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CGI Detailing is coming back to Texas! October 2025 CGI Detailing will be coming down to Texas for a ceramic coating trip. We will also be attending this years Oliver rally at Lake Mineral wells state park from October 20-23. To book, or for more information on pricing, travel, and how we plan our trips check out our website! https://www.cgidetailing.com/travel

Try this search with the Google search engine! site:olivertraveltrailers.com 'Nova Kool'. It will search for all mentions of Nova Kool refrigerators in the Oliver forum. You can also try changing the verbiage between the 2 single quotes and search for anything you are looking for on the Oliver forum. FYI: The cost for my Nova Kool R5810 AC/DC compressor refrigerator from CITIMARINE in Doral, FL on 09/01/2024 was $1691.91 and I avoided additional shipping charges by picking up at their store. My installation expenses were similar to mountianoliver's. If you do shop around for installation services, be sure to check with marine and RV service locations. Mossey

The Dometic fridge in my 2017 LEII never worked properly from the beginning so after 2 1/2 years (2019) I replaced it with a compressor type fridge, a Nova Kool R5810. Not an issue since! 4800 does seem high but considering Oliver service hourly rates and any other shop for that matter, it might not be so terrible. Still too expensive for me. I have no idea of the cost for a fridge today but I think with shipping from the factory in Southwest Canada to a dealer in (I think) Massachusetts to my driveway, mine was about 1,500 if I’m remembering correctly. I installed it myself probably spending another 200-300 in raw materials, fasteners, miscellaneous, etc. It will probably be sort of expensive having someone else do the installation for you no matter where you have it done, but you should shop around for cost.

Pretty devastating….

July 19, 2024 Cabin Creek Campground @ Earthquake Lake!

I totally get it! Even though my former TV was only a short bed with a topper, I was constantly bumping my head, bruising my arms and crawling on my old knees while rigorously digging around to retrieve stowed and/or staged camping equipment. Often wished for a longer bed, but then that would only exasperate the matter. Breaking camp was a whole other issue with more bumping, bruising and crawling! On the other hand however, there was comfort in knowing all was secured and protected under cap. Enter my current TV, a cargo van; best of both worlds!

Here is a link where another owner replaced his refrigerator. There are others on the forum, just use the search function to see what others have done. It may also give you an idea of what a DIY might look like.

The Xantrex Freedom XC Pro 3000 inverter/charger load shares by prioritizing AC loads. It reduces the charge current to the batteries while maintaining the total input current below the breaker setting, ensuring that connected AC loads receive the power they need. This is particularly useful when running multiple appliances, including those with high startup surges like air conditioners. This video demonstrates how the Xantrex Freedom XC Pro 3000 handles various AC loads and its surge capability: 42s Love Your RV & Boat! YouTube · Jan 11, 2024 Here's a more detailed explanation: Prioritization of AC Loads: The Freedom XC Pro 3000 prioritizes the AC loads connected to it, ensuring they receive the power they need to operate. Charge Current Reduction: To accommodate the AC loads, the unit intelligently reduces the charging current going to the batteries. Input Current Management: It manages the overall input current, keeping it below the breaker setting, even when multiple appliances are running simultaneously. Example: If you have a 50-amp shore power connection and are using a 30-amp load, the charger might reduce its current to 20 amps to ensure the 30-amp load gets enough power. This video explains how the inverter/charger manages power distribution between AC loads and battery charging: 1m Love Your RV & Boat! YouTube · Dec 23, 2023 Load Sharing with Generators: The system can also work with generators, allowing you to run multiple appliances simultaneously, including those with high startup surges, by managing the power flow from the generator and batteries. Benefits: This load sharing feature allows for more efficient use of available power and prevents tripping of breakers due to excessive current draw. Example: You can run a microwave and an air conditioner at the same time, even if they are both drawing a significant amount of power.

Today I traveled three and one half (3 1/2) hours. Full sun. The Solar Panels produced 275 watts average during the trip. I am located on beautiful Lake Huron at Port Hope. When I first posted my problem, I thought the Virtual Liad setting should indicate ON. Geoff set me straight. I then looked for the reason why the output was very low. I wanted to ensure the PV panels were clean All settings were correct. I called the fellow who details the Oliver. He told me that he rubbed on a liberal amount of was on the panels to protect them. After removing the was the panels functioned properly. Thank you JD , Geoff et al.

