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I always wash/wax my vehicles and also my trailer. Then, I GOT OLD. Since hitting the 70’s my stamina isn’t what it used to be. I can still wash/wax my trailer, but what the CGI team did is a different level. 4 guys, multiple buffers, scaffolding, ladders, thorough wash, buff and then buff some more, ceramic coat, buff, ceramic coat again, buff, measure shine with some kind of shine measuring thing. It would have taken me a week to do that, then two weeks to recover! Mike

Ours is original and black. It’s also about an inch short at each window. I keep the gap on the upper part of the window. I’d replace them but the rubber is still good and the gap doesn’t seem to be an issue. Mike

If anyone is interested in trying the Bulldog shocks, AutoZone sells them for $53.99 online only and claims to have them in stock. They state they have a Limited Lifetime Warranty (you can read it at the link provided below.) The part number is HD1214-0656. This link should get you there.

Generally, I'd agree, especially as I'm cargo capacity limited. However, we're spending two months in Florida this winter, and will be plugged in most places we stay. So saving propane by using free electricity for seven weeks is appealing to me.

If it is worth it, then it is worth it.

We're in southern Mississippi just after traversing some pretty rough roads across Louisiana. We've retorqued the u bolts per Alcan's recommendations and then some. A few still need minor tweaking so I'll continue checking for another 1000 miles or so. The Alcans seem to be doing great and I'm glad we went that route. Lew and Tucker were a pleasure to meet and they taught me a few things :) I changed my Oliver shocks in July, in Maine, with Monroe Magnum 555001s. Upon completion of the springs install in Colorado, Tucker informed me 1 of the struts were blown and would not extend after compressing it. We continued on to our next destination without the bad shock installed and I re-installed another 555001 after a visit with O'Reilly (not a common stock item so had to be ordered ahead of time). All was going well until Louisiana roads...after reaching Lake Mary Crawford, a public fishing lake by Monticello, MS, I discovered 2 more shocks leaking, removed them and ordered 2 more from O'Reilly. Only 1 came in so I reinstalled the best of the 2. They would extend ok after compressing so I figure they has some life left, but had oil that had leaked from the top of the shock. I wiped the shocks down and will check on them from time to time until getting back to SC. I'm thinking the frequent severe porpoising through dips in the road for over 30+ miles may have forced the oil out and down the bottom outside cylinder. We will see if the struts continue to leak and report back at a later date. My TV now has 121000+ miles (over 21000 so far this year alone since leaving SC) on it and I'm seriously thinking about replacing the shocks on it when we get back. They're not leaking nor appear in bad shape but the truck seems to be a little more springy on hard stops and porpoises a little more than when newer. The tires are new so no unusual wear at this time. I have had zero problems with exchanging the bad shocks at O'Reilly's (lifetime guarantee...thanks Steve L) but am thinking I'll want to try another brand to see if it lasts a little longer. Still happy campers here... :) John

On our recent 48 day trip we used the furnace when we needed at little heat in the mornings and it worked flawlessly. I also think it’s a real good idea to use and run the equipment you have on board. This way you will know it is operating properly. I personally don’t see any need to carry a space heater/space taker and they are not really efficient. One night during our week camping in Yellowstone the temp dropped to 28d we were toasty warm with our furnace. Keeping that Max Air Vent screen and fan blade clean was a regular maintenance ✅ list item especially on this last trip in the dusty dirty windy high deserts of the midwest. I think I cleaned ours twice during our recent trip and again when we arrived back home.

I found the little guy below at a garage sale for $5 about 12 years ago -it measures about 6x6x6 inches. It has a temp sensor, on/off switch and rotary switch where I can set the desired temp on the back of the unit. Like many of these electric space heaters its maximum wattage is 1500 and it can roast me out of the Ollie if I leave it on full blast for over 30 minutes without setting the adjustable control lower. However, I never leave it on overnight or while I'm not in the camper. Bill

It really depends on how particular you are about how your ollie looks and also how you store it. I have ceramic on both my truck and my wife's car. Her car lives in the garage and still looks and washes like the day the ceramic was applied. My truck lives outdoors and the ceramic started to fail after the 2.5 year mark. If I stored my trailer indoors then the ceramic would be a no brainer but since my Oliver lives outside at a storage facility I just wash it occasionally and but and wax every 6 months. Does it look perfect, no, but the great part about gelcoat is that it can always (within reason) be brought back to life with a little effort. John

It does pro-rate based on start date. Our billing cycle is on the 11th of each month. In September we started on the 15th of the month and only paid $45. But it is only pro-rated based on start as regardless of when you pause you get it through the end of the billing cycle.

