All Activity

That's a good start, for sure.

@Steve and Cindy, the RJ45 connector is reasonably well protected from rainfall when in use. The original Furrion cover acts as a small roof over the pass-through connector and cable when in use. When not in use, the black plastic cap for the pass-through connector fits into the RJ45 port and the Furrion cover closes over it. We have used the Starlink PoE setup through one thunderstorm will no ill effects observed. I examined the connector following the thunderstorm and did not see the need to add any further protection. Regards, Don

They're also replaced the plywood subfloor with a composite, which is a big plus.

Good for them. Each manufacturer has a different market. I'd decline, just as we declined on the smaller Casita, 17 years ago. To me, a separate shower is a waste of valuable space in a small trailer. But, for others, it isn't. The hard part for me is the cabinetry, and carpeted walls.

@Against The Wind Best to check with OTT (to be sure) regrading the switch. Or maybe tracing the wiress would be helpful.

Lots written about the furnace but everyone seems generally satified with its ability to warn the cabin living space. We have been in the Anza Borrego area (45-night / 75-day) and headed for colder weather. Even with modified ducting (hard elbows at furnace, hard straight runs passing through the water valve area and cutting 3.5' off in the bath vanity) our heater works hard to get the cabin temperature above 65 degree (starting at 55 degrees inside). We find 65 comfortable but concerned about heating when it's 25 degrees outside. Is this normal? please share your heating experience.

Attached is Lithionics' most recent (to my knowledge) battery storage protocol. Note that if your batteries are "subject to winter conditions", Lithionics recommends that you either leave them connected to shore power (so the internal heaters can protect them), or remove them and store them "above freezing". Leaving shore power connected avoids the need for shutdown. For what it's worth, during our very cold winters in central Idaho, we leave our Elite II connected to shore power, but do a charge-discharge cycle after 6 months of storage. Lithionics Storage Procedure Rev.7-1.pdf

Pretty damn close in 2025

That closet is a valuable space for us. I bet in 4 years, we have only used our shower 1-2, just using the campground showers.

SE from Stanley a bit is Moore Ideao. Home of the L7 BBQ. Guaranteed the best BBQ sandwich I have ever enjoyed. And I'm from Texas. Just a few miles further is Moore, ID. The King Mountain Glider Park is active in the summer months with all kinds of Hang Glider, Paraglider and Sailplanes flying the beautiful mountains. 8 miles further in Arco is a free dump station. I spend a month there eash summer, so if heading that way holler so we can cross paths. GJ PS: If you only have time for one of those, get the L7 BBQ sandwich. It's a monster. Yummy.

Agree totally. For those not familiar, here is a site with pictures of the lodge and area: https://www.grandcanyonnorth.com/gallery So sad. GJ

Our Experience with the Starlink Mini is the same as Ronbrink. We traveled for many years with an ATT NetGear portable cellular hub but have repalced the NetGear with Starlink. We spend a good part of time off the grid and Starlink provides service everywhere except when you have abstructions such as trees between you and the satellite. The ATT NetGear is great device, it's portable, simple and easy to use. If we didn't spend time off the grid, we would likely stay with the ATT NetGear hub. With an ATT business account our NetGear plan was $65 monthly (+ buying it over time as with cell phones) with unlimited data use.

Once I had to get out a drill and make a hole so I could get the plut into the leak. Wasted an hour trying to do so before the light bulb came on. I also have had leaks in the main tread area that took three plugs to slow them down. Even with three, it still leaked, but slow enough that I could get off the mountain by re-airing up twice. Good idea to have an air compressor of some sort! GJ

Thanks so much, John. One more question, our trailer has the Optifuse resettable breaker located by the xantrax main shut off? Picture included. Is this the circuit breaker & does it need to be turned off? Thanks again for all your help.

@dhaigI like your setup and I'm going to give it a try. With the RJ45 pass-thru connector, do you have to take any precautions in rainy weather with water getting into that connection from outside the trailer and causing problems?

