Leaderboard

The 48th state was Rhode Island. We completed the last fifteen (15) states over the past 12 Months. Newport, RI was a fun town to complete the job.

The Oliver Porch Lights are bright for a dark campsite, so we rarely use them. But if you need to light up the area they work great. I've often wondered, why isn't there lighting on the front and rear of the Oliver? I asked a year ago about replacement lights for our OEM Porch Lights and just purchased some recently. OTT should install these lights in all four directions. I would have done one up front too, but running wire would be difficult. I got something else for up front, more on that later. https://itcshopnow.com/products/assurance-exterior-flood-light?variant=50392962007319 I carefully measured the four Porch Lights OTT installed, as the distance from hull belly line, which btw holds a tape measure nicely, up to centerline of the Porch Light at the mounting screws. Turns out they were all installed at different heights +/- 3/4". As a special bonus, this light is 1/4" off from front to the rear mounting screws. My new Rear Porch Light, I promise is the straightest of the bunch! 🤣 It's not easy to choose the best spot to drill into the exterior of your hull, this one especially. I cut away some of the white insulation in the back of the attic. I used a 2-ft piece of metal fish-tape with the ends curled back, running it down the inside of the back exterior hull. Repeatedly, it measured 12" form the bottom of the OLIVER taillight to where the fish-tape hit the top of the rear window frame. It measured 12" so I figured I should go 10" max. Looking from the outside, there is a flat fiberglass frame around the rear window. Above that, the top rear is convex. I had to find the best spot so that the approx. 8" x 1 1/2" light would sit flat in both directions. If not water would get behind it. I drilled a 1/4" hole centered to the window, so the light is just above the flat frame area of the rear window. I soldered and heat shrink extra length of wire to the light. If they only attached 18" of wire! Offset the splices so that they would fit nicely into the drilled hole. It wasn't an easy pull but a few ins and outs and the light pulled flush (would be easier with 2 people, one in one out). I eyeballed the light level to the window frame. I wanted to VHB the light housing vs. drilling two mounting holes but the design of the light would not allow for it. They do not include hardware. Found the stoutest 1" course thread screws that would fit the openings and I drilled 6/94" holes after marking the centers. Wiring? I wanted to add the new rear light to the Side Porch Lights (streetside). However, I could not find the switch leg in the back corner of the attic and I did not want to remove all the stuff out of the kitchen cabinets. But that would be the right way to do it. Cabinets empty, you can easily run wiring up to the main switch panel. Our hull had a rear camera and a separate switch to power it. I removed the camera a year ago, so I'm using this separate switch with existing wiring. I copied something Geoff did, where he used a Sharpie to black out the word "Awning." Mine has a thin cut piece of black tape over the word "Camera" so it just reads "Rear" now! 🤣 I had to wait patiently for dusk and dark tonight! The hull looks great with the new Rear Porch Light to compliment the side lights. And finally, it alone lights up the yard! 😎

I’ve never liked the Furrion DV1230 entertainment center, it’s not user friendly and the front panel is difficult to read in low light. The tiny remote is absolutely terrible, and the larger upgrade remote isn't much better. I usually control it with the phone app when I remember where to find it, for some reason they called it "ES Control,” and it constantly drops out. The tech is outdated. Iv’e wanted to upgrade it for years, but never found a unit that met my requirements and justified the expense: Has to fit into the existing cutout (7-3/8" x 4") Controls that are intuitive and easy-to-read Decent remote control HDMI ARC ports on front and back (not the cheap HDMI pass-through ports) Current Bluetooth technology Two speaker zones Cost under $200 I found IRV Technology’s model IRV62 for a $180, and it had everything I wanted. https://a.co/d/0dODdwBi The controls couldn’t be simpler or easier to read. It does have a few less features than the Furrion, but nothing that will be missed. Like only 2 speaker zones compared to Furrion’s 3 and the Optical audio port that caused horrible sounding audio phasing issues between TV and stereo speakers. The IVR62 was a close fit on paper. But unfortunately Oliver had cut an oversized opening for the Furrion and miss-drilled extra mounting holes. Consequently, the new faceplate didn’t quite cover the extra holes, and the new mounting holes were on the very edge of the cutout. This was resolved with white JB weld on the edge of the oversized cutout to strengthen the screw holes, and I made a thin 3-D printed bezel that covers the extra holes. It’s not even noticeable. The print file is available if anyone has the same problem, or I made extra bezels if anyone needs one. The rest of the installation was easy, although it took a minute to figure out how the Furrion was mounted. There are 4 screws behind top and bottom trim pieces. These trims have small notches on the ends where they can be popped off with a screwdriver. It’s highly recommended to identify and mark each of the 4 speaker cables before cutting the connections. Use the wire color code legend on the back of the Furrion case to identify the right rear, left rear, right front, and left front. Also the IRV’s yellow “Bat” wire and the fused red “+12” wire are both connected to the Olivers hot wire, which was purple in my case. Other than that, the wiring is straight forward. The new stereo is so much easier to use, it works seamlessly with Bluetooth and the TV, and it sounds better too. I’ll be using it more often now that I don’t need a flashlight and reading glasses to operate it. Cheers! Geoff

