An Old Project Continued, part 1

 It's been much longer than I expected but I have finally gotten around to working on the electrical rebuild of the Beaver, my ancient RV.  It was back in December of 2017 I started implementing a plan to upgrade the electrical system. I bought books, I studied, I ordered parts, I jumped in.  Then it got too cold and other projects seemed more important so I let it go. I figured it was a good enough start.

But after the evacuation I realized that I need to get this done so that I throw things in the the Beaver and leave it I needed to.

I started reacquainting myself with what I had done. Jesus, I've forgotten so much of it that it scares me! Early onset dementia?

I needed to make some changes but I'm moving forward with the idea of separating the chassis (starter) batteries and the house batteries. At this point I have two chassis batteries separated by a switch using starter type batteries - not deep-cell. I have one deep-cell battery for the house load but will probably add another at some point.

I need to hack into the existing system, keep the parts that work and remove the parts that don't. The main access point is in the kitchen area above the sink (above) and consists of the 120VAC entry and the 120 to 12V converter with a switch that toggles the battery and the converter to the 12V loads consisting of lights, water pump, etc.

I'm taking it slow but steady, adding parts daily.

A Funny Thing Happened

 It crowed. 

It (Lucky D. Clucky) was supposed to be a she, but it is a he. Ahhh well ...

I don't mind really. It was never so much about the eggs. And because I don't kill animals, definitely not about the meat. It was about communing with the endless variations of fauna in the world.  But poor Lucky has fallen on troubling times. 

I had four chickens that I raised in my living room from chicks, then I gave one away. (It was a contractual obligation). The three left seemed to be getting along when the fire happened. We were evacuated. The starkly quiet neighborhoods brought out the predators and because I wasn't able to lock them in at night, two of them were sacrificed to the roving predator fauna. It made me very sad. Poor Lucky somehow escaped, but not unscathed. He was very freaked out so I brought him in from his outside pen in the middle of the night a few weeks ago when I heard him sounding distressed and stuck him in my living room where I have trained him to jump through the window (I have since built stairs). In at dusk, out in the morning. He seems to be okay but I don't know if he feels loneliness or not. He gets along great with the dog, the cat, and the rabbit and sometimes just hangs out with the rabbit, napping close by from time to time.

I'm not sure what the future holds for Lucky. I'd be happy for him to sleep in my living room (in his cage) as long as he doesn't bother the neighbors with his crowing, which until now is minimal. Updates to come.

Another book down. The Quants.

 I just finished this one.

Really fascinating story well written.