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Old 07-12-2015, 07:39 PM   #321
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What happens when a woman tries to do a man's job!!

We have a permanent campsite at Castor River and my husband sets our camper up every spring and we go most weekends through Halloween. There are many weekends that it's just me and the kids because my husband has to stay home and work. That 1st summer, there were a couple of incidents where I was forced to perform duties my husband usually took care of and provided some quality entertainment for my camping neighbors.

The 1st weekend, I couldn't figure out how to roll our awning up. I am only 5'2" and had to find a step stool to stand on so I could see how to flip the switch to make it roll up. I had my then 7 year old son holding the strap and I was on the stool with my head leaned over trying to figure out what I was doing wrong, when something finally gave and the switch flipped. Of course, Ethan let go of the strap and my head was in the awning's direct path back to the camper. Thank God my neighbor was outside and was able to come help me get my head free. I have never made that mistake again!

A few weekends later, our black tank was full and our site didn't have sewer hook-up at the time. So instead of paying to have it dumped after we left, I decided that my son and I could get the job done for free. So I sent my son (the same one that rolled my head in the awning) to get the bright blue "poop wagon" and I grabbed the rubber gloves. We pulled the wagon around to the back of the camper and I proceeded to "try" to hook our 15ft sewer hose (that we have stretched out from the camper to the drainage ditch running behind our site to dump grey water) to the fitting on the portable tank. The fittings were wrong (alike trying to screw the male end of a garden hose to another male end) so I decided to just hold the 2 ends together while my son pulled the lever. It sounded like a good idea at the time, and I did have rubber gloves. I had to have Ethan raise and lower the sewer hose a couple time to get it to all flow into the portable. We miraculously had very little spillage right up until the point when I realized my tank was bigger than the poop wagon! #%@$&!!! After what seems like an eternity, Ethan finally gets the valve shut off. Then we take off trying to pull 30+ gallons of human waste back to the dump station, through the gravel, about 250 yards away. I was pulling with all my might, and I had Ethan behind the wagon pushing, but we just wasn't hardly getting anywhere. We made it to the next camper over, when my neighbor stepped out and just shook his head at me (same neighbor who saved me from the awning incident). I threatened to lighten my load right there on his lawn if I heard one snicker out of him! He never said a word, just got in his truck and pulled up next to us. He took the handle away from me, then showed me how it is made to hook onto a trailer ball. He pulled the poop wagon back to the dump station for us and then showed us how the fitting on the top pulls up and attaches straight to the dump valve on the camper. He never let me hear him chuckle, but his wife admits that he has told that story several times and still laughs his butt off every time. We now have a sewer hook-up.

My last learning experience happened when I had to switch propane tanks. I didn't realize I needed to bleed the air out of the line and relight my hot water heater. I went to wash dishes and didn't have any hot water. I grabbed my handy camp lighter and went around to the back of the camper to relight my pilot light. Propane gas had filled the small compartment, and when I stuck my lighter in there, the small explosion singed my eye lashes and eyebrows! I had to plead the 5th when the neighbor asked me what happened to my eyebrows later that day!!
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Old 07-17-2015, 12:35 PM   #322
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This morning DW called and told me that her sister had called her and told her that someone had broken into our camper (we keep the camper at her sister's house). Her sister noticed that one of the storage doors was open, and she had also already called the Sheriff's office.

My wife was already on the way to the camper when she called, so I told her she didn't need to go by herself and that she should wait on me. She said not to worry, her sisters were there and a deputy was on the way.

A few minutes later DW (she had not gotten to the camper yet) called back asking "Is it possible you left the storage door open when we dropped the camper off Monday?" I thought a bit before replying that I thought I had done a walkaround before we left, but conceded it was possible.

By now you have probably already guessed the outcome: I am the guilty party!

The storage door was undamaged and its contents untouched. A quick look inside the camper confirmed no one has been inside.

They called the Sheriff's office and said "Never mind."

Really got to get in the habit of doing that walkaround.
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Old 07-17-2015, 03:15 PM   #323
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We have a portable braking system for our toad that has always been extremely finicky. Occasionally, I am unable to get the darn thing to pass it's diagnostic test after an hour of fiddling, and my wife ends up driving the toad home.

Recently, this was the case, and my wife finally decides to drive it home. So now I'm totally frustrated and angrily unhooking the toad. My wife, noting my mood, decided it would be best to go back into the motorhome and wait out the storm. In my haste, I failed to put the toad in park before unhooking the towbar, and naturally, we're on a grade. At this point I'm holding the toad by the tow brackets, heals dug into the asphalt, yelling for my wife, who is sitting calmly in the coach waiting for me to get her.

