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Interesting how Will Prowse pronounces "Epoch" batteries. Take another look at his video. He is NOT reviewing the less-expensive Epoch Essentials battery that most of us have purchased. He has issues with the software (only) of the high-end model with "Victron Comms" (don't remember the name of that model). From what I've read here, only @rideadeuce has purchased this model. He also is only talking about the recent firmware update. So perhaps Mike should not update the firmware on his batteries. Our Epoch Essentials batteries are perfect in every way I can see. I have used them for 9 months, have brought them under 20% SOC charge twice on the road, all without issue. I love them! 😂

JD, several years ago Craig had a fire in his Truma water heater. It was a dicey situation. It is my understanding Truma replaced the unit. Fast forward to the burner replacement. Oliver stepped up to the plate, taking care of this. It is my understanding that Oliver sent the part to a Truma approved service company in the PNW. After replacing the burner unit, they conducted their final testing and discovered other issues. I'm not sure how Oliver has any responsibility in this. I don't believe they had anything to do with the previous replacement. That was done by Truma. The trailer is approximately 6 years old. The unit was replaced by Truma approximately 2+ years ago. This appears to be 100% on Truma. Oliver shouldn't be responsible for replacing a unit they didn't install My 2¢

I hear you brother, we also searched in vain for a decent stove that would work off the low 2-3 LB pressure trailer gas connections. No luck, so we decided to stick with our favorite Everest stove from Camp Chef that uses the more common 10 LBs pressure. It's a really popular stove that can blast BTU's or be turned way down to a slow simmer. We converted our stove to use a 5 LB propane tank instead of the annoying 1 LB green gas bottles. You can probably do the same modification to other stoves that use the common 10 LB regulator/green bottle system. To be able to use a larger propane tank, you need an adaptor to fit a long hose to the 10 lb pressure regulator/green bottle support. . . but that’s kind of janky. There is a YouTube video that shows how to easily eliminate the awkward green bottle regulator, and convert the stove to a quick connect hose that’s way more convenient and better looking. We bought a quality padded case for our 5 LB propane tank that it makes it easy to carry and stow. We also got a 5’ hose with adjustable regulator and parts for a quick disconnect. We saved the stoves original regulator/green gas bottle holder as a backup, and bought a second one that can be taken apart to get the propitiatory stove connector piece that's needed for the quick disconnect as shown in the video. In all honestly, we now prefer having a portable stove instead of being tethered to the trailers low pressure gas connections as we originally wanted. We often put the stove on a picnic table or bring it to group cookouts. Since the Oliver's awning can't be used in the rain, we carry a canopy that can go over picnic tables so we can now cook and eat outside when its raining, which is does an awful lot around these parts. If anyone wants to go this route, Iv’e linked the stove and padded tank, with all the parts needed to convert it to quick disconnect. Cheers, Geoff https://a.co/d/4wh0e5k https://a.co/d/66t3la0 https://a.co/d/0U67u5X https://a.co/d/6zcM88m https://a.co/d/7VNUJ9d https://a.co/d/7VNUJ9d https://a.co/d/fSQMj0G https://youtu.be/QI3TZYfKDEU?si=pH_B9Z9l3SnksOdR

No way it could bounce to the point of bending an internal copper pipe. Sorry, but there’s no physics that would explain that. Call it Truma manufacturing defect #2, and counting, having read 5 pages of this thread. So sorry Craig, that this has disrupted your travel plans. That s#cks! Your last thought is likely the way to go. Personally, if neither OTT nor Truma would correct this situation after all these demonstrated issues, neither company would get another dollar from me. And it’s easier to swap the unit than to rebuild it on your own, with expensive parts, and then what? I’d like to think there is a viable brand of tankless HWH in the marketplace! Until so, we’ll keep carrying an extra 6 gallons of water…

