We have been relaxing and simply enjoying our extended stay for the winter in Bonita Springs Florida. Morning coffee and breakfast is usually followed by a three mile walk around the park. Imperial Bonita Estates is still in a slow recovery stage as there are still about 20 older hurricane damaged park models yet to be removed. Of course watching the “crunching” of these units is part of the park entertainment. The process is pretty amazing.
With the end of the year we enjoyed a fun New Year’s Eve bash at the park. Since we happen to be here every other year (our third time here now) we have come to know a number of people we hang out with. One particular group hosts a big end of the year bash and we always attend it. This year was no different than past years as it was a fun time with some great eats as everyone brings a dish to share.
Although we didn’t quite make it to midnight we still had a blast. The New Year brought some much cooler weather down to southern Florida so many of us had to break out our blue jeans and jackets. This unseasonably cooler weather is making Sharon and I really look forward to our cruise to the Caribbean this coming Sunday.
With the cooler weather I tackled another big repair job on the RV. We had a slide out seal that started to fail on us this year. The metal teeth which hold the slide out seal to the flange on the RV began to rust causing the seal to slide off of the flange when we put the slide in and out. I called Tiffin parts to verify I ordered the right part before tackling the job.
The worst part of this job was removing the slide topper over the slide out so I could access all of the slide seal. Removing the old seal was easy as I simply pulled on it and it came off very easily with little effort. However placement of the new seal was a bit tougher as there was very little room to get my fingers in between the new seal and the frame of the RV. Slowly but surely I was able to push the new seal on the flange using mostly my fingers.
I did find that using a small piece of wood cut into a wedge and twisting it would help me get the seal on in tougher spots. Also before making the turn I used a razor blade to cut the flap part of the seal so turning the corners became much simpler. This was a fairly easy do-it-yourself job that saved us several hundred dollars of installation charges even if it was a bit tedious.
We leave Sunday for a week long cruise to the south… Next time I blog won’t be until we return the following week. Until then…we hope this new year will bring many blessings to you all!
NOTE: We are now in our winter home for the next several months in Bonita Springs Florida at Imperial Bonita Estates RV park and Coop. However, we will be on a mini-vacay for a weeklong cruise starting Jan 7th…
Is there any repair you would not tackle? You make this look easy :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the cruise!
Nice repair Thought I needed to replacers last summer, but is still doing it's job and works the way it should. Enjoy the cruise.
ReplyDeleteThat was one of our first improvements to the Alfa when we bought her. But we had someone else do the job. We admire those of you who tackle such things, but are shy of doing it ourselves. Our big project this winter is removing the old faded decals, and considering how to have her repainted.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you all were and are having fun at Bonita Springs!!
ReplyDeleteIt's good when you can work on your rig yourself...saves so much money!! Good job!!