29 Jun 2023 - NSTR Shopping, Coach Maintenance

 

Tree damage departing Oshkosh WI

We woke to sprinkles today and a dog with a bad tummy, so we wrapped things up here in the coach and then headed into town to our house.  I had to pick up a new LED marker light for the coach and we needed a few more things to restock before we leave in a few days.

At the house, I worked in the shop on repairs to my WiFi Ranger external router antenna that was damaged by a low-hanging tree branch as we departed Oshkosh WI.  As I explained previously, it was my own fault as I chose the route. The other factor is the antenna is on a fixed (rigid) mount, so it was an accident waiting to happen.  

A replacement antenna is no longer available as WiFi Ranger in Idaho was bought out and merged with Winegard in Burlington IA. That merger is still happening and they are not building any product at this time.    A replacement system comparable with mine would be ~$700.  No thanks.  Once I got the antenna/router down it was obvious  the router was intact and the damage was just physical damage to the antenna.  I was able  to use parts on hand and rebuild it.  I also implemented a spring mount so that if a low branch comes along again, it will simply fold down and then stand back up on it's own!

I also had a bad side marker LED light and I figured any auto parts store would have this, but not so much!  Luckily Imperial RV here in Ankeny had once in stock at a reasonable price.  I found some weatherproof crimp splices that have a heat-shrink coating, so that worked good.  Done!

I then headed up on the roof, pulling the covers off all three air conditioning units and cleaning the condenser coil fins.  Cottonwood trees are in full bloom here and the "fluff" that floats around in the air from cottonwood trees is the seeds of the tree. They do a real job on air conditioners including those at home.  So, periodic cleaning is a must to ensure peak performance.

While I has working outside and sweating profusely, Doreen was inside making three more quarts of her county fair blue ribbon-winning salsa.  She modified her process to use the Instant Pot while we are traveling with the RV.    

Tomorrow we will travel to Norwalk, our old home town, to watch Daniel Jr play baseball at 1100 hrs and 1300 hrs.  Depending on how they do will decided how many games they play this weekend.

Tomorrow evening we will all go out to eat with my sister Karen and her friend that have traveled up here from southern Texas.  It will be great to see them!