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It’s a must see for sure! 👍🏻 A few more photos taken today while touring the Million Dollar Highway…amazing. My Bride, Navigator and Copilot shot a few beauties! Sept and October is the only time we will visit Colorado for many reasons. We had the road to ourselves in the Beast. Tomorrow we will tour Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Then Friday morning we take off and move our base camp to Cortez, CO. ⭐️ A link worth a read if you decide to drive the million dollar highway aka Highway 550. https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/million-dollar-highway-named-to-list-of-most-dangerous-roads-in-the-u-s/ Onward!🇺🇸🇺🇸

Before we got our newest truck with tire sensors supplied for the trailer, we use the TST system with great success. I did use the booster and I wired it to my camera switch. When the rear camera was on (always during travel) there was power going to the booster. I sold this entire system to a new owner several years ago. I believe it is one of the best aftermarket brands.

For the trip home from Hohenwald, I put a cigarette lighter plug on the booster and used Velcro to stick it on the wall behind the front dinette seat, plugged into the outlet below the seat. Worked fine. A year later, every time I plug it in before a trip I say to myself, "I really need to mount that permanently..." 🤔

As I recall, the instructions that came with my TST kit recommended installing the booster near the sensors and to connect directly to the battery. We installed ours in the battery compartment. It's about as close to the sensors as you can get, and there's no need to route the wires through the hull or under the frame. It's not a switched connection, but if you're worried about draining the batteries you can just remove the 2 amp fuse for storage. Steve

Returned from a trip to the Utah deserts and canyons a couple of weeks meeting up with an old hiking buddy. Spent most of the time around the San Rafael Reef or Swell as it is so often referred to. Not being a geologist not sure what the real difference is. Had some great hikes and adventures and experienced some fairly dramatic thunderstorms while down there. Sept is heading toward the end of the areas monsoon season and we did get to experience some of its beauty as well as drama. A good many of the Capitol Reef NP roads had been closed the day before we arrived there due to flash floods and then again more were closed the morning we left with park service declaring life threatening flash floods in some areas and washes. In my neck of the woods rain just means you might get a bit wet and uncomfortable but down there rain can kill you so we headed the warnings. Posting a few photos below, hope you can enjoy. Boondocked just outside the Reef at San Rafael looking west with evening storms Another view looking north with the Reef in the distance Yet another evenings storm moving over the San Rafael Reef, this one brought a deluge of rain. Another evening, another storm brings more rain. My camp spot provided a nice view of Goblin Valley State Park as well as the Blue Mountains in the distance. In the past when in this area we had always camped just inside the reef a mile or so in but I thoroughly enjoyed the sunsets and sunrises as well as the lighting drama from storms on this trip. Temple Mount seen from just outside the reef

Tire pressure, tire temps and TPM systems, a few more observations. This might not be the right place to post this so moderators please feel free to move it to another spot if it is inconsistent with the OP's @johnwen post on blowouts. Just returned a couple of weeks ago from a trip to the southwest mostly around San Rafael Reef and Capitol Reef National Park. Weather was all over the place during the tip down, while there and then on the return and thus it became an excellent opportunity to explore the results via the monitor on my new TST TPMS device. As stated above I only have 4 sensors and used them for my TV rather than the Oliver. Earlier in the year I replaced tires on both the TV (F150 Super Crew Cab) as well as the Oliver using Vredestein Pinza AT LT's. Honestly I have mixed emotions regarding putting them on my half ton truck, not because I don't like them but simply because once you start going down this path by default you are re-engineering the suspension system. As all of you know installing LT tires on a vehicle designed for PT tires, inflation rates can change dramatically. In this case tirepressure.com recommended going from the factory setting of 35 PSI all around to 50 PSI all around. Les Schwab stated emphatically to keep them at 35 PSI as the door jamb implies. While this conundrum has not been dealt with to my satisfaction, I decided to run 40 up front and 45 PSI in the rear for the recent trip. FWIW 50 PSI with 10 ply tires installed on a half ton truck with suspension set up for lighter weight 4 ply passenger tires is a brutal ride unless you are on the smoothest of roads. So how did things go? At no time did my tires overheat and pressure only increased by 5-7 PSI depending on a number of factors such as shade, sun exposure, type of driving and so on. Consistently tires facing the sunny side ran warmer and with about 2+ PSI more inflation after warm up, highway speeds tended to level things out while stop and go traffic oddly enough ran tire temps higher. Typically tire temps tended to hover between 8-14 degrees above the ambient outside temperature. At one point driving through stalled SLC traffic tires facing the sun rose to 114 degrees but it was also around 100 degrees outside and no telling what the pavement temps were. So with 40/45 PSI set front and rear respectively at mild temps pressure increased to 45/52 front and rear traveling down the road normally at 65 MPH with a few descents hitting 70 mph. How does one interpret all of this? It tends to fly in the face that one needs to inflate LT tires considerably higher than PT tires for the same vehicle. Clearly the load capacity of each LT tire is not being encountered with my F150, same for the Oliver which incidentally were all inflated to 45 PSI and which were only lightly warm to the touch each time they were checked. There are those who firmly believe in the chalk tire test for proper inflation of LT tires and while I have experimented with this it is not exactly scientific to my way of thinking. Regardless hope this info will be of some help to new comers and veterans alike while out on the road and towing their Olivers. Happy Trails

