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Who would like to join us on a caravan to the Quartzsite, AZ gathering this winter? We plan to leave here (North Mississippi) in mid January, drop south to I-10 and travel west, meandering and stopping along the way as the mood strikes us. It will probably take us a week or better to get there. I want to arrive in Quartzsite sometime around January 24th or 25th so as to catch the end of the 35th Annual Sports, Vacation and RV Show. If you’ve never experienced the “Big Tent” it’s sure to be a memorable event for you. We will camp approximately 5 miles west of Quartzsite south of I-10, alongside the Dome Rock frontage road. This is where the gathering is held each winter. The gathering is for all brands of Molded Fiberglass Trailers! The dates for the gathering are: February 5th to 8th - Early bird Quartzsite Pre-Gathering (Monday thru Thursday) February 9th to 11th - Main Event (Friday thru Sunday) This is BLM and although you must obtain a free 14 day permit, there is no fee for camping here. This is pure boondocking, as good as it gets. There are no hookups of any kind, no parking pads, no picnic tables or fire rings. Just hundreds of square miles of open hard packed desert. Clear blue skies as far as you can see. February daytime highs are usually in the 70's and nighttime lows in the 40's. It must rain sometime, but we’ve never seen it do so. The wind can blow pretty good though. Water and dumping is available in town as are good places to eat, grocery stores and a laundry. There’s either plenty to do or nothing to do depending on your inclination. Currently there are at least four Oliver’s that have plans to go. Let us know if you are interested.

Well--WE ORDERED it. Hull number 318! It's set to start production in January, and we can change our options up until two weeks prior to production start. We chose a later production month to accommodate a May delivery. As it stands we ordered the following: Solar (the Zamp was the only option, but it comes prewired to accept additional panels). In the end I think it will work for our needs, and I really like the idea of not adjusting or modifying items that deal with electricity. Anderson Hitch- We have a 2017 Tundra that we purchased to pull our new travel trailer. I don't think the Anderson will be required, but I like the idea that I could pull it with my Tacoma on tighter and more demanding trails if need be. Fiber Granite- Color to be determined by my wife Shower track- I liked the setup that G&J Roaming & Rolling applied to their trailer. They are on YouTube and have been a great help in the decision making process. Tank-less Water Heater- I'm sure the conventional tank would suffice...but I like what Reed said "Why skimp?" at this point? Electronic Key Pad- I hate keys, and it just made sense Micro-Air Easy Start- We have an existing EU2000i, and I think this will be easy to integrate into our setup Four (4) Trojan T-105 Batteries with Hydrolink- This is going to open a can of worms, but I chose this setup for several reasons. I wanted the ability to recharge if they completely drain, and my understanding is the the AGM batteries can lose efficiency and ability after several complete discharges. Ideally this never happens, but If so, I think these are a safer route. Correct me if I'm wrong, please! 30Lb Tanks- First hand accounts sold me. We are in Alaska for the next couple of years so I'm anticipating heater usage! Cell Signal Booster- I read several things on this upgrade. Some say it's useless. Some love it. Obviously comes down to the individual user. What I tried to do was research the individual item, reviews and first hand accounts. This system actually received excellent reviews outside of the Oliver community, so I pulled the trigger. In the end, We don't camp to be around people or signal, so not a deal breaker either way. Any first hand accounts would be appreciated. My wife will undoubtedly decide and change her mind several times prior to production, so we might have more questions. Is there any one place to view different Oliver color schemes and combos, or did everyone just scour the internet for hours like myself? And pics or fabric suggestions would be appreciated. We have a small dog, and we are concerned about shedding and fabric feasibility. Now the waiting. I'm a MEDEVAC guy, so I have lots of downtime to lurk and surf the web for Oliver ideas. Thanks! -Alex

