Saturday, April 16, 2011

The damage!

I had better quit while I am still in one piece and before  the Jeep lovers of the world come to hunt me down for trashing on their beloved vehicles.   I am sure that every manufacture of automobiles has some models that they would have rather not produced.  And Jeep has some very reliable models as well.

Yesterday was the day that the insurance adjuster and I finally went over to the motorhome to see just how bad the damage was on the coach.  And it is not nice.  The big sky light over the shower stall, is shattered.  The skylight is made with an inner glass and an outer dome.  The outer dome is in tatters.  The inner glass seems to still be in tact, but we decided that water should not be allowed to enter into the well between the glass parts. Rain was forecast.

So last night as it was turning all dark outside and the big drops of rain began to splat on the roof of the coach, I went up with a tarp and two large lengths of rope.  Usually I don't do the roof of the coach, but in this case I had to relinquish and climb up there.  After spreading the tarp out and climbing back down to secure the ropes, the wind blew the tarp off in my face!  I was by myself over at the storage place and there wasn't a helper anywhere to be found.

OoooK, well then, it was back up to the roof again.  This time before I went up, I tied the up wind line onto the bin door on that side of the coach guessing about the right length.  It began to rain in earnest now.  So back up to the roof, and spread it out.  Then almost running back down to the ground to get the second rope secure, and go tighten up the first rope again.  Then the wind blew the whole thing backwards...... the rain began to pour more.......  Back up on the roof again after tying the third rope loosely.  And respread the tarp over the damaged dome.  This time I managed to get down and tie off the last rope and secure the whole thing before the wind came back.

By now I was soaked from head to foot, and the coach looked like it had a big bandage on it.  I drove home again, as it was now dark and very wet, and the weather man had predicted more hail.  We didn't get it.

Also we lost the fantastic fan in the bathroom too, and I managed to get the tarp over it as well.  We will need to remake all seven of the bin doors on the drivers side of the coach, and that will have to be done in Red Bay, Alabama.  Glad I got that appointment last winter.  I didn't even dream that we would have this kind of a problem when I made it.

Tonight we are back down at our lake place for the weekend, and it is cooool and rainy here as well, but the grandkids and their parents are here as well so we should find something fun to do in the next two days.

Retired Rod

6 comments:

  1. Wow you had some damage, next time take a skinny guy with you, your lucky you did't have a heart attack making three trips up that ladder. Glad to here the insurance will cover all the damage, be safe out there. Sam & Donna..

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  2. Thank God for Tarp's!! Glad you got it covered up in time... Red Bay and Mr Tifin, here we come! I'm worried about our summer in the Black Hill's. It hail's a lot up there and it has came OH, SO CLOSE a few times the last several year's... I just know were gona get it one of these times...Last time was in 1995... It really got my brand new truck... I hate that HAIL,,,,,Good luck on the repairs...

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  3. Hey Rod, are you nuts or something? Climbing up onto the roof of your coach in the rain and dark to put a tarp on isn't a job for us older guys!!

    I'm just glad the 'damage' you spoke of, although bad and nasty, wasn't to your skull, back or other body parts.

    Apart from that, good job and well done!!

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  4. Man this sounds like the days I've been having! I'm glad you didn't get hurt while putting up that tarp. Hopefully all of the damage gets repaired quickly.

    Good luck,
    Erik

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  5. Your skylight sounds just like the one I had broken by hail on my RV.
    I went to buy one at the RV store here, and he was honest enough to tell me that I could get exactly the same size and quality from Lowes, and awful lot cheaper. So that is what I did.

    Now as for going up the ladder to the roof to install the skylight. I must have the ladder sticking up above the roof, so that I can use the top as a hand hold to get on and off the roof.
    But then, I am older than most of you.

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