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On our drive back home to SE Texas after picking up our Ollie, we stayed at the COE Maumelle Park (Highly recommend). After unhooking the trailer, we made a short drive of about 10 min. to the TR Pugh Memorial Park located within Little Rock. I thought I would share the photos as it was a wonderful place to see and highly recommend you visit if you find yourself in the Little Rock Area.

Tom and Shari Allore from Palm City, Florida, we will be picking up our new Ollie on January 21st, 2021, can’t wait to post our pictures and start our new adventures

Might have to try that. It also might help with the issue of the folks next to us at the moment ( street side) in a tent that must feel like a UFO has landed 10 ft away from them when I snap on the porch lights.....

Not sure if everyone else in the country experiences this but, here in South East Texas our Bright White Porch Light attracts every flying creature known to man. After doing some research, it appears yellow light is less attractive to flying insects. We recently purchased some yellow film to place over the porch light and have found it to help out considerably. Of course, we are not in the middle of summer now so only time will tell next spring if the theory holds true. Below is the link to the film I purchased and applied to the lens portion of the light along with a couple of photos of how it looks. I now have enough film to redo the lens another 100+ times if needed in the future as it is easy to pull off. Time needed to place the film over the lens and cut to fit was around 5 min. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N4PDXBD/ref=twister_B01N7TJDQG

Those pillows are EPIC!!

Welcome Tom and Shari. We are also in shopping mode (June 21 delivery) and came across a couple of pillows that you might like that are most definitely applicable for my wife and me...Separately, you may have seen this already but we found this thread particularly helpful. Looking forward to seeing your pics!

We traded our 1500 Rebel last month for a 2500 diesel. I was tired of always being at or above payload capacity and wanted a more relaxed towing experience in the mountains. A gas V8 at 5,000 RPM in the Colorado mountains isn’t fun. Mike

As you can see it’s a point of debate. But you have to look at more than just towing capacity. You have to also look at the payload/cargo sticker on the specific truck you are considering. It’ll be on the driver’s door jamb. And it’ll be different ratings even on two of the same truck sitting side by side on the dealer’s lot depending on how each truck is optioned. An Elite II with 500 to 600 lbs of tongue weight plus a driver and just 1 passenger will eat up 1,000 lbs of your payload capacity, and that’s BEFORE you start adding any other accessories like a cap or bed cover on the truck, a bed liner, and any luggage, a loaded cooler, etc. A lot of the high option (Limited, Platinum, King Ranch, etc) half ton trucks have less than 1,500 lbs. payload ratings.

Ok but, it's all about available payload after subtracting the hitch load. How much "stuff" do you want to take along? Tow ratings make good marketing fodder but don't mean much beyond adequate .

Legacy Elite II, Twin, busy shopping in preparation for the big day! We are open for suggestions on must haves for pick up (I have seen the lists on the forums). We are seasoned hikers and campers, migrated from tents and pop up campers to large TT and we are tired of subpar products, come on Ollie!

I will add this - although I am not sure if anything has changed since 2018 builds. The latch on the battery tray slide has a history of breaking off - shearing - and the door then becomes the only thing keeping the tray and its contents from sliding out. I drilled a 1/4 hole through both of the slide arms and secured with a double nutted bolt. It is not coming out with out taking the bolt loose. If I needed an an additional locking mechanism - this is where I would do it. Its cheap too. If I were a thief - the lockable latch just does seem that difficult to overcome. But then what passing by thief has the tools and time to disconnect the batteries - RB

We don’t get real cold here in south Texas either. Tonight it will dip into the mid to high 20s. This afternoon, I will go to my storage, turn on my little Vornado electric heater, turn on my hot water tank and then lift the mattress and open the basement access where the water pump is. I will open and drain all the exterior water connections (just let whatever water is in there drain) then recap. I’ve been doing this for 5 winters and have not had a problem. Last year we did have 3 or 4 consecutive days of night temperatures in the 20s, no problems. We’re heading to AZ in early January and it is nice not to have to de-winterize. Mike

We are towing our new Elite II with a 2006 Silverado 2500 Diesel with 230K miles on it until it dies. From what I've read on the forum, any 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton will pull an Ollie II incredibly well and will ride a LOT smoother with one attached. Other than the rougher ride while empty, parking is the only thing that comes to mind when I think of inconveniences of a bigger 2500 truck if you want to call it that. When my time comes to buy a new TV, I know from experience that I will have a camper top and carry an enormous amount of stuff in the back of my truck when using my Oliver (or any travel trailer). I will also be in the mountains a lot, so for me it will likely still be a 3/4 ton - payload and power are what separate the 3/4 ton pickups from the 1/2 ton ones - at least today.

We tow our Elite II with a 2019 F-250 with the factory upgraded tow package, 6.2 gas engine. 12,500 lbs. towing capacity, 1,200 lbs. tongue weight capacity, 3,334 lbs. payload. We haul a lot of stuff when camping. The bed of the truck is full of stuff like camp chairs, Andersen jack buckets, portable solar panel setup, portable 3 stage water filtration system, toolboxes, 9’ x 12’ outdoor rug, folding tables, plus the weight of the Rock Tamer mudflap system, a rigid bed cover, over the bed cover bike rack, bikes, etc. so having the high payload capacity is a must for us. The ride is pretty stiff when unloaded/not towing. But I’m used to it now. I do use the truck as my daily driver.

