Port Isabel, TX

Easter Sunday - It’s very pleasant at 8 in the morning but still humid. We ran the A/C all night just to try and lessen the humidity. We are still running off of our water tank without issues. The “lights” still say ⅔ tank but who knows how much is really in there. 

I’m not really sure what plans there are for today if any at all. Bridget, Peter, and Carole went to the wildlife sanctuary north of here on South Padre Island. Hondo got 0.2” of rain this morning when  a storm passed to the south. I had left windows open for ventilation. Hopefully there wasn’t too much wind from the north to blow the rain in. 

The Jeep left turn light was intermittent when towing and I had assumed that it was the wiring on the 6-pin socket on the Jeep. Before we left, I took it apart and cleaned and tightened all of the connections but didn’t find anything that stood out as a problem. When hooking up the intermittent still seemed to be there. Today, I examined the 7-pin to 6-pin cable and noticed a small shard of plastic in one of the pins on the 6-pin side. After googling trailer wiring, the plastic bit was in the left-turn socket. Clipped out the plastic scrap and we’ll see if the problem resurfaces tomorrow when we head back to Hondo.

High clouds and wind was the weather for the day. I think thunderstorms are in the forecast for tomorrow. The beach was pretty empty this morning. By mid-afternoon, it was getting crowded. 

It’s supposed to rain tomorrow morning so I packed up (mostly) this evening. All that’s left is disconnecting power, pack up the leveling blocks and hooking up the Jeep. We had a wonderful visit with family and we would return to this park again. Nice sites and nice location. The only negative was all the traffic over the only bridge to/from the island. 

Starbase, TX

Saturday - Today, we ventured south to Starbase. We had breakfast at the snack bar next to Boca Chica Village. We went on a tour of the Starship factory but no pictures were allowed. Huge, impressive facility. The main door to the Megabay was open with views of the booster and the hot staging ring.

After the tour, our nephew and his wife had a crawfish boil at their home with several of their friends most of them were engineers working on Starship or the SuperHeavy booster. 

No pictures could be taken while on SpaceX property but could be taken from the road. It was fascinating to see these locations as I have been following their progress since the started here in southern TX. 

There was a lot of food in the pot. This was just the veggies. After this was blue crab, andouille sausage, shrimp, crawfish, and corn on the cob! The pot was completely full!

This is the test vehicle for the Raptor engine. It took off and made a soft landing. I believe it’s called Hopper. It’s nice to see it still around. 

This is the new launch tower for Starship. It is right next to the highway. The older launch tower is in the background. It’s nice to see  things which I’ve only seen on YouTube. 

Port Isabel, TX

Friday - Last night around 1am, I turned on the fan function of the A/C to get some air movement. It was muggy. I used the Victron app to check on the power consumption and, imagine my surprise to see the battery SoC was 81%. Apparently, our 30amp shore power connection wasn’t working. The breaker on the pedestal was toast. I switched to the 20amp outlet using an adapter. This worked. 

This afternoon, we fought the crowd to Walmart to pick up a few groceries and I found a 50amp to 30amp adapter for half the Amazon price! I’m not going to complain about that. This town is really busy since is a holiday weekend. After installing the adapter, I fired up the A/C due to the 86% relative humidity. 

We need to get an early start tomorrow…

Isla Blanca Park

Thursday - This morning we headed towards southern TX to meet up with family for the weekend. It was a windy drive with some gusty winds. The class C gets tossed around a bit more than the class A but slower speeds help. I could no longer feel the Jeep moving so the hitch gadget seems to help. 

It was about a six hour drive including a stop for lunch and gas. It’s a pretty nice R.V. park with decent size sites and reasonably level. It continues to be windy and it’ll probably continue throughout the weekend.

Another RV Repair

Monday - I replaced the built-in surge protector this morning. It was a pleasant 61°F when I started at 8am, and by the time I was finished, it was 70°F. I also removed the power cord reel and replaced it a twist-lock receptacle. The same one I had installed earlier when I had a problem with the reel and the last surge protector. The power reel is really handy as the 50amp cable is heavy and bulky.

One of the benefits of this model is that you can access it via Bluetooth. The last one, you had to go outside and read the LED display, which had also stopped working. Again, the biggest advantage of this unit is the replaceable components that provide surge protection. 

We went into town to search for storage baskets and bins for the class C. On the way back through Castroville, we stopped at Walmart and I picked up a Roku box to replace the bricked Apple TV. 

Tuesday - It was cooler today so more little things got done. I finally set up the TPMS gifted to us from Mike & Kathy (Toadmama). I had initially ordered the wrong sensor batteries which delayed the setup. I also cleaned the tawing wiring connector on the front of the Jeep as the left turn signal has been intermittent when being towed. The connection was corroded but only that one wire. Odd. Hopefully it’s fixed after cleaning and tightening. I also cleaned off the 7 pin to 6 pin cable as it was pretty greasy after five and a half years behind the class A. I also installed an anti-rattle clamp to the drop extension behind the class C. This should help while towing the Jeep. There was quite a bit of play.

