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Hi y'all. Some of you know that I picked up #1290 on 11/7 and have now arrived back in Oregon where I discovered a gas leak from the flange nut on the Truma furnace. After weighing all the possibilities for a remedy, even considering just tightening the nut, I wrote Rodney Lomax who then talked to Jason Essary who contacted me and said he was now taking control of the gas leak ticket. Initially I was told by the service department it wasn't a warranty issue and I thought that was odd. That's why at the suggestion of a couple forum members, I wrote to see if they would pay for this repair. Jason assured me that they take gas leaks seriously and yes, OTT would make sure that a technician would fix the leak and test the propane system thoroughly. I made an appointment in Oregon which is two months out, but that's OK since we aren't going anywhere. Key points. 1, make sure you test everything out. Stay nearby, ideally at the OTT campground. 2, if something isn't quite right, let them know so it's fixed before leaving Hohenwald. 3, this company makes a good product and does everything they can to be transparent and will work with you to fix a problem. At this point I am still happy that I chose Oliver over some other brand. John

We picked up on Monday and left the area on Friday. I should have returned before leaving as I suspected that I smelled gas, but I thought maybe it's was just new furnace smells. My error actually in not returning. Lesson learned.

Flat towing a toad requires the same diligence, and adherence to checklists, as towing a trailer. Small mistakes can have big consequences. When our last fifth wheel was brand-new a motorhome with a toad pulled into a site diagonal from ours. They unhitched the car while it was still in neutral. It then rolled downhill and hit our fifth wheel. We were lucky on several counts. We weren't inside our trailer, or we probably would have been injured. The car struck diagonally on the steel rear bumper of the trailer, instead of the fiberglass body. Our landing gear and stabilizer jacks were on "Lego" blocks, so the trailer pivoted on impact, with the jacks sliding off the blocks. There was virtually no damage to our trailer. The rear hatch of the car was a different story. Not that I haven't made mistakes while hooking up or disconnecting a trailer. I've done a few really stupid things, usually by getting distracted in the process. Now I try to be super diligent about following my checklists.

John, you and I have about the same build. My big concern and probably the Op's is how I would fit and feel inside the Ollie. Most travel trailers are a close fit for anyone over 6ft. At 6'2" many travel trailers just clear the top of my head and overhead items like AC, vent and doorways often come in contact. It was and is refreshing that the E2 doesn't have that problem and with the bright interior it just feels more spacious. With our visit the other day to finalize our order details I finally put it all to rest as far as fit and comfort. The beds are perfect for both of us, the dinette works just fine and like you said the overall size of the trailer is still sized for easy travels down the road. The bath is a little tight but I've never camped out in the bath much and this will be conducive to conserving water during showers. In and out quick. The term I would use to describe the inside of the LE2 is cozy and comfortable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywn-vBjKblI

Hi Everyone- We are getting ready to purchase an Oliver Elite II. We are purchasing this sight unseen, but have done our homework with regards to the Oliver. I have seen plenty of pictures of the exterior, but not one (maybe I'm looking in the wrong place) of people on the inside of the trailer. I've seen loads of the empty interior photos, but not with people actually in it. I'm trying to get a sense of the space with people inside. If anyone has any interior photos with people in it you'd like to share, I would really appreciate seeing them! Thanks in advance- Kate-Delaware

I'll bet this has been stated thousands of times through the years. Yet still, there are folks that pick up and leave the same day. When they have a problem down the road a bit they want to get on here and complain. This is GREAT advice and and should be heeded by all. There's really no good excuse not to stick around a few days and check everything out, just build the extra time into your pickup experience. I promise you won't regret it. John, it's really good to hear you've been taken care of by Oliver and I believe you will never be disappointed "...that I chose Oliver over some other brand."

Yes, necessity is always the mother of invention! As far as the table goes... it's pretty tough and it's made to be used. We learned a trick from the locals (after paying close to a $100 each a few times) just for the two of us to have fresh lobster. They said no one up there does that!! They said go to the local grocery store where for $8.99lb we chose four lobsters out of a tank... they steamed them right there in the store while we were shopping for other things (like lots of butter)... took them back to the camper and had them along with some fresh corn on the cob. As soon as dinner was finished they went right back out the door, in the same bag they came in. The smell was gone within two days. (just kidding... no smell right away 🙂 )

The very first time I set in an Oliver... I thought the table felt a little bit "cramped"... so I made plans to make my own dinette table to "dress up the Oliver". I make furniture so it wasn't a problem. Imagine my surprise when later on, while waiting on ours to be delivered I saw where Foy makes them for many of the Oliver owners! I made ours out of some select quarter-sawn walnut and put one of my favorite finishes on it which is pretty much bullet proof. Taking some inspiration from the pictures of Foy's night stand and pantry... I had glued up some blanks for those as well... but we found that we liked the clean and bright look of the Oliver... so haven't implemented those ideas. Then after our first trip I did see the wisdom (imitation is the best form of flattery right?) of the night stand organizer and the silverware tray. I did ours with the cloud lifts which is also inspired by the Greene and Greene look. I do think the "wider" dinette table is nice and as you can see it makes it bit easier to have a nice dinner. I did not want to interfere with the ability to sit sideways with the cushion along the wall... so I didn't go any larger in that direction.

Thanks for posting Mike, Great info. We plan to let our AGMs run the course and maybe consider Lithium batteries someday. David

Thanks for the information I will look into it. Do you have gas or diesel in your Canyon? The Diesel pulled way better than I expected we left Oliver and drove over the Smokies with no problem and the Jake brakes work very well. I was impressed to say the least. We got 28 mpg on the way down and about 20 pulling the trailer, it’s a good thing with Diesel at $6.00 a gallon.

Glad to hear Oliver is on top of this. Your key points are spot on!

I had the same reaction to Oliver's $800 price for the backup camera. But then I thought through how I would run the wire between the hulls from the camera to the power switch, and whether I could feasibly install a power switch in the main switch panel, so the camera does not operate 24/7. I am pretty handy, but we ultimately paid the premium to have Oliver install the backup camera in our Hull #1291 during the production process. The work was nicely done. We were glad to have it during our 2000+ mile trip home to Idaho.

At $19.99 a gallon I'm sure glad that we don't have sensitive smell. I use three gallons of this one at $3.99 (Walmart). Never noticed any smell from it after a normal rinse out.

Sorry to go off thread, but there's a new Addams family series on Netflix. WEDNESDAY. I've only watched a few episodes, but it's pretty good.

We installed four BBs in our 2013 Airstream and we have re-installed three (they weren't hooked up correctly) in our 2020 Ollie. Couldn't be happier! Battleborn was great to work with in both installations. Charlie.

Hi All! We are on our way to the International Balloon Fiesta and and will be staying Monday-Thursday in the VIP West (Harvest Host) area. Anyone else heading that way and/or interested in an impromptu meet-up? We are currently Airstreamers, but ordered our Ollie last week, so expectant family members. We’re full-timers and heading to Alaska next summer. We’d love to meet up with other travelers. Cheers, Jason (The Captain), Kelly (The Admiral) & Stormy (The Ensign)

Good morning Oliver family, We just became members last Thursday!! We are so excited about our upcoming adventures. Question for you. I ordered several upgrades from Foy Sperring and one of them was the wood insert to put in-between the twin beds to convert it to a queen. We have the new mattresses, not the KTT. Does anyone on the forum have this? Can you tell me where you ordered a foam insert for the middle and at what depth? Thanks in advance. LOVE everything so far!

Bill, we have a Canyon too. Even before we owned our OE2, we replaced our mirrors with a pair from Clearview Mirrors USA. They're a huge improvement over the original GMC mirrors, whether you're towing or not. Steve

Ummm….. I guess that’s one way to total your car.

John look up fit RV on youtube the guy is crazy meticulous and does a good job with reviews about his installations. He did a whole episode about the back up camera and he uses it as a rear view mirror, I plan to watch it again when I get home tonight. I forget what it was its been a while since I watched it, it may not even work on an Oliver. He also does a real good job of explaining lithium Batteries. I think its one of the best explanations Ive seen from anyone. I suppose if Bar-tailed godwit can make the trip I guess you can do it in an Oliver. Bill

Pump pliers to crack your lobsters open! That's awesome! Certainly triggers the saying "Necessity is the mother of invention". I really hope they didn't fall off of your butter tray and ding your beautiful table. That would be absolutely tragic. I now know that we can have lobsters while traveling....because I, too, have Channel locks in my toolbox! Be honest - how long did it take for the smell to leave your camper Dave?!

Bill and Nancy: Getting new wiring installed is the trickie part, if you do not have a camera to start with, Buying a new camera of course is cheaper as there is no labor involved. If OTT installed it, you have their warranty on the unit (as well as the manufacturer) and if there is a leak they would fix it (or have it fixed at their expense).

Thanks everyone!! We have been to several local campgrounds in our area just to get things figured out. Boondocking question, we haven't done this yet, but are planning to boondock up to the Adirondack Mountains in January 2023. After we get there we will be in a campground but want to boondock to and from. We want to go play in the snow! 🙂 ❄️ Could anyone tell me what kind of drain on the lithium batteries the furnace would be while not using shore power? We weren't planning on buying a generator just yet. Thank you!! Pic of our new tag! CW Hull #1261.

Hello, I have made several videos “Oliver Series” that show me inside the Oliver. Here is just one I did about bedding. Should help give you some perspective.

Death isn't all that bad - once you get used to it.😁

I agree with SeaDawg on the visit. I had Oliver set up a visit with a wonderful couple actually about two and half years before we put our deposit down. It confirmed to us that this was the right travel trailer for us. We waited to get the order in and that was the only thing I wish I had back, could of been enjoying it longer. This pic is from our pickup week in July, enjoying lunch inside since the heat index was over 100 in northern Mississippi in late July.

We took this picture when we visited an Oliver for that exact reason:

Thank you for the suggestions. Two complete flushes with fresh water and baking soda down the drains and into gray tank later. AF Oder is gone. FYI the best Oder free AF we found is Splash -75degree at Home Depot. We used it to winterize and no smell now!!😎

Yes, we'll have a service panel in the new building but we just got news that our utility provider is requesting to DOUBLE their rate: "Eversource supply rates will double from 12.05 cents per kWh to 24.2 cents per kWh, resulting in an $84 per month increase for the average user." Solar would also help keep the trailer charged during power outages, which are becoming more frequent and longer here. A week ago we lost power for 14 hours after a very small storm.

So that’s where all those diabolical ingenious upgrades, modifications, and hacks to “Mouse” have taken place!

Paranoid? Not completely. We listed our home for sale about 7 months ago, east of Indianapolis. It sold in 3 days. The listing was on Zillow and immediately showed as pending sold. By the pictures on the listing on Zillow you could tell we had already moved out. Within two days after it showed pending, our neighbor was sitting on his front porch late at night just enjoying the nice weather and overheard a couple arguing in our driveway about whether they should go into the house since it was vacant. The neighbor informed me of the situation and needless to say I moved back into the house temporarily until the new owners took possession. I don't think you can ever be too cautious.

That would seem reasonable. If there is only one possible shore connection and it's rated at 30 amps and that's what's required to operate the battery charger, we are pretty much constrained by the onboard system. This may have always been the case, after all the LE2 has always had a 30A shore requirement so you wouldn't want to connect that to a source that isn't rated for 30 amps regardless of the type of battery system.

I wanted to update this post. Within a couple of days of initiating this post I made contact with the factory. The service team was very helpful in setting me up with a local repair shop. To make a long story short, everything was fixed by Labor Day at no cost to me. No leaks, looks good!

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

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.

As far as a thin layer of gel-coat goes, I definitely would have it repaired, but only for aesthetics. This is not a potential for a roof leak. That roof is over two inches thick and the only one I've ever seen leak had a 1/4" hole drilled (accidentally) all the way through to the inside. Now, that will leak, but surprising little. A piece of duct tape on the outside would get you by for a looooong time.

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. 😊

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.

We most often sit outside in comfortable lounge chairs (zero gravity) however we are very comfortable inside stretched out on our beds with pillows to support our backs. We are only in our camper at night, even rainy days we spend most time out in our Clam screen tent (with side panels on) but you can certainly get quite cozy stretched out on the bed.