@John Dorrer here is what I used. It worked perfect and only $8. https://www.harborfreight.com/finger-release-ratcheting-pvc-pipe-cutter-62588.html

I cannot deny that the Ceramic Coat work performed by CGI is top shelf. I have seen a couple Ollies with this treatment and they are spectacular. That said, my E2 lives outdoors, uncovered 24/7x365 and lasted three years with 2x/yr hand washing and waxing before it started to show signs of light oxidation. I took the dive and bought a Makita rotary buffer and a forced-rotation DA polisher and did the top half this Fall. Looks good enough for who it is for and I enjoyed the physical activity and the chance to get intimate with my trailer. This direction is subject to change as I age of course, but for now the $3k sits in my bank account.

Our Vornado has three settings, 750, 1150, 1500. The lowest setting is enough for temps down into the 40’s. We’ve used the middle setting to get things warm while camping in the 30’s. We rarely use the 1500W setting, in the teens and 20’s it will get the trailer warmed up and then we go to one of the lower settings. It’s got a wide base and is super stable. It also has a switch on the bottom that shuts the unit off if it is not sitting flat. We’ve been in the Kansas City area the last couple of nights, overnight temps near 40 when we wake up. Using the lowest setting (750) we kept the temperature in the high 60s for sleeping. That’s not running constantly. I think the new ones have a digital temperature readout. Ours just has a knob (8 years old). If you’re not going to camp in sub freezing temps I think the small Vornado would be fine. It’s a very quiet unit. Mike

I just want to go back in time. https://www.motortrend.com/features/60s-muscle-cars/

Same price as when I bought ours in black last year. I bought 17 ft, they sent 18 and I had over a foot left over. Total shipped was $99. https://www.pellandent.com/Half-Inch-Glass-Vinyl-Seal

Agree with David’s comment! The fall colors are something we miss in south Texas. Mike

I feel the pinch too. Everything has gone up except my pay and I am still paying for two houses waiting for the bigger one to sell. Hopefully, the economy will get better after the election.

All, I have updated the instructions to Rev 1. The last two pages in Rev 1 outline the process for inspecting the cooling coil for signs of freezing. Rheostat Install on AC rev 1.pdf

I have almost always been adamantly opposed to hiring someone to do a job that I can do myself, which is virtually everything. I remember years ago I had a stopped up washing machine drain. I called a friend to ask if he had a drain snake and he brought one over to help. After monking with it for about an hour and not doing any good I suggested to him that I should just go out to a rental center and rent a powered snake. He asked what it would cost. I remember it being in the $100 dollar range for a few hours. He stated, "...or you could just call a plumber for about the same price and not have to fool with driving out to get the machine, coming home and messing around with it for another few hours and maybe still not get it open and then driving out to return the machine and still ending up having to call a plumber." I called a plumber. I always consider how long it would have taken me at work to earn enough money to pay for the job at hand. The older I've gotten the more willing I am to pay someone rather than doing it myself. I plan to die with a balance of only 5¢ in the bank. I did pay the CGI boys their fee to do my trailer when they first went into business. I've never met a finer bunch of young men. Our trailer is looking like it needs it again but aside from Hull #045, ours is the oldest Elite II still on the road. I've never waxed it even once and have usually paid to have it washed. Here again, number of hours worked vs amount paid to have the job done. I would take me several hours to wash the truck and the trailer, I pay $125 to get both done at a detail shop. No brainer for me!

Great testament on the Atmos. Felt bad you guys had to step into the Oliver with the a/c off, but then perfect demonstration of the efficiency of the unit to quickly cool the interior while dropping the humidity! Love me some Atmos!

