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Our first travel trailer was an EII. We loved it. Just enough space and no more. Lived in it full time for nearly 2 years, but pandemic and a serious back injury made us re-think many things. Built a house, sold the Olly and purchased a much larger trailer. It’s great, bigger tanks, queen bed, dry bath, bigger fridge… very civilized. This winter we decided to take our first long trip in the new RV. All other trips have been local (really local) and the truck and trailer did great. This latest trip has been an eye-opener. New trailer is an absolute wind brick. Mileage plummets above 45 (yeah, 45). Average for the whole trip has been 8mpg! I now realize just how fantastic the Olly was to tow. Super obedient, never felt the wind, often forgot it was back there. 12 - 14mpg regularly. Easy to park, clearance was never an issue. So warm and cool (new one is NOT 4-season and basically follows ambient temps). Seriously started looking at classifieds for a gently used Oliver. Sometimes, you don’t know what you got until it’s gone.

I couldn’t find anything about this on the forum, and so I think it’s worth mentioning. We like doing dishes outside with hot water from the outdoor shower hose. We have a fold-up table dedicated for this purpose, but the shower hose was always just a little too short. I had a similar flexible hose in my junk stash so I added it to the Oliver hose with a 1/2” PVC nipple. It worked great, and there is no problem stuffing the extra length back into the Oliver shower port. Amazon carries various hoses that will work, including a 90” extension for under $15. Cheers, Geoff

Thanks for this post! Our Oliver is our first travel trailer as well. Your experience is good info for folks like us that occasionally look at the bigger trailers and think something about them might be nice. We’ll be sticking with what we’ve got! Mike

Funny you mention getting used to a small bed. We sleep in a king size at home and share it with two dogs 😏. I've been practicing for the Oliver for several years as my portion of the bed is about 1/4th. I'm pretty good with it because I have no problem sharing my compact twin in the Ollie with the same two dogs. 😍

Nor do I want to drag a "home" behind me. We bought the Ollie to camp. We did not want to drive or drag a rolling "billboard" through the winds. It's definitely not fun. Been there, done that, and done with it, 16 years ago. It's actually kind of amazing, but we spend close to six months, some years, in the space of my walk-in closet. Well, not actually. The outdoors is huge, where we really live.

Bigger is not always better, especially when you get older and maintaining a massive trailer or Class A gets to be a chore. I bought the OTT to get outdoors. I go home to be in a big house. Nothing beats the size, beauty and luxury of a brick and mortar home. I certainly don’t want wheels on it.

LOL, we went big first in a 39' Fleetwood Discoverer Class-A, then a 29' Bigfoot Class-C and now just getting into an older Oliver! It climbs the AZ highways and dirt roads nicely. I'll get use to the small bed with time! 🙂

Welcome Scott and Connie! Wen and I are AF retirees as well and have been fulltiming 4 years now (2 in a Casita). Our Ollie (twin beds) seems like a mansion with the extra 6 feet inside vs the Casita. We picked ours up 2 years and 1week ago and have not looked back. This Oliver community is quite amazing and we are very thankful to be part of it. We'll be at the "Q" in a couple of days to reunite with good friends. I know you will be pleased with your new Oliver. No trailer, as you well know, comes problem free but I can tell you that this Oliver community is quite amazing and experienced with handling just about anything. Congrats on your retirement :) Wen and John

I attended Daytona Bike week for about 15 years straight and in order to get away from the biker madness I rented (along with another couple of guys) a cabin at Blue Springs. Once the "day trippers" left at dark all that we heard was silence. Really nice place to sit back in one of their rocking chairs on the screened in porch and relax. Besides - the manatees and all of the fish in that short run from the Spring to the river were great to watch. Bill

Our Jolli Olli is our first travel trailer. 2 year anniversary is approaching and we couldn't be happier. Came from a pop-up truck camper, and the Olli interior is perfect for us and our lab

The following information applies to Hull 193. SeeLevel monitors fresh, grey and black water levels and the battery voltage. In order to display that information on my Cerbo GX Touch display, a new SeeLevel display and a modified comm cable from the SeeLevel display to the Cerbo GX was required. Mopeka monitors the propane level of the propane tanks and required a Mopeka Pro Check Universal for steel tanks for each tank to be monitored. RuuviTag's monitor the temperature, humidity, air pressure and motion. I have 3 of this model in Hull 193. The RuuviTag Pro is available in IP67 or IP68/ IP69 versions for wet and rough conditions. I have one IP67 model in the propane box. Mopeka and RuuviTag sensors communicate with the Cerbo GX via bluetooth. I am including some resources that may be of help. Mossey Victron Cerbo GX Links.pdf

Hey David, I checked out your web journal and it's amazing. Stunning photos and great reviews. This is an awesome tool for folks like us that are really just getting started. Thanks for sharing your great experiences! Hopefully you guys will be back in the fold soon with another Oliver.

