Leaderboard

How about this:

Finished off the basement floor with some leftover vinyl flooring and installed a couple of light bars... On to the next project!

No worries. I figured it out. I had a gas stop device on the tank and I may not have primed it correctly after turning the gas back on. It was dark. One thing that might be useful would be a light over the tank area. Tonight I removed that gas stop and hooked up the gas line directly. The Truma heater started up with no problem. So much to learn! John, 1290

Thanks for the "heads up" about the gelcoat on the roof. We took delivery of Hull #1291 yesterday. Our preliminary inspection has revealed generally good attention to detail so far. But, a roof issue surfaced today. It rained in Hohenwald last night. We found a water leak near the air conditioner onto the bed after driving to David Crockett State Park. As we had not used the AC yet, we figure a sealant failure around the AC unit allowed residual rainwater to leak through the hulls during the drive. So, we will be back in Hohenwald on Monday to get that leak addressed. I begin a more thorough inspection, including the quality of the gelcoat and sealant application on the roof, tomorrow. Any additional issues revealed by this weekend's inspection and continued systems testing will be added to our service ticket for Monday. I plan to open a new topic recounting our delivery, quality inspection and remedial service experience within the next week.

Yes siree bob a rooski! I got that that there BIG ole bulldog coupler. I expect to be attracting buckle bunnies and bulldog bunnies... and all sorts of others as we all stand around and admire that ginormous 2 5/16" monster coupler. I figure if everything else breaks off the back end... I'll still have my coupler and we can just replace the rest. I'll never forget the day I first saw a big honkin locomotive... it had a 2 5/16" coupler. I knew I had to have one too. I fully expect I'll need the wife to call ahead and warn the campgrounds that we are coming in with the big one! (I hope I don't end up regretting having fun with this post! Tell me I can delete in an emergency?)

I disagree. In our experience storing our 11” thick memory foam mattresses on their edge standing alone when we are not using our Ollie. We have had absolutely zero issues with either of them not retaining their original shape. Just an observation. Patriot 🇺🇸

Excellent work! I am so envious every time I see the aft storage pics of your early E2. I would love if they had found a way to keep that feature at least until I bought mine. I can think of so much stuff (crap) that I would store back there.

It should be noted here that the source of JD's ball wear issues was never identified (to my knowledge) and a number of owner's (me included) have never had a single issue with this kind of wear while using the 2 inch Andersen ball. Bill

Nice looking job. Definitely tight work. I would need Advil after the job.

Vinyl flooring, well LA-DEE-DA. You are just too cool. That really looks good. as far as light bezels through the Reflectix goes, I don't think its necessary. I would, however, make sure the bezels are well caulked with clear caulk on the outside, especially at the bottom of each bezel. They did not do that on the 2007-2010 models nor the early builds starting in 2013 and customers complained of leaks in those areas. If they leaked behind Reflectix, you would not immediately know it. Just something to be aware of, hope that it's helpful.

Ron, We have never removed our cushions while in storage at our home and have not had any issues. I suppose you could stand them up on edge, we do this with our memory foam mattresses. We only run our dehumidifier above 41 degrees per the instructions in the owners manual. Nice job on the Ollie Hangar build It looks very similar to ours. 😊

Be aware that there was a change to the size of the dash tray starting with the 2021 model year of the F150. The Builtright rack from previous years does not fit the new tray. Builtright did not know this at the time I ordered my rack for my 2021 F150 but exchanged the old style rack for a new one which they have since built for the newer trucks. The back-up plate Builtright made for the new rack also did not fit but I was able to Bubba up a fix. Result, our 7" Garmin Overlander now hangs from the long arm over the front of the dash, lowering the screen and moving the GPS out of the windshield. A very nice system once you get it sorted out.

My dad served with the Army in the Pacific in WW2. My oldest brother was an Army rifleman in Vietnam. Many thanks to all who served in the past and those who serve now.

You people are too nice, some people are just stupid and it's spreading throughout the country on just about everything, if you know what I mean. trainman

If they are that clueless at the dump station they are probably the same in other areas of life….

YES! Get the Larger Ecoboost engine! You won't be sorry.

John, consider the bigger Ecoboost, it will give you a lot more reserve power at high altitudes. John Davies Spokane WA

I have the 4 x 12v wet cell battery setup as well. If you are reading only 11.6 volts on the display, your batteries are very close to completely dead (see chart), and may be damaged (shortened battery life). Since you don’t have power available at your storage location, removing the batteries and taking them to your home and putting them on a battery tender is your best option. I store our Ollie at home and just plug it into house AC power every two weeks or so to keep the batteries from dropping below 12.2v.

There's nothing wrong going the heavy-duty route. This way, if you ever buy a HD truck, you're all set.

No ball wear issues here. Then again I don’t have an Andersen hitch.

Wow! A really nice professional job on that. Looks great!

Lol.. It was the cheapskate in me that drove the decision to install vinyl. Had just enough leftover from when I replaced the interior flooring to do it and the rubber flooring was going cost me around $150. Thanks for the suggestion to caulk the bezels, going to get on that today.

I'm suspired that the Casita was not on that list, I owned one before we got our Oliver and it was a great trailer. 99% of Casita owner are very happy with there trailers and would buy again if need be. All being said, great value and return on your money. trainman

Certainly correct and I will shortly have one of the "old style" BuiltRight dash mounts for sale at 1/2 the original cost if anyone needs/wants one for an older F-150. Are you sure your Iphone isn't "talking to the Ford via Bluetooth versus hardwire? If it is communicating via hardwire then plugging into the 12 volt outlet will give you nothing besides power since there is no data transmission via that 12 volt socket. Bill

Memory foam cannot hold its weight on its side and will create a permanent hunched shape if left upright for an extended period of time. It is recommended to just leave your memory foam mattresses laying flat.

Great info Bill. Question about your cell phone connection. In my 2019 F-150 I'll be following the plan of this thread. I use an I-Phone that "talks" via an apple cord through the Ford USP port to the Sync 3. This allows the onboard Ford navigation systems and other programs to operate and also keeps the I-phone charged. Assuming I tap the cigarette lighter (vs. plugging the I-phone cord into the F-150 USB slot), would that negate use of the Sync 3 Nav and other programs that rely on the iphone data?

I don't think they will polish out. Due to the pattern, I suspect a gelcoat that is too thin and ScubaRx agrees. I had the Ollie port built early this summer before delivery. I leveled the site and poured concrete pads and the crew bolted it into the pads. It's from a company called MaxSteel. I was pleased with the end result and process. My site space was limited due to the metal building that is beside it and where it is all situated. Their cost for the port and installation was $3,300. I may close in the back with metal myself. I left one side somewhat open because it faces a lean to roof line where I store my firewood.

We had the same problem with our roof on our Elite2 when we picked it up back in January. We didn't have a chance to look at the roof since we had to get out of town for an approaching winter storm. I told Jason about it but did not open a ticket. We've not had any leaks ... knock on wood :) John

Have you tried polishing those black spots? Have you sent these pics to Oliver Service? I too use dehumidifiers in my Ollie while stored. I do take my single mattress out for the Winter but I leave the regular cushions in. They are stored in a vertical position though just to make sure that air gets a chance to circulate around them. Bill p.s. Really wish I had an Ollie port like you and Patriot.

Thank you to all that are active, those who have served and those who have died for our freedom. My Dad served 4 years in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. Forever my Hero.🇺🇸

However, if this trim piece had cracked or become notably loose then it just might indicate that your microwave is not held in place as it should be. And/or you have been down some very rough roads. This microwave is actually held in place (basically) by being attached to the upper cabinet via the screws that go through the two holes (barely seen in the photo below) at the rear of the metal piece that approximately spans the middle of the microwave. Once you remove the trim piece then reach in, grab the microwave and try to move it from side to side. If you can move it without too much force then it is likely that either this support attachment has come loose or isn't there at all. Jason Essary can assist you in making repairs - just open a Service ticket.

Looks like you have a lot more work to do than I did. I got off easy as I didn't have any water line rerouting to contend with. After seeing pics of your basement, I'm now wondering if I should go back and install the light bezels through the Reflectix or not.

Well, you’re way ahead of me. This is the current state of disrepair in my basement. About to start rerouting plumbing. o

As this area is caulked and well protected from moisture, I believe you are correct. I've never seen a complaint about this area on the forum anytime in the last 15 years.

I suspect the initial model years were pretty much one-offs, as construction materials and techniques evolved. That massive aluminum framework in the picture is certainly impressive. Oliver likely used encapsulated plywood for the basement floor because of its superior strength. Ultimately, the virtues of expand PVC became too hard to ignore. What a great clean-slate-start to a uniquely personal LEII this one can be.

Pretty sure that the insulation is original as it goes under the tanks. Looks like fiberglass in the pic but I'm fairly certain that it isn't. Looks and feels more like wool. Edit- It also has the lizard skin spray-on insulation which seems to be everywhere else other than the basement. Plan on adding some Reflectix once I'm finished with the flooring.

There needs to be a "gagging" emoji for this! Paula

In looking over this entire thread due to a recent thread concerning the Garmin rearview camera connected to the Garmin 890, I stumbled across this question and thought that I'd give an update. Until this past summer I had no problem at all with my onboard Ford TPMS for my 2017 F-150. Unfortunately, in August I started getting random dashboard alerts that there was a TPMS "malfunction" with my front passenger side wheel. Several times I checked my tire pressures and each time the pressures were correct (i.e. they didn't change at all!). I did remember this thread and thought about the placement of the Garmin (plus my InReach mini and/or sometimes a cell phone) as possibly being a contributing factor. Finally, when I recently took the truck into the dealer for an oil change I asked the service tech to rotate the tires and have a look at that TPMS in the front left closely due to this random fault. Bottom line is that there was a small nail in the thread of the tire that was not long enough to puncture the tire. According to the tech - since this nail was relatively close to where the TPMS is mounted in the tire, the nail was interfering with the data transmission from the tire to the receiving unit inside the truck. I have to admit that I was a bit suspect of this explanation but its now been over a month since and there have been no further TPMS "malfunctions" and the tire pressure continue to remain stable. Bill

Certainly that F-150 will have no issues towing your Ollie. However, do keep an eye on your payload capacity with it. Bill

Thanks everyone, agree that I'll add the Anderson WDH, small amount to assure Ford Warranty.... Have a F-150 XLT 3.5 V6 Ecoboost on order, with tow package will give me 11,200 towing capacity, should be good now.... Thanks to all your input...sincerely appreciate it...

After reading Mr Truck's WDH preferences, I also wondered how he distinguished a light or heavy trailer. But that really doesn’t matter as long as I know the GVWR/TWR. My SUV has a 14400 GCWR and a 8100 lb. GVWR/TWR and it requires trailer brakes if the GVWR/TWR is more than 1000 lbs., a sway control device if the GVWR/TWR is over 2000 lbs. and a WDH if the GVWR/TWR is over 5000 lbs. My utility has a TWR of 3500 lbs. and no brake's, so I break rule #1 and #2 every time I use it. Ollie left the factory at a slim 5180 lbs. and a GVWR/TWR of 7000 lbs., so I can add 1820 lbs. of cargo to the trailer. And following the 80/20 rule, that's 80% for her and 20% for me. So I think the difference between a light and heavy trailer depends on your tow vehicle. And in my case, both of my trailers are heavy. Mossey

