That Was So Stupid!

RZRBUG

We all make mistakes, and I’ve made my share of really stupid ones…that includes things I’ve done to, with, for and because of the T@B, either because of stupidity, forgetfulness, or carelessness.  I hope I’ve learned from those mistakes.  It occurred to me that others might also learn from some of the mistakes I’ve made, and if you feel like sharing some of yours, maybe I could learn from them as well.

1.  When trying to hitch up one time, I got out to walk back and check the alignment only to discover when I got back in the truck that I had left the motor running and it was in gear.  Luckily, I had set the emergency brake and nothing crazy happened.  Getting in a hurry is not very wise sometimes.

2.  I was trying to get set up in a campground in the Black Hills.  It was at an angle, on a hill, and everyone and his brother was standing around watching.  After getting everything pretty much set up and the stabilizers down, I decided I needed to move a little more back…and did so with the stabilizers still down.  Loose gravel and no damage done.  Don’t let an audience get you flustered.  It can  cause some serious mistakes.

3.  While trying to replace my bearings, races and seals for the first time, I had trouble getting the new races to set.  After walking away for a break, it occurred to me that I had failed to remove the old races.  Duh X 2.

4.  At a campground in Wyoming, I had to call the office to inform them there were no electrical outlets at my site.  The nice lady came out and said, “It’s here up on the pole.”  I was looking low and failed to see that all the electrical connections were up high on wooden poles.  If I could have found a large hole, I would have gone in head first.

5.  I made a pit stop in Kansas on my first trip with the T@B and dutifully set the emergency brake before exiting the truck.  About two hours down the road I smelled rubber burning and realized I had not released the brake when I resumed my journey.  Once again, I got lucky with no lasting damage.

There have been more, but these are the ones that come to mind at the moment.  It's OK to chuckle along with me as long as you take a lesson from it.

leenscottfl

I'm really impressed with your willingness to share things that most would take to the grave. I can think of a couple of things that I have done tent camping but haven't had enough experience with traveling with my T@B to have acquired as impressive of a resume as you. I'm sure I will have equally impressive mind freezes to comment on soon. 

Nomad

Distractions are a curse...
My routine is to get the crank and starting with the back passenger side stabilizer, make my rounds and crank them all up. I got distracted and forgot the front passenger side. Of course, it's somewhat hidden behind the door so not obvious. Pulled out down a dirt farm path and wondered what that noise was. Finally a quarter mile later I stopped to look. Ooops, a bent stablizer dangling down. Bungee corded it up and later took it off and managed to hammer it into somewhat working order. At some point I'll need to replace it. I now start with that one.
So far that's my only real boneheaded move.

remphoto

Helpful tread.  Here are my confessions from past experience with two previously-owned large travel trailers.  We plan to avoid these with the T@B (though they are less likely to be an issue with the smaller T@B).
1) The front jack (with no foot or wheel) suddenly sank into soft ground while we were setting up.  It threw my wife over the bed while she was making it and took a couple of hefty jacks to get it back up. Also ruined the front jack.
2) I tried backing into a tight spot with no one spotting me and hit a low hanging branch causing $3,000 in damage.
3) Forgot to slope the awning and it filled with rain water and bent its frame, costing $1,000 to replace.
4) Did not securely store the sewer hose and drove down the highway with it dragging from lane to lane.

Nomad

Ahhhh, I do have another...
Setting up where it sloppes ever so slight down in back so once unhooked I'm going to need to lower the jack. Since I don't want the T@B to roll backwards I chock it behind the tires. I unhook, pull the TV away, go back and start cranking the jack down to get level and now create a downward slope to the front. To my surprise, the old T@B starts rolling forward completely off the blocks and to the left three feet. Ooops, get it all hooked back up, repositioned and chock both sides of the wheels this time. Luckily, the campground was deserted.

Rad

Backing the rig into my short compound curved steep up hill driveway on a cold day I instantly felt I was to close to the house on the drivers side. I quickly stuck my head out the drivers window to look......ouch, the window was closed!

