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Showing content with the highest reputation on 06/27/2026 in all areas

  1. You're welcome! And you will not be sorry. If you're waiting to later in the year, we won't get real feedback from you until the following summer. Looking forward to seeing results from somebody who lives east where humidity is certainly a climate factor in A/C performance, I've tried running a couple studies and each time I failed to capture full data every 24 hours, but I have some preliminary findings. With highs in the low 90s for a full week, lows high 60s, I set temp on the Chill Cube at 80F (cabin temp on Ruuvi showed 79F consistently) which is a good set temp for parking the Oliver outdoors in the summer. I got good data for three 24-hr periods which averaged at 108 Ah used per 24 hours, A/C running 24x7. I know I I took snapshots every day for a week but don't get me started on iCloud because sometimes pics just disappear off my phone! Beyond the 3 days of verified data, I know for a fact that I ran the Chill Cube for ONE (1) FULL WEEK on our 900 Ahs! After a week SOC was down to a low 18%. This translates to 105 Ah per day. Keep in mind, when low 90s outside, and if there was no A/C running, the Oliver Cabin would get up to 99F min or low 100s! Then I tried another test, A/C set temp at 74F which is a comfortable temp for camping. I was able to run our A/C for four (4) full days, 4x 24x7, again highs low 90s. Daily Ah used was 135, 209, 270, 136. I have no idea why yhe numbers varied in this way as the weather was rather consistent. Average over 4 days is 188 Ah per day. I cannot believe how efficient this runs. One additional factor: these numbers are net of the fact we have 320W rooftop solar which produces 10-20A per hour half the day. Next test I should account for this or just turn off the SC so everything is pulling from the 900 Ah Epoch batteries. Did you know the Dometic P2 once it gets past the Soft Start procedures draws 150A or higher? In this short test, the Furrion Chill Cube on average took as much power cooling for 24 hours as the Dometic P2 would use in one hour and fifteen minutes. Scotty, I'm seeing much better savings than "about half the power!" But camping in hot humid times in the east, you should half the power, or perhaps 40%. Can't wait to see! I'll run a better test in a few weeks when we get daily highs in the high 90s. It just cooled off here and thankfully for the next week or two we're back to spring-like temps in the low 80s. 😎
    3 points
  2. Yeah, at a minimum you gotta remove the basket to spray Vortex. As you can see in my picture, it gets rather dirty under there! I removed all this just for ceramic coating, to do the job right. Removed the doghouse handles and latches, the outlet plates, anything screwed down or riveted. Whatever doesn't come off has to be masked for Vortex application. Can't stand warning labels either! You can see where a couple were removed and the one showing was removed next. With the basket off, it can be cleaned thoroughly with a degreaser that you wouldn't want to use if the basket was still above fiberglass. I'm not interested in PPF or Vortex. Now that we have a good ceramic coating shine we prefer to enjoy the clean look. Don't forget mud flaps, regardless of other protection, and not just on the TV. I found the dirtiest part of the Oliver was always the fiberglass underneath behind the Oliver wheels all the way to the rear bumper, grease, road tar, etc. It was bad, but not anymore! Either way, the result is in the prep work! 😎
    2 points
  3. We have a daily interior clean-up. Amazing the amount of dog hair that comes out of the vacuum. We have 3 small shower rugs that I take out and brush off. Shake out Fiona's bed sheet, and also brush off the L.L. Bean waterproof mat at the door. 5-8 minutes out of our day. The heater exhaust vent is the first thing my wife vacuums. She does the interior cleaning. Once a year I wipe down the inside fiberglass and use the wax mix TopGun shared with the group.
    2 points
  4. Yep, me too on slippers. So much dirt, we know why! His bed is at the end of the aisle! Picture of Charley when we first got our Oliver, first cleaning too. Now with some age and TALL mattresses, he can't get up on the beds anymore! I hadn't noticed the edges being bad, but I guess the older floors were different. We use carpet runners which collect most of the dust. Chris uses our Dewalt vacuum around the edges and under the dinette, takes her 2-3 minutes. I remove the short runner at the entrance every 2-3 days and give it a whip on both ends which removes most of the dirt. Roll up the long one between trips to wash. We put them in the washing machine at home which has worked well. Recently one edge started fraying on the long one and Chris hemmed that edge. We have 151 overnights on these runners according to my Oliver Travels spreadsheet. Not bad. They're 26" wide which is a perfect fit, and you can order by the foot in length. One 10' and 4' fills everything perfectly except under the dinette. He has learned to sleep on his mat by the nightstand. 😎 Amazon.com: ORFA HOME Custom Size Hallway Runner Rug, Slip/Skid Resistant, 26 Inch Wide X Your Choice of Lenght, Solid Blue, 26 Inch Width X 10 Feet Length, Sold and Priced Per Foot : Home & Kitchen
    2 points
  5. We’ve got the manual door lock, too. It’s one of those things (like the suburban hot water tank) that is simple and reliable. One less thing to worry about when you are way out “there”. Mike
    2 points
  6. I have to say ..... I think jd1923 may have converted me to the Church of the Furrion Chill Cube. I was very fixated on condensate running down the outside of the trailer and NOT on the amount of power needed to run the damn thing. I've been doing some research on power draw on this A/C vs. the dometic and other compressor types and am pretty much amazed. All in all about half the power needed to run the Chill Cube. And quiet. We are scheduled for a lithium upgrade toward the end of the year and will have the A/C replaced at the same time. Right now... I am going with the Chill Cube. Thanks JD for the help on this. Appreciate it. Scotty
    2 points
  7. Another Chill Cube customer here however I've not installed it yet. I waited until the heat pump version came out to make my purchase. I didn't see the no drain system as a problem. I have a small window unit at my vacation home that uses the same method of throwing condensate on the condensing coil for additional evaporative cooling. It sounds like a waterfall when it starts but has never dripped. Now, I realize I'm making a big leap of faith the Cube will work the same but I'm not too worried if a little condensate flows off the trailer. We're still rocking lead acid batteries and don't have an inverter. My goal wasn't energy conservation as we're usually plugged in or occasionally on a small generator at lunch stops. My goal was quiet and humidity control in the trailer. My hope is when the Cube ramps down to a constant run state, it will achieve both. Fingers crossed
    2 points
  8. I posted this pic a couple years ago in another leaky window thread. Those weep slots are just not up to the task of keeping water from building up in the tracks (capillary attraction really hinders water flow). Folks talked about using pipe cleaners and lantern wicks to help wick out the water (maybe they work as well) but I find that 1/8" paracord works great. Cut some 3" lengths and stuff them in the slots. It's amazing how well they work! Don't heat seal the ends! Easy to replace and everyone has some paracord around right? Some may think it's kind of ugly looking but better than a wet bed! Cheers, Dave
    1 point
  9. Did you do this trip yet? Any feedback on the Chill Cube in hot humid weather? Does it keep up with the heat. Is power consumption doable on your batteries? 😎 If your trip is still on the horizon, let us know afterwards. Thanks!
    1 point
  10. That's what I thought. Living in Arizona we do not travel in the summer months. Then a couple experiences changed my thinking! Over two years ago we did a SW Utah trip, from Apr 21 to May 7, 2024. You wouldn't think it would get hot, springtime at high elevation, and most of the trip was fine. The day we left, we dropped down about 3K ft to US-93 and we boondocked in Wikieup, AZ. It was 93F when we got there and fortunately by 9PM it was cool enough to be in the cabin again. Back then we still had lead acid and the Dometic P2 so all we had tp remove cabin heat was the Maxxfan. Our next stop was to be Valley of Fire SP, NV where we had booked a dry camping spot. Quite a fitting name, given the forecast showed 99F highs for the next 2 days of our reservation. We wasted that money, instead having to book an electric site at the north end of Lake Meade. Plugged in to run the G-awful Dometic A/C. I had to wear noise-cancelling headphones to watch TV and to fall asleep! Thank goodness it was only 2 of 16 nights on that trip. Last year we did a 5-week trip to Minnesota, from May 29 to July 4th. We headed out east and swung north and took a northern route back. I believe it was 12 of 36 nights where we needed A/C. I had thought being so far north we wouldn't need A/C, bad assumption. We even had to book campsites in SD and WY where we would have much preferred to boondock in the woods but were forced into a campsite to plug in. After that trip, I vowed never to hear that awful Dometic P2 again! And also, my goal was to gear up in Inverter and Ahs and replace the A/C with a unit that would sip vs. gulp Ahs. For you, the freight-train NOISE of the P2 should be enough of a driver. You plug in so yeah power consumption does not matter (though we run ours for lunch breaks on the road too). Easiest DIY out there given size and weight. The only A/C model I've heard of that needs a custom platform was the Truma. The Chill Cube has a 29x29" footprint, making it a full foot shorter to the rear. It's also the lightest unit out there. Here is my DIY thread. This link will take you down page 2 to where my installation starts. I have installed 3 RV A/C models in the last 6 years, and this one by far was the easiest. You will need to add a furnace thermostat control which I also show here:
    1 point
  11. With my Turbro Inverter, once it reaches set temp I'm seeing between 250-600 watts during the day in 85-95 degree weather with 80+ humidity so you're probably pretty close with your numbers- and we keep the inside temps low, too... around 70-72. Haven't monitored during the night yet but obviously the watts draw will be even lower. Don't know why anyone who boondocks would buy anything but an inverter AC/Heat pump.
