Generator repairs

The generator wouldn't work on our last trip, so we had to take the RV to Cummins Northwest in Renton a week ago. They ended up replacing the engine side of the generator. They were saying it might be done Thursday morning if all went well. Got a call this afternoon, saying it was done. The RV is home now, and the generator seems to be running well. Looks like Penrose Point SP is a go for this weekend. Makes me wonder about the inspection Poulsbo put it through before delivery. Oh well, at least they seem to be receptive to warranty repairs...

Alder Lake

On to better things. I still managed to have a great weekend, despite the gut-wrenching antics on Friday evening. Alder Lake campground is a Tacoma Power Park on Alder Lake, a reservoir behind a power production dam on the Nisqually River. The campground can be found on the Washington State Parks website, as well as the Tacoma Power website. It's pretty nice. The area is clean, with a beach, boat launch, and marina area. There are about 90 sites with full hookups, and a loop or two of tent sites, as well as several group sites. The restroom near our site was clean, but featured the bane of Washington State Parks campgrounds, coin-operated showers... The sites were maybe just a little close together, but hey for having full hook-ups they were plenty spread out. Many, such as ours, had a decent area of grass, instead of just dirt. We spent part of Saturday at the picnic area/beach area. The water level was low due to late snow melt, but the kids still had fun. The park was full for this warm weekend, and reservations are advised. We tried something new to me this trip, Doughboys. Stick one uncooked Pillsbury bisquit on the end of a wooden hanger rod, and cook it over the fire/coals. When it's brown on the outside pull it off the rod. Then fill the hole with whatever you desire (we used strawberry jam and whipped cream, mmmm), and consume. Yuuummmmy! Anyway, we had a good time. We also compiled a list of items needing to be repaired under warranty. Amazing what comes out of the factory, considering Tiffin has a reputation of being among the best as far as quality control goes. Our expensive I'm sure one piece windshield has a flaw in it, broken interior wall panels, loose electrical outlets with the screws stripped, and more. Amazing. Anyways, I would recommend Alder Lake Campground, and can't wait to try the other Tacoma Power Parks. No RVing plans for Memorial Day weekend. The Rv will probably be in the shop, and I have to work on Memorial Day, so we'll wait until the following weekend at Penrose State Park.

Maiden Voyage

Friday was the beginning of our first camping trip in the new RV. It was rough from the start. Before we left the house, half of the chassis DC electrical was dead, and the generator wouldn't start. So therefore, we had no air conditioning. Not usually a deal breaker during May in Washington, but it was in the 90's. Janae called Poulsbo in Auburn, and after much attempted troubleshooting over the phone, they told us to come in. Being that this was Friday afternoon, we hurriedly left home, leaving behind firewood and bikes among other things. But we made it to Poulsbo, where the helpful shop people had our DC situation fixed promptly. Looks like the oil level sensor on the generator is kaput. We now have an appointment at Cummins Northwest to check that out. The service guy confirmed that the oil level was good (I had already checked), and said that he couldn't tell me to unhook the oil sensor sending unit, but it would work just fine with it unhooked... On our way with the generator running and cool A/C flowing!!! Oh yea, they filled our propane and gas tanks for our trouble. The Auburn Service Department has been nothing but helpful so far. Now it was rush hour, so we stopped to buy fishing poles and Arby's. Then we were on our way to Alder Lake (near Eatonville). All was good until the Mashell River bridge on SR 7. It was pretty curvy in the area, and I was going pretty slow. That was a good thing. As I drove onto the bridge, I noticed a N/B tractor trailer combo coming at me around the curve on the opposite side of the bridge. The tractor was cool, but as I approached, I noticed that the trailer was in my lane... I moved right, braking hard, wishing to avoid becoming one with the chip-hauler. As I slowed, I felt a bump, and slowed to a stop, as had the truck. We were close. I stayed in place as the truck slowly started forward. As he moved past, he was clearing my driver side mirror by about 2 inches. Eventually he went past. I pulled across the bridge and into turnout on the side of the road. It was then that I noticed the truck had continued N/B, as well as the crease down the side of my new RV from rubbing against the guardrail on the bridge. You can only imagine the foul language that was heard in the area for about the next 30 seconds. I called 911, but didn't even have them send out a Trooper. I only had a green tractor pulling a chip trailer for a description, and the guy probably didn't even know I had hit the rail. Guess we now know where the money from selling the Winnebago on Thursday will be going. At least no one got hurt. We continued on once I had recovered... We finally arrived just about 9:00pm (good thing we got the kids out of school at noon, huh?). Set up and got a fire started. Soon it was bedtime. Figures... Spent the last few days driving in rush hour traffic in the metro area with no problems. What ya gonna do? Alder Lake to follow.

Weird Science

Weird couple of days. We couldn't get the steps to withdraw when the door closed, or the ignition was on. We tried everything. I read the instructions and tried to get it to work again and again. Janae did the same. Nothing... I checked the RV forums that I've been reading and involved in over the last couple of years. Nothing there. I finally posted on the Tiffin RV Network forums, asking if anyone had this problem before. Several people posted ideas, and one had what sounded like kinda the same problem. He suggested that I place a magnet next to the door closed sensor. When I tried it, the step went right in. And since that happened, the steps are working fine. Like I said, weird. We'll have it checked when we take the rig in after our shakedown cruise this weekend!

The Allegro cometh

So, I thought I'd start a blog to keep anyone who might care up to date on our RV adventures. What with the upcoming trip to Alaska, seems like a good idea.
We picked up the new motorhome yesterday evening. It's currently parked in our gravel drive, outside the fence, in front of the old Winnebago. The Winnebago is up for sale on Craig's List, hopefully finding a new home, and soon.
The new one is an Allegro 35 QBA. 35 Feet long, two bunks, queen bed in back, four slide-outs, in motion satellite, on a Ford Chassis. Sure drives a lot nicer than the old Winnebago! Tonight, we hope to get everything transfered between them. We have reservations this coming weekend at Alder lake, near Eatonville as a shakedown cruise.
I had originally planned to buy this RV at a dealer in Mississippi, which has a sterling reputation. But ended up buying from Poulsbo RV in Auburn when they were willing to match our quoted price (plus shipping of course). We had an overall pleasant experience until the very end. Our salesman and the shop guy told us that it would be filled with gas and propane when we drove it off the lot. We signed the papers and went to leave, finding the tank just over half full. Scott, the person we signed papers with then told us that they only fill the tank half-way. It's just too expensive to fill it all the way up (on a $100, ooo rig!). We were tired and left. Checked the propane at home and found it only 1/3 full. It's been really making me angry. Scott just looked me straight in the eye and lied. I get that all day at work, and don't need it in my personal life. He said it was a "deal buster". Not done trying yet, but they may have lost my future business on a $300,000 retirement rig over $200 in gas and propane. Now that's a "deal buster". I should have known better from what I've read on the internet about Poulsbo RV. I'll post on how it turns out... I'm really in a better mood than it sounds...