Leaderboard

I was on the phone with Xantrex tech support for well over an hour yesterday. Jason had contacted them and they asked to speak directly to me since there were many questions about my configuration, what buttons I had pushed, what load I was running for the test.... etc. In summary, here's what I found (I relayed everything to Jason): 1. The tech thinks the [20] error code that I can create every time by throwing the breaker between the inverter and the batteries is normal (sort of). He thinks that by having the battery "ripped" out from it's control causes a normal loss of communication for a split second. He says the remote should recover - but it doesn't so the bug here may be recovering from the disconnect error - not the error itself. Only time and maybe further testing by OTT and Xantrex will tell if this is really true. I'm skeptical because I can recreate the [20] error so easily and consistently with or without the new firmware. 2. I have the new firmware (1.06) installed that is supposed to fix the [20] error code, which comes up in many different scenarios where it should not (according to Xantrex). The hope is that the [20] error won't be coming up for reasons other than the hard disconnect described above. Again, OTT is testing and time will tell. 3. I told him that even when the battery is disconnected, the inverter still pretends it's there and says it's 100% full. He said that the inverter is still "seeing" the 1 foot or so of thick copper that connects to the breaker switch. It's sending a charge down that line and getting back "full" 3.7 volts from the wire. So the "phantom" battery may not be a problem but it still seems strange to me that the inverter doesn't know the battery is really not there anymore. 4. I asked if there's any way he knows of to "stop" and "start" charging programmatically. He said no and asked why I wanted to stop charging before the battery bank was full. As soon as I mentioned Lithium he said it makes sense and several other Xantrex customers with Lithiums have asked about more control over charging. So at least Xantrex is aware that chargers may need to become more advanced with the Lithiums taking the market. 5. I explained the software "workaround" I accidently discovered - using the charger ignition control setting (accessed via the main screen, remote screen or bluetooth app) to stop and start the charger. He pulled up his documentation to read about what the setting actually does. He actually said it's an "ingenious" way to use that software function and won't hurt a thing. All it's doing is turning the charger on and off via the firmware. We don't use that setting for what it's really intended for, which is to only charge the battery in a truck / ambulance / RV van when the engine / alternator is running. 6. After upgrading the firmware and starting to use the software switch to control the charger, I have put my inverter / charger through the wringer. I cannot / have not been able to recreate the [20] error. That certainly doesn't mean it's fixed, but I won't be seeing that error any longer because I threw the breaker. I'm hoping OTT and Xantrex can figure out the rest and make the appropriate recommendations. I think everyone is wondering by now if I have a life - yes I do - and I'm going camping in GA and SC all next week so I won't be bugging everyone on the forum. 😄

I really like this pic, it illustrates the disadvantages of a rear entry door in a truck camper (or Airstream nest). Not everybody drives over what the Aussies call bull dust, but this shows why your bikes get so nasty back there. OTH I have been on busy gravel USFS forest roads where the dust is so bad by mid summer that it is like ankle deep talcomb powder on the shoulders, and it completely coats the trees for hundreds of yards downwind... you definitely don’t want a campsite close by. Vortex generators would help a lot, but only if you never slowed below 30 mph😬 John Davies Spokane WA

Yes it is. We’re looking at a target date April - June most of the snow birds will be gone not many this year. Weather still not to bad before the real rainy season severe storms start and the 90s plus and high humidity start. And yes i will report back with map locations and photos. This will be somewhat no real plan trip just going to follow recommendations and have fun with it.

Pat, Ditto to John and Russell’s comments. That bumper storage area is not roomy, clean nor sanitary. The “Stinky Slinky” drain hose (minimum 20’ needed, I carry 30’ to reach at some campgrounds) takes up almost the entire compartment. And even if you have the composting toilet, you’re still connecting that drain hose to empty your gray tank, and that means you are still connecting to the sewage dump connection at a campground or rest stop, so the end of the hose is still in contact with sewage from other campers that connected right before you. So you should treat the bumper storage as an unsanitary area. And it does get a lot of road dust/dirt accumulation as well just from normal driving. I only store the drain hose & connectors and the drain hose supports in that area. Potable water hoses, water filters, etc. all get stored in the either the basement storage area or back of my truck under the bed cover.

I don't know if you have power to see the forum, but I, and many of us, have been thinking of you,,and hope you are doing ok .

