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Old 03-17-2016, 08:50 PM   #1
Bus Crazy
 
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technology and maintenance

I sure have a lot of oil changes to do and track.

is there a phone app that can track this stuff. i sure would like an app that tracks service info for cars, bus, generators, mowers.

it be nice to show up at napa without looking up air, oil, fuel filter numbers for each piece of equipment. mileage, hours,.... repairs.

does anyone here use their smartphone like that? is there such a thing?

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Old 03-17-2016, 09:35 PM   #2
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I keep all my info in notes, tried a lot of apps never could get used to them.
Vehicle type,vin model just general stuff
Then as many part number and mfg. as I could find for each part
Works good for me, plus the guys at the part stores think it's cool when you stand back and whip it out for them (cell phone that is)
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Old 03-17-2016, 11:05 PM   #3
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Lowe's and Home Depot say they keep track of that stuff when you give them your phone number. They haven't stopped me from buying the wrong stuff yet.
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Old 03-18-2016, 12:02 AM   #4
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i've been looking and playing tonight...

first i though the app - TractorPal, but that wasn't keeping the filter numbers.

also tonight, i have tried both napa and autozone and both offer pretty good apps for your specific equipment. both apps had bluebird bus as a vehicle choice. they both look like you can purchase and reserve the filters from the phone. and go pick them up in store.


maybe its going to take a combination of apps to do all that i want to?

if you find a good one, post and share
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Old 03-18-2016, 12:20 AM   #5
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Or you could get a permanent marker and write your filter information somewhere on your bus. Technology is nice but don't lean on it to hard.
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Old 03-18-2016, 07:31 AM   #6
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If you have a Google account, you could always create a Google Sheets (their version of Excel) file with the information on the spreadsheet that you can access on your smart phone.

A lower tech version, riffing off Robin's suggestion, is get a couple Rite in the Rain weatherproof notebooks and leave the information in your bus. Pencil works best for them
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Old 03-18-2016, 08:24 AM   #7
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Notebook (analog kind) on the bus works for me.
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Old 03-18-2016, 10:48 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by turf View Post
I sure have a lot of oil changes to do and track.

is there a phone app that can track this stuff. i sure would like an app that tracks service info for cars, bus, generators, mowers.

it be nice to show up at napa without looking up air, oil, fuel filter numbers for each piece of equipment. mileage, hours,.... repairs.

does anyone here use their smartphone like that? is there such a thing?
I talked to Napa about that very thing. You think they'd be able to h ave a user account with all your info. Even if its just for high volume users.
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Old 03-18-2016, 11:57 AM   #9
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I loose lists. Electronics fail at times. I write information on the bus itself. It doesn't have to be written in the middle of the dashboard. Nothing wrong with notes on the inside of the doghouse.
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Old 03-18-2016, 12:36 PM   #10
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Yea all my vehicles have paint pen writing here and there under their hoods.

I change oil every year about this time.

Just sent some bus oil in to BS for analysis.
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Old 03-18-2016, 01:23 PM   #11
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I also am trying the blackstone lab oil analysis. waiting to hear back.

glad to have someone to compare with
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Old 03-18-2016, 05:25 PM   #12
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Back in about '77 I got a stack of surveyor's notebooks. They are hard covered, sewn bindings with pages in columns. They've been in all of my vehicles since then.


This is a skinnier version:

Elan Economy Field Book E64-8x4S, Student Field Book - EngineerSupply

On the left page I put:

Date
Mileage
Cost per gallon
Fillup cost
MPG...when I care to

On the right are maintenance/repair notes, etc.

The books have been in many vehicles. It's kind of fun to thumb back through them and be reminded of an engine swap or blown tire!

Another cool thing is that I have a continuous record of gas prices since then.

'78...$0.52/gallon
'79...$0.71/gallon
'80...$1.16/gallon

And on and on...

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Old 03-18-2016, 10:53 PM   #13
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Get yourself a good zip up ring binder, put you insurance, registration, service records, manuals etc in it and stash it somewhere near the driver's seat. It really makes it simple, any time you need any paperwork or information about your bus you know exactly where to look, and if you ever decide to sell the bus it is a very convenient way to pass the info to the next owner. Technology is nice and all but you just cannot beat the reliability of hardcopy.
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Old 03-18-2016, 11:24 PM   #14
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I'll second that. But even lists get lost. Write on the equipment if you want to pass information along.
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Old 03-20-2016, 11:45 PM   #15
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i've spent a few days looking.......

i found a free program from the app store called "vehicle tracks II".

i'll try it but i already like having records. it was quick and easy to set up and it'll be on my desktop. still no place to store part numbers, but i have a master list i made on word.

next year i'll know how many hours/ miles ill have on the machines.
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Old 03-20-2016, 11:54 PM   #16
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I write my info on the back of a business card and keep it in my wallet.
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Old 03-21-2016, 02:58 PM   #17
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I write my info on my bus. I hardly ever loose that.

This is my fourth bus, and I also think writing information on the bus benefits the next guy. But then I don't like phones and all the apps.
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Old 03-21-2016, 04:01 PM   #18
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Quote:
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I write my info on my bus. I hardly ever lose that.

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Old 03-21-2016, 04:10 PM   #19
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Well... I occasionally have lost my wallet and I can definitely loose a phone. My computer crashes occasionally causing loss of data. Glitches happen with electronics, or in my case toilets happen with electronics. If I loose the bus I figure I'll just get another one, and it'll probably have all different part numbers. It's a nice permanent record that you can put on the inside of any hatch.
In a perfect world our vehicles would be scanned and then someone would tell us what is wrong with our bus/van and what parts we need to replace.
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Old 03-22-2016, 05:45 PM   #20
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I use a spreadsheet on Google Docs. Never lost, always accessible. Well, unless the internet blows up. If that happens, that will probably be the least of my concerns.
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