Homemaking

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Sore, Very Sore

Wow, my body has really forgotten what these sorts of days are like. I really don’t have the stamina for weekend-long renovation bursts like I did when I had the house. I could barely move when I got up this morning, so I puttered around a bit until I limbered up. Then, it was off to North Gower by way of Home Depot (needed another box of ‘chocolate’) and more carpet ripping out until I couldn’t move at all any more.

Please visit the page about the lounge for pictures.

First order of business was to finish ripping out the carpet in the study. That done, it was time to rip out the carpet in the dining/lounge area. That proved to be… fun. I can’t remove the chairs so I had to cut around them. Same thing for the dinette benches. Have you any idea how much work (and blades and dust) is involved in cutting carpet?

Before I started, I looked at the bar.

Not entirely useless (there is a table), but almost. I opened the door and discovered that the bar was attached to the coach with only four screws. Away with it!

EEEP! I thought the carpet was in good shape. This really showed me how worn and disgusting it actually was! I kept the bar for parts but will most definitely be putting a bookcase between the chairs. Unfortunately, Ikea has the very thing I’m envisioning, so I’ll have to go there.

This room isn’t finished. By the time I got done with the half I did do, I was beat. What’s left will involve a lot of cutting, measuring, and fiddling, so I felt it best to leave it for next week. I just put wax paper down over the stick strips to keep dust off them.

What about the desk, you ask.

Next week. I’m taking the shake down cruise of all shake down cruises: going to Montreal’s south shore to visit family. If I can traverse the island of Montreal in one piece, I will have nothing to fear after. My mother is much more skilled and creative than I am in matters of carpentry, so she’ll help me put together a desk. While there, I’ll also dewinterize the coach (it’ll be SO NICE to have the bathroom working, LOL!) and possibly wire the back up camera monitor.

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The End of a Dream

This morning, as I slowly eased Miranda into a parking spot at Home Depot and then shortly thereafter began to rip apart the back room, I realised that a lifetime’s worth of dreaming had come to an end. For better or for worse, I have begun to live my dream. And, thus, the dream is now reality. What will I dream of now?

*pauses*

So, I made it to Home Depot this morning. I decided to forgo the backup monitor installation and leave it for next weekend. I’ll be taking Miranda for her first overnight expedition and that will be a nice project to undertake then.

Visit the page about the study to see pictures about the flooring installation.

Step 1: Get the mattresses out of there

Step 2: Dismantle the right-side box

After taking apart that box on the right side, I decided that I didn’t want to muck around with the left-side box as glue is involved. So, carpet removal and floor installation would have to go around it.

Step 3: Carefully remove any trim so that I might be able to reuse it.

Step 4: Marvel that the coach has wooden floors. Which explains why it cost twice what the mobile house cost.

Step 5: Check to see if the room is square. It is. Blink.

Step 6: Install flooring. Takes about an hour and a half once you figure out the best way to lay it out.

Step 7A: Waste only one piece because you can’t measure.

Step 7B: Pat yourself on the back.

This is Allure flooring in ‘chocolate’, available exclusively at Home Depot. It is a combination of floating floor and peel ‘n stick tiles. You get a strip of three 1’x1′ vinyl tiles (so the strip is 1’x3’) with sticky tabs that interlock. It’s quite easy to work with, although getting tight joints is tough. I’d give my results a 9 out of 10. To cut, just score deeply with a utility knife, bend, and snap (like drywall, only tougher). So, it’s a really easy product to work with and produces results very quickly.

Step 8: Reinstall the trim you saved and the little threshold thingie that creates a joint between the hardwood and the vinyl.

Don’t they look nice together?!

Left to do in this room is to rip out the carpet on the upper portion of the floor and then finish up the trim. I wanted to wait until the desk was in before doing the final touch ups. Plus, by the time the floor was in it was 3:30 and I was exhausted!

Tomorrow, I’m going back there to look for desk materials so I can finish up this project. I stopped off at Ikea on the way home (literally on the way) and was reminded that I hate to shop there. So, hopefully the Home Depot will have the necessary materials to build a nice desk area.

I stacked the two mattresses on the left side and discovered that the ‘sofa’ is going to be pretty high up off the floor. I’ll live with it that way since I don’t want to get rid of the second mattress at this time.

Today’s mileage: Another 30km!

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Reading. More Reading. Yet More Reading.

Tomorrow will be my first full day all alone with Miranda.

I’ve been reading a lot this week.

Miranda’s various manuals have proven invaluable in making me feel that I can learn her systems on my own, without anyone to help me. The Ford manuals (and, incidentally, I can’t believe I own a Ford), has schematics of the electrical set up which will aid me in installing the backup camera monitor.

