so impressed with new gateway!!!

[GrumpyOneandTwo]

Hey Marcus,

Now that must have been fun to travel with the four dogs!!!!! What a combo you had!!!!! Ours are two min-pins. (sometimes we think they are mastiff's!) We got them from a lady in north Georgia who couldn't keep them anymore. I know what you mean about losing your fur kids! It sure is hard on a person who loves them like a child!!!!!!

I showed Shirley Floyd's picture. She laughed and said we had our hands full now! How could we handle two of them!!!!

When you planning to hitch up and roll out of there? How long does it take to get home? Are you from around Twin Falls? My son used to live in Twin.

Mike

 

[1_oldgoat]

Mike, we were a bit cramped for space with all the dogs and us, had to get the megacab dodge for them.all to be able to ride inside with us. Hopeing to hookup tomorrow and try to make it home, rolling down through Oregon takes about 11 hours, if we were to go across Montana its only 9 but there are 3 pass's that way and only one the way i am planning on going and elevation is only around 4500 feet so shouldn't be to bad. I have caught some bad storms in the past crossing the Blues but normaly the roads are very well maintained across Oregon so with the warmer weather on the way i believe we will have clear sailing, if not we can always stop and hunker down for a day or two along the way. I planned on stopping for one night to let the weather stay ahead of us or at least to be able to keep up with it. Talked to my sister and they got what we had yesterday and are getting hammered with snow but supposed to change and warm up.
We live south east of Pocatelloso closer to Wyoming and Utah state lines. Not much there but cattle ranchs and farms. We are right smack dab in the middle of mule deer country, 95% of the states mulie population winter in the mountains around us, so if you like hunting its right out the back door, same with elk bear and moose, wolves have hurt the herds bad these past several years but there are still some nice animals to harvest if you get out and hunt hard. Plenty of fishing as well, close to some of the best rivers in the USA for fly fishing.
Wish us luck, weather just said possible snow tonight and tomorrow so may be stuck another day......
Marcus

 

[1_oldgoat]

Man i didn't realize how much stuff the wife wanted to take home, 19 totes and a couple extras in the belly, seriously overloaded i would guess. Planned on coming back up for grandkids birthday so will have to haul the rest next trip, there is still this much more and then some to get home, what a chore. Hooked up and ready to roll, not quite, the weather is decent, better than its been but the wife is takeing her time and not quite ready to leave just yet. I understand, staying here is her last attachment to her mother and once we leave she will loose that so i don't want to be an a** and push her, so when she is ready we will leave.
More storage than i ever thought we would need but i didn't plan on moving a household of items either. Need to roll across some scales and see what we weigh out of curiosity, each tote is probably 25-30 lbs more or less so 6-700 lbs maybe at the most. Alot of room

 

[1_oldgoat]

Mike forgot to answer your question, we are about 150 miles from Twin Falls, couple hour drive, my nephew and neice live there and my grandmother worked for ma bell back in the 40's and 50's as an operator, when you needed to talk to one to make a call!! It is a nice small town, low to no crime and milder winters than alot of the rest of the state for some reason.
Still in Spokane but loaded up and all i need to do is hook up and roll, sister in law wants to come over and visit tomorrow, another ploy to get us to stay one more day but the wife knows its time and our window of decent weather is open for a couple more days so we need to move tomorrow. Difficult for her but i explained the only way for her to heal is to move on. We are taking mother in law with us along with her husband and dog so she is still here in spirit.
Hopefuly on the road tomorrow
Marcus Shelli and pretty boy floyd

 

[GrumpyOneandTwo]

Hey Marcus,

We loved Twin. When our son was transferred to Twin from Fallon NV we actually put our house on the market and was looing at houses in Twin. But we had a hard time selling ours and before we had it sold he was transferred back to Fallon!!!!!We never made it to Pocatello. We made it to Boise and Twin & Jackpot, NV!!!!!!

Hopefully you aren't too overloaded!!!! Don't forget to check your tires air pressure and condition before you leave.

Now my next question.......where does Floyd sit on the way home??????

Be safe,
Mike

 

[1_oldgoat]

Mike,
Twin is a nice town, Poky is a bit rough, used to be hub for northern pacific railroad but they shut down and hurt town pretty bad, its odd, you drive north 60 miles to Idaho Falls and thats booming, clean and pretty compared to poky. Floyd rides in the back seat, it lays fwd so makes a big bed for him.
Got to check tires now and go set sis in law, just a few items to load and we are on the road. Will let you know how it goes. Was your son in the Navy, we used to go to Fallon all the time for bombing practice yrs ago.
Marcus

 

[GrumpyOneandTwo]

Hey Marcus,

So Floyd gets the whole back seat!! I bet it takes all of it for him....lol....

Our son was stationed at Fallon when he was in the Marines. Circa 1990. He met his wife there. When he got out of the Corps he moved to Fallon to live. His wife's family is from Fallon.

