Tanks, Tanks and More Tanks!

Well...it is a new day. We still have not heard from our contractor. He is sometimes difficult to get ahold of, so Dave left messages at all three numbers for him today. He might even be gone for the weekend.

Dave had to work today, but he got the water tanks refilled before he left. I will still need to dump the black water later. I am hoping to wait until he gets home so that we can flush the tank at the same time. When he turns the water on later, we will all need to take showers, too. Somehow, this weekend I need to get his work shirts washed. I hate leaving the water on for the washing machine. It is leaking too much for that.

We ran out of propane this morning in the small external tank. The other small tank is not filled, yet. We have two. Usually we keep the second one filled, too, as a back up; but we had decided to use up the propane in the rig tank. After work, Dave will switch us over to that much bigger tank. He thinks that will probably last us through most of the summer. At some point, we do plan on refilling at least one, if not both, of the small external tanks, too. It is always good to have a backup. You just never know when something might happen.

It was while I was bringing the water for our hot cereal up to a boil this morning that the propane ran out. We figured it would happen soon. Thankfully, I also have an electric hot plate. So, I used that to make our chocolate Malt-o-Meal! We also have an electric roaster that we were blessed with by another family, plus our microwave/convection oven. So, we are not without cooking resources.

Thankfully, we had to replace our water heater while we were staying at the RV park before we moved onto our land. We now have one that is dual. It runs on both electricity and propane. The electric keeps it hot. If we use it to the degree that the electric cannot keep up...the propane kicks in, too. This REALLY helps a lot to make our showers last a wee bit longer. It helps a lot in this situation, too. When we are out of propane, the electric still heats. And if we lose power, the propane still heats. Either way, we have hot water! Yay!

So, today we still have a water leak and are using our water storage tanks. We have no propane, either, but that is temporary until Dave gets home tonight and switches over. It is cold outside, but warm inside. Our son is still sick...but feeling much better overall. Life goes on...and we will fall into its rhythm. Hopefully, the spring and summer will bring enough dry weather on the right days for us to get some things done.

From our Little RV on the Hillside to wherever you live, we wish you blessings and Yahweh's Shalom.

More on Heating!

Anonymous said...

just so know know, it is a pit dangerus the propane can make you sick. we used to do that years agao when our church met behind the postoffice. My sunday school would turn on the oven to get the kitchen. where we met to get warm. Many of us got sick. I hope you dont get sick

That is a good point! I meant to mention in my blog that using the stove is only an emergency backup. Plus, we would never do it for more than a few minutes at a time and never while sleeping. In other words, no longer than it would be on if we were cooking anyway.

Plus, we bought a Buddy Heater. It is a propane heater that is made to be used indoors. That way, if our power were to go out in winter, we could use that for heat rather than the stove...and with proper ventilation!

Thank you for bringing this up, since I forgot to!

Heating!

I don't remember if I have shared how we work out our heating yet. If I have, oh well, just skip over this part. *smile*

We have a built in forced air propane heater. However, it is very old (1984) and a tad noisy. Well...when you are sleeping with your head just on the other side of the cabinet wall that houses the thing...it is VERY noisy! We are not sure how much it was used before us and we don't know how much life it has left. So, we use it more for backup or when we really need to get things warmed up in a hurry.

It is a wierd heater. When you turn it down, it does not go off. Well, the heater goes off, but you cannot turn off the fan. Nope...no way. Even if you turn the heater to the off position, it will not turn the fan off. I guess it is a safety feature. The fan will blow cold air off and on until it is satisfied that the heating unit is cooled off enough. Talk about efficient! NOT! So, for a variety of reasons, we don't use it much.

So, what do we use? I am so glad you asked! LOL We actually have one of those oil heaters that looks almost like the old radiator style. And yes, it does take up room. But it is less expensive and quieter. Except that we also run a small fan behind it. That can get a bit noisy, but it is not too bad. We blow the air through the fins of the heater and circulate it around the RV. That makes it a lot more efficient and less expensive since the heater is not trying to heat the whole rig from one place. It is just inside the door in our little "kitchen" area.

In the bathroom, we have one of those little ceramic style heaters. It has a high and low power setting. We have to leave it on the lower setting or else it trips the breaker. The oil one is on an extension cord running from the outside, so it is not running through the RV power source at all. The little one catches up when the big one is turned a bit too low, or when it cannot keep up for some reason. It also gives a bit of warmth in the bathroom since the air does not get into there as easily at the back of the RV. Nice for when you are taking a shower!

Ah yes...showers...another subject for another post!

So, there you have it...how we heat. Our stove is also a good backup heater. Those propane burners put out a lot of heat. Boy do they put out heat! We especially notice it in the summer! But that, too, is another post!

From our Little RV on the Hillside, we hope that everyone is having a good day today. May your face always be in gentle breezes and may your back always be warmed by the sun, as your heart and spirit are warmed by the Son, Yeshua!