After lugging around my old heavy Gen-1 Starlink for a few years, I was thrilled to get the new Starlink Mini. It’s small and light, and the router is built into the dishy. It speed tested at 202 Mbps, a very respectable speed, although not as fast as the Gen-3 which typically runs over 300 Mbps. The Mini comes with a 50’ x ~1/8” diameter power cord that has 5.5 mm barrel connectors on each end. It also comes with a 120 volt AC wall transformer that puts out 30 volts dc (vdc.) The Mini is rated to run on 12 to 48 volts vdc, and 25 to 40 watts. It peaks at 60 watts with snow melt on. The 12 Vdc rating is an attractive feature, particularly for Boondockers who don’t have inverters. However, when I first hooked it up to the Oliver’s 12 Vdc battery… it would’t work?? After some investigation, it turns out that it’s not so simple and I’ll try to explain why: Given that the AC transformer puts out 30 volts, and the power is about 40 watts, then it would be drawing 1.3 amps per Ohms law (40w/30v = 1.3 amps.) With the same calculation at 12 volts, the amperage increases to 3.3 amps. The resistance of the long thin power cord can’t handle this higher amperage and the resulting voltage drop puts it below the minimum 12 volts operating range. In fact, I did some bench testing and found it would only work at voltages over 18 volts. There are solutions to this issue including cutting the cable shorter, using a larger gauge cable, or increasing the voltage. Without a better option, I chose to increase the voltage. I looked at cheapie power converters that would probably work, but I wanted something more robust and higher quality. I found a Victron Orion TR 12/24-5, isolated, DC to DC Converter, and it was perfect for the job. It has a 12 Vdc (+/-) input and an adjustable output of 20 to 30 Vdc at 5 amps. Standby power is under 80 mA, and it has remote on/off switching capability. It comes factory set at 24 Vdc, but I adjusted it to 30 Vdc output with the potentiometer on the front. To connect the Mini to the trailer’s 12 Vdc power system, I installed a 5.5 mm female panel mount socket into the Satellite TV inlet. I removed the Coax connector and the 5.5 mm socket and nut fits perfectly in it’s place. Oliver conveniently labeled it “Satellite.” If you need the satellite TV, then install a third “Furrion” inlet as I did for my old starlink RJ45 connector. I mounted the Victron under the rear seat on the street side. The socket wiring was sheathed and routed along the ceiling of the outside storage garage. There are a number of options to pick-up 12 volts in that area, I took power off one of the circuit breakers. I ran the negative wire to the ground bus under the rear dinette seat. The Mini comes with both a snap-in kick-stand and a 2” pole mount, and they’re both necessary for optimum RV use. I prefer having it on a pole, but we often have to move the dishy away from the trailer for a clear sky view. That’s why it’s a bad idea to shorten the cord. It also has an RJ45 port that I suppose is for hardwiring without WIFI, but I probably won’t ever use that feature. I built-up some PVC fittings on my 10’ Electrical Metallic Tubing (EMT) mast to fit the Mini’s pole adapter. (See the post for Tacky Starlink Dishy Mast). A little sanding was involved, and the starlink mount uses a thumb screw to hold it in place. It’s better to turn the Victron off when not in use, so I recommend using the remote switching feature with a switch installed in an easily accessible location. I’m too forgetful to switch the Victron off every time, so I came up with a way to turn it on & off when the Mini’s power cord is plugged in & out. Read on if your interested in that part of the installation: The “three pin” 5.5 mm female socket sold by Amazon has a built-in switch that’s designed for appliances that use either batteries or a 120v transformer supply. When the transformer is plugged in, the pin-3 switch opens to disconnect the batteries. This is opposite of what’s needed for the Victron remote switch, but it can be used to trigger a digital relay and it’s actually easier than it sounds. Amazon carries fun little programable 5 &10 amp timer/relays for under $20. I already had the 10 amp version in the Oliver for a hot water recirculation pump timer, and it works great! The 5 amp is adequate for this application, and you will also need the $20 dollar re-usable Bluetooth programer. They use 50 μA of idle current, which is nothing, and they can be programed for delay-on, delay-off, flashers, dimmers, duck decoys, and more. But for our application, we’re just interested in the trigger functions, specifically the “ground-open” trigger. Before installation, the relay has to be programed from a smart phone or computer. It’ links by WiFi to flash the program into the relays memory. Use wire nuts to connect the timer and programer together, and power them from a USB port. Follow the well written and simple programing instructions using the settings shown in the screenshot below. The relay requires a timing function, so I arbitrarily used function #12, which is “delay-on.” I set it randomly to 1.5 seconds. The trigger is programed to use the “Trig Blue” set at #5, which corresponds to the blue wire used as a “grounded trigger.” The green wire trigger is disabled. My wiring sketch shows that the timer is powered with 12 volts from the Victron’s positive and negative inputs. The relay’s yellow output wire feeds the positive side of the Victron’s remote switch (the negative side is not connected). The Victron’s output feeds the 5.5 mm power socket, and the blue trigger wire goes to the 5.5mm socket’s pin-3. Use a continuity tester to identify pin-3, it’s normally shorted to the negative lead of the socket and it “opens” when the male connecter is plugged in. The socket barrel is negative, or ground, and the center pin is positive 12 vdc. There is one other step to make this work. This Victron model is “Isolated,” meaning that the input and output “negative” terminals are isolated from each other. It needs to be “non-isolated” because the timer is grounded to the Victron input, and the socket is grounded to the output, and the trigger needs continuity between the two. So remove the jumper wire that comes on the Victron’s remote switch, and use it to jump across the two negative terminals. Victron support confirmed that shorting the grounds is not a problem, it just un-isolates it. This works satisfyingly well! I checked out the power draw with the solar turned off, and while streaming a video. It was 2 amps, 27 watts (after subtracting the parasite load). That’s a huge improvement over my previous Starlink, and I don’t have to worry about running the inverter and draining down the batteries anymore. I hope someone finds this useful Cheers! Geoff

I tried Epoch CS a year ago when I was trying to figure out if two of the 460AH batteries would fit in the Oliver without the tray. They have the dimensions listed two ways on their site vs. the use manual. After finally getting to a person, he said he would "look for a tape measure!" 🤣 He never came back to the phone. The reseller I purchased from helped me with my question. Their CS is certainly questionable. I use the basic app, had not heard of a Pro version. The issues I have with their app is that it lists every Bluetooth device in our Oliver and nearby and it does not know which Bluetooth signal is its own batteries! I have to click on each battery, some cryptic string of letters and numbers and once it registers I go to the second page to see the battery stats. Once there everything works well. The Epoch app numbers are always a bit off from the Victron numbers, more conservative meaning lower SOCs, but I believe them to be more true than what Victron calculates as SOC. It's not user-friendly but good enough for my use.

The only problem I have with the app is sometimes I have to restart the bluetooth on 1 of the batteries...through the on/off radial button in the app. Not a big deal.

I'm just finishing up a battery upgrade to a single Epoch "Essentials" 300Ah, to replace a pair of aging 6volt LifeLine AGM's. So far, so good. Connected to the battery via Bluetooth just fine, and was able to charge it on the bench with no issues. The standard Epoch app seems to work fine, although a tad confusing. It has a link for OTA (over the air) updates, which does nothing (not sure if the Essential batteries *can* be updated OTA...). There is a link for "Advanced" features that requires a mystery password (not sure if the Essential batteries *have* any advanced features that can be seen or user-modified). The only 3 real issues I have with the standard Epoch app are (1) there is no PIN to setup when you complete the Bluetooth pairing, so anyone can connect to your battery if you're not already connected, and (2) the app shows *EVERY* nearby Bluetooth device in the initial screen of available devices... not just the available Epoch devices. I have 2 screens of Bluetooth accessible LED party lights in my neighborhood LOL, and (3) the "Operation Manual" link in the app only shows the manuals for the Marine and Golf Cart batteries; nothing for the Essential series. There are currently 2 Epoch apps available - the regular app and the Pro app. The Essentials batteries use the regular app. I suspect most of the complaints about the app are related to the Pro app. Supposedly Epoch is working on merging the two apps into a single app, but I haven't seen any evidence of that yet. Customer service is indeed somewhat lacking. I've been able to reach them several times, though, with persistance (email + voicemail messages), and once in contact they have been helpful. Perhaps they are having "growing pains"? We're gearing up to head out on the road shortly, so I'll know more in a few weeks about how the Epoch 300Ah Essentials battery behaves under load, with Victron MPPT solar charging and Progressive Dynamics shorepower charging.

Hi Rob, I'm leery to give any advice here, especially after Prowse's last review but it was made after my install. Here's my experience....we swapped out for 2 Epoch 300ah essentials 2 months ago at Quartzsite (installed myself...with a little help from my friends), loaded the app, installed a Victron dc to dc charger. All has been working as advertised and I could not be happier with the result. Both batteries charge fully and equally on solar and on A/C through the Xantrex 2000 W inverter. After all is said, I would be hesitant as you are and I don't know how I would have proceeded had that review been posted before my install. In retrospect my install went great and maybe I was just lucky or the review doesn't apply to my 300ah batteries, just the larger ones. I do not plan to perform any type of software upgrades in the future...even if deemed safe to do so.