Photos, as promised The embroidered dish towels were my evening projects; I had fun with these. The brightly colored table cloth is from our camper van The final photo is looking into the cabin from outside. I love the navy Gorilla door mat. It picks up water and debris off incoming shoes (mostly the husband's as I can't convert him to "no shoes"). It easily shakes out and is machine washable. The back is non-slip. 24" x 17" is the perfect size for inside the door. It can also be placed in front of the shower door for a bath mat. https://www.amazon.com/Gorilla-Grip-Original-Chenille-Absorbent/dp/B07FPD51XC?th=1 Edit: now I'm working on a small rug knit from Pendleton selvedge ends. Not sure I'll have enough material to make it very big.

I'm not an hvac contractor, nor expert, but that really, really seems excessive in a small trailer. To me. I've always liked the idea of an adjustable butterfly vent, for those of you with the luxury of a bath duct. We don't have one. I leave the bath door propped open a bit, in cold weather, just to circulate warm air from the main cabin. In your shoes, I'd really like to see a manufacturer schematic, before I started making holes in my trailer, imo. Rv furnaces draw fresh from the outside, and exhaust to the outside. I'm not really sure the "return" grate idea is so solid, in rv furnaces. That said, I have a non-ducted, 2008 furnace, that still heats my trailer, and functions well.

If that works for you, it's certainly a less time consuming option than what I was thinking about. I was actually thinking more along the lines of programming "winter settings" through the customization settings. I don't know what volts 50, 60 or 80 per cent is on your lifepo4 battery, but Lifeblue should be able to give you a chart. And work with Xantrex to give you proper settings. If you set up charging through custom settings to keep the battery at 60, or 70, or 80, thru the winter, you'd have to change all the settings in the spring, or whenever you decided to go camping. Tesla cars allow this topend limit change easily on a touch screen, but then, they're Tesla. My Tesla home Powerwall battery backup allows me to change per centage of discharge allowed easily, but not the top end. Again, it's Tesla. I've thought about asking why I can't control the top end, which always charges to 100 per cent, but then I think their engineers know a lot more than I do about that battery chemistry. 😀 and, I have a really long warranty.

In a state like Texas that produces way more energy that we need it is a shame this happened. Many political issues that we don’t need to get into here. There will be a serious look at how we produce and distribute our electricity and water. We’re fine. I have the trailer in the driveway with heat. I’ve made a serious dent in my firewood supply but we had our propane filled late last week so heat and cooktop are good. Temps will be above freezing this weekend for the foreseeable future. In other words, back to normal. BTW, it’s still snowing big fluffy flakes. Scenic! Mike

Ok, thanks to @SeaDawg's comment above about a software setting to turn the charger off, some kind of neurons fired (or misfired) in my head and I thought of the post I had read from @Dgsmithyesterday about his issue with the charger ignition control "setting" being wrong - not allowing the inverter to charge the battery. Well, I went out and tried toggling this software setting and it works. I can turn the charger on and off with the software setting!! No more [20] error code, no more reaching under the bed all the time to toggle that relay - and its great IF it isn't causing any other unseen issues or risks. This has been a valuable collaborative effort on this topic! The reason my inverter was getting the [20] error code was because of the way I was trying to take care of my batteries. Everything started pointing to the Xantrex misbehaving when no batteries were connected while it was alive and passing shore power through. There may be other things that can cause the [20] error code, but fingers crossed that this was the primary reason some of us are seeing it. I'm not advocating doing this without validation from Xantrex / OTT Service that it's safe. I'm going to share all of this with OTT Service and hopefully they can work with Xantrex to verify if it's safe as a workaround OR have Xantrex provide a permanent, approved solution. I'll shut up now - everyone can breath a sigh of relief! 🤣

My wife and I have lived in our Ollie Elite 2 for 7 months now waiting for our house in Oklahoma to be completed. It's currently minus 18 degrees out there with a snow blizzard. It will last for over a week. If this doesn't test Ollie to the max I don't know what will. I would have gone to a hotel by now if I didnt feel I had to hang with the ship to make sure we don't have damage. Can't dump because valves are frozen. Using outhouse nearby. Hoping gas continues to the furnace and Truma water. Filled fresh water from only un- frozen spigot used for boon docking. Trying to keep heat inside to 70 degrees but floor is really cold. Have small electric in basement working. I think Ollie is great 4 season but not sure about this 5th season. Dan and Jennifer Brumfield