Here is a screenshot when both A/C units are running. The voltage is still good with the front A/C on Line 1 and the rear unit on Line 2. This is handy though it would be nice if I can get it integrated into HomeAssistant. 

Wednesday - This morning, I added two more sections of Unistrut to add a third solar panel to the class C. Initially, it’s on with VHB tape and a couple of screws where I was sure of roof rafters. These were not the full 10’ lengths due the refrigerator vent. But there is plenty of room for one panel. This is on the front-passenger side. I’ll put the panel on in a couple of weeks. We are heading to South Padre tomorrow to meet up with 

Exploring San Antonio

Friday - Last night, my sister and brother-in law arrived in their camper van. Today, we ventured into San Antonio to see some of the sights including the Riverwalk and the Japanese Tea Garden. 

It was a pretty warm afternoon and the shop had a frozen yuzu limeade that really hit the spot. The Japanese garden was built in a former limestone quarry and was really nicely done. There was a wedding in progress plus several groups doing graduation photos. 

Saturday - We headed up to Fredericksburg this morning. We visited the Pioneer Museum in Fredericksburg. We ended up rushing back to Hondo since the power problem showed up at the RV. The problem being all the DC and AC power turns off. I had traced the problem to low voltage at the pedestal causing the inverter to bump up its DC current consumption beyond what the two SOK batteries were willing to provide causing the BMS in batteries to disconnect. I think…

Sunday - This morning, I put the third battery back into the RV and, so far, not a single issue. And we have had dips in the AC voltage. The voltage fluctuations may have caused our Apple TV to bite the dust this morning as well. I have a new surge protector ready to install tomorrow morning when it is cooler. At 92°F, I don’t feel like wrestling with the 6AWG wires and shutting off all the power to the RV. I have the new one set up to replace the cord reel as well as the non-functional Progressive Dynamics surge protector. This is the second failure in 5½ years. In trying a different brand of surge protector this time. A Hughes Power Watchdog. One benefit with this brand is the wearable components on the surge protector are replaceable. Progressive Dynamics just wants you to buy a new unit. At least that is what they told me on the phone when the last one died…

Battery Testing

Wednesday - After 14hours overnight at with a low of 55°F, we only used 46aH of battery. This is about a quarter of what the class A consumes over the same period. So there is plenty of battery capacity but not enough current for higher load appliances such the microwave, air fryer, toaster, or Keurig. The next “test” is to see if the battery recharges to 100% by the time we get back to Hondo today.

Later - The battery was up to 100% SOC when we arrived in Hondo. We used ⅛ tank of propane for the two days for the furnace, stove, and some refrigerator. I’m not sure of the propane tank size. Gas mileage towing the Jeep was pretty dismal at around 7mpg. About the same as the class A. But I wasn’t very careful about filling up all the way. The rig was a handful with gusty crosswinds especially when towing the Jeep. The tow bar has some play in it at the extension. I need to find the hitch stabilizer or whatever it’s called to see if it helps.

Thursday - It is hot today (88°F @epm). The A/C units are struggling to keep up. 

LBJ Ranch

Tuesday - We visited the LBJ state and national history sites. The Texas White House was closed for renovation but the visitor centers were well done and included a driving tour of the ranch. A lot of history and reminders of the politics of the time. 

It was a cool-ish 44°F this morning but has warmed up into the mid-70s by midday with a very gentle breeze. Pretty nice. I was going to set up the TPMS but I ordered the wrong batteries from Amazon. My plan for tonight is to disconnect from shore power and see how we do with one battery. Kind of like it would be at a Harvest Host. 

This morning, I ran the microwave and the Multiplus reported low battery voltage. The 1500 watts is right about the max amps for the SOK battery. Michael, our new neighbor, mentioned that he had a couple of SOK batteries that he wanted to sell. For the right price, we would have two in the class C and three back in the class A. That would eliminate the low battery voltage warning in the class C and allow for a 3K watt inverter in the class A. The old Magnum inverter/charger feels like it’s on its last legs.

We had barbecue at Proof and Cooper in Johnson City. It was pretty tasty though the sides could have been better. I just didn’t pack any other dinners besides the leftover chicken we had yesterday. Poor planning on my part (or maybe good planning!).

Johnson City, TX

Monday - Some adventure a couple of night ago. At 3am, we had no power in the motorhome. No 12VDC or AC. The screenshot shows how many times the inverter was restarting. I used the small jumper box to restart the SOK batteries as the BMS had disconnected them. I then performed a hard restart of the inverter and it started to pass AC power and after a few minutes, the battery charger kicked in. But the AC power continued to reset. After getting HomeAssistant working, I looked at the history and on Saturday, it was happening every 1.5 hours. This convinced me that it was an RV problem not a shore power problem. The last time I needed to reset the inverter was in Yuma a few years ago and it was a problem with the Progressive Dynamics surge protector. I switched the surge protector to “bypass” and all of my power issues vanished. Not a single glitch all day Sunday while we were in San Antonio.

