For “tRaVersing Thursday”, or RV Day:
Selling your RV? Here's help on consignment selling
“How it works: You and the consignment operator agree on a sale price. From there, the dealer keeps anything above your minimum. The dealer may also require a "commission" or percentage fee of your "bottom line price." You ask $5,000, the dealer keeps a percentage of the $5,000 — above what he sells the rig for. He may also require a "dealer fee" of a set amount.
Here's how this might work out:
Your asking price: $5,000.00
Dealer sells the RV for: $7,000.00
Dealer commission percentage (10%): $500.00 (based on your asking price).
Dealer Fee: $50.00
Bottom line: Dealer gets $2,550.00; you get $4,450.00
No matter your "asking" price, the dealer will probably tell you it's too high, that you'll need to lower it. You can counter by doing your homework before bargaining. Check out Internet prices and NADA guides; walk RV dealer lots for a similar rig and try to establish a fair price. It's subjective; we all tend to figure our "stuff" is worth more than the next guy's. And watch out for crooks. "Fly by nights" are known to take RVs on consignment, sell them, take the cash and vanish. Before you consign, check with the Better Business Bureau and your state's Attorney General for complaints.
Another shady trick: They have a buyer for your rig! But ("sigh") the customer is offering the exact price that you want to walk away with. However, if you'd be willing to give us X-dollars for our trouble, we'll waive the commission percentage. No, you won't get your exact asking price, but hey, you've still sold that rig! The trick is, the customer came in with a good offer, above your asking price. The dealer is selling you a fish story to pad his pocket. Either refuse to buy it — don't budge on your sales price, or tell the dealer you'll come look at his "customer's" signed purchase offer. If he refuses to show the order, you know there's a problem. If it's legitimate, you'll need to decide whether the deal is worth it to you.
Whatever you do, always follow these guidelines:
•Make sure the deal is in writing and signed, and that you understand and agree to it.
•Who is responsible for insurance when the rig is on the lot? Your own RV insurance may not cover it.
•Who pays off title liens?
•Will you let the dealer accept a "trade in" as part purchase price? How will it factor into your bottom line?
•Who pays for repairs, detailing, transportation charges, advertising, storage, or other expenses?
•What happens if the dealer doesn't sell your rig in the time you settle on?
•NEVER leave the title with the dealer until a sale is made and confirmed in writing — and you get a copy.
Some states have specific laws applying to vehicle consignment dealers. Check with the state's Attorney General's office.” by Russ and Tiña De Maris
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Why your tires do not last longer
“RVers depend on their RV tires — and they're an expensive thing to replace. We've often talked about the matter of safety and RV tires, but this time will highlight finances and what you can do to cut costs.
Industry experts, including tire-consuming fleet folks — all agree: "The largest contributing factor [to a tire's life span]," says Pat Martindale, "is air pressure. It was years ago, and it still is today." Martindale is a maintenance guru for Penske Truck Leasing, and gave this maxim to Light & Medium Duty Truck magazine.
Similar views are echoed by Michelin North America through their customer engineering support manager, Doug Jones. Jones says that under-inflated or over-inflated tires simply wear unevenly and prematurely wear out. Under-inflation can lead to zipper ruptures along the sidewall that lead to rapid deflation. As little as 10 pounds "under recommended pressure" can cause an increase in tire wear of seven to 15 percent. Over-inflate that big rubber roundie and you can look to see increased wear and tear on the center of the tire tread, a stiffer ride, and a lot less forgiveness when hitting 'road hazards.'
You dually runners, listen up: Pressure between two tires in a dual set should not differ by more than five pounds. If the difference is bigger than that, one tire will be larger than the other, and the smaller one won't roll nor deflect as it should.”
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How to use your smart phone as a WiFi hotspot
“Chris Guld of GeeksOnTour.com explains how to use your smart phone as a WiFi hotspot to enable Internet access with your computer.”
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How to generate more power from your RV roof solar panels
“Jim Nelson of LiveWorkDream.com shows you a simple way to modify an RV's roof solar panels to increase their effectiveness at generating power.”
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RV Solar Panel Installation Overview
“The RV Geeks show the general layout and components of the system, including the panels themselves, the wiring and the solar controller. They also talk about the benefits of including a simple and inexpensive tilt kit, which allows tilting the solar panels up in the winter, when the sun is lower on the horizon.
”Our first RV had two panels, which were permanently fastened flat to the roof, so they couldn't be tilted. We've learned a lot since then, and the new panels are tilt-able, and also use thicker 6-gauge wire to reduce loss along its length.””
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How to determine a vehicle's tow rating
“Mark Polk of RVeducation101.com explains a quick, easy way to determine the tow rating of a car, truck or motorhome.”
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How about a recirculating RV toilet?
An RVer moving into the world of "boondocking" away from the world of RV parks and utility sites was concerned about dumping black water. After another RVer showed him his recirculating toilet, the question arose: Wouldn't a recirculating toilet be just the thing for boondockers? Or any RVer? Read more.
From me: If you can’t get to a dump, you can use BioGel bags (or BioGel powder in 4 gallon trash bags in your toilet), and dispose of them in the trash. http://www.basspro.com/BIOGEL-Waste-Gelation-Powder-for-Portable-Toilets/product/23630/
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Carbon monoxide detectors
“Test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors before every trip. Replace batteries at least annually.” —From Motorhomes Made Easy Bill's Hints
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Easy way to keep a flashlight handy for an emergency
RV's have a lot of wood surfaces, so it's easy to find mounting spots. If you later change your mind and want to move it somewhere else, the lone screw hole plugs easily with wood filler or caulk with no trace left behind.
