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Re: Should we be going?
To each his own, but be aware of the risks especially if you are older and have other health problems. My wife and I are in that category, and were advised by our doctor at the beginning of March to follow the CDC guidelines. We stocked up and prepared to isolate at home if necessary. At that time there were only a few cases in NYC, none in our county (Suffolk) and none in the adjacent county (Nassau). One week later on the 7th there were a few more in NYC and one in Nassau-none in our county. Just like some of the country today. Fortunately, we decided at that time to quarantine ourselves. By the 15th, our county went from 0 to 47cases, by the 22st to 1000, and today less than one month after the first case, we passed through 10,000 cases, and the number is still growing exponentially. The number of hospitalizations and deaths has risen proportionally. The really scary thing is that in about a week when the local hospitals run out of capacity, we old and sick are going to be the ones left to die if we get the virus. So be very careful- the virus may be lurking unseen out there, especially if your area has not done extensive testing, and it's very contagious. And it gets ugly very quickly. Be safe Ed641Views0likes0CommentsRe: 2003 Winnebago Ford f53 fuel pump help????
It may not be the same but here's my experience with an '02 Holiday Rambler on a Ford F53. We had a problem with the fuel gauge sender in the tank. I dropped the rig off at the Ford dealer. He called saying they couldn't get at the bolts to drop the tank, and was discussing with HR where to cut a hole in the bedroom floor. I told him not to do anything until I spoke to HR. Then the Ford guy called back saying the job was done! I had visions of a hole in my floor BUT Monaco had a solution. There was a panel in the back of one of the compartments. Unscrew the panel, insert a thin mechanic and remove the float from the tank! So after a lot of discussion it became a quick repair. Maybe Winnebago was smart enough to copy this solution. Ed551Views0likes0CommentsRe: How many don't pull a TOAD behind their coach?
We've gone 13 years without a toad. We started that way because we didn't have a towable car when we bought the motor home. So we rented from Enterprise for our cross country trips. In general we got good service and, for our usage, it was more cost effective to rent than to buy a new car. This depends on how much you travel. Eventually we needed to get a new car and got a towable Corolla. By that time however, we were down to a few local trips a year, so I decided not to spend the several thousand it would have cost for the tow package. Our usage has dwindled more so that was the right choice for us. I should note that we planned our trips in advance, and part of the planning was to select campgrounds which were close enough to an Enterprise so that we were assured of a pickup. Some folks don't like to be so regimented, so a toad may be the best for them. Incidentally, when we made our first cross country trip in 2003 we entertained ourselves by counting Class As with or without a toad. At that time, about 1/3 had toads. Ed553Views0likes0CommentsRe: Fogged Side Windows
I had fogged panes on both sides right where the side view mirrors are. After getting BIG estimates from the local shops, I got a local glass guy to help me pull the driver and passenger windows out. I disassembled the windows myself (didn't want to pay the glass guy a lot to rush through the process). Disassembly consists of removing six screws, then twisting the frame enough to slide out the individual panes. Not difficult for a competent do-it-yourselfer. I then shipped both fogged panes to Suncoast designers for repair. It cost me about $200 to crate and ship, plus $150 each to replace (glass was too damaged to clean). So for less than $800 I got both sides repaired. And I get the 10 year Suncoast warranty on the resealed panes. In my searches of the net, they were the only ones to offer such a warranty. Ed507Views0likes0CommentsRe: 2004 Holiday Rambler Admiral 30'
We have a 2002 Holiday Rambler 32 PDB which we bought new. It's very similar to the 32 PDB in the 2004 brochure. I bought it because I was impressed with the steel and aluminum frame, as well as aluminum siding. Needless to say, there have been no delamination problems. I'll be glad to share our experiences if it will be helpful. I'm not sure what the differences betweeen the 30 ft and 32 foot are. Ed337Views0likes0CommentsRe: Fogged dual pane window solution for $60
I just started on my two front windows which have fogged right where I look at the sideview mirrors. The local RV repair place wanted to put in new aftermarket windows at $2K+ apiece. I got my neighborhood window guy to help me remove the two front windows (3 panes each including the slider, so it's a 2 person job)which took 30 min. I then disassembled the two windows (about 2 hours) and then packed up the two leaking panes and shipped them off to Suncoast. It took me most of a day to collect foam, plywood, etc and carefully pack the two windows. I figure when all is done including Suncoast's fee ($50 ea) plus the packing material and shipping both ways it will cost me about $700 for 2 windows. And I will have the 10 year warranty on the two windows. If we had a reason to drive to Florida it would have made sense, but I think this is a good compromise. Incidentally, my local glass guy repaired one of the windows 2 years ago, but it failed already. So I'm counting on Suncoast to have the magic sauce which allows them to reliably seal the dual-pane windows. I was impressed with the fact that they changed their warranty from 5 years to 10 years a while back. EDIT So far, so good. Suncoast called 3 days after they received the windows and said they had shipped two newly built windows. They arrived safely along with a copy of the 10 year prorated warranty. Now I have to reinstall into the frame- probably the hardest job, and install the whole window into the motorhome. It took about 2 hours to reinstall the two window panes. It would be a lot quicker for a single pane, but with 3 panes there's always one gasket that isn't quite right. I then got the window guy to help and provide calking- it took a total of an hour to put in both windows. So it's finally done, and we're packing for our first trip of the season! It was a fair amount of tedious work, but I probably made the equivalent of $400/hour by doing it myself. Ed2.4KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Traveling without a TOAD
We've put about 30,000 miles on the RV, all without a toad. We didn't have a suitable vehicle to tow when we got the motorhome, so we decided to go toadless for awhile and see how it worked. Worked out fine, mostly with Enterprise, sometimes with Avis, local trips my wife would drive one of our cars. We've had a few aggravations (sometimes late)with Enterprise, but they always picked us up and were always polite and helpful. Now, we did plan our trips and reserve cars in advance. We'd sometimes pick a campground with Enterprise access, then use their car to get to the distant attraction we wanted to visit (did I mention always unlimited mileage?) Obviously, you have to allow time to pick up and drop off a car, so it can't be as convenient as jumping into your own car. On the other hand, we don't have to sweat getting into or out of a tight gas station. Since our motorhome usage has ranged from 10 weeks/year to 2 weeks/year, it costs a lot less to rent than to buy a new car. If you're fulltiming, then it makes a lot more sense to tow. Ed395Views0likes0CommentsRe: Turbo tax admits their mistake!!
I've been a Turbotax user for many years, but decided their underhanded price increase was unacceptable, and switched to H&R Block for less than half of what the uprated Turbo would have cost. While Turbotax has said they're sorry, I haven't hear them say they'll never do it again. I found that H&R is fully functional, if not quite a pretty as Turbotax. H&R handled my investment income, including partnership K1s, and imported data from last year's Turbotax. Looks like it will do the job and so I'll be buying based on price, not old relationships. So long Turbotax. Ed428Views0likes0CommentsRestrictions on RVs in Smithtown, NY
The Smithtown Board will be holding a hearing on September 9 to get public comments on a change to the town code which, according to Newsday, will prohibit the parking of RVs on residential streets, and to increase the maximum fines allowed. The public hearing will be help at Town Hall, 99 Main Street, Smithtown, on September 9 at 2 PM. The proposed local law #1-2014,amending local law #6-261984, Chapter 296 of the Town Code. We don't have any details, but it's important for any Smithtown residents to attend or contact their elected representative.3.7KViews0likes13Comments
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