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Bathroom door hack using a Camco basement door catch attached with a Command strip.

Red herring: “something that takes attention away from a more important subject” There are enough secure areas in an Ollie for stuff like a medium sized purse, laptop, etc, but the best solution is to keep a crook away from those places using red herrings. Bait the more accessible places with things that you don’t mind losing. A typical crook is looking for a quick in and out, less than a minute usually. He isn’t going to check every single storage compartment, he will go for the drawers, the closet and the bathroom cabinet, before anything else. Often he is just looking for enough cash for his next fix, or something that he can carry easily and that he can pawn rapidly. Which is a very sad statement about our society. Fill an old prescription bottle, preferably one that had an opioid pain killer, with Tic Tacs and leave it on the bathroom counter. Leave an old phone or tablet plugged in and sitting on the table. I use an old iPad, with its dead battery. Make sure there is no personal info on it! Store small tools in one of the galley drawers. Mine contains multimeter, muliti-tool, hatchet, electrical adapters, etc. Total value is low but it looks impressive to a thief. Leave an electronics case with a logo on it (Go Pro, Garmin) with an obslolete or dead unit in it, like an old radar detector. I have a shotgun locked in a rack in the closet. That and the stuff on the shelves will keep him occupied for a while, but he won’t get the gun out unless he has power tools. If you have some apparently valuable stuff that is visible and easily accessible, it is very unlikely that a bad guy would spend much time digging into more obscure places. I do recommend that you never leave behind your personal IDs and credit cards in the trailer, never ever. Never travel with irreplaceable heirlooms or jewelry (Rolex). Everything else is just mainstream “stuff” that can be easily replaced. John Davies Spokane WA

During the build of our Oliver back in 2013, I proposed that a “hidey-hole” be created in a certain area. It later became standard in most of the builds. Owners, you’ll know if it’s in yours, not everybody has it. I was not satisfied that there was enough security with the result that the factory provided and modified it to be a real safe. Even though, by John's definition based on price, it would have to be considered "junk” it has four times the capacity of the front opening gun safes and I would challenge you to find it and remove anything from it in less than four hours. Of course, that assumes two things: (1) You’ve made it past Reacher (2) I’ve not come back and caught you at it and then had to call a good friend.

Gwenne, You are not alone with the need to use a CPAP machine. Both myself and my wife now use machines at night. When we owned our previous 2008 Oliver Elite, I had not yet been diagnosed with sleep apnea and was not using a CPAP, but Tali just placed her machine on the floor and plugged it into a 12vdc outlet installed under the side dinette. This was always a hassle as it needed to be packed away each morning to get it out of the way. During the build of our twin bed Oliver LEII back in late 2013, I knew that we needed a place for the machines to live. Here’s what I did. I had the guys on the line install 12v outlets inside each of the overhead rear cabinets. I drilled a 7/8” hole up through the bottom of the cabinets over each of our beds. I ran a short (about 4.5 inch) piece of 1/2” PVC pipe through each hole and glued it in place. Now, the machines reside in the upper cabinets. Their power comes directly from the batteries so no need to carry the 110vac converter. We use a short hose to go from the Machine to the top of the PVC pipe inside the cabinet. The hose attached to your mask is plugged into the lower end of the PVC pipe on the outside of the cabinet. We have used this system for four years now and have found it to be a very elegant solution to the problem. In the mornings we simply unplug the hose from the PVC pipe and store our mask and hose inside the cabinet during the day. Out of sight and ready to go the next night. As a side note, when I attempted to purchase the 12vdc cords for our particular machines, I found that they were $50 apiece. Not being willing to spend that much money on a simple cord, I decided to make my own. I bought two 12vdc plugs and then realized that the plug that goes into our machine is proprietary and unavailable. After brainstorming on this for a few days, I went down to our local dealer that furnishes our breathing supplies and asked if they had any inoperable power supply’s. She brought out a box full and I went home with a couple. I cut off a short length of cord with the plug attached , soldered the 12vdc plug onto the other end and voilà, free power cords. Sorry about the pictures being sideways, that always happens when I post from my phone.

I've been searching the internet looking for a hitch to tow my soon to be Oliver. I wanted something tough, adjustable and I only wanted to buy one. My TV has a 2 1/2" hitch receiver so I also wanted one that size. My thinking on that was, I had really never seen a 2 1/2" hitch system so I figured that may keep down theft, I don't know. I've read about and experienced the hassles of properly weighing my rig and determining tongue weight of a RV. Well I stumbled across a unit made by a company called Weigh-Safe and was intrigued. It turns out that they sell a heavy-duty hitch with a built in hitch scale. I bought my unit from e-trailer it arrived in just a few days and I am very pleased with its construction. I'll post a few pictures cause I think its cool. I also bought the keyed alike hitch positioner and lock.

