Full Time RV Maintenance–Before You Blow a Breaker

An absolutely awesome posting by  FaceBook friend and RV’er RuthLarryBergeron. . .

I am reposting here with their permission. . .hope you find this helpful!

 

BEFORE YOU BLOW YOUR 'BREAKER"
TAKE A MINUTE AND SEE HOW MANYAMPS YOU COULD BE USING IN YOUR RV,S 30 OR 50
AMP ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. IT,S SURPRISING HOW FAST THE AMPS ADD UP WHICH CAUSES
YOUR BREAKER OR THE RV PARKS' BREAKER TO.TRIP". KNOWING THE AMPS OF ALL THE
ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES IN YOU RV CAN HELP YOU MANAGE ELECTRICAL USE AND PREVENT
THE INCONVENIENCE OF "MY ELECTRICITY WENT OUT".

THIS LIST IS THE TYPICAL APPLIANCES USED AND THE AVERAGE AMPS REQUIRED
TO OPERATE THEM:

AIR CONDITIONER 15(xn BTU T.              2.5 AMPS
ELECTRIC WATER HEATER 6 GAL        12.5 AMPS
MICROWAVE OVEN                                  12.8 AMPS
TOASTER                                                    1O.O AMPS
ELECT. COFFEE POT                                 9.0 AMPS
HAIR DRYER                                                IO.OAMPS
TELEVISION                                                      2.0 AMPS
DIRT DEVIL HAND VACUUM                             2.OAMPS
ELECTRIC FRYING PAN                                    1O.O AMPS
IRON                                                                   1O.O AMPS
FOOD PROCESSOR                                     6.0 AMPS
CROCK POT                                                  1.5 AMPS
HEATING PAD                                                  0.5 AMPS
11OO WATT HEATER                                      1O.O AMPS
750 WATT HEATER                                            6.5 AMPS
BOX FAN INDOOR                                            1.5 AMPS
BOX FAN OUTDOOR                                       2.5 AMPS
RADIO WITH CLOCK                                         0.5 AMPS
REFRIGERATOR                                               5.2 AMPS

IN THE MORNING, IF YOU START YOUR AIR CONDITIONER AND HOT WATER HEATER IS ON,
THEN YOU START YOUR COFFEE POT, MAKE SOME TOAST AND WATCH TV, THEN YOU ARE
PULLING 55 AMPS WHEN ALL APPLIANCES ARE OPERATING AT MAXIMUM. IF YOU ALSO COOK
YOUR BACON IN THE MICROWAVE ATTHE SAME TIME, ,LOOK OUT"! MOST RVS HAVE A
SWITCH SO THAT YOU CAN RUN ONLY THE MICROWAVE OR THE WATER HEATER AT ONE TIME.
BUT SOME RV,S DON,T HAVE THIS FEATURE.
MOST ELECTRTCAL PRODUCTS SHOW HOW MANY WATTS OR AMPS IT TAKES TO OPERATE THE
APPLIANCE PASTED ON THE APPLIANCE ITSELF OR IN THE INSTRUCTION. IF IT SHOWS THE
WATTS, DIVIDE THE WATTS BY 120 (VOLTS) AND THAT GIVES YOU THE AMPS. TO GET THE
WATTS MULTIPLY THE AMPS BY 120 (VOLTS).
IT IS WORTH YOUR TIME TO TAKE AN INVENTORY ON THE "AMPS,, THAT EACH OF YOUR
ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES USE, THEN YOU CAN MANAGE YOUR TOTAL USAGE AT ONE TIME.

THIS GREATLY REDUCES THE “MY ELECTRICITY WENT OUT" ANXIETY.

Full Time RV Living–It’s War Around Here

In our last blog post I showed your our resident wren’s nest located up in an exhaust vent.

Because I felt guilty about destroying all their hard work,

I laid the nest materials out on the picnic table,

where they quickly began gathering them up. . .

here’s where I found their latest homebuilding attempt. . .

sorry guys. . .still not gonna work. . .

Wonder what the plan is now. . .I’m keepin’ an eye out!

A very nice surprise this week. . .my brother brought my Dad and Uncle by to visit. . .

They were on their way to the deer lease to hunt hogs,

so I made home made pulled pork barbecue sliders

using home made Parker House Style rolls. . .

I used Alton Brown’s recipe. . .they were dee-lish-us!

the rest of the week has been spent on our park host duties. . .

while I met with Ranger Lisa about a school group that will be here next week. . .

Dave mowed the sites in our camping lot in preparation for the weekend campers!

Til next time,

Janice

Full Time RV Living–Two of My Favorite Guys

This past week offered us an opportunity to meet for lunch with two of Dave’s brothers and his sister. . .

Finding myself seated between two of my favorite guys, I couldn’t resist showing you . . .

David and his look alike. . .youngest brother John. . .aren’t they adorable!  LOL. . .