We have placed our order for a new Trailer and are now in the phase of not only selecting the Options we want but also thinking on how to decorate the inside to personalize the trailer. I think we already have most of the RV stuff from older Trailers/MHs. We are retired Sailors so we decided on a Nautical Theme, which should fit the Oliver extremely well! Many of our old Sailboats had white Gelcoat and Stainless Steel\Hardware with Teak Trim which we found really complimented each other. The question is how to accomplish the objectives you want. Note, hopefully everything can be done without permanently damaging the trailer, i.e. drill into the fiberglass etc, this way it can be change back to suit someone else's taste. In our case, we plan on using Dark Blue fabric on the Dinette seats, (custom upholstery Job) with Gray Piping along with Dark Blue Bedding. We have 2 ZipDee Chairs for the outside, of course Dark Blue. Interior accessories include separate 3-4 inch Chrome Gauges Set, Temperature/Barometer/Clock, mounting location TBD, but probably on the Attic Door. The Bathroom Door Mirror will be covered with a thin White Formica (double taped on), and have a 12-15 inch round Marine Port Hole Mirror adhered to the outside of the door. Fortunately we still have the Marine Silverware and Dinnerware from the sailboat. Now for the Teak Trim, with a little luck I'll be able to make custom Teak CounterTops along with the Nightstand. The Dinette Table will be Teak with a Compass Rose Inlay in the center. The Shower will have the Teak Grate. We like the idea of the Lagun Table between the beds, Of course Teak Top. I am curious what others have done to customize their Trailers. Pat & Molly

Not to worry no political talk here. It did give me a great Idea. We are always traveling out of Florida to different destinations. Why not travel Florida? Going to try to travel down the west coast around the Everglades to the keys back up the East coast hopefully zigzag East to West trying to use back roads. While heading north then west around to the pan handle then home. It may take some time, there are a lot of new Harvest Host sites just added to Florida, most of them are Winery’s and Distillery’s. 😳 Any one who has traveled Florida I like to hear some of your favorite destinations Campgrounds, State parks, attractions etc. I’ll make a list of your suggestions and try to do most of them hopefully. It will be much appreciated. Thanks

Well - with most of local business shut down for the day, and Ollie in his winter cover - we made Lemonade out of lemons - err, umm a snow couple out of the white stuff. About 3 inches, temps warming up, we will be back to normal by Monday. In the meantime - enjoy and be safe. The bounds couple in white. RB

Ok. It’s that time again. Time to think of what improvements we can make to the Jellybean. We are in South Texas with the Bean stored at our house. We love fall and winter camping so we never do the winterizing with antifreeze or air. Besides this week, we don’t get many freezing times. my usual winter prep is to drain the water heater and tanks. Then I usually bring in or move all of the cushions so I can open up the storage compartments under each cushion to allow warm heat to circulate. This is easy in the front, but much more difficult in the back because we put a 4 inch mattress topper over it all. Then we have the electric space heater or furnace on to keep it warm. This is a lot of work for 1 night freeze warnings. Also, I can’t use it as a guest overflow while it’s all broken up. As a side note, it’s also extremely a PITA to drain the fresh water tank because I have to tear the bed apart. Those memory foam mattress toppers are heavy and unwieldy. sorry for the long back story.... I was thinking about cutting two access hatch ports on either side under the bed. Two benefits. 1. I can reach into one from laying on the floor to drain the fresh water. 2. I can just open the hatches to allow warm air to get into those spots. I’m all about easier and more efficient. thoughts? Anyone done it? ps. We have a non ducted, shorty old timer Oliver. hull #10 2008 Elite

I suggest you contact OTT service by updating your service ticket on this issue and just ask for the instructions and the software. They were in the middle of testing the software and then the big storms hit and they haven't been able to get back into work and finish, but they have sent it to at least me and @Mcbvia email - maybe others. I have had it installed for a day now and fingers crossed - no [20] error code yet. 🙂

Hi @Ray and Susan Huff, you don't have to disconnect the batteries - use the relay cutoff located under the street side bed - nearest the pantry. There are two in there and you want the one that is mounted directly under the pantry. Here's a picture looking down the basement from the rear to the front on the street side. I've circled the breaker that is in between the batteries and the inverter. This is the one that you want to "trip" by pushing the top red square button. When you do that the bar on the side will come out - the picture shows the bar on mine "tripped". Do this and also cut off shore power. Then reset this breaker by pushing that bar on the side back in and turn on shore power if you want - then see if you have reset your remote. Sorry for confusion!!