Just returned home from the Hungry Mother SP VA fiberglass rally. There were three Ollie's in attendance, too. Fellowship and Potluck dinner were great!

John, these posts should help you, happy reading! https://supersizelife.com/replacing-your-rvs-window-seals/ https://www.pellandent.com/Half-Inch-Glass-Vinyl-Seal

The houghton is designed to have the fan run when the compressor is off. Turing the fan to low makes it less noise and still allows the air to circulate. The issue with the Houghton is that the thermistor is up inside the unit which is why the fan was designed to run constantly according to the manufacturer. I would return the unit to its original design (no relay) and see if that solves your problem. John

It seems like if $3k for a ceramic coating is worth it $1,300 for a Calmark cover (assuming you don’t go with a cheaper one) would be worth it. We store outside and have a ceramic coating. Figured keeping it covered over the winter would stretch how often we have to get it coated again, therefore paying for the cover pretty quickly. The coating has made washing it and get bugs off pretty easy. We wash after each trip. I also use WashWaxAll to help protect.

I clean the screen and blade assembly after each trip. You figured out the screeen, the blade is held on by a single set screw that comes off easily. If we want the vent open and no fan I usually just turn the fan down all the way to 10, it hardly moves any air. The vent is pretty noisy, once we open it it stays open. We got down to 43 here last night, both vents open and Vornado heater providing quiet, even heat. Mike

I've seen similar filter and water softener additions. Here's mine. I recently saw that James at FitRV released a single 2.5" X 10" water filter element to replace the standard 3-stage system. I've considered one of the smaller 3-stage systems as an upgrade, so I thought I'd give this a try as a less expensive alternative. Of course using one 3-stage filter instead of three separate filters is going to mean a shorter interval between replacement. But the cost difference should be negligible, and I won't have to find a place to store a 3-stage system. Here's the FitRV video and article: YouTube: https://youtu.be/t_SQNVapBEw?si=FfufAl7n4p_80Eys Web article: https://www.thefitrv.com/rv-tech/our-new-rv-water-filter-the-fit-rv-3-in-1-filter/ I bought a cheap filter canister from Amazon, that arrived with horribly oversized 3/4" NPT pipe threads, and enough slop that the filter moved over 1/8" up and down. That's not going to work at all, so back it went and a GE housing was ordered. Much better! I assembled with a 3/4" NPT to 3/4" GHT (garden hose thread) on each end; one male-to-male, and the other male-to-female. Then I gave it a test fit on Curiosity's rear bumper. Dummy! The hoses would interfere with the trailer body and the drop down sewers cover. :facepalm: Back to Amazon for a pair of 90° 3/4" GHT male-to-female connectors. In hindsight, I should have used a 90° 3/4 NPT to 3/4 GHT set, but looking today, I couldn't find that combination. This also allowed me some flexibility in the angle of the input and output. Back when I ordered the Oliver, and spent those agonizing months waiting for delivery day, I accumulated a bunch of bits and pieces to get ready to go. (Didn't we all?) One was an adjustable water pressure regulator. I didn't realize that Oliver would supply a fixed 40 PSI inline regulator, and the inline unit was convenient to store with the Camco inline water filters I've been using. So now's the opportunity to get it off the garage shelf and put it to use! I drilled and tapped two threads into the side of the bumper support, and screwed and LocTited in two stainless screws. These are used to hang the whole contraption while in use. It'll be stored in my bucket during transport. I hope this is helpful for anyone wanting to upgrade from an inline water filter. List of components: GE Filter Housing: https://a.co/d/7cbaS28 FitRV 3-in-one filter: https://a.co/d/b0NzDt8 Camco 4' Potable Water Hose: https://a.co/d/eVeV4BJ 3/4" NPT to 3/4" GHT fitting: male-to-male (2-pack): https://a.co/d/5MopLFL 3/4" NPT to 3/4" GHT fitting: male-to-female 2-pack): https://a.co/d/dE1gWDC 90° 3/4" GHT Elbow: male-to-female (2-pack): https://a.co/d/24kw8xO Teflon tape for NPT threads Total cost: $133 plus tax Question: The fixed pressure regulator that came with the Oliver is 40 PSI. I've set the adjustable water pressure regulator to the same 40 PSI. What pressure do those of you with adjustable regulators use?