Ditto to this. I don’t need the Andersen hitch with my F-250, so I’m using a simple 2” hitch ball (1-1/4” shank) with a rating of 10,000 lbs., and a ball mount with a rating of 18,000 lbs. The truck is rated to tow 12,600 lbs, with a tongue weight limit of 1,250 lbs. dead weight, 3,334 lbs. payload capacity. So the “weakest link” in the whole system is the 2” Bulldog coupler itself which is only rated to 7,000 lbs. I’ve been considering upgrading to the larger 2-5/16” Bulldog, just to have more safety margin, but so far no issues with ball wear or coupler wear at all. I do grease the ball before each trip. CURT 40056 Stainless Steel Trailer Hitch Ball, 10,000 lbs, 2-Inch Diameter, 1-1/4 x 2-5/8-Inch Shank https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08557RHP1/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_NQQ3BH5FK65T43Z8VHQT?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 Draw-Tite 45322 3" Drop Ball Mount https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003JID6U6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_D5XDYD3CHP0KZYCFB0ER?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

I agree,, @mossemi. A lot of youtubers and influencers get free product in exchange for reviews. I watched a video today from fast lane, clearly sponsored by gen y hitch, but they did say so at the beginning. The better ones let us know they're sponsored. Some don't, and others have no sponsors. Somewhere in the comments, Mr Truck said this, though he didn't specify what he considered to be light or heavy trailers: Yes, I'm a nerd, and I read comments.

I’ve towed race trailers, cargo trailers, boat trailers, and equipment haulers. Expensive to cheap trailers I’ve never seen a 2 inch ball on a 7k trailer. Too many cheap 6k and under components for tow vehicles are in circulation along with clueless owners. Having said that I’m going to pick up my trailer with a 2 inch ball, label me a hypocrite.

I’ve been towing a lot of years and a lot of miles with the 2” ball. No horror stories here, either with the Andersen (around 70,000 miles) or without (around 15,000 miles). If I was ordering a trailer today I would probably go with the bigger ball, just for the added robustness and, as Steve says, the cool factor. Mike

The main advantage of the 2-5/16” bulldog hitch is to take advantage of the greater towing and weight carrying capacities provided by the larger truck’s that many of us have upgraded to. There is, however a certain amount of cool factor involved as well.

To be fair... it's easy to over look the importance of using a WDH with a half ton truck and an LE2. The damn thing tows so well. In practical application you don't really need the Anderson hitch. Until you start to look at it from a legal standpoint. You're not just risking your trailer and TV.. but your house, retirement savings, financial portfolio... etc. Imagine how life would be if instead of figuring out where the next road trip will be ... you got to spend that time saying... "Welcome to Wal-Mart". Thanks for the free legal advice... $850 / $1200 is cheap insurance for the Anderson. Scotty

Anyone that is considering NOT using a weight distribution hitch with a half ton truck (or less) certainly must be aware that in doing so they are potentially exposing themselves to a fairly sizable amount of liability in the event of an accident regardless of just who may be at fault for that accident. This is in addition to the manufacturer of the vehicle just may NOT authorize any warranty repairs if the vehicle was used for any towing that exceeds the manufacturers recommendations for either ball weight and/or total weight towed. Bill

You would absolutely need an Andersen. I doubt that a Ranger could handle the tongue weight without one. What kind of 6,000 lb trailer did you tow? Did it have the front surface area of an Oliver? Your gas mileage will be very poor, what size tank do you have? I’m assuming you have a brake controller, you will find that stopping and going down hill will be a challenge, especially in the summer when temperatures are up. What is the payload capacity for your Ranger? Remember tongue weight, people/pet weight, cargo in the bed and cab, and bed cover/cap all constitute payload. Emergency maneuvers will be white knuckle, there’s just not enough truck to safely handle the Elite II in a lot of emergency situations. I towed with a Tacoma for about 5,000 miles, it was enough to cause me to trade in for a half ton with twice the capabilities. Mike

You will be dissatisfied with your towing experience with this vehicle. It’s just not enough truck for an Elite II.