My experience is very similar to @jd1923 and @Ollie-Haus. There is just something about trying out all the wrong stuff before finding the right stuff. Sure makes you appreciate how amazing the OTT is.

Our hose fell off of the of the heat outlet in the bathroom. Don’t know how your hand towel holder/soap dish is secured, but ours was installed with only 3M sealant. Did not like how ours was secured, so used four screws with caps and U seal around the hand towel holder/soap dish edge to prevent removing sealant again.

We did it the other way around. Had a 34' standard travel trailer with a single large slide from 1996 to 2002. Sold and went without due to other family priorities until we decided to jump back in late 20-teens. We knew we didn't want anything large this time around having experienced all the headaches of the large stick and staple camper. Settled on the LE2 and ordered just over a year ago. Fortunately we learned many lessons the first time around and couldn't be happier with the LE2. Plenty of used ones hitting the market lately so you should have no trouble picking one up. Good luck!

Welcome Scott and Conni, From a USAF Gulf War Vet, a big thank you for your service in the best and most lethal Air Force in the world. 🇺🇸 I really enjoyed my time served in USAF. Your delivery day will be here before you know it. Congrats on your new Oliver! Patriot🇺🇸

You could just fill the 14 x 14 opening with a low profile, inexpensive roof vent. Remove the manual operator handle. I actually thought about doing this, as we rarely use ac, when we swapped the Dometic for the small Houghton.

@Mike and Jill We stopped for brunch at Trilogy Kirchen on the east side of Deland (not the downtown one) on our way to New Smyrna Beach. Wonderful food and service. Were we near you? We went to Blue Springs state Park yesterday with 675 manatee for the day's count. Down from a record 900 some the day before. Then had lunch at Hollerbach Cafe in Sanford afterward.

We entered a campground post but thought we should be in Where's Ollie too! Burro Creek and other Central AZ places to visit! - Campgrounds & Parks - Oliver Owner Forums (olivertraveltrailers.com) One the way home from Burro Creek, our Ollie made a stop in Kirkland, AZ. Had lunch, decent burger and great homemade salad with blue cheese dressing, at the Kirkland Cafe. I Had been there before, about 4 years ago on a motorcycle cruise with our son and Chris really wanted to stop this time for the experience. The place is huge inside, hunting trophies on the walls, a stage and dance floor. First opened in 1923, you can only imagine the grandiose of Arizona when there where copper mines busy everywhere, and much greater population in these backroads areas. Herb and Barbara are the owners, they bought the property in 1991 (the year Chris and I met). It will be our 30th anniversary this year and they will have their 67th this year! Think about this, they married in 1956 when I was 1 year old -OMG! This couple is amazing. Barb served us and cooked our meal. Herb was not in, but I met him last time, and he has the stories. We hung out with and talked to some bikers from the valley and as far as Montana, many beautiful HDs on the lot (should have taken the pic when we got there). They advertise an RV Park too, usually empty, but they'll hook you up, just ask!

Thanks Bill, I will do this soon enough and modify as @Frank C demonstrated: Bathroom Vanity Cubby Modification - Mechanical & Technical Tips - Oliver Owner Forums (olivertraveltrailers.com)

Dunno if this will help you?

Solved! Switching the out switch off and on solved the problem. Thanks for the input!

Some associates enforce company policy, and some have a better understanding of Total Customer Satisfaction!

