We pulled up stakes this past Saturday - after nearly a month in Topeka visiting family and friends - and headed to northeast Missouri for a brief stop to see more family as we progress eastward to our four-month volunteer "job" at Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area.
These moves get a bit easier as Leonard and I become more familiar with the myriad of related tasks, our growing confidence buoyed by our attempt to create a fool-proof, no-way-we-can-forget-anything departure checklist. Using said list, we readied Kong and Truckzilla for Saturday's trek.
All started well, thanks to Leonard who managed to hitch truck to RV in one easy maneuver. This "third time's the charm" occurrence made us feel pretty good about our abilities as novice RVers. Alas, our enthusiasm would soon be, well, dampened.
Upon arriving at our new campsite, we began ticking off our fool-proof, no-way-we-can-forget-anything arrival checklist. All was proceeding smoothly until I heard Leonard shout, "Is there water running inside the RV?"
"No," I yelled, secure in the knowledge that when I opened that kitchen faucet to relieve pressure in the water line so Leonard could disconnect us from service in Topeka I surely must have remembered to turn it off. "I'll go check."
Sure enough, when I entered the kitchen, the faucet was wide open leaving both kitchen island and surrounding flooring glistening with water. It seems yours truly indeed had forgotten to turn it off. (Good grief!)
Thankfully, Leonard had shut off the water at the main connection before any real damage could occur to either our home or our senses of humor.
On the bright side, I completed my first solo attempt at draining our black tank - the tank that holds all things that go into the toilet until the tank can be dumped into a proper sewage receptacle. This job, crucial though it may be, is one no RVer relishes, and you definitely won't read about in any RV lifestyle promotional materials. Still, someone's got to do it. This time, that someone was me.
To understand just how offensive this task can be, it might help for me to explain that the hose linking black tank to sewer is known in the RV world as the "stinky slinky." Slinky, because the tubing is made of corrugated plastic. Stinky, because even the most thorough rinsing won't clear out every bit of waste hidden in its folds. That nasty thing travels in the underbelly of your rig where it can get quite fragrant, especially during hot summer days. Lovely!
Fortunately for us, Leonard discovered another wonderful RV product, the aptly-named Sewer Solution. Its design features a macerating chamber that breaks up waste as it leaves the black
tank and a hose connection that sends fresh water into the tank to clear out whatever materials don't discharge by gravity. Because the hoses in this system are smooth-sided, no particulate can find refuge.
The result is a much cleaner process with a lower risk of contaminating the surrounding area. (Use your imagination on that one.) Better still is the reduced chance of ending up with that most dreaded of all RV disasters: the "black cone of death." (You can probably work that out for yourself, too.)
This day brings us dry carpet, sunny skies, and a move to Columbia, MO. Perhaps it will also provide me with the ability to remember to shut off that darned faucet (fingers crossed).
These moves get a bit easier as Leonard and I become more familiar with the myriad of related tasks, our growing confidence buoyed by our attempt to create a fool-proof, no-way-we-can-forget-anything departure checklist. Using said list, we readied Kong and Truckzilla for Saturday's trek.
All started well, thanks to Leonard who managed to hitch truck to RV in one easy maneuver. This "third time's the charm" occurrence made us feel pretty good about our abilities as novice RVers. Alas, our enthusiasm would soon be, well, dampened.
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| Kong's water/waste control center |
"No," I yelled, secure in the knowledge that when I opened that kitchen faucet to relieve pressure in the water line so Leonard could disconnect us from service in Topeka I surely must have remembered to turn it off. "I'll go check."
Sure enough, when I entered the kitchen, the faucet was wide open leaving both kitchen island and surrounding flooring glistening with water. It seems yours truly indeed had forgotten to turn it off. (Good grief!)
Thankfully, Leonard had shut off the water at the main connection before any real damage could occur to either our home or our senses of humor.
On the bright side, I completed my first solo attempt at draining our black tank - the tank that holds all things that go into the toilet until the tank can be dumped into a proper sewage receptacle. This job, crucial though it may be, is one no RVer relishes, and you definitely won't read about in any RV lifestyle promotional materials. Still, someone's got to do it. This time, that someone was me.
 |
| Sewer Solution connection to Kong's black tank. No "stinky slinky" here! |
Fortunately for us, Leonard discovered another wonderful RV product, the aptly-named Sewer Solution. Its design features a macerating chamber that breaks up waste as it leaves the black
tank and a hose connection that sends fresh water into the tank to clear out whatever materials don't discharge by gravity. Because the hoses in this system are smooth-sided, no particulate can find refuge.
The result is a much cleaner process with a lower risk of contaminating the surrounding area. (Use your imagination on that one.) Better still is the reduced chance of ending up with that most dreaded of all RV disasters: the "black cone of death." (You can probably work that out for yourself, too.)
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Tracking connections can get complicated.
Note the gloves, important in case of a leak. |
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