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OK, so I'm not reading all that AI cr@p in the preceding post. We can all do our own AI searches to read the same regurgitated content! 🤣 That being said, I truly commend your effort, as it is a whole lot of work, stretching and neck craning to work this extensive installation - bravo! For us, the furnace with extra vents in closet and bathroom is enough, but we don't live and have yet to even travel up your way. This makes very good sense based on your location and travels. We are planning a trip to ID-MT soon, but would travel during the shoulder seasons, not the dead of winter! 😎

Mike Sokol will do his own test and that should be a good comparison with Will Prowse. We shall see.

I would like to Will Prowse do this strenuous testing with intact battery to other manufacturers like Epoch, Lithonics and then cut them open after the ridged testing. Then we could really compare. Maybe he has, I just haven't taken the time to look. I agree I think the BB interview was a PR stunt. Lithium batteries are still semi new technology and still evolving. Just because they meet an industry standard does not mean they are well built. It is like high jumping and setting the bar at one foot. As long as you jump over the bar you're good to go. Also Will could take a brand new BB battery and cut it apart to see if he really caused the internal problems he showed. But I highly doubt that kind of melting happened just from cutting the tops off. I understand this takes some financial backing to do these types of test. I don't mean to dish Will, but is he completely impartial in this. There are a lot of variables.

When using the Andersen Ball and NOT using the boomerang, what Andersen calls the Anti-Sway Plate, PLEASE connect the hitch pin to the bottom of the ball, the pin that connects this plate. If not, the Andersen ball is only held down by a large circlip underneath. It's not likely the ball would come out, since it would have to break that clip and come up several inches, but having the bolt (hitch pin) below is a good measure of safety. Once connected, it can just be there without having to take it on and off.

I hesitate to even jump in on this topic, but would like some constructive opinions. I have a ½ ton Dodge truck with ¾ ton springs and 100 PSI airbags. I have never used the Anderson WDH items since right after the first 1,000 trailer miles. I do like the Anderson Bulldog connection system as I can massively lock the trailer onto the truck ball. I am still using the Anderson ball assembly as I saw no reason to change to a different system. The Olly is uber stable. I have done some more than a little crazy lane changes at speed to avoid accidents. They went well, with probably a 20 degree initial trailer sway with instant recovery. Am is missing something here? (BTW, those lane changes involved a full half turn of the steering wheel in each direction. NO brakes.)

FYI - This years Ford Towing guide has a ton of useful general info as well. 2026-Ford-RV-&-Trailer-Towing-Guide_r7_fnl-Mar19.pdf

Confirmed. I do not use sway control and appreciate the ease and speed of hookup in a variety of conditions. Have not once felt the need for sway control with the Elite II and 3/4 ton truck. This one of several advantages of having a truck somewhat more than what you actually need for the Elite II.

I have never heard of any Oliver Travel Trailer "swaying". In fact, shortly after I purchased my Elite II I took it out on the local interstate and tried to make it sway. Certainly I didn't get crazy during this attempt but I wanted to know how it handled in order to know what to expect in the event of a future "situation". Obviously, weight distribution is another "kettle of fish". Bill

Towed our LE2 with three different 1/2 ton tow vehicles. Installed either Timbren rear suspension system or Firestone Airbags to get rid of rear end sag on those trucks. We purchased a 2024 F-350, we don't need a WDH or rear suspension modification. The F-350 with 6.8 Minizilla handles Ollie great and this truck has over 4,000 pounds of payload capacity, too.

I upgraded from a F150 to a F350. It was wonderful getting rid of the Anderson hitch and the F350 doesn't need sway control. However, the best part is driving down mountains is so much less stressful. That all by itself makes the bigger truck worth it.

Thank You. I have time to decide. Our 2022 LE2 has the 5,200 lb. axle. I can do 4-leaf and add the 5th leaf later, or have the 4-5 leafs in the basement when we decide to sell.

We recently upgraded to the 5200 lb Dexter axles, purchased thru Alcan, and chose to use the 4 leaf Alcan springs to match the weight of the trailer. We also purchased the Dexter EZ flex and wet bolt kit from etrailer, replicating the stock setup, since we preferred to use step bolts. In addition, we replaced all four shocks with new factory style Monroe shock absorbers. We performed the installation ourselves. Our tire pressures are set at 45:psi which we monitor with our TST tire pressure monitor. We’ve had excellent results, the springs are noticeably firmer, both when towing and when set up for camping. We find that the ride is not unduly harsh and we haven’t had any issue with items coming loose or things falling off. Time will tell if the Monroe shocks will work well long term. We are very happy with the setup and our interactions with Alcan Spring.

