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I would think the decision between the Suburban and Truma water heaters would boil down to the type camping you do (or plan to do) most. The full benefits of the Truma would only be available if you are using full hookups in a RV park. You can't very well have quick/unlimited hot water without having unlimited cold water in the first place and a drain down which to put said water after you're done using it. We spend 95% of our time boondocking so I can't see spending the extra money with our style of camping. OTOH if you are primarily camping with hookups, you could probably forgo the solar/battery package and with the money you save, justify spending it on a Truma.

After 4 and a half years of using a re-purposed paper shredder bucket for a trashcan in my LEII I finally found a reasonable replacement. While the shredder bucket did the job of holding regular plastic bags as liners and was small enough to fit on the floor under the pantry without sticking out too far into the aisle, it certainly wasn't very stylish. While running errands after a doctors appointment in the big city of Asheville, NC today my wife and I stopped into a Big Lots store where I found this (see pics below): The dimensions are approximately 12.5 x 12.5 x 6.25 inches. It can be found at: https://www.biglots.com/product/clear-slim-2-4-gallon-wastebasket-with-flat-gray-base/p810428520 I did check Amazon when we got home and they only sell these in sets of 6 and even then they are $5 each and WalMart wants $10.32 for exactly the same thing. Bill

Fwiw, We tend to remove all batteries at the end of the season. Helps to avoid the leakers, and corrosion. We reuse the aaa and aa in secondary flashlights, next season. I don't trust most batteries for more than a year. At my mom's, I replace all her batteries (emergency flashlights, remotes, smoke alarms) on mother's day. Pick a date. Once a year, is my motto. Sherry

Ours has been outside, 247/365, for over 12 years. But, we use an expensive 3m marine paste wax, twice a year, to uv protect the gelcoat. Same wax we use on the 40 plus year old boat, which is too big to be stored undercover. Sherry

I agree with SeaDawg on this - for the cost of a battery it certainly is not worth anyone's life in those smoke detectors. Also, having a battery leak could cause the destruction of whatever device it was in - again not worth taking the chance. Yes, I know that today's batteries (at least good ones) tend to last much longer than they used to. However, it is simply not worth the risk of life or leakage or trying to remember when was the last time I changed those darn things. Therefore, I (like SeaDawg) remove all batteries at the end of each camping season and then replace them with new batteries at the beginning of the season. Bill

@ J.D. Yes. I had one for about 15 years and used it a lot. It was the type with a center stinger. Never had a problem with it. Usually hauled about 80 to 90 pounds. Should I need one for my LEII, I would get the type with stingers on both sides. As you stated in another post, there are significant dynamic loads back there!

Yes, bleach does have an expiration date. http://blog.rjschinner.com/clorox-shelf-life-date-codes/ like many items, it starts to lose effectiveness depending on date, storage temps, etc. Old bleach is probably better than nothing, but its effectiveness is really only a guestimate.

John Davies is spot on regarding Oliver’s welders. When we did our factory tour one thing I looked at were the aluminum welds...I saw “stacked nickels”. If anyone knows anything about welding “stacked nickels” is a very high complement of beautiful welds. So Thank you to the welders at Oliver for fine work. -David

For us: (2019) TV+Stereo Remote 2x AA MaxAir Fan Remote 2x AAA Dometic power awning remote : CR2450 Dometic power awning wind sensor AA - recommend lithium Smoke Detector: 2x AA Our propane/co runs off the 12v system of the trailer

Agree with WhatDa, plan to spend a few days, or more, in the local area. There is a lot to do in TN and KY, so might as well take advantage! When you get home find a local RV repair and use them. Our local guy works on 3 Olivers that I’m aware of. He’s done warranty work for me that was reimbursed by Oliver. I take my trailer in to him annually for wheel bearings and brakes. We haven’t had any other issues the last couple of years. Mike

Nope, the box is essentially light weight diamond plate aluminum with 3 Deck Hatches and a door. The base plate is 1/8" steel. I put two layers of vibration isolating material between the generator and the trailer. (I had not intended to, that was just the way things worked out!) It would not be a problem to apply the "one side sticky/other side foil" (and expensive) sound attenuation material that stereo installers use, but it would add about 10 to 15 pounds of weight. Three campers ago we owned an Arctic Fox 29' fifth wheel. The generator was located directly below the bed... I applied $120 dollars worth of that stuff in an attempt to be able to sleep with the generator running. It did not work unless you were really, really tired!

