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I completed our new Nova Kool R5810 AC/DC refrigerator installation before our trip to the 2025 OTTO's Rally and the 3 week shakedown was everything we hoped for! I want to thank all of the early adopters, Try2Relax, MountainOliver, Geronimo John, Ty J and rideadeuce, who preceded my installation and shared there experiences. I have attached a few pictures that are similar to those that have already been posted. I would also like to shout out to David & Kristine Hess, Cooper Jenkins and the rest of the folks at Sea Biscuit Metal Designs for their help and creation of the upper and lower vents for my refrigerator installation. If you need something custom made from metal, they are my goto team! Mossey21 points
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I'm BACK Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers - especially those that were specific to me and my family. We never lost power, satellite TV, or water/sewer in my sub-division. We had several trees down that blocked the roads into/out of our home but our City workers pushed those aside fairly early after the rain stopped and then my wife and I cleared the 95% of the mess up until I ran out of gas for the chainsaw. However, even though (as far as I know) the small town where I live "only" had relatively little damage, the storm had major effects on many areas around the entire Western North Carolina, north Georgia, and Tennessee. Specifically, the small town of Chimney Rock is basically gone. I don't mean damaged, I mean it is literally gone. There are highways that are gone, bridges gone, and, of course, buildings that are gone. I've heard varying numbers of deaths due to the storm but there are still areas that have not been visited because there is simply no way to get to them other than helicopter fly overs. Fortunately, these types of storms are not "normal" for us. Certainly THAT is good news. But, the bad news is that our infrastructure is not prepared for this type of thing. Also, our personal and governmental structure is basically not prepared. Curfews have been place since early on and I've not traveled so that the people, equipment and supplies that are needed can more easily get to where it is really needed. However, what little I've personally observed is amazing. We did get cell and land line phones back yesterday and just this morning slow internet is available. My wife went out early this morning in the hopes of getting some fresh fruit and milk. It took longer than "normal" but she returned with those supplies. Only one grocery store had those things in stock though and of the three stores she stopped into only one was accepting limited credit card payments. Apparently the local gas stations have received fresh supplies of gas but there are still long lines to get it. I'm guessing that by Friday things should be getting back closer to "normal". Unfortunately, I can't say the same for other nearby areas where I'm sure it will take months (if not years) to find any sense of "normalcy"đ. Bill p.s. I store my Ollie in a storage yard about 10 miles from my home. I'm assuming that it is still there and undamaged - I'll try to go for a visit by the weekend.21 points
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A few lessons learned from the recent storm here in Western North Carolina: 1: Get and/or make a copy of any drug prescription(s) you may have. A neighbor of our went to CVS to get a refill for one of his meds. Due to having no computer and/or internet access the pharmacy could not verify his prescription and, therefore, had to deny his request. They advised him to go to the local hospital where he could see a doctor to get a new script. 2: Keep a supply of cash (in small bills) on hand. Since power and access to computers/internet was lost in the region, the only way to get any services and/or products was to have cash. 3: Keep at least a 1/2 tank of gas in your vehicle(s) at all times. First the power went out. This caused the gas stations to not be able to pump the gas that they had on hand. Second, the power came back on but then there was "panic" buying and long lines to get gas. Third, when the gas stations were re-supplied there were still long lines due to the "panic" and uncertainty of when or if gas would be available in the future. 4: Keep bottled water on hand. Obviously the amount partially depends on the number of people, the area where you live - to include climate and time of year. 5: Consider some type of satellite communications device. This can be something as "simple" as a personal communications device like the Garmin InReach mini, a satellite phone, or Starlink. Bill18 points