Responding to Wayfinder...wow, I thought I was geeky about solar vs loads... We went down the path of traditional resistance heaters and decided that the furnace was just more efficient at moving the heat around the basement than one single heater...especially 150 watt. Thus at first we added ducts to the street side weaving the ducts toward the shower and forcing air to the bath. This was a great improvement for when we are on propane. But when not, we are trying heat tracing.... The trick is to attach tracing to EVERY water line since tracing is poor at heating the air but great on contact. Tracing was attached with reflective metal tape every 10 inches to assure direct contact. One electrical outlet was added under the dinette seat nearest the bath to power two runs of tracing ; one to the bath and one to the rear. Access under the bath sink was required to wrap tracing around pipes in the bath. I also added insulation on the outer wall being careful not to obstruct the air flow between the hulls. Two other runs were powered from the ac outlet above the bed on the kitchen side by using a white extension cord neatly adhered to the wall to under the bed. Kitchen drawers were removed to access the water lines there. I found that there was an advantage to the four separate runs vs one or two longer runs as it enabled better coverage of the out side shower lines, the water pump area, and the water intake lines. The water tanks are not protected so it could be argued that this might not be fail safe in super cold temps. I have 3 Bluetooth thermometers that continuously record temps in the hull to help monitor. For context, the trailer homes in eastern WA and travels in Feb through Montana or Nevada where we encounter sub freezing temps... Also, a ball valve shut off was placed in the line ( under the sink) to the toilet as we do not use it with our composting toilet.

Great question. Such focus on weight alone makes NO allowance for the quality of the steel nor the quality of the heat tempering.

When we first bought our EII we had a F150 with a hitch rating that required load levelers and sway control for any tongue wt above 500lbs. So we bought the Anderson and used it for 2 years...but then we upgraded trucks. We now have an F350 Diesel 1 Ton Short Bed with a 3" receiver which has a dead weight rating of 2120lbs. We use a B&W Tow N Stow hitch and that's it. We've not had any sway or issues and it's dead simple to adjust if needed and hookup/unhook much easier than using either the Anderson Antisway (with Chains) or the types that have WDH Bars and Sway Bars. We don't need sway control as our truck also has braking sway control built in that states in the user manual that manual sway controls shouldn't be used. CS

We’ve got a 2020 Ram 2500 diesel. Tow on the ball, no sway control. Lots of miles and never an issue. Mike

The later Will Prowse videos were done with battery intact

Exactly, I stopped reading at “Denis: The videos questioning the positive terminal design in our 100Ah battery are technically invalid, and here's exactly why.”

Thanks JD. Yeah, upon retirement from my current PITA job, I'm likely going to RV Tech school in January. That's the goal anyways. I talked to my advisor yesterday to get more info. She was very helpful from the NRVTA. I'll be trying for my VA benefits until then. My generation didn't just get benefits upon leaving the service, as it is happening right now, with the current generation (disgusting to me). The VA might pay for the entire school plus tools, if I'm broke enough. Saving well over $25K. If not, I'm going anyways. Anyways, I need way more payload.

Mostly softball questions, boilerplate answers delivered by an experienced politician! Installation torque! 🤣 How about all those lose bolts interior to the casing?

If you're buying a late model 2500 or 3500 truck, likely no need for the Andersen WDH. The Owner's Manual for our older Dodge 2500 states to use a WDH when tongue weight is > 500 LBS or trailer is > 5000 LBS. We certainly needed the Andersen when towing the Oliver with the OEM suspension. Without it the Oliver would porpoise up and down on a rolling highway, not comfortable. Once we upgraded to D52 axles and Alcan springs, we do not use the WDH, since the Oliver is now carrying its own weight. 😎 See what towing specs are and buy the right truck since you have this opportunity. In the year or so we had to use the Andersen, I likely cursed 100 4-letter words. What a pain! Thankfully, never again.

As I will need to upgrade my truck soon to a 3/4 or 1-ton, to carry more parts & tools, I was confirming that most folks do not use any sway controller these days with the Elite II, when not using the Andersen WDH. I went through some old 2016 & 2019 threads, and that was the gist I got out of them. Thanks,

We went 5-leaf since Alcan designed it this way specifically for the Oliver. They installed a few 4-leaf springs only due to Oliver owner requests. I would guess over 95% of us have installed the standard 5-leaf system. I've had to go over a lot of speed bumps lately. My truck suspension, being so tight, bangs hard over speed bumps, but the Oliver suspension glides over them so nicely! Looking through the sideview mirror, you can see each tire articulate up and down without affecting the other axle, while the hull does not budge an inch! I should buy Alcan leaf springs for the rear of our tow vehicle! 😎 We always tow with a dog bowl half full of water. The water stays put, and never had a drawer open. We did have items jostled in the Attic and hanging clothes fall in the closet once in the first few miles. Once I worked the first required torquing of wet and U-bolts, we never had another issue.

I subscribed to Mike Sokol's report/newsletter after you mentioned him. Looking forward to seeing Mike's results after his experiments with a BB battery.

