Today I learned about fuses. I now know how they look when they're functioning, how they look when they break, and how to change them. That's a nice skill to have on a bus full of fuse boxes.
I also discovered a new fuse-box location, and swapped out a whole bunch of busted fuses. It took a few trips to Napa Auto Parts, Wal-Mart, and AutoZone (I like to spread my business around), but it's knowledge that'll keep.
Speaking of new knowledge, I also learned that "slow-burn" fuses are a thing. And if you're really in the mood to mix things up, you can turn your fuse receptacle into a circuit breaker with the right purchase.
I gained this valuable knowledge because my slide-outs stopped working today. Slide-outs are incredible. They're large sections of your RV that slide right on out and expand your living space. I have two. One expands my living room to palatial proportions. The other changes my bedroom from a nook to a comfy master suite.
Usually, I hit the button for either slide and watch the slide-out wheeze and moan ... and eventually slide out. Each time they open, I look the heavens in astonishment and count my blessings. Today was that other day. I hit the buttons and got bupkis.
After some calls and questions to other RVers, I was advised that if nothing happened when I hit the buttons, it was probably a blown fuse. No problem! I already knew about a fuse box on board. I took a look, went to a store for more fuses, and began to examine each fuse. Every one of them was fine... until the last one, a measly 5-amp straggler. I swap it out, turn the coach batteries back on, and -- nothing.
Some heavy Googling and further networking reveals that other fuse boxes may lurk on my bus. I begin with the front right storage compartment under the bus, based on the advice in some RV forum discussing a totally different RV. No dice. I keep going clockwise, through each and every compartment, until I discover this gorgeous array in a suspiciously pristine storage compartment in the very last spot I checked.
It contains a great many fuses!
I methodically yank each one out, replace about 8, and strut back to the bus to hit the slide-out buttons, already preparing my celebration (I was thinking the "I made fire" celebration from when Tom Hanks finally lit a fire on a remote island in Cast Away).
The slide-outs didn't budge.
More heavy Googling leads me to revisit the second-to-last storage compartment, which contains this device.
Fun fact about Dewald Manufacturing Incorporated: It doesn't exist. I called the number on the device in the picture. Dewald got bought by a powerful company called Power Gear, which probably made great stuff. But they don't exist either. Some other company bought them. It's a dog eat dog world in the slide-out game.
Anyway, the device pictured above is my slide-out motor. And better yet, hiding behind that device is yet another busted fuse. Yahtzee! This is surely the culprit. I'm hopeful and optimistic. Tidy up this fuse and maybe we're back to normal.
So I swap it out, and it breaks. I swap it again, it breaks again. Rinse, repeat, etc. I'm into fuses these days now that I know a little about them, but eventually even I don't want to sacrifice another at the altar of being stupid.
I ask around some more, and I'm reliably informed that the fuses keep breaking because "it's a short." As in, the slide-out motor shorted. I do not know what this means.
How does one fix that? I'm pretty sure I know the answer. I call a mobile mechanic, who says he may be able to come in a few days. I take the Walk of Shame over to the front desk of my RV Park and inform them that I'm grounded because I can't drive with my slide-outs slid out (and I already checked and there's no easy way to close them manually).
They say hey, no problem, sometimes it's important to stay grounded.
And they're right. The weather's good here. I love my neighbors. The dog's adjusting, and I have a list of things I'd like to do and places I'd like to visit. Let's stay a while see how it goes.
I also discovered a new fuse-box location, and swapped out a whole bunch of busted fuses. It took a few trips to Napa Auto Parts, Wal-Mart, and AutoZone (I like to spread my business around), but it's knowledge that'll keep.
Speaking of new knowledge, I also learned that "slow-burn" fuses are a thing. And if you're really in the mood to mix things up, you can turn your fuse receptacle into a circuit breaker with the right purchase.
I gained this valuable knowledge because my slide-outs stopped working today. Slide-outs are incredible. They're large sections of your RV that slide right on out and expand your living space. I have two. One expands my living room to palatial proportions. The other changes my bedroom from a nook to a comfy master suite.
Usually, I hit the button for either slide and watch the slide-out wheeze and moan ... and eventually slide out. Each time they open, I look the heavens in astonishment and count my blessings. Today was that other day. I hit the buttons and got bupkis.
Some heavy Googling and further networking reveals that other fuse boxes may lurk on my bus. I begin with the front right storage compartment under the bus, based on the advice in some RV forum discussing a totally different RV. No dice. I keep going clockwise, through each and every compartment, until I discover this gorgeous array in a suspiciously pristine storage compartment in the very last spot I checked.
It contains a great many fuses!
I methodically yank each one out, replace about 8, and strut back to the bus to hit the slide-out buttons, already preparing my celebration (I was thinking the "I made fire" celebration from when Tom Hanks finally lit a fire on a remote island in Cast Away).
The slide-outs didn't budge.
More heavy Googling leads me to revisit the second-to-last storage compartment, which contains this device.
Fun fact about Dewald Manufacturing Incorporated: It doesn't exist. I called the number on the device in the picture. Dewald got bought by a powerful company called Power Gear, which probably made great stuff. But they don't exist either. Some other company bought them. It's a dog eat dog world in the slide-out game.
Anyway, the device pictured above is my slide-out motor. And better yet, hiding behind that device is yet another busted fuse. Yahtzee! This is surely the culprit. I'm hopeful and optimistic. Tidy up this fuse and maybe we're back to normal.
So I swap it out, and it breaks. I swap it again, it breaks again. Rinse, repeat, etc. I'm into fuses these days now that I know a little about them, but eventually even I don't want to sacrifice another at the altar of being stupid.
I ask around some more, and I'm reliably informed that the fuses keep breaking because "it's a short." As in, the slide-out motor shorted. I do not know what this means.
How does one fix that? I'm pretty sure I know the answer. I call a mobile mechanic, who says he may be able to come in a few days. I take the Walk of Shame over to the front desk of my RV Park and inform them that I'm grounded because I can't drive with my slide-outs slid out (and I already checked and there's no easy way to close them manually).
They say hey, no problem, sometimes it's important to stay grounded.
And they're right. The weather's good here. I love my neighbors. The dog's adjusting, and I have a list of things I'd like to do and places I'd like to visit. Let's stay a while see how it goes.
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