Standards aren't all that standard which is why hanging the waste barrel was so hard.

Today was the day designated to installing the waste barrel under the bus. It was expected to be a fairly swift task given that 6 holes had been drilled yesterday. It was envisaged that another barrel might also be installed on the other side of the bus. This was not, alas, to be.

Drilling the next six holes took an age, after which I decided to raise the barrel into position using my dollar store cargo straps. Problem number one was the cargo straps were so long that they could not be tightened enough without jamming the mechanism. The straps had to have the excess cut off and then the ends heat sealed with a match. This is something I'm used to doing with all kinds of nylon straps and webbing. Following drilling the holes, I sprayed the bare steel liberally with Rustoleum zinc paint. With any luck, should water get up there, this will stop rust from being so prevelant.

Next, I installed the turnbuckles on the far side of the barrel since they are the weakest link. The chain should hold 520lbs but the turnbuckles are good only for 130lbs. Full, the barrel will weigh 125lbs so there's a decent safety margin. In order to install the turnbuckles, I had to uninstall the barrel. That was about as time consuming as putting it there in the first place!

During installation of the turnbuckles, I applied Locktite Thread Locker to the threads of the cabe grips I'm using to secure it all to the sub frame. That should be pretty solid! The Thread Locker does come off but only if it is heated. I'd imagine if I needed to remove them, an angle grinder might be faster.

Let me take this time just to state how much I hate rolling around in the dirt underneath vehicles and how much in general I don't like doing DIY stuff. I am driven to it by necessity and even though I'm good at it - mainly due to being a perfectionist - I'd still prefer not to have to do DIY.

The barrel was reinstalled using the cargo straps and a length of chain held up to the assembley to see how much I needed. It turned out to be 22 links. That means my 20 feet of chain should be good for at least another barrel (on the other side of the bus) and possibly a fresh water barrel too (also on the other side of the bus - whenever I am near a U-Line supplier.

Cutting the chain was no easy task, given that I had to hand-hold the chain with a wrench while cutting it with an angle grinder. Still, I did it and the chain was cut in the right places. Installing it was where things became interesting. If you remember I made a template yesterday to drill holes for my cable grips. It turns out that not all the U bolts in the cable grips are the same distance apart between the ends of the bolt. That made installation a mix and match affair of trying the cable grips in different holes in order to find the ideal arrangement. Not a very standard standard!

Eventually, as thunder was beginning to rumble and the sky darkening, I installed the barrel and tightened the turnbuckles then removed the cargo straps. This seemingly simple task had taken all day. In fact, it took several days. The waste barrel on the other side should be much easier!

Two little footnotes. One is that I'm going to leave the plumbing as it is but will connect the barrel with the outlet and a faucet using flexible PEX piping if I can get it big enough. The second is that I need to get a marginally longer socket. It was only just biting on the nut and my deep sockets were so deep that I couldn't get the socket and the wrench in place to turn the nut. I might loosen the chains and slip the barrel an inch or so to the right but I'm not bothered. I think it'll work just fine.

The flexible clear overflow and breathing tube dangling down has been fastened to the barrel in two places with plastic zip ties. I'll trim the excess that hangs below the skirt. Speaking of hanging below the skirt, you'll doubtless be delighted to hear that a 15 gallon barrel placed thus is an inch above the bottom of the skirt. In other words, Joe Public cannot see it and have no reason to believe that this is not in fact a bus.

Some strange adventures.

Today was a day that was really odd. It started with my aiming to go to Greenville to try to get my Mac fixed at the Apple store. That's not what actually happened though. As soon as I started the engine, a light came on telling me to get my engine serviced. Thus, I went to Autozone where the problem was diagnosed as a faulty fuel sender unit costing $160. Well, that seemed strange since clearly my fuel gauge worked well. Next stop was the dealer who confirmed it was the fuel sender unit and that it would be $610 to get it replaced (including taxes). By then it was getting a bit late to head to Greenville and since the fuel gauge was still working, I decided to leave it until such a point as it actually needs replacing.

Being in Lexington itself then, I headed to Best Buy where I noted the cheapest Macbook (10 years younger than mine) was $800. Still some way to come before they will be as affordable as a $199 Windows laptop! As usual all the staff completely ignored me from the greeter by the door to the individual in the computer section who was too busy picking his nose to be bothered. Plenty staff just stood idly around chatting on their cellphones and watching customers enter then leave the store having never been asked if they needed assistance. I left too even though I knew what I wanted to ask about since Best Buy clearly is not interested in doing any business.

Leaving Best Buy, the next port of call was Home Depot where I actually found the turnbuckles I so desperately needed. Seeing as Home Depot's turnbuckles which apparently will hold 130lbs had loop ends rather than the closable ends I needed, I had to go across the road to Tractor Supply for some connectors. Et voila - now you can see what is going to be on one side of each waste water drum!

The top left screws into one of the body skeleton cross members. It's a clamp designed to anchor a steel cable. It will hold a chain very well. The next bit is a 130lb turnbuckle. The last bit is a link I can use to connect the turnbuckle to a chain. I will use three like this on one side of each barrel. The other side will have a plain clamp to attach the chain to the skeleton.