WDW - I can't really give you much to go on regarding the Zamp. I have the Blue Sky with the 4 Trojan 105's and could not be happier. Given the relatively unique situation in which Reed and Karen seem to use their solar system and the general lack of negative comments about the Zamp, I'm guessing that for most people the Zamp is fine. But, that is only a guess on my part. I hate to say it, but, nothing really gives one good answers besides research in regards to their own situation. With regards to the water heater - I have the standard Suburban and can echo what Steve&Betty had to say about it. I never leave it on for more time than it takes to heat the water that I will need for a shower. In this regard - I bought a meat thermometer that came with the "meat" probe attached to a wire that is about 20 inches long ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017613C3C/ref=sxbs_sr_ss_b_1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=3221812782&pd_rd_wg=VjNU3&pf_rd_r=KQKCYFV7KKYF7REM4FVT&pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-bottom-slot&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=B017613C3C&pd_rd_w=IyTDL&pf_rd_i=taylor+meat+thermometer&pd_rd_r=fa01d713-84c7-4176-b1a9-8995112f7810&ie=UTF8&qid=1509471050&sr=1 ) I placed the probe against the tank of the water heater under the Styrofoam insulation that surrounds it (there is a convenient seam right in the horizontal center of this insulation) , ran the wire out the cold air return for the furnace and attached it to the "read out/alarm". Setting the "read out/alarm" to 105 degrees (about the water temperature that I like to shower with) about ten minutes prior to taking a shower I then just go about doing other things until the alarm goes off. At this point I turn off the water heater and take my shower. There are a couple of things to mention about this. First, it saves propane by only heating up the water that you are really going to use. Second, by just using only "hot" water in the shower I avoid the momentary shot of cold water that one gets when using the shower head flow interrupter (taking a Navy shower of course). Third, I save fresh water tank water in that I'm not having to cool down hot water that is too hot and I save water that I would have used in trying to find the "correct" showering temperature. Obviously this saving water is not a problem if you are hooked to city water but that is a rare event for me. In the event my wife or fishing buddy is along, I simply repeat the process for heating the water. Virtually all other needs for hot water are taken care of by heating the water on the stove or microwave so that I do not heat 6 gallons just to do a hand full of dishes. Yes, the Truma is slightly better with regards to winterization and, yes, one does not have to think about turning the water heater on or off, but, there sure are a bunch of ways I can think of to spend the difference in price. Bill

There have been some changes in Oliver's service structure as of this week. Effective immediately, the number for scheduling service or ordering parts is 866-205-2621. This number will be answered and/or monitored by Jason Essary. All calls placed to this number will go to Jason's desk. After five rings it will transfer to his cell phone. If he is unable to answer immediately, leave a message and he will return your call. These changes are due, in part, to a recent problem with their VoIP system which resulted in calls to the service department going to an inoperative number thus not being answered. The outage occurred without Oliver having knowledge of it for a few days. They wish to apologize for all inconveniences that were incurred by the owners. Please do not call Richie Carroll's cell phone any longer to request service. The goal here is to have service requests responded to in a more efficient manner.

Don, Another good reason for using an electric heater/heaters is some campgrounds furnish the electric but I don't think ever furnish propane. So, your heat is free if you are using their electricity. In fact, I'm going to a Texas campground in November and their electric comes with the monthly rent. We will just stay a month and then back home and to the Philippines in Jan. BTW, very nice meeting you in Fall Hollow Campground! Thanks for coming over to chat. The next morning I had to go back and get something else done to my Ollie. So sorry to have missed your great coffee!

Bill is right the Zamp works, it's just not the best of the best or even close. Zamp does not have a shunt, so that really limits its capabilities. When we started looking at Oliver, everything was top of the line, rated best of the best and they told us all about the Blue Sky System, another best of the best product, and that's why we bought the Oliver, because it was packed with the best of the best and for $60,000+ that's what we expected. That story is elsewhere on this forum. We paid $2800 for the Blue Sky System and that's the bottom line. Bait & Switch, we ended up with something unfamiliar, then I did tons of research and found out that Zamp is simply put, overpriced low budget garbage, not what we paid for. It retails for $1100, so Oliver should have lowered the price for it considerably, but they chose not too. It takes about 1hour 40 minutes for them to install the Zamp system. If you are OK with mediocre garbage being installed on your trailer, then go for it :) I paid for top of the line, was told that I was getting the Blue Sky System by the Oliver Sales people, did my research and learned all about the Blue Sky System, and then... I got ripped off, plain and simple Bait & Switch... We went with the Truma because it's set up to protect itself in the freezing temps, you simply turn the switch to Winter mode and if the water heater gets down to 37° it starts cycling itself on to keep the water from freezing in the water heater. It keeps the water at 37° on its own. During the winter with the Suburban 6 gallon, you have the choice of leaving it on, or draining the system. Knowing that we will be camping in below freezing temps quite a bit in the winter, we chose the Truma for the self protection Winter Mode because we camp in snow every year in the Spring. This also is the second tankless heater that we have used for camping, it's a good Winter hot water system for Southern Alaska. Before I bought the Oliver, I read thru every page written on this forum. It took about a month then, but it taught me so much. It should be on every buyer's to do list :) Reed

I am following this (and many other threads) with much interest as we are close to placing our order. I called the Oliver business development director (Brent Robinson) today to confirm if the Blue Sky was an option that they are offering and he said it is not and they have no plans to return to it. While I appreciate (and respect) Reed's opinion on the subject - I'd like to hear from some folks using the current Zamp configuration and if you are satisfied with it? While we do intend to do some boondocking, I don't expect it to be more than 10-12 days at a time maximum and I think/hope that with a generator for back up we would be fine with either? - thoughts.... We appreciate all of the valuable input from all of you and look forward to joining you on the road soon. Darrell & Kathy

