DIESEL TANK & MIRROR MOUNTS.

A couple of small jobs are combined in this blog
for the sake of keeping the record of the maintenance work we have done on Kiwi Style.





While in Tauranga in 2011 we noticed fuel dripping in a steady flow from the tank - not good.

Into the workshop and the rig was lifted up by four little fork hoists , one on each wheel , which allowed the tank to be dropped down and we could then assess the problem.

Happily the tank was in very good order , except for rust where it sat on two steel bearers.

Steel patches were welded on.
The whole tank was sanded and had a rust treatment applied, then repainted.

Refitted , tested and declared to be as good as new.

Then in early 2012 we were looking at rusty rear vision mirror mounts , again.
Three times they have been sanded and repainted but still the rust returns.

The solution was simple , get new mounts made out of aluminium.

Back we went to that incredible craftsman , Glen.
He is the guy that made our replacement locker doors.

"No problem" he said and there wasn't.
A real good job at a reasonable price.

WINDSCREEN FIASCO.

  Now , the facts.

We rang Covi Insurance and they said "No problem , glass is covered ". They gave us a Claim Number  and that was that , just get the job done and end of storey - Yeah Right !!!!!

Smith & Smith Glass at Whangarei was our choice.
We had used them at their Henderson Branch in the past and everything was 100%. Dream on .

Top left photo is the original chip - quite bad but repairable they said.
Not so in reality - after the repair there was to be seen, from the outside , two spots that would be acceptable , but from the inside it looked like the original unrepaired chip.
"No problem " they said ( those words again ) " we will replace it" . First , it had to come up from Christchurch.  A week later it arrived.

Out came the old screen ( top right photo ) and in with the new.



But they cracked it !!!!!! and at the same time they cracked the passenger screen.

Loud hoots of laughter echoed around the workshop - the two young guys from Smith & Smith thought it was a big joke.

We were not impressed !

A week later and two new screens arrived along with two older staff and the screens were fitted.


A job well done, we hoped.

Not so .

The paintwork was damaged ( see photo above)
and the black sealant stained the paintwork on the mullions , both sides of the screen ( see photo below).

We had had enough of Smith & Smith by now so instead of complaining we fixed the paint chips and cleaned up the black stains ourselves.

Ok , we thought , all we have to do now is get the graphics replaced.
Which we did .

The graphics cost us $145.00 .  Hold on a minute , we thought . there was one word on each screen and Smith & Smith broke one screen so surely they should pay for half the cost of replacing the graphics .

So back we went .    It was a total waste of time .     Their initial reaction to my request was ,  you might guess , a good laugh .   "Claim it off your insurance " they said in-between chuckles.

A week later we had a good rainy day - the windscreens leaked .

Not just a trickle or two , multiple flows that needed many paper towels across the bottom of the screens.

Back to Smith & Smith . They listened with an air of disbelief and smug superiority that reflects the management attitude at the Whangarei branch. " It was probably condensation " they said.
We went out to the rig for an inspection .  They stood there talking about condensation , I went inside and came out with two hand fulls of sodden paper towels. It was not condensation.
They did a closer inspection . When they fitted the screens , someone stood on the ground and sealed across the bottom and up each side as far as they could reach and left it at that.

The silence was deafening - not one word of apology , just some muttering between them selves .
Out came the trestles and plank and it was sealed as it should have been in the first place.

Good Bye Smith & Smith Glass - may our paths never cross again.

Since then surplus sealant has oozed out from behind the rubber extrusion all around the screens.

When I can borrow a stepladder I will clean it up.

Their is one more chapter to this tale .
Covi Insurance rang me.
" Could I tell them why the claim is for three windscreens ?" they asked.
Well I did - "I broke one and Smith & Smith broke two"seemed to sum it up correctly.
"Thank you"they said.

To summarise - Smith & Smith claimed from my insurance company the cost of three windscreens , two of which they broke themselves and they should have claimed for them from their insurance.

I now know that Novus Glass are in Whangarei so no prize for guessing where I will go for any future glass work.

CLUTCH FAILURE.