I’ll chime in here. Former Elite II owner here, and also a former Ford Expedition owner. I still check out the owner forums to see what’s new, and because we do miss our travels with our Ollie #461 that is now with a new owner, as we have moved on to some overseas travel as our next adventure in life. Yes, it’s more than safe to tow your Oliver with the Expedition with the factory Tow Package. We had almost the identical setup to yours. Our 2017 Expedition 4X4 was called the EL version (extended length, now called Max). The Ollie is well within the towing specs of the Expedition. It’s a body on frame construction SUV that shares a lot with the Ford F-150 truck. You WILL need to use the Andersen weight distribution hitch. The Ford factory towing package and the factory trailer brake controller worked very well. Use the Tow/Haul mode when towing. There are a couple of cons though: After a couple of years we did find the limited payload capacity became an issue as we started carrying more camping equipment for extended trips. The Ford Eco-Boost turbocharged V6 was adequate but it really had to rev very high in mountainous areas going uphill, and the engine temp tended to get pretty hot. We eventually upgraded to an F-250 to get much higher payload capacity and also eliminate the need for the weight distribution hitch. Enjoy your Ollie!

The steps on our Oliver have always been loud when being lowered or raised. I have taken some “steps” that have made them quieter. And before you ask, no, I don’t have before and after noise level analytical data. I just know that they are quieter. 1. I draw filed the top and bottom of both slots. This picture after a couple of draw passes with a file shows the roughness left by the machining process. The bright spots are the high spots of the rough surface. I suspect that one side of the slot was smoother than the other due to the direction of rotation of the cutting tool. Picture of the bottom of the right side slot after several passes using a draw file technique. Be sure to keep the swarf cleaned out of the file. There is a light shining on the surface. It is much smoother. I then applied some silicone lubricant to both sides of each slot and allowed it to dry. 2. I next reassembled the steps and placed (6) rubber bushings on the stainless steel rod to dampen the vibrations that the rod made when being drawn through the slot in the aluminum sides. 3. I also replaced the aluminum spacers on each side with polypropylene spacers. 4. I removed the female halves of the sex bolts that act as the pivot for the lower step. I used a T50 torx bit but it is actually a T55. I have the correct bit now. Never pass up the chance to buy a new tool. I applied silicone lubricant to the inside of the hole in the step side and to the outside of the binding barrel and allowed it to dry before reassembling. I will probably drill those holes out to receive Oilite bushings this winter but this will suffice for now. Material used. The rubber bushings are actually 1/2” ID x 2” OD x 2” long. The holes aren’t perfectly centered but I didn’t need for them to be. I chose 2” OD so that they would clear other parts of the step assembly. You will have to lubricate the step rod and the hole in the bushings to be able to assemble them. The polypropylene spacers came from McMaster Carr. Be sure to use a dry silicone lubricant instead of grease. The grease will retain grit picked up off the road. Bill