I painted the back of ours, then covered that with some black vinyl to protect the paint. Looks like a chalkboard because of the matte finish of the plexi. I’d post a pic but it doesn’t really come through in a photo. At first I thought it looked out of place with all the gloss finishes in the trailer, but I decided to live with it for a while to see if it will grow on me. I’d prefer to put a mirrored door there but my wife objects. If I don’t like the look after a while, then I'll ask Oliver if I can get one of their black doors. By the way, if you spray paint it and don’t like it, you can take the paint off with acetone and it won’t hurt the plastic, so it’s reversible with a little effort and time. I’ve considered repainting mine with silver paint to see what that looks like. Also, for those of you who have mirrored doors, the vinyl trick works well on those to protect the mirror finish.

Hallelujah! Steve I cannot repay you enough for all you’ve done for me. Simply pulled the fuse and it was off. Thank you

Check your temperature setting on the fan.

Don't know about yours, but our fantastic fan has a humidity sensor. We have to switch to manual mode if it's raining or snowing...

Twas I that posted about the USB/Barrel Jack cable.

Watch video here - https://www.camperidea.com/runaway-camper-window-rain-guards/ https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/auto-ventshade-avs-windflector-sunroof-wind-deflector-classic-style-33-in-wide-77001/6010687-p?c3ch=PLA&c3nid=6010687-P&adtype=pla_with_promotion&gclid=Cj0KCQiAmafhBRDUARIsACOKERNzLLKN0TQ5_e4GBmrpQ4eNf-t7UJIrs5VPxMrYU2fMbNaM5kSap5gaAoU4EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

I am not sure I can help you on the foam part I got mine at a local flea market in Murphy NC for about $2 a foot and it was about 4 ft. wide so pretty cheap. Before I found this I was thinking about the foam pads they lay under sleeping bags that are also closed cell foam so not to let moisture thru. The duck tape was the low residue tape and only took about one roll to put the foam on and took an hour at the most. I cut the foam at home in Florida to the shape i wanted and applied it to the Oliver when we got into British Columbia right before getting on to the ALcan. The tape held for an easy 6 weeks on the trip to Alaska thru Alaska and back down the Cassiar Hwy. into Washington State then I removed it. It held up great and let no intrusion of the mud and heavy rains or water we encountered and you will I guarantee you will go thru the same. What ever you do you will enjoy the trip , try not to rush your self, and check out Haines and Hyder Alaska for Bear watching if your there during the Salmon runs. If you go to Valdez be sure you cross over to the Salmon Weir on the other side of the bay both times we were in Alaska there was a Mother Grizzly that can down every evening with 4 cubs to feed on the salmon alone with the Sea Lions and eagles. Any way good luck the most important area to cover is the areas on each of the front corners inside from the running lights. Thanks Gary Here is a picture of the better halves from Dawson city waiting on the Ferry to cross from the Provincial campground. This was doing the Top of the World Hwy.

Try this for a discussion on the EZE Gutter - http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/eze-rv-gutters/ Since the last post relative to my EZE gutters I have had two of the gutter ends come loose. Interestingly the problem was NOT where the 3M tape was bonded to the Oliver, but, the 3M tape came loose from the gutter material. I simply took a bit of a clear sealer/glue (E3000 is the brand that I used) and re-stuck the loose ends. During my 6,000 mile Idaho trip this past summer where temps reached over 108 degrees, all now remains firmly stuck. And, there is still no discoloration of the gutter material - they continue to look exactly like they were on the day I installed them. Bill

Mingy - As per Sherry's suggestion on the gutters - https://www.amazon.com/RV-Gutter-Ultra-White-UW025004/dp/B00LE0CC24/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1546265260&sr=8-8&keywords=rv+gutter If you decide to get this product there are a couple of reviews of it here on the Forum. Remember to clean, clean and clean again before applying and (if you can) only apply it when you know the temperatures will be warm - above 80 is very nice. Bil