@Jls Your question got me thinking. I do that once a month. 😉 How do you place your heat trace within the hull? I might like your idea over mine, but it was fun to research and geek out about. My idea was, at first - WARNING: Lots of bla bla from AI research 😞 I might consider using 12v Ceramic heater(s)? While in my driveway in GA on the coldest of days, I use two of those silver-looking clamp-on utility lamps with 60 watt bulbs in them. On lamp next to the water pump under bunk, and one under dinette facing the front of the camper, or towards the black tank area of bathroom. I've not yet had any issues in the camper. I might consider, and would be geeky-fun to try, using a Kat's Heaters Ceramic Interior Heater with Fan - 300 Watt - 12V, Part Number: KH37500 from eTrailer.com, or something similar. These have a 150w and 300w settings. I asked my uncle AI (Claude) for output estimates since I have four fairly new Lifetime 6v AGMs in my old trailer, 220 AH usable. How long would one of those heaters last on both a sunny day and with no sun. I have 380 watts of solar. Down below, I also asked: Compared to a 60watt incandescent bulb plugged into AC, what kind of heat might that put out? Answer: A 60W incandescent bulb is, in a very real sense, mostly a heat generator that also produces light — about 95% of its energy becomes heat, only ~5% becomes visible light. BLUF: The Takeaway The 150W heater puts out about 2.5× more heat than a 60W bulb The 300W heater puts out about 5× more heat than a 60W bulb A 60W bulb is roughly equivalent to a very modest hand warmer in terms of room heating ability This are some non-verified results: 4 × 220Ah 6V Lifeline AGMs Config: 2S/2P → 12V, 440Ah total 50% SOC = 220Ah usable 60W Incandescent Bulb as a Heater Effective heat output: ~57W of actual heat BTU/hr: ~195 BTU/hr The glass surface can reach 200–260°C (roughly 400–500°F) — hot enough to burn skin on contact The air warming effect in a room is modest, but in a small enclosed space (like a chicken coop or a closet), people have actually used bulbs as supplemental heat 150W Heater Heat output: ~512 BTU/hr Air temperature near the outlet: roughly 50–65°C (120–150°F) Practical use: Takes the chill off a very small enclosed space — great for a car cabin, a small tent, or under a desk. It won't meaningfully heat a room. Space it can handle: ~15–25 sq ft (roughly the interior of a car) 300W Heater Heat output: ~1,024 BTU/hr Air temperature near the outlet: roughly 60–80°C (140–175°F) Practical use: Can comfortably warm a car interior or a small enclosed cabin/van space. Still not enough for a full room. Space it can handle: ~25–50 sq ft Important Notes 12V power source matters: A 300W heater draws 25 amps at 12V — this is a heavy load. Make sure your battery, wiring, and fuse can handle it. Insulation is everything: In a well-insulated camper, a 300W heater can get quite cozy. In a poorly insulated space, even 300W will struggle. These heaters are best thought of as comfort heaters, not primary heating solutions for large spaces. Current Draw Heater Watts Amps @ 12V 150W 150W 12.5A 300W 300W 25A Runtime to 50% SOC Heater Usable Ah Draw Raw Math Real-World Est. 150W 200Ah 12.5A ~16 hrs ~13–14 hrs 300W 200Ah 25A ~8 hrs ~6.5–7 hrs The real-world figure is lower due to: Peukert effect — AGMs lose some effective capacity under sustained load Inverter/wiring losses if applicable (~5–10%) Cold temps — AGM capacity drops in cold weather, which is exactly when you need heat most 🙃 Solar Reality on a Cold Sunny Day 380W rated panels in cold, clear conditions: roughly 75–85% output = ~285–320W realistic Flat roof-mounted panels on a highway aren't perfectly angled to the sun, but clear sky and cool temps largely compensate Call it a conservative ~285W average while moving Net Power Balance with Solar Heater Solar In Heater Draw Other Loads (~20W) Net 150W ~285W 150W 20W +115W (charging!) 300W ~285W 300W 20W ~-35W (tiny draw) What using Solar Means Practically 150W heater — you're essentially running it completely free, and still slowly charging your bank while driving. Nearly a wash even on a cloudier day. 300W heater — virtually break-even. A slight net drain, but so small it's almost negligible. On a really bright stretch you'll be net positive, on a shadier stretch slightly negative. For Protecting Water Lines Specifically This is a low-load task — you don't need to heat the whole camper, just keep the hull above freezing. A 150W heater on low (if it has settings) or even a small 40–60W pipe heating cable would do the job, meaning your solar would be comfortably net positive all day. Bottom Line With 380W of solar on a cold sunny travel day, a 150W heater is essentially free to run and your batteries will likely end the drive in better shape than they started. The 300W is break-even. This is exactly the use case solar excels at — offsetting a modest continuous load during daylight hours.