After our trip to Tombstone today, I had unexpected repairs to make on the Goose. I found water has dripped into a cargo compartment onto a GFCI outlet, which explains why the GFCI breaker has been popping (I think). The outlet is underneath where the kitchen sink is, so I looked under the sink (think circus contortions) for leaks. No leaks where the power goes through the floor, but found that some of the sink piping was leaking because it was incorrectly sized and installed.
Off to Ace Hardware for plumbing bits, then repair the sink (more contortions). Debbi helped by holding the piping while I sawed it to length, then I set it in place. I’ll have to get on the roof to see if a clogged gutter is letting air conditioning condensate drip down the side of the Goose and into the cargo compartment. Oh well, back to dumping black and gray tanks, which was interrupted by the GFCI thing.
While using the macerator to pump the tanks, I noticed a connector smoking. Turned off the pump and prepared to replace the connector. However, I could not find any indication of which fuse controls the macerator. Plan B was to have Debbi watch me while I pierced the wiring on either side of the connector with the pins of my electrical meter to ensure there was no power in the wire. That worked. No power in the wire, and the macerator power switch was not leaking current.
I then spliced in a jumper to replace the melted connector. Think circus contortions again in the compartment where the macerator lives. Oh, and I’m doing this in the dark, so Debbi is holding a flashlight for me. One of the butt connectors failed the pull test, twice. Finally got a good connection and pumped the tanks with no smoke. Yay! Tape the butt connectors (more contortions) and clean up.
So, blessings. This all happened in a place where plumbing bits can be obtained (Benson AZ), I didn’t get electrocuted, and I fixed the problems. It’s good to be handy.
