Leaderboard

Well we had a “warm” day today so I decided to do one final upgrade that several others have previously done to their propane systems. I got the right angle fittings for the regulator connections a few weeks ago and finally decided to install them. It only takes a few minutes to do in place. The adapter fittings that come on the regulator have check valves built in, so I purchased standard 1/4” street elbows and reused the original adapters to make the connection. One little trick to make the installation easier, with the cold temps, the hose is stiff and feels like it will split if you try to reshape it into the new configuration. If you take the hoses into the kitchen and immerse the rubber part in a pan of boiling water for a minute, the hose will naturally straighten out, and while warm can easily be installed on the tanks and regulators with little tension in the process. There’s a much gentler bend in the hose when completed that should make the hoses last much longer. Before: After: Thanks to everyone who previously made this upgrade and for sharing on the forum.

Highs in Prescott are 65F this week. Most of the year I can be outside working. I understand the East has been hammered this year. I hope spring comes early for y'all this year! 😂 Spent the whole day getting everything straight that I noticed during our recent trip, while getting ready for our next trip to St George UT, just 4 weeks away! I corrected the battery support issue and installed our new LP regulator. I did a full inspection of the battery post. The single bolt was in place, the nut was there but loose, with only one thread showing. The two angle-irons seemed to be aligned at a good angle. The base mount has two bolts screwed horizontally and firmly into the frame. The two large upper bolts holding the battery platform were solid. The battery base is square, the door flush, and everything looked good. I decided there was no need to raise the post, since the one bolt at the bottom of the grove was were it was when installed 10 years ago. The original bolt is a 5/16" bolt 1/2" head and since the groove was wider, I added a second 3/8" #5 bolt 9/16" head. I drilled about 3/8" below the top of the groove which would allow for raising the mount if ever needed. Drilling though both angle-irons, with a sharp drill bit, drilling slowly took some patience! Then Chris held a ratchet with a double-long socket extension under the streetside bed opening, as I tightened from the rear dinette opening with my favorite DeWalt 3/8" impact! I first tightened the original bolt, with a short burst of the impact and it now has 5 threads showing. It certainly was loose, still hanging on! Then we tightened the other bolt which has thread sealant and a Nylok nut to boot. This is done now, likely no need for future maintenance! 😎

Hank White has made some fabulous modifications to their Oliver, including the propane setup. He’s mounted a block on the inside wall of the housing where a manifold and regulator are located. Stainless covered hoses go to each tank, eliminating the need for the OEM regulator mount on the threaded rod. Low pressure gas is sent to the two LP ports, and two full pressure lines go out; one to the Oliver’s interior and one to a high pressure port for devices that have inbuilt regulators such as a fire pit or grill. I didn’t take any photos…

@Against The Wind We have been using a TST TPMS for several years. I opted to mount our TPMS relay out of the weather and UV exposure inside the main battery compartment with tiny strip velcro. It has worked flawlessly since installation. All I did was attach it to my battery terminals. Keep in mind this relay creates a very low parasitic draw on your house batteries. Not an issue in my case, as XPLOR is parked at home and always plugged into 30 amp. Have fun and mod On! Patriot 🇺🇸🇺🇸

Saw this post from another user...quite detailed. I mounted the sending unit for our system (not Tire Minder brand) on the outside of our front jack power head. You can easily pull 12V from the inside of the power head and decide if you want/need an on/off switch for the circuit. * I just leave mine on all the time...as the draw is minimal.*

Thank you, friends for your inventive and informative responses. I can always depend on the Oliver community for THE BEST HELP! Happy Travels!

@HDRider Jeff: I do not think the bumper needs to be removed. On my OTT, Elite II, the trailer hitch receiver needs to be removed.