Yes, the 1" bulkhead fitting works fine for all 7 wires. You may need to stagger the connectors as you're pulling them through since they are wider than the cables but once they are through, they fit fine. (you can always practice with the fitting before you drill the hole! 🙂) The bulkhead fitting also has an advantage over just a pvc pipe as the flanges and nut, along with the included rubber gaskets, are easier to seal and actually helps anchor the junction box to the roof. I think getting the antenna base plane above the air conditioner is more important than horizontal separation. I fabricated my mount so the base of the antenna is just proud of the air conditioner and only adding a little bit to the overall height of the Oliver. Keeping the antenna wire lengths as short as possible also make a big difference on performance. Anyway, it sounds like you're on the right path with your installation. I hope all goes well!

I tried the supports last weekend and am posting my follow up. They fit great and I was astonished at how dirty it was under my panels. They are going to be a great help once I get the trailer home and cleaned off before winter storage. Unfortunately they didn't help improve the charging as I'd hoped, in fact, they made it worse. Last Saturday was a very overcast day. The panels were only putting out two amps. My wife was inside calling out the charging rate as I repeatedly tipped and lowered the panels. When flat they put out the two amps, when raised they repeatedly put out only 1.4 amps. I know I was a little off on my aim with the panels towards the sun, but I was pretty close. I would have had to move the whole camper to improve the solar tracking aim by maybe 10%. I expected some improvement by tipping the panels up, but never would have guessed it would make it worse. It did drive home how important it is to keep the whole panel in the sun. With just the shade from my hand, the panel would drop from 2 amps to 1.1 amps. I've heard the individual cells that make up a panel are wired in series. This would seem to confirm it. One shaded cell practically kills the whole output from the panel. I'm not done experimenting with the tipped panels, but for now I am keeping the generator handy to top off the three Battleborn batteries when they get low. Next on the fall to-do list is a temperature driven relay to turn the battery heaters on if I'm sleeping or not around during the day when the temperature dips. I think I've got all the parts on hand, so it won't cost anything more to give it a try. I'm really impressed with this battery monitor from Thornwave a friend gave me to play with. Not only does it internally store all of it's charging data when I'm away, it has a relay control that can throw a relay signal due to voltage, temperature, timers, and a few others. I'm not sure why more people aren't using it. I mostly hear about Victron charge controllers, but not this one.

Lithionics Storage Procedure Rev.7-1.pdf Attached is the most recent Lithionics Storage Procedure memo. When reducing charge to 50% SOC, removing the batteries and storing them in a temperature-controlled environment (as recommended in that document), I see no mention of using an "external charger" to perform the discharge/recharge cycle after 6 months. I would just reinstall the batteries next spring, run them down to the reserve charge level, and let the trailer's internal inverter/charger do the recharge for you.

@routlaw, the "the techs" are most tire places only look at placard, or max inflation on the new tires. And, they have to live by corporate rules. We, as you, do our own research. My truck is 18 years old. Tire technology has changed. I go by manufacturer scale. Incredibly bumpy ride home, at max psi, last tire change. Fixed it at home.

If the system is designed to "snap back" , it should, imo, do so without problems. If you're supposed to keep your foot on it, and release slowly, the manual should say so. Otherwise, I still believe it's a design flaw. Never an issue (yet) with my 16 year old Thetford. I guess we could replace ours with a true marine toilet (raritan) , which requires a lot of work...every flush is a lot of hand pumping. Super reliable on our boat. Much more expensive than cheaper rv toilets . They also last 30 to 40 years.... If/when our toilet dies, I'll probably just get another thetford. I won't l8kely outlive a ratitan. Kind of laughing, because we are troubleshooting a very expensive Toto, in one of our home bathrooms. Looks like about $100 in parts will fix the tiny drip our Phyn detection system tells us we have. At least, there are parts available. That toilet. I'd hate to give up because of a few parts. As toilets go, it's rather pretty. And waterwise. And, expensive to replace. Replacement part numbers are stamped in the toilet tank in the Toto. How cool is that?

