TM's apparently DO NOT like dirt roads

[ShrimpBurrito]

If you've been following the GFI thread, you know we just got back from a trip to the Grand Canyon. It was fabulous. A really incredible trip. We camped at the South Rim "Trailer Village" (aka parking lot) the night before we hiked down to the river, where we stayed 2 nights. After returning to the rim, we pulled up stakes and made the 4.5 hour trek to the North Rim, which was basically abandoned. We literally saw about 2 dozen people there the 3 days we were there (including the rangers), and we went to the visitor's center, some overlooks, etc.

The North Rim campground is a far cry from Trailer Village, and we essentially had the whole place to ourselves. Something like 85 sites (no hookups), and there was only 1 other out-of-view group there the first night. We went out and about the second day, and upon our return, the tent campers were gone (so now 84 of the 85 sites are open), but much to our surprise, we saw the 2 sites IMMEDIATELY NEXT TO US now occupied. I was dumbfounded. The icing on the cake was when one of them flipped on their generator at about 8am the next morning. Unbelievable. I should have expected that when they had every light in their 5th wheel on (even the one in the storage compartment) while everyone was outside around the fire.

We then headed up the Utah to do some hiking, and then made our way back home to the LA area.

But the point of this post is to tell our experience with the TM. It was not pretty. While it was still way more comfortable than sleeping on the ground while it's 20 degrees out, the TM gods were not looking out for us by any means. It started before we left home....

1) The TM kept tripping the GFI breaker. Thought it was maybe because I had just washed it, hoping it would dry out within the day or two until we expected to use hookups. No dice. As backup, I took along my 3-stage charger to keep us afloat. I still haven't figured it out.

2) The water pump died. Spent about an hour trouble shooting the obvious, which isn't real easy because the pump, water tank, and heater are all under the sink, and then gave up and we used water out of a 5-gallon jug. Amazingly, we used WAY less water this way vs. coming out of the sink. While we MAYBE used a 1/2 gallon to wash dishes with the jug, we easily use 2-3 gallons per meal when using the sink.

3) On our way to Utah, we had to make an 22-mile roundtrip on a dirt road, with a fair amount of washboarding and some desert washes. I wouldn't really call it off-roading though as we have a 2WD vehicle with running boards, so our clearance isn't particularly high. This is where the fun really began. First thing I noticed was the sewer hose flailing about like a newborn chicken in my side mirror. We lost a bumper end cap, and almost lost the sewer hose. I hiked back about 1/2 mile to find it, but had no luck. We ended up rubber-banding some plastic bags over the bumper to keep the hose till we passed by an RV shop where we bought a new one.

4) The dining table pulled out of the wall. The holes stripped. After we got home, I ended up jamming some epoxied bamboo skewers to rebuild the holes, but this method doesn't work nearly as well with aluminum sandwiched foam as it does in wood. The screw, finding the path of least resistance, pushes through the bamboo, and then wiggles out of the bamboo to the foam. But it will hold for now.

5) You know those 4 black spring-loaded latches that hold down the shells? I lost a bolt. No biggie. Just one more thing.

6) The oven fell out. Exciting, eh? Not all the way, but the side furthest from the door pulled completely out from the cabinet, and that side of the oven/stove dropped down about 2 inches....which bent the hinge to the cabinet door beneath it, preventing it from closing. A metal bracket to the range also fell out....I think the whole oven/stove is in there by less than 6 one-inch screws.

7) My personal favorite: the toilet leaked. INSIDE the TM. It was about 2/3 full. Very smelly. Not a ton of leakage, but it doesn't take much to make the place a stink bomb. And as I laid in bed, right next to the bathroom, it seemed that all I could smell was a cesspool. A bit of exaggeration, but there was definitely a lingering odor. You knew something bad happened when you opened the door. Yes, I put plastic wrap on the toilet. Stretch-tite, even -- better than Saran Wrap. That perhaps make it worse. The waste jumped up onto the plastic, where it then made its way to the side and dripped down the outside of the toilet. It also leaked out the back, where the main housing seal was improperly seated. My fault -- although I wouldn't have had the seal off in the first place if the vinyl skirt wasn't giving me such issues. The waste made the linoleum around the toilet curl, which popped out the moulding. Of course, that means it also made its way onto the plywood. So I've pulled up the toilet, washed everything up, and laid down a bleach solution onto the wood. Hopefully that will get rid of the stench and prevent growth of mold, maggots, or anything else as foul. I hate bugs.

I'd say my relationship with the Thetford is now love/hate. I love the lightweight and lack of water use, but the vinyl skirt and the inherent design flaw of having 6 gallons of sewage above the floor are issues I'd rather do without. I searched briefly for another company that made a recirculating toilet, but came up short. I would imagine that you can still recirculate from a black tank beneath the floor. And I cannot believe that all Thetford could come up with was a vinyl skirt is beyond me. How about a spring loaded stainless or plastic flap? And the screen cone isn't even attached to the bottom of the toilet. This makes 2 problems: 1) it allows bits of TP and solid waste to sometimes go outside the cone, where it is recirculated, and 2) it prevents the TP and bits of solid waste outside the cone from being drained when you open the valve.

Ok, I'm off my soapbox.

Dave