Dewinterizing......

Oh what a beautiful Sunday it was here in North Carolina.  Trisha and I made a quick trip to Lowes for a few things Sunday afternoon.  I fixed lunch, and after lunch we discovered that State beat Carolina in the ACC Tournament.  (I know, it was Florida State and not NC State, but hey, when it comes to the Tarheels, State is State.)  

It was such a nice afternoon, we decided to go out and dewinterize the  the r-pod to get ready for our trip this coming weekend.  First thing to do was to replace the anode rod in the water heater.  Below is a picture of the old rod after two seasons of use, and the new rod.

Next, wrap the threads of the new rod with teflon tape.

Next, install the new anode rod.  Here's a picture of where it is be installed.  

Next, after the new anode rod is installed.

Of course, Jackson was helping me every step of the way.

I think he was even supervising at one point!

Next it was inside to prop up the bed and turn off the water heater by-pass valves so the water heater would function properly.  I took a couple of pictures but they really didn't show much.  Next, I hooked up the water hose and proceeded to flush out all the RV anti-freeze from the water lines.

This process doesn't really take all that long, but our neighbors and their little boy were outside too, so they came over to see Jackson and just visit for awhile which was nice.

The only real tools I used were a ratchet and 1-1/16 inch socket.  Below is a picture of them.

So at this point, I want to wash the pod one afternoon this week.  Just buy our groceries, pack our clothes, load a few things out of the shop into the truck and we are all ready to begin the 2012 camping season!  Check back this week for one more post before our first trip.  Until then, stay safe out there.....-R,T,&J.