If you have power at your storage area don’t worry about draining your hot water tank. Just turn it on. I’ve got a small Vornado electric heater that we run at our storage and while camping. Set it on low and let it go. We’ve done that for 3 or 4 days in a row. Set on low it cycles on and off keeping the interior warm.

Looks like you had the place all to yourself. A great place to take family photos as well.

John TY TY TY, I was looking for something along this line. Especially the 2 & 3 Tabs. Maggie said we could $ave Money by buying an Oliver, and now i will track it and show here how much we will be $aving... I too will keep a paper log... which is an empty printout of the TAB, and i will fill it in each day. when we eventually return home, then i will transfer it to excel.

Yes - that's how it was out of the factory. I didn't even know what it was until you mentioned it. I'll keep an eye on it. I ended up using semi-rigid aluminum duct. I was happy to find 3" - I didn't think they made it but I found some at Lowe's. It's a nice fit and I've put a few holes in strategic places with a screw driver. I'll fine tune with my thermometers. Here's the final (for now) product. The milk crates still fit fine. Here's the 3" pipe coming into the street side. It's attached to a 3" elbow and the semi-rigid duct. And finally, it follows along the black tank drain for the most part all the way up to where the foot well for the dinette table is.

As follow up on this, I reweighed at a CAT scale during our camp trip earlier this week. With a full fresh water tank, the tongue weight was 498 so much less than the 640 that I earlier estimated and thanks to those who pointed out that possibility. The truck with trailer attached weighed in at 6,960 - a good 90 pounds under GVWR. And I still have yet to trade out that heavy rubber bed mat so I'm in pretty good shape weight-wise. By the way, I recommend Calhoun Falls State Park (SC). Level RV sites with large, level living area pads, good spacing between sites and right on Lake Russell. - Brian

No - I used the 3" pipe for that reason. There's still 13" of clearance under the pipe, which is exactly the clearance getting into the outside door. Milk crates fit fine as long as nothing is sticking up too much - same as before. Good point if you mean the inverter and not just wires - which are everywhere including the curb-side. I'm quite happy with the connections all the way through the wall into the street-side basement, so more reluctant to change that significantly. Since I ran out of materials and time, it's never too late to just use 3" flexible duct like the rest of the trailer in the street-side run. Would be easier to move around as well to your point. Another option is PVC or radiator hose. What do you think would be best since I have some options here? We do have the "good" toilet, but I'm not ready to destroy anything yet. 🙂 This is all very non-intrusive work so far.

This is quite cool (warm actually😬) but I have comments. Do you have concerns about crushing the overhead duct in the rear storage area? Up high is good, but I push 12” high milk crates loaded with hard items in and out of that spot. Could you use a different shaped duct that was more rectangular in cross section? Ideally Oliver would have a molded in place fiberglass warm air passage there in the roof of the compartment or along the water lines! It actually would not be too hard to manufacture a ‘glass duct that could be bonded to the ceiling there.... but that might overheat the mattress and its occupant. Could you make a big hole at the rear wall and run the air duct underneath the floor itself? I have never looked under that floor. Exposed steel in an electrical compartment probably violates RVIA codes, plus it is not good practice. Consider wrapping it in some non-conducting material in that location, maybe a layer of thin neoprene with self adhesive backing. You need to make sure the duct can easily be removed for wiring access there. You really do not want a sharp edge of steel to cut a wire! I personally would never do it your way. If you have the good toilet (AKA Natures Head) you could use the unused 3” black drain pipe as an air duct and eliminate the fragile steel one on that side of the trailer. And you could use the black tank as an air plenum to heat the bathroom floor and under the vanity (using the existing 1.5” tank vent). This also violates codes but at least it is in a non-conducting way. Thanks for your comments, I have been pondering a similar mod. My main hangup has been getting the warm air across the back of the trailer.... John Davies Spokane WA

Here's a propane-dependent solution I'm implementing to warm problem areas along the curb-side basement. I have found that by default, the street side basement runs about 10 degrees cooler than the curb-side basement when the furnace is on. The difference increases as the outside temp decreases. My simple goal is to balance the basements in order to protect the street-side plumbing. It's not particularly difficult to run another HVAC line down the curb-side and it takes advantage of the existing furnace. First, I just used a T connector on the back side of the furnace and tied into the line that goes up to the curb-side all the way to the bathroom. Here's a picture. I'm going to install a manual damper inline so I can restrict flow as needed. I then removed the flimsy plastic walls on the side and rear of the basement to make room. Here's the view looking into the basement from outside after removal: You can see the plumbing running along the back bumper area. This area runs a few degrees cooler than the street-side basement, so it's important to get some heat here as well to prevent freezing. I used 4" dryer duct to run along the back bumper plumbing. Then it's reduces down to a 3" solid duct that runs along the basement roof out of the way. Here goes the 3" duct through the basement wall (pvc board) into the street-side basement: Here's the final picture for now, looking from the back of the trailer towards the front (you can see the inverter on the right). I ran out of time yesterday so I just terminated the connection inside the street-side basement. It's super easy to finish running the 3" duct the rest of the way up the black tank drain pipe to where the footwell for the dinette is. I'm going to put some strategically placed holes along the duct now in order to balance out the temps on both sides at something reasonable. Still need an all-electric backup, but I feel like this is a good start. Easy, quick and takes advantage of the existing components.