If it has a good power cord, doesn’t get hot to the touch, you’ll be good. I’ve used some old classics and usually replace the original cord with a cut-off #12 extension cord.

As if they knew we were talking about heating, Long Long Honeymoon just released THIS Video that contains some additional ideas. Bill

We had CGI do ours after owning it for a year. I assumed that since it was only a year old that they would have an easier job. No. The price was the same. Colin said that even on a new trailer, they have to buff out the swirls and imperfections on the gel coat. They did a great job and we have no regrets. We did buy the cleaner and the spray that they sell to extend the ceramic coat. I cleaned it and used the spray a couple months ago. It's been a year since they did it and it looks fantastic. I am nearly 73 so waxing every 6 months as recommended wasn't going to happen. When it needs it again, we will have them do it. John

GG Thanks for the post and procedure. I share the thoughts of Kantanga and JD on not taking the fan speed down too low. One safety thought from your procedure which states: "Regarding electrical safety, none of this work should be performed without 1) first flipping the A/C breaker located in the panel under the dining table, 2) assuring the Oliver is disconnected from shore power and 3) assuring the solar system’s inverter is turned o (if your Oliver is equipped with a solar system)." Most OTT's have inverters. Yes you have well killed relavant breaker and power sources to the A/C unit. But if the inverter is left on and the wrong breaker is turned off, (As it is easy to do looking at it upside down in the dark on most of our trailers), then you could be in for an "enlightening experience". For safety sake I suggest you also list turning OFF the Inverter. Again, great post! Safety John (AKA GJ)

I can’t afford $3K on an older hull which has set and will sit in the AZ sun year after year. I’m getting less work annually on my job and inflation adding to 30% over the last 4 years makes it worse. Given two young men at 1 1/2 days that’s 24 hours. Say $120 for buffing compounds, this comes to $120/hr. I’m not getting near that with a MSIE degree teaching professionals for PMP certification. It’s a crazy number for manual labor! I can see $75 max. This comes to $1,920. Another example: OTT wants “on special” $1000 labor only to wire the Oliver, not the TV too, for a DC-DC charger, equally crazy. Call it 6 hours and it comes to $167/hr. Glad I do my own electrical and mechanical work, though buffing/waxing is not worth taxing my body! The CGI young men are so nice, witnessed by them serving us dinner at Inks Lake! If I was in my 20s making over $100/hr I’d be grinning ear-to-ear too! Love when my wife Chris says, “Why does a trailer have to be so shiny?”

This report is consistent with my experience as well. I have found the LIthionics app provides much more reliable State of Charge (SOC) readings. I have also found that: (1) fully recharging my Lithionics batteries, after nearly full discharge (down to 24% SOC) then (2) leaving the charging source connected for a couple more days enables the batteries to rebalance, and the Victron Connect app to read the same as the Lithionics app.

Can't recommend CGI and ceramic coating your Oliver enough. I store indoors and they did mine 2 years ago and it looks like new. I am thinking if you cover or store inside you will see at least 5 years before a re-coat is needed. I just washed my trailer yesterday. It had been out doors and was filthy. The dirt just wiped away. Much easier washing (especially those damn bugs) when you have a ceramic coating. So...... while washing the trailer I was thinking. Everyone thinks waxing their trailer is going to be this great Zen-Like experience. Like... you're going to be the next Karate Kid... Wax on.. wax off Daniel-san. Or, at least satisfying when you see the results. Bulls*&$. It's a pain in the A$$. After ten trips up that damn ladder you'll think 3k for ceramic coating is a bargain. Speaking of washing. CGI will recommend special soap to use that will help your coating last.... And there is a spray that can be used after washing that helps as well. Good Luck! Scotty

I ceramic coated my truck at home. It is a chore but it looks nice. I believe it cost me less than $100 for the product and about 3 hours of time. I already had the equipment, so no extra cost on that. If I did the Oliver, I figure 3 to 4X that at $400 and about 12 hours. If I paid myself $100 an hour for my time, it would only come to about $1600 total. That is being generous. It would likely take less time and less money. My truck was FILTHY. My Oliver had some swirl marks from the factory, so they paid to get mine polished. I took it to a local boat detailer and he put a nice ceramic coat on it for $1300. $3000 is too much in my opinion, unless they come to your house and your trailer is horribly oxidized. If I can't do it myself, I will take it to my boat guy.

