BigTom

3 hours ago, twiceblessed....nacole said:

Excellent point

 

Haha... yep.  Eternabond fixes all 

Eternabond, I would think duct tape.

1 hour ago, Travisma said:

Sounds like ours.  I know they were a selling point when new, but when the sink and stove are that old (ours is an 86 Coleman) they are way more trouble than they are worth.  Since this was a week + trip, we brought our icemaker with us and it sat on the counter.  One night we set up a crock pot on the counter cooking our breakfast.

We cook outside, but didn't want to leave a crock pot outside overnight with TCDs overfed tree rats lurking nearby. Not even sure if I would leave one out during the day since they were so bold.

You have to watch those tree rats, I have a chair with a pocket on one side the the tree rats chewed up trying to get to a peanut inside a bag in the pocket with me sitting in the chair, they are real sneaky and quite.

If it does not leak, you should be fine.

Probably have them sign a form that they won't sue WDW if a gator eats them.

1 hour ago, Travisma said:

Most PUPs have cooking and sink space.  Ours is an old 8 foot Coleman, and I just removed the countertop that held them and replaced it with a piece of plywood.  The gas lines would've needed to be replaced, and I don't trust those old water lines, plus the sink,was tiny.  The flat counter was much more usable.  Bigger campers have larger sinks and cook tops.  There are a lot of debates about keeping the sink, stove when doing remodeling.

Yeah, ours is pretty much a roomier glorified tent with storage space and more comfortable beds!

I also have an older 8' pop up, a 1989 Jayco, have removed very small sink and inside stove for more counter space, (sink leaked around drain and was useless, did not want to heat up inside of camper and we like eating outside at campground besides food is always better cooked and eaten out of doors) we take a small microwave if we oneed to heat anything inside and use the top as counter space so it doesn't take much room. Is much more comfortable than a tent and easier to set up. Cost was very cheap and easy to tow,     i like my pop up. 

I bought a 13,500 BTU unit for my Jayco, it came with an 8,200 btu unit and i was not happy with the cooling of it. Was bearable at night, but too warn during day even in shade. I bought one from Adventure RV and replaced it my self, took about 2 hours. Ended up giving the small one away as no one wanted to install one that small. In Florida, you need all you can get. If I was doing it again, would check a heat pump

Just thought I would remind you that this is ski season, we ski year round down here, water ski that is.

Fort Wilderness is addictive isn't it. Good report

Call Jason, he is the man.

8 hours ago, Duane said:

Although its gotten a bit better over the years, I still have to say that the southbound lanes of I-95 between Dillon, SC and Florence, SC have to be the roughest section of road to either drive or pull an RV on.  The concrete seam spacing seems to be just far enough apart to shake your teeth out.  Along with the sections of crumbling and patched concrete add to the ride...

You need to try that section in a Camaro with sport suspension, make your teeth rattle.

My A/C is the first thing I turn on as soon as I raise the roof and the last thing I turn off when closing up. It runs 24/7 day and night.

1 hour ago, Starbuc71 said:

I figured that. We never used this RV in 98 degree heat. I figure if it's blowing cold at night, its the outside temp in the day that won't allow it to keep up. Would a bigger unit solve this?

Mine came with an 8200 BTU unit, changed it to a 13,500 unit and it made a big difference. Both units weigh about the same only difference was in height of unit, about 4 inches taller.

Guess they wanted a beach side site. Hope that wasn't a fiend unless they wanted a new rig. TV and trailer are destroyed due to salt water even if it gets no deeper.

I am in too. We have a Dream cruise planned for the weekend before Thanksgiving so I will pay close attention.

How are they training the gators not to cross that fence?

I bought a pop up w/AC, 8500 BTU but after one trip decided it was not big enough for Florida summers, replaced it with with one I bought from Adventure RV, 13,500 btu and it works much better. I have a small camper, 8 ft Jayco and would not reccommend anything smaller. I run mine all the time when at Fort Wilderness, just adjust temp to feel comfortable.

Might be cheaper to buy a cheap bike from walmart or GoodWill store and just leave it as renting for a week.

28 minutes ago, Beckers said:

every time you post Big Tom it makes me

want oranges. 

Come down when in season and I will load you up. We have several trees of speciality fruit Honeybells, red grapefruit, pink grapefruit, key limes, tangelos etc, just to give to friends. As well as guavas and bananas at times.

In Florida if a piece of land is fenced, iy is the same as a no trespassing sign. Also if a field is under cultivation or use it is considered No Trespassing. I even have signs allowing the Law Enforcement to come on my property at anytime for any reason if they think something is not right. My grove is on a public road with no fence, but it is not open to the public. So legally, Disney can have you arrested for crossing that fence, don't think they would, but could ask you to leave property if they wish.

I think it is a good idea, do I agree with it, don't really know but I hate the smell of smoke and kids should not be around smokers, it sets  a bad example for them. On the same line Disney has installed metal detectors to get in, I always have a pocket knife in my pocket (doesn't everybody). If I have my pants on, my knife is in my pocket, have carried one for over 60 years, does this mean I should not visit WDW anymore because I can't take my knife. There is not a rule that everyone agrees with. 

19 hours ago, Seals said:

I think this is going to be a hard one for Disney to deal with. There is no such thing as a "freak accident" anymore. Someone or some thing has to have been at fault and be corrected. 

Gators make a deep grunting sound, when mad or disturbed they will hiss, you do not want to hear one hiss because you are too close and they are mad. Gators can run very fast 20mph but only a short distance and usually in one direction, don't think you can outrun one they are very quick. I have lived here for over 70 years and have swam in many lakes, never had a problem with one during the day, but have always heard don't go in water after dark because you don't know what is lurking there. I have seen some over 14 to 15 feet long in places where I have been swimming later. 

11 minutes ago, MontrealFortLover said:

Like everyone else I am in shock this morning about this. That poor child and his family. In all the years that we've been going to FW, with all the wildlife, it never once crossed my mind that there could be gators. I've always assumed that Disney keeps their properties free of dangerous animals. I guess I live in fairytale land. I really don't know much about them or their habits, so can anyone tell me if they ever come out of the water and onto land to attack? So long as my kids stay out of the water (which they always do) should they be safe? Someone mentioned staying away from the water at night, do they generally not come out during the day?

They do come out during daytime, but most often at night. If you go out at night with a bright light, you would be amaze at the number of gator that are around. When hunting was allowed, the hunters always went at night because that is when they are most actively feeding. During the day you usually see them sleeping if you see them at all. I have some old phosphate pits on my property and seldom see a gator during day, but can go there at night and see them all over the place. I bet if you go to Bay Lake ve,ry early in the morning you would see more gator than you would think would be there. The problem comes when they are fed by people and they lose their fear of humans. Gators will feed on anything smaller than they are smaller gators, pets, snakes, cows, deer, and even people.

While they do offer water sports, it is only in daytime. Gators feed mostly at night. Someone splashing in shallow water is an invitation for a gator to come and get it. Never go in Florida lakes after it starts to get dark and be careful around edges of lakes.

Any awning shop should be able to make you the size you need out of shade cloth. I got mine from a strap man at a flea market.

The last two times I was in 1500 loop there were big groups in it, one group must haves been at least 50 - 60 people on about maybe 4 sites with no responsible adults paying attention to what to kids were doing.