The check valve search

I had a list of three RV places that might have a check valve as Emma and I headed out this morning on our search.  The closest place was in St. Anthony, ID, which is over 50 miles away, and the furthest one was in Idaho Falls, which is close to 100 miles away.  I was crossing my fingers that Angell RV Repair in St. Anthony would have the valve, but it was not to be.  He had just sold his last one a couple of days ago, and hadn’t restocked since that one had been on the shelf for two years.  :(  However, he did suggest I go to Hathaway Inc. about three miles down the road to check there.  Hathaway’s wasn’t listed in the yellow pages that I checked at the campground office yesterday. 

So, I followed his directions and headed for Hathaway’s.  What an eclectic place that was.  Not only do they sell RV supplies, but they also sell modular homes, a few trailers, and they are also a carpet store!  I guess you have to diversify in a small town in Idaho.  :)  After about 15 minutes of scrounging around, they came up with the needed check valve.  I decided to buy two of them (just in case), and wiped out their inventory.  :)  Since the valves were only about $6, I figured what the heck.  I’ll have a backup that I can install myself if I need it down the road.  As I was about to pay for the valves, I decided to ask them if they had any discontinued carpet samples for sale.  (You know…those rectangular, finished edge, chunks of carpet that are about 18”X30”.  I like to use them under my bench table.  That way, they get dirty from my shoes instead of the installed motorhome carpet.)  Anyway, the salesman said “follow me” and led me to a stack of samples.  I picked out two that would go with the carpet in the RV.  He told me there was no charge!  Yahoo!  Two valves and two carpet samples for a total of $12, and I didn’t have to drive all the way to Idaho Falls.  I was a happy camper!  Sometimes things work out better than you think they will.  I’ve been looking around for carpet samples since I got the new rig, but hadn’t found any.
On the way back home, I decided to make a couple of side trips.  First stop was the Island Park Dam, and what a great stop it was.  I got this pic of a double-crested cormorant as it came up for air after diving for a fish for lunch.
Then I spotted a Western grebe in the water.  This is a new bird for me.  I’ve never seen one before.  :)
I wish I could have seen a pair of these grebes doing their mating “dance.”  They fairly rise up out of the water next to each other and seem to dance on their toes in perfect harmony across the lake on the tips of their webbed feet.  I’m probably a couple of weeks late for that, but it was a thrill to see one anyway.

My next little side trip was to drive up the road to Sawtell Peak.
Sawtell Peak is the highest mountain in back of my rig in this picture that I took on June 6 when I arrived at Red Rock RV Park.  (Sam, this is my new, to me, 2008 Winnebago Adventurer Limited)

The drive we took was on the other side of this mountain, and was a nine mile up hill climb on a nicely graded gravel road.  There were many, many switchbacks and steep grades.
This was the view from the top.  You can see the curvy tan road that I took to get up here.  The view wasn’t the best because of the heavy haze down below.  I’m thinking that that heavy haze is caused by all the pine tree pollen that was being blown about in today’s brisk winds.  You can also notice all the snow that can still be found at this elevation.
On the way back down the mountain, I was fascinated by the silvery windblown dead and dying trees clinging to the mountainside.   They had no visible bark, just the silvery smoothness.  How could this one on the right still be alive with no protective bark?  I don’t know.

When I got back to the rig, Jim, my neighbor, was sitting outside his rig, and was curious to find out if I had been successful in my search for a new check valve.  I gave him a thumbs up, and we both headed inside to install the new valve.  I want to clarify for some of my commenters, that neither I nor Jim knew anything about hot water heater valves to begin with.  It was only because of your comments, responses to my post on the Escapees forum, and each of our internet investigations, that we were able to come up with a solution to my problem.  We both learned a lot from this experience, and will both be prepared should this same problem arise in either of our rigs.  I didn’t have the proper wrenches nor the strength to accomplish the fix, and I am very grateful that Jim helped me out with this challenge. :)  In return for his help, I will watch over his rig while he and his family take a trip (without his fifth wheel) up to Glacier NP next month.  It’s all give and take out here on the road.  That’s one of the things I like about this life.  :)

A couple of folks have asked about Rick’s fix for sizing pictures to match their desktops.  My suggestion is that you read his instructions that can be found in the comment section of my post entitled “Asking for help with two challenges” which I posted on 6/28.  His instructions are so clear and easy to follow, that I can’t improve on them.  :)  Just click on comments at the end of that post and look for Rick’s comment.  :)

This post has been long enough, and I’m going to take a shower tonight thanks to my newly fixed hot water system!  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Yesterday's challenges almost resolved :)

When I woke up today and checked my email, I received many comments and suggestions on how to overcome the two challenges from yesterday.  RICK, of http://rickpaulettervjournal.blogspot.com/ , had given me very clear and precise directions for getting my photos to be the right size to use as my desktop background.  He’s the guy to go to if you are having any questions about your blog or computer questions in general. Thanks, Rick, you really got my day started off on the right foot.  :)

The consensus of the rest of the comments was that my hot water tank problem was a result of a bad check valve.  I thank all of you for your input.  My neighbor, Jim, and I set to work to see if we could access the rear of the hot water tank.  Apparently, it is often located in a place that is very hard to get to.  I have to say that Jim did most of the work while I just paid attention and learned a few things.  :)
I was lucky.  The tank was located below the entertainment center, and slightly behind the bench seat.  All we had to do was remove a cabinet door and a panel to gain easy access.  There are two check valves on the back of the unit.  The bottom one is the incoming cold water valve, and the top one is the outgoing hot water valve.  The top one was the culprit.  Jim had the correct sized wrenches, and after turning off the water and releasing the pressure in the tank, he removed the valve.  We checked to see that it wasn’t clogged, and that all the three parts were in tack.  It wasn’t and they were.  :)  Jim reinstalled it and we gave it a try…still no water through the faucet.  Next, he removed the valve again, and this time took out two of the inside parts.  Then he put the brass part back on and we tried again.  This time, the water came through!  So my mission tomorrow will be to find a replacement valve.  I may have to drive all the way to Idaho Falls to find one, but I’m determined.  :)  So that mystery is solved thanks to Jim and your comments.

This evening I attended a potluck in the campground at the site of friends Gordon and Juanita Pierce.  Gordon and Juanita started fulltiming the same year I did and we are all Escapees members.  Gordon’s blog is the reason I chose this RV Park for my stay near Yellowstone.  There were about 16 people in attendance, and we all had a great time socializing and enjoying the abundant food.  Luckily, the rain held off until just a few minutes ago.

I’m pretty happy with the way things turned out today.  It’s great to have newly made friends that offer to help you out in a bind.  I love this RV life style.  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Asking for help with two challenges.

Challenge #1.  After publishing my blog post last night about all the pictures I had that could be used as screen savers, I decided to select one picture for my desktop background.  I picked the shot that is the present header for the blog.  Here’s the problem: the picture gets blown up so big that only a small portion of it shows as the background.  I never had that problem with my old camera, but it happens every time now with the shots taken with the new camera.  Does anyone have any suggestions?  Maybe one of you that knows about pixels, etc. can give me a clue as to how I can fit the picture to match my screen.  I’d really appreciate it.  :)

Challenge #2.  After all that driving yesterday, I decided to stay in camp today and do a few chores.  Among them was doing a couple of loads of laundry in the Splendide.  Everything went well with the first load.  When I put in the second load, on perma press, it wouldn’t even start.  Aside from that, as I went to wash my hands in the bathroom sink, no water came out on the hot water side.  I checked the kitchen sink, and no hot water came out there either.  To make a long story short, cold water works fine, but not a drop comes out if I use the hot water handle.  I am on full hookups here and everything worked fine up until this point.  Has anyone had this happen to them?  Please help me if you have any ideas.  I’ve put the problem out on the Escapees forum as well.  I guess I’ll heat some water in a pot to wash up and brush my teeth tonight. :(  The water here comes out of the tap at 40*.  Brrr! 

I guess I’ll pretend I’m tent camping until the water issue gets resolved.  :)
When I arrived here, I was told that I had the best view of the wonderful sunsets.  So far, this has been the best sunset.  Not exactly what I’d consider spectacular.

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy