update/diesel to veg. conversion/purchase issues

[deborah12060]

Hi Guys,

Thank you all for your input about the out of state purchase. The feedback was helpful and supportive. I"d like still more feedback and to clarify things. I understand if you are getting a little fatigued with all of this.

My needs:
I will be moving and need a vehicle that can tow a throughbred (meaning tall) three or four horse trailer with tack room.
This rules out Class C diesel motorhomes, which, is what I like, meaning, short and, bunk over the cab. The diesel sprinters and Mercedes diesels are too weak for what I need and, too expensive. I need a work horse.

I want diesel because I am also going to be doing a conversion so that I can either drive on diesel or veggie oil. That conversion costs about $5,000 (because I want a hundred gallon holding tank for the veggie oil and, need a second holding tank for the filtering of same it is twice the cost). That tank size will allow be to just about get anywhere I need to go on an initial fuel up. Also, it will allow me to refill at most any place that is willing to give me waste cooking oil.

I have little money to spend, maybe up to thirty thousand cash. I care little about the interior of the cab save for
operative toilet, cooking burners, heat, air, refrig. apt. size. I'm taking the furniture out anyway to make accommodations for my dogs and myself. My interior basically will be floor space and a bed for me with the cab bunk for the couple cats.

Current consideration:
The 1996 Ford F450 Powerstroke is considered an "older diesel". The model first came out in 1995. It's a simple engine which is good. It is not considered one of the "newer" Ford diesels, according to what I researched today given some feedback (very appreciated) from the group yesterday.

I have no current deposit for the vehicle and am giving none. I am paying for two separate places to evaluate the rig.
They are independent and have no relationship with the owner. One place evaluates the living aspect and a cursory look at the engines etc. They will see what they can do about the broken generator but, probably I won't have a definite answer on that because it will probably have to be sent to Onan for that assessment. The second place works on big truck diesels and will pull out my engine and put it through all the performance tests. Also, they will evaluate the brakes and tires. At least one company that does warranties recognizes their assessments. I have no hope of any-place giving me a warranty on the motor home interior aspects. Twelve years old, not a prayer. The engine, however, being only 75,000 miles is considered at "the sweet spot" of large truck diesel engine life, "just broken in".
There is no consideration on my part of doing a warranty through any dealership (have yet to learn anything thorough on warranties. Thanks to the group feedback I will get the emergency road service for motorhomes through SAM's club but I don't qualify for any of their warranties, having missed that by three years of age). The place which is assessing the motor home aspects is willing to take the rig to the engine place for their assessment. Also, they are willing to interface with the man in Austin, Tx. who will do the conversion, taking pictures of the bottom once it's on the lift. They will also send me pictures of the total interior, which, the owner was very grumpy about doing, figuring the pictures he sent were sufficient.

The rig is faded, of course black paint, stored outside would fade fast. I'm only visually offended by this, distracted.
My practical side is focusing on the work horse aspect knowing I really can't afford too much on aesthetics. Given what I can afford, I am probably lucky and will have to get something visually compromised anyway. The pictures of the kitchen, bath and cab look very good. The color of the rug sucks, but, I don't want carpet anyway and would be pulling that out in any case. Carpet is filthy in my mind and not dog friendly. The cab looks very clean as well as the walls and ceiling of the interior or it and the living area. It's a color, blue gray, that I can live with.

What to do when:
First I have to see if the rig is worth the pathetic thirteen thousand I would be paying for it. I expect to put that much again into retrofitting the rig for all of my horse and personal needs, including the vegy conversion option. The con-version option people in Austin have a three week wait and, then it takes five days for the conversion. So, I think the thing to do, if the rig passing inspection, is just, get it home on the trip, pay the gas cost (I bet around
700 to get from Mo to N.Y.) and work on the interior of the rig. and maybe get the horse trailer stuff put together.
Then, in the fall go down to Austin for the conversion and head to the Hill Country to look around while the rig. is being worked on. Now is not a good time at all to be gone from my home as I need to get my roof done and get the house on the market. It was so helpful to hear from you guys about the possibility of a six day temp. travel option on
the registration. Didn't know a thing about that.

As to the question in my original post about why the GPS, I find it very difficult to drive and look at maps near the same time. I even have a hard time with Trip Tiks from AAA, though I could maybe manage that but would prefer oral directions. Also, my understanding, though limited, is that when boondocking, the GPS is very helpful. Certainly I would have the Atlas or two plus maps just for back.

For anyone who has had the commitment and patience to hang in with me in this post, I thank you in advance. I am
scared these days, scared of spending money, scared of moving on in my life, etc., etc. I have some residual issues
both mental and physical of a past central nervous system infection, so processing information, retention, and other aspects of cognitive functioning are a big challenge.

Thanks so much,

Deborah
(DD)

[Birdie]

DD
I'll address my experience with GPS(s). I have no knowledge of the rest of the items that you are addressing. I recently replaced my Garmin Nuvi 760 with a Garmin 1490T. I had intended to replace it with a 1290, but Best Buy didn't have that model and I ended up with the 1490T. The 1490T is a Traffic model and that only helps if the city you are in has Traffic active - not many places do, but Austin and Dallas do and it makes it nice to know where the wreck that's holding up traffic is located. The 1490 is a 5" screen and the 1290 is a 3" screen (I typed 3 foot what a dream). I like the 5" when I am driving, but would prefer a 3" when walking around. This model has lane assist. That means it tells you to turn right or left and what the road name is that you turn on. You can have several way points. Garmin has a great comparison chart for their GPS. I have no experience with any of the other systems. I have had this about 2 months and I like it.

All GPS(s) must have a name. It is the law of women travelers . Mine is named Geraldine. Do you remember Flip Wilson and his 'Geraldine' routine? Well I am always telling Ms Geraldine it ain't happening the way she wants or when she starts saying recalculating I'll tell her to just be cool. But, know this, you must use common sense along with the GPS. Ms. Geraldine nearly put me in Juarez one fine day, but since I can read and the sign said Welcome to Mexico, I turned left immediately and she started recalculating, recalculating

Best of luck - all of your plans make me really tired just thinking of the work. But then since I retired, I want to play and not work.

[deborah12060]

Hi Birdie,

You are very sweet to reply and to be "tired" on my behalf. Me too. Thanks for the info. on the GPS. Yes, I promise I will name her. I like the ritual a lot.

DD

[carold]

Well, we do have a few "sweet" forum members Thanks for the info. You have certainly done a lot of research and thinking about how you want to travel. I'll just sit back and enjoy following your adventure while you do all the work carold

[retiredhappy]

Sounds like you've really done your research. As for looks of the rig, you can make any changes you want - I painted all my cabinets as I didn't like the orangey color of the stain. Also pulled my carpet out and put in vinyl - much better with dogs.

I'm curious - why will you be traveling with a horse? If you're going fulltime, will you be workamping? Nosy minds want to know.

[sharon]

DD, not to throw a monkey wrench in your plans, and hopefully you have researched this completely (and sounds like you're pretty good at this), and again I may be wrong, it's happened LOL! But not sure about getting used oil from restaurants...most restaurants sell their oil to company's that come and pick it up on a regular schedule. It's usually stored in 30 or 50 gal drums, and they just exchange the drums. Also it's usually stored in an area behind the restaurant that wouldn't be easily accessible for an RV. Is there a list somewhere of places that sell it to rv'ers? Is there a pump included in the conversion to pump it into the tank? I think bio-diesel is a great "green" way to go, but how long is it going to take you to realize any savings? Are you actually going to be doing that much traveling? Inquiring minds want to know! I read an article a while back that said that restaurants weren't giving used oil away anymore, that they realized they could make money on it. I have a friend in Nebraska that was deep into making bio-diesel out of soybeans, but he ended up losing money 'cause folks just weren't using it. He still makes tons of money selling his soybeans, tho. Good luck with this venture, sounds like a wild ride!

[deborah12060]

HI guys,

Thanks for the feedback.

Karen, I shelter animals. Have cut way back, haven't gotten any new animals the last five years in anticipation of the eventual move. As to the horses, I have two. I will not be traveling with them until I identify a place that I "think" I want to move to (at this point that's targeted as Kerrville, Tx). I'll go first on my own to find a place to plunk and do a look/see for a couple months. Then, I might come back to N.Y., get the horses and go back down and plunk longer, waiting for my farm to sell. I want to get out of the cold next winter, somewhere. Next winter, if the house hasn't sold then I might travel with the horses. Might as well ride. I'm so busy in the summer with mowing and gardening (my current place involves a huge amount of work) that I can hardly find time to ride easily. I will not be work camping. My
energy is really unpredictable and, frankly, I'm not very good material for much work. Lots of cognitive deficits and
mood swings. And, it seems very competitive.

Sharon, from my place to Austin is 1,600 miles each way. So, the look/see trip will be 3,200 miles and then to go back down next winter (assuming I like what I see on the look/see trip) will be an additional 3,400 miles. Then, when I
move after selling the farm, it will be a couple trips for the animals and then, a couple of trips with furniture, etc. so that will be another possible 6,000 miles. I do worry about the availability of oil. And, yes, I will be attempting to
get oil on the road, with the ability to do the initial straining into a tank on the back of the rig (cheesecloth) which will have a couple of filters and this will feed into a hundred gallon tank (custom configured) to the underside of the
rig. It's a messy business, this oil. But, at least it's not gas which I hate. Hate the smell, hate having to use it from a green point of view, hate my dependency on the cost. I did get a list off the net of people who sell the vegy oil
in many states. Now, what the cost is, how far out of the way they will be, I"ll have to see.

One of my goals here is to get as autonomous as possible. I will have a couple of solar panels on the rig. and then a couple on the horse trailer. I'll be putting a lot of money into batteries. While I want and will use a generator for
air conditioning, I would like to have that be to a minimum. It's all very difficult and challenging. It's not so easy to find people who actually install, for a reasonable price, these alternative systems. I don't know why, really. What ever happened to American no-how?

It would be nice to have a rig. to use in some fashion this summer locally. I use to love to load up my dogs and take off years ago. Such a sense of freedom. There are lots of places I'd like to go just here on the East coast this summer
and friends who like to come along. We'll just have to see how everything plays out. I must say, the thought of another project, after doing so much building here at the farm, first for an apartment for my mom (no longer here) and then the last year getting things more finished for the purposes of selling, is daunting. so, I"m just putting one foot in front of the other in hopes that I will get from A to B eventually.

The world is changing so fast. First the economy, now, again the economy with consideration to Greece and then
Europe with the Euro. Now, the oil eruption the likes of Old Faithful, I can hardly keep track of the places which might be good options in which to settle. I looked at the Gulf a couple years ago as a future home option. Man, wouldn't that have been awful to have put my eggs in that basket.

DD

[sharon]

Thanks for the info, DD. You're right, it's daunting. You shouldn't have any trouble getting the solar panels, that's pretty much old school. What you might have trouble with is finding a place to put the batteries. Wouldn't think you would need more than 4, so maybe it won't be to bad. If your needs are simple and you won't be using the heater much, 2 would probably do it. Depends on the weather and how cold blooded you are, how much tv you watch, etc. Good luck with your venture.

[retiredhappy]

What made you pick Kerrville? That's where I live in the winter. Be sure to check out the property taxes when you're looking at property there. Its cheaper if you stay out of city limits. I'm usually there Nov thru Mar. Let me know if that's when you might be in town.

[OutandAbout]

DD, instead of converting to veggie oil, how about natural gas? A lot of the larger trucks are capable of doing so. They are also having great results in Brazil using the natural gas for most vehicles. It's set up to be available at regular gas stations. Just a thought. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Linda

[deborah12060]

Hi Karen,

I was thinking Kerrville or Bandera, 15 to 20 acres, primarily because the two acres after the house would be ag exempt.
I would only buy ag exempt land. The elevation, rivers, lakes, deciduous trees, two cities to travel to to shoot up on culture (I now have N.Y> city and Boston), these are my considerations. Yesterday, I met a lady at a party who just got back from shooting pictures for ten days a month ago of the blue bonnets. She's a painter. She based herself in Fredricksburg (which I also had considered) but boy, she had nothing good to say at all. Spoke about lots of fat couples,
tourists galore and shops with cheap memorabilia. Got me a little scared Karen. Our aunt visited there a couple years ago and she didn't have that impression at all. This gal at the party didn't travel to very many other places, I guess
Lubbock and enchanted rock.

