August 7 - 11, 2024 - Getting Homer Ready for Trip to Indiana-Michigan-Illinois and a Flatbed Trailer Project

 MY BLOG REFLECTION

Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.

Mark Twain

August 7, 2024  -  Homer Out of Storage and Ready for a Trip

We got Homer out of storage unit. We arrived and ended up having to call the owner of the storage facility to get the code to get in. I'm not sure if I forgot it or if he changed it. I do like this added security installed last year. 

The only issue with Homer so far is the solenoid for the internal battery charger not working (again). I thought maybe the house batteries were too low to energize the solenoid so I hooked up an external charger for a couple of hours. Once the batteries were charged the internal battery charger was still not charging the batteries. It was operating correctly but there was no charge getting to the batteries. I hit the solenoid in the battery compartment with a hammer handle a couple of times and it is now working. Tis happened on our last trip to Cuba, Missouri, earlier this summer. I now carry an external charger just in case this happens again. I purchased a new solenoid but since this one is now working, and it is such a pain to change out, I will wait and see how it does on this trip.

August 8, 2024 - Flatbed Trailer Floor Replacement

The deck boards on our flatbed trailer needed to be replaced. This trailer is primarily used to haul our lawn mower out to the lake lot to cut the grass. The trailer is only about three years old but the decking boards totally rotted out. Here is a picture.

The individual boards were much worse than I envisioned. The ends literally crumbled as I pulled them out and the rot in the middle became much more apparent.

 

To save money the trailer manufacturer did not use treated 2 x 8s. I can see why. I purchased eleven treated replacement boards and they cost $212.00. The young man at the lumber yard did a wonderful job of picking out "decent" boards for this project. At his suggestion I laid the boards out in the shade to dry for two days. The boards were quite wet with the chemical they soak them in to treat them. He said laying them out in the sun would cause warping.

Once the boards were removed it was clear I needed to paint the surface area of the framework before installing new boards, especially since the new boards are treated wood. The wood treatment chemical is known to attack unpainted metal. 

Twelve foot long treated 2 x 8s were heavy for this old man to handle. I cut and fitted each board in place then removed them so I could paint the metal frame. I won't paint the boards.

August 10, 2024 - Frame Painted

The Rustoleum product that I ordered, which encapsulates the rust and protects the surface, arrived. I sprayed the entire can. It covered the areas of the frame I wanted but it was not a very thick coat. I decided to buy two more cans of regular paint and sprayed it on top to further protect the steel frame. Here is a picture of the surface area of the frame painted. I didn't worry about the areas of the frame that do not touch the wood. The black paint I sprayed on looked brown until it dried.

August 11, 2024 - Deck Boards Installed and Bolted Down

After church I reinstalled all the new boards. Better than new. They will outlast me. 

The next couple of days I will finish checking some items on Homer and load him for the trip. We leave on Saturday for two weeks. I hope the weather stays cool.