This maintenance can be completed in 2 hours (by the young experienced mechanic), or you could take most of the day! Have fun and pride in your Oliver! Take your time. I did the curbside yesterday and did the other side today (not young anymore, like splitting tasks across days). The second side went very fast today, done in only 90 min having the tools out and ready. This is just how I worked our suspension maintenance, in how it made sense to me, based on my automotive experience, not Dexter nor OTT approved! IMHO this maintenance should be conducted annually, or perhaps bi-annually for those who tow 10K +/- miles in a year. Some may work this routine every two years. Following is a suggested 10-Step Suspension Maintenance procedure: 1) On level ground, jack up one side of the trailer, using the rear leveler jack, while the Oliver is hitched to the tow vehicle (mandatory for safety). 2) Spin each tire to see if it rolls freely. Listen carefully for any unusual sounds. Try to wobble each wheel left to right (3-9 clock positions) and top to bottom (6 - 12) to observe any free-play. There should be no observable free-play with the Nev-R Lube bearings. 3) Remove the lug nuts on both wheels with impact (no impact, loosen with tires on ground). Place a jack stand under rear axle, close to wheel, for safety since your body will be under the trailer to do some of this work (see pic1). 4) Grease all six (6) wet bolts, plus two (2) grease fittings on the EZ Flex. Use a power grease gun if available with a LockNLube coupler attached. Add just enough grease to see some ooze from an edge. Wipe up all excess grease. A straight-blade screwdriver helps to remove old grease from recessed areas. Wipe grease fittings before and after and place caps back on (I don’t use caps). 5) Torque all suspension bolts to Alcan specs. 90 ft-lb for U-bolts, 80 ft-lb for the EZ Flex center bolt and both end-points, and 65 ft-lb on the shackle wet-bolts. The U-bolts will set at some point where they will not need further tightening. They rust into place and once this occurs, they’re done and you will not need to check again in future service (not true for the wet-bolts). I go lighter torque than Alcan specs on the wet-bolts, 70 and 58 ft-lbs which is an eighth (12%) lighter. The 80 and 65 numbers seem high to me. 6) Check drag on the drums. They should contact the shoes ON and OFF when spinning (shoes installed are not perfectly round). If they do not drag at all, the self-adjuster is not tightening properly (see pic2 brake assembly, adjuster at bottom). Mine were all dragging just right on like-new axles. There are two inspection ports on the backside. Unfortunately, there is no way to reach the gear to adjust it, due to the Oliver wide leaf/shock absorber plate. If adjusters are not working, the hub/drum must be removed (see step 8). 7) Pull the trailer emergency brake switch and turn the drums until they stop (to ground magnet). Check amperage draw at each wheel, placing amp meter clamp around ANY single wire behind wheel. Amperage should be 3A +/- without much difference between wheels. My LF wheel was 3.1A and the other three all read 2.8A, the two main brake wires coming out of the streetside Oliver hull read 6.1A front and 5.8A rear. These numbers look good enough to me! 8] Now the question is, do the brakes need a full inspection? I would say no for the first 2 years, then later with enough miles towed (>25K miles). Perhaps work a full inspection after 3 years. Then skip year 4 and do another full inspection year 5. Something like that! Clean brake dust without internal inspection: Use compressed air to blow through all openings of the braking plates to remove all shoe dust from the interior of the brake drums. Wear safety glasses and stay upwind from the cloud of brake dust. Blow throughout until you see only clean air. Full inspection of trailer brakes: Remove the bearing dust cap, the small outer circlip and spindle nut, then slide the drum off. Use compressed air to remove all brake dust (Brakleen spray unnecessary). Make sure shoes are clean, free of grease, clean if necessary (sand shoes lightly). Check shoe thickness, There is not much material there to begin with (Dexter shoes new have only 0.18" or 4.5mm material). They will look thin but when wearing evenly should be good for many more miles. Check the action of the shoes by pulling the magnet to see all is working as designed. Replace shoes if necessary, or replace the entire braking plate assembly, which is bolt-on and economical. If you have enough miles to replace shoes, the drums should be turned or replaced. Replacing shoes without doing so would result in poor trailer braking performance. Drum assemblies with new bearings are very expensive! The Nev-R Lube bearings are warranted for 5 years or 100K miles (our hull will not clock 100K mile in the next 10 years)! Some who tow a lot may replace bearings every 5 years. I will carry replacement bearings and tools with me to replace as needed, as they could fail at any time or last many, many years. Then replace the drum, washer and spindle nut. To retorque, mount the wheel, lower the tire to just touching the ground and torque to 155 ft-lb. Then replace the circlip and dust cap. Remove wheel again to mount center caps, though many of us go without center caps so that hub temps can be checked at stops while towing. 9) Remove gravel from the tread of both tires, using a thin flat-blade screwdriver, while inspecting for tread wear, tire defects and foreign objects. I do this with All of our vehicles, every time wheels are removed for any reason. I’ve found many screws and other sharp metal objects in tire treads, sometimes causing slow leaks that can be fixed now vs. getting worse on the highway. 10) Mount rims, lower hull to get rim close, making it easy to place wheel on studs. Use impact on light setting and snug up lug nuts evenly. Lower hull to sit on wheels, remove leveler blocks, and torque lugs to 90 ft-lbs. Repeat all 10 steps on the other side of the trailer. Let me know if I missed something or other suggestions! 😎

6 or 7 consecutive for Wyoming. This will be number 21 for consecutive years in either Wyoming, Montana, Idaho or Colorado. Ya just don't know where the "stupid" fish are located! 😉 Bill

USFS Campground Columbine Creek , near Questa New Mexico and Red River. Bighorn sheep hangout along the highway nearby, cool visitor center in Questa New Mexico. Hiking trails in the campground to the Honda Wilderness Restored Catholic Church in Questa where is everyone else 🧐

My 2023 has the same outlet, and I think Tom is correct in that it is for AC power to the fridge. I used that outlet with a 12 ga extension cord to supply power to my exterior AC outlet under the folding table. I tapped into the fridge's 12V DC power for the cigarette outlet.