This morning, we got the class C packed up for a short shakedown trip to an rv park near Johnson City. It has full hookups so not much of a challenge. It is the first time we are towing the Jeep for more than a few miles. Also a check of the DC-DC charger and the solar panel mounting. The mirror mounted screen for the rear-view camera seems to be functional. All is good. I still have a few more tasks such as the TPMS and finding a better location for the GPS as well as routing all the power wires. (TPMS, dash cam, and GPS)

You can really feel the Jeep especially on hills and it does push the back of the RV around some. And, there is a lot of engine noise as it downshifts on every hill. The park is very quiet and nicely landscaped. I like all the grass after months of no grass. 

Finishing the Solar

Friday - I didn't even get around to making coffee this morning. I moved the class C to the street in front of our lot to finish the solar installation. One of the challenges was the limited space in the bench seating. I fabricated a small divider to support the charge controller. It looks sturdy enough. I made the cables between the solar disconnect switch and the charge controller using the same 10AWG wire for the run from the roof into the compartment. I used 6AWG wire from the charge controller to the Lynx distributor. After checking polarity, I powered everything back up. It's kind of overcast, but the battery was still fully charged, and it went into absorption within a few minutes. After moving the RV back to storage, I turned on the Multiplus. I'll see what the SOC is tomorrow morning and how long it takes to bring the battery back to 100%.

Except for a couple of mounting bolts and more screws into the roof, the solar project is mostly done. I still have one more panel to mount and have all of the bits and pieces to get that done. I just need some cooler weather. I stopped at about 11:30 as it was already over 80°F and very muggy.

Saturday - This morning, I put in three screws on each strut channel into rafters. I believe that the rafters are just tubular aluminum based on the shavings that come out when drilling.

I also installed the fan with inlet and outlet grills. This just happens to be the outlet. I can’t quite finish this project as I need a temperature controller. I had an extra one, somewhere, but I can’t seem to find it. 

Sunday - We have visitors! LivingLightRV are visiting from Canada, so we took them to the RiverWalk, the Alamo, and one of the missions. We had a wonderful lunch at a Mexican restaurant on the RiverWalk with enough leftovers for dinner. 

I found the spare temperature controller and wired it in to control the fan. The fan works but the jury is out on whether there will be enough airflow. 

More Projects

Monday - Another warm day today. After two days with the Multiplus powered on plus whatever other parasitic loads, the battery was down to 81% SOC (state of charge) or about 11% per day. I plugged in shore power to recharge the battery, and the temperature of the Multiplus was 111°F. Not unreasonable, but I really do need to get some sort of ventilation for the underseat compartment. I'm thinking of an air intake vent near the Multiplus and an exhaust fan next to the battery. I should have another temperature controller lying around to control the 12V fan. 

While being used as a rental, the roof vents had covers over them. They were removed, but the mounting hardware was still installed, making it simple to install new vent covers. Now, the vents can be left open even when it is raining. There is one more vent in the front, but I'm considering replacing that vent with a MaxxAir fan.

Tuesday - I drove the Jeep with the trailer to Uvalde to the large hardware store to pick up some half-height strut channel, aka as Unistrut. I needed to bring the trailer as each piece is 10' long.  The high strength outdoor VHB tape will be used to attach it to the roof as well as several screws into the aluminum channel roof joists. At least, I'm pretty sure that they are aluminum. The nuts with the blue plastic slide into the strut channel will be used to mount the solar panels. The slots in the channel will have Dicor self-leveling sealant to keep water from the back of the VHB tape.

The heat and humidity prevent much work from being done in the afternoon. The mornings are pleasant.

Wednesday - Two ten-foot sections of the strut channel are stuck to the roof after cleaning the roof and the metal strut channel with acetone. I used high-strength outdoor-rated VHB tape. I then sealed the inside of the strut channel with 1” wide strips of Eternabond tape. Then, I ran some Dicor along the sides of the channel to protect the edges of the VHB tape. I still want to run screws into the roof joists but their location is somewhat elusive. 

I started working on this at ~7:30am, and by noon, it was way too hot. I’ll start on the roof penetration for the wiring tomorrow morning. And I’m still waiting for a cooling fan. The Magnum inverter complained about temperatures as well. The transformer hit 250°F when the unit shut down. I have a fan blowing into the compartment right now. I think a cooling fan is needed to help reduce the temperature in that compartment. 

Thursday - I finally got the roof entry fitting installed. The roof looks to be only about 2" total. I'm thinking that for the unistrut along the roof edge, I may try using ¼" bolts through the roof. It'll be cooler in a couple of days. The 10AWG wire is currently run into the compartment and I did manage to find some latch duct at the local Ace Hardware to kind of protect the wire in the vertical run from the upper cabinet to the dinette bench where the rest of the electrical upgrade is located. The 12V fan and vents arrived from Amazon this evening. Tomorrow's project.

It was 94°F, and I didn't really feel like cooking anything. I decided to try out one of the Chinese buffets in Hondo. I wasn't expecting much. It really wasn't that bad. Not great, but not as bad as I was led to believe.