Log 2014062101

The right rear brake was bled, then a new left front wheel bearing, left front shock/ strut assembly and right front fender was installed installed today. I forgot to take a mileage then, but the one I have now is at 136,251 miles on the odometer.  I did forget to rotate the wheels, but if I have to get the tire stems replaced, I might as well have those mechanics do it since they have a lift and are in the neighborhood.  My 2008 Chevy HHR LS requires that they be rotated front to back and back to front.  I did it last time and it can tip if the side on my CUV is jacked up too much.

So, I've done about the maintenance that I have to skills currently to do.  I took it out for about a 10 mile drive on the freeway this morning and everything seems to run as it should.  The brake pedal position seemed to improved and so far the car is taking well to the new DOT 4 brake fluid that I added prior to this drive, but still needs improvement.  If I had to, I'd say that it could handle the roads in southern Ohio, towing a loaded utility hauling trailer as it is.  But I'd like it to be better.

Right now, I have to go find my uncle who knows several mechanics.  They're all friends of the family and have worked on our vehicles many times.  I'll have to give him a list and would like to do that tomorrow.  But tomorrow is Saturday and I have a feeling that I know where he's going to be, which is at his camper in Sandusky of Erie County. He doesn't do text messages very well.  So, I anticipate my day tomorrow as consisting of doing a load of laundry and then spending the weekend out there.

One thing that I was not able to do while I was out was test the car to see if the new air filter would alleviate the problem that starts at 60MPH while trying to accelerate going slightly uphill.  It was raining this morning and was almost flash flood conditions on the freeway today.  So, I will test it some other time.

I don't think that this kind of information is on the web yet, but on the topic of building a teardrop camper on a Harbor Freight 4 x 8 Utility Hauling Trailer in Ohio... In the past, I have learned that there is a way to build a way to do it so that the living amenities slide off so you can still have use of your utility hauling trailer.  When I had my utility hauling trailer titled, I inquired about this and was informed by a Deputy Clerk of Court in Lake County that a "convertible" trailer like this would not be legal in Ohio because the trailer has to be registered one way, or the other... either a utility hauling trailer, or a camper and it can not be both.

Log 2013082701

I've been getting to bed late these past two nights.  Today the toilet in the camper I'm staying at was leaking.  It appears that it likes to run a little longer.  Lucky for me, there was a towel in the closet.  And there was only a slight trickle of water anyways, but I had to put two rugs outside on the deck.  Yesterday, I got $6 in quarters for the laundry.  I also went grocery shopping and got some TV dinners and oven pizzas.  The driver's side tail light finally blew, so I stopped by the auto parts store and picked up a replacement, while pricing a new power inverter.  If I get it by the first, I can have 2000 watts for about $170.  Whether the DC to AC inverter will convert into a AC to DC converter with the use a double male outdoor extension cord (male on both ends) and not blow up my car or catch fire is still a question.  The thing it does have is leads to my battery, which my deep cycle batteries on the trailer will be hooked to with bullets that separate the line when it's unhitched. It ought to charge the whole system?

I checked the rear wheel of my mountain bike into the shop again.  This time it's being serviced at A & B Hobbies & Cycles in Sandusky of Erie County.  I'm having every spoke replaced with stainless steel.  Apparently, mine were already steel, but their quality might be in question.  They say that the spokes were probably going to cost about $36 to replace.  And the technician there was telling me that the true on that wheel should last for many months on road.  At present, I'm lucky to get 70 miles, which I can put on in a single week. This bike is going back to Southern Ohio in 19 days.

I also looked at CDMA cell phone repeaters "for the car."  That's one thing that I did not check into when I purchased my cell phone repeater that is for a 1,000 sq meter building.  Apparently, my repeater can boost the cell phone signal over a luxurious house.  Oh well, it will be on eBay soon.

Log 2013082501

I checked out of Basecamp Echo two days ago and I'm not at my parents camper in Sandusky.  I watch a YouTube video on canning chicken and I think I need a pressure canner with a gauge.  It was added to the procure list.  I withdrew a canned cheeseburger meal today.  It was made about 12 days ago and does show any signs of contamination yet.

I promised a friend in the Buckeye Trail Association that I would bring a hotspotted laptop to the informational booth that she's organizing.  It will be in Moncolva of Lucas County.  I checked the coverage map and its showing 3G in the area.  That's good because the cell phone signal booster is too powerful for what I want to do.  It requires that the antenna be 20m/ 66ft away from the base unit. I've decided that that's too much outdoor N-type cable to carry.  In the meantime, I'll be searching for other options.

I'm using the hotspot now.  In the past, I had an cellular internet card and so far, internet speeds are just like it.  Today, I called up Sprint and got a 7 day trail for their 2 gigabyte (GB) package.  Overage charges are $0.015 per kilobit (Kb), which is slightly less than when I owned my cell card.  8 bits = 1 byte. I also know that overage charges can really be steep because webpages and multimedia can have very large file sizes. In 7 days, if I don't cancel, Sprint will charge me $19.95 for the 2GB every month until I cancel the package.  It does not have a contract and I can do it at anytime.  Since my smartphone is recommended to have an unlimited talk/ text and data package that runs $99 + taxes and I carry insurance on the phone for another $10, my monthly cellular bill is usually $117.  This will bring me up to about $140 per month.

Because of the BTA booth in Monclova, I believe that Basecamp Echo will be at Mary Jane Thurston State Park outside of Grand Rapids of Wood County.    But I don't plan on leaving Sandusky until 2 September.  I'm anticipating that I'll be hard at work maintaining the Defiance Section when I get there.