Satisfied - Repairs and Fun

The last few days have been poop-tastic, literally.

Yesterday, we worked on a few things on Lynn’s van. There has been another water leak with the insulation around the water heater being damp. Water was also pooling in the space under the toilet, prompting us to brainstorm on what is causing it. Maybe it is the toilet seals, since they are likely the original ones from 1994. So we pulled out the stool and and started to disassemble it. Lynn had the enviable task of cleaning up the crap to be able to work on it. Both the valve seal and the floor seal were replaced, along with a new water valve, as they all came in the repair kit. Tom got it reinstalled and we turned the water pump back on. “Whoa, turn it off,” was what we heard. Tom could feel water leaking from the fitting. He tried tightening the connection, but it leaked again on the second try. We checked the seal in the coupling and it was aged (it came out in pieces) and conformed to the old valve. The new valve has a slightly different shape, causing a bad fit and making it leak. After a trip to the hardware store, we got a new cone washer installed and on the third try we were successful: no water leaking!

Tom also replaced the black tank gate valve on her van. The old one pulled hard, and one day last week, the handle for the valve partially broke off. He laid under the back of her rig wrestling to take it apart, but the bolts were rusty, and they all broke off when he tried to remove them. He asked to use a hammer and punch to get them out (good thing the repair kit comes with new bolts). He pried the old valve assembly off and cleaned up the connection for the new one. When he emerged from below, all is done: the new valve is installed and it moves much easier!

While he was working on the black tank valve, I was inside working on her shelf railing above the kitchen. It had broken off, leaving nothing to hold things on the shelf while she was driving. I cleaned up all the old glue and spindles, then applied wood glue to the holes, placed the spindles, and clamped the rail in place once it was all reassembled. I have to say it feels pretty sturdy now!

The wet spots on her water heater case were also a concern. We had the pack of cone washers from the other repair, so we took apart the connection closest to the wet spot and replaced that washer too. Upon cleaning up the water that spilled out, we think we found the washer that was missing before, and caused a water leak at the water pump earlier in her trip. The connection doesn’t leak and hopefully this fixes it, but if not, we will brainstorm some more.

Lynn’s neighbor, Miss Jo, had offered to let her watch the Super Bowl at her place, since she has TV reception (we have none), and Tom had Lynn ask her if I could join them and not miss the game. She said “of course, join us!” We had a good time sitting around, munching on popcorn, watching the game, and dissing on the commercials. I am delighted her team won! Tom stayed back at our place to watch the dogs and make brownies as he’s not much into football.

Today we had to dump our tanks. We secured everything inside the rig and emptied the slide bays again. With me lifting and pushing on it, and Tom operating the button, the slide came in and off we went to the dump station. We arrived second in line, so it didn’t take long. We had, however, let the tank get a little too full, so we had to do some extra work to get all the crap to flush out. It is done and we are good for another week to 10 days.

This afternoon, we went on a bike ride with Lynn. We took Suki and Cassie with us this time. They got to ride in the packs, Cassie on Tom’s front and Suki on my back. They did really good, no fussing or squirming. Cassie was turning her head all directions and her nose was going a million miles a minute. Suki watched over my shoulder and would look for Tom when I would speed up to get along side of him. I think they had a great time being out there with us!

We did stop and see the golf courses along the route. They are unlike any course I have seen. There is no grass, only sand, rocks, and brush around the flags for the holes, but there were people out there enjoying it. We also headed across the washes to Scotts Lead Well. A couple old water tanks are next to the well site. One is metal with a small red star and the other appears older and built of stone. An old cattle pen, watering troughs, and ironwood trees fill out the scene there.

It is a satisfying feeling to accomplish so much on Lynn’s van, and to get out today for a bike ride with the old bitties. Satisfied is being pleased or content with what had been experienced or received. I would say that is exactly how the last couple days felt. My knees and legs feel a little sore tonight, but it a good kind of sore. You can see from above, the feeling for today could have been either satisfied or shitty, I choose the first one.

Share your comments on Facebook or email us at roadfronts@gmail.com