Your observations on the inferior design of the HVAC (furnace) "system" is spot on. I think Oliver has maybe not given this issue sufficient design attention because a large proportion of Oliver Owners probably winterize their trailers and don't care much about the furnace. I use my Oliver throughout the year, store outside, and do not winterize. My primary concern is the ability to keep the plumbing from freezing even when the cabin is warm. I have placed internet connected thermometers in the basement by the outside shower hoses and other spots, and found that the basement temperatures can fall to 30 degrees or more below the cabin temperatures when outside air temps drop into the low 20's or teens. I found that if the outside temperatures go very much below freezing, I have to keep the cabin at least 65 degrees to keep most of the basement areas (except for right around the furnace itself) above freezing. I determined the problem is insufficient warm air circulation through the basement (i.e., no return air vents in the front of the trailer (bathroom). Oliver did add a small return air vent in the bathroom in more recent models. I have resisted running new ductwork or cutting holes in the trailer to address this while I studied the issue in the field. Finally, and just recently, I tried a non-invasive hack that appears upon initial testing to work quite well. The outside temperatures last week dipped into the mid-teens for several days, yet my basement temps stayed within 15 degrees of the cabin temps (the Oliver was in outside storage). I am heading out next week and will test the cabin and bathroom comfort in temperatures expected to be just below freezing, and I expect to find a much warmer bathroom and more comfortable trailer, as well as the warmer basement temps. What I finally did was easy. I removed the "front bottle plate" from the bathroom vanity and disconnected the flex duct from the bathroom vent, creating a 3'' (or 4") return air vent in the bathroom. I then left the disconnected air duct loose under the sink to put extra heat into the front of the basement. Combined with the new return air vent in the bathroom, the warm cabin air flows forward into the bathroom and the warm air bathroom air is pulled under the bathroom and shower to be slowly circulated from front of the basement to the back of the basement when the furnace fan is running, more effectively heating all the plumbing and battery box. I do need to keep the bathroom door cracked (but not open) for this to work, unless or until I install a vent between the bathroom and main cabin. I am not sure if a functional return vent like this would cause problems in Olivers with the composting toilet. I have the standard toilet.

From what I can tell, and for my personal needs, even with the improvements the QuikrStuff is a nice rack but not $500 better than the 1UP Super Duty! The real shining point of the QuikrStuff is how modular it is. Here are a couple good videos.

Welcome, fellow Texans. Jason and Tina here. We just picked ours up in December, Shaked it down, wrung it out, and finally cleaned it up for the first time.

Welcome! You've already owned several brands, and two molded fiberglass, so I'll be very interested in your comparisons after pickup. Happy motoring, from #12.

I worry about Oliver owners with the Suburban furnace that close any heat vents (supply vents) in the trailer. This is almost always detrimental to the functioning a an HVAC system but in the case of my generation of the LE II it can be dangerous. According to my furnace manual, the furnace requires 25 square inches of unobstructed hot air venting to work properly. Even a few feet of lightweight flex duct will restrict airflow and any bends in the flex duct will restrict airflow even more. The two 4" round supply ducts in the Oliver total exactly 25 sq. inches at the furnace so technically, when the runs of flex duct are considered, Oliver has not ensured sufficient airflow for the furnace to operate at its best as it is. (An analogy would be someone that exceeds the GVWR of their tow vehicle). Closing one of the two cabin vents inevitably causes a sharp increase in back pressure against the furnace fan with the result that the fan cannot move as much air across the heat exchanger and into the cabin. The result is hotter air coming out of the remaining open vent but less Btu's in total flowing into the cabin, and the likely overheating of the heat exchanger resulting in the furnace shutting down prematurely (short cycling). In milder weather, this might not be noticeable but it is dangerous in colder weather because if the high temperature limit switch in the furnace ever fails, there is a serious risk of a fire. The only safe way to increase the flow of hot air into the Oliver's cabin is to increase the number or size of return vents, which will reduce cabin pressurization when the furnace is running and thereby enable the furnace to move more air (and Btu's) through and out of the supply ducts. In my experience, the key to comfort and balanced heating in the Oliver along with a warm bathroom is to ensure that all the hot air from the cabin must flow through the entire basement on its way back to the furnace, thereby heating the entire basement as well as the cabin. This requires additional return vents in the middle and front (bathroom) of the cabin.

For those of us with sometimes lengthy power outages, a whole home generator or big battery backup definitely make sense. Here in SW Florida, it's a selling point. Do make sure, if you buy the genset, that it has the automatic test feature. I know several friends with older systems that couldn't start their generator when needed. Sticky carburetor, dead start battery, etc. (Mark calendar for battery replacement.)

WandR - curious to hear your thoughts on the Bright Way Batteries after a couple of years ... would you still recommend them?... any additional pluses/minuses? My Trojans have finally died (2nd set in the Ollie, I believe - I'm 3rd owner) - I'm considering Lithium but, like you, want to avoid a bunch of complications ... and, it appears my setup (Hull #069, 2015 Elite II, BlueSky Solar, IPN-Remote) is same as yours. That said, I replaced a faulty converter/charger two years ago - the new replacement came with both LA (Lead Acid) and Li (Lithium) capability, so now I'm kinda hoping that a Li change-out may be fairly simple (new Lithium batteries, change the converter/charger switch setting from "LA" to "LI", and tweak the charging profile via the IPN-Remote) - I am awaiting a PM reply from John Davies on the forum regarding this (he seems to know this stuff inside-out!) ... If it's more complicated than that, my alternative is to simply replace the (4) AGMs with (4) new ones - perhaps the Bright Ways? ... your thoughts and insights would be helpful - thanks! Cheers, -Dan

I do the same, it’s so convenient and less clutter inside; plus less water in the gray tank. I carry a collapsible wash basin and dish drain in the basement, as well as dish soap and a sponge; a dedicated table is transported in the TV and deployed when setting up camp. The stock shower hose length has not been an issue, but good to know it can be easily extended. Thanks for sharing the mod and reminder to all on use of the outdoor shower in this manner.