Order a 1/2 shaft collar from Amazon. Try to find a collar that is split and clamps on or one that uses a set screw for attachment. Buy one that is stainless steel. The collar should be clamped on the rod end that had the washer, the other end will still use the washer and cotter pin. These stainless collars are only a few dollars each and will make a good solid end.

So, I had the one overnight mentioned above, where the Chill Cube made the cabin much colder than the set temp. This was a one-off, not experienced again. I had it on AUTO MODE and AUTO FAN that time. I noticed it switched itself to DRY MODE during the night. We were in the desert valley at 20% RH outside and a very comfortable 40% RH inside. When we got home, I ran the Chill Cube 24x7 for 8 days and nights unplugged, on batteries/inverter only! This time I set to COOL MODE, fan in AUTO MODE. The cabin started at 90F and it was 88F outside. I set temp on the Chill Cube at 76F and the Chill Cube kept the cabin at 76F daily for most of the week, got down to 74 on day 7 and 72 on day 8, as ambient temps got lower. I ended the test after 8 days, since it got cold again up here again (highs low 70s, lows high 40s). We're having a wonderful long spring in the AZ High Country! In the first 24 hour period, we used 60 Ah. This would be -10% SOC only for those of you with 600 Ah. Day two was about the same. Ambient temps lowered a little and on Day 3 we ONLY used net -15 Ah! These numbers include the 320W rooftop solar adding about 12 Ah every sunny hour of the day. The next few days were the same, only using about -2% SOC per day. I believe the Chill Cube will get colder than set temp ONLY when A/C is not really needed, like overnight in the desert where it gets cool outside. Next time when sleeping on a cooler night I should just turn it off. Our lovely spring temps will end soon. I'll run a similar test in 60-90 days when it gets very hot even at high elevation. Last 3 summers, I had the Oliver plugged in with the Dometic P2 set at 80F. It would run nonstop during afternoons with near 100F highs. Without A/C the Oliver could get to over 110F sitting in the sun outdoors, not good. We could hear the LOUD P2 from our deck 100 ft away. Last week while the Chill Cube was running, I thought once Chris had turned it off. I was outside walking around and behind the Oliver and I could not hear the A/C running at all! When I entered the cabin, I could hear the Chill Cube on its very lowest fan setting. In Auto FAN it will run slower than the LOW FAN setting, very low and quiet! 😎

Heading west in the green Prairie of eastern Oklahoma Following the path of frontier people traveled 225 years ago planning to visit the old historic downtown areas of Muskogee, Wagoner and Pryor Oklahoma day 31, 10 campgrounds so far Flat Rock Creek COE Chouteau, Oklahoma

Dam Site Lake COE near Eureka Springs Arkansas on Beaver Lake

This morning while doing a full systems ‘go’ inspection on Hull #634 XPLOR, I discovered when I configured the Truma water heater valve to the ON position, an impressive stream of water shot directly out of the Truma filter exterior housing. After a little troubleshooting, I removed the filter and discovered that inside the filter housing, a small black round piece of plastic had blown out of the filter housing. This rendered the filter useless. We have had 5.5 years of trouble-free service from our tankless Truma and this was a first. We like our Aqua Go. I am posting this in the event anyone should have the same issue with their Truma filter. I have the optional antifreeze filter which works in a pinch as a back up. If you do not have the optional antifreeze filter as a back up, you will be stuck like Chuck with no hot water. In order for the Aqua Go to work, it has to have the filter element. I contacted Oliver Service and ordered a OEM replacement and an extra back filter up of the exact one you see in the below pics. “Two is one and one is none.” 🫡🇺🇸 Replacement filters are $95.00 plus shipping. Thank you Mike Sharpe for getting my new filters shipped out. The tiny piece of plastic that broke loose. Here is the filter that failed. You should not be able to look through your filter. The arrow points to where this tiny piece blew out. There is no way to repair it. I pass this on, so that if you have this issue you can just replace the filter with a new one.

Got this working yesterday, using the screws supplied with the light on top and hardware I had in the shop to attach the bottoms. It looked hodgepodge today. I really should fab a proper bracket, but for now I just wanted to fix its appearance. Went to the local HW store and got four short 4mm countersink screws and two Nylok nuts and washers. I had to countersink the brackets further to get the screws flush. The assembly is much better, but now that the light is taller, I noticed two things. The base bracket looks cheap now that you can fully see it. And the height is right at the belly line where the hulls meet, so visually it's not good. It looked better shorter, but now the light is where you need it. If I was to do this again, first I would use the great idea @Steph and Dud B made above; to grab power and use the light switch on the jack. Second I would fab a proper bracket a bit shorter than this one and push it forward a couple inches to get the required angle. Then it's not up against the hull belly line and will look better. It's too late for me re the first idea, but I'll do the latter when I source the right stainless steel stock. Looks like one of those Star Wars robots! It's all the light we'll need to hitch-up and load or unload the truck in the dark when necessary. We now have proper exterior lighting on all four sides! 😎

Please read my detailed report that I sent in on this topic attached....I've had truma's replace 3 times. First potential cause - Truma didn't properly tighten the brass fittings internally that feed the burner assembly. Second potential cause - Truma didn't crimp the burner tube assembly correctly, and with travel they rattle out (the burner tubes are like in a bar-b-q and can fall off which causes raw gas to be injected into the burner area for explosive ignition instead of gentle start.) This blog post has 3 goals and was SENT to NHTSA for evidence of why Truma needs to do something to fix their defective mfg process. 1) List symptoms we experienced with our Truma and use photos to illustrate the 3 firebox events. 2) Describe 2 different Truma reported manufacturing defects and show photos illustrating those issues. 3) Describe the in field solutions for each of the 2 manufacturing issues. 4) Show a pictures of the current Truma Burner Unit with all Manufacturing updates in place. The attached PDF is in full detail with picture of what is likely the issue or issues causing explosive ignition. Truma Issues.pdf Hope that helps...remember...you need to report this to both Oliver and Truma in order to get any warranty coverage. Craig Short

I took a trip to Oliver on Tuesday with a prospective buyer. While we were looking at the 2027 model the salesman started the Dometic Freshjet, It was almost as quiet as the Truma AC in my Elite ll. We could easily converse with it running.

It had lost prime. I connected city water to boondock connection. Turned on water for 20 seconds or so. Connected my boondock hose to boondock port. Turned on pump. Sucked up a gallon of water lickety split.

I Just recently had CGI do the annual touchup on my camper and they told me about a new service they are offering. It is a durable protective gloss film that they apply to the front of the camper. Might be a nice thing to have if you like getting off the beaten path (gravel roads, ALCAN Hwy, etc.), it would help protect the gelcoat from chips and make it easier to keep clean as well. Lasts 5-7 years or more typically and is generally easy to remove/replace. Not cheap but makes life easier and protects your investment. Short video link: IMG_8147.MOV

Eagle Nest State Park , New Mexico park has been remodeled and is very nice, sites are electric only water fill available, no dump station cloudy and rainy and cold weather has us a little wet super nice Vietnam War Memorial Park nearby Remembering all of the men that served and the young men that never came home 🙏

On to Clayton Lake State Park, near Clayton New Mexico first boondocking since we left home April 18 We were enjoying the COE sites at $12.50 per night with power and water gotta practice our energy and water management now Too much rain has been a little depressing, finally saw the sun today

Wild Bills RV and trailer park Boise Oklahoma overnight stop fantastic museum next door do not pass up the museum !!!

I am glad the CGI crew is now offering PPF on the front of Olivers. We have had XPEL PPF on the “blast zones” on the of our Oliver to include the dog house, aka LP surround and all the way down each side under the bottom edges of both sides of our Oliver. We have had it for several years now and it has really worked as advertised. Shortly after we took delivery of Hull #634 we had 10 mil XPEL paint protection installed. Here is a photo of our installer working his magic. The standard paint protection used on most cars and trucks today is 8 mil. The 10 mil material is naturally thicker and it’s really tough material. It’s presently the thickest p/p made by XPEL. So far, it’s held up great with no damage to our gelcoat. It’s fairly expensive to have installed, but well worth it in our experience. We use a product called Plexus to keep it clean and polished up. Our installers business name is Sun Stoppers located in Cornelius, NC. Also, we have PPF on all our vehicles. The 8 mil still offers robust protection from road rash, missiles etc. https://www.xpel.com This same fella installed 8 mil XPEL PPF on our entire Super Duty just after we purchased it in 2021. It was well worth the money and has kept our TV paint chip free 5 yrs later. If you trade vehicles every few years it may not be worth the expense. We tend to keep our cars and trucks for the long haul. I recently found and purchased a one owner, NC dealer serviced 2020 Toyota TRD Pro. It is in really excellent condition. So I took it to my XPEL PPF tech to let him work his magic. I could not be happier with his work as he exceeded my expectations. It’s all about the install and the installer. A few things to note: if you take it to an installer make sure you don’t have any paint chips on the areas you want protected by PPF. If any installer wants to cover areas on your truck or car with PPF with existing paint chips…in my opinion, you have the wrong installer. Find an installer that does high-end Teslas, Lexus, Benz, Lambos, Bentleys etc. After having a complete paint correction done, I had the headlights, front and rear bumpers, trim below the headlights, the painted grill surround, windshield pillars all covered in 8mil XPEL PPF. The prior owner already had the entire hood and mirror caps covered. The larger the surface area you cover, the higher the cost. I like XPEL PPF as it is hydrophobic and just repels dirt and dust with ease. You can also ceramic coat over XPEL PPF. ** Prices vary on installation, so its best if you’re considering PPF to get a quote from your local installer. My XPEL PPF installers shop 3 weeks ago. I also had XPEL 50% tint installed on the interior front w/s. A game changer in reducing heat and dangerous UV rays into the cabin. Note; check your State DMV on tint % laws. Post PPF install.

