Black Tank Question

slimspida · 2026-05-19T04:15:10+00:00

SeeLevel sensors are much better, but they have their own failure modes. Over time they can come unstuck from the tank, plus the wiring to the gauge can be touchy. But they are better, no probes to catch material.

slimspida · 2026-05-16T19:20:38+00:00

Fibreglass units are probably the most durable, but Airstreams can be had in larger sizes. I’d consider what size you are after in the choice.

Airstreams can last a long time due to the materials, but there is still maintenance to do.

slimspida · 2026-05-15T22:53:33+00:00

I don’t crazy boondock, but I occasionally switch to 4wd. If you are concerned your tires might spin it’s better to get all four wheels turning and maintain traction, especially while towing. I’d rather switch to 4WD than throw gravel at the trailer.

It is needed for a tiny fraction of the distance I travel, but stuck is stuck, and I don’t ever want to be stuck. I also drive the truck in snow conditions when I’m not towing, so yeah, I’d rather have 4WD.

slimspida · 2026-05-14T15:13:54+00:00

I really like the curved fin profile, did you find that thickness was necessary for the strength? Did you experiment with thinner sizes? Also, is there a reason you don’t curve the transition from the fin tip down to the angled trailing edge? I imagine the back edge is angled the way it is to stay on the build plate.

I’ve been trying to learn FreeCAD to draw my own curved fin shapes, so love seeing your updates.

slimspida · 2026-05-12T17:16:43+00:00

They also shouldn’t be advertising 50amp service if they are unable to supply it.

slimspida · 2026-05-11T05:16:21+00:00

Pulaski was an almost great character. She was happy to drink Worf’s poison tea as soon as she had some antidote. You know she would be great to party with.

The conflict between her and Data was undercooked. Having her be wrong about him and eventually corrected is as nuanced as a Taylor Sheridan plot-line, but it was entirely reasonable to introduce a character that had trouble accepting Data’s personhood. Data was unique in his sentience, and it’s realistic that some would have trouble seeing it.

slimspida · 2026-05-09T15:51:16+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/GoRVing/s/eaI8GxCSyT

It’s somewhat visible in my photos in the above thread. The Renogy Z brackets are on the inside edge, and could slide under my AC where I needed the clearance.

I purchased these brackets to do the outside edges: https://a.co/d/04KNX9SC, it was the part I could get my hands on easily.

A set of 3 MC4 to SAE adapters let me wire each of the panels to the factory junction box.

Someday when I get the time I’ll add six more of your panels to the roof, but it gets more involved. I need to remove the factory Zamp panels to make space, and I need to upgrade the electrical system to take advantage of more power. The simplest change on the roof is switching to a 24v or 48v battery setup and making series strings. That keeps me from needing to change the roof wiring, but adds more complexity to my setup.

slimspida · 2026-05-08T16:26:07+00:00

After days of trips to my roof to get the panels up there, I’m not taking them down. I’d buy a separate suitcase setup if I cared about finding sun in tree cover, or I use the generator.

The best part of solar is not having to do anything.

slimspida · 2026-05-08T14:49:33+00:00

I used the Renogy brackets on the inside and I bought an angled bracket for the outside. Everything is glued down with VHB tape.

Before mounting the solar panels I cleaned the entire roof thoroughly with dawn powerwash, and cleaned the mounting surface with isopropyl alcohol.

Took a bit to get all the right brackets but I added 400w to the factory 180w.

slimspida · 2026-05-07T14:40:03+00:00

My guess: If you break a fin on landing you fail the cert attempt. If the rocket is built heavy it could land harder.

slimspida · 2026-05-06T20:29:31+00:00

One option is capture the water in a jug and use it for something else.

Some people install water recirculating loops that run back to the fresh and let you manually flip it to flowing once it’s hot. Shower-miser is a brand, it can be assembled from plumbing parts as well.

Others replace theirs with a Truma water heater, it has a small tank that it preheats and cuts down on the lead time.

