"Power's back"...

September 22, 2010
Portland, Oregon

Today, I was up early and heading south with the coach. Wait a minute! What about staying put for a couple of weeks? Yes, well, it's true that we'll be parked in the same place, but today was the day I had scheduled to have the new inverter/charger installed. I had the work done in Portland, at one of the authorized distributors for the manufacturer. I'm still miffed that the "old" one (it's only a little over two years "old") can't be repaired. Hopefully, the new one will be more reliable and in the marketplace longer. If this one goes, I'm switching brands for sure.

New Inverter/charger - ready for installation!

Anyway, I had no problem finding the place, in an industrial park near the Portland Airport, and was right on time for a 10:00 appointment. Geri packed the pups and all the laundry we had in the Rover and stayed back at the Park. I planned for a full day's excursion, knowing what happens with these things. And I had a backup plan if there were issues: with some additional tools (always have to have the right tools), I knew I could do the installation myself, since Al and I did the warranty swap on the old one in 2008 at his place in Connecticut. Upon inspection, the lead tech announced that it should be a straight swap and take a "couple of hours". I just smiled.

Well, by 12:30 they had the old one out and the new one bolted in place (had to drill new mounting holes; wait, first let's sharpen the drill; wait, we need a cardboard template for the holes; wait, I have to take a break after each hole because it's so hard to drill at an upward angle). This was the trickiest part of the job if I'd done it myself. Lifting a 75 pound box up to the ceiling of the bay and screwing it in place isn't easy, even if the holes do line up. I was able to watch all this unfold; had nowhere else to go. I offered a suggestion here and there and held the work light on occasion; "just trying to help". "Let's grab lunch and we'll have this wrapped up in a couple of hours". I just smiled.

The next challenge, of course, was the wiring. The 120 volt circuits (2 in and 2 out) all use 12-gauge wire that has to be connected to lug terminals inside a 3" x 4" opening in the side of the box. 12-gauge Romex is pretty stiff and it was difficult to make 90° bends and get the wires into the terminals while laying in the bay and trying to see in the side of the unit mounted on the ceiling. The existing wires were pretty well bent in several directions from the old installation, so I suggested we snip and start with fresh ends. Soon, all was in place on the 120 volt side, and the 12 volt wiring wasn't anywhere near as difficult as all the connections are on the outside of the unit. By now, three more hours had passed and it was 4:00 PM. I just smiled.

The remaining work was done quickly. The firmware for the generator start and control panel modules was upgraded. Zip ties were in place to get all the wiring back in neat bundles. I backed the coach out of the shop and fired up the generator. Charging? Yes! Generator off. Inverting? Yes! I paid up and hit the road right around 4:30, just what I expected.

Back at the Park, Geri was waiting with lots of clean clothes and a recommendation from the office staff for a good Mexican restaurant. Fantastic! Who doesn't like Margarita night? She had a burrito/enchilada combination plate (what else?) and I had Pork Carnitas which were very good. We each felt that we "won" and left happy. Maybe it was the Margaritas? Nah...