Enjoy and relax HW. I'm sure this trip will go so much better, and all the other trips you do will as well. It is a huge learning curve you embarked on!
Its pretty cold down south, hope you have a warm doona!
Smokeydk said
09:45 AM May 17, 2011
Just had great long weekend with a group of caravanners......just chatting with them.......gave me a lot of great ideas.......might be worth doing same ..before the big trip
jules47 said
10:05 AM May 17, 2011
Hey - Marj - watch out for mice on the way down!!!
gubby said
10:18 AM May 17, 2011
Hey Mice.... Watch out for Marj she's on the way back.....
Happywanderer said
02:19 PM May 17, 2011
This is a lovely spot in Kumbia, met some lovely people and gained some new ideas, would love to stay another day. Do they chase you on after 2 days? Or can I sneak another one. No mice yet but they wouldn't dare, have so much stuff in here to keep them away am nearly choking myself out. Was going to go via Cecil Plains after Dalby but a chap here said, don't go near it, road badly broken up from all the floods, too dangerous. So will stick to the Moonie highway and take it easy that way.
Esmeralda said
04:36 PM May 17, 2011
Hey HW have a great trip back and take your time - I drove home in one day from Canberra and was a tad dazed when I got back! Esmeralda is kept at my parents place in Thornton (near Eildon). Maybe we can catch up for a few days somewhere in the great Victorian outdoors. This may have to wait a little - see my post about the trip home.
-- Edited by Esmeralda on Tuesday 17th of May 2011 04:43:40 PM
Sheba said
11:36 PM May 17, 2011
gubby wrote:
Hey Mice.... Watch out for Marj she's on the way back.....
Mice are a problem in CQ at the moment too. This one was checking us out at my friends' place, while we watched TV last week, and they are still finding dead ones every day.
Cheers,
Sheba.
Firefly said
07:29 AM May 18, 2011
Sheba they are soooo brazen at the moment aren't they. It seems the more there are, the gamer they get mate.
Sheba said
07:37 PM May 18, 2011
Firefly, they finished that lot of bait, and I put 2 more lots up there before I went to bed that night, and at that point, there were only 2 pieces left. [ Put it out in batches of 7.] Glad they're not that bad at my place. [Touch wood.]
Cheers,
Sheba.
Happywanderer said
07:40 PM May 18, 2011
Sheba, Aah what a cute mouse. I put those bait boxes out open, the whole box and they still took them out of the box and chewed them all up through the van cupboards. Had 4 open in different cupboards, have left the remains in there behind my stacked stuff. So far no mice here in Kumbia, fingers crossed.
Happywanderer said
07:46 PM May 18, 2011
Still in Kumbia. A nice man has been working on my in house battery all day. Thinks he has got it working. Got the charge up to 14.6 and will check it in the morning afterresting to see if it stays up. Was down to 11.5, should charge up and stay there. He's working out if its had it before I go paying out for a new one. Also told me to get a meter attached to the wall which will automatically tell me what the charge is without have all the equipment he has. Also get a battery charger and get it set up under the seat next to the in house battery with an automatic switch over to charge it when ever I plug into mains power. Boy I have been learning lots today. Also checked the oil, had to put in half a litre so will check in the again in the morning.
May head off in the morning but only about 40 ks to a town called Bell, theres a little caravan park there called Bells and Whistles. Just want to say I've stayed there. Will ring in the morning and get a price.
rockylizard said
07:51 PM May 18, 2011
Gday...
I haven't stayed at Bell ... but I remember seeing the van park ... the name is great.
I stopped for lunch and treated myself to a nice meal at the General Store which from memory is just across the road (diagonally) from the van park.
That notwithstanding .... a lovely area you are going through.
Cheers
John
Happywanderer said
07:53 PM May 18, 2011
Thanks for that John, will try the general store too, sounds good. I saw the park and name coming up and thought How Original, so have to try it out.
jimricho said
08:05 PM May 18, 2011
Happywanderer wrote:
Still in Kumbia. A nice man has been working on my in house battery all day. Thinks he has got it working. Got the charge up to 14.6 and will check it in the morning afterresting to see if it stays up. Was down to 11.5, should charge up and stay there. He's working out if its had it before I go paying out for a new one. Also told me to get a meter attached to the wall which will automatically tell me what the charge is without have all the equipment he has. Also get a battery charger and get it set up under the seat next to the in house battery with an automatic switch over to charge it when ever I plug into mains power. Boy I have been learning lots today. Also checked the oil, had to put in half a litre so will check in the again in the morning.
May head off in the morning but only about 40 ks to a town called Bell, theres a little caravan park there called Bells and Whistles. Just want to say I've stayed there. Will ring in the morning and get a price.
According to my Jaycar cattle dog "Switched on Electronics" is a Jaycar stockist in Echuca.
A good smart charger can be installed in such a way it can be used on a "set and forget" basis, i.e. no need to remember to switch-over or changeover.
Hard to tell from this far away but I don't think the chances of recovering your existing house battery are all that good, be guided by your "sparky" as he's there on the job.