It does, thanks Rich. Yours is a much newer model, looks like maybe a Truma furnace. Mine was born with Suburban (I think) and was replaced with an Atwood in 2018. I'm thinking the ductwork must be run the same direction. I can remove the kitchen drawers to take a look and likely the issue is under the bathroom vanity. Mine has really cheap flex ducts (see pic), not the black look of yours, that appear more substantial. I upgrade the water pump and the water valves to motorized valves, Next I should run new ductwork wherever possible. Your pics show me the reason why I have so much bangin' plumbing noise, under BOTH sinks. Why the black tape EVERYWHERE! They really could tie stuff down with proper hardware!

The check valves are shown in the OTT drawing to be directly inside the hulls at the City and Freshwater inlets. I found them to be along the back wall which can be seen in what I call the Oliver's trunk (see pics, btw a bad place for these lines to be and will freeze more quicky with these large brass valves, a strong conductor will release internal heat more quickly). When you blow out the lines, you are pushing compressed air in the proper direction of the backflow preventer (aka check valve), so no associated issue. There is not another check valve at the water pump. The backflow preventer has several purposes, but in an RV without one the water pump would continue to cycle continuously. The backflow preventer creates a necessary close system to build require pressure in the plumbing system. I have a thread on using compressed air to winterize. I have a thing about using chemicals when working, done 20+ brake jobs w/o Brakleen and the like, even when THEY claim to be environmentally safe, yeah right! We blow our tanks dry and refill several times each winter, since we camp from fall to spring and not during the summer. It's too hot down here! We use and need a good furnace and could care less about the Dometic cooling albatross sitting on the roof! I might remove it one day (fill a 14x14" hole) and mount 2 more solar panels! Glad it was your thread we hijacked! 🤣

Honestly, I did not find the vent until reading this and previous replies! Thank you. When @AlbertNTerri was first to reply and I read the upgrade post from @Minnesota Oli and I was like Oh Man, don't think I'm ready for that extensive upgrade, and we don't live in Minnesota! Good news, I had to go look and hull #113 has a vent there, yes! I would have noticed it during our short trip if it had worked at all. Get up to pee in the night, furnace on, bathroom cold! I've worked inside and outside this trailer for months now, but no work on the bathroom to date, but it looks like that vanity panel is coming off soon. While I'm in there I have to tie down the PEX plumbing or whatever bangs around in there making loud noise when the water is running. I will test it this week, but pretty certain it is disconnected at the outlet of mostly blocked along the path. I will close the one by the beds to divert more air forward. Does any know the full duct path from the furnace to the bathroom vanity?

I agree with “dewdev” on the grill dampers. I removed the damper from behind the grill at the kitchen and the one from behind the grill in the bath. I typically have the one under the bed mostly closed allowing the heat to flow mostly towards the front of the camper so that the furnace return will draw the warm air back towards the rear. Seems that the rear stays pretty warm compared to the front so hopefully this helps balance out the heat distribution some. Remember that the outer hull is insulated so even if the basement is heated, the floor will be warm.

I had DT install metal valve stems on all wheels last summer on a return trip from West Texas, had two rubber stem failures (with mounted TPMS devices) likely due to extreme heat at the time (110°+). Upon leaving, I went directly to a nearby Walmart and deflated the tires to 55 psi. That would be my guess.

Hello, Scott and Conni checking in. We are excited to join the Oliver Club! Our delivery date for our Elite 2 is soon. Now that I finally retired (Air Force), we wanted a trailer more boondocking ready with twin beds. We have owned Airstream, Casita and Escape. Anyways, hope to see y'all down the road!