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Camping at the Dinosaur National Monument, at the Green River campground, and couldn't eat on time because of the people wandering by saying "Is that an Oliver?" or "What kind of trailer is that?" I think most folks had already eaten and were doing their after dinner walkabout, but I got back late after hiking in the desert. Of course I'm not going to blow them off because I LOVE talking about my trailer. I had hoped to eat outside and watch the sunset but nope, by the time all the interested parties were gone, it was dark and I'm eating inside. I might have part of the blame for this.17 points
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This long awaited swap-mod is now checked off my to-do list! Like many, I tolerated the noisy Dometic Penguin ll long enough; so glad I was finally able to take decisive action with this install. After a couple years of mulling over the various replacement models being marketed, a unit emerged that caught my attention; the newly available Atmos 4.4 seemingly met all of my expectations. I will forego the removal of the Dometic, here is how I proceeded forward: First and foremost, all AC and DC power sources were turned OFF! Scaffolding and equipment/supplies were then staged for Dometic âliftoffâ and subsequent Atmos âlunar landingâ (only appropriate since I live a couple miles from the NASA Mission Control Center in Houston). Roof area in need of cleaning. Notice the raised fiberglass landing on my year model and that the former condensate drain tube was simply disconnected rather than cutoff. Roof area throughly cleaned and prepped. I decided to adhere the square self-adhesive foam roof seal directly onto the fiberglass and then apply non-leveling Dicor around the cutout perimeter to further ensure the best seal possible. In positioning the foam seal, care was taken to center it as evenly possible, thereby allowing about 1/4-3/8â of exposed fiberglass to lay a bead of the Dicor and finger smooth to finish. Interior view of the Atmos being positioned over the roof cutout. Note the use of the mounting bolts as a guide, as recommended by SDG. Because the ârough cutâ edges of the layers of fiberglass (inner and outer hulls, and spacial filler) were inconsistent, I used the foam seal as a reference to accurately center and align the unit; distances measured to each respective bolt. Initially, installation instructions were followed by adhering the supplied straight piece of self-adhesive foam onto the bottom of the unit as a rear support, but it did not make contact with the roof due to relief of the aforementioned fiberglass landing. Alternatively, the foam piece was cut in half and each adhered onto the fiberglass, in like manner as the square seal, along the outer edges of said landing. This adaptation proved very effective in application and purpose, as the last of the next three pics demonstrates. Now that the exterior unit is properly positioned and supported, itâs back inside to further installation. As a side note, I made use of a portable a/c to buffer the heat and humidity of the day! Although my son helped with the heavy lifting and positioning, I cut him loose and completed the remaining tasks solo. Before proceeding, I used foil tape to treat the end of the aforementioned condensate drain tube and secure it to the side. Next the installation of the fabric air plate duct subassembly was started (provided Dreiha Atmos 4.4 Manual details the process). Note I used foil tape on both the upper (at Atmos bottom) and lower (at mounting frame) duct plates, even though most installs viewed applied to the mounting frame plate only. Between the upper and lower duct plate installs, the ceiling assembly mounting frame was bolted in place and hand torqued using a screwdriver only (torque specified in Manual). The AC power connection was very straightforward. The ceiling assemblyâs junction box cover was removed, a strain relief fitting installed at one end (the other end had a preinstalled protector) and respective wires routed inside. I reused the Wago Lever-Nuts from the Dometic install, but first tinned the stranded wires of the Atmos lead for optimum assurance in application; electrical tape was used to further secure the Wago connectors. Ground wires were secured per the Manual. The junction box cover was then replaced, DC thermostat wire bundle loom wrapped and tucked away for future use, and ceiling grille fastened in place. . Iâm very pleased with this mod, quality of the Atmos and ease of installation! I should mention that SDG preinstalled a SoftStartRV. I will provide an update once the furnace wiring and thermostat mount is completed. A special shoutout to @rideadeuce for forging the way with his install of an Atmos!16 points
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16 points