 Back in February 2011 we suffered clutch failure. We were not as aware then, of using photos to tell our stories , as we are now. Consequently we do not have many photos but the happenings are still quite interesting.

We had spent a couple of pleasant days at Gulf Harbour on our way to West Harbour.
There is quite a steep climb out of Gulf Harbour up to Whangaparoa Road and our rig just would not pull like it normally would. Down in 2nd gear we crawled over the brow and it then picked up and started to drive normally.
"What was that about ?' we mused as we made our way through to the Motorway into Auckland.
Along the motorway , down pass Oteha Valley exit and half way up the next incline we started to loose power . At least that is how it felt . Down through the gears we went , flasher lights on , and cutting across the lanes , we were in trouble.
Happily we found there was an extra lane up to the brow of the rise which allowed us to stop well out of the lanes but only just before it merged back into three lanes .  We counted our blessings.

What now ?     We needed help  - where to try ?        We rang Covi Insurance .   What a good choice.
A pleasant young man with a friendly confident voice listened to our predicament and said " I'll call you back in 10 minutes".
He did !
A tow truck was on its way and he would tow us to an Isuzu Workshop less than 3km away.
The Towie arrived - the biggest towtruck we had ever seen . A Kenworth !!!!  He hooked us on , what a sight , Kenworth + Kiwi Style + towbehind , all up about 24m to pass.

 Off the motorway at Greville Road , caused a major delay at a roundabout and then up to Diesel Services
"we will get you in the workshop about 2 o'clock" said Wayne ( the Boss ).

 And they did ! There we were 2.30pm and the work had started. The rear engine is good but fairly tightly fitted.
In the floor , under the bed were two access hatches which they needed access to . While the mechanic worked in the pit on the underside we stripped out the bed and the framing.

 By 4.00pm the clutch was out . What a mess !  . From where it first slipped to giving up the ghost was only 32km but how it lasted that long was a cause of wonder.  Wayne recommended we put in a heavy duty clutch plate . Being a constantly loaded motorhome and towing our ute he felt it would be worthwhile.  It was an extra $400.00 , we thought it would be a good investment so said OK.

  The new clutch arrived by Courier at 10.30am the next day . Neglected to get a photo but it looked pretty flash.  The bell housing had been cleaned up , new gaskets were ready so our friendly mechanic swung into action.

 The gearbox was trundled back under and lifted into place . We were inside reassembling the bed framing and making up the bed.  By 2.00pm we were out of the workshop and ready to go !!!!

Just 24 hours from whoa to go - incredible . Covi , the Towie and Wayne and his team took the stress out of the situation.  Finding a local motel to stay that night was worse . After five "No Vacancy" stops , we got a room.
Our Covi Insurance covered the towing and the accommodation and we paid the workshop account , which we considered very reasonable.

On the road and on our way --  Two Happy Kiwis , again.

ROOF LEAKS & CEILING REPAIRS.

 We had leaks !!!!!!!!!! This was the visual damage and it was slowly getting worse. It was early July 2012. Yes - the blog is out of sequence but the idea of using the blog to record maintenance has been a bit slow to sink in.

 Under the distorted vinyl surface there was mould growing - a potential health problem we thought.

 We got some industrial cellotape , 50mm wide , and covered the areas of concern.

 The marker pen lines were there to check on how quickly it was spreading.

 So , we booked Mike and his men at Frontier Motorhomes to do the work. They did the original fit out for us and we were quite comfortable  going back for a new ceiling.

 First we had to stay some where. Stillwater , just 8km away was the closest camp. Affordable daily rate and it was only for 3 or 4 days - we thought. ( those words again !!! )

 A little 1950s , one room unit, clean but uninsulated and with the door and big window facing south.The oil heater was in constant use. Note the nice sunny carpark our towbehind was enjoying.

 The kitchen was basic but adequate. The table was one step away and the sofa just one step more . Just like home we thought.

 The bed was near new and we used our linen, blankets and pillows.

 The shower/loo was just OK.

 Our Bessemer oven on a cooktop was ideal .

 Cooks every thing , from Bread to cakes to Roast Lamb , vegies and Apricot Chicken casserole.
Mostly on the lowest possible heat setting. Brilliant in the motorhome on gas and doing great service for us here on electricity. But I digress !