Hopefully the next time I hear from ya'll will be from Poky!!!!!!!

Take care and be safe,
Mike

 

[1_oldgoat]

Hey Mike, in Oregon at the Umatilla RV park, have to move boxs and a few pieces of extra furniture to sit or sleep tonight but at least we are out of Spokane, pass is supposed to be clear or rain tomorrow so should be decent going over, not sure once we get into Idaho. Winds started blowing when we left spokane but i didn't care, just happy to be rolling and this rv tows so much better than the bumbermpulls we have had in the past, the truck moves more than the trailer.
This dodges back seats are split 60/40 and the bottoms will fold up or the backs down, we drop the backs down and it makes a pretty large area behind the front seats, if we have to take a passenger the wife sits on one seat with the other down and there is still plenty of room for the boy. As you can see this dog has a tough life, he has been a traveling buddy since a pup, i took the wife to boise to fly to spokane and picked him up from a breeder without her knowing and he climbed onto the center console and fell asleep, when i picked the wife up it was SUPRISE, look what i did. She fell in love after a few minutes. Time for dinner and a cup of coffee, relaxing and on the road in the morning.
Will try to take a few pics of the rv park here, we love it, only 28 spaces and not packed in like sardines.
Marcus Shelli and one spoiled dog

 

[GrumpyOneandTwo]

Hey Marcus,

Now THAT is funny!!! Floyd looks mighty comfy back there!!! I can imagine the "surprise" when you picked your wife up at the air port!!!!...lol....

Good to hear you escaped the bad weather!!!! Hopefully the winds will all be a tail wind!!!!

Be careful,
Mie

 

[1_oldgoat]

Home sweet home, made it back saturday afternoon after catching a couple storms and sitting one out, pass was decent across the blues with just a little snow by Baker City, nice to be back, just trying to get into a routine again. Don't know how or why but for some reason the black tank valve is sealing now, i flushed the tank in oregon for a few hours, sprayed the handle slides with wd40 and the tank no longer leaks a drop, i filled it with water and dropped some deodorizer packets in it and drove the rest of the way home, when we got here i opened the drain expecting to be sprayed and not one drop of water came out. Don't know if the handle ever allowed the valve to close from the day i picked it up, now its even with the two grey tank handles or slightly in towards the panel more than the others so one less problem for the dealership to have to repair. Grey tank seems to be sealed now as well, maybe cold temps caused my problems. Just happy they seal now. Plenty to do so back to work, hope to get the rv into the dealership this weekend after unloading cleaning and winterizing again.
Dan a huge thanks for all the help with the cold weather tips, don't know how i would have made it without your sharing knowledge. I do appreciate it very much.
Marcus, Shelli andmpretty boy Floyd

 

[1_oldgoat]

Well we are close to getting the trailer emptied and ready to haul to the dealership, still waiting on appointment date and time. I can't decide if i need to winterize again, temps are in 30's-40's during the day and mid 20's at night, no freeze ups since the extreme cold temps in Spokane. We are planning on taking off next month so as long as i keep heater going and hot water on i think we should be fine, its not a big deal to pump a few gallons of antifreeze through the system but hate having to flush everything with chlorine when we get ready to roll again. A few tanks of propane will keep things thawed and running smoothly.
We are so happy with the overall comforts and options this Gateway has to offer, it is an amazing RV, we have a shortlist of repairs that need taken care of under warrenty, mainly parts failures and not much to do with manufacture problems, we did have all three overhead cupboard hinges pop out of the doors, i think the supports that keep the doors open is putting to much pressure on the hinge as that is the side that came out of all three, nothing is broken and i think a little glue to hold the hinge in the wood panel would solve the problem but i will let the dealership handle that.
Thanks to everyone who has read our adventure on our first couple outings, i don't think i will continue adding to this thread as i have covered everything i can for cold temp camping, summer is close but the only difference will be use of air conditioners and i believe they will work just fine. I will post on what repairs are taken care of and how they were handled if anyone is interested.
Marcus Shelli and Pretty boy Floyd

 

[danemayer]

Marcus,

Why are you flushing everything with chlorine after winterizing?

 

[kowAlski631]

My question too. We only flush with chlorine maybe in the summer if the fresh water tank gets skanky smelling. That's what we did on our boats also.

Martha


Paul & Martha

Life's too short. Live so you can say "Remember when" not "I wish I had".

