Pain Of Verizon and Getting Wired.

Our Location today is Deming, New Mexico, U.S.A. 

The temperature only dipped down to 39 F (4 C) last night so we were more than toasty by just having the Electric Fireplace on. As usual Kathy had no problems sleeping but I just couldn’t turn my mind off trying to figure out where the hidden wiring harness that I had to tap into was located in our trailer. Kathy didn’t mind that I slept later because that meant she could do the same which is also beneficial to her healing. We were having breakfast slightly before 8:00 MST and appreciated being closer to the source of our warmth. 

Other RVers we know have travelled for years using Verizon Jetpacks as a MiFi Hotspot. Since our first Hotspot in 2013 we have always had problems getting into our accounts. We go through the same mess every year always having a hard time accessing our account. It’s not from incorrectly Logging-In because we have it written down Keystroke for Keystroke. We try to monitor our Usage but doing so we have to go through an account that continually locks us out. It has become a habit that I’d rather not continue to repeat. This morning I was only on the phone a short while with Ashley to Unlock our account, so we could use the Internet to Monitor our Account. See this vicious circle! After resetting our password and adjusting our information the account again locks itself up. Call Verizon again to fix the problem. Can you see why I envy those people who do not have these issues. 

I finally got outside shortly after 9:30 to try to resolve the issue of finding the wire feed that I needed. All of our past RVs we have had all had the Wiring Harness run along the Left Side Frame Rail. After removing the propane tanks this morning and using a flashlight I visually compared the wires closest to me to the ones over top of the Generator Cabinet on the right side of the trailer. There were more coloured wires that looked to be closer to the code used for the tail lights on the Right Side of the trailer. 

Since it was impossible to reach them from the opening I returned to the curb-side basement door. Jayco had installed a partial ceiling panel inside the Basement and when I removed it there was an huge bundle of wires that had been hidden away.  

I moved the truck close enough to plug the trailer in, then in the basement, it was a matter of finding a group of wires close together that fit all the lighting colour code. One by one using my tester I was able to find all the live feeds coming from the truck with only one incorrect guess. I would check making certain the wires were live when I energized them and dead when turned off. Using Wire-Taps I was able to run a cross-over wire to where I had installed the Relay Board that would bring the power to the extra lights that I installed. By using relays to draw power from the trailer batteries we are not overloading the trucks own system. This way it only uses a little power from the truck to operate the relays that feed the extra lights. 

Kathy had made some Tomato/Basil Soup, Hot Coffee and a Ham Sandwich for lunch. Even with the sun warming the outside air working inside the shadow of the basement with a North Wind blowing through I was practically froze.  

Going back outside since all the live feeds were connected I reassembled the rear basement wall and actually reloaded some of our gear in curbside of the basement in an effort to make our site more presentable. 

Now the fun to wire the relays began. First power from the batteries was brought to the Fuse Block so each circuit was protected. Then it was a matter of connecting all the feed wires that went to the lights. Then I connected the Cross-Over control wires. Next a multi-ground wire was made connecting all the relays to the chassis and then finally connecting the relays to the Fuse Block. 

Now for the moment of truth installing the fuses and testing the lights. The Signals and the Running Lights worked perfectly but the Back-up Lights didn’t work. Using my voltage meter, I didn’t seem to be getting power from the truck and if that was the case I’d check it at our next stop. 

Just then Kathy called me saying there were no lights in our bedroom. When I checked the fuses the one to the bedroom lights was blown. How was that possible with LED lights? 

After replacing the fuse, I returned outside to finish putting our gear in the basement. In the process of cleaning at the same time I was also finding small scraps of wire and stripped insulation that had to be tossed in the trash bin. When I turned from tossing away the trash I was staring at the lit Back-up Lights. That answered how the Bedroom Lights had blown the fuse, I had tapped into the wrong wire. Since most trailers don’t have Backup Lights I simply pulled the fuse for now until the proper feed wire can be found. There are more wires to test that all look the same.  

For supper, Kathy had created another Pork-Roast Stir Fry with Spaghetti and it was Delicious. Tomorrow we’ll be heading off to Casa Grande and hopefully warmer temperatures. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy! 

It’s about time.

Krackers 

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