Nooo John, that must’ve been in Adam and Eve’s days, these days there are bed slides…..like this one we have, love it 1000%! 😁

There is a touch sensitive control button in the center; touch to change colors, long touch to increase/decrease lighting. Can also be turned on/off by Master light switch to last setting(s). Simple install; a little larger diameter, but mounting holes were same. First install was above dinette, this second above the cooktop. I plan to install additional lights above each bed, over sink and maybe in wet bath under cabinet.

We passed and waved to another Oliver passing through Thermopolis, Wyoming today (7/13). They were heading south on route 20 and we were just turning on route 120 towards Yellowstone. Spending a couple of weeks west of Cody at Buffalo Bill State Park. You folks have a safe trip!

I’m sure everyone is aware of the flash flood we experienced here over the weekend. We’re soggy but okay. Our neighbors north in Comfort, Kerrville and Hunt didn’t fare as well. You’ve heard about the children’s camps along the Guadalupe River that were affected, there were also homes and a couple of RV Parks. I’ve learned that one RV park had all RV’s washed away, some campers got to higher ground, some didn’t. July 4 weekend, everything was full and the river came up so fast there was little time to react. There is a huge first responder turn out, church’s, and private companies also. Our local grocery store chain, HEB, was one of the first on site with disaster recovery products, supplies and food. HEB was founded in Kerrville. I know some fellow Oliver owners have camped at Guadalupe River State Park just 9 miles from our house. I don’t have a status on the park. Please keep this area in your thoughts and prayers. There are still a lot of missing people so the death toll will continue to rise. Mike

I wish I could be there! It's a bit too late for my swing home-ward. Maybe next year!

We’ll see you at the Texas Rally. We look pretty good after two and a half years, might need a refresh,though!

We do pretty well with just our cell phone hotspots and streaming in most places. The newer trailers come with a smart TV.

My Oliver is a 2019 Elite ll. I have tried to get my fridge repaired at the Oliver service center in Hohenwald. They said that they couldn’t get parts for it and quoted me 4800.00 dollars to replace it with a 12 volt compressor model. I thought that was a very high price so I am reaching out to you good people on the forum. Have any of you had this issue? Thank you.

Just to follow up on post. What I found ...... No oring, where screen housing connects to pump. Flexible line attached to screen housing did seem a little loose, snugged it up. One of the "quest fittings (unsure if that is the brand) was loose enough to allow air to draw in ....... After correcting these issues, all works great. Small issues easily remedied..... Thanks for the conversations. All tips used and helpful......

Looks like you're all set, and 👍🏻 you’re keeping your gear clean, high and dry is wise. Setting up and breaking camp for us has never been an issue, fortunately no bumps or lumps or bruises. Unlike many folks, we travel fairly light, ready to camp, and all of our immediate go to set up gear is stored in our Sea Biscuit front storage basket the rest under our ARE Z topper. There are trade offs for sure. I always say, ya gotta roll with what works best for you and puts a smile on your face! 🇺🇸😄

I've been changing our bookings as well. We're going to getting new springs in Grand Junction CO in early October, but will also avoid the Black Canyon of the Gunnison which is on fire at this time. My wife is also distraught about the Brighty of the Grand Canyon Statue being lost in the fire. Photo below from Grand Canyon Historical Society FB Post yesterday.

You didn’t provide much detail on the symptoms or what all has been checked, but I looked at the manual that @Galway Girl provided and there are very thorough trouble shooting guides, test procedures, fault codes, and schematics. Even three internal fuses. I think the big RV outfits are more likely to recommend replacement than repair. So, not knowing what your comfort level is for electrical troubleshooting, I think you could find some old school appliance repair guy in your area that could probably figure out what’s wrong and fix it. You already replaced the boards, so it's likely some other electrical component. Although parts are scarce in the US, they seem to be more abundant in Australia. Also, besides the boards that you already replaced, many electrical parts are off-the-shelf and can be substituted. For $4800, I’d be using the manual and a multimeter to run all the tests, or at least paying someone else to do it. Wish you luck! Geoff

July 21, 2024 Moochdocking in Red Lodge MT.

Use two 7/16" or 11mm open-ended wrenches. Or do what we do. Scrap the old idea of cable, "400 stations and nothing to watch!" 🤣 And who knows what any particular "RV Park" will supply, or if the feed at their post has interference or even works. Stream TV via cellular router or Starlink Mini when cell signals are weak! I removed the cable port on the rear of our Oliver and replaced it with a more useful suitcase solar input!

We occasionally drink "Truleys" (a carbonated fruit flavored beer alternative) -- the cans are a perfect diameter to fit over the greased hitch ball. Just cut off about 3.5" from the bottom of the can, place it over the ball and pinch the cut-edge below the ball to keep it from flying off when driving. No more grease marks on your legs....