Skalywag, Many thanks for taking the time to go out and get some photos. This is just another example of why the Oliver community is one of the best.

It turned out that wasn’t the issue, rather the batteries themselves have problems. Hopefully I’ll find out what exactly it was after Battleborn takes a look. You are correct that theoretically (and perhaps practically) it shouldn’t make a difference. You’ve in essence created a bus bar with the cables and it shouldn’t make any difference where along a bus the power is connected. I could see it being a problem with marginal or undersized cables, but with 4/0 like I have there’s just the tiniest smidge of added resistance between the first battery and the others. After hearing that from Battleborn I’ve tried to find some other reference to properly wiring the battery bank but can can only find one, from a company called Iota. But looking at the photos from their test, it’s obvious that the battery interconnects are undersized. So my take is that theoretically you could have a problem with the batteries wired that way, but practically, I doubt you’d have a problem unless your interconnects were undersized. I’ll certainly make sure they’re connected like Battleborn wants, but yeah, I don’t think it really matters.

Just use a good quality 7500 pound rated ball on a plain ball mount of the correct drop; no worries with the 2” Bulldog. Unless you plan to grossly overload the trailer, then worries.... or buy a bigger trailer. I switched because of the horrible ball wear from the forward thrust of the Andersen chains, the bigger ball is definitely better in this respect. I have no regrets whatsoever. John Davies Spokane WA

50 ft of 10 gage copper wire for 17.7 volt output of the panels, 4.7 amp you'll loose 0.47 volts, 2.65% for 14.3 volt output of the charge controller, 5.8 amp you'll loose 0.58 volts, 4.75% there will also be some minor losses through each of the connections. voltage drop calculator at the link below: https://www.calculator.net/voltage-drop-calculator.html?material=copper&wiresize=3.277&voltage=17.7&phase=dc&noofconductor=1&distance=50&distanceunit=feet&amperes=4.7&x=51&y=23 not sure if this calculator is for solid or stranded wire, you should get slightly less drop with stranded as the current tends to flows on the outer surface of the conductor and the stranded has more surface area.

If I stored my trailer in a paid by the month facility I might have some concerns about thief, but we store our trailer at home where I feel pretty safe with it there. When camping I've never had anything stolen from the campsite in 45 years of camping, but I do lockup our ebikes as they are expensive and could just be rolled off, or put in the back of a truck with not too much effort. We do camp when to old people camp, during the week and try not to camp on weekends when the wild ones are out, haha, oh we are the wile ones. trainman

After reading all the post I think I will do a few things that might help. It does look like the thermostat is working correctly, or as good as it's going to work. I did watch several YouTube videos on the Dometic Thermostat and did learn more about it an how it works, I would suggest that you watch them on operation, I found out things I didn't know. I will take John D advise and remove the baffles in the vents, I can see no real use for them and I will carry our small electric heater with us and use it as Mike and Carol do. I did try the heat strip in the a/c unit, but I would rather not have all that noise, but it works and will keep the chill off. I would say that the furnace does use a lot of propane and the electric small heater would be the better way to go. Thanks everyone. trainman

I'd wager you will not find another battery compartment as well finished as Oliver's 👍

Woah! Seems a little pricey at $25 per pair. A quick search shows you can order direct for $3.37. Shipping adds $12 to the cost. (Sometimes Amazon Prime prices are criminally high.) Maybe Oliver should buy a few hundred and offer them for $5 to owners through the mythical and much hinted about Ollie Store.... Add a $1 to ship in a USPS envelope. https://shop.southco.com/en_us/latches/rotary-latch-systems/actuators/m1-546 John Davies Spokane WA

Southco offers a gazillion types and sizes and they are pricey. I have no idea of what size (thickness) you would need, but something like this, added to the existing factory latch, would be pretty secure. https://www.amazon.com/E3-55-62-Action-u00AE-Compression-Latches-Southco/dp/B07MC91X22 OTH a second “special” lock shouts STEAL ME and advertises that there is something special in there. Replacing all the OEM ones so they look the same probably would be better in this respect. The Oliver supplied key is a very sad thing made of stamped sheet metal. I suspect that every owner of a high end boat has a few lying around that will match the Ollie latches. I don’t know if many RVs use these due to their high cost. In an email I asked about getting some spares and was met with a figurative blank stare.... I made multiple backup door keys but have only two latch keys. The Ace Hardware guy couldn’t make any. If anyone knows a source for more keys, please tell us. John Davies Spokane WA