Maiden Voyage

So far so good. Just a short drive from Mesa, AZ, near the scenic Salt River, is a recreation area where several retired people park their RVs and soak up the winter sunshine. It is close enough to town that supplies and parts are a quick motorcycle ride away, and most importantly, it is the place where expert RV mechanic and technician, Richard Lafferty is parked.

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I left Donna’s home mid morning, stopped at Walmart to stock my fridge with groceries, filled the Minnie with gas before it went up again, and arrived at Phon D Sutton just before noon. It is different driving this motorhome. I have to plan ahead in parking areas and watch for low hanging tree branches. It is kind of fun to drive, though.

Soon after I parked and set up camp, Richard started wiring my batteries and solar charging system. I had purchased two switches that would let us configure several scenarios for charging and using different batteries. I wanted to add my agm batteries to the batteries already in the coach but mixing different batteries can be tricky. Richard had drawn a schematic detailing the wiring and proceeded with the install.

20150305_163210Just thinking about the complexity of the project gave me a brain cramp so I’m sure glad he was there to make it happen.

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I now have a charging system that allows me to charge either set of batteries or both, and switches to use different combinations of my batteries.

Last night was my first night sleeping in the Minnie. The bed was comfortable and I kept warm. This morning I tried out the stove by making a ham and egg omelet. Yum! Tonight I am going to try the shower. How exciting!

6 Responses to “Maiden Voyage”

  1. Donna says:

    Wow, does that place sparkle! I bet it smells much fresher in there, too. Good job with the cleaning. Last night I pictured you snuggled into your new home by yourself on your first night out. I’m really happy for you.

  2. Dick says:

    If I’d known you were going to post the schematic I would have hired a draftsman to make it pretty!

  3. Daryl says:

    Have you mounted the solar panel on top yet? Or still just putting it on the ground?

  4. Dianna says:

    You’re living like a king now. With all that room you’re going to get lost in there! We’re very happy for you.

  5. Don says:

    This is so cool for you! You’ll be putting ads on the blog and renaming it Ms. Minnie and Dale pretty soon!

    😉

  6. Don says:

    And who drew that schematic? It looks like a first grader did it!

    😉

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