Heavy Fuel

[milkmania]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

Trying to post pics again. Will this frustration ever end? I guess not.

So here are the links to the pics. Someone more technically advanced can post them on my thread better than I can. So here it goes:

Here's a pic of Heavy with the blanks on the driver's side of the master bedroom, one without the window installed and the other with the window:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/145078...posted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/145078...posted-public/

One pic of the back with the rear blank, the side blanks with the master bedroom window installed:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/145078...posted-public/

I can't believe I'm having such frustrations posting pics.

Sorry for the inconvenience of clicking on the links.

M

Links are broken!





Kidding....
You do see my avatar, right????

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by milkmania

Links are broken!





Kidding....
You do see my avatar, right????

THAT avatar? LOL

[GreyCoyote]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

Oh, and here's two pics of the tower set up I did this summer:

M1031: okay... I'll bite.

That looks like a tower made from Rohn 25G... And since CB is dead, and nothing in the commercial world goes smaller than Rohn 45G within 250 miles of the coast, that would imply "personal use".

Are you a fellow ham perchance?

[Tango]

Looking really good! On Flickr, make sure to copy & paste the "BBC Code" and the pix should show up.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by GreyCoyote

M1031: okay... I'll bite.

That looks like a tower made from Rohn 25G... And since CB is dead, and nothing in the commercial world goes smaller than Rohn 45G within 250 miles of the coast, that would imply "personal use".

Are you a fellow ham perchance?

KF5NZM at your service. EXCELLENT observation! Actually the other tower is Rohn 45, with the third being Rohn 25. We're doing commercial experimental applications with FCC approval. Long story there. Comical, but long.

Tango, I'll try that when I have some time later on today to see IF I can get that to work. Thanks for the help!

BTW, Milk, someone changed the "avatar" I originally posted. Oh well......

M

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Tango

Looking really good! On Flickr, make sure to copy & paste the "BBC Code" and the pix should show up.

Tango,

I just tried to find the "BBC Code", zero luck so far. That's what I was looking for the first time. GRRRRRRR

[M1031A1]

Well, yesterday I went to HF to start her up and *click**click**click* ....

Batteries were dead. Even after starting her up every two weeks the batteries finally gave up the ghost.

Bigger surprise: these batteries are C-8DD batteries. I.E. they are THREE times the size of a regular truck battery EACH!!!!!!

Fortunately, being back to work for Katy ISD, I am able to replace them at school district prices. Granted that's not cheap either, but better than the alternative. So, for $309 total, I'm getting two new C-8DD batteries. They weigh about 100 pounds EACH. I hope I don't get a hernia swapping out these monstrosities.........

Story at 9, film at 11..........

M

[cadillackid]

wowsers!! 2 8D! thats like haveing the power of 5 or 6 31s!.. sure you didnt have a parasitic load left on that killed them as opposed to bad bats?

-Christopher

[AlleyCat67]

I figure I'll probably want to wire in a quick disconnect where if I'm not gonna be starting and running it for a while I can just kill the juice so I don't come back to a dead starting battery bank.... my only concern is with all the onboard electronics in a 2005 bus, what kind of effect it will have on those (loss of settings, etc).

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

wowsers!! 2 8D! thats like haveing the power of 5 or 6 31s!.. sure you didnt have a parasitic load left on that killed them as opposed to bad bats?

-Christopher

Nah, they're seven years old. Well within the service life expectancy of such monsters.

These rascals are HEAVY. My son is going to help me this weekend to get them out and new ones in. That's what 15 year olds are for huh?

[M1031A1]

More pics from this weekend.

Heated mirrors are SO wonderful!

[Tootalltechie]

If you could not replace the batteries what could you do?

[Jolly Roger]

Originally Posted by Tootalltechie

If you could not replace the batteries what could you do?

Jump start it and hope the alternators good?
If the batts. Ain't charging enough to provide and hold a starting charge then they gotta go. Or run a generator to keep the batteries charged cause your alternator can't do it?
Not a lot of choices except find and fix?

[M1031A1]

Well, working for a school system, there are options to adapt and overcome. They have smaller batteries, however, there would be adapters to buy and so on. Not the best option for me, but it's there.

I'm not about to jump start it and hope the alternator recharges the batteries. The alternator is there to replace electricity used to start the engine and supply power to systems requiring less power. The alternator on HF is two years old and has 10K miles on it, so abusing it to save old batteries is definitely OUT of the question.

A battery store the district uses for their school bus batteries is providing the exact replacement batteries at a VERY reasonable cost to me. Helps to be working for the system sometimes.....

We had the battery swap in the budget, just hoping not to use it just now. But we'll have solid new batteries that will keep us going for a while.

M

[cadillackid]

I would also test for parasitic load so you dont run the new batteries dead.. it could be the old batteries got run dead and gave up the ghost partly from age and partly because something ran them dead...

obviously a dead cell in one of the 2 batteries could also cause them both to run down dead too..

something I should have done with the newbus and havent yet.. I brought it home a week ago, parked it in its storage place and havet touched it since. bad-me because it looks to have 2 brand new batteries in it so I should check on it tomorrow to make sure something hasnt run them down..

-Christopher

[FlyboyHPD]

I believe a battery disconnect switch would be worthwhile for every skoolie owner to do. Luckily mine came with one. If it hadn't I would have installed one myself.

[cadillackid]

my DEV has one(big ole handle on the dash) but its a fully mechanical bus.. im not sure yet if i should out one on the new bus or not .. if the computer is a learning type computer then I might lose a lot of economy settings by killing its power after every trip..

the new bus started right up when i got it.. I dont know how long they had been sitting in that auction lot without being run..

the DEV starts every time very easily.. with the batteries from 2013 that were in it when I got it... that bus is a TANK.. had it out for awhile today.. i'll take it to ohio during winter to see how it fares in cold weather... it does have a block heater and my storage unit in ohio has electricity for just that purpose..

-Christopher

[Justin McCormick]

Originally Posted by FlyboyHPD

I believe a battery disconnect switch would be worthwhile for every skoolie owner to do. Luckily mine came with one. If it hadn't I would have installed one myself.

It was one of the first things I installed on my bus. Handy to have.

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

Well, yesterday I went to HF to start her up and *click**click**click* ....

Batteries were dead. Even after starting her up every two weeks the batteries finally gave up the ghost.

Bigger surprise: these batteries are C-8DD batteries. I.E. they are THREE times the size of a regular truck battery EACH!!!!!!

Fortunately, being back to work for Katy ISD, I am able to replace them at school district prices. Granted that's not cheap either, but better than the alternative. So, for $309 total, I'm getting two new C-8DD batteries. They weigh about 100 pounds EACH. I hope I don't get a hernia swapping out these monstrosities.........

Story at 9, film at 11..........

M

Man, my $75 apiece Rural King batteries are going on two years old now.
My bus just sat for four months without being started.
I don't disconnect em or anything, right.... It starts at the turn of the key everytime. Am I just luck or what? I never have battery problems in anything at all and all I run are CHEAP batteries.

[cadillackid]

your bus is all mechanical.. it shouldnt have any battery drain on it... ive forgotten and left DEV's power turned on for a few days and it kicks over too...

I do need to check out this RK place though...
-Christopher