I live in a rural town now but have Berkshire County only twenty minutes away in Ma. There's lots going on culturally all summer. I don't mind tourist crowds. I like music and figure all the music focus in the Hill Country would be a good thing. But this lady at the party was very down on the places to eat, though she did go to one bar and she liked the music there.

Of course everyone's different. I've just to to go and check it out and spend some time. If this rig. I'm looking at works out Karen I'll be in Austin I think this summer and then for some length of time fall and/or Feb. Of course I will check in with you.

Linda, help me out here...isn't natural gas only for lighter vehicles? I looked into that just a little last fall and couldn't find a soul in my area (around Albany, N.Y.) who did that for heavy trucks or, usual motorhomes. Do you know anyone who is doing that? I'll go search on line tonight. I think, though, that vegy. oil will still be cheaper. I was reading
earlier today about inverters, batteries, solar panels. Ugh. Found out there are inverters for Onan generators. Who would have thought. Also did some reading about interference and computer stuff in rigs. Made me want to barf.
I'm really not good at tech stuff. Then tonight, my girlfriend, she worries about me driving a rig. i was too angry to ask her why that worried her. I've never had a car accident in my life. It kind of hit my confidence a bit. Not that that will have any staying power, just surprised me and disappointed me.

DD

[sharon]

Fat couples? What does that have to do with anything? Tourists? Anytime any one of us goes to see anything we're a tourist.

An inverter doesn't have any thing to do with the generator, it inverts 12V battery power to 110V a/c.

[JanetA]

just a thought from a native texan....(born and raised, ,lived most of my life)

Be prepared for CULTURE SHOCK,, BIG TIME! ! ! ! ! ! Small town texas,, and even south texas (san antonio,, austin, etc.) will be full of HICKS,, to you anyway! (being from back east,, where ppl are MUCH more sophisticated. Just saying...fact,, not trying to DOWN it here,, but,, as I just stated., BE PREPARED.

Fredericksburg (i live a little over an hr from there and have been there hundreds of times during the last few yrs) is a VERY touristy town that was described to you pretty acurately. The land prices there are OUTRAGEOUS and the taxes aren't far behind. Yes, it is only about an hrs drive to SA,, and the airport.. THAT is an upside. Kerrville is a bit more normal, but still expensive, property-wise.. but less "touristy" although it is a retirement mecca w/ hundreds of 'bluehairs' (as my cousin calls LOL's (little old ladies)). I could go on but I won't as I don't want you to think i am trying to talk you out of anything... just giving you my insight, as I KNOW it. Also,, be prepared for the summer months, starting in May to be hot, humid and pretty much unbearable out of doors until late october. Just Texas for ya. That's why I moved to Colorado not once, but 3 different times!.. oh I forgot the move to Montana,, which came before the moves to CO.

Any other wonderings, will be glad to answer as best I can. Also, in the country of texas,, there are stickers, snakes, biting bugs and loads and loads of cactus,,, but also beautiful live oak and pecan trees. A great place to be FROM, and I own 50 acres 72 miles of F'burg, which I inherited. NOt sure what I will do w/ it when M & D are gone. I've got the pasture leased now and the house rented. So far so good. It's income. I could turn it into cash, but not sure I will unless i really get strapped for cash . It's been in the fam since b4 1900.

Later and best of luck hunting and making that BIG decision. HOpe i've helped you see another side . I have lots more info on F'burg. Karen can tell you more about Kerrville.. but I DO have a cousin that lives there,, moved from Mason to get away from Family.


J typos and all!

[Bethers]

I don't think I like that term "hicks" and I LOVE the Hill Country of TX - Fredericksburg and Kerrville and much of that area. Yes, they attract tourists, but you don't intend to live right in town anyway. I realize you are from there Janet, but you're giving your area a bad name. Just surprised. That said, I'd agree on the taxes, etc - but again she won't be getting all those acres in town. I don't know, however, if you'll be able to get a deal there - TX has been holding pretty good even with the recession.

[AlmostThere]

I can understand what Janet is referring to. You can end up with very different impressions about a place when "just visiting" as opposed to "living there" for a lengthy time.