DurangoTaB

Larry...thanks for the educational thread idea!  Friday night was our first of the season.  Last late October I winterized by draining lines, blowing them out, and adding pink stuff to the 5-gal water tank and running it thought the lines, only after isolating the Alde and opening the bypass valve (so I could run the heater with pink stuff if I wanted...which I never did).  We got back from hiking and I turned on the heater...my wife asks when we'll have hot water..."in a few minutes dear".  Ten minutes later we run and run the HW faucet...no HW.  Wait 10 minutes.  Run HW run...no HW.  I lift the bench seat to check the Alde, and notice the bypass is still open...mixing hot and cold water.  Voila!  HW!  We'd drained at least 4 gallons of the 5 gallon water tank.  In addition to learning about the valve, I also learned how much water it takes to refill the lines and Alde tank after being drained and blown clear...at least a couple gallons...so I'll do that at the house before leaving on our next trip (we still have freezing nights here, so I drained the system when we got home). 

I'm sure I'll remember some more embarrassing moments!

RZRBUG

remphoto: "4) Did not securely store the sewer hose and drove down the highway with it dragging from lane to lane."

I'm sorry, but every time I picture this in my mind, I can't help but chuckle.  I've heard it said somewhere that laughing is a good way to learn.

Another one on me.  I have a 10-Watt solar battery maintainer that usually stays under the shed in bad weather.  One day when the sun was shining, I sat it out and was pleased that I had a full day of sun charging my battery.  When I went back to put it in the shed, I realized that I had tilted the back side to the sun.  It only took once.  I double check it now.

J.D., from what I've read, the Alde system is a great little feature.  Sometimes I'm glad I don't have it because I would probably never get to work correctly.

As for the thread, I was thinking the other day about all the mistakes I had made then thought why not share them.  Maybe it will help someone else.  As I heard someone say one time, "I am embarrassed, but not ashamed."

vito

Don't know if this counts but many years ago, before the diesel gas pump nozzles became differently sized from the gasoline ones, I pulled my Suburban up to the pump while on a long road trip, and without interrupting the conversation I was having with my wife, proceeded to put 13 gallons of diesel into my 26 gallon gas tank. Having no way to drain the tank, I drove on the shoulder of the road for a few hours, rarely able to get over 30 mph, and stopped at every Interstate exit to "top off" at gas stations, all the while leaving a huge white smoke screen behind me. It took until well into the second tankful the next day before the problem was fully resolved and then the car ran nicely. If I had a trailer on the car I probably would not have been able to drive at all. 

leenscottfl

Oh! Mid 60s in Japan I filled my motorcycle with kerosene over the objections of the station worker. Note: bikes do not run on kerosene at all. Listen to those who tell you eia.

Nomad

Vito - Had a friend do the opposite, gas into diesel. Had to rebuild the engine.

Nomad

Forgot about this one also - So, I'm reading the forums and everyone's advising that you disconnect you cable if you're going shopping or you'll drain your TV battery. I never had and had never had a problem. Anyway, I come out of Joshua Tree having had no cell/net connection and decide to hit a Starbucks and get caught up - taking the forum advice I pull the plug. Since I had never done this before plugging it back in just wasn't in my routine. About 2 miles down the road it dawns on me - oooops. Only one problem, I'm now descending down a 10 mile mountain grade with nowhere to pull off. Get to the bottom, pull off and one side of the plug is gone. But by golly I could still plug it in and it appeared to work. In fact, it was easier to plug in a get locked. Haven't unplugged it while shopping etc. since.

Take Away: Sometimes the forum advice isn't necessarily right for you.
Recomendation: If you're having trouble seating the plug, either drag it down a mountain road or get out a file - see pic for what it should look like ... Can't see it in the pic but the little wing on the other side is completely gone. If you're going to get out a file and need more detailed pics, let me know :-)