Two locations are better than one, for both accessibility and backup. Don't forget to put your light back after you use it, and to check the batteries before each trip.” By Greg Illes
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U-bake pizza trick
“Do you love U-bake pizzas but your RV refrigerator is too small to store one? Here's a trick: Cut the pizza into quarters, wrap the pieces in plastic wrap, and stack them on top of one another. When it's time to cook them, put them back together and cook the whole pizza, or just cook as many "slices" as you need.”
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Shortcut Pie Shell
“Instead of all-purpose flour this recipe uses biscuit mix to make a puffier pie shell.
½ stick butter
3 tablespoons boiling water
1 cup biscuit mix such as Bisquick
Set the oven to 450 degrees and let the butter come to “room” temperature in a medium bowl. Spray a 9-inch pie plate. Stir biscuit mix into softened butter and use a fork to stir in boiling water. Dip your fingers in flour to press this soft dough evenly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Flute edges and bake 8 to 10 minutes until it’s golden brown and puffy. Cool and fill.” Janet Groene
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“RVtravel.com editor Chuck Woodbury provides a tip about a simple solution for sleeping through noise at campgrounds, which does happen on occasion.”
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Avoid tail dragging
“Steep driveways cause your RV to "drag tail"? Best solution is to avoid them, but that's not always possible. When entering or leaving a parking lot with a steep incline, angle your rig as much as possible — don't take it "head on." Drive slowly to avoid bouncing the rig.”
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Hard to find coach batteries?
“RV coach batteries "tucked away underneath" and hard to check fluid level? Use a hand mirror to hold over the top of the battery and angle the view back to you. Shine a flashlight onto the mirror to spot light down into those dark cells.”
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Holly escapes from RV
Holly, a beautiful 4 year-old tortoiseshell kitty traveled from Daytona Beach to West Palm Beach on foot, in about two months. She was found staggering around a backyard about a mile from home, weighing only half what she should, and too weak and debilitated to even meow.
Today, Holly is safely back in the arms of her owners, but it’s unlikely they’ll ever solve the mystery of how their cat found her way home.” More at: http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2013/03/20/holly-returns-home.aspx
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On This Day:
NATO established, Apr 4, 1949:
“The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is established by 12 Western nations: the United States, Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Iceland, Canada, and Portugal. The military alliance, which provided for a collective self-defense against Soviet aggression, greatly increased American influence in Europe.
Greece, Turkey, and West Germany later joined NATO, but in 1966 France withdrew, citing American violations of the 1949 treaty. In 1955, the Warsaw Pact, a Soviet-led Eastern European alliance, was established to counter NATO. In 1994, three years after the end of the Cold War, NATO engaged in its first military action as part of an international effort to end two years of fighting in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic, which all left the Warsaw Pact upon its dissolution in 1991, joined NATO in 1999. Today, there are twenty-six member states in total.”
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Dr. King is assassinated, Apr 4, 1968:
“Just after 6 p.m. on April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. is fatally shot while standing on the balcony outside his second-story room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. The civil rights leader was in Memphis to support a sanitation workers' strike and was on his way to dinner when a bullet struck him in the jaw and severed his spinal cord. King was pronounced dead after his arrival at a Memphis hospital. He was 39 years old.”
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Yesterday:
The night before I had set the trap hoping to catch one of the stray cats around here, but they are too wise. “Blondie”, the very scared little abandoned cat, asks to be fed each morning and has ventured onto my screen porch. I have a long string running into the house through the patio door from the screen door handle, but as soon as he sees me through the glass, he runs, so I can’t corral him on the porch. Sometimes he will let me touch his head with an outstretched arm when he is outside, and I think that if he could learn to trust people again, he would be a sweet pet for someone.
After a late start, Misty and I went to get Jay as he wanted to go on the last (I hope) of the trips to the vet for Terry’s Upper Respiratory Infection penicillin shots. We stopped at St. Marks to drop off the paper recycling and to see if they had anything we wanted in their thrift shop. While I was getting dressed I had looked for some navy blue pants to go with the blouse that I wanted to wear, and I didn’t have any. I must have got tired of them, or they no longer fit and I put them in the yard sale stuff. I found two pair of good looking navy pants there, Calvin Klein and Alfred Dunner, so that solved that.
Jay and I ate some take-out under the trees at the China Buffet. That was the only time we heard a peep out of Terry. I had packed him a dish of canned food, but he didn’t want it. We brought him a couple of shrimp and a piece of beef from the restaurant, but he didn’t want that either. At the vet, same nasty stinging shot, and he was so well-behaved.
Once home, Terry jumped on my bed and took a nap until he heard Misty give me her little “Mom, I’m hungry” bark. This is the same bark as “I wanna go out”, but has lip smacking added! 
I fed Misty, and Terry was acting like he wanted to eat, but didn’t know what. So I put several things in his dish, and he ate a little tuna, chicken, and a dab of Wellness Core cat food, and went back to sleep. He must be feeling a bit better. His sinuses still sound stopped up, but he doesn’t sneeze much now, and I found out that it was his sneezing which made me cough. He is on Baytril for the next new days.
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