Apply dielectric grease to each inside contact as a corrosion preventative, as well as the outside female plug.

I apply sparingly and never had that issue. It is a push and tug to put on and take off, respectively; as in air compression and suction actions!

@dewdev I considered moving the switch to a spot on one side or other of the the Zamp controller. but there still wasn't much room and the fiberglass on our 2017 is about 1/2" thick in that area. More than I want to drill though as a first time project. The solar wire in our 2017 is 6awg.

I am in the completely opposite camp. For us not having a topper is like equivalent to leaving our trunk up on our car especially during a thunderstorm storm while underway down highway. 😂 Our topper provides a reasonable level of security vs open air, and has served us well keeping our gear clean, high and dry. This really comes into play when we set up basecamp, and leave our Oliver to go and XPLOR a NP or maybe enjoy a nice dinner out somewhere. I guess I am over the top with the security of our expensive gear. Our ARE topper at least gives us a little peace of mind and we have not had any issues yet. I guess there are easier pickens out there. I am sure you will come up with a good way to keep your gear clean, high and dry most of all secure! Mod On! 🤠

Those look great! How was the installation and do they have a mechanical on/off switch or are they touch activated?

All this talk about touch lights and replacements made me reconsider making do with the stock fixtures. Currently installing two early arrivals and with one done, very pleased! I’ve always considered the lights to be too bright, especially over the dinette; sensitive eyes. Thinking that problem may be solved with these ones, dimmable cool white with a blue night light/ambiance feature. What think you?

@jd1923 The Progressive unit (for at the pole) has a metal loop so you can lock it to the power pole, so hopefully it is harder to disappear.

I use a Progressive Industries EMS at the power pole, so I can immediately see the quality of power at the power pole and see if there are any error codes. I still check the one in the attic, but not necessarily in a hurry.

Yes... only an o-ring on ours as well...no Teflon tape.

I believe that the filter / screen utilizes an 'O' ring for a seal and it's on the low pressure / suction side of the pump.

Wow, wax! until now, I could not imagine the panels being dirty enough to reduce power output 5x~! I only use water and a professional window cleaning brush on a 5 ft handle to clean ours, rinse-brush-rinse, no cleaning products used ever. This was the question on my mind. Good explanation, thanks Geoff.

I have found the reason the Zamp panels were producing only 2 ah of charge. The detailer cleaned the panels and the cleaning improved the output. He told me that when he cleaned the top of the Oliver he followed up with a liberal coat of WAX. The wax did a good job of preventing the sun to do its job! After the first cleaning, I had him go over the panels with rubbing alcohol. The third cleaning was with vinegar and water. The regiment resulted in 225 watts of power and 12.2 current charge.. I have the Battle Borne 200 Ah batteries. The PV is controlled by the Victron MTTP 150|35. It is a mostly sunny day. That was a great call to review the History of charge. The data clearly indicates that there was little or no charge after I had the Oliver detailed and Solar waxed heavily!

The statements jive okay. This question was originally about the virtual load setting, and it's morphed into why not more solar input. The solar charger data looks good for the 36 watt input. However, the question of why the input is not higher is a whole different discussion. There could be a number of reasons why: I'd first look at the "History" feature of the App, it will show the solar input over several days. If it was charging at more watts in periods of more sun, then that will give you a better idea if it's sun related. Cleaning the panels will always help, but not that significantly... unless they are really really dirty. Next I'd review the Solar Charger settings, particularly the battery type, as they can also impact the output. Also, whatever device you are reading the 40% SOC from, I'd review those setting too. You might actually be at a higher percent charge and the charger is ramping down the output. There are probably some charging curves out there to see how it ramps down, and that can provide clues. Let us know what you find and we will see where it leads to from there! Cheers! Geoff

You can try setting your valves to the normal position, turn your pump on, then turn the valve circled in the picture below 'on' briefly. You will hear water rushing into your fresh tank. What this does is pump water from your fresh tank back into your fresh tank. This will purge the air out of the pump and associated components. This has happened to me many times after traveling and arriving at a site, somehow air gets into the system.

