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I'm packing the truck and heading north tomorrow -- I'm so excited I doubt I'll sleep a wink! Monday is delivery day, and I promise I'll post photos as soon as possible. Thank you to everyone on the forum for all the great information, interesting debate, and fun discussion! I'll be taking the slow road home (3 weeks) and hope to have shaken out the more obvious user error patterns by then. Beyond that, I'm looking forward to meeting some of you at the Rally coming up. WooHoo!!!!

We have Southern Mattresses. I had them shipped to the house in 2019. There was a good savings over the KTT. We have been happy with them. Oliver delivered our trailer with the standard cushions. We also purchased the hypervent from Oliver. When we arrived home after delivery we installed the Southern Mattresses. We carefully wrapped up the original standard bed cushions and stored them in a very dry place. We will be including them in the sale of our trailer along with the Southern Mattresses. I could have saved about half the shipping if I had the mattresses delivered to a commercial establishment.

Dash That USB! As we prepare for another long trip, we know we'll need to power dash top devices like our backup camera display and our Garmin GPS. A good way to solve the clutter is to add some new USB outlets and some arm mounts into the stock F350 Dash Tray. I know many of you may have already accomplished this upgrade but I thought I would share our results. (By design the dash trays have been the same in the F150 and F250 from 2017 up through 2021.) Here's a before and after shot of what the Stock Tray and the tray with the Built Right Industries shelf look like. In our case in addition to the Built Right Shelf, we added USB and Cigarette Lighter Outputs which we bought online from Amazon into that tray. We use the USB outputs to power our Garmin and the "cigarette adapter" to power our backup cam monitor. We pulled the power from these off the back of the existing cigarette lighter output which has plenty of power for these devices. We added inline fuses to these new plugs as a safety measure. View from front back at USB and Cigarette Lighter in Dash Tray View from the drivers seat. Here's a video showing how to remove and replace the top tray as part of this project. IMG_5161.mov Hope that encourages others to do a similar project.

We’ve used our composting toilet since we picked up our trailer in 2019. We’ve never had any odors. If you put your ear to the fan you should be able to hear it. It’s very quiet but I would start with that. We buy our choir online but yesterday we were at Costco warehouse and they had the bricks in stock in the gardening section. I imagine any garden center would offer it. Make sure you have enough choir (you should fill it up until it reaches the horizontal agitator bar) and of course you know to turn the handle. When we set up the toilet we make sure that the choir is moist. Not wet, just moist. I’m sure you’ll receive a lot of helpful suggestions! Good luck and sounds like you’re having fun on your first journey!

Purchased an iPhone and replaced the existing battery indicator and shunt with a 500A Victron Bluetooth Smart Shunt on Ollie yesterday. This system works great for our needs: https://www.victronenergy.com/battery-monitors/smart-battery-shunt#pd-nav-video Extra wire/cable needed to roll out battery tray.

We had a Southern Mattress in our Casita for almost 10 years and I believe that our 2019 E2 has Southern twins. (no label) They are both very comfortable and in the case of our old Casita, they seem to hold up over the years. One preference I have of the Southern Mattress over the latex is weight; the latex seems a bit heavy to move around while getting into the bins beneath the beds.

I forgot to mention that our tube had lots of condensation which is what encouraged me to start taking things apart.

In our 2021 LEII, we had a fan die on us. The fuse cartridge for the NH fan is located in-line on a wire in the compartment near the inverter (street-side just to the left of the pantry). As I remember, the fuse cartridge is white and the wire is red. Grip both ends, press together and turn. That should unlatch the fuse holder exposing the fuse inside. Oliver had us call NH directly, and they sent us two complete fan assemblies. Installation was easy and we now have a spare. Our initial charge from Oliver was peat moss. The fan was not dirty when it failed. It had only been used for about 1 week. The only time we had a smell problem was when the fan failed.

Most of the time our Natures Head has worked well. When the weather was very humid for days and the inside of the trailer was dank, the solids were not drying well. I purchased a dehumidifier and that seems to have helped. We run the dehumidifier as much as possible in the bathroom when the humidity goes above 80%. We also turn the crank more often during the day to help expose any moist areas. The issue may have been compounded by too much coir dust on the fan filter. When I took the fan assembly apart the filter was about 75% clogged. Perhaps the coir was not moist enough and the dust was pulled through by the fan when turning the crank or when I added extra through the top. If adding more from the top I now make sure to unplug the fan, mix, then wait for any dust to settle before plugging in the fan. I'm also leaning toward using sphagnum or coffee grounds to reduce the dust. Here are some photos of the fan assembly. No fuse here. I forgot to take a photo of the dirty filter before cleaning it, but one shows the dust on the fan. I'm tempted to add one of these fans to the spare parts kit. Cleaned filter Hope you get it figured out soon. Dirty fan Whole assembly

Oliver is using Tochta as their optional mattress supplier, replacing KTT. Apparently, KTT was having supply chain problems. We opted to have our LEII delivered in mid-February with the standard cushions. We wanted to try the cushions before deciding to upgrade to mattresses. When we were at Oliver to pickup Hull 990 we tried the Tochta mattresses in one of the showroom units. I believe Oliver is using 7 inch thick Utopia mattresses from Tochta. We decided to purchase 8" Utopia mattresses directly from Tochta. You have more choices and will save some money by purchasing directly from Tochta. Shipping is free. Also look online for coupons. We got a 5% discount using an online coupon. I recommend you see the Tochta website. I had previously been told by Oliver that they were no longer accepting direct shipments of purchases by owners without adding a surcharge.

Looks like they fixed that issue on my 2021.

Since you are still under warranty, I'd email, call or submit a Service ticket and see what they recommend for reattaching that seal. Bill

You might want to reach out to Oliver directly. The last I heard they were no longer accepting deliveries of southern mattresses. If you decide to go that route you would have to take delivery yourself. I also read that Oliver has changed distributors and no longer offers KTT. We have the KTT mattresses and find them extremely comfortable. They are latex. I believe the southern mattresses are a traditional spring mattress or a hybrid? I remember talking to Southern mattress on the phone when we made our 2019 order. They were telling me about the composition of their mattresses but we ultimately decided to order the latex based on previous experience with that type of mattress. Also we knew that if we ordered the southern mattresses that we would have to toss the foam mattresses that Oliver provides because they did not want to give us a credit for them. We thought that was a bit wasteful.

GG - Nice job. As an update - I've had mine installed in my 2017 F-150 for over a year now and I could not be happier with it. This thing is rock solid holding the fairly large Garmin 890 and I find the USB ports I added (similar to GG) to be very useful for my Garmin InReach mini. If you remove the rubber mat in the Ford before drilling and installing the Built Right Shelf then the shelf can be removed (if you sell the truck or decide that you don't want it there anymore), the rubber mat replaced and you will never even know that it was there. Bill

Last I heard, KTT isn't supplying mattresses for Oliver anymore. Our sales agreement wording changed from "KTT mattresses" to "High quality foam mattresses." Don't know who the new supplier is.

The Girard awnings have the same type of seal. I removed mine today. It left some residue behind that I removed with an auto trim removal tool.

Left click on your Forum name. Left click on "edit profile" Scroll down to where is says "signature" and then type in what you want to say at the bottom/signature. Left click on the "save" button and you are done. Bill

Even if the fridge is running/cold at delivery make sure it operates in all modes: AC shore power, DC battery power, and propane (if you get the 3 way fridge). A few owners have had issues with the fridge AC plug not plugged into the AC power outlet receptacle.

Our 2019 model was ready. We had a cooler of food ready to transfer and cooked dinner in our Ollie that evening. We made chili in the little 3 quart Instant Pot 😋

Normally the delivery team DOES have the fridge operating and it is cold upon delivery. Bill

Bump an old thread. John Davies Spokane WA

I've had Starlink since March. Figured I'd chime in with my experiences - - I've yet to mount the dish permanently (it will end up on the roof using their volcano mount), it's still sitting in our yard on the ground. I just move it to mow. It is heated, so I have no concerns about snow. Indiana isn't exactly Arizona, but it still gets warm here in the summer - no issues with overheating. - Outages are minimal. Had more outages when we first got it - typically ~15-30min/week if I had to guess. There was a single 4hr outage right after we got it. Outages were usually no more than 2 minutes back then, with the rare longer one. For the last several months - I have never noticed an outage in usage. The outage tracking in our app shows about 4 per day, but they're like 2 seconds each. They do sometimes push updates - this is typically around 3-4am, and one or both of the dish or router will reboot/update - this is typically in the 15-20min range. The app is used to control both the dish & router - they've consistently updated it to add functionality over time. I can reboot both the router & dish remotely. It has stats and you can run a speedtest. - The included router is pretty decent. It originally had almost no user controllable features - now it has a few more via updates, but still not very many. It works great though - I've kept the 2.4ghz signal on my cell phone mowing our 5acre yard for example. I've had it in our garage, so it's pretty tolerant of heat as well. The 5ghz signal penetrates to our bedroom - furthest away from the garage you can get, so it doesn't propagate too bad either. You can replace it with your own router if you want. I've so far seen no reason to dig out a more advanced router I have from our last residence. - Speeds are very good. There is some variation. The outer range limits are typically about 50-300Mbps download and 10-35Mbps upload. Ping is typically in the 25-60ms range. I'd say the average is typically in the middle - I almost always hit the 2.4ghz bandwidth limits on the wi-fi (50-80mbs in the house, depending which room), and I'd say 80-120mbs is the typical download range (15-25ish upload). Ping tends to hang closer to 45ms on avg. All of these speeds have improved since we first got it. - We live on a hill in the middle of a field - there are no obstructions close except the house, and I didn't put it close enough for that to be an issue. The app has a few ways to help check for obstructions/monitor for them. Users who have obstructions can still get service - just with some limits due to the arcs - lots of reports in other locations of people with some very tall trees around them - would be worth reading up on those. You still need line of sight to enough of the sky though. Some reports of people who have put it on the top of telephone poles and such. Rain has yet to cause any interruptions - the satellites are only around 250 miles up or so. Snow shouldn't cause issues either, nor should any accumulation (the dish is heated). The service is a game changer in rural areas IMO. My only internet options are cellular and a local WISP. I can see the interstate from my house and a small town - I'm within 20 miles of three different small cities (pop 20k-60k each). I can see two cell towers from my front porch. The cellular - our local towers are not upgraded for any of the Home Internet options, and two of the cell companies are in a position that we can get good high speed service with an exterior antenna, but inside the house (and neighbors not on the hill) service is much slower. Plus, since there is no home internet option, we'd blow through cell data caps instantly. Prior to Starlink we were doing illegal tethering to our cell phones vis usb. Traditional sat internet is just bad. The WISP is pretty decent, but I'd have to put up a 30-40ft tower to get over some treetops to get line-of-sight with some of their equipment. They have speeds slower than Starlink for less, but for $100/mo I'd be getting speeds 1/3rd the speed of Starlink. Plus there is sometimes weather related issues with the microwave dishes. Starlink, at this point, is functionally identical to our old Comcast cable internet in town - the speeds are almost the same. Comcast had a slight edge in latency and price, but even those differences weren't super large. I can't wait to see their mobile options. While nice for RVers, it could also be a game-changer for boats. The technology behind the dishes, satellites, and how they work is pretty amazing. Musk can be controversial, but SpaceX and Starlink are a lifeline to a ton of underserved rural areas & remote workers. I would highly recommend Starlink based on our experience to anyone in similar circumstances.

