Today was a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Sure, it started cold (10.9 degrees at 7 AM) but it did warm up to 39.9 degrees late this afternoon under the bright sun. And with little wind, it was a pleasure to walk about outside. Early in the day, while it was still cold, the little snow that remained was frozen solid enough and crusty enough to walk on top and not get that wet stuff in the low boots I had on. There are a few limbs and treetops blown down or broken off from the weight of snow, but the main trails seemed open. And there were deer tracks in the snow from the other day; their edges still sharp and crisp.
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Mark is here and we had a lengthy chat...well, he chatted, while I listened which is about normal. He says he saw a half dozen deer in my yard two evenings ago just around sunset. I must have been away from the windows at the time. He's still looking for work and trying to make ends meet with the occasional day jobs.
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I went out to the barn to check the battery again and, while the charger's light hadn't come on to indicate a full charge, the battery itself was hissing and bubbling to indicate it might, in fact, be over charged. I went into the trailer and found there were still no lights on the DC circuit and, if the battery was charged, they should have come on. I then checked the circuit breakers and the fuse box but everything was in order.
Finally, Mark came over with a battery tester and we checked to see if the darn thing was indeed charged. Yep. A ful 12 volts registered on the meter. We checked the wires leading under the trailer and they were A-OK. We double checked the electric board and he confirmed that the breakers and fuses were good. Then we disconnected the battery and checked it again. Still reading 12 volts--a full charge. We reconnected the battery and stepped inside the trailer.... Lo and behold! The system was working! Although there was no corrosion visible on the battery's poles, there must have been something interfering with a tight connection when I hooked it up the first time. Our disconnecting and reconnecting the wires made that connection good.
This is a big deal not just because I didn't want to pay for a new battery, but the electronic brakes on the trailer run off that battery. Without a functioning battery, the emergency brakes on the trailer do not work. Should the trailer break free from the Tundra for any reason, the trailer would not come to a stop until it had plowed a nice big furrow in the highway...if then. Nothing worse than having your trailer pass you on the NYS Thruway!
We hitched the trailer up and pulled it out of the barn onto the lawn so it can get a bit of an air bath before it goes to the doctor for a checkup on Tuesday. I checked the tire pressure all around and found that all four were between 46 and 48 PSI. Since the temperature was still around 34 degrees at the time and the tires are rated for 50 PSI max, we decided not to put any additional air in them for now. I'll check again on Monday when I hitch it up for its little trip and, if need be, put a couple of pounds in each tire.
The interior is almost as clean as when Terry and I vacuumed out the mouse droppings and cleaned out the drawers last fall. I could find only one little collection of droppings on the couch which were easy enough to sweep up. All the stuff in the drawers and closets are still clean and there's no old magazines or valuables in there to worry about.
Once the exam is over and any repairs made, I'll be putting it back in the barn until late May/early June. Then I'll take it down to PA and rent a campground spot at the Hills Creek or Ive's Run for a couple of weeks. That will make it easier for Terry and I to pack for our trip to Alaska and points west. At least that's the plan. (Shhhh. I think I hear God laughing.)
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