Alex, I have the Blue Sky so I can't comment on how the Zamp compares. Reed is very knowledgeable and I respect his opinion on the Zamp. He also makes good points in favor of the Truma tankless water heater. If and when my Suburban bites the dust, I think I'll install the Truma! Don

The guys that say you don't need the tank less water heater are correct, you don't need it but... For boondocking, you can't beat the Truma tankless heater because you are only heating water as you need it, so your not being forced to heat 6 gallons when you only need 1/2 a gallon to wash dishes, yet both you and your wife can shower immediately, one after the other without the second person getting a cold shower half way thru. Yes, it's an expensive option but we'll worth it, when hooked up to sewer, you can take the endless shower and never worry about running out of hot water. I've had 4 of the 6 gallon Suburban water heaters in the past 30 years and I bought the Truma because having an endless supply of hot water at your fingertips, exactly the amount of hot water that you will need, does not compare in the least, in any way to the 6 gallon Suburban that these guys have in their trailers. Are you buying a $65,000.00+ Oliver just to cheap out on the water heater? No! Ask all of the guys who say that you don't need it, if they have ever had one in an RV in the past... I've been there, I've had both, and I won't go back to the 6 gallon tank ever! The Truma pays for itself in quality time, you don't need to ever wait for hot water. The Zamp is the main system that Oliver offers but I have heard that you can get the Blue Sky as an option now. Either way, it's going to be tough up there with Solar and cheapening down to the Zamp just won't cut it in Alaska even on the Solstice, cloudy days take top notch Solar Systems and you would be better off with no solar and using your generator, then going with the Zamp, it's not good enough, plus you're going to need a 480watt system up there. I have the 320 plus another 100 and it's still marginal. If Oliver just offers the Zamp, then I would buy Solar elsewhere because it's overpriced garbage... You will be better off just running your generator for an hour or so every day and keeping the batteries charged up that way. My ex was Army and we spent 4 years at Ft Rich/ Elmendorf from 83 to 87 and loved it. I would make some calls around Anchorage, Palmer or Fairbanks if youre up there, about Alaskan Solar Systems and see what the companies up there recommend, and also ask them for their opinion on Zamp... I'm sure you will get the same style answer as mine :) Reed

Hi Robin and Susan!!! Congratulations and wishing you many many safe a memorable journeys!! We saw your ladybug Oliver when we were at Hohenwald for warranty work!! Love it!!!

We had a great time at the Lake Casitas Fiberglass RV Rally, Karen gave her Cobb Grill demonstration for everyone and made Spaghetti Squash Lasagna's for everyone and it went fast :) Then she also was the hostess for the games, Stump the Camper and the Sit Down Scavenger Hunt, the awards ceremony and then she hosted the Color & Chat with Karen again that has really gone over well with everyone :) We really love theRally's, I wish we were closer to Tennessee so that we could come to the Oliver Rally, but we're booked here out west as it is with lot's of fun times ahead :)

The truck pulled Goldilocks really well and we had no problems going up over the different summits. It's a completely different feel from the Mercedes but you get what you pay for either way. There's really no comparing the 2 vehicles because they are so different, ie- diesel vs gas, Mercedes vs Chevy, car vs truck, but I was able to fit everything into the truck except my bucket of tools. Most of them I don't need everyday and this is a quick trip being that we will be back home next week, so I left them home for the first time to get the feel of all of the extra room that I filled up with the extra chairs and things for this Rally at Lake Casitas, CA. Anyway, so far so good and I love our new truck and have already been out 4wheelin in it and this is the real reason that we switched over to it. The Mercedes comes with an off-road package but it still doesn't have the clearance compared to the truck or the off-road capability. I've had to turn around a number of times in the Mercedes just because I wasn't willing to scrape the bottom over some of the boulder strewn trails that we travel, but that just comes right back to the car vs truck. The truck is more versatile when it comes to extreme off-road, it has the clearance that we need and it is going to take the place of our old 2005 Hummer as well, I hope... As far as towing goes, it's a good TV with all of the right controls built in and everything works fine. I did have to use my brakes more going downhill in the truck compared to the diesel Mercedes, but I knew that I was giving up that capability, going in :) We were out of communication for a day and now, we are at the Lake Casitas Rally, set up and ready for it to begin today. We like coming in the day before and taking our time getting set up. And today Spike and his wife stopped in, in their Legacy Elite II to say high and we will be getting together this week and talking a lot more as they get settled in for their reunion here in the same town :) Good Times Ahead Reed