I returned home in enough time to work toward putting the barrels under the bus. The first thing achieved was to attach the water tubing. After that I installed the breathing tubes. Sounds simple? I most certainly assure you it was not!

The water tube was pretty easy - just a matter of drilling a 3/4 inch hole in the center of the big cap then screwing in an adaptor - the cap is ready threaded. Then the angle was installed. The other side was far more interesting. I spent ages trying to unscrew a metal ringed cap before discovering after 20 minutes that it simply levered off, revealing a cap with a cross in the head. It took a few minutes to make a screwdriver out of steel to open the cap. The goal was to put a hole through that cap in order to install a breathing tube. 

To cut a long story short (chorus of Thankyou Jesus echoes around the room), my original plan had been to drill through the cap and install a threaded tube through it, tightened by a nut on both sides. Well, that didn't end up working but the plastic hose barb that I'd bought screwed very nicely into the hole I'd slowly made with a drill then enlarged with a file and a stanley knife.

By the time darkness fell, I'd put two breathing tubes and two fluid tubes into barrels. The next thing and I left this until tomorrow is to mount the barrels underneath the body. Interestinly the threades on the cable clamps seem to be 7.2mm or 0.29 of an inch. I don't have a drill that size but I can borrow one. My game plan is to drill a template in some flat steel then use that to drill the holes under the bus. 

The second barrel will not be installed tomorrow. Just the one. The second, I need to buy 6 more cable clamps for. Tractor Supply did not have enough to fulfill my needs. I gather they have deliveries on Thursdays so on Friday I can imagine I might be installing the second barrel. Having done that, I might put the sink that I removed, back in the bathroom as it's just the perfect place to use as a urinal! 

Although I am unlikely to get my Mac working before I head back to work on Monday, I should at least (if plans go well) have some improved plumbing. I don't know about the main breaker box but things are looking promising!

Decisions, decisions... And the story of the idea shot down in flames!

Attaching the 15 gallon drums underneath the bus was intended to be accomplished tomorrow. That won't be happening tomorrow though. Today I took m'lady to meet some friends of mine and during an exchange of information, I found why one of my previous positions ended. It transpired that I had not done the rotten job that I had been told I had done. It turned out that the manager in charge of the department quietly disliked me. That explains why some of the training I'd been give was rather obtuse. Afterwards, she'd admitted she'd got rid of me because she didn't like me. Now that I find is rather unusual because most people (not all) do seem to like me (or if they don't, they hide it pretty well).

So, the upshot of today is that I was in Lowes (hiss, spit) on the way back. My idea had been to use a chain with a turnbuckle to tighten it to perfection. That, it seems, is not possible. Looking at Lowes (hiss, spit) turnbuckles, they were all adorned with labels along the lines of "will not support a human" and "do not use to support weight" and seemed to be made of zinc. How useless is that? I have seen people using chains to secure tanks under their vehicles and I'm pretty sure they use turnbuckles to tighten their chains. Now it could be that Lowes (hiss, spit) specialises in supplying an inferior and inherently dangerous product and that many people just don't read the labels, ripping them off and relying upon them.

I had been criticised for considering using nylon cargo straps to secure my drums. It seems that cargo straps are probably the best idea. They can be tightened easily and while not being allegedly very durable, are probably as durable as a plastic tank! So, the answer is to put nylon cargo straps. While I don't possess cargo straps right now, they're easily obtainable. They're better doubled up for strength. I know 15 gallons of water weighs just over 125lbs. Thus if the cargo straps individually hold 120lbs then I can put 3 or 4 straps giving either one or two redundancies for safety. 

While I Lowes (hiss, spit) I obtained some small wire nuts. I came to the conclusion that I'm better off replacing the top flashers with plain metal sheeting. The idea of turning them into extra turn and brake lights at the back is very worthy but in terms of practicality, means adding more complications. Thinking about the existing wiring, it seems to me that since it goes straight to the control panel, it could be linked to my small solar panel to use to keep the bus battery topped up. Indeed, it might even be possible to use the wires to connect a solar panel to charge the house battery. The house battery, by the way, only needs to hold enough power to charge my tablet and my phone. That's next to nothing! Certainly keeping the bus battery charged is a good idea. With a little care, the power could be redirected to power a small electric extraction fan at the back of the bus. That would give the option of using the power for the fan.

Another interesting idea would be to couple a small 12v battery into the charging circuit for the bus so the battery charges when the bus is driving or when solar power is going in but doesn't deplete the main batteries when it's being used to power the house circuits. Realistically, the simplest way of achieving this is with a simple switch on the driving console. Power goes into the house battery when the switch is on. When it's off, the circuits are separate though remembering to activate the switch might be an issue!

Tomorrow, I'm not sure which tasks I will undertake. I'll probably replace the worthless paper blinds though. I might then look at the front flashers or even take the bull by the horns and install the main breaker box.