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I installed a 500W "xtreme" bilge heater. It is on a thermostat to maintain a temp of ~ 50f. I have used it for the past few winters and have added a special circuit to plug it in. They are available from xTreme heaters and Amazon.

Get 4 new shocks and you may want to go Bulldog brand vs. Monroe. https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/bulldog-hd-suspension/bulldog-hd-suspension-shock-absorber/bul0/hd12130656/ https://www.4statetrucks.com/bulldog-hd-shock-absorber-replaces-555001-19-050000007 From what I can tell in your picture, the upper bushings on the original shocks were badly over-tightened causing the rubber bushings to fail prematurely. Your picture shows too many threads up top leaving very little spacing for the rubber. You want to tighten these so that the rubber is just mushrooming and not much more.

Thanks everyone for your responses. I tried searching but didn't use the right key words. The other posts are very helpful..

THIS thread directly applies to the bushing question - particularly see the last post regarding the appropriate amount of "bluge" . Bill p.s. by typing in "Monroe Shocks" the Forum's search function will return more information of the subject of shocks in general.

HERE is just ones of those posts on the subject of alternative(s) to the Monroe shocks. Bill

Some of mine look like that. There's a couple of threads talking about alternatives to the Monroes.

It's likely those shocks are shot.

I would replace the entire shock. The cost of the shocks was not that much and I expect yours are pretty well worn out. I replaced mine on my 2020 trailer about two years ago and what a difference it made.

When I greased my trailer the other day, I noticed that all of the bushings on the Monroe struts were cracked. I am wondering if I should replace the struts or just the bushings. Has anyone else seen this?

Several owners have added individuall heaters in the intersticial space between the hulls. The top choice is to get heat to the water liness entry area aft of the port bunk. This area tends to freeze first. I recall that he used a 500 watt 120V heater for this purpose. A second area prone to freezing is the cabinet space in the bathroom. For occasional use this would in my opinion be enough. However if you are where The Orca is, a forced air approach would be desireable. Intake air from the cabin and distribute it to both port and starboardd areas with extra air going on the port rear side would be my choice. GJ

Ya, We were visiting son last year in Kentucky, and decided to go down to the mother ship in Hohenwald. Driving through Nashville wasn't fun. At least the larger roads are better in Oregon. THe back roads in Oregon and Tennessee are pretty much the same. (yuk). We got a truma repair and a new AC. We enjoyed the last year's models on the sales floor. Several updates I liked, but not enough to buy upgrade. Good to know that Salem, Oregon has someone that could do some repairs.

If pulling on wires / switches and things temporarily work don’t discount the possibility that fiberglass dust may have gotten into a connection or switch. I’ve had this happen at times. Look for loose or contaminated connections as a possibility.

@Grizz000 No worries! I thought you might be out camping! Thanks for the info. Mossey

I'd agree with this if the bottom leaf was an overload type that didn't make contact with the leaf pack until a certain weight was exceeded. With the Alcan springs the bottom leaf is arced and looks to be always adding stiffness to the pack. Could be wrong.. Good question for Alcan.

I must be missing something on the 4 vs 5 spring decision. My physics-fu tells me that the spring return rate is set by the longest one or two springs. You chose the spring length, material and temper to set that rate. You then add more (and shorter) springs to take up more load (if needed) for the same rebound rates. What is gained by taking away the shortest spring???

I did. It should be findable as I posted pictures and instructions. Essentially I opened the third port on the Dometic heater and hard ducted it directly across the rear of the trailer. Turned 90 degrees forward and installed a flow adjuster right after it reentered the underbed area. I placed a diverter at that point, and sent part of the warm air directly down under the drivers side bunk. I also installed a 3" flex line running forward all the way to the forward dinette seat. I have been in minus 18 degree F temps in Republic, and the minimum temp under either bunk was 38 degrees. My friends trailer water froze every night by 9 pm. It is tight, but doable! The electric option just would not work for me as I use my Olly as an Elk Camp Cabin. I wanted an extra propane heat load, not an extra electric load.

@mossemi I applied it to both surfaces. I spread it with a 1/8" v-notch metal spreader. West Marine actually sells a plastic 1/8" v-notch spreader (and they are widely available,) but I used one I already had. Seemed to work great. The G/flex is easy to work with. Sorry for the slow reply - I either didn't get a notification that there was a post, or I didn't see it. Hope this helps!

Thanks for this post. I just completed the install the same way as @tallmandan. I would like to add that my attachment was very difficult to unscrew. Not sure if four years ago GM/Chevy made them differently...but mine had lock tight in the screw attachment. I would advise anyone doing this install to be very careful while attempting to unscrew the attachment. The cable is power over coax. The attachment is just a crimped connector. I had to fold back the rubber casing and grip it very tightly with a wrench to get mine undone. If the crimped attachment spins it will strip out very easily!

We finally got a window (and the courage to drive through PDX traffic) to visit the Oliver dealer in Salem, Oregon. It took about 30 minutes, and the tech seemed professional. Atta boys for the service team We also took a few minutes to look at the new Olivers that were at the dealership. They’re nice, but I suspect we won’t be buying a new trailer. I did like the compressor fridge and lithium batteries, but I don’t think it will be enough to sway us.

I have not seen or tried one, but they do look interesting. I’ve gone another route for rough terrain and have purchased a high clearance teardrop for my solo trips. The teardrop I mentioned above has a Max Coupler articulated hitch. While it’s nice in rough terrain, I can’t see myself taking the Ollie into those conditions.

Living on the Northwest coast of Washington we rarely get temperatures low enough to cause freezing issues while in winter storage. It does happen though and the potential for freezing damage does typically raise its head a few times each year while during the winter months. I have been giving some thought to the installation of an electric heater designed to keep warm air moving between the hulls when temps drop into the 10's & 20's. A small, high quality electric heater permanently installed which draws in cabin air and routes it through areas between the lower hulls where plumbing and other temperature sensitive components live could serve the dual purpose of protecting trailer components from freezng and help keep things warmish and dry. I understand this system would only be functional while on shore power. Anyone here designed and installed such a system?

If you are interested, here is the link to BB Technical White Paper. https://battlebornbatteries.com/technical-note-on-the-safety-and-design-of-the-battle-born-100ah-positive-terminal/

Just received our Alcan Springs 5-leaf with heavy duty hardware. We will be having them installed as 4-leaf. Scheduled for first of June around a short Indiana trip. Will do the two 50 mile drives same day and they will re-torque, and then after our Indiana camping trip for the 500 re-torque.

@DonnaDuane You left us hanging. What was the problem?

Some people are really smart. @Snackchaser You sir, are really smart.