Tim - I'm sorry that I don't know of any camping places right near Ft. Collins. But, if you fly fish - try not to miss some fishing on the Cache la Poudre River. Fishing can be "spotty" and it can get crowded on the weekends but a couple of the "feeder" creeks should not be missed. Have fun with the "grand"! Bill

Was Texans for near 10 years (2006-14) if that counts! Best state in the union for business, earn a good living, putting your children through school, high school and college sports, cost of living and many more reasons! Ran the TX to AZ roundtrip dozens of times! Our son's middle school tennis coach taught us a term we still use today. She'd say, "All y'alls" gather round, and we couldn't wait to hear what's next! Where but in Texas do middle schools have tennis teams? Yes, football of course. Our son played 1-2 tennis tournaments monthly in just about every city in Texas, from Abilene to Houston, Wichita Falls to Laredo and everywhere in between! He later played for a division 3 Texas university. We just loved traveling everywhere in Texas, our fondest memories. Welcome to the club and enjoy your new Oliver!

Understood, my wife always cringes when I say “you know, I was just thinking”!

Hey @MAX Burner, ya know ya posta to work da mods prior to departure? It is a long day when alone in the desert. You need D to get there soon! 🤣

In a pinch, I would have done the same! I didn’t opt for the QC ports, as a cost savings measure at purchase, but was aware that copper gas lines were installed ‘fore’ and ‘aft’ with Oliver builds. Early in ownership, I tapped into the ‘fore’ with a ‘T’ fitting for a regulated extension hose accessible via the screw port, and simply removed a fitted plug on the ‘aft’ line to add a QC valve. However, prior to converting to these convenience gas ports I camped a few times either using the 1# or 20# propane tank. BS supplied regulator in use with 20# tank. Tap into existing regulated line for ‘fore’ QC port. I didn’t want the QC port to exit underneath, as Oliver installs, but rather higher to save my back and other intended use. Short hose extension and QC valve connected to a 10’ extension hose for the ‘fore’ QC port. An elbow’s reach into the port to operate the valve. 10’ extension hose staged atop the tank of proximity to the screw port. The hose is simply routed out of the screw port and attached the another hose extension(s) for use with the BS or fire pit, as well as intended use with a small generator, as needed, positioned either on the trailer tongue or TV tailgate. ‘Aft’ installed QC valve once fitted plug was removed. Adapter for BS QC attachment. BS to the Oliver’s ‘aft’ QC port via a 15’ extension.

FYI, Tim's RV in Massachusetts (Oliver's new local sales-sevice center) has the Oliver TT's in three shows in New England. Boston RV Show (January), Springfield MA RV show (February) and a smaller show in Auburn Maine in April. Hopefully they are all inside the show facility Also Charlotte & Atlanta shows will have Oliver's at it by the local Sales-service center so indicated in a email that Oliver sent out.

Welcome to the Oliver Family, Scott and Connie! We're "part-time" Texans, our daughter, son-in-law, and grandson live near Dallas and we're there a lot (does that count?). We enjoy hauling our OTT there from NM for extended periods. Looking forward to seeing pix of your future adventures in your new rig! Cheers, A & D

Welcome to the family. Maybe we'll see you in Texas in April during the Eclipse. We'll be at Lady Bird Johnson RV Park in Fredericksburg. Check out our BLOG below our signature for some sites we've traveled in our Oliver and news on the Eclipse. Craig & Rose Hull 505

Hey Scott and Conni! Welcome to this benign group of crazy and wonderful folks. We will need to see lots of pictures when your new Ollie arrives.

Welcome and congrats from Hull #1045, Jolli Olli

Welcome to the Family! Exciting times . Hopefully you have already started getting VERY familiar with the Oliver University. This not only will make your delivery go much smoother but it should help you way on down the road too. In addition - perhaps when you get bored with the University, you could simply start scanning through the Forum. Threads here run the gambit of things that cover both new and old(er) Ollies, places to see and do, problem solving, mods, etc.. Have fun! Ask questions. We're more than happy to help a fellow member of the Family. Bill p.s. thanks for helping us all out with your Service! There are a bunch of us ex military types here and we know the "drill".😉

Welcome from a fellow ex Airstream owner. We absolutely love our LEII twin bed! Not knocking Airstream, it’s still a good trailer, but Oliver‘s quality is far superior!

I requested that production swap the furnace & water heater locations because the furnace ducting was running right over the top of the water heater bypass valve. This made locating the valve difficult for new owners as well as having to move the duct aside with the potential to tear it. Hopefully this change has made it better for access and does not cause any issues. I have also requested the return air vents as well and they did start putting a return vent in the bath where the air can return below the dinette about a year ago. They are still working on getting one placed in the closet which should be one on the top & one on the bottom for better air circulation through that area. The return air vents is something that can be easily added on older models if you choose to.