Eventually, I was able to drag the toad uphill just enough to hook one of the safety cables. I now have a checklist that I follow religiously.

I intentionally don't mention the manufacturer of the brake because they have recently offered to rebuild/replace the entire system even though it is out of warranty.
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Old 08-19-2015, 04:36 PM   #324
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Old 09-02-2015, 04:40 PM   #325
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Here's ours.

We bought our 26BH Elite in this July and headed out for a week of boondocking at a provincial campsite several hours from home. We have borrowed trailers for the last 4 years so we know enough to be dangerous. There are also several other families with us on this trip that are experienced TT owners so we felt pretty good about our first trip.

Day three, my lovely wife is cooking bacon on the BBQ that is on the back bumper of the TT. I am enjoying a Baileys and coffee (mostly Baileys) a few sites away. She comes over to let me and the kids know that breaky is ready, she then heads back to the trailer. I finish my conversation and head back to the rig, to find our new BBQ covered in a mysterious white powder, the tray the bacon was cooking on laying in the gravel melted, and my wife almost in tears. Turns out she thought she turned the BBQ off when she came over to get us, but actually turned it on high and there was 3' flames out the top of the grill when she got back. Quick on her feet she grabbed the fire extinguisher and put the fire out.

First trip out, almost burned the rig to the ground, as well as half the Okanagan. That was a close one. Needless to say we are now shopping for a detached BBQ to take with us, instead of the bumper grill.
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Old 09-03-2015, 12:37 PM   #326
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Only had it less than 2 weeks and already had our first duh moment. Got back home from our 1st weekend camping and shoe-horned the new TT between the garage and the neighbor's property perfectly on the first try. This should've been my first clue something was wrong. Unhooked, jacks down, wheels chocked, the whole 9 yards. Get ready to unload and realize all of the bread products are in a cupboard that is inaccessible with the slide pulled in. At the same time, realizing that the slide can't be put out enough without hitting the garage to access said bread products. Hooked back up, jacks ups, chocks removed, dragged back out of it's perfect landing spot...all to rescue a few bagels, a loaf of white bread, and some random hot dog rolls from molding and stinking up the place. A half-hour of my life that I will never get back. Lesson learned.
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Old 09-03-2015, 03:59 PM   #327
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Only had it less than 2 weeks and already had our first duh moment. Got back home from our 1st weekend camping and shoe-horned the new TT between the garage and the neighbor's property perfectly on the first try. This should've been my first clue something was wrong. Unhooked, jacks down, wheels chocked, the whole 9 yards. Get ready to unload and realize all of the bread products are in a cupboard that is inaccessible with the slide pulled in. At the same time, realizing that the slide can't be put out enough without hitting the garage to access said bread products. Hooked back up, jacks ups, chocks removed, dragged back out of it's perfect landing spot...all to rescue a few bagels, a loaf of white bread, and some random hot dog rolls from molding and stinking up the place. A half-hour of my life that I will never get back. Lesson learned.
Don't feel too bad, we've done it a couple times. Only it's typically leveling with us. We get to where we think we're level, start getting everything disconnected and setup, then DW comes out to me and says "hey, we're not quite level"

Verify that we are in fact not level by looking at the torpedo level AGAIN (don't know what happened the first time...) Hook it all back up and pull up on blocks or remove blocks to get it right. Oh well, all part of the experience, or so that's what I tell my self.
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Old 09-03-2015, 05:34 PM   #328
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I was trying to teach my 16 yr old son at the time how to drive pulling a trailer. I had been fixing a few minor things on it and had on the driveway plugged into my garage. I had him back up and hook up to the trailer. Told him to do a walk around and then pull out into The street and go to the culdesac. Turn around and drive forward into the backyard to park it. I hopped into the truck while he walked around. He got in and drove out the driveway and turned left to go to the end of the street. When he got there he turned right and I looked in the side mirror. We had all 25 feet of power cord dragging the ground behind us. I should have checked with him. Had him stop retrieve the cord then go back to the house. I was mad but I tried to stay calm,and use It as a teaching moment. I had Been trying to bang into his teenage head attention to detail. He knows the value of a dollar. I made him pay for another cord. But didn't yell. Take his money He gets the message (he really hates taxes). I repaired the old one, took his money he paid me and put it in a bank account for him he doesn't know exists. Two years later he still thinks that is the cord he bought and even jokes about the camper being mine but the power cord is his. I hope both of us learned our lesson.
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Old 09-03-2015, 06:01 PM   #329
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I had another Duhhhhhh one last week. I went to where the RV was stored to run the Generator for a while like we're suppose to.I was a hot 90's day and the gen started right up. I tried to run the AC to put a load on it. It wouldn't run, also had no lights at all, etc. I checked the fuses behind the battery, the circuit breakers, all the fuses by the circuit breakers.

By now I was soaking wet with sweat. Took the manual home, ahhhh Ac works in the house. Started looking thru the manual and came across the part about the momentary switch to be pushed to give one 12 volts.

Drank a lot of water, and headed back to the storage area. Fired up the gen, and pushed the switch to supply the 12 volt. Ahhh everything worked. Took about 2 hours to drop the inside temp from 99 to 76. good enough. went home and had the wife kick me in the a$$ a couple of times.
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Old 09-03-2015, 10:38 PM   #330
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We've only had the trailer since April of this year so I haven't had too much time to do anything really stupid. My worst moment so far was when we were leaving the campground at the end of the third trip. We needed to make a right hand turn out of the campground and as we were halfway though it my wife, who had been watching out the side view mirror, says "YOU'RE GONNA HIT THE MAILBOX!" It was too late. I "adjusted" the camgrounds mailbox with the rear awning arm. We pulled over, inspected for damage (none found) and put the mailbox back where it was. Then we got out of there before anyone noticed. I'm used to pulling trailers since I've been doing it since I was old enough to drive, and I thought I was good. But I look back at this as a good reminder to ALWAYS be careful, watch your mirrors, and never assume you'll clear something.
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Old 10-10-2015, 07:51 AM   #331
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Did drive to a local campground once and forgot to plug in the trailer. Then there was the time I was back flushing the black tank with the valve closed and got distracted and well that's enough about that (don't tell my wife).
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Old 10-13-2015, 12:07 PM   #332
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Went to open the swintech bedroom slide and it opened half way and crooked. Closed it and re-opened it again with the same outcome. Tried this one more time and the same thing happened again. "Dang Swintech!" Then I went inside the bedroom to find it hanging up on the closet door that I didn't close all the way.
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Old 10-13-2015, 12:18 PM   #333
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Gotta add a fresh one. Extended weekend Sept 24-28, 2015. Stopped for fuel after about 170 miles. One of the WDH torsion bars popped free during tight maneuvers.


I forgot to put the little clips into the clamps!


Reset the bar. No issues until maneuvering into the campsite.


While camped, I got t Wally*World and bought some pieces that had to be reshaped (broke a hammer).


Drove home without any problems on the improvised clips.


Once home. Decided to refine my improvised parts. They now work quite well along with the one factory clip that got caught on the battery support. It had stayed there for the full 450+ mile round trip.


So, now I have 3 clips!
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Old 10-13-2015, 03:36 PM   #334
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We took a trip from Kelowna to Maple Ridge with our Northern Lite Camper. I had been loading things into the basement and had removed the step to gain access. I placed the step on the rear bumper of the camper to the right of the access door. Finished loading basement and got distracted. Forgot to put the step back in place and hit the road. We always stop in Merritt on the way as a potty stop and use the restrooms there. The lineup for the ladies room was long, so DW used camper. When she hopped back into truck she asked me where the step was. I told her I must have left it in the driveway at home. No big deal, just a big first step out of camper. We continued with trip and arrived near Maple Ridge and stopped for fuel but station was busy so we continued on (fuel was nor critical). Ask I pulled out into traffic I punched it hard to merge without slowing traffic and heard a piece of metal bounce off the road. I pulled over immediately and jumped out to see the step from the camper laying on the side of the road. It had stayed on the bumper for 370 km. I guess the Silverado rides quite smoothly at 120kph.
I guess the moral of this story is be sure to perform a final walk around inspection before departure.
Happy Camping
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Old 10-13-2015, 04:42 PM   #335
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After a long day of driving and finally getting to CG, I wondered (briefly) why the tongue would not raise off the ball, then noticed the sway bars still in place...
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Old 10-25-2015, 05:20 PM   #336
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me likes da Bonehead thread, makes me feel smart
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Old 10-25-2015, 05:28 PM   #337
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Started using my trailer to store stuff that I was to lazy to put up.I got up this morning a cleared it out.Its easy to throw things in it vs putting them away.
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Old 10-31-2015, 05:25 PM   #338
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Alright, I guess now that I've read all 34 pages of other peoples foibles, it's time to share some of my own.


