2021 In The Rear-View Mirrors

I think the “learning curve” best describes 2021 for LTW. We gave our new Solitude 310GK-R a good shakedown, nearly 14,000 miles, and became familiar with its idiosyncrasies. I went back to school and became an RV Registered Technician. I put my new education to work and supplemented the electrical system with solar. There was plenty more, which I will try to review below.

Interactive Travel Map 2021

The above MAP will give you a snapshot of our travels during 2021. Limited a bit by COVID, various upgrades, and some personal downtime we made the best of the situation. If you click on the RED dots on the map you will be taken to a post about the location. Many will have campground reviews featuring a rundown of the parks and a handful of side trips we might have made.

The Rest Of The Story

Grand Design 310GK-R

We decided late in 2021 to rename our new rig “Delores”. We were inspired by Westworld and the fact that we gave her some electrical upgrades I will outline shortly. The 310 has taken some time to get used to. We lost about 5 plus feet in length compared to our Open Range Roamer 347RES. That did not seem like much when we first started out but it became evident once we started loading her up.

Here is the last installment of my four parts series of purchasing our new RV. It will lead you to all four installments in case you missed them. RV Arrives

Upgrades

We Need Dividers !!

The age-old problem in most kitchens, you need dividers in the drawers to keep your stuff organized. No one likes to reach into a drawer only to find that you have to dig to the bottom to find what you need. On an RV this can be particularly frustrating as the “Stuff” gets put into the rough road blender and scattered in the drawers.

With the new RV, we were determined to find a better solution. Ginny spent a great deal of time on Pinterest until she found the ideal divider build. We had used various household kitchen dividers on our previous rig and found them to be bandaids not fixes. Most of these dividers were designed for a home kitchen and not the odd-sized RV drawers. We knew this would call for some custom work, but we did not want to spend a fortune. It would also be important that the dividers could easily be taken out for periodic cleaning or just a change-up of configuration for that drawer. Complete Build Post

Lithium Is The Answer

The first order of business once we had decided on the Solutiude 310GK-R was the batteries. After researching battery types, solar compatibility, and recommendation from other RVers we landed on Battle Born Ion Lithium. Battle Born batteries can provide you with two to three times more power than a lead-acid battery which allows you to stay off the grid longer without having to hassle with a noisy generator. Battle Born Batteries are also capable of being charged up to five times faster than a standard lead-acid battery. Now we can put our battery anxieties to rest and finally focus on our next RV adventure.

They were plug and play and fit right into the existing battery boxes. The dealership gave me credit for the two lead-acid batteries they were going to put in. I did check with them to be sure the stock inverter was capable of charging Ion Lithium batteries, they insisted it was. The inverter was in fact capable of charging the batteries. The drawback was the time it took to bring them back to full charge. These batteries are capable of fully discharging, unlike lead-acid that will only discharge to 50%. The bonus, these BB batteries are pretty maintenance-free.

Solar Was The Next Step

Let’s try out our Harvest Host membership we both suggested on the trip to Texas for my RV Tech Schooling. We choose to stay at the Petroleum Museum in Midland, TX as our first boondocking try. It seemed like a great location, just off the Hyw, interesting museum but we failed to take into account the 95-degree weather. That was easily resolved with the use of our generator or was it.

The generator did its work admirably until it ran out of propane leaving us with only battery power for a handful of hours. The two lithium batteries did their jobs and kept the residential refrigerator running through the early morning hours. We however had little else running including the air conditioners.

It was time to begin to solve that problem. With the two Lithium batteries on the rig, I went to work on adding 400 watts of solar, solar controller, switches, fuses, and new cables. This would be the first stage of what I have planned to supplement our off-grid capabilities. More on that soon.

Earthquake on Wheels – MORryde IS

We have all heard that expression describing the impact of traveling down the interstate with our RV’s. The interior of the rigs takes a beating including everything that might not be tied down. I was determined to fix that issue with a suspension upgrade that I had been reading and hearing about.

Grand Design Suspension

We did have our problems with the OEM suspension on the Solitude. The leaf springs would move out of place after tight turns. I quickly learned how to fix that. This was an additional driving force behind the suspension upgrade.

During one of our trips this year we opened up the rig only to find the trim around the Kitchen slide had fallen off. This damaged the Microwave door, flooring, fireplace mantel, and more. This was the last straw for me. The answer was the MORryde Independent Suspension system.

We booked our appointment early in 2021 only to be told it would be April of 2021 before they could install. I took the appointment and asked to be put on a waiting list for earlier slots. We were at our home base in July to catch up on doctors.  appointments etc when I got a call from MORryde. They could install the IS in two weeks if we could make it up. Off we headed to Elkhart, IND for your upgrade.

Fixes

It’s Going To Happen

As I mentioned above in the MORryde section we lost the trim on our Kitchen slide during one of our trips. That was followed directly after we had the trim replaced and various issues resolved by the living room trim falling down. I was determined to fix this issue myself this go around. After searching for answers on various Grand Design Facebook groups I was able to come up with a solution.

The issue was compounded by a very poor design by GD. The trim was attached at an angle that did not allow for proper nailing into the facia. The nailer had a bad day and most of the nails bent over and never penetrated the slide facia. This left the trim hanging by a few nails and not enough hold during travel.

The solution. was to place spacers between the top of the trim and the slide facia. I nailed them directly into the slide facia and then use the nailer to attach the top of the trim. This gave the trim a solid hold on the facia.

Wrap Up On Dolores

Generally, I would say the issues we had in the first year were minor. The trim was certainly the biggest issue we faced. We had a few other pieces fall off and I quickly repaired them with my pin nailer. The MORryde IS system might be the best upgrade we have ever made on an RV we have owned. The handling, braking, and interior disruption are far superior to any OEM suspension, I would highly recommend the upgrade.

Travel Highlights

For me, the biggest highlight of the year had to be our trip to the National RV Training Academy in Athens, TX. It was an eye-opening week of schooling and testing to become a Registered RV Technician. I came away with new confidence to tackle almost any issue that might arise with Delores.

The school is tucked away just outside Athens. There is an on-site RV park that is within walking distance to class each morning. The days are long filled with information and hands-on learning.  My complete review of this stop is detailed in this post. You Need Schooling

New Addition To Gold Star 2021 RV Resorts

Cherry Hill Park is by far one of the best RV resorts we have ever stayed at. You definitely pay for these types of amenities. If you are looking for a base of operation to visit the greater DC area this is your resort.

I’ve seen many reviews on this location complain about the road noise. You are located very close to the interstates. Keep in mind that you are in the heart of two major metro areas, DC and Baltimore. There is going to be road noise, if serenity is your choice this is not the place.

Check out an in-depth look at this resort HERE