At some point they change awning vendors and quit using the Fiama awnings and went to another brand. Maybe the brackets changed then. I pulled my seal off after a couple of years, it was starting to crack in a few places, didn’t look good and was a big collector of pine needles, leaves, dirt and other gunk. I guess it’s a personal preference thing. Mike

I’m in the Reed camp. The seal keeps out the water when it’s raining and let’s me be out of the trailer under the awning. As for the junk that collects up there, I once a month go up with a water pressure wand clean it all up.

I'm resurrecting this thread because I just picked up my rig (on 04-11-2019) and see that water pools behind the awning when the seal is in place (see pic #1, IMG_6248). Although I like the idea of preventing rain from running down the entire side of the rig, I don't like 2-3 inches of water pooling back there. The water pools around the awning brackets and much of the bracket is submerged. I suspect that the holes for the bracket bolts go all the way through the outer shell, thereby presenting 8 potential leak points. There is evidence of sealant on only some of the mounting brackets and bolts, so I would assume a steady diet of pooled water would find its way into the rig up there. I'm trying an alternative to removing the seal altogether, which is to slide in a small drain tube in each "pool basin" (see pic #2, IMG 6250). We'll see.

We spend a lot of time on the Pacific Coast where rainforests abound :) We camp in severe rain like the 1/2" drops coming down for days on end in the winter and set the awning out to keep dry. Unfortunately, with the seal gone, you will no longer have a dry spot outside unless you have a Clam or another tent. We can use the awning as a dry entry and keep totally dry with the seal. But without the seal, depending on where you are... sand and water will blow and pour off the roof, splash off of the door seal, the fridge and window seals and there will be no clean dry place to sit without that seal in place. Wet blowing sand is the worst... One of the reasons that we sold our Casita was because it was only sealed by me half way across. Seals are simple to add back on if you ever find the need. I sit outside under the awning with the fire going with it raining all around and keep dry and comfortable with no leaks behind me dripping down my neck... If you don't camp in the rain then the seal is not a big deal.

Not a good one, so far. 🙂 We picked up VellOllie last November and she's been under wraps until yesterday. When we took the cover off, we noted that about two feet of the seal on the rear street-side was hanging loose, as well as about a foot on the front curb-side. We're going to attempt to re-attach today with some alien tape (unless someone has a better suggestion). We get lots of afternoon showers where we camp, so having a dry patio/entry is one of our favorite things -- and one of those things we missed dearly with our awning-less sprinter van.

I would advise calling a couple days before making the trip to pick up your Oliver. When we arrived to pick up hull 887 we were apparently double booked and our trailer was still sitting on the side of the facility unwashed with no graphics on it. Our delivery experience was less than stellar considering we are paying a premium price for a premium product. While growing pains and the whole Covid debacle could understandably affect things I felt that our delivery experience was an afterthought. YMMV... John

Just arrived back in Maine after leaving Nashville on Sunday. The Ollie is back in its barn! 4 months and 12,000 plus miles without incident. No issues with the Ollie in temperature ranging from the mid 90s to 5 degrees. Elevation from sea level to over 8000 feet. We saw and experienced a lot. We have achieved what we set out to do when we purchased the trailer. Our plans were fulfilled. We will begin preparing for summer on the coast of Maine. We will be making some changes so we will be following our original plan and listing the Olliver for sale very soon. This was our plan all along after this trip. We will be including some extras that will be helpful and cost saving for a new owner. Oliver provided full service on the trailer in December. Keep your eyes peeled in the classifieds on this forum and on the Olliver Facebook forum. We expect to be listing the trailer soon!!! Thanks