Every Day Is An Adventure: Alternator Issues on RV - Baby Deer Tote Bags

Yep, I know, I am behind on the blogging, again. We have SO much going on, whew. I don't know if you all can keep up with all these mechanical issues, some the fault of the RV from sitting for 4 years and some the fault of one careless mechanic after another.

So June 18, 2015

We leave Pennsylvania's Welcome Center and back on 80 West after resting for 2 nights. The 454 engine is so loud and we have not adjusted to the noise level yet and Kaiya's window is rattling and I haven't figured out why so she sits beside me most of the time instead which is safer.

We only get some 70 miles and an engine belt is screaming and the temp gauge maxed out, again. I pull over on the highway and the antifreeze is steaming out of Goliath. Kaiya and I go and bunk down and wait for the engine to cool. After an hour I try to get the radiator cap off and it will not come off. I stand out with a HELP sign and a lady in her later years from out of state pulls over and we both struggle and defeated the cap. I fill her up with 2-3 gallons of antifreeze and started Goliath up and the temp again quickly rises so back to resting we go. After some 90 minutes two State Police arrive and ask what is up and after placing all my info into their system they let me know there is a truck stop and garage less than 2 miles down the highway, thank goodness. It took us 3 hours to go that far because the engine kept getting hot. We finally arrive at LGC Truck Parts and Service, 24 Old Berwick Road, Drums, Pennsylvania:

https://plus.google.com/109157198943210241433/about?gl=us&hl=en

Looks like I threw away the photo of the shop since we ended up with worse issues after we left here. I'll get into that after.

So I get to the shop and I explain to the owner that my alternator has died and he gets me a young and energetic mechanic to work on Goliath and who insists my alternator is fine that I blew the head gasket. I told him to remove the alternator and he can check the gasket later. So it ends up that my new belt that was replaced in Massachusetts snapped and wrapped around the fan because it wasn't the proper belt (for the second time) and the alternator apparently died from age, the head gaskets are fine. They order a new and bigger alternator from "The Alternator Specialists". I don't know if this is the company in Hillsville, Pennsylvania or not since they are 4 hours away. So here we stay overnight at the biggest truck stop we have seen thus far, Pilot Truck Center, over 100 trucks, all running all night long. Both truck lots full so 2 pull along us and 2 pull in front so the vibration and noise was awful. The next day the alternator was installed. This was an all day job. The mechanic couldn't figure out how the belts went on and said the alternator was too big and he had to ginny rig to make it fit, oh joy. It rained on/off and my carpet and living room chair is covered in oil and grease from the mechanic's clothes and oil soaked boots with blood on the front passenger seat. The owners, husband/wife team, had sympathy for us and gave us a handsome discount and only charged $300 for parts and labor. The total was apx $900. When I got into Goliath I cried for an hour easy. I gave the Mrs a pair of antique ram horn candlestick holders valued at $350 for their generosity. The husband came out to thank me and told me they are being placed on the mantle of their summer home in the Pocono's. After the very long day of waiting we spend another night here but I moved Goliath to a little more secluded area of the garage and we got some rest.

We move onwards on June 20th, finally, up and running, or so we thought....

Sorry for lack of photos. We have been so upset that it looks like I threw away many.