Last weekend, we had the pleasure of look alike John, Lisa, and John’s look alike Daniel visiting us at the park. . .

what a lot of fun. . .Daniel is the spitting image of his Daddy at that age!

He is a beautiful child. . .inside and out. . .and always has hugs to give. . .which makes me so happy!

On a different note. . .it’s nest building time here at the park. . .

and the Carolina Wrens are in overdrive!

They aren’t a bit shy. . .and were swooping into this exhaust vent one day last week. . .

sitting at my desk in the bedroom. . .I could hear them busily setting up housekeeping. . .

Within two days, they had quite the little collection gathered. . .

and although I feel guilty for destroying all their hard work. . .ummm. . .not a choice location guys!  Sorry. . .

We’ve taped a piece of plastic over the outside of the vent until we can get a screen. . .goodness, they are quick!

As Judy on her Travels With Emma Blog calls it, I’ve set up my bird café. . .

it’s a mix of nuts, seeds, and cracked corn. . .

the peanuts and almonds go first. . .the tufted titmice love them!

followed by the black oil sunflower seed. . .favored by the cardinals. . .

not sure the preference of this Red Breasted Nuthatch or the Carolina Chickadee. . .

but I do know that no one likes the cracked corn. . .so it gets left for the deer and raccoons. . .

oops. . .not supposed to feed the wildlife (well, except for the birds). . .

so we may need to choose a different mix next time. . .

and. . .we’ve noticed the bluebirds flitting about the bluebird boxes. . .

so, the plan for the weekend is to be sure those are cleaned out,

sanitized and ready to go. . .

Til next time,

Janice

Full Time RV Maintenance–Your RV Refrigerator Might Need a Little Assistance

There is a RV Travel Newsletter posted every Saturday that I hope all of your have subscribed to.

Written by Chuck Woodbury, it’s free to subscribe. . .and always has numerous updates about the RV world.

You can even get updates on FaceBook if you would like. . .oh, and since it’s free. . .

if you see an ad on there that interests you. . .go ahead and click on it. . .it’s how Mr Woodbury gets paid.

 

The reason I bring it up is that last week’s daily tip on using an RV refrigerator fan really caught my eye.

We used a fan just like the one in the article  for ages. . .but quickly got tired of changing out the

D cell batteries. . .those little suckers are pricey!

 

A couple of months ago, Ed, a RV’ing friend who created a great RV Tips page on FaceBook

told Dave about these 12 volt refrigerator fans available here on EBay. . .which Dave quickly

ordered and installed. . .we really like them, and think they do a much better job of

circulating air than the little portable one did. 

 

As I was researching, I also found this supplier -

RV Cooling Unit Warehouse – I like the toggle switch on this one

 

I am not affiliated in any way with any of these links. . .

I am just passing along what I think is helpful information.

 

Although not so necessary this time of year. . .as it heats up this summer

your fridge will appreciate a little extra assistance. . .

 

Leave a comment, and share any further tips you might think of. . .

Thanks for reading our blog. . .

Janice

 

 

Sun–Glorious Sun

Sunday, 6 January

Stephen F Austin State Park - San Felipe TX

Volunteering as Park Host

yes! yes! yes!. . .the beautiful fabulous sun put in an appearance today. . .

the golfers were certainly appreciating this beautiful day. . .

we took full advantage also. . .

hiked about three miles down to the Brazos River. . .

and called it trail maintenance. . .what a life!

Full Time RV Living - Bring on the Sun. . .please

Ughhhh. . .the weather has just been yuck. . .cold, drippy, grey and dreary. ..I’m pretty sure I have that S.A.D seasonal disorder.   Weather like this sure makes me SAD. . .I want to just hibernate. . .and not come out until I can see the sun. . .waaaaaa. . .ok, whining over. . .

Loving Stephen F Austin so far. . .very organized staff. . .very clear instructions posted and assigned. . .love that!

The interpretative Ranger is a bird lover. . .so I think she and I are going to get along great. . .plus, she loves to paint. . .and is already working up some painting projects for me. . .

I’m really going to love that!

We think the motorhome looks fabulous in the woods. . .blends right in!

and the coolest part about being here. . .

Dave and I celebrated 38 years of wedded bliss last month. . .

and guess where we spent our honeymoon?

That’s right. . .San Felipe TX. . .we were so poor. . .we stayed in a little fleabag motel out on the highway. . .nearly froze to death. . .and the next day, visited this very sight. . .right around the corner from the park. . .isn’t that ironic?  Part of the reason. . .even way back then that we chose this area. . .is that we both loved the history of it.

Never in our wildest imaginations did we ever dream we would have the privilege of exploring all the historical sights we have seen. . .

we are blessed indeed. . .

As soon as the weather clears up, I hope to take you on a tour of the entire park. . .the Brazos River. . .all the hiking/biking trails. . .and lots of nature. . .up close and personal. . .

Til then ~

Janice

 

 

And SO IT BEGINS!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY. . .

from the Evans Crew