Like most homes, there are alway repairs and maintenance to be done in order to keep everything up to scratch, some of which we do ourselves and the rest we leave to those who know what they are doing and who also have the tools and equipment required to get the job done. The van went in to Kaitaia Tractors last Wednesday to have the bushes replaced on the anti sway bar, as well, they had to fix and reweld into place one of the airbag supports on one side at the rear, then refit the airbag and test it. The handbrake needed a tighten/adjustment and as well, we had them spray the underside of the van with anti rust gunk – that’s the technical name for the stuff – preventive maintenance, as we spend such a lot of our time near beaches and salt laden air that we thought this was a good idea. Once all the work was completed, we were advised not to travel on dusty roads for a day or so to allow the gunk to harden properly which meant a stay at the Kaitaia RSA for a night or two.
After a couple or so days in Kaitaia we were more than ready to head back out to Matai Bay to the relative peace and quiet of the DoC camp, with a little bit of fishing thrown in the mix as well. But first more wee chores to be done, you know all those silly little things that are annoying but you never quite get round to attending to them. The jobs that are designated to Ron, as in later-on! Things like attach some magnetic catches to the cupboard doors above the drivers and passenger seats. These doors have never closed tightly, and as I had found some really good magnetic catches in Kaitaia it was time to sort it out. Roy set about screwing the catches in place, but of course it was never going to be that simple. For a start the doors lift up to open and of course do not open straight out, they angle down slightly which meant in order to access the inside of the doors you have to twist yourself into awkward contortionist-like positions to use the drill ….then just as he was starting the job, the drill bit broke, cue colourful language! After much muttering, dropping of tools, bits and screws, more colourful language, the doors now close tightly so no more bits flying out of cupboards on bumpy roads! Another quick fix was to tidy up all the plugs and cords by attaching a multiplug to the wall out of the way.
Next we had a blown bulb in one of the brake lights which meant removal of the brake and reversing light cover, again not a simple job as one screw remained stubbornly in place and needed a special bit to drill it out. Again, a bit of muttering ensued before replacing the offending bulb, test and reattach the covers. Then there was the task of reattaching the small handle on the door opening for the fly screen door. But first a clean up and removal of old glue before replacing the handle and hope it stays in place.
On our recent CoF of the van, it was pointed out to us that the running lights at the rear side of the van were the wrong colour…..the rest of the lights covers down the side of the van are amber coloured, but the ones at the very back were red. In nearly 5 years and 10 vehicle checks since we have had the van this had never been mentioned before, apparently no red lights should be visible from the front of the vehicle. Where were we to source such things? after checking a few auto supply shops we resorted to doing a quick internet search which resulted in two new lens covers ordered and delivered within a week, these were easily replaced.
Roy got up on the roof of the van to check and clean the solar panels. There have been a large number of birds leaving their calling cards on the windows and sides of the van so we thought they may have also been on the roof, but no, their aim is obviously for vertical surfaces rather than the horizontal. All we need to do now is give the van a good clean which we managed to do this morning in between rain showers utilising the rain to wash off the last of the dirt and dust. A polish will be next on the agenda but that can wait until we get to Shakespear.
Numerous other ’round-to-it’ jobs have been done, and even some fishing has been fitted in to the busy schedule. The last piece of R&M to be done is on Roy – he broke a tooth so off to the dentist this week!
The Vanninis' Manoeuvres 