Missing bits for the solar installation, including the four new AGM batteries have finally arrived and been fitted.
The inverter and charger are wired up in the boot, the Morningstar solar charger is installed and showing all is well with the battery bank fully charged.
Only trouble is the existing 12v wiring seems to have decided to do things its own way and when you switch on the pump the kitchen light comes on!
Have left the bus overnight so they can get an early start. As usual, it has taken nearly double the time they initially indicated. Luckily the labour was costed into the quote.
The nomad’s mantra is ‘save weight’. Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat.
But sometimes a small sacrifice has to be made. Last week I spent half a day cruising the local camping shops for some outdoor furniture to fit under the awning.
In the end I simply gave up. Sure a lot of it is lightweight and compact when folded, but the look got to me. It was aluminum tubing, gaudy Hawaiian cushions, springs and bits that like biting your thumbs. The final straw happened while I was trying to fold up an outdoor lounge chair and squashed my index finger.
Bugger.
I have a new mantra. Comfort first. And as part of it I am taking my original Queen Elizabeth First Class deckchair with me. Made of teak and brass it is wonderfully comfortable [and I just saw one for sale on eBay for $US800 and there's still five days left in the auction].
And something else, it is not all that heavy.
It is getting a fresh coat of linseed oil this week, as is the folding wooden table that came everywhere with me while I travelled with Bluey [my red Kombi].
I’m not even on the the road yet, but already the weather has me grounded.
Tasmania had a typical equinoctial storm early in the month. It was wild enough to wake me, inside my solid sandstone walled bedroom.
In the morning I looked out from the back deck and something about Plush’s roofline bothered me. When I inspected the penthouse later I found that the hatch’s top had been cracked wide open.
[click to continue…]