JD, hope to see you at the Rally and have your Favorite Beverage waiting for you for all the help you have given me. I’m Printing this out to give to the installer. My goal when I owned my 2 Radio Stations, was to know just enough when my Engineer told me something, I could give him a LOOK, and a question, to keep him on his toes. Will use this info to do the same with the installer. Gary

You will remove 3 components; the 2KW Xantrex inverter, the Xantrex PROwatt SW and the crazy junction box, full of wire nuts, OTT installs in this setup. We had the same setup. The Xantrex PROwatt SW (pictured below) is an Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) that connects shore power when hooked-up and uses inverter power when not. Inside the standard residential junction box (shown in your pic2) there should be pairs of white 14 AWG cables (they might be yellow #12 cables since your hull is newer than ours). One set of cables is the source wiring to your 110V outlets and microwave which must be rewired directly to the circuit breaker labeled "110 outlets - 15A." You will also remove and not reuse the short jumper cable currently connected to this breaker. You recently purchased a new PD converter that you do not truly need once upgraded to the Victron which has a built-in charger which your old Xantrex did not have. I'm not sure what would happen when you connect to shore power with your new Victron in the ON position. As-is you would have two chargers running. I disconnected the original PD converter that is internal to the power panel. I reused the breaker labeled "Converter / Battery Charger - 15A" to power our microwave circuit separately. We replaced our microwave with an Emeril Air Fryer and I did not want it on the same circuit with anything that may be plugged into an outlet (e.g. a blow dryer)! I left our PD converter where it was, so if the Victron was to fail I could open the panel, re wire the black wire (the hot) and the charger would then again work. I doubt I will ever use it but I did not want it on. You could do as I did, or remove it completely (return it if uninstalled) or merely trip the breaker so you do not have 2 chargers working in parallel. This could confuse the Victron charging algorithms and perhaps over-charge your new batteries. The Progressive Industries Electrical Management System (EMS) is shown in your first picture. Your installer will need to reroute the output of the EMS to the 120VAC input to your new Victron and then wire the Victron output to the panel exactly where it is wired currently from the EMS. I used residential 10-2 cable for this, however there are some here who believe you must have stranded cable which is expensive. You'll need 12-15 ft of 10-2 cable either way. Read my installation thread again and ask your installer to do so. He (/she) will have their own way but I did not start on mine until studying the good work Mike had done@rideadeuce and there are 1-2 other Oliver Forum members who also posted some insight. Best wishes, JD

Thank you, John. Please allow me to correct my above statement, by not including OTT. I remember reading this with your reminder. That's two strikes for Truma, on just one hull.

F47; John and Jodi; San Antonio, TX

Got a call from the shop doing our Truma Burner replacement. They said: "the water test failed. the fitting on the circulation pump is cracked and the copper line is bent and cannot be repaired. Regina with Oliver Trailer advised this is not something they are covering. I am reaching out to Truma to see fi this is under warranty and or get parts pricing." So now we have to cancel our trip next week. Not sure how or why the copper line is bent but I did notice that the line going into the top of the water heater was a bit wiggly loose. Maybe it's another issue with bouncing around in the trailer. I may need to see about converting to another brand or putting in a Suburban unit. Craig

Agreed, the Blackstone is a popular flat grill and not what you want. Heed Steve's advice @ScubaRx in the post above. They do not regularly sell low pressure. They all or almost all come with regulators to reduce the high pressure. It is easy to remove them, add a HW fitting or change the hose and add a quick disconnect that mates with the Oliver fitting. I modified our Weber grill and our LP fire ring. Added a 12' extension with a 'Y' so we can connect them simultaneously. There are hundreds of choices. Here are a few... https://www.amazon.com/ONLYFIRE-Adjustable-Removable-Tailgating-GS301/dp/B0DF71PPC7/ https://www.amazon.com/Concord-Stainless-Roadster-Propane-Burner/dp/B0BGMGLGTM/ https://www.amazon.com/ARC-Adjustable-Pressure-Portable-Regulator/dp/B07TWZ1H2T/

I agree about the Blackstone. We have two and like them. I also like my Weber Q1000, 10 years old and works great. I removed the regulator so it goes on the Oliver quick connect. I don’t think there were any warranty issues doing that. In fact, many dealers sell kits with the parts needed for the regulator removal and quick connect installation. Mike

Buy whatever stove you want and just remove the regulator from it. Replace it with a male quick connect and you're good to go.