I had Suncoast Designers rebuild three of my windows several years ago and they did a good job. They remove the entire window, completely disassembled it, disassembled the individual sections, fixed the seal, and reassembled everything and put the whole assembly back in the trailer. They rebuilt both the fixed and the movable sections in order to provide a complete lifetime warranty. Complete disassembly of the frame requires the astragal to be removed by drilling out the pop rivets and replaced with gaskets and pop rivets again. If only the moving panel needs to be fixed, that is easily removed by removing the plastic/rubber track material first then the window just lifts out. After they removed, rebuilt and replaced the windows I had to reseal the frame to trailer myself. Not inexpensive but at the time I had mine done they had a lifetime warranty. If you can rebuild them soon, before any etching takes place between the panels, they can reuse the original glass. They have a fairly large parking lot and nearly every spot has electricity and water so that you can stay in your camper. Also, there used to be a guy at Quartzsite during the big tent rv show that would rebuild windows but you had to remove your own windows and deliver them to him. I have never met him but I know of a couple of Oliver owners who have had windows fixed by him.

Here: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/2027-models/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRkMxZleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFnREJZaWpseU95eWEwQVRDc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHpiS_FvI90EHyUf_oG5VFKxqgnIa_STJ6hiTz4DY8TNE7tkM-hNQsVfylRG-_aem_VUEMOA8YabCnRqd1Yg72hg

The soundtrack suggests trouble ahead, and the footage does seem to suggest off-road more than off-grid. That said -- my Ollie hasn't disappointed me at all, and I've had next-to-no troubles * in terms of being able to spend weeks at a time off-grid. Of course that requires preparation and contingency plans. Having walked through creeks and stepped into holes several feet deep, I don't think I would want to ford a creek with my Oliver, unless it was an improved surface with known qualities. Still, there are lots of folks who have a bigger yearning for adventure. I think this will appeal to those who want to go whole-hog off grid and off road. Can this model go longer than my LE2's 3-4 weeks off grid? * The one exception to my 'no troubles' was a few years ago when I had a propane leak that a local North Dakota TT repair facility failed to correctly identify and fix; in that case, I was left without propane powered refrigerator, hot water, or heater for several months, out west on the road into October.

Everybody note... The new Oliver ApeX-23 is designed and advertised to be an off-GRID trailer NOT an off-ROAD trailer.

Oliver's response has been outstanding. We are working together to address the issue. More to follow when I have a chance to provide a detailed update. Bob

I apologize for not posting a resolution sooner. I changed the inverter circuit breaker for new. Hard to find. Home Depot website only. Charging issue resolved. My theory is a washboard road in and out of 11 Mile Reservoir State Park CO. Who knows?! Thank you for all your knowledge. Mark

Getting ready to leave at near the end of the month (June) for the rest of the summer. Got to get all of those "honey do's" done first!🥰

TECHNICAL SUPPORT TEAM answered my question -- I will leave it here, for others who might be asking the same. When you plan to decalcify the Truma AquaGo Water Heater AND Sanitize the plumbing system, there is a specific order that this should be done. It's logical, but I wasn't sure about any potential chemical reactions between the one (Truma Decalcification Tablets) and the other (a diluted water & bleach solution). FIRST -- complete the Decalcification process. Then flush the system with clean water. SECOND -- Sanitize the system. REMEMBER to put the system into BYPASS CONFIGURATION for the Water Heater during the Sanitization process. After Sanitization, flush the system TWICE with clean water. THIRD -- Fill the tank with fresh water Shout-out to Chris with Oliver's Technical Department for helping me out with this question this morning.

I wonder what the "deck/wall" starts to look like after years of people walking on it. Can you screen that wall area at all when that is down? If not, I don't see myself keeping my wall open while camping.