The VictronConnect application shows two (2) items. Battery and Solar Roof. Under the Heading of Solar Roof there are three sub headers Solar: Voltage and current Battery: Voltage, Current, Temperature and State Virtual Load Output: State. The state indicates OFF

We've had this problem repeatedly in the exact scenario you describe. The "solution" was to open the hot and cold outside shower until the air purged from the system, which could take a couple of minutes. (Don't worry to much about the 2 minute limit. I once accidentally left the pump on for 20 minutes after draining the water from an old trailer and there was no harm done. 3 or 4 minutes is probably OK.) After that we'd be fine until the next stop when we'd have to do it again. Seemed like an air leak on the pump intake side, but I couldn't find one. I recently replaced the pump. One thing I noticed while doing that was that the pump filter didn't seem very tightly screwed onto the pump, something I had never thought to check, so look at that. Now the new pump is in. We'll see what happens next. Also, can you include your Oliver model and model year in your signature line? Makes it easier to help people sometimes.

Try opening a faucet for a few seconds...usually you can hear a change of the pump sound as it primes. Then close the faucet and see if the pressure builds. You may have lost the prime as you traveled.

One of the things that happened on my 48 day trip, the 2 lights over the sink and stove became intermittent.

Thanks for the tip @Mike and Carol good idea however I approached a bit different. Like you said easy enough to get the boot off the wiring harness. Turns out I had several corroded connections once inside the plug. Cleaned those, then unscrewed the black terminal wire from its connection, put a wire nut on black wire, bent it backwards into the boot which should take care of the situation. More than one way to skin a cat.

I bent the charging wire on the trailer plug back when we installed the Battle Born lithiums. There are a bunch of diagrams available, just google 7 pin trailer wiring and you’ll get a lot of hits. The cover comes off the plug pretty easily, bend the wire back and put it back on. Here’s one from e-trailer. Some diagrams number each wire.

We are happy to hear that you were all OK. We were staying a bit away from there in Bandera, in a park bordering the Medina River which also rose quite a bit, but to nowhere near a level that would have threatened us despite the campers in the lower section of the park being relocated to the upper section. It was and remains a very tragic event.

The unimaginable has once again, tragically, become a reality. A large number of those lost were children. I cannot imagine the grief of their surviving families. Here's how you can help, at least monetarily. Click on any one of the links. They all need your support. The needs are immediate, but I can tell you from experience, the needs will be long, for many organizations. If you feel you can afford it, click on a monthly donation. Or, just remember to contribute from time to time. My first is always Salvation Army. They were first on site, according to my mom, when our home was destroyed by a tornado when I was a few years old. And, they do so much good, in so many ways, in every community they serve. If you're still working, some generous companies do matching funds. Sometimes, for retirees, too. You can help, outside of Texas, by giving blood, as well. May God wrap his arms around the survivors, and give them solace, and peace.. Here's where you can donate to help Central Texas flood recovery - CBS Texas https://share.google/mLDD7AfFVtWQ5fajI

Mike, Kathy and I have been following this terrible tragedy. Please know our thoughts and prayers are with ALL Texans who have been impacted by this disaster. We are so glad you and Carol are ok. We are also happy to hear HEB was first to step up and is doing all they can to assist those in need. Thank you for the post and update. Prayers will continue to be lifted up. David & Kathy

The Hill country holds a special place in our hearts. It is one of our Texas home away from home places. My wife just found a picture from age 6-7 (late '50's) in Hunt for the Brewmaster Convention. Our fathers were in the brewery industry and met at Brewmaster School in Chicago in 1948. Inks Lake State Park closed, but it refered to Day use, but there site was confusing and didn't mention campground. There was no access from Hwy 29, US 281, or FM1431 due to serve flooding. The lake was closed to swimming and boating due to debris. Guadalupe SP had closed trails, and one campground loop was closed.

I'm sorry, but you miss the big picture. It isn't about driving 90K+ miles without problems. It is about your tow vehicle requiring the use of a WD when towing over a certain weight and the Oliver is over that weight. It is about making a high speed stop to avoid stopped traffic or to avoid being cut off and taking evasive action. If you total your tow vehicle and Oliver there is a high probability that you insurance may decline your claim, when their investigation uncovers you weren't using the required WD. Worse yet, what if you kill someone or put them in a wheel chair and you insurance carrier declines to cover the claim. The other party will go after you in court. I hope that never happens to you. I'm sorry but this appears to be a bit risky, and others that have responded to you and others are pointing out their concerns. In the end you will do or continue to do what you want. I leave you with this question. "Is it worth the risk to loose everything".

Each trip there reveals a whole new perspective. We still have a stretch of Blue Ridge Parkway between Boone, NC and Richmond, VA to complete the entire parkway. Last trip was fall of '23, before the devastating Hurricane Helene.