We also use TST, ours has the older B&W monitor. Works well, not too hard to set up. Good customer service. I know some folks like Tireminder, also good from what I read. Mike

We've used a tst system for many years, probably over 10 years, now. Their customer service is excellent. Turnaround time on replacing batteries/ warranty repairs has always been very quick, and they have a three year warranty. I highly recommend them. Sherry

I'd get the truma again, given the choice. Both options are going to waste the water from the heater to the faucet. I like pulling into camp and flicking the dial, and taking a shower. My wife likes taking really long showers. Sometimes we go for a walk and it's wash dog, wash wife, wash me. We can do that all back to back with the Truma. We never worry about turning it off or on. We just always have hot water - even in the middle of the night. Winterizing it is easy.

If you run out of gas, the control panel will flash a warning light. And if you think it's cold enough to freeze, you gan go out and flip the drain lever open and go back to bed.

The truma will fire up just enough to keep the water inside the unit above freezing. From the factory it will do this with propane, or you can buy the electric antifreeze kit which does the same on 12v, which is great when traveling through freezing temps. It doesn't do anything to protect your pipes, but it will protect your expensive water heater from damage.

??? .... That extra water is not actually usable. If you are connected to an outside water source and sewer, you have limitless fresh water. So that 6 gallons doesn’t matter. If you are using the onboard fresh water supply, the pump replaces the hot water in the tank with cold water, and it will suck air when the fresh tank is nearly empty. In that case, the last 6 gallons trapped in the water heater are not at all usable. Unless you turn off the heater, let it cool, go outside with your big socket and drain the tank into a bucket. If there were an inside valve arrangement that would allow the water pump to be switched to suck water from the (turned off and cold) water heater, then that might be a nifty way to use the extra water, which otherwise is essentially inaccessible. But I think it would be a pretty cumbersome arrangement.... the best way to save fresh water is to use the composting toilet. John Davies Spokane WA

Our trailer remains at our home under a carport shelter. I installed a 30 amp electrical connection, which the trailer remain plugged in to keep the batteries charged. The electrical is connected for about 20 days and then disconnected for a few days; this way the batteries are maintained in an excellent operating condition. Plus the water is checked in the four T-105 batteries every 30 days. A water connection for the trailer is available if needed. We have always kept our travel trailers at home, which makes it nice.

Yes, it does come with a 25 ft. 30a power cord, just things you might also want and need at times. I carry an extra 25 ft. 30a power cord, you can run into situations where the 25 ft. cord may not reach the power box, it does happen at times, plus both 30a and 50a hookup adapter plugs. I would also get an extra 25 ft. water hose as the same thing can happen when when hooking up in some campsites. I also carry with me a gray water water hose, adapter, and a honey wagon, and I have used them all. The rule of thumb is, miss it twice, then consider buying it. trainman

jo79RI - Yes, new Olivers come with a "stinky slinky" that attaches to the Oliver and then the other end is placed in the sewer opening. However, while the new Oliver also comes with a drinking water hose, it is NOT what you want to use for rinsing your black tank! My recommendation is that you purchase a length of garden hose that is NOT white (I've got a grey one but virtually any color other than white is OK so that you don't accidently mix up your drinking water hose with the one you use for your black tank). There are plenty of YouTube videos on this subject and it really isn't any big deal. Bill

Dumping is such a great topic! 🤪 We’ve never had much of a problem. These are things I try to keep in mind... If I’m going to go to a dump station where there may be others I ensure I’m ready with everything handy before I get there. I put my gloves, flush hose and sewer hose end where I can get them quickly and not have to unload my basement to get to them. If there isn’t a line I always do a black tank rinse or two after dumping black. If there is someone waiting it’s pretty easy to judge of they will mind if you do a rinse. Of course, that’s assuming there’s a hose hookup available. A frustration last trip at a state park was that there was a rinse hose but it had no screw end and it was one of those elevated things so I couldn’t reach to unscrew the short hose and attach mine. If we’re at a full hook up site, then there is no problem at all, just do your dumping at your leisure! If my black tank is not very full, I use the black tank flush to fill it to about 80% then dump. Once empty I fill the black tank to about 80% and dump again. It’s usually pretty clear but usually do it a third time and it’s always clear. Then I dump the gray tank. It helps the gray tank to drain faster if the tongue of the trailer is a bit higher than the back. I’ve never had an issue with impatience from those waiting to dump. Occasionally there will be someone who makes a mess and doesn’t clean up well which can be aggravating. We’ve met some interesting folks while waiting to dump! It’s also good to remember that there are other places to dump. Pick up the Allstays Dump app. On our way home last week after staying at a COE campground with no hookups and no dump station we dumped at a rest stop on I-10 in Texas. Clean and nobody there. Mike

We used regular twin sheets for a couple of years. Just tucked them in good and used the elastic fasteners Bill mentions above. For the past couple of years we’ve been using custom sheets from AB Lifestyle. We got mattress pads, fitted and top sheets. They are a perfect fit for the twin beds. You can do a search on this forum for ablifesyles and you’ll see a number of threads. Or go to their web site and look at what they have available for the Oliver. Welcome! Mike