We came to Yuma, AZ in early December of '17 and took up residence in our park model home at a golf/RV resort. Since then, Phrynie has mostly been tucked away in the storage lot (above). I took her out for a good cleaning and one solo 3-day camping trip to the mountains between Yuma and San Diego in early February, and then to the local Ford dealer for her second oil change and checkup. The Transit and all coach systems continue to perform well with no new problems or anything needing attention. I have kept StaBil in the gas for storage and faithfully exercise the generator and A/C every three to four weeks.
We took a leisurely seven days on our trip from Colorado to Yuma in December. One night was dry camping at a Wal Mart; the remaining were with hookups in commercial campgrounds. I did not dump tanks until the last night as we had plenty of capacity.
One addition I made earlier was to add a second Group 24 deep-cycle battery under the entry step. I ordered a hold-down clamp from the local dealer but it did not arrive in time for my use, so I simply cut a piece of OSB to fit around the battery to keep it in place, and that is working fine. If I get the clamp, I will have to do something with that thick encased cable so the battery will sit tight against the compartment side like the original on the left. That cable has zero slack which is why the new battery is slightly slanted.
Another minor thing was the fire extinguisher recall. I filled out the claim on Kidde's web site but never got a confirmation or heard anything from them after a couple of months. So, I filled out a second claim and sent another email saying I needed to get the replacement extinguisher delivered before we left Yuma. Again, no feedback. But without any notification, the replacement showed up via Fed Ex finally, and it fits in the original wall holder even though it is shaped a bit differently.
I was asked about my tow hitch extension. The Orion has a stock 1-1/2" receiver, but I need a 2" receiver for the car tow bar. I bought a 3000# rated 1-1/2" to 2" adapter and hoped the Orion hitch was also rated 3000#. If it had been a 2000# hitch, the solid bar part of the adapter that goes into the receiver would be too long and I would need to cut some of the bar off. But it was indeed a 3k hitch, so all was good. I bought a high strength class-8 1/2" bolt to use as the hitch pin. Then I went to a weld shop and had the adapter welded to the Orion hitch for security, strength, and to eliminate rattles. This is permanent; I have no need for a 1-1/2" system. The weld is circled.
I plan to get a true scale weight of the coach and the Smart car when we are loaded for travel. I need to know if we have much reserve capacity for load and towing. We will be returning to Colorado around the third week of April.
Summer projects will include the installation of a solar charging system. I have two solar panels awaiting back home, and I will be ordering a charge controller shortly. More later.