Picture below shows old Ventline fan removed and the roof area cleaned up. I used ASI 0240 adhesive remover and plastic scrapers. I cleaned up the edges of the original holes with a chamfer bit in a drill motor. The factory didn’t align the old vent with the hole very well and didn’t drill and chamfer the holes which resulted in chipped gelcoat. In this picture the pilot holes (1/16”) for MaxxFan Dome are located and drilled. I wanted the screws to be perpendicular to the MaxxFan mounting flange not the roof line so I tried to drill them at the correct angle to the surface of the roof. I did a lot of test fitting inside and out. The outside fan, the middle sleeve, and the interior trim ring must fit together well for this retrofit to work out right. I used a carpenter’s pencil and 2 rubber bands from of a bunch of broccoli to hold the sleeve in place while I got the pieces located just right. I did this before I marked the holes for the flange. New pilot holes are enlarged to 1/8 inch and chamfered Test fit the screws to make sure they are not too tight. If they are too tight you risk twisting the screw in two in the hole. If the test fit is too tight go up to 9/64 inch bit. I used a 1/16 inch drill for a pilot then enlarged with a 1/8 inch drill and finished with a 1/2 inch chamfer bit. Be sure to use sharp bits and drill SLOW. I wanted the flange to be straight, not pulled down to fit the curved roof. I applied one layer of butyl all the way around the bottom of the flange. I then applied 2 short strips between about 10:00-2:00 and 4:00- 8:00. I again applied 2 even shorter strips between 10:30-1:30 and 4:30-7:30. I tried to build the butyl up in the places where the widest gaps would occur, that is the front and back of the fan. I wiped the mounting location with isopropyl alcohol and let it dry and filled the old and new screw holes with ASI 335 and set the fan in place using a couple of screws inserted through the flange and butyl for alignment. The black button on the handle goes toward the front of the trailer. Work the wires and splice connectors into the space between the hulls while inserting the fan assembly into the hole in the roof. Tighten each screw down a little at a time and try to keep from distorting the flange. I would tighten the screws and leave them for a while to let the butyl push out then I would tighten them a little more until I got the flange sitting like I wanted it to sit and then left the butyl to do what it wanted to for a while. While the butyl was oozing I went inside the trailer and placed the sleeve back in the hole and made sure the upper edge was against the bottom of the fan and the notch in the sleeve for the wire retainer was in place and using a pencil I marked a line around the sleeve where it exits the curved ceiling. I drew another line 0.35” below this line to account for the interior trim ring and cut the sleeve to this line using a pair of heavy shears and a razor knife and finished to fit with a sanding block. I attached the trim ring and tightened the screws enough to pull the ring up to conform to the curvature of the ceiling.

Finally got around to fixing the problems that I identified in my original post almost 2 years ago. I used a small drum sander on a cordless drill motor to make a cutout for the part of the accumulator that was rubbing. This also quieted a vibration heard during pump operation While I had the drum sander out I enlarged the cutouts above both rear jack manual operation studs so that I can now get the manual crank on them if needed I placed a couple of spare bolt protectors on some 1/2 inch nuts and threaded them on the exposed bolt ends where they contacted the heater duct I know that these are really simple fixes but they might help someone that doesn’t know that the problems even exist. Bill

My recent acquisition, more useful than the air compressor blow nozzle!

UPDATE: I scheduled time with First Responder Mobile RV Repair -- the owner is Darrel Kehne. He's retired from the Collier County Sheriff's Office and he and his wife have owned various rigs. He trained with the RV school in Texas last summer (his certifications are on his website). He was extremely nice to work with, very efficient with his time and resolved a number of outstanding items for me. He had heard of Oliver, but had not seen one before. I suggested he come to the rally in October. :) I recommend him, for anyone in this area of Southwest Florida. https://www.firstrespondermobilervrepair.com/ (note, there are a few businesses with this name, in other places...)

We flew to Anchorage and rented a Class C motorhome from Great Alaskan Holidays. The motorhome was in fantastic shape (current model year) and came equipped with everything we needed except food and some odds and ends (hatchet, bear spray, firewood, etc.). We had it for 11 days and saw Seward, Homer, Talkeetna, Denali National Park, and everything in between. Stayed everywhere from commercial campgrounds to a night in a roadside pullout. Lots of wildlife (had a moose in our campsite), incredible scenery (the drive from Anchorage to Seward is stunning). Fantastic trip. If you want to RV Alaska but can't/won't take your Oliver there, I can't recommend Great Alaskan Holidays enough. Best trip we ever took. Great Alaskan Holidays https://share.google/KQoSc0xsFRph2wLCU

8/10/14 to 5/15/26. I wish I had kept total mileage. Need to check computer when I get home. Started logging Out/In mileage at some point. I will check.😊

"My Bad" but, I have found that if wifey starts a conversation with, "Honey, I think you need a tool to help you do this", she has my complete attention for the duration of the conversation, no matter what else we discuss... I think she realizes it too, as we have had some rather meandering (like what do tools have to do with making sure my daily work clothes are in the hamper on laundry day...) conversations, but I was paying attention to every word until we were done. Before we were married, my father told Maggie, "He is not hard of hearing, He is hard of listening..." Now I have hearing aids, and I still do not listen. 🤭 B~Out, I just heard the word "tool".