@Galway Girl Craig, this is the best post so far on the problem(s) that have plagued the Truma water heater. If I had one I'd take it out and make it look just like your last photo, even if it were still in warranty. For those still in warranty, your unit will likely be out by the time the parts arrive to repair it. I would not wait until my trailer burns down.

That manual is an amazing resource @Ray Kimsey. Thanks for posting. I was starting up my Norcold after winter today and it was throwing an F code. Symptom: On GAS the Norcold would ignite, but the igniter circuit kept clicking and clicking until the unit shut down and threw an F code. I was concerned that it would be one of the harder to find parts like the igniter board etc. I downloaded the manual you posted and followed the F Code troubleshooting flow chart. Upon opening up the burner box, I spotted that my burner area was very clean but the sensor was practically touching the burner, and needed to be adjusted out to 3/16". I did that adjustment by sliding a 3/16 hex key along the burner and squeezed it into the igniter so it was set for 3/16" Re-tried the fridge and it started with no codes and is still running. The gap between the igniter was fine but the sensor was too close. The PIX below are from a service posting showing how the parts are supposed to be aligned....and what a proper flame looks like. https://www.arprv.com/norcold-gas-valve.php

So , at least in my case and several others... they are taking care of the Truma recall repair at the rally. Jason has just called to confirm they have the parts set aside and that they will be taking care of it there. That is just great service from Oliver in my opinion! Can't wait to see everyone there!!

Burners are shipped to Oliver, then they are shipped out to various repair shops as scheduled. Our replacement burner has just arrived at a local RV shop and we take ours in next week for the repair. The issue addressed is that in older units from Truma the burner tubes could drop out of frame due to road vibration. If that happens raw gas is injected into the burner area and cause faulty operation .

We hiked just a mile or so towards the Juniper Mesa Wilderness (not even close). You would have to hike overnight and tent camp to actually get up into it. The woods here have been in drought for a while and not so just 45 miles SE in Prescott. Look closely, zoom-in on the trunk of this Alligator Juniper, one of many we found on the trail. This beast has grown right out of the granite boulders of the mountain. There must be millions of these trees in this wilderness area. We walked by hundreds today. The Alligator Juniper is the iconic tree of the Prescott NF. The trees in this area have seen a harsh climate (pic1). Closer to Prescott another Alligator Juniper has had a better life, some 100s of years of it. What an amazing tree with Chris in the picture! And btw, the Ponderosa Pine in the post above ain't bad either!

It's been quiet on this most important thread... Thanks @Mike and Carol for starting this! I have the week off and we wanted to get away. It keeps me from workin' on stuff and I need more of that. Almost 2 hours NW of us we can drive to the far NW corner of the Prescott NF. What a wonderful forest it is! At about 5600 ft elevation and little to no rain or snow in this area it's really dry here. We had a dry year, just 2 years ago we had a super-blossom, wild flowers everywhere this time of year but not this year. It's so dry the birds are scarce but Chris recorded a few chirps and pics . At dinner by the fire ring, we noticed a large southwestern jack-rabbit though, as big as a 20 lb tomcat. He came by and came by again later just to see us. At dusk jack-rabbits and great owls surround the woods. We found jeep trails every direction and are thinking of coming out here again next week with our son Adam and one of his friends. We'll also bring another TV with my flatbed trailer, towing our Havoc side-by-side, Adams KFX400 sport quad and my Honda CRF230, an old mans dirt bike (that means it's closer to the ground with electric start)! The boys can tent camp up on the mountain and we will camp here again, in this beautiful place and the luxury of our Oliver with Chris' great food! The Oliver makes traveling so easy. Check out our pics. The first is where Williamson Valley Rd, 20 miles NW out of Prescott where it turns to dirt. Then the Walnut Creek bridge made of bridge steel moved from the Gila River in S AZ over 100 years ago and then our weekend campsite where I am writing this from bed tonight, connected our first time with a Starlink Mini. Leaving tomorrow after another great breakfast and on our way home we will check out a few more forest roads. Is everybody else still stored for the winter? I wish you a great spring and summer travels! 😂

