Since arriving in Branson, we have had some issues with our trailer. First, we noticed a significant smell of propane on the outside of the rig whenever we turned on the propane. And second, our kitchen sink no longer drained into the holding tank but onto the fabric underbelly of the trailer instead.
The propane issue being the most urgent and significant caused immediate reaction. We have a fixed 70 pound tank welded to the frame of the trailer--like a motorhome's. This is an unusual setup for a trailer. The tank is controlled by an electronic switch to allow propane service to be on or off. When off, no leak was detected. When on, a very significant leak occurred. After a little research, we determined that the regulator needed to be changed. It is the original 8 year old regulator and they are known to develop leaks. Since I am not comfortable with gas, I called a mobile RV repair person to come and (1) determine cause of leak and (2) repair it. After a few days, the technician showed up and believed that it was indeed a regulator problem. He said he would return tomorrow with a regulator. Well tomorrow came and went several times. Temperatures fell below freezing on several of these "tomorrows" so we were without a furnace. Fortunately, we have two 1500 watt ceramic electric heaters which work quite well though they do not heat the underbelly of the trailer (and the water tank and pipes) like the furnace does. Finally he appeared with his daughter in tow (perhaps 20 years old). He began explaining to her how to remove the regulator and how to install the new one. It was quite obvious that she had never done so before. He explained that she needed to do it for him as he had a medical condition and could not use his arms while laying on his back. I told him that she was not a certified tech and, therefore, would not be doing the work on our trailer. He left understanding my concerns.
I then called another mobile tech--recommended by the manager of the campground. He said he would be at our door by 10:00 AM tomorrow. He showed on time with an assistant. He too believed the problem was the regulator and installed a new one. However, the leak persisted. He felt that the second leak was somewhere in the enclosed underbelly of the trailer. However, he couldn't get to it as the trailer rides low and needed to be jacked up at least a foot to remove the protective underbelly in order to work under the trailer. He said they could not do that on site. He recommended a nearby repair shop. He also stated that our kitchen sink was draining onto the underbelly fabric and not into the 30 gallon holding tank. He stated that this occurs periodically and was sure the holding tank had become dislodged from the trailer frame. He spoke with the repair shop, Allen's RV, and told them what the problems were and made arrangements for us to get the repairs done. All in all, these mobile techs were in and around our trailer for about an hour. He charged us only $25 for the part and apologized for not being able to fix the problem himself. We were grateful for his help and would highly recommend them, Branson RV, to anyone needing service in the area.
So we took our trailer to Allen's RV for the repair. Upon dropping it off, we were told that they couldn't guarantee that we would get the trailer back the same day as they wouldn't know how significant the problem was until they actually saw the damage. We were told if the holding tank was damaged, it could not be fixed in one day. But hopefully, no damage was done to the tank. He also said that the propane leak would be fairly easy to find and fix. By late afternoon, there was hope we would have the trailer back but we did plan for a stay in a hotel in case of the worst. Unfortunately, we soon learned that we did indeed need a hotel for the night. We were told that the holding tank was not damaged though a feeder pipe (plastic) to it was broke when the tank fell from the frame. They strapped the tank and replaced the pipe. That was accomplished by late afternoon. The propane issue was problematic. A flair at the end of a copper propane pipe had cracked and either the pipe needed to be replace or reworked to provide enough slack to reconnect the fitting. The repair would require more time than anticipated. So we were hotel bound for the night. By early the following afternoon, the repairs were complete and we had our house on wheels back. They were able to slice about a 1/8 inch from the copper pipe and rework it without needed to replace the pipe. The owner was very apologetic about needing our trailer overnight and fully explained the problems encountered. Again, we were please with the work and were pleasantly surprised at the cost of the repairs. He had two technicians working on the trailer for a day and a half and charged us $550. In our home area, hourly labor rates run at minimum $100 an hour. Again, we wouldn't hesitate to recommend Allen's RV in Hollister to anyone needing service on their RV.
We were mentally prepared to spend the night in a hotel if the repair was going to take longer than one day. We checked reviews and prices of area hotels and found many of them highly suspect. As this is a tourist area, many on the hotel beds do not cool off between guests. Therefore, they are well worn and many are described as dirty or "nasty." We had always wanted to visit the community of Ozark which is about 20 miles north towards Springfield. So we opted to spend the night in a highly recommended hotel, Comfort Inn, in Ozark. The room was problem free, breakfast was included and we saved about $50 by driving there. Ozark itself, however, was a disappointment. Signs on the freeway tout "historic downtown Ozark." What the signage doesn't say is that downtown Ozark is a city square with a courthouse and county buildings, a plethora of attorney and bail bond offices and a couple of antique stores and one small cafe. It wasn't worth the detour from the highway.
So we are now back "home" and have a propane fired furnace and stove as well as use of a kitchen sink that drains where it's supposed to drain. Ah, home at last.
No comments:
Post a Comment