I'll second that on Blue Springs. For 15 years in a row, I camped at Blue Springs during Daytona Bike Week. Even if you are not going to camp here it is worth a stop for either the manatees or simply the varied assortment of fish that hang out between the Springs and the St. John's River. Bill

Two out of the way, and interesting state parks: Oleno SP. ..a CCC training camp, 6000 acre town that was abandoned when the trains went to that new swamp called Miami. The other is Kissimmee Prairie SP. Well known to astronomy buffs, as there is minimum light pollution. The stars and the Milky Way jump off the sky. Even the park has red filters on bath house lights to preserve night vision. Deer, gators, trails, stables. Eleven miles in on dirt roads. No plastic faces or neon..love it..

I am going to break into Florida in the near future. Any respite in demand due to our northern neighbors restrictions on travel seems to be more than filled by everyone else not tied down to a job or otherwise engaged. Perusing all the reservation sites - anything close to the coastlines are simple brimming full. If one checks every day, you can piecemeal a trip together. Ahh freedom. RB

Pat, I think you will find your idea unworkable in practice. Once the sewer hoses are stowed - there is not much real usable area left. I leave my hoses connected to the drain pipe, and push them into the area. I roll my water hoses up, connect them to themselves, and the fitted into the curbside area. Additionally, the area is not all that air and water sealed/secured. See JD's description. RB

You need to also consider the benefits of simple convective airflow and how slow air exchange helps to remove stale air from all the dead end compartments. That requires a top and bottom opening in each compartment. Even if that isn’t doing much to move heat under the floor (using the furnace fan) it should help to keep everything at a more consistent temperature. I normally crack open the closet and pantry doors when running the AC or furnace, but I suspect that would not be needed with two vents in each of those areas. All this air circulation means you have to be very comfortable cutting lots of holes, and looking at the clutter of extra grills. Cutting rectangular ones is more work, but a 4” round hole saw makes adding round ones very quick and easy. I personally prefer the appearance of round ones. You still have to deal with dust cleanup. I put down paper towels behind the future hole, and lay a shop vac hose close by while drilling. That helps a little to control the mess and keep the dust out of your lungs. And once you commit and drill that first one, the following ones are a whole lot less stressful. John Davies Spokane WA

Moving the cold air vent seems like it would work, but I have some data that may work against this concept. While working on my bilge fan that I installed under the dinette seat, I tested and saw that for the first 15 minutes or so many areas of the basement didn't budge - even with the fan set on high at 350 cfpm. It took prolonged airflow to get the basement temps and humidity to move in any appreciable way. I haven't had extreme cold to test in this winter, but the furnace fan never runs for more than about 7-8 minutes when the temps are down around 20F and the cabin is set to 68F. This may not be enough time to actually accomplish the air mixing you are after. Just a thought - If you ran some extra duct behind the back storage area and down the street side like several owners have done - and moved the vent / added a few more - that would be the best way to get some additional mixing all around the basement.

@Ray and Susan Huff, this might be worth a try as it works for me. I am able to clear the [20] error code by disconnecting the shore power AND battery from the inverter for a few minutes. When you do that and restart it by putting it back on either shore power, battery or both it apparently does a hard reset. Even if you can't get the [20] error code cleared using the hard reset, you should put the new firmware on. It's easy and very quick once you get it on the thumb drive. You don't need the remote to do this and it also requires a power off / power on sequence, so either way you are doing a "hard reset" along with the upgrade. Like I said in the post above, according to Xantrex that may fix what's causing your [20] error code since you are apparently getting the code for a reason different than mine.