We spent most of October in the Ozarks and Tennessee. Great trip, except for the last few days! Besides hitting a big deer in rural Louisiana and not being able to use our black tank flush, we also had a significant gray water leak. While stopped at a rest stop just inside Texas to check and fix all the inside chaos after driving I-20 through Shreveport, I noticed a steady trickle of water coming out of the rear bumper. We were parked facing uphill. Further inspection showed water coming out of the area where the black/gray drain pipe exits the trailer. It was pooling on the ground and was easy to see that it was gray. I started inside by checking under the dinette seat near the bathroom. There was standing gray water in the area where the drain pipe exits the back and goes to the gray tank. At that point we decided to cancel the rest of our trip and head straight home. After the deer strike my ability to turn right was cut in half without significant rubbing and I knew that black tank was an issue until I got the part. By the time we got home the area under the dinette seat was dry. I decided to tackle the issue in the morning so we just unloaded and called it a day. The next morning I checked again under the dinette seat, still dry. I checked as far under the shower pan that I could reach, it was dry. I check the gate and the connections there and it was dry. I moved to where the drain pipe enters the gray tank and BINGO, there it was. The drain pipe makes a 90 degree turn down into the tank after the gate. What I saw was the drain pipe half over the entry hole and half on top of the gray tank. So, showers and teeth brushing sent drain water half into the tank and half on top of the tank and then down to the floor. I disconnected the section that included the gate to get a better look at it. There is a rubber ring that fits inside the hole on top of the tank. The end of the drain pipe is somewhat tapered and it looks like it is meant to be held in place by friction - just jam the pipe into the rubber ring and call it a day. I cleaned the area on top of the tank, the rubber ring and the drain pipe end then mixed some epoxy and…, well it won’t be popping out anymore. I neglected to take pictures, I was still on my first cup of coffee and was intent on getting it fixed. I took one after I was done. So, my truck is in the body shop - should be done next week, the black tank flush is fixed and the gray water drain pipe is fixed. Ready for a January trip to Arizona! I’m going to open a service ticket to see how that drain pipe is supposed to be connected to the gray tank. Here is the drain pipe epoxied to the rubber ring which is epoxied to the top of the gray tank.

Mike, as you've evidently discovered, the drain pipe is indeed only a friction attachment. I agree that no harm was done with adding a little epoxy. My guess that in all the excitement of hitting the deer and probably then slamming on the brakes, the weight of the gray water inside the tank was enough to cause a slight shifting of the gray tank forward thereby dislodging the drain pipe from the top of the tank. The tanks are not strapped down. If they were it would be incredibly difficult to remove one out the rear bumper. Sorry this all happened, buddy. But, as Mighty Mouse used to say, it seems you've "...got the situation well in hand..."

Either way, in this particular application, it is not recommended that one use their lips to see if the one way valve is working.

The white one isn’t a check valve. It is a spray nozzle. The idea is to blast all around the walls of the tank, to get rid of the gunk that sticks there, not just fill it up. Check valves provide one way flow protection. You do not want black water going back into the fresh water supply. That “normally” would never happen, but if something happened in the fresh supply system, it could possibly syphon back and contaminate it. The RV codes require a functioning check valve here (complete separation of fresh and sewage systems). Just like residential code requires check valves when you connect up an irrigation system to city water. The other check valves in the back of the trailer are installed to prevent your pressurized water from simply going the wrong way. It is all about traffic control, like one way streets. John Davies Spokane WA

Welcome! That's a great looking combination you have. As you've already found, there's a wealth of information here, and wonderful people more than willing to share. Numbers are going up fast! I don't think we'll be 1313 come March 28th, since they're building the trailers os quickly. If we were 1313, I was going to name the trailer Mockingbird. 🤪

I’ve got a bunch of chips. All is good. I wish mine were the size of a pin head, but most are larger. I may fix them at some point, but right now we’re too busy camping. Mike

1st question - nope, you are good to go. Over time, dirt and grime will tend to collect in those chips and you might notice them more. 2nd question - Kind of like fixing paint chip on a car or truck. I've never been very good at it such that the "touch-up paint" doesn't show. One of the big problems in doing chip fix is getting the correct color - yes all Olivers are white but they are not all the same white. Or, you can wear those chips with pride. Kind of like a hard earned patina. 😉 Bill

It sounds to me like the Truma AC has a soft-start capacitor built in to the unit by design which is why they will not honor warranty if a capacitor is added external to the Truma. I speculate that two uncoordinated capacitors in series may not always work well together. A soft start capacitor provides instantaneous reactive power reserves and it is reactive power that creates the electromagnetic field which allows any conductor to transmit real power. It is reactive power that supports voltage. Large generators on the bulk grid are designed to vary the amount of reactive power they generate in real time (simultaneous with generating real power or watts) to support grid voltage. Small generators like the Honda are rated at unity power factor and are not designed to inject or boost reactive power when faced with inductive loads like a sudden AC compressor load. Hence the need for a soft-start capacitor which minimizes voltage sag for the fraction of a second when the compressor starts. From the guidance out of Truma mentioned above, I expect that they have designed the unit with an integrated soft start capacitor that mitigates voltage sag on startup. (Just like the external soft-start capacitor that Oliver installed in my 2020 LE II does). I am reasonably confident that the Honda EU2200i, or any similar nominal 2,000 watt generator will start and run the Truma, or I don't think OTT wouldn't have made the switch.

It would surely look much better than my gallon of rv antifreeze that I use as a door stop....