Most recent one was while winterizing this year. Now I have done this for several years without incident. Perhaps it's because we were pretty sure we were trading up this year, and rather than stowing away, I was pulling all the gear out, and cleaning top to bottom. By the time I started on the plumbing, it was getting a bit late, and the light was getting low.


Popped the low point drains, ran all the water from the lines, (no HWT bypass - we have one but leave it bypassed because we never use it), ran the outdoor shower dry, cut the fresh tank cutoff, and opened the antifreeze siphon. Switch the pump on and start sucking up the antifreeze. The sink taps are nearby and easy to run through, but with them off, the pump keeps running. Hmmm, must have left the shower open. Pump off, run outside, righty tighty, lefty loosey, nope they're fine. Try again. Pump keeps running. Hmm, check shower again. Try different combos of "off" for the taps (we don't really use it, maybe I've forgotten?) , running in and out each time. Getting very low on AF. Call DW outside to spot. Pump on. "Shower's fine, but it's pissing out from underneath". Close low point drains, 6 inches away from AF bottle. Pump stops running with about a half inch of AF left in jug. Slaps forehead and awards self with a stupidity beer. Should probably have started drinking earlier...


5 minutes later. Flip the sink over to travel position. Oh, fuuuhhhhddggee! Forgot to bypass the water filter before running AF. Unhook it making a holy mess as it is full of AF and put in the bypass hose. Oh well, the filter was a couple of seasons old and really needs replacing anyway.


Now for the most embarrassing bonehead. And I can only admit to this because there are a few here that are IMO a couple of points higher on the Richter scale of boneheadedness (thanks to all of you who make me feel better!)


We often tow(ed) our pup to MIL's waterfront place when the whole family gets together to provide for extra sleeping space. We'd pop it up in the driveway and camp out. The space is a bit tight, and (un)hitching needs to be quick, because I have to partially block the road to the rest of the cottages on the point.


Last year on an August visit, we had a very restless night as it was a long weekend and there was a LOT of partying going on along the point, including a live band a few doors down playing outdoors until 2 or 3 am. Sleep was sparing. I am guessing it was tiredness that led to a tough time "breaking camp", we're usually a well practiced machine packing up, but this time it was one little issue after another. Finally, everything is packed, the lid is latched and we are ready to hitch.


I back the truck up and drop the tongue onto the ball. Chains on, power on, emergency brake cable on. All looks good, and no one waiting. Hop in the drivers seat to get things moving. Trailer feels like it weighs about 10,000 lbs. Front wheels spinning in the gravel. Huh, must have left a chock in. Nope. Try again. No movement. Pull the e-brake cable, can hear the brakes set, and release when I put the pin back in. Try again. Stuck. What the heck? Seized bearing? What the he** is wrong??? And by now, 3 cars waiting to pass.


Okay, I'll unhitch quick and let them through while I figure it out. Jack the tongue back up, disco the chains and power. Hop in the truck to pull away. Truck just squats down and won't move, front wheels spinning. Nickle finally drops. Kick off the parking brake and pull away.


Hitch back up in a couple of minutes and we're moving. DW asks me what was wrong. Had to tell her, with a very red face. As a matter of fact, my face is turning red again as I write this. Oh the shame! Unlike others here, it was NOT a quiet drive. The laughter of my full cast of characters haunts me to this day...
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Old 10-31-2015, 06:04 PM   #339
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I drove 10 miles with the antenna up Friday night. Felt really stupid when a guy pulled up beside me honking his horn and making a circular upward motion with his hand. I immediately knew what he meant and pulled over and lowered it. It's a wonder I didn't rip it off.
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Old 11-02-2015, 02:03 PM   #340
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I drove 10 miles with the antenna up Friday night. Felt really stupid when a guy pulled up beside me honking his horn and making a circular upward motion with his hand. I immediately knew what he meant and pulled over and lowered it. It's a wonder I didn't rip it off.
I did that the day after I installed my new King antenna. I was on the Interstate for about 20 minutes until we got to one of our favorite fuel/food stops. I always do a walk around every time we stop, no matter how long we've been going. I saw the antenna up and facepalmed right there in the lot. Luckily it was fine, just opened up the rig and cranked it down. I had put it up the night before to catch a football game while I was working on the trailer, and completely forgot about it before we got on the road. I'm just glad the King antenna is so small and aerodynamic, otherwise it might have been a different ending!
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