Our color scheme revolves around navy blue cotton "bedspreads" purchased from Ikea. The story behind these is: As a teenager, I spent summers with Dad on his houseboat. The sleeping area had two bunks, one on each side of the center aisle. The bunks had royal blue rib cord spreads. Ever since we have had twin bed RVs I've been looking for similar heavy rib-cord spreads like we had on the houseboat. Finally found them (IKEA "Indira")! I intended to use rugs from our camper van, but they were small 1'8" x 27" (four of them). I really like the bright colors, but I found it kept tripping over the edges. Then I found the same rug in a 2' x 8' runner; perfect size for the floor from the galley to the bathroom door. Will use one of the smaller rugs between the beds. We like throw pillows for lounging on the beds and for use on the dinette. Found two square and two oblong that round out our eclectic look. For accessories, I have a lot of red for contrast. Will get some interior pictures and share later.

If you never drive on an unpaved road, then that compartment might stay only a little dirty. If you should happen to drive on a maintained gravel or raw dirt forest road, or even a long stretch of “under construction” highway, that space will become choked with dirt. Being in a low pressure area directly behind the tires, it will never, ever be a clean area, unless you can figure out a good way to completely seal it off, including any drainage openings. It would have to be close to 100% air tight. A great spot for your chairs, clean and easy to access, would be strapped down inside a good rooftop carrier like a Yakima Skybox, on top of your TV. That is where mine go. My box is a Carbonite Lo, so it will clear my garage doors; a taller one would provide more useful volume, but it would not look so very cool. John Davies Spokane WA

Great idea. The idea of relocating the forced air furnace return duct(s) is something I have independently identified as a must do since I have spent many nights recently in temperatures down into the teens and like others don't expect to have to worry about freezing water lines or cold batteries. The place that Oliver chose to located the single return vent in the LEII is the worst possible place they could have put it. Besides being the noisiest place, it compromises the function of a good forced air heating system. Placing the return so close to the supply ducts means much of the heat never circulates in the trailer and instead is drawn under the dinette and back into the furnace almost directly from the supply vents. Also, failing to have placed a return duct in the bathroom renders the hot air supply vent in the bathroom almost worthless when the bathroom door is closed since pressurization of the bathroom creates backpressure on the supply vent. Further, with the bathroom door closed, there is insufficient free air flow through the furnace heat exchanger resulting in reduced efficiency, more propane consumption and possible cycling due to the heat exchanger reaching its thermal limit. So my thought is the most important single thing to improve the heating system in the LEII and significantly reduce any risk of freezing pipes or batteries is to put a small return vent (4" x 4") in the bathroom as low as possible below the existing supply vent (below the T.P.). Even with the door closed, the bathroom will now be warm but much more importantly, the warm air in the bathroom will be pulled under the bathroom sink into the hull and flow over all the plumbing lines and fresh water tank to the back where the furnace intake is. To complete the job, I think that after removing and closing the approximately 50 square inch return vent under the dinette, it should be replaced with a 16-20 sq. in. return in the bathroom, a second 16-25 sq. in. return under the dinette front side, and a third 12-16 sq. in. return in the rear street side across from the furnace to heat the outside shower plumbing. This should result an a balanced heating system with fairly constant temperatures throughout the inner space and within all inner parts of the lower hull as well. Added benefits should be a more comfortable trailer and less propane consumption. Thoughts about this?

We have never disconnected our lithium batteries. The Xantrex remote panel worked for a couple of days after we picked up our Elite II (Dec 7 2020). Unfortunately, I don't recall what the circumstances were when we first got the "20" code; I noticed it after we unhooked from shore power and moved to a new location - around day 3 or so. The display came back to normal after we got home, but not for long. The trailer has been connected to shore power, off and on, and the display has not returned to the operable state. As I said, our batteries have always been connected.

I think that's the most problematic idea, if you're thinking of a traditional (read heavy) port hole surround. I've never attached anything but a sticky note to the door mirror. I don't think the white laminate is a problem, but that heavy port and mirror would give me pause. My daughter made a cute, nautical rope surround mirror. I could see a lightweight, shatterproof mirror circle, with hemp rope surround in that place.

After most of the 6” we got on Monday melted yesterday it has started again, big flakes. Might get another 6” today. Normal in a lot of places but record setting here in San Antonio!