Sounds like a great setup! You do need high pressure if you want an outdoor cooktop requiring high pressure. I thought about adding a high pressure outlet, side-by-side to the OEM LP outlet front of the Oliver, but realized we don't need a high-pressure cooktop. For our Napoleon grill, or the Weber Q many use, Blackstone grills and our fire ring that we use everyday it's a simple plumbing fix to remove the regulators from all this equipment, then use the Oliver LP plumbing as-is. Chris can cook almost anything on the fire ring. That's a good use of LP, since we run it anyway for campsite warmth! I built a steel surround for the fire ring to allow it to run well in the wind and we have a grill top for high heat and a taller tripod to simmer foods (see pic). We replaced our OEM installed Marshall Excelsior MEGR-253 in January with the suggested Fairview model that I believe OTT installed in later hulls. This regulator failed immediately! First trip out it made whistling noises. Second trip out, making noise again, it shut down in some odd way. The fire ring kept burning, but no indoor appliance would start (HWH, furnace or cooktop). Then after 20-30 minutes, we could see the fire ring burning weaker and weaker. I had to disconnect both tanks and do a sort of pressure reboot and fortunately we did get the furnace and other appliances to work for a couple days to get back home. I wasn't going get stuck again, so I re-installed our original regulator for our next trip. I had trouble finding Marshall Excelsior products online except for Amazon, so I contacted the manufacturer. They suggested an authorized reseller that would back the 5-year warranty named Tweetys from Bulverde TX: https://tweetys.com/marshall-excelsior-megr-253h-excelaflo-automatic-changeover-regulator---high-capacity.aspx I went with the Marshall Excelsior MEGR-253H model, H for high output. Their tech support explained there is nothing wrong with running the H model and it would allow for running more LP appliances simultaneously. This is a well-built regulator and the one that's been working 10 years is now my backup. I tossed out the Fairview model since warranty claims on a $50 part is not worth my time, the return shipping costs and I would not want to chance installing a replacement. On occasion having a rear connection would be helpful. OTT installed one, but why in the bumper?! I'm not going to lower the bumper, push the waste hose out of the way to use it. We only open that at the dump station! I thought of moving it so to be accessible, but so far not worth the effort. OTT should redesign this, mount it like they did the front outlet. We added a 12' LP extension hose with a Y-adapter to run the fire ring and grill.

@jd1923 if I can get a weekend that's not freezing and I'm not working, I'd love to get started on that fix. I agree with everything you said.

I spliced a male cigarette lighter plug to my Tiretracker signal booster. When I tow, I just plug it into a 12 volt plug in the rear of my tow vehicle and temporarily attach it with a piece of adhesive velcro. One could also plug it into one of the 12 volt receptacles in the trailer. When I am finished towing I unplug it, lift it from the velcro and store it away until the next trip.

For those with the Xantrex Freedom XC2000 inverter here's that same table. These XC2000 was the unit used put through 2024 with the lower tier battery configurations. Also these units don't allow running the AC off DC. (So these are configurations other than the "Platinum" or dual 320AH Lithionics)

If you’re referring to the little device that relays the sensor signals I installed mine in the front jack housing, there is power in there and room for the module. I repurposed the switch that controls the jack light so that I can turn the module power on and off.

I just finished cleaning up after the blizzard and this is what I was looking at this morning. It's getting old. On a serious note, there was a fatal accident after the storm when someone was trying to pull out a stuck snow plow with a tow strap attached to a hitch. The hitch broke off and whipped into the cab of the truck from the tension on the tow strap. Most hitches aren't designed to handle the forces involved in a hard pull between two large vehicles. Just a reminder to be careful out there.

The Oliver battery bay is designed to hold the weight of 4 LA or AGM batteries. Given you still have 4 AGMs proves this point, as it’s been holding for 10 years. I see real issues with the picture you shared, that you truly should investigate. Two bolts are certainly required to hold two support beams together. One bolt allows for the angle to bow, two will not. It’s that simple. Looking at your picture, the lower beam doesn’t look square to the floor! Is it still connected to the frame? No added gizmo will correct for a failed foundation. I’d be pulling up the insulation around the base to verify if the support base is still welded or bolted to the frame. Then do the work that David showed above. We’re traveling again in 4 weeks and the support lift/2nd bolt addition is top of my list. We will NOT travel again until this issue is corrected! But we all do what we want in this life…

This is my thought on the Oliver seat cushions. Our Oliver is 8+ years old and cleaning is not enough as the foam has lost its cushion. We also have the twin beds, so we're only talking the dinette. These are the best and most expensive I found on Amazon and btw Chris' nickname is Red! Amazon.com: RSH DECOR: Deep Seating Cushion with Pillow Back | 24” x 24” Seat | Sunbrella Performance Fabric | Water and Fade-Resistant | Outdoor Chair Cushion Set for Patio Furniture | Canvas Burgundy : Patio, Lawn & Garden