Short Visit to Red Bay

We always love coming to Red Bay.  Everytime we come here it is worth every penny and we leave knowing that we got some things fixed and usually enjoy our time here.

We started off staying Sunday night at Brannon Hutcheson's Custom RV shop in Vina.  It was a quiet

 night and we were able to get started first thing on Monday morning.  Here's what we had on our Fix List:

• Bathroom hallway ceiling fan 
• Trouble shoot rope lights inside slide out above trim on Driver Side (DS) 
• Check chassis batteries
• Repair leak in clear water tank near drain spout (as a result of my attempt at repairing it months ago)
• Touch up wood near shower, bathroom back splash and floor corner round trim piece in bathroom
• Replace bolt in slideout that sheared off when we were getting ready to drive it into position in the bay at Brannon's (talk about great timing!)

We were prepared to purchase a new fan but Brannon worked with it and sprayed some silicon on the mechanism on the roof and it works perfectly now.  We have been without the rope light working a couple of months and he fixed it in 15 minutes.  The water leak in the clear tank is really a drip and it has been there over a year.  He fixed it in 30 minutes.  

The moisture and steam in the bathroom and shower area has affected some of the wood and trim paneling.  Brannon used a spray treatment that made it look great and it was fixed in a couple of minutes.

The chassis batteries checked out fine so no need for new ones.  The slide out would not retract because of the sheared bolt.  Glad it happened where we could get it fixed right away.  It took Brannon about 15 minutes to drill a slightly larger hole and use a more sturdy bolt to fix it.  

Total price of $230 was very fair and a less than I thought it would be.  Plus Brannon does great work and does it quickly.  He doesn't lollygag around.  He gets on it and gets it done right.  If you haven't ever had work done by him, you should give him a try at Custom RV in Vina near Red Bay.  We've never been disappointed.

Later that morning we went to the Downtown RV Park in Red Bay where long time RV friends Steve and Karen were staying.  It was great to see them again and catch up.  Lots of stories and fun adventures to hear about.

Later that morning we went over to the Tiffin Parts store where my hubcap and middle insert screw attachment.  Last time we filled up I notice the Passenger Side rear hubcab was gone!  I ordered a replacement one and put it on in a few minutes.

We had a nice time chatting during an impromptu happy hour with Steve and Karen.  Those kind of evenings are some of the best times in the RV experience -- just hanging out with friends and hearing their stories and experiences and sharing ours.

This morning I got up motivated to clean out the main storage bay area.  I pulled everything out and vacuumed the inside, threw away some stuff and repacked it.  I stopped to chat with a new friend in the campground - Brent and Eileen (who are actually from our new home town of Green Cove Springs, FL).  I found out the entire side mirror on the DS need not be replaced.  It comes apart as the arm and the mirror.  Our arm is pitting and may need to be replaced in the future so I could save a few hundred bucks by just getting a new arm.

 While I was doing that Pam went for a long walk.  After she returned we went over to Bruce Deaton's Custom Paint and Body Shop.  Here Pam is talking with Melody Deaton and new friend Carleen.  We have been to Bruce's Shop many times and he is another one we have high regard for.

Next we went to a new restaurant downtown - Mason Jar on the Main.

Very friendly place and good food.  Here the owner (Sherri) and our server (Savannah) let me take their picture.

Next, we drove over to Burnsville, MS to see the Vanleigh RV 5th wheel factory.  Bob Tiffin is co-owner and chairman as well as mentor and strategic advisor to the company.

Grandson Leigh is the running the day-to-day operations and his father Van also works there a couple of days a week.  Van is also one of the main people involved at Tiffin Motorhomes along with Tim and another brother Lex.

With the Tiffin backing and reputation, I would bet this startup will do well.

When we returned to the campground Steve was replacing the anode rod on the water heater.  Yearly maintenance cuts down on the rust inside, helps extend the life of the water heater and helps it run more efficiently.  It has been far too long since we replaced ours and we were overdue.  Years ago we bought a 1 1/16" socket (what an odd size) just for this purpose.

Draining it became a bit of a mess but the water ran off the concrete pad and down the back pretty easily.  Meanwhile it was a bit of a shock to see how overdue we were on the replacement.

Here is a look at our old one compared to Steve's.  As Karen said, "Not much chicken on that bone!" It is really a simple maintenance item so we'll be staying on top of that one from now on!

Next it was time for some social / happy hour time.

We were joined by neighbors Bob and Jan and Carleen.  All full-timers, it was fun to meet them and to hear about what's going on.  Bob and Jan are going over to Sherman RV in Tupelo MS to pick up their brand new 2017 Allegro Bus!  Carleen is in town for some paint work at Bruce Deatons.

Steve, Karen, Pam and I walked over to Jack's for dinner and enjoyed it as well as pleasant spring evening in Red Bay!

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!