Happywanderer said
08:12 PM May 18, 2011
Thanks for that Jim, I know the shop in the main street. Will take note of that. That is what theis kind man meant, what you say above, set and forget, so one less thing to worry about. He's thinking the same with the battery, He said it should have charged much slower than it did. Because it raced up to 14.6 he said that would be too fast normally and will only show in the morning when he gets his equipment to it again whether its dead or good.
Beth54 said
08:26 PM May 18, 2011
Hi Marj. Pleased to see that you're relaxing and 'smelling the roses'.
I haven't been through that area. I'll put it on my list.
jimricho said
08:30 PM May 18, 2011
If your budget won't extend to an AGM battery consider a marine battery instead of a deep cycle, marine batteries have quite good deep cycling characteristics as they are meant to power devices like depth sounders, running lights, anchor lights etc while at anchor or drifting at sea, and then reliably start the motor when required. Marine batteries will recharge from the car's alternator quicker than deep cycles.
I think the reason the battery came up to that voltage so quickly is that it is not accepting the charge and is most likely "cactus" (do you like my highly technical jargon?).
"Wet" batteries don't like being fully discharged and like even less being left in a fully discharged state. (that includes deep cycle batteries). If it's not an AGM or Gel battery it's a "wet" (aka "flooded") battery.
Happywanderer said
08:30 PM May 18, 2011
Very pretty area Beth. They are doing road works both sides of us at the moment so should get better roads out of it.
Its pretty cold down south, hope you have a warm doona!
Hey Mice.... Watch out for Marj she's on the way back.....
No mice yet but they wouldn't dare, have so much stuff in here to keep them away am nearly choking myself out.
Was going to go via Cecil Plains after Dalby but a chap here said, don't go near it, road badly broken up from all the floods, too dangerous. So will stick to the Moonie highway and take it easy that way.
Hey HW have a great trip back and take your time - I drove home in one day from Canberra and was a tad dazed when I got back! Esmeralda is kept at my parents place in Thornton (near Eildon). Maybe we can catch up for a few days somewhere in the great Victorian outdoors. This may have to wait a little - see my post about the trip home.
-- Edited by Esmeralda on Tuesday 17th of May 2011 04:43:40 PM
Mice are a problem in CQ at the moment too. This one was checking us out at my friends' place, while we watched TV last week, and they are still finding dead ones every day.
Cheers,
Sheba.
Sheba they are soooo brazen at the moment aren't they. It seems the more there are, the gamer they get mate.
Firefly, they finished that lot of bait, and I put 2 more lots up there before I went to bed that night, and at that point, there were only 2 pieces left. [ Put it out in batches of 7.] Glad they're not that bad at my place. [Touch wood.]
Cheers,
Sheba.
I put those bait boxes out open, the whole box and they still took them out of the box and chewed them all up through the van cupboards.
Had 4 open in different cupboards, have left the remains in there behind my stacked stuff. So far no mice here in Kumbia, fingers crossed.
Also told me to get a meter attached to the wall which will automatically tell me what the charge is without have all the equipment he has. Also get a battery charger and get it set up under the seat next to the in house battery with an automatic switch over to charge it when ever I plug into mains power.
Boy I have been learning lots today.
Also checked the oil, had to put in half a litre so will check in the again in the morning.
May head off in the morning but only about 40 ks to a town called Bell, theres a little caravan park there called Bells and Whistles. Just want to say I've stayed there. Will ring in the morning and get a price.
Gday...
I haven't stayed at Bell ... but I remember seeing the van park ... the name is great.
I stopped for lunch and treated myself to a nice meal at the General Store which from memory is just across the road (diagonally) from the van park.
That notwithstanding .... a lovely area you are going through.
Cheers
John
A couple of products you may be interested in....
http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=QP2220&keywords=qp2220&form=KEYWORD
http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=QP5586&keywords=qp5586&form=KEYWORD
According to my Jaycar cattle dog "Switched on Electronics" is a Jaycar stockist in Echuca.
A good smart charger can be installed in such a way it can be used on a "set and forget" basis, i.e. no need to remember to switch-over or changeover.
Hard to tell from this far away but I don't think the chances of recovering your existing house battery are all that good, be guided by your "sparky" as he's there on the job.
That is what theis kind man meant, what you say above, set and forget, so one less thing to worry about.
He's thinking the same with the battery, He said it should have charged much slower than it did. Because it raced up to 14.6 he said that would be too fast normally and will only show in the morning when he gets his equipment to it again whether its dead or good.
Hi Marj. Pleased to see that you're relaxing and 'smelling the roses'.
I haven't been through that area. I'll put it on my list.
I think the reason the battery came up to that voltage so quickly is that it is not accepting the charge and is most likely "cactus" (do you like my highly technical jargon?).
"Wet" batteries don't like being fully discharged and like even less being left in a fully discharged state. (that includes deep cycle batteries). If it's not an AGM or Gel battery it's a "wet" (aka "flooded") battery.