You caught a lovely day, and some great photos. Thanks. Beautiful!

Forgot to include a link, for anyone who would like to see more photographs from the areas below is a link to a hidden page on my website. Please feel free to visit. Figured I better not load up too many photos here. Thanks https://www.roboutlawphotography.com/new-adventures-in-utah#1

@johnwen Just purchased one of those myself earlier in the year. Thus far I have only four sensors and have been using those on my TV for now figuring it much better to monitor the tire pressure and temps with the tow vehicle. For this alone it has been quite the education looking at the results depending on driving conditions and ambient temperatures.

Could very well have been as you described. Now, with the TST, I'll be able to see low pressure as it happens and the increase in temp. Thanks, John

Couple more thoughts on this discussion. Several years ago while traveling to a photo shoot in SW Montana I had a blow out on my right front tire but was able to pull over safely and change the tire on the spot. Upon arriving at the next town stopped off at the local tire store and as it turns out on the trip over I had taken on a sharp rock that created a slow leak in the tire which as you all might guess built up some serious heat enough to cause the blow out. I suspect this is what might have happened to the OP in this thread. Fast forward to a couple of summers ago while camping up in the Seeley-Swan Lake area I noticed one morning what appeared to be a deflated right rear tire. Immediately went into Seeley Lake township for repairs at the local tire store. Turns out we were the third customer to come in with slow leaks that morning. Ours was the result of a nail but the mechanic had a jar full of culprits that had caused past customers the same issues. Looking at some of the culprits for flat tires was educational for sure with many of them being quite large such as bolts some bent others straight, various hardware pieces and so forth and so on. Items one would not normally think to be able to puncture a tire but there they were. Anyway glad the OP was able to correct this without undue harm to life and possessions. Blow outs can be scary stuff.

Thank you!!

From coachnet website “Your Premier membership protects you anywhere you go throughout the U.S., Canada or Mexico.”

I quit AAA after years of membership due to a bad experience. I needed a tow in Hayes, KS on a Saturday early afternoon since a wheel bearing on my SOB RV gave up the ghost on Interstate 70. There I was - stuck - with a ton of traffic wizzing by and AAA told me that they didn't have contracts with anyone in that area that could help me. They didn't even offer to look up the names of ANY local towing outfits and I didn't have a cell phone that could do that either. Lucky for me that a KS State Patrol officer stopped and gave me the name of what turned out to be a great towing company that was located not 5 miles away. The towing bill for that 5 miles was several hundred dollars and once I submitted receipts and waited 6 months I did receive a check from AAA for $75. More than the money - it was the lack of being willing to provide any help. Bill

Still base camped in Montrose, Co and we decided to explore the Colorado National Monument. Wow factor 🤩. IMG_9827.mov IMG_9828.mov IMG_9832.mov IMG_9832.mov

Hi Steve, Yes, I've been busy with other things and haven't been on the forum for a while but I did get your PM. The box itself is just a PVC junction box from Home Depot. For the penetration through the box and into the attic, I used a marine bulkhead fitting from Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002DKAKA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 . For the antenna wire entrances, I used a cable entry system from Automation Direct (a great company that I use quite a lot) https://www.automationdirect.com/adc/shopping/catalog/wiring_solutions/cable_entry_systems/frames/bpa-s-10-2-0 You buy the frame and then the individual inserts separately in the size that you need for your wires. I see that the particular one I used is currently back ordered but they have other similar ones in stock. I used a lot of sealant / calk around the penetration and box and haven't had any issues with leaks. As a side note, I'm still really happy with the Pepwave system. It's faster than the DSL service I am able to get at my house. In fact it works so well, I have an ethernet cable run from the Oliver into the house to supplement the DSL when when we're home. (although I do have to watch to make sure we don't exceed the data limits of the cellular plans) I hope this helps and good luck with you installation!

Thanks! All is going great and we are reeeeally enjoying Colorado and all it has to offer. So much to see!