@Dennis and Melissa Just a thought --- you have 7 nights planned at Dead Horse SP to visit Canyonlands and Arches. Both are amazing and Dead Horse is the best reserve campground for visiting Canyonlands and not too far from Arches. It's a good plan but one suggestion I might make is to use the app Campflare and see if a cancelation might pop up for Devil's Garden Campground inside Arches NP. Devil's Garden may be the most difficult to get campground in all of the national parks. It books up within seconds of the 6 month booking window. It does not have hookups, however. I put a notification request in Campflare last fall and scored a cancelation with a few weeks notice -- they do happen. If you were to score a site at Devil's Garden, it puts you deep inside the park in one of the most spectacular areas of scenery with a couple of the best hikes starting right from the campground. You wake up with an unbelievable sunrise right there. The photos attached are of the campground. The arch photo at sunrise is 100 yards from the campground (you can see RVs in the distance on left side of the photo). Dead Horse SP is very nice and centrally located but the campground is kinda out in the middle of sagebrush and you have to drive to get to hikes and views. Already being inside the park camping at Devils Garden means your're already there -- avoiding the lines at park entry and you are already there for the most awesome time in the park which is sunset/early mornings and late evening/sunset. Regardless, my biggest suggestion would be to plan on being in both parks early and late. The light is amazing and makes for unforgettable experiences. If you stay the whole time at Dead Horse SP, you will still have an amazing time!

Plans changed a bit, but… We finally made it to Dead Horse Ranch SP in Sedona! Here are some interesting tidbits from the last two weeks of traveling: 1) Ollie’s first annual service at the mothership was great (but not cheap🤪) 2) Merriweather B&B was great as always (and actually cheap with the 10% Oliver discount 😀) 3) Mt Magazine SP is wonderful and the lodge is stunning 4) Quartz Mtn SP is great (especially hiking around Mt Baldy) 5) Palo Duro SP is a wonder. We will be back. Maybe for a full week next time. 6) Petrified Forest NP is a wonder. Even if you somehow removed all the petrified wood, it would still be one of the best NPs I’ve seen. One day was not enough. 7) Question: on cold, windy, rainy nights, with the heater running, how do you let fresh air in? Everything we tried seemed to get something wet that shouldn’t be. 8 ) THE STREET SIDE JACK STOPPED WORKING WHEN WE ARRIVED IN SEDONA! Thanks to the wonderful Oliver documentation I was able to fix it. Just a loose connection. But working in that space (especially trying to check the inline fuses, the likes of which I had never seen before) was a job for a circus contortionist 🤪

ZLarryb, the plastic connector/tee fitting nut is the red notation. the black plastic tie-down is the yellow notation. the green arrow is pointing to the green "witness marks". Witness marks are sometimes used to mark a 2 part connection like a nut and bolt or in this case it marks both sides of the water pipe connection. It is marked during installation on both sides of the connection and it is a quick visual confirmation of a connector being in the original position or not. Due to the angle of your picture, I can’t verify its position because I can’t see both side of the mark, but you can do a quick verification. Mossey

@ZLarryb I could be wrong...but in your photo it appears that your plastic twist connector fitting on your water line has loosened with vibration. This has been a reoccuring issue with my trailer and I periodically check all the twist fittings for tightness. In your photo, it's the line toward you with the black plastic tie-down that is out of place. I have loosened the black plastic tie downs, placed a thin piece of rubber or silicone (even a piece of a rubber band) between it and the twist fitting and then re-secured it. This has helped prevent loosening of those fittings. Just something to check....?

And, there is the rub.

I believe I will purchase the $50 plan for local trips, a week or less. Understand we have an unlimited T-Mobile Business data plan 4-5G cell with Pepwave router and Parsec Husky antenna that works well by itself on most days, not at the bottom of a canyon! 🤣 We watch news channels and YouTube videos. We're not the download the 2-hr 4K high-rez movie types. Twice a year we go on trips 3-4 weeks. This May-June we're going for 5-6 weeks. Then the unlimited plan makes the best sense for sure. Ordered our Mini from The Depot yesterday and it will be here tomorrow. Ordered the cabling I need coming by Friday. I will go with the company @Patriot suggested - TYA, the Striker Mount with polycarbonate shield, magnet mounts, carry handle and the front rock/bug deflector, since mainly we will have our mounted top of tow vehicle. I have my shopping cart full. They sent me a reminder but I'm waiting a few days in hope they send me a promo code. This cart adds up to a bit of $$$! They say Starlink works up to 100 MPH on the road (cool, but we'll keep it under 70). It's going to be fun!