 In the laundry the prices were old world and so were the coinage. Put in our three 50c pieces only to have them rejected . Over to the Office - "you are using the wrong coins" he said with a grin. Eh ?

 The machines still used the Original 50c decimal coins !!!!!!!!!!!! He had little bags of 10 coins available - "will add them to the bill " he said casually.

 Now to the workshop . We arrived at morning tea time each day. Day 1 and they had ripped out the ceiling by cutting 100mm away from the walls then applying brute force to remove the two layers of ply. There was wet Batts every where. Multiple leaks there would have to be. But where ?
A really close inspection of the roof provided no clues . We had, over the summer applied 3 coats of good quality roof paint from gutter to gutter. It looked good.

 So , outside for a hose test. Mike and Andy had hoses and water going everywhere , I was inside.

 Within a few minutes water started appearing , virtually from nowhere. I reached up and pushed the roof up a bit and Hey Presto they could see water squirting out from under a Solar panel mount. Back in the workshop and off came the mount. It had been installed using a Double Sided Tape about 20mm wide placed around the edges , then screwed down with no sealant under the screw head. When raining and the wind blowing on the Solar panels it was flexing the mount and making it act like a diaphragm pump. Pumping water in.

 Time to talk . It was no time to cut corners . It would be futile to fit a new ceiling without doing a 100% leak repair - that was easy to agree too . How to achieve the goal - that was the question. It was tough talk . The answer was also tough - take every thing off the roof , reseal all seams , fix the mount screw holes and repaint . Water test . Then and only then remount the gear up there and water test again. Then the new ceiling could be installed . We had the plan but there were still two big questions - How long will it take and how much will it cost ?  "Better allow for two weeks work" said Mike & "triple the budget ". Gulp, gulp and gulp again . We were in the classic situation , our motorhome in pieces and the way out was expensive.

 The gear came off , even the awning , the collection of bits and pieces was impressive.
Andy got stuck in and by Wednesday ( day three ) it looked OK to start painting the next day.
The paint system chosen was a Marine , 2 pot epoxy , 3 coats , applied at 1 coat a day.

 Thursday was wet and cold . Too cold to paint , it needed to be over 10 degrees for the paint mix to react and harden.
Friday was just OK so on went the first coat . It had the weekend to set.

 Monday the 2nd coat was applied and on Tuesday the final coat.

 On Wednesday morning we had a tough , glossy finish.

 The result was very impressive . Money well spent we felt.

 Next reinstall all the solar panels and gear.

 Out we went for the water test. So far so good .  Just as the hose test finished the rain started . This was good , natural rain and wind is a better test than using a hose. It rained for two days !!!!
We waited in our little unit ( which was now on a discounted weekly rate ) and hoped all was well .
It was - we were water tight . Cheers all round and a roof shout after work helped lift our spirits .

 Finally able to start work on the original task , the new ceiling .
First the insulation . We had put a lot of research into this , the space between roof and ceiling was 45mm . The batts in this space did not work well . Condensation formed along the steel framing .
We installed a 3 layer insulation sandwich . The coloured rolls are 8mm non absorbent high density compound . This was the first layer , pressed hard up to the roof . Next a thicker layer of closed cell polystyrene followed by another layer of the 8mm compound.

 These photos show the coloured 8mm compound and the white areas are the polystyrene

 The sublayer of 4mm ply went up next , leaving 55mm clear all round from the walls.

 And at last , the new white board , to within 50mm of the walls .  The old ceiling had a vinyl finish .
This new board has a tough epoxy finish which is a more pure white and high gloss which reflects the light more and generally lightens the interior .

 The Kitchen/Lounge finally back to normal.

 The link through to the bedroom.

 The bedroom , home sweet home again.
We took the opportunity to upgrade the LED lights so now our tired old eyes can easily read our very depleted bank account statements . Oh well , you can't take it with you as the saying goes.

 And here we are , two weeks and three days later , screaming "Let me out of here " - a bad case of cabin fever

 Keying in the gate opening number and we were out - it felt like The Great Excape.
Back on the road - happiness ensured.