“Life always reveals to me what I need to know at just the right moment.”
~Louise Hay
Having repaired my plumbing issue as best I could, I drove to Ehrenberg and added 5 gallons of water to my tank. It still dripped. The repair didn’t hold. So I filled my water jug and Britta water pitcher, washed myself and my dishes and let the rest of the water gradually drip out. I used my faucet a few times and it was working fine, but I suspect each time I turned my water pump on to pressurize my tank, the water leaked faster, so I kept the pump off unless I was actually running water. I then turned to the task of trying to figure out my solar issues. Bonnie had bought the exact model of solar suitcase that I had just returned. It was working fine for her van, which is nearly identical to mine, BUT…her solar system is 12v and mine is 24v. She let me plug her panels into my system and nothing happened. It didn’t work with my system. So I drove to Quartzsite and visited “Solar Bill.” He had a better (and unfortunately bigger) solar suitcase that would work with a 24-volt system, but it had to be rewired from parallel connections to serial connections (way above my paygrade) in order to produce enough voltage to be recognized by my solar controller. All this was way out of my wheelhouse, but for about $50 more than I’d paid at Amazon, he was going to rewire a suitcase and have it ready for me the next day. He assured me I’d just have to plug it into the port in my solar controller and I’d be all set.
When I got back to my camping spot in The Magic Circle in Q, I once again disassembled my plumbing connection, cleaned the fittings, wrapped them with Teflon tape and this time, put an added glob of Flex Seal GLUE on the threads when reassembling. I noticed that when I re-attached the pipe to the tank, it would tighten, but not all the way. When I got it as far as it would go, it would still turn as if the threads were stripped. Perhaps the Flex Glue would hold anyway? If not, the next step would be to try to find a plumber who will take a look at it. It is so hard in a tourist spot that caters to snowbirds and RV’s to find anyone in the RV repair business who will return my call. I’ve called several places. Most calls go right to voicemail, and often the voice mailbox is already full and can’t take another message. I suspect they pick and choose based on which jobs are easiest and which will be most profitable. I don’t think I make the cut.
On Tuesday, I waited for Solar Bill to call to tell me my suitcase was ready. He called and said they were quite backed up but he’d have my panels re-wired by the end of the day. It was cool out, little sunshine and I stayed inside most of the day. I was a bit down in the dumps. My fresh water tank was empty, but I kept telling myself that the empty tank would give the Flex Seal time to cure and with any luck, seal the tiny gap where the water pipe connects. I rationed electricity as my solar batteries were only charging to slightly over 50%.
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Wednesday morning I got up and made coffee. I was just waiting for 9:00 to roll around so I could go to pick up my solar suitcase at Solar Bill’s. I stopped on the way out of The Magic Circle and deposited my trash in one of the 4 dumpsters available to Long Term Visitors (that’s me) and headed to Solar Bill. I picked up my panels and they assured me all I had to do was plug them into my solar controller input port and I’d be set. I went out to the parking lot and plugged them in and in spite of the very cloudy day, my solar input doubled. I did my happy dance. One problem solved, one to go. I stopped on the way back into The Magic Circle and filled my water tank. I looked underneath hesitantly. To my surprise (and absolute delight) there were no drips. I had apparently fixed the problem with Flex Seal and persistence. (not necessarily in that order). I did another happy dance, then returned to my site on the fringe of TMC. I set up my panels outside, facing into the sun which was in and out of the clouds.
I have 400 watts of solar panels on my roof. On a good day this time of year, they pull in 180 watts of energy. I plugged in my new 200-watt suitcase and I was now pulling in nearly 400 watts of glorious sunshine. According to my meters, I would be at 100% in 5 hours. I have not been at 100% since early October. It will be such a joy to not have to ration electricity.
The next couple of days were cloudy, so I didn’t get much sun, but the new solar panels facing directly toward the sun’s limited rays did a good job of collecting enough electricity to get me through each day. Cosmo and I stayed in most of the time because it was cold out. We watched as several brave souls (or crazy people) passed by “Donald Ducking.” Although it was barely above 50⁰ outside, the diehard nudists of The Magic Circle, walked by. They had on long sleeve shirts and winter coats, wool hats, heavy socks and boots…and no pants. I found this quite entertaining, and still cannot wrap my head around the benefit of being pant-less in such weather. As it warmed to above 60⁰ in the afternoon, some men (never the men I want to see naked) walked by with only shoes and hats. My California friends are astounded that I wear shorts and a t-shirt when it gets below 70⁰. Perhaps someday I’ll be confident enough in my manhood to expose my genitalia to the world when it is below 50⁰.
After a spectacular lightning storm on Thursday night, the sun finally came out in a cloudless sky on Friday morning. Minutes after sunrise, my solar system was charging at over 100 watts. That has never happened before. The temperature was still only going to reach the mid-60’s but at least it wasn’t overcast and dreary. By Saturday, after two days of full sun and no clouds, I finally reached a 100% charge on my Lithium Ion Batteries. YAY!!!
I also met two very nice men camped across the way from me. They came over to check out my water repair and offer advice if it ever starts to leak again. One of them had sciatica and so I offered to stretch out his piriformis (tiny muscle that the sciatic nerve passes through from the spine down the leg). I showed his partner how to use his elbow to get to it so he could do it in my absence. We talked a long time and I really enjoyed meeting them. I told them I’d really like to hang out when I return from Ehrenberg. I’m heading there today to visit with Bonnie and Kitty is meeting us there as well.)
Lessons From The Road: My sister and I, and a number of friends, all remind each other “Don’t bleed until you’re shot.” I’m working on that and can usually do battle with any single problem effectively. But when I get TWO major problems, then every other minor annoyance feels totally overwhelming. With my solar not charging effectively due to the low angle of the sun, short days, and cloudy weather, and my water in my van drained out onto the ground, when the mouse on my laptop stopped working, it almost did me in. Dirt on my dashboard (the story of my (van) life) was enough to nearly bring me to tears. So I kept plugging away. I re-did my plumbing fixture 3 different times, and finally decided to ask a professional about my solar issues. In one hour and one trip to town, I got my solar suitcase, filled my now leak-less water tank, and bought new batteries for my computer mouse. I came “home” and everything was working perfectly, so I got a wet cloth and cleaned my dashboard. My life is back to perfect. I did this with a little less “bleeding” than I have done in the past. And having been rewarded and knowing that no matter what happens to me or my van on the road, I will get it fixed, I think next time a problem arises, I’ll bleed even a little less than I did this time.
See you down the road!
Scott
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx9L4rW4Orsox-BDA4ebmmQ