 

[GrumpyOneandTwo]

View attachment 28552
Home sweet home, made it back saturday afternoon after catching a couple storms and sitting one out, pass was decent across the blues with just a little snow by Baker City, nice to be back, just trying to get into a routine again. Don't know how or why but for some reason the black tank valve is sealing now, i flushed the tank in oregon for a few hours, sprayed the handle slides with wd40 and the tank no longer leaks a drop, i filled it with water and dropped some deodorizer packets in it and drove the rest of the way home, when we got here i opened the drain expecting to be sprayed and not one drop of water came out. Don't know if the handle ever allowed the valve to close from the day i picked it up, now its even with the two grey tank handles or slightly in towards the panel more than the others so one less problem for the dealership to have to repair. Grey tank seems to be sealed now as well, maybe cold temps caused my problems. Just happy they seal now. Plenty to do so back to work, hope to get the rv into the dealership this weekend after unloading cleaning and winterizing again.
Dan a huge thanks for all the help with the cold weather tips, don't know how i would have made it without your sharing knowledge. I do appreciate it very much.
Marcus, Shelli andmpretty boy Floyd

Hey Marcus,
Glad you made it home safely. I picked up my Gateway from the dealer and took it to Oak Mountain State Park to check it out. It seems the dealer fixed everything that was wrong. The only complaint of the dealer was my battery was dead when I got there to pick up my unit and couldn't extend the landing legs to get under the trailer!!! I went and asked the service department to please send someone out to help me.

While I was waiting I commented that I thought it should have been checked before they dropped it in the lot. The service person proceeded to put me in my place! She told me they didn't have time to check every unit before the customer picks it up!!!!!

The grey tank leak was a gasket in the gate valve. Hopefully yours will be as easy a fix. Let us know when you get yours back.
Mike

 

[1_oldgoat]

Dan, Martha, i know RV antifreeze is mainly propolene glycol and is rated by the fda GRAS "generaly reguarded as safe" but i have found when flushing all the antifreze after sitting all winter can take several tanks of water ran through the system before the smell and taste of it are gone. So to speed the process up and make sure my water system is good and safe i will usualy add a couple of cups of chlorine to a full tank of water, run a bit through the entire system, let it sit for an hr or so, if chlorine is left to long or to much is used it can damage seals from salts, so an hour to two at most before i flush that out and then i fill my tank with clean filtered water, since i started doing this i have never had the smell or tase of antifreeze on our first couple outings. I know its not necessary and it does take a little more time to flush the water system but i would rather do this than deal with tainted water. I have heard sodium dichlor crystals will work to sanatize a water system but have never used them myself. They are used in hot tubs ect...they are supposed to not leave any odor or taste but if the system is cleaned well enough there is no chlorine smell or taste either, and one could argue the same for flushing antifreeze. Just a habit i have gotten into i suppose and probably not necessary. Hope that answers your question.
Marcus Shelli and pretty boy Floyd

 

[1_oldgoat]

Mike, that was quick, i am waiting on an appointment now, my dealership has had quite a few new sales and the service dept is busy so it will be a few weeks before i can get in now. When i do get the rv back i'll let you know how they do and what they find. Glad yours was an easy fix!!
Marcus

 

[travelin2]

Ever consider hydrogen peroxide to clean and sanitize your FW tank? Go to ehow.com and search on "How to clean a RV freshwater tank". I haven't felt the need to do it yet but I do use peroxide to clean my water bottles and bladders from my backpack. No leftover chlorine smell or taste. I have also treated my home hot water heater; we have a well and from time to time get that "rotten egg smell" especially if we are gone for an extended period of time. Kills the bacteria and eliminates the odor almost immediately.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[kowAlski631]

Never did that on our boats or RVs. Once we drain out the antifreeze, we run water through until clear. To each his own.

Martha

Martha


Paul & Martha

Life's too short. Live so you can say "Remember when" not "I wish I had".

 

[1_oldgoat]

Martha, Lyle and Nancy, one other reason i forgot to mention is summers here can be brutal and a water tank is a perfect enviroment for mold to grow so another reason to sanitize the system, i do it a couple times a year actualy when first dewinterizing and if the rv sits for a few weeks without using just to be safe. I have never used hydrogen peroxide but it sounds like a great idea, our well or alot of wells in the area have heavy iron and sometimes will get the odor you are talking about, a gallon of chlorine down the well cures any issues instantly ans will keep the water clean and odor free for months, usualy once a year is all i need for the well.
Well water has no chlorine or fluoride freatments like city water either so it will and can grow mold alot quicker than city water does, that is why i run filters when filling the rv fresh water tank from home, the dog dosn't have to deal with a water change either when we hook up in rv parks and use thier water, i can shut the water off and use the pump for the dogs water so he dosn't get an upset stomach.
Like i said its probably not necessary to do what i do but i know the water system is clear clean and safe to use.

 

[danemayer]

Dan, Martha, i know RV antifreeze is mainly propolene glycol and is rated by the fda GRAS "generaly reguarded as safe" but i have found when flushing all the antifreze after sitting all winter can take several tanks of water ran through the system before the smell and taste of it are gone. So to speed the process up and make sure my water system is good and safe i will usualy add a couple of cups of chlorine to a full tank of water, run a bit through the entire system, let it sit for an hr or so

Marcus, you're not putting antifreeze into the fresh tank by any chance?