We’re big fans of the work the CGI team does. It’s an investment, and for us with an older trailer it was well worth the cost. We had ours done in April 2023 in our driveway when they came through Texas. Our finish had begun to dull and we lost the new trailer shine. When they were done it looked better than the day we picked up. It’s made after-trip cleaning easier and still has a nice shine. They work hard with expected results. New trailer shine for an old Oliver. More shine.

Ditto...I can't keep up with waxing like I did with our Casita. We just had our 2nd treatment and it looks as good or better than the 1st. We also had or 2019 Silverado treated. It is possible to clean both vehicles in less than 2 1/2 hours (by a 71 year old) :) I do stay up with bug removal on 90% of our stops every travel day. We do full time so that's a lot of bugs!!! We probably average 3 "wipe downs" a month. The CGI guys are TOP SHELF! You won't be disappointed with their work. They are as hard working and courteous a team as I have encountered. "Is CGI ceramic coating worth it?" If they didn't offer the reduced rate on subsequent visits, I would probably wait for 3 to 4 years, instead of 2, for retreatment. The work is not cheap but it's our home and I just can't keep up with the waxing anymore. Our Casita was difficult to keep shiny and void of oxidation with my waxing attempts. For us...yes it's worth it. If you are happy with your results with the marine products then maybe no for you. You could always go to them at a later time if you find out it's becoming too hard to keep up. I would offer this suggestion...find a trailer that has been done by CGI and compare it to your trailer right after you finish your clean and wax job. Best of luck with your decision, John

That was my plan last January, when I went to Florida for a rally. I was going to stop in Murfreesboro on the way back to Ohio. But they were at the same rally I was, and then on to the Tampa RV show. Their plan was to schedule a bunch of jobs in Friday and Alabama to keep them someplace warm during the winter. We ended up meeting them at the Retro Reno shop in Jacksonville early February, where we stayed at a hotel on the beach while the guys did our trailer. Only you can decide if it is worth it. It certainly looks great, and makes washing so much easier. And as Bill said, these are some of the nicest, hardest working young men I've ever met!

Everyone does! The folks at the Mothership are even nicer than their camper. Bill

I'm certainly glad that I had it done! The CGI guys are first rate both in the work that they do and the kind of people they are. I only wish that there were more people of their age with the kind of work ethic and attitude they have. The cost is basically a "push" for me and most of the people I've talked to. If you have someone that does a good job of polishing and waxing your Oliver you are fortunate but these people are not cheap. Sure, if you do the job yourself, you (hopefully) do the job right, but the time and effort are expensive in terms of what you are missing and how hard you are working. I've never had an "easy" place to wash and wax my Ollie. Since Twist is located in a storage yard I needed to make several trips back and forth all the while hoping that the weather would cooperate with my schedule. Now that its been coated it is much easier to wash and shines better than ever. Also, while on the road, the bugs are easier to get off. This depends a bit on how you take care of the trailer. If you do not live in a place like south Florida or Arizona and keep the Ollie clean (i.e. keep the bugs off and keep it washed or covered) the coating will last longer. But, then again, if you live in a relatively harsh environment you would probably need to wax more often too. From my experience, it seems that my coating will last well into two years and possibly three before needing to be redone. But, I just might have the CGI guys do a refresh this coming year because the Ollie has never been so shiny as it is after they get done with it. Bill

On other models of this fan, the handle could be pulled down to disengage the motor. Mine won't do that. What you can do, is while the fan is still running, slowly turn the lever mechanism by hand to close the lid. Turn off the fan and the motor will recognize the fan lid is closed. Reverse the lever slowly to reopen lid.

