Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Powder Puff Crosses State Line

Wow, 4 locations in 5 days. This was an action packed trip. We left on Friday morning headed to my Uncle's house in Elberta Alabama which is close to Pensacola. In order to break up the drive, we stopped at Falling Waters SP and took a short hike with the dogs. The waterfall was worth seeing, however, it was a far cry from the pictures in the brochure. We got to my Uncle's house in time for a tour of his workshop and a late dinner. In the morning, we took the dogs for a walk around the property where we encountered a rather large turtle. Xena and Jasmine went completely nuts over it. Xena was barking and snapping at the back end and unfortunately for Jasmine, she got the front end. She stuck her nose up inside his shell and he bit her. She wasn't hurt but she was so angry and frustrated that she started digging a hole in front of him. It was hysterical! We also got a brief look at the neighbors goats but that was just too much for Stevie. He got really upset and we had to get away from them before he had a total melt down. Next, we headed off to a nearby flea market with lots of yard sale stops on the way. We would have loved to spend the rest of the day hitting more yard sales but after eating lunch, it was time to get to our next destination, Chatom AL. We arrived at my Grandpa's house in time for another late dinner and some visiting with an Aunt and Uncle that came over to see us. In the morning, we gave my Grandpa and his wife the tour of the trailer. Then we sat down and gave them the long version of how we built the trailer. My Grandpa really seemed to enjoy the story. After that, we got the dogs and he walked with us around his little pine tree forest across the road. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening talking and listening to him tell stories. The next morning, we got back on the road for our last stop, Florida Caverns SP. We made it to the park just in time for the last cave tour of the day. After the tour, we ate dinner, watched a dvd and went to bed. In the morning, we took all the dogs (including Cupid, in the stroller) and set out to explore the trails in the park. We walked all morning until it got close to check out time and then headed back to the trailer for lunch. Then it was time to face the long drive back home.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Damage Repair

Last weekend, I started sanding the paint off of the bottom edge of the trailer so that I could reapply epoxy to the end grain of the plywood. But it was bothering me that I couldn't figure out how the water got in so I asked for advise on the trailer forum. Someone had a very good theory on what might have happened. The trailer walls are attached directly to the metal frame with screws. Even though both sides of the walls are sealed with epoxy, I broke that seal when I shot the screws through the walls. The theory is that the water came in through the screw holes. When I attached the walls, I should have put silicone or something similar in the holes before putting the screws in. Obviously, it's too late for that now. I have been advised to remove the screws, seal the holes and then replace the screws. While I do totally respect the opinion of the person that gave me this advise, I think that this is a very radical procedure considering there was only a very minor amount of damage. I intend to get under the trailer and use silicone to seal around the screws where they are sticking out from the frame. I will also seal all of the joints where the wood touches the metal. If that doesn't work, then I will proceed with the advise I was given.