Also, I purchased the following two books on Amazon:

Managing 12 Volts: How to Upgrade, Operate, and Troubleshoot 12 Volt Electrical Systems

and

RV Repair and Maintenance Manual: Updated and Expanded (RV Repair and Maintenance Manual)

Neither is the sort of book you want to curl up in bed with (unless you want to be put to sleep!), but they are very informative and will be helpful tomorrow as I start to make modifications to my coach. The language used in both tomes is precise, but doesn’t fall into ‘technobabble.’

Unfortunately, ‘they’re’ calling for rain all weekend, so I probably won’t be able to install my back up camera. I will try to do the inside work, though, and will then focus on getting the study set up.

I plan to spend about an hour with Miranda at the storage place, unloading more boxes, securing what’s been unloaded, trying out the awning, and making sure I know where various components like the water heater and furnace are. Then, we’re off to Home Depot and then possibly Ikea and Lee Valley. I made a list of what I want at the latter and their prices, so that I can compare products at the Home Depot.

Tomorrow’s ‘I hope I can do all this!’ list:

-Properly install Majel (the GPS unit);
-Wire the backup camera monitor into Miranda’s 12V system;
-Remove both beds from the bedroom;
-Remove the carpet from the bedroom;
-Install Allure flooring in the bedroom;
-Reinstall the left-side bed

I doubt I’ll get to the desk, so I’ll probably have to go back to Miranda on Sunday. Since spending the night at the storage place isn’t an option, driving home and back is a more cost-effective plan than would be going to a campground. That’s for next weekend!

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Decisions, Decisions

I went back to the storage place last night with a friend so I could show off Miranda and also get her opinion on which bed to rip out and replace with a desk. My friend also wound up hauling boxes, but that was not my intent for bringing down there, LOL!

So, I wanted to rip out the bed on the left. The bedroom isn’t symmetrical and the left side has a wider wall. I felt that I could tuck both a desk and a chair away and have them not be visible from the kitchen.

Also, the right-side bed has a drop down table, so I felt that it was conveniently set up for use as a couch, even if the electrical plug and heater are on that side.

The previous owner told me that, having lived in the coach for six months, she felt that the right-side bed should be the one to go, pointing out the wider wall and the electrical outlet. I didn’t find her arguments convincing.

My friend also suggested I take out the right-side bed, telling me that I won’t have guests often, but when I do, the wider wall of the left side will make a sort of alcove that will offer much needed privacy in such a small space.

That settled it.

Another decision to make is where to put the litter box. I am seriously considering giving up the space under the ‘sofa’ and dedicating it to the cat box. I had hoped to be able to put the box in the basement, but there are no convenient places in which to do so. My other option is to put it in the storage space below the wardrobe, but that would require removing a door. I think that making a discreet hole in the base of the ‘sofa’ makes more sense. The final option was to put the box in the cockpit, either between the two seats or at the foot of the passenger seat, but that area is carpeted and will remain carpeted, so I don’t feel that’s a good idea.

I had hoped to be able to remove one of the lounge chairs and the bar at some point to replace them with a credenza/bookcase. The chairs are bolted down and I couldn’t immediately see a way to remove them, so I might have to live with them.

Then, I discovered that the material covering the chairs and dinette benches also covers the ceiling of the cockpit. I’ve decided that I therefore have to live with this material. That said, I still want to remove as much of the sage green curtains as I can (I used to love that colour, but now I just see my cubicle!!!) and play up the other colours in the fabric–there’s blue, pink, gold, and peach, so I know I’ll be able to do do something I can live with. I’m also pretty sure I’ll need to replace the mini blinds at some point since Tabitha and Neelix will surely destroy them.

Finally, I feel that the space above the fridge was poorly designed, so I’m going to spring for a cabinet for up there. I’ll be unable to match Miranda’s woodwork, so I think I’ll go for open shelves and use the space for books.

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First Purchases for Miranda!

I had a lovely time in upstate New York yesterday and picked up a few items for my RV (ignore all prices on the websites, I only picked up stuff on sale!!!):

–Garmin Nuvi 260 GPS (how, praytell, have I traveled all this time without a GPS?!);

–APS 750V battery back-up system (UPS) and surge protector, for my computer set up of course;

–Black & Decker Pet Series hand vac, which they claim is specifically engineered to pick up pet hair (the reviews support this);

–Corelle Sandstone dinnerware–I decided after a lot of hemming and hawing to get a plain colour because the RV was going to look ‘busy’ enough;

–Stanley Stud Sensor, because I want to make as few holes as possible in my coach (and got quite the lesson in the mobile house);

–collapsible over the sink strainer;

–collapsible measuring cups (and matching spoons);

and, finally, let’s not forget my

–Wonder Wash, which was a gift.

The trip was well worth the time and gas I expended… especially since gas is so much cheaper in the US. When I bought two gallons worth at the last gas station before the border, the attendant took my ten bucks and laughed, saying that it’s easy to spot Canadians these days–they’re the ones topping off their almost full tanks before going home!