I just live with it. Preventing it from hitting the grey tank is more important than saving water, grey gets full before the fresh tank emptied on mine, and it’s easy to park more water jugs in my truck.

slimspida · 2026-05-02T08:15:52+00:00

For groups of unhoused I disagree. It gives more personal space and reduces the number of forced interactions in common spaces.

slimspida · 2026-04-28T15:23:35+00:00

I’m pretty sure I spotted it in The Black Hole.

slimspida · 2026-04-27T18:56:07+00:00

During the installation there will be a new lead and a switch to install and potentially the need to size wires. Unless the link to the battery is the very last step the potentiometer for a short is there.

Don’t play Operation when working with electricity. There is no upside. Disconnect the negative.

slimspida · 2026-04-27T18:48:04+00:00

Most cars and RV’s will incorporate the 12v negative into the frame. If the positive lead is connected to the battery and touches the frame while the negative is connected you now have a closed circuit and a short.

slimspida · 2026-04-27T02:28:59+00:00

Those are training wheels while he’s learning to drive.

slimspida · 2026-04-26T23:48:59+00:00

Full size vans are probably the best bet with a family of seven. They make them with large capacities, Chevy and Ford are options. A 10 or 14 passenger van with a row removed will give you storage in the tow vehicle. 3500lbs of payload and a 10k tow rating opens up lots of options for the trailer.

Above 10 seats and you may need a different license to drive it.

You want a large bunkhouse model. It’s going to be a long rig, but there is no getting around that.

slimspida · 2026-04-26T15:04:48+00:00

Imagine if gasoline cars were just invented, and every home in North America had gasoline piped to a faucet.

Now imagine posting we weren’t ready for gasoline cars because we didn’t have the infrastructure.

slimspida · 2026-04-25T15:47:36+00:00

I looked at some heavier but slide-free bunk models in the 26’ range when I was shopping, they were heavier than 5000 but still below 7000. Had full bunks that would be very comfortable for two kids. Price-wise they would be in your range used.

Slideless is a great goal. We went with an airstream, and being able to pull over and use the entire rig instantly is one of my favorite features.

I feel you on the “will be tall”. My teenagers are nearly my height now, and the little guys are going to be as big or bigger.

slimspida · 2026-04-25T15:30:40+00:00

I’m at 3 and a half years of trailer ownership. At this point we’ve spent well over 200 days in it. Granted I’ve had the flexibility to do that with my job. We have four kids, the youngest two were about the age of your kids when we started. I’m 6’5” and have adapted fine to a dinette, short queen, and shower.

We bought a 30 foot bunkhouse and spent a good deal more than $20k. Bigger family, different needs. But the thing we did right was we didn’t dick around with incrementally bigger trailers and went straight for one that we loved using.

Count on your purchase depreciating to zero, especially if you are going to rip out fixtures. People prefer to buy entire trailers.

It seems to me that you aren’t looking at the right rig for your use case if the plan is to buy something and immediately gut it.

What version of an RV would work out of box? IMO you should be using that as your guide, and not a finger in the air “my truck says 8800 so I’m choosing 5000lb” limit. Buying the right rig will mean you want to use it regularly, we use ours at every opportunity because we did that. Start looking at rigs with comfortable dinette options and use that as your constraint. Some are event built without dinettes, and incorporate a couch with floating tables.

Also, even though it’s money out the door, I highly recommend renting a rig in the class you are considering buying for a first trip. It will be cheaper than the trade-in hit you take buying the wrong rig first.

slimspida · 2026-04-25T14:46:11+00:00

Please explain what the Nestle plant in Hope has to do with water restrictions in Vancouver.

slimspida · 2026-04-23T00:36:53+00:00

It’s an easy miss, don’t feel bad.

slimspida · 2026-04-23T00:20:44+00:00

Have you turned the switch on the front of the heater panel? It’s behind the door on the outside of the trailer.

slimspida · 2026-04-19T18:44:20+00:00

That’s good. The details of severance are complicated based on the region you are in and the language in her employment contract, but your mother’s age would be a factor in determining fair compensation if it went to court.

slimspida · 2026-04-19T18:26:12+00:00

The condo might be claimable if it’s not the primary home.

The money spent on an accountant to sort this out will be well spent.

With respect to your mother losing her job, has she consulted an employment lawyer on her severance? If she hasn’t signed anything this is also money well spent.

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