Our RV Adventures

I woke up this morning feeling under the weather so we didn’t walk. But I still wanted to tackle my washer problem. But first I had something else I wanted to fix

When we parked here this past Sunday, the pavement looked strong enough to not need the leveler pads. But the last couple of days have proved me wrong, and we started tilting a little. So before I started pulling the washer out, I cranked up the rig, raised the levelers, put down the pads, and then releveled.

My first task was to empty the water that was stuck in the drum, and the only way to do this is to open the lint trap and let it run out into a bucket.

Next up I removed the wooden retaining strip that keeps the washer from sliding out while we travel. Three screws hold it in place.

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Once that’s done, then I can pull out the canvas straps that I installed previously. I use these to help pull the washer out of the enclosure.

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When I was down in Clear Lake yesterday, I got my furniture dolly from my son Chris’ to help move the washer once I get it out.

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After that it’s just a matter of working it out, little by little, using the straps and also pulling from inside the door.

The reason the washer is so difficult get out of the enclosure is shown here. It’s almost a jam fit like this on both sides. Every time I pull it out, I tell myself that I’ll sand it down, but somehow I never do.

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Then it’s just a matter of dragging it out onto the dolly.

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Once it’s completely on the dolly I can roll it aside enough to unplug the power, and then remove the water hoses and the drain line.

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My next step was to turn the washer upside down so that I could remove the bottom panel and get to the drain pump itself.

After removing the two screws that hold the pump in place and then loosening the hose clamps from the input and output hoses. Then after unplugging the power wires, I was able to completely remove the pump and take a look at it.

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The first thing I did was do an ohmmeter check on the power leads. I got a reading of 7.0 ohms which is about right for a motor this size and also tells me that the windings are good. So the motor is probably working, but I’ll test it with voltage later if necessary.

The next thing I noticed was that when I initially tried to turn the fan by hand, it was kind of hard to turn, but then freed up slightly.

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Then I removed the three screws that hold the pump housing to the motor. I kind of expected the housing to have some lint or other debris inside, but I didn’t find anything.

One thing I did find unusual was that although when I turned the fan by hand, the impeller did turn, when I turn the impeller it just spins without turning the fan. So I don’t know if that’s the way it’s supposed to be, so that if that something clogs the pump, it won’t burn out, or if it’s broken.

I’ll call Westland Sales tomorrow and find out.

Checking eBay, I did find a new pump for $185, or a ‘used but working’ one for $100. But I’ll hold off until I find out more about my problem.

Earlier in the afternoon I found blog readers parked on both sides of us. Our friend Randy Lazarine showed up yesterday, following us over from Colorado River yesterday.

And blog reader Brett O’Neal recognized us when he and his wife Frankie parked on the other side of us. They just started full-timing recently, and are just getting on the road and heading to Florida.

Later they came by for a local restaurant recommendation, and we sent them off to El Bosque, our favorite local Mexican place. Hopefully they enjoyed it as much as we do.

And hopefully we’ll get a chance to get together and get to know them better.

Thought for the Day:

In aviation, there is no problem so great or so complex that it cannot be blamed on the pilot.

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Jan and I were up and  out the rig door by 8 this morning, and after a quick stop for a breakfast  sandwich at the Conroe Jack in the Box, we were on our way down to the Clear Lake area for two of Jan’s doctor appointments.

Since by the time we got into Houston proper, it was pushing 9, so we were at the tail end of the morning rush and only encountered a couple of mild slowdowns, and no real problems.

Jan’s first appointment was just for a blood draw for the lab work before she sees her oncologist next Friday. Then it was off to the Breast Center for her yearly mammogram/ultrasound, which usually takes a couple of hours or so. My part in all this was to go visit a client, browse through Harbor Freight for a couple of things, and take a short nap. And worry.

Finally Jan called about 12:30 with the All Clear Signal. There was no sign of any return of her past breast cancer. So she’s good to go for another year.

Since it was just right down the street, we had a delicious lunch at King Food, one of our all time favorites, Then was over to our son Chris’ to spend the afternoon before our dinner get-together about 6 with friends.

Although Miss Piper was asleep when we got there, we did get to see her before she headed off to the UTMB hospital in Galveston where she works in the ER, and loves it. Earlier we also got to seen Chris and Linda before they headed out too.

About 5:30 on our way to our friends, we made a stop at Spec’s Liquors for a bottle of Cupcake Moscato d’Asti, Jan’s new favorite wine. Since we were going straight there, we were hoping they had some in the cooler, but no luck.

But they did have this.

It’s water-based cooling system running at 34°, so it will cool a bottle down in about 5 minutes. Neat and really does the trick.

We got to Barbara and Tom’s to find Barbara in the middle of fixing a delicious meal for us, like she always does.

This time is was Lasagna with Italian Sausage, Roasted Butternut Squash, Green Beans, and French Bread. Along with a salad, and then Randall’s wonderful Coconut Cream Pie for dessert, we were stuffed.

But it was a happy stuffed.

After a great time we were finally on our way home by a little before 10. Along the way we started seeing signs that the Interstate was closed northbound at Cypresswood. So after a pit stop at the Flying J in north Houston we cut over to the Hardy Toll Road and took it around the stoppage with no problem, finally getting home about 11:30pm

Tomorrow it’s back to washer repair. Oh boy.

Thought for the Day:

You know that tingly little feeling you get when you really like someone you’ve just met? That’s common sense leaving your body.

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