Sublime to the Ridiculous

[marchie]

In France for the final visit prior to selling our hovel on 9th September. The country is beginning to stagger back into normality after the August holiday shutdown, so we have quite a lot of free time between visits to the dechetterie and the Charity Shop to offload stuff that is too big to bring back to Scotland. To pass the time, I paid off the Motorhome borrowing on Friday morning, 44 months ahead of the 84 months original schedule, and felt quite chuffed

Then the Emmaus Charity Lorry arrived to collect the furniture [only date available before we complete the property sale]. 2 hours later, we were sat in the lounge on a pair of plastic patio chairs, without a table or a bed, like a pair of waifs and strays ... Our neighbour took pity on us and brought round his picnic table ['remember to bring it back!]

The neighbour has a spare field at the side of his vegetable garden and suggested that we use this to park the Motorhome, for sleeping! So, just before dark, we gather up the pills and lotions and other odds 'n' ends needed to get us through the night, before returning to the hovel and the plastic chairs for breakfast etc. The only inconvenience [every pun intended] is that the journey to the house to empty the cassette is around 500 metres, causing amusement for the neighbours ... 2 nights down, 16 to go ...

Steve

 

[Burge]

Nice and Quiet there mate you should sleep well

 

[wildebus]

And remember ... you won't see the neighbour once you are sold up .... so sell his picnic table as well!

 

[marchie]

And remember ... you won't see the neighbour once you are sold up .... so sell his picnic table as well!

Not only is Dominic giving us a free pitch, he has also volunteered to give us a hand, in addition to providing the Van and Large Trailer, to take stuff to the Dechetterie, and his next trip is arranged for this Friday. Selling his table and being left with a pile of stuff to dispose of would be a spectacular own goal!

BTW, I'm confused by the latest Ablemail update for the ABB07; there's a new message 'Turn Override On/Off' toggle, but no explanation what it does! It appears in the middle graphic box by the 'Trickle Charging' Red Arrow that points in the direction of the Vehicle Battery. I've checked that it is nothing to do with my having the AMT12-2 on manual almost constant feed from the Leisure Battery, so cannot see what benefit the addition/change makes. Any thoughts, David?

Weather is very warm and humid and we're plagued with mosquitoes at present. Bought a 5W mains plug-in mosquito killer/slow them down so that you can kill them with a plastic fly twatter, but the drain on the Leisure Battery last night for 8 hours was quite steep. Battery dropped about 50Ah during this period, so I hope the solar has driven the level back up to 100%. I'll check shortly!

Steve

 

[wildebus]

Not only is Dominic giving us a free pitch, he has also volunteered to give us a hand, in addition to providing the Van and Large Trailer, to take stuff to the Dechetterie, and his next trip is arranged for this Friday. Selling his table and being left with a pile of stuff to dispose of would be a spectacular own goal!

BTW, I'm confused by the latest Ablemail update for the ABB07; there's a new message 'Turn Override On/Off' toggle, but no explanation what it does! It appears in the middle graphic box by the 'Trickle Charging' Red Arrow that points in the direction of the Vehicle Battery. I've checked that it is nothing to do with my having the AMT12-2 on manual almost constant feed from the Leisure Battery, so cannot see what benefit the addition/change makes. Any thoughts, David?

It is a change to the App that allows you on newer AMTs to remotely turn the override on. It would do the same as your switch. While the option is there it only works on AMTs from a certain age (typically made from late 2023 I think). Unfortunately there is a firmware detection limitation and it is not possible to eliminate the option from the older AMTs that do not support it.

Weather is very warm and humid and we're plagued with mosquitoes at present. Bought a 5W mains plug-in mosquito killer/slow them down so that you can kill them with a plastic fly twatter, but the drain on the Leisure Battery last night for 8 hours was quite steep. Battery dropped about 50Ah during this period, so I hope the solar has driven the level back up to 100%. I'll check shortly!

Steve

 

[marchie]

It is a change to the App that allows you on newer AMTs to remotely turn the override on. It would do the same as your switch. While the option is there it only works on AMTs from a certain age (typically made from late 2023 I think). Unfortunately there is a firmware detection limitation and it is not possible to eliminate the option from the older AMTs that do not support it.

Thanks, David, I'll ignore the message! Leisure Battery back to 14.23v and 100% capacity, so should be good for mosquito twatting. The only problem is that I had a case of 'fat finger syndrome'/phone juggling last night on the Roamer when I was checking the power consumption using the plug in mozzie killer. I accidentally pressed the 'Turn Discharge Off' on the BMS when catching the dropping phone, and it took me about 2 minutes to realise and restore the 'Discharge On' by which time the Leisure Battery had dropped to 8.95v and shut down, disconnecting the 12v system. It recovered and reset itself quickly, and a push on the 12v analogue panel turned the 12v supply back on without problems

When I checked the Leisure Battery after posting the query re the new AMT message, the LB was at 14.23v/100% SOC, *but* the Cell Values were much furter apart than previously; Cell 4 was some 55 milliamps higher than Cells 1-3, instead of the 3-4 normal difference. When you installed the LB in February 2024, the Cell Values were poles apart, so I presume that the gap will return to normal over the next 2-3 Cycles, once te BMS as absorbed the upset to its routine that my inadvertent 'Discharge Off' clumsiness caused ...

Steve

 

[trevskoda]

Not only is Dominic giving us a free pitch, he has also volunteered to give us a hand, in addition to providing the Van and Large Trailer, to take stuff to the Dechetterie, and his next trip is arranged for this Friday. Selling his table and being left with a pile of stuff to dispose of would be a spectacular own goal!



Steve

Think he is trying to tell you something with all that help, and the second word is off.

 

[marchie]

Think he is trying to tell you something with all that help, and the second word is off.

Quite possibly, Trev; however, when we began to refloor the upper barn in 2011, he and René, our next door neighbour, arrived to offer 2 days labour and advice, and brought with them a box of organic haricot beans and a box of organic tomatoes as a 'welcome to Cheffois' gift. And it has remained the case ever since. If/when we've needed help, Dominic and René are the first to arrive, closely followed by Jacky, who lives next door but up the road. It's this friendship that we're going to miss

Steve

 

[Pauljenny]

Having lived in our Hovel for 19 years, doing it up, from a semi- ruin.
It hurt when we had to sell up and leave.
Such lovely people and happy memories.
But when you gotta go....!
We know how you must feel.