    1 point
  12. Here- no sweeping, just open the screen door dust goes back where it came from. Helps keeping the exterior screens clean too. Neither of us wear our shoes while in the Oliver. We have found this little blower is super handy. Also works for blow drying a washed TV and inside and out. “No brooms club here” 😄 Harbor Freight - BAUER 20V Cordless, 200 MPH/120 CFM Compact Workshop Blower - Tool Only $40
    1 point
  13. I had thought about buying one of these as well, now I'm not so sure. Seems like another unreliable RV headache in its current iteration.
    1 point
  14. My friend Ron, of course you know! Our son Adam played a USTA Tennis Tournament in the very nice Houston suburb of Clear Lake 15 years ago. I remember sitting outdoors, large-brimmed hat on for the sun, I was drippin' wet just watching! 😎 The 16-year-old boys had drenched shirts before the first set was won. Traveling the west vs. the gulf states is night and day. Wish we had a forum member in the east with a Chill Cube for comparison. The Chill Cube condenser fan wets the condenser by design. To my knowledge, no other A/C unit has this feature (perhaps Furrion has a patent). The water-cooled condenser increases the overall cooling efficiency. In very dry climates (the spring is our windy dry season), the little bit of condensate it pulls out of the dry air quickly returns to the air (evaporates). I have yet to see any condensate drip on our hull. When greater cooling is needed and it's humid, the fan should create a visible mist blowing from the condenser coils. More mist means less drip. But when the volume of condensate gets large it would overflow the condensate trough and run down the hull.
    1 point
  15. This simple mod makes our camping life easier to organize. It's just a piece of removable whiteboard decal on the closet door for shopping and to-do lists. We also put our campground address and site number there in case we have to call 911. The final touch was a whiteboard marker Velcroed above it. Amazon: https://a.co/d/08ma1cjD
    1 point
  16. I asked my husband to build me some closet shelves after seeing posted photos of others who have added shelves, and here they are! I love it! So much more space and so much more organized! We opted to not wrap the shelf around the right side because I hang a shoe rack and I didn’t want to lose hanging space. He did add a small shelf on the opposite side. We ordered the black rubber shelf lining from Oliver which will be here soon. I also added command hooks to hang hats. I love that the wasted space behind the clothes rod is now useable and valuable space. ❀ IMG_7332.mov
    1 point
  17. Hi folks, Totally non-Oliver and not even travel or trailer related - but wanted to ask if anybody had any tips for getting the Social Security Administration to actually do their job. About two years ago Debra contacted a former employer’s pension administrator to claim the pension she had coming for 20 years service. They told her they had no record of her even working there, and would need to obtain a detailed report from SSI to prove she worked there. OK - a bit wired, but not the first time we’ve had something odd happen. (My theory: Debra’s last name starts with two “A”s, so my data processing background tells me that first record in a database often gets pulled in as a column label and lost.) Anyway - download, print, fill out the form from SSI online, send it in with the required fee, and wait - up to 120 days. 120 days - and then some - come and go and no report in the mailbox. Several calls and holding for hours online and the final answer is “we can find your request and we’ll have someone look into it and get back to you.” (Guess what happened
) Several more weeks/months later we have to contact them again - still no record of the request - they DO show the payments received though. Fast-forward to a year later after several more phone calls. They send a packet out that says they couldn’t complete the request because they couldn’t find the signed form - so she has to start all over- but - they do send a voucher of sorts showing payment. So - she re- mikes the whole thing with the voucher and a new, signed request form - and we wait. No reply 150 days later. So the phone calls begin. Again. Last week - the person on the phone says “We have no record of your request
 we’ll escalate this to a priority level” (which they did twice with the first one.) So - here we are with a pension we can get because SSI can’t fulfill a fairly routine report of the records the pension custodian needs to do their job. Debra wasn’t even going to pursue it, but I worked for the same company and am receiving a pension. (Different last name.) so I KNOW there’s $$$ on the table. Any suggestions besides tearing hair out?!
    0 points
  18. I had removed the Dometic Penguin A/C prior to this work. I temporarily filled the 14x14” opening with a piece of plywood to keep dust out while allowing Cameron the room above to make the entire rear roof shine! It’s always a mess under an old A/C. Good thing we did because the new Chill Cube is a foot shorter to the rear. With my son’s help, we installed the new Furrion Chill Cube A/C. One last task was to restore the rear bumper area. I removed the mounts for the bicycle rack we don’t use, drilled out more rivets and removed the deck plate and folding bumper. I cleaned the inside waste hose area, and steel brushed, sanded and ceramic coated all parts. I've been wanting to write this up for a few months now. Chris is out of town on her annual "Sisters Trip." Adam's been working overtime and it's boring being home alone. That’s it – she’s all done! 😎 When it's time for some love again, I'll drop her off with Cameron for a renewal! No more Ugly Duckling, but quite the Beautiful Swan she is now!
    0 points
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