Frank: I have a SUV TV so my storage for "stuff" pretty much has to be in Ollie. As such, I took great care on what I carry and selecting storage containers for the hold that I can use for multiple purposes. Milk crates are less valueable on the road for most needs. Also, the 6 gallon ones are often too heavy to move when out of reach in the back storage hold. As such, I use only one "4 gallon" milk crate for the very heavy items in the hold. It is placed in the far back of the rear storage area. I also have one in the back of my TV. As suggested by Phil at OTT, the Fortiflex 20 QU FB-120 Bucket works perfectly in the Ollie hold. I highly recommend getting them at the Tractor Supply Company, 608 EAST MAIN ST, Hohenwald, TN 38462, 931-796-2528 Store #1346) after you pick up your Ollie. Be sure to get the Fortiflex buckets with the FLAT BACK. They are designed as a feed bucket that can be hung a wall. That flat section allows you to dense pack several of these buckets very efficiently in the hold. When I arrived at tractor supply, they very graciously allowed me to bring outside to Ollie some of their 20 qt and 8 quart Fortiflex buckets. I went with a mix for flexibility. I recommend getting buckets sized for different contents and sized to fit in the hold. For example I have a large blue one for my garden hoses, water filter and the collection of clean water related fittings you will end up with. I have a red large one for the Furion electrical cord, and a 27 foot 12 GA 20 amp extension cord coiled up. In this red bucket I also have all the electrical connectors you will end up with. I have two stacking 8 quart buckets for washing Ollie. Stacked they fit in the hold, and I use them for the cleaning supplies you will end up with. Granted the milk crate works great for my heavy stuff (Bearing supplies, spare brake pads, sockets, ratchet etc.), but the cords, hoses and cleaning/waxing supplies work best for me in the Fortiflex's. Hence I recommend more buckets and less milk crates. (Note: You will want two buckets for washing Ollie.) The pearl is to go to Tractor Supply with your stuff you want to store in the hold. Then play with their buckets to see what works for you best. Also suggested is getting a Home Depot/Lowes trash picking up wand before going to Tractor Supply. This tool has a gripper on one end and a long handle. The gripper works well to get the milk crate that I keep at the far end of the storage area. It also works OK on the bucket rims as well. It would be very handy to have while you are at Tractor Supply playing with your buckets. :-) I hope some of the above helps.

Apparently, Mike and I were working at the same time... I removed the entire post. Thanks for posting the warning, John. A reminder to everyone. If you see a post that looks like spam, hit that little gray "report" word at the bottom of the post. A message goes out immediately to all the mods and administrators . If you add a warning post as John did, that can help others before we get to the post. I don't know what triggered Johns suspicion, but it was a classic spam post. Brand new member posting a link.... not truly related to the topic... For those of you have never noticed it, this is the report button. Sherry

Yes for sure. I brought them jars of my homemade jams as a small token of my appreciation today.

Yes 1 lbs tanks. Mine was called Mr Heater Big Buddy. Took it back today. Just checked in with Jerry’s RV. They said “Your furnace works fine.” OMG Turns out I opened the newly filled tank TOO FAST, which triggered a safety valve to shut. I guess some things one can only learn from experience. Hope I don’t go through another cold like that again.

Spike, thanks again for your practical solution to the falling window shade problem. Our daytime shade recently started falling down on the curb side window. I took the shade down and I was just about ready to start taking it apart to see what I could do to fix it and bingo, I thought of your post and the use of the plastic wall anchors. I must admit that I hate those things, but I never throw them away. So I found 4 of them and installed them per your instructions and problem solved. Thanks again and Merry Christmas, Mike

Today I received the 2 5/16" Bulldog Coupler (their item #028462) that I had ordered thru WalMart. GTW rating for this coupler is 12,500 lbs vs 7000 lbs on the OEM one. Though many would say that is overkill, The Outlaw Oliver II weighs over 7200 lbs so this upgrade is warranted and anyway, I'm all about overkill. It was about $66.00 and change including shipping. This will allow me to take full advantage of the Weigh-Safe hitch mount that I've also ordered. Going from the 2" to the 2 5/16" ball will increase Max GTW from 7500 lbs to 14,500 lbs. This setup now also fully optimizes the capability of the new Silverado 2500 HD truck. If you are buying a new Oliver Elite II and your plan is to tow with a HD pickup, consider specifying the larger coupler for your build.

Usually the last trip home of the season, after dumping, we put a couple pounds of ice cubes into the tank with some water. The "splash blending" going down the road really cleans the tank. By the time we are home it is mostly water. That can be dumped into a 5 gallon bucket and the poured into a cleanout or the home toilet. I like to use Eco-Save during the season, as an additive. I think it smells good and has no chemicals. It is bacterial and you only add when waste is present and it digests that. Just not easy to find everywhere...

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01INZ7RY0/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Mike

We just got the small door magnets. On Command strips hold one on the bottom of the door and one on the side under the dinette seat. They work well and not very noticeable at all. Mike

What a coincidence! Herm, you're right on! I was boondocking in rural Maine when my furnace decided to go on strike. When I get somewhere with WIFI I'll post pictures of the 'fix' that I stumbled across. But the problem turned out to be in the thermostat. When I pulled the cover off the thermostat I noticed a small dial inside that controls the cycle times. By turning the dial toward "shorter cycles" I was able to get the furnace to cycle more frequently and to maintain a more consistent temp in my Ollie. It's a 30-second fix and no tools required! Yahoo! Aubrey