It is not that it will cost you "at least $50". I have had months where I activated late in the cycle and only paid $40. But you always pay for the reminder of the billing cycle,e even if you only activate for 4 days. Nope, streaming TV/Movies goes through it fast. An HD movie/TV that is 2 hours long will average about 6GB of data. So, do that every day for 6 days, and you will use up about 70GB of data.

Is this an exaggeration, or did you literally use 50GB by day 2? I would think on 50 GB you could stream YouTube or whatever 3 hours a day for 5-6 days. Perhaps your wife's business use is extensive (e.g. Zoom meetings). I found this related article: https://www.starlink.com/support/article/b3de8ce8-3123-38ab-6061-4f477106a7b4

I purchased the SL Mini after following Patriots exellent write up & review started back in July. I purchased in December when they offered a discount that seems pretty often. I am a newbie. and learning so much about camping with the Oliver. My wife still works fulltime remotley. So I wanted SL so we could still get away some and still meet her work obligations and seemed the MIni would meet the need. I want to do alot of Boondocking once I get up to speed (With the help of the Oliver family) Things I have learned by only one 12day trip to South Fla. The Mini worked great but only had minimal tree coverage at the campsite that has been stated affects coverage. Some have shown trees with small opening to sky and still worked though not optimal as no obstructions. I left it hooked up 24/7 to a adjustable extention pole I had at home temporarly mounted to the front bumper and no major thunderstorms. (Thanks again to Snackchasher Tacky flag pole article). I bought an adapter attached to the mini that attached to the pole. (Just experimenting with different ways for fun and used other mounts near the ground.) all worked fine. The speeds do go up and down I guess to the way the satalites cross the sky but never interupted abilty to work or have internet acess. It was also used for You Tube TV no issues. I tested its connectivity all the way back to home in NE Ga from South Fla sitting on Truck dash ( I know not optimal just experimitng) even after being off interstate going backroads still kept connectivity everytime I would test speeds though they would go up and down. Im sure it would drop off here and there. The pricing and pausing was always a grey area and never could get exactly how it worked. What I have experienced is this. You get roam $50 for 50GB with option to pay per GB after that or $165 Unlimited after day and half needed more GB as Patriot also expericed. I elected Unlimited after it turned me off. Whenever you purchase your data that is your aniversiry date each month. You can pause at anytime but it will continue to work until end of your month you pay in advance. You only get prorated when you turn back on for that next month not when you turned off. (Say if your date is the 1st and you turn back on the 15 your prorated for days left in that month only theres no rollover and will continue until end of the month or date originally signed up. Hope this helps some thinking of purchasing SL its a gamechanger in connectivity everywhere as long you can get some open sky more the better of course. It gets even better with Mods by Snackchaser(12v hookup) and others which save battery power or longer runs from camper or signal strength if needed by using the 12 cord or the ethernent and remote router if needed. I will leave that discussion to them Snackchaser JD1923 and many others which are wizards with there knowledge in this area.

You have this wrong based on how I read this. Yes, you can pause your service, but that does not mean you can pick it back up and use the rest of your 50GB plan 2 months later. You will be charged a pro-rated amount for the rest of the month (based on the first activation) when you activate the plan again. So if you first activated on the 10th of the month and deactivated at the end of your 30 days and then two months later activated starting on the 20th of the month, your billing would be pro-rated based on a 30-day billing cycle that begins on the 10th.) So you can't make your $50 and 50GB stretch out over 2,3 or 4 months. It is easy to activate and deactivate. We have even forgotten to activate our plan until we got to the campsite where we had no cell coverage. You can fire up the Startlink and use limited connectivity to activate your plan on the spot and with in a few mins, your plan is active, and you have full connectivity.

Certainly do these things. You may also find lifting the front helps at the dump station! When you blow out the drain (30-50 PSI is good), ALSO blow out the overflow which is under the fridge (only do this when the drain is open). A restricted overflow will impede draining, even if the drain is wide open! Learned this in high school chemistry class. 🤣 And you could use that compressed air to blow out the lines and forget about using antifreeze at all. If OTT in a video actually said to leave the fresh tank half full over winter!?! Please ignore that odd comment! Your manual drain valve has a 3/8” opening in a 1/2” PEX plumbing system. I replaced this valve with an electric motorized valve with a 12mm opening (near 1/2”). My tank now drains twice as fast! I often open the drain while on the road driving home, but don’t do this in prissy locations and those with an abundance of police officers! 🤣

I just stumbled across an app that says it can be used to help diagnose issues with the Dometic air conditioner in an RV. I've not used this myself but thought that it just might help if your having issues with your Dometic AC. The app can be found HERE. Bill

Ine man's trash is another man's treasure, as my dad used to say. Give it a try. Why not?