Hi SeaDawg, I completely agree that would be far better than a physical cutoff. I've actually asked this question and Jason has confirmed that there is no way to control the charger's "default on" except for ignition on/off and how many amps to send while charging. Another option, and maybe the best place for "software configurability" would be within the battery BMS itself. I actually sent LifeBlue an email a few days ago asking them for best practices for travel trailers that spend a lot of time on shore power (like mine when at home). I told them I'm not going into "cold storage" mode because I want to move conditioned air around the trailer year round and need the batteries for that among other things (lights, etc). I told them my practice based on research from Battery University was to keep the batteries between 60%-80% and that had me charging the batteries about once per week back up to 80%. They confirmed that keeping the batteries between 60% - 80% was a good practice for that type of scenario. They also always say don't worry about keeping the batteries topped off though - because the BMS will protect them. But then they turn around and recommend storing them disconnected at 50%. 😄 Someone is going to win the race to market for sophisticated Lithium chargers or BMS systems and make some $$$. Sounds like a good opportunity for a start up. 🙂

John, A bit late to this.... This mod has been on my mind for quite some time! But for different reasons though. The sound deadening potential of moving the cold air return (CAR) away from the furnace unit is one I hadn't thought of, but I think it is a great idea and probably would make a difference deadening the rocket. I have the Elite. The furnace is under the front dinette seat next to the bathroom wall. The CAR is also right there cut into the seat riser. There has been lots of discussion of ways to heat between the hulls while boondocking and using the furnace. For us Elite owners (don't know about the Elite 2, but maybe similar?), the rear street and curb side between the hull corners are problematic in cold weather. What with the water pump and associated plumbing being on the curb side, and the check valves for water fill, and the exterior shower on the street side, they are relatively exposed. There is no space to run supply ducts to this area, so my thought was why not move the CAR back to the rear of the trailer. This way, when the fan kicks on, conditioned air from the cabin would be drawn down between the hulls at the rear of the trailer and make its way forward to the furnace fan. Even if the return air is not as warm as the supply air, it is somewhat warm and just having the air movement between the hulls would really help prevent any freezing down there. The main issue that has come up regarding this is that the blower could potentially receive less air due to passage restriction and/or have to work harder to get the air, causing overheating and furnace shut down. This is what Jason brought up when I posed him the question, but he wasn't sure. He said he would bring it up during the next design meeting. I don't really see this being an issue as there is lots of free space down below for air to move, just no space for duct work. One other potential drawback that I can think of is the fact that RV furnaces don't filter the return air like our home furnaces do. So whatever return air that makes its way to be blower will be recirculated in to the living space. There is a lot of dust from construction between the hulls. Oliver isn't as tidy as I wish they could be. Don't know if this could be a problem or not. Maybe the slow movement of the return air would not pick up any of the fiberglass dust and all that is down there. What I plan to do is tape off the current CAR. Cut out the required space in a sheet of cardboard for a new CAR and tape it to the removed rear seat cover (dining table seat, curb side) and see what happens. I'm buying some remote temp sensors (thanks contributors on the forum for recommendations) to place in the furnace compartment and in the rear basement to see if there is any change in temperature. I'm not an HVAC person, but this seems like it's an idea worth pursuing for the cold weather campers out there. I'll post back in a few weeks when I get my test all completed. Cheers, Dave

You are very right, it is not nice to see that. I hope folks dumping will do it very discretely and 50 feet away in the surrounding bushes. Not right behind the rear bumper! It is also a good idea to not let anything but soap suds go down into the grey tank. No grease, food particles, leftovers, etc. Pans and plates should be wiped with a paper towel and that goes into the trash bag. And be sure to add some tank deoderant to turn the stink into a lemon fresh scent. Or a close approximation of one. I think every Walmart on the planet carries this product. https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-Control-Drains-Treats-Holding/dp/B007JG1W1E/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=Rv+grey+tank+treatment&qid=1581049598&sr=8-4 John Davies Spokane WA

Please don't tell PETA on me, but, when boondocking out West I'll find a ground squirrel hole, place my "grey water hose" into it and open the valve to dump my grey water. Perhaps the squirrel doesn't like it but the plants enjoy the moisture. On the other hand, the ground squirrels tend to give me dirty looks. Bill

I can’t answer with a specific number since our trailer is over in the storage. But, the way I do it is to keep the sewer hose connected all the time while we’re on the road. With the recess it allows storing the hose in the bumper without disconnecting. If you brought the pipe out further you’d have to disconnect in order to close the bumper. It makes it easy when we have a FHU site to just drop the bumper and connect to the campsite sewer. Mike