John, I will weigh in here - Per the TST tech I spoke with you will require the booster for TST to honor your warranty and for the TPMS to operate at its maximum potential. It takes a few min to connect the repeater. The TST tech also told me that using the system without the repeater you could easily have RF interference and you can easily loose your signal. My TST monitor is always on while plugged in and charging. When I unplug it from charging, it will shut off via the switch. I highly recommend you consider installing the booster/repeater for a proper install. 3 years in and my TST TPMS is working great. I do monitor my tires when traveling for heat and tire pressure. The monitor is so easy to read right there on my dash eye level. Cheers & Safe Travels from SW Colorado! Patriot🇺🇸

I can attest to the difference (almost always) between the batteries, usually just 4 ~5%. I am certain that what JD says on the balancing out is the culprit. I've actually been letting my batteries get down to the RSV.... just so that I can "reset" the SOC. Most of us in the normal course of usage are simply doing the micro-charging mentioned above.... and likely experiencing some sensor drift over time. (FYI: we've spent 248 nights in ours and today is the first time I've actually let them run down like this to do the reset) Responding to Apreski... I do use the Oliver electrical system to re-charge. Simply plug the Ollie into my garage 20amp outlet to recharge the my three 130AH batteries. I did not take the batteries out last winter (here in Ohio)... but I did make sure that the batteries stayed charged enough for the electric heater to keep things protected.

According to my Lithionics manual for the 320 Ah batteries you can also leave the batteries connected to a reliable shoreline connection for the winter (they recommend leaving the solar on, too). The batteries' internal heaters will protect them from the cold while the shoreline connection/solar keeps the heaters from discharging the batteries.

A TPMS is crucial to have. Check out TST and compare to the one you posted. It comes with a monitor that you can see on your dash and gives you pressure and temperature readings. We have that one and even though we haven't set up the booster, we have no problem getting the measurements from the Oliver LE 2. I have four sensors for the tv and four for the trailer. Tireminder is another brand. John

Trail Ridge Road -RMNP. IMG_9722.mov IMG_9714.mov

Ah! To confirm you did not need to authorize the SIM, right? Basically you had instant Internet as expected. Guess I’ll try some more troubleshooting with CP support who, by the way, have been helpful.

We’ve been using a TMobile sim card in our cradle point for about a year. No problem. I picked the sim up from the t-mobile store, popped it into the cradle point, and voila! It was a piece of cake.

These were the first four I added five years ago. They came from an artist in the UK. There is another one of these scampering along below the pantry, no pic of that one. Then I found some really cool ones, they came from an Etsy seller in Kazakhstan (!) and it took about a month to get them. ... Realistic 3D Mouse Wall Sticker - dannydecorstudio What I like best about the newer ones is the shadows, I positioned them in locations where the cabin lights would shine on them from the correct angle. They look crazy realistic under artificial lighting... "Mouse" needs a bath badly after 10 miles of gravel roads after using the Air Command AC the day before - it has no inside condensate drain. oops: John Davies Spokane WA

You need to start traveling with a cat.

You need some serious rodent control!😁

Thanks guys. I really haven't "used" the batteries very much yet. I'll go ahead and run them down to RVC and the give them a full charge to see what happens. John

I can’t comment on that brand, but the Battle Borns need to be fully charged to 100% so that the individual batteries can balance with each other - current flows from one to the other until their state of charge matches. I suspect that is true for yours, have you taken them all the way to 100% to see what they show after a day’s rest? Again, the following info is NOT for Lithionics, but they may be a very similar recommendation: “As for balancing the lithium-ion batteries, we typically expect them to be charged up to 14.4V as that’s when the passive balancing mechanism kicks in. If you’re floating at 13.6V, there’s no balancing happening and you’re not going to balance the cells until you charge it up to around 14.4V, or at least 14.2V. This won’t be required if you’ve got a solar charge controller or if you have a battery-to-battery charger for alternator charging. These devices can accommodate 14.4V on every charge, so you don’t need to worry about it. If you don’t typically charge at up to 14.4V your cells may get a bit out of balance because of temperature extremes or larger loads. To rebalance your system, we recommend being able to charge it up to 14.4V once a month or even once a week. Please note that it depends on your system usage. You may not notice anything, but if the batteries are hitting high voltage disconnect sooner than you’d expect, for example at 14V, or if they’re hitting low voltage disconnect sooner than you’d expect, such as at 11.5V , then you may want to think about rebalancing the battery cells internally and all you must do is charge it up to 14.4V in order to rebalance the cells. “ https://battlebornbatteries.com/understanding-lithium-ion-getting-started-with-your-battle-born-batteries/ John Davies Spokane WA

Speed Demon, seven hub, Parsec, and gland box! Sure do wish I knew what you guys are talking about, but, it sure does sound interesting anyway!😁 Bill