Thank you Jerry & Kathy for both answers! I turned the tabs, why didn’t I think of that, and I have the screen out now. Thanks again. I’m hoping for a procedure to turn off the fan without closing the vent cover. Chris wants the fan on when going to sleep where it’s just cool enough to go w/o A/C. When I wake up, middle of the night, it’s much cooler and I want to turn it OFF but keep the hood/vent open. The motorized lever mechanism is soooo noisy late at night! I muffle the sound with a pillow on the fan, then OMG have to do that again to open the vent, no fan. I’ve got to find the procedure, or I promise I’ll pull it apart and wire a dedicated toggle switch for this simple purpose.

I am not sure about leaving it open while off. But Oliver did put out a video on cleaning it and operation.

The dark spots at road dips are the result of oil droplets from fluid leaks, the sudden bounce forces these accumulations to release and drip onto the road surface.

Is that on one set of tires? JD: It would not surprise me at all if it was. JohnW's and mine came off the line within a week or so. Both have these tires: My 2018 Ollie Michelin's now have 42,000 miles on them with no cracking and about 2/3 of the tread left. Close inspection by Discount Tire cleared them for a couple more years. But I changed out the springs and shocks ten thousand miles ago. I thank Scott Oliver on a regular basis for these tires on ours. Down the road, regardless of what springs our OE2 owners choose to use, it is my strong recommendation that if you have over 30,000 miles and you have the Dexter 1750# rated ones, it is time to change them when it is easy for you to do so. I strongly recommend doing so where you like, and not being forced to do so on the highway somewhere out in the boondocks. ESPECIALLY if you are considering Alaska and don't live there. 🙂 GJ

JD Tucker at Alcan shares that view as well....that's why we don't mind driving with the bad one removed until I can replace it. Good point about extras. I'm getting pretty good with the changeouts :) My bad experience was having to change out the severely cupped tires that I suspect was the fault of the sheared shafts on the front 2 shocks (previous post). Hopefully changing out the TV shocks will help.

Hi Kim and David, No on the recommendations. I like the lifetime warranty from O'Reilly but dislike the replacement frequency....don't know at this time if it is the TV causing the problem or the Monroe shock. Will provide update as time goes on. Next course of action for me is to replace all shocks on my TV. It appears the unavailable Bulldog may be the only option (but that is not much of an option if unavailable). I asked O'Reilly if 555001 leads to other option but they saw none.

Thanks for the report John! Safe Travels to you and Wendy my friend. David

Glad you found the pending loss before it happened. Last month in a response to Jason's post I stated: "A bit off topic, but important. I recently lost on the highway one of my jack foot plates. Recommend checking their single bolt tightness occasionally. Anybody know how to do so and to what torque? My concern is that one could damage the jack tube if it is not restrained during tightening." We now have two documented cases supporting the need to periodically check the torque of our jack leg feet. Jason mentioned using a strap wrency to back-up the torque process so as not to damage the leg when doing so. Pondering this further, I think it would be worth attaching a small diameter cable to act as a "safety chain" for the feet. GJ

I'm assuming mine was removed by previous owner, replaced with a nice drip edge. Can somebody confirm who knows the OEM "rain seal?"

That little plastic tray under the freezer is a drip try. There is no condensate tube (at least not in mine.) It should be checked every day or two, and dumped. Defrosting is required in mine every week to 20 days, depending on humidity, and how many times a day the door is opened. I don't find defrosting to be a huge pain. I do it the day before grocery shopping. Turn off fridge. Empty contents into a cooler. Cover cooler, and shove it down the aisle. I have an old Tupperware "bread saver" that I full with warm/hottish water. Stick it in the freezer. Put the veggie bin up on the top shelf, put a towel on the shelf below. Depending on ice buildup, maybe replace water in the Tupperware once or twice. A microwave towel to wipe interior a few times, a dump of the veggie bin, and usually in 15 to 20 minutes, max, my fridge is ready to load. 45 in the veggie bin is actually good for many veggies. I got rid of the glass shelf. I have wire shelves everywhere. Don't hang too much heavy stuff on the door. Check seals. Dollar bill test. I routinely push in on the bottom frer corner when I close the door. A tight seal every time means less air intrusion, less frost buildup. I have a mental map of fridge contents. My husband is not allowed to open the door, leave it hanging open, and search. I'd rather get it for him. (Same at home.)