I hate to admit it now - but - I was one of those that thought I could not live without a dry bath. During fairly early discussions with Anita (Oliver Sales) I told her of my concern in this regard. Without missing a beat, she explained to me the relative value of the real estate (i.e. square footage) of the dry bath versus the wet bath. Indeed, Oliver could convert the closet into a dry bath, but what is the value of that closet versus the relatively small amount of time that one actually spends in the bath every day, she said. Having an undergraduate degree in economics this spoke straight to my understanding of the "economics" of the situation and the rest is history. And, as with most things, Anita was right - at least for me. Bill

I may remember a post about an interesting retirement job🤔 Mossey

When ‘inquiring minds want to know’, ask AI! My question: Will the Starlink Mini support use of two laptops streaming TV content? AI response: Yes, the Starlink Mini can support two laptops streaming TV content simultaneously, and often even more devices. The built-in Wi-Fi router is designed to handle up to 128 devices, and real-world tests show it works well for multiple streaming sessions. The main factor influencing performance will be the available bandwidth at your specific location and time of use, as speeds can vary. Performance and Considerations Speed: The Starlink Mini typically delivers download speeds over 100 Mbps, and users have reported speeds over 200 Mbps in optimal conditions. This is more than enough bandwidth for two simultaneous high-definition streams. Reliability: While generally reliable, speeds may temporarily decrease during peak network times or due to minor obstructions, which could cause a brief glitch in a stream. However, in most scenarios, users report no issues with multiple concurrent streams. Data Usage: Be mindful of your data plan. The Roam 50GB plan has a data cap, and streaming TV content consumes a significant amount of data. The Unlimited plan may be more suitable for frequent, heavy streaming use. Built-in Router: The Mini has an integrated Wi-Fi 5 router, which is sufficient for a campsite or small area. If you plan to be further away or want maximum performance, some users suggest adding an external hardwired router.

We loved our Casita but I could never go back to the rat fur on the walls. Looking at the layout of the Casita 24 made me wonder if I would trade the closet in the Oliver for the dry bath layout in the new Casita. For me it's an easy no. But I often hear the wet bath in the Oliver is a non starter for some folks.

Brilliant!

I hate mubdobbers and wasps! This idea is a good one for that size bug. Inexpensive too! We run our fans 20/7 for months at a time. I have two new fans to replace my smaller ones. I'm thinking blocking off most of the top vent with 1/8" thick white plastic, and making two fan size holes to allow the fans to discharge directly outside. No screen needed there for this approach. This would eliminate the circulation effect that occurrs in a more open design where air can come out of the fan and circulate back into the fan's suction side. Sort of a "Ducted Fan" approach. Below I like the idea of using this screen all across the bottom vent area and using an inexpensive home A/C filter as a bug stop to the outside of the screen. The above vent being powered and sort of ducted will likely improve air flow actually out of the refer box area. That would over come the static resistance of the screen and filter below. Combined nearly all bug proof, not just my two worst friends mentioned above but smaller ones as well and areduce someof the dust that gets sucked into the refer backside. PS: I keep a fresh can of Wasp Spray in my front storage box for "encounters" of the worst kind. GJ

From a M.E. perspective the smaller unit was intended to run longer than the 13.5 units thereby better controlling humidity and pulling less power. A good thing. But it gives up high temperature condition performace (ability to reach set point) and cool down time as trade offs... as you well know. Pretty much of that logic line goes out the window with the advent of the Inverter units. They can cycle output down/up as needed for all applications under those for which they are not undersized. They control both humidity and temperature to set point. Brilliant! I suspect that OTT will be going that direction once there is a bit more experience with them and the reliability issues, good and bad, shake out. That's part of their good conservative approact to significant changes I think. As the inverter refergerator topic continues to matue, I'll be looking at the owner opinions in a couple more seasons as my Dometic 3-way ages and my confidence in the air separation from the cabin and the refer side deteriorates. Likewise with the inverter A/C units. Wish the Houghton was an inverter, but it's not. Lucky that I and others were able to do the two Mods. So I'll likely hold off an A/C upgrade to let this topic mature. Especially if the Ceilo would work well on it! I appreciate all the Owner inputs about the Cielo system and their experiences using it. GJ

For those with an older technology (Not Inverter) I seem to have understood that the Cielo would just shut down the power to the unit in the mode when humidity "give back" from the Evaporor Coil is an issue. But if you have more recent design (Inverter A/C), the Cielo independently controls the (Inverter (Compressor Speed), Condensor Fan, and the Supply Air Fans) to meet what ever humidity and temperature settings are needed. Is the above done by the same model of Cielo or different ones? How does it do so for both types of unit when they all likely have different mother boards? Almost sounds too good to be real. But so many of us really like what it does it must be magic! GJ

Casita did a pretty good job with this new trailer. Tank sizes, especially black tank, dry bath and large fridge are all good selling points. At about half the price of an Oliver this is going to provide some competition. I hope Oliver is working on their next trailer! Mike

A farm back-hoe bucket worked best for our Houghton install. Also, the Dometic if still running will generally fetches $500 to $600 on Craigs List. So don't do what one fellow did that HATED his DOMETIC P2: Tossed it over the side. Which likely is not legal due to the refergerant rules. GJ