Had a tricky time finding grommets that fit the hole for our burner bases on our Dometic PI 8022 2 burner in our Hull 505 EII Added them to the outfitters guide here: Oliver Outfitters Guide Cheers, Craig & Rose Hull 505

The Texas a Oliver Rally is scheduled for April 5 (check in date) through April 8 (check out date). This event will be held at the Lake Livingston State Park. You will be able to book your site starting in December, 2026. Most information will be posted on Facebook but I will also post here as well. Hope to see you there!

Read the post here on the Forum about how Oliver footed the entire bill for the repairs to the Truma water heaters. Bill

I hope you all recognize this was tongue-in-cheek. Yep, but come to think of it... How nice it would be to have 2300A of solar available! Plus, you'd have have redundancy if (when?) one of them failed. Now we need a gray water storage carpet to put under the solar awning. And camp chairs that also hold fresh water. We could boondock forever!

I hope you all recognize this was tongue-in-cheek.

I only deploy my regular Girard awning when I am at the trailer on calm days. I certainly wouldn’t leave the awning deployed all day while the trailer is unattended, especially at the cost of the solar awning. I see this as the biggest limitation to the usefulness of the solar awning.

Just saw this- that is great! Glad to have played some part of your Oliver story. I was out this past weekend and was reminded how much I love this little camper. I’m coming up on my 3 year anniversary next month. Something about hopping in there just feels so much like home.

From what I've been reading about 48V systems they are most effective delivering power to high amperage devices like the A/C, fridge, and induction cooktops. With the heat pump, compressor fridge, and an induction cooktop, would there be any need for propane at all in this new trailer? They do make 48v water heaters with 1000-2000W heating elements. Low amperage devices like lights, USB, etc. are often on 12v circuits powered by a DC to DC voltage converter in a 48v system, so there's no real gain there. (It is possible to get things like 48v lights, but they are more expensive.) I wonder what the boondocking sustainability difference would be between our LE2, which has the 640Ah 12v lithium system, 30# propane tanks, and LP fueled furnace, fridge, water heater and stove vs. this new 48v model set up as all-electric? As it is, we've never gotten below 50% SOC while camping in good sun and our propane lasts for weeks. Fresh water and holding tanks would still be limiting factors with this new trailer. I suppose if you had the composting toilet and were camped in a sunny place that allowed emptying gray water on the ground you could stay virtually as long as your fresh water supply allowed, but that's kind of an edge case for a lot of us. On balance, I see the main advantage of the 48v system over our 12v/propane system being increased A/C run time.

Here you go…..touch pic and scroll left.🤔 https://www.instagram.com/p/DX1y0pnkuH2/?igsh=MXRicTlrancwZXloOA==

Many of us know that feeling. We purchased ours from Hawaii having never seen one in person. But what we, as you, did was to really study the tone and helpfulness of the members here on this forum and the "SOB's" (Some Other Brands) as well. At the time, and still to this day, I think that the owners sell more trailers than OTT does themselves. No other brand came close in this regard. After our purchase I had an opportunity to go to the factory tour and instantly fell in love with our decision. As a technical we all know that machines need maintenance and TLC. Also that some times tweeks to the foundational design of a machine is necessary. WIth OTT, we have seen a few upgrades, a few changes, and very few OOPS. And the number of OOPs is very small. However over times things change. The two biggest changes I have observed in the past ten years from an owner's perspective likely are the percentage of owners taking their OTT's boondocking further into the wild and running heavier than earlier years. The impacts are higher "G" forces and typically +/- 6,000 pound weights on the suspension 100% of the time. Both of these changes are not OTT fault. There is clear evidence of premature spring failures from OTT owners having road side spring failures, and dozens more finding that their springs flatening out way too early in what should be a normal spring's useful life. So a design change is needed. I believe from history that OTT would not ignore such failures without concern and would be monitoring our experiences. I also would wager one of Art's famous home brews that they are looking at an upgrade standard spring to the 2400 # Dexter four-leaf springs and an option for a "Boondocker's Heavy Duty" suspension package featuring the Alcon type of 5 leaf. Those options both make good common sense. Good news is that OTT takes a lot of care and time, as they should, before making such changes. In that regard it would smart to keep track of the owners who have changed their springs and to monitor them in the normal duty and heavy duty class. In doing so to get specific data as to the pros and cons of their spring choice for their use. If I was running their quality control team that is exactly what I would be doing. One needs data to to make data driven decisions. GJ

You've inspired me. The drum set's going in! Just gotta get this bass drum through the door... 😁