I have my DPll 11K listed on my go-tos, FB Marketplace and OfferUp. I’ve brought in thousands of dollars in past listing and ultimately someone will buy this unit. However, typical inquires include ridiculous offers and money-stricken individuals who can’t really afford, but with patience a viable buyer will happily pay the asking price or a perceived ‘bottom line’ price. There is no fee paid for use of these two sites.

Not trying to add fuel to the Truma fire, but we had problems with our Truma last spring after 4 1/2 years and the symptom, delayed ignition and the smell outside adjacent to the Truma. I was directed by Oliver to reach out to Truma, as I recollect and that wasn't unexpected. When I open the case with Truma support, an Elkhart based engineer reached out to me and said they didn't want me to use the Truma anymore. They made me promise as they felt it was a health and safety risk. I naturally agreed, particularly when they said they would have a certified technician of my choice replace the unit for free and document the installation of the Truma with pictures. We went with out hot water in the Oliver for a week at the Maine Rally. I reached out to Tim's RV in Erving, MA and explained to Tim and Brandon that Truma would be shipping a unit to them and compensating them for doing the pictures and installation. We arranged for a late June for the 1/2 day installation. Truma requires certified and trained technicians and extended a courtesy approval after discussing Brandon's experience and in light of our needs. Truma sent the brand new unit to Tim's. We were notified when they received it. Brandon confirmed the delivery too before I made the trip from Concord, NH to Erving. Tim and Brandon were very gracious and Brandon did an outstanding job on the install.

At last, all of our campground reservations are made! If you know any of these destinations well, I'd very much appreciate ideas for day hikes or other nearby activities/scenic wonders. 😁 3/22 Leave FL for annual Ollie service in Hohenwald - 4 nights 3/26 Mt Magazine SP - 3 nights 3/29 Quartz Mountain SP - 2 nights 3/31 Palo Duro Canyon SP - 4 nights 4/4 wing it 4/5 Dead Horse Ranch SP (Sedona...) - 9 nights 4/14 Grand Canyon South Rim - 4 nights 4/18 Dark Sky RV Camp (Konob, THE WAVE...) - 2 nights 4/20 Zion NP (Springdale)- 8 nights 4/27 Kodachrome SP (Bryce Canyon...) - 7 nights 5/5 Escalante Petrified Forest SP - 7 nights 5/12 Torrey Wonderland RV (Capitol Reef NP...) - 4 nights 5/16 Dead Horse Point SP (Arches NP, Canyonland NP...) - 7 nights 5/23 Gouldings RV (Monument Valley...) - 3 nights 5/26 Mesa Verde NP - 3 nights 5/29 Brantley Lake SP (Carlsbad Caverns NP...) - 4 nights 6/2 long "sprint" home

When you stay in the National Forests, there are "Motor Vehicle Use Maps" that show a much greater level of detail. They are simple black & white maps, but note the legend. Where you see dots on the side of the road, it stands for dispersed camping. This is a nice feature. There are also more detail BLM maps by Region Office. They show BLM areas but sometimes there are miles of road where you cannot physically pull off the road due to elevation, drainage ditches etc. Many use Google Earth to look further. Below is the Prescott National Forest page. There is a map store where you can order printed maps online for any NF. Then scroll down to the header "Motor Vehicle Use Maps." Download one and check the legend and the roads for dispersed camping. I have the Prescott NF map in print form and it is great showing every old mining road and jeep trail in the forest! Before we were camping, I've used this map for 20 years now for our dirt-riding adventures: https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/prescott/maps-pubs Picture shows this map on the Avenza Maps app which makes it so much more useful while traveling!

Hi Christophe, I'll give it a try. Have fun! https://a.co/d/bZozQwR Mini Time delay relay https://a.co/d/gNjuq6R Universal programer https://a.co/d/ecvI5cW Victron DC to DC converter Cheers! Geoff

Here are the program settings for the relay: