carted down to your local WiFi hotspot when not available at your campsite. It’s more durable than most laptops since it has no mechanical drives. It only costs $400 so it’s loss would not cause bankruptcy. Similar sized laptops easily cost 4-6 times as much.

Using the USB ports, you can add an optical or hard drive or just plug in a jump drive.

Pop the SD memory card out of you camera and into the eeePC’s builtin SD slot and upload your pictures for printing at Walmart’s, ShutterFy, or wherever.

It comes with Skype software installed so you can make VOIP calls. With the addition of some upgrded Skype software you could make video phone calls using the included built-in camera.

An additional feature of the eeePC is that it uses very little power. There’s no brick power supply. It has a tiny wall wart with a long cord and folding prongs which is much easier to use. The power supply is small enough to fit in your pants pocket with room to spare.

I did add Picasa photo software, free from Google, to the computer for full featured photo editing and easy upload for prints. It is a beta version for Linux but seems to work well. It took a little research to learn how to install it but all went well and it works great. Software installation isn’t as simple as for Windows but there is actually less potential of one software installation affecting another than with Windows since it has better dependency management. To install a new application you search the web and find a detailed list of the steps needed for installation and it works.

I really like my eeePC. I haven’t used it yet on the road but I am really looking forward to it. It wont be replacing my big older laptop for all uses. The big screen and big keyboard still have their use.

This computer hs only been available for a couple of weeks but there is aready an excellent users group. Of ourse, Asus is one of the largest PC board manufactures around so they have a lot of experience.

More information to follow.

There are lots of methods to try to remind RVers to lower the antenna. Here is ours.

Get some bright Velcro cable ties. I have several, each marked with a special reminder.

• TV antenna
• Datastorm satellite dish
• Wheel Chocks
• Parking Brake

Just strap them around the steering wheel. You can’t miss seeing them. The only problem is to remember to install them when you raise the antenna, place a wheel chock or set the parking brake.

Here are some things we do to make life on the road more simple.
Shop Towels: We hate to do laundry. We also hate moldy towels. We solved this by using blue shop towels. There is no comparison with a paper towel and a blue shop towel. Blue shop towels are much stronger. We use them for everything, kitchen towels, bathroom hand towels, and bath towels. Lou tears off a strip of four towels to use as a bath towel. Don gets by with one towel and wrings it out to use over again until dry. We buy the ten pack of blue shop towels from Costco, about $1.44 per roll. Now we don’t have a bunch of towels hanging around drying and our laundry is less than half the size.
Paper Plates, Bowls, and Plastic Utensils: Using paper plates, bowls, knives, forks, and spoons saves a lot of dish washing, therefore adding to the length of a boondock stay.
Plastic Grocery Bags: These are used for garbage bags. They are about the size for one days use.
Spray Bottles: We keep a plastic spray bottle in the kitchen and in the bathroom.
In the kitchen, the bottle is filled with plain water. We use it to wet down pans and utensils that need washing. First the dirty dishes are wiped with a shop towel. Then they are sprayed and wiped again. Now you can wash then with a small amount of water in the largest pan and a little dish washing soap. We can wash and rinse the dishes (a couple of pans, a couple of cups and a knife and big spoon) with about a cup of water.
In the bathroom, the spray bottle has water with a little dish washing soap in it. It is used to rinse the toilet after use. The soap makes the things slick and the #2 doesn’t stick as much. The stream spray knocks off what does. Saves an awful lot of water use. Since our bathroom sink also drains to the black tank, there is actually plenty of liquid in the tank. The two of us can easily go 10-12 days without trouble.
Bathing: When boon docking, shower less often, usually every third day. In between, take sponge baths. Actually “wet-one baths”. We get unscented baby wipes from Safeway. We use them for washing our hands after using the toilet and we also use them for bathing. 2-3 wipes is all that are needed for a good bath.
Tea Pot: We use a nice whistling tea pot to heat water for our tea when we don’t want to use the microwave. A cup of tea uses about 2 ampere hours from the battery. It’s often better to use gas and cook some water. We use the inverter and microwave sometimes but if we’re trying to save battery for more important things like TV or Internet use and not start the generator, possibly to keep a nice campground quiet, a tea pot is a good idea.
Camp Fires: Starting camp fires is very easy. We use a one-hour log and place our real logs on top. The fire is started with one match (actually a lighter) and you have a really nice fire in a couple of minutes. The fire is for looks only, not cooking though.

I went to Best Buy and bought a Slingbox. The SlingBox is a device that connects to your home network and a TV antenna or cable box or other video source. You run a player on your computer and video and audio are streamed from you home to your computer, wherever it may be where there is a broadband connection. It works great from point to point on the network at home.
Our first night using the Slingbox in the RV we were at the Pinnacles National Monument South of Hollister, California. There are two things that occur there. There are no cell phone signals and there are no TV signals. There are great views and there aren’t many places as nice to visit as the Pinnacles, but no signals.
So…
We use Vonage for our IP phone and that fixes the first problem.
Our Slingbox seems to handle the second.
The first time we tried it in the RV using the Datastorm Satellite Internet connection it was a bit shaky to start. The feed was dropping and requiring a manual restart, every 5 sec to 5 minutes, suddenly it started working continuously with occasional short dropout but returning automatically. After becoming more familiar with the thing and making a few tweaks, it works much better. I reduced the sample rate from 310K and 30 frames per second to 220K and 20 fps.
I watched as much as 5 hours one evening and there was no impact to bandwidth of the Internet connection over the satellite. I was even doing a lot of website updates at the same time. In the evening, there was some momentary dropout, not enough to bother me and, just as David Letterman came on, it became perfect and stayed that way until I called it a night after another hour or so. The same effect on a subsequent night. Must be a lot less traffic on the satellite that late. I think it will work out OK.
We enjoy our home broadcast stations. There are a lot of them and occasionally, something is worth watching. I’m too cheap to pay cable of DirecTV rates. The cost is just 2-3 times what it should be. I’d prefer it if they charged by the channel and you could select which channels you wanted. I’d pick a couple and pay my $2 month and be happier, but that’s not this world. So, paying the $200 for the Slingbox seems to be a good alternative. It will pay for itself at that rate in 8 years. Actually, since DirecTV cost $41/month, minimum, as an alternative, it pays for itself in 5 months.
Lou returned home while I was still away. Lou called to say there was a problem with our house phone. It is a Vonage phone connected to our DSL line. The person she called said they couldn’t understand her. I knew right away what was wrong. I was watching TV and there wasn’t enough up link bandwidth left to feed the SlingBox video and the Vonage phone. When she’s home I’ll have to curtail my TV watching until later at night. Interestingly, I can watch TV and browse the Internet here in the RV without any problems.

Article under construction. Pictures to follow.

I had a potentially disastrous event happen on a visit to Las Vegas. It had been freezing and I was concerned that the water hose would freeze up. I had heard that if you leave a trickle running through the hose, it wouldn’t freeze. I had hooked up the drain hose, opened the gray water valve and turned the bathroom sink on at a trickle. There is more to know.
I went out that evening and fortunately returned a couple of hours later. When I returned, the bathroom was just beginning to flood. The toilet bowl was full. After opening the black drain valve I cleaned up the spilled water and dried every thing out. It’s a good Idea to carry a wet/dry vacuum for just such needs. Fortunately nothing was permanently damaged but it did take a while to cleanup. Fortunately, the water that spilled looked clear but it had been through the mill so everything was disinfected as well.
What the heck had happened? The manufacturer had routed the bathroom sink to the black tank for some reason. It could have just as easily gone to the gray tank as I had thought. They must have done it to balance the tank use?
What was learned? Know where everything drains to. Don’t use that stupid trickle idea! Just use the water from your tank and the water pump and don’t even install the hose except to fill the tank. Wait for warmer weather.
Actually, we now tend to not even hookup the drain except when the holding tank needs to be drained or we know we’ll be at this site for a while.

We have a macerator that provides a means of draining our RV’s holding tanks when we’re at home and wherever the drain inlet is difficult to access. Our RV drain outlet is very low so we often can’t drain into the park drain inlet. We also have run across some parks that must believe water flows up hill since they place the drain inlet as high as our bumper on occasion.
A macerator is like a garbage disposer. They can be either permanently installed or portable. Ours is portable. It is attached to the drain outlet of our RV. The macerator requires a good power source. It uses about 20 amps. Since it would be used regularly, I installed a pair of #10 wires to a power connector that terminates next to the drain outlet. The macerator is carried in a plastic case for easy, neat storage. To use the macerator, just attach it to the drain outlet like a drain hose. Connect the power cable. Attach the drain hose to the macerator outlet. I have a 75′ long 5/8″ hose with shutoff valves and caps for each end of the hose. Remove the caps and attach the hose. Secure the male end of the hose at the drain point such that it won’t move when the flow begins. Use a weight or good old duct tape. When the hose is attached, the valves on each end can be opened. Hook up a second hose to the water faucet and attach it to the hose inlet on the macerator. Turn on the water and the macerator to check that the water arrives safely to the drain with no leaks (I use a short 10′ hose that I normally use for cleanup of the conventional drain hoses). If it does, turn off the water faucet and macerator and open the black drain valve, then turn on the macerator. Check that all is going where it should. When the black tank is empty, close the black valve and open the gray valve. When the gray tank is empty, close it’s valve, turn on the faucet to add clean water to purge the pump and drain hose. When the hose has cleared, shutoff the macerator. Be sure not to run the macerator without liquid to pump. Coil the drain hose as you drain the water from it then close the valves on the hose. Install the hose caps. Wipe down the macerator and place it back in the case.
The shutoff valves on the drain hose are for emergency shutdown in case something goes wrong.
We haven’t yet used it where we are dry camping. If you use it where there isn’t a good source of clean water to purge the macerator and hoses after use you would end up with a dirty macerator and hose to store. I’ve always just used the conventional hose for those locations. The macerator is saved for use where other means won’t work as well.
We got the macerator kit from Camping World when they had a good sale. I think it was about $170 on sale but is usually less than $300.

Above left are the closed storage boxes for the macerator and the drain hose respectively. Above right they are open. It’s kind of important not to mix-up fresh water and drain water hoses. All the drain water hoses are gray, both the one above that is used on the macerator outlet and the hose used to connect water from the faucet to the macerator. The later hose is used to clean the conventional 3 inch hoses as well. All fresh water hoses are white and never used anywhere near the drain system not even just to extend the water toward the macerator. Not shown is the anti-syphon coupler that is part of the connection from the faucet to the macerator.

Above left are the drain hose couplers and caps. Above right is the macerator pump. The red button at the end of the cable is the push on/push off control. It’s kind of cumbersome. I’ll probably replace it sometime with an inline switch without all the extra wire. The blue at the top of the pump is a coupler with valve where the clean water attaches. It can be turned on to clean out the drain line and to clear the impeller is it clogs. At the bottom center of the macerator is where the drain hose connects.

If you enjoyed the company of a cat in your stick house, you’ll probably want to bring them along with you in your travels. Some preparation is needed as well as some orientation for the cat and its people. Our cat was eight years old before his first trip and hated to ride in the car because it always meant he was going to the vets office. Preparing him to travel was possibly more important than for a kitten.
Our cat was already trained to walk on a leash. Obtain a good harness and attach identification tags. One thing to note, it is important to use a light weight leash cord to minimize the strain on the cats neck.
Prepare a new nest.

The cat needs a place of their own. Someplace to get away and feel safe. We prepared a nest in the space under our couch where the cross bracing prevented good use as storage. We cut a cat sized opening into the couch base cabinet about the center of the cabinet. There are two drawers on either side of the cabinet and the new cat nest in between. We padded the nest for comfort. Other places that might be used are a shelf in a kitchen or bathroom cabinet with an opening for the cat to enter.
We also provided a perch. A shelf was added by the passenger side window above the couch. This allows the cat to ride in comfort and watch outside as desired.
Find a good place, out of the way, where the cats food and water can be placed. It will need to be out all the time so a good location choice is important. We placed it by the wall under the table in a high walled tray. Spills or scattering of the cat food is contained in the tray. It also helps to keep the our feet out.

A cat needs a litter box. It needs to always be available so again, a good location is important. We placed ours in the bathtub. Our tub/shower has a shower curtain so it is easily left open for cat access. It is important to keep the litter out of the drain since it will expand, cling and clog the drain. We obtained a good secure fitting plug. When we shower, we place the litter box in the hallway. We sweep out the kitty litter that gets kicked out with use, then wipe with a damp cloth. and are ready to shower. When we’re through showering, we wipe the shower walls and curtain dry and return the litter box to the tub. If you have swinging shower doors you may not be able to use this location. If your shower doors slide, you may be able to use the shower. Other locations could be the sacrifice of another cabinet but this will require fitting the litter box into the space available. Remember, the cat needs some head room to do their business.
We leash our cat whenever he’s outside. In order to allow the screen door to be left open for ventilation, we attached a bungee cord nearby and use it to secure the screen door closed when needed. We also installed side window louvers to allow the windows to be left open but not allow the cat to get through the screen.
Speaking of ventilation, it’s important to keep the inside cool for the cat. Our air conditioner sometimes trips the breaker or stops working for other reasons. In general, air conditioners can’t be relied on unless someone is there to monitor the operation. The ceiling exhaust fan is much more reliable as well as are open windows. We set the exhaust fan on manual and open our side windows and ceiling vents. If it’s really warm, we also turn on the shower exhaust fan.
Practice RV living with your cat before you leave. We camped in the RV in our driveway for a week or so. Each evening we would go out to the RV with the cat and watch TV or eat dinner for a couple of hours. We would run the generator occasionally and do other noisy activities like running the range hood vent so the cat became used to the RV noises. We slept in the RV with the cat. We also went on short trips in the RV with the cat, like to the market. When we did leave on longer trips, the cat was ready.
Due to the limited space, the cat may need to be exercised. Be sure to have cat toys and to play with your cat. Our cat also likes to take a walk outside whenever we arrive. That usually is the only time he wants outside. We encourage him to go outside and take a walk occasionally.

Our cat has adjusted well. Toward the end of our first long trip, he learned to ride the dash, leaning into the turns to stay on the dash. He likes to ride on the dash when we’re driving at night because he likes the lights.
Also, prepare copies of the cats medical records including shot records to keep in the RV.
Before we drive away from our campsite or other parking place, we take inventory of our cat to be sure of where he is. This is also important before activating slide-outs if your RV is so equipped.
Our travels with our cat have been very enjoyable. Our methods may or may not apply to you and your cat, however, you and your cat can probably develop your own methods. A little preparation and effort makes everyone happy.