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We recently returned from a week-and-a-half-long trip through Glacier and Banff for my 50th Birthday. Farily last minute all 3 of my girls decided to join us on this trip. This created some logistical challenges we had to figure out. We got it all worked out but it left us with one night where no one had a place to stay except in the Ollie. That meant all 5 of us sleeping in the trailer! Who says it is just a couple's trailer, bring on the family camping đ Not a great picture but had to share. The girls were great sports about it and we had a fun night hanging out and watching a movie. We ended up having a wonderful birthday trip through Glacier and Banff. It was our first time in Banff and it did not disappoint. An amazing hike up Avalanche Lake in Glacier. And then we got an amazing site in Banff Tunnel Mountain II Lake Louise did not disappoint either. We also had a great time talking with our neighbor, who was headed to Alaska in their EarthRoamer (pricey little machine)! Overall, an incredible way to celebrate a 50th birthday!16 points
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I have been chasing down the solution to a Norcold refrigeration problem for 18 months. My fridge worked well on AC, so so on DC and inadequately on propane. The best it would do on gas was 7-10 degrees in the freezer and only 50 in the fridg section. We do a lot of boondocking and really wanted to keep the gas option. Here are the various steps I took one at a time without success: Pulled the fridge and cleaned the burner tube, changed the thermistor (3 times), changed the main board, checked the gas pressure, changed the thermostat and added a dual extra fan to the top, changed the DC board (one to the right of the main board), changed the eyebrow board, added venting, added insulation. All of these steps were recommended by techs who I paid. The last tech I hired told me that I needed to replace the cooling unit since I was wanting to keep the existing model. Unfortunately, Norcold no longer makes the N412.3 model and replacement cooling units are out of stock. I was advised to find a cooling unit from a 3rd party, order it and then pay the tech to install it. The first cooling unit manufacturer that I contacted did not make units for this smaller fridge model and recommended talking to a guy in Olive Branch MS who rebuilds cooling unit. When I spoke with this gentleman in MS on the phone, he was far more than helpful and told me that my cooling unit was not the problem. He told me to remove my burner and soak the orifice in a high percentage alcohol for a few hours, then blow it out with a compressor and reinstall. Now mind you that my flame looked fine and didnât seem to be a problem to me or to the two professionals that previously looked at it. 80 year old Mr. David Force, owner of Cooling Unit Warehouse explained that there was a paraffin buildup in my orifice and that although my flameâs appearance didnât visibly change after cleaning it, the temperature of the flame had been slightly below the necessary temperature. He said that a 10-degree flame difference can change everything. Bottom line, I followed Davidâs advice, the fridge has been working like a champ for 50 hours on propane so far. I wish I had known this before I spent 18 months and 7-800 dollars on un-needed parts. Nevertheless I am thankful that it works like it is supposed to so that we can head out next week for a month long trip. I'm posting this in hopes that someone can avoid a refrigerator adventure.15 points
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This is a duplicate of a post I made on the Facebook Oliver ownerâs page. Iâm sharing here for those not on Facebook that may be interested in a dehumidifier option for their Oliver. We were experiencing rainy and cool weather at the rally and conditions in the Olivers were getting steamy. Facebook post: Temperature and humidity outside at Lake Guntersville state park are 62deg and 94% humidity this morning. Inside OllieHaus itâs a perfect 73 deg and thanks to our counter top dehumidifier, itâs a very comfortable 46% humidity with all windows closed. No heat or AC needed. Loving life in our Oliver!! Edit: Hereâs a link on Amazon for the dehumidifier if interested: Dehumidifier15 points
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They put us on their November calendar. After running our trip, every time I sat on the old cushions, I thought it would be a shame to merely reupholster with new cloth yet keep the 9-year-old foam. When we dropped them off, I asked about new foam. He said the quality of foam for seating they carry is far superior to what we showed them in the old cushions. We went with 24x25" bottoms with 5" new foam (1" taller) and with the batting and fabric, the cushions are closer to 6" tall. We had 2" clearance under the window frames with the old cushions. The new ones just fill the opening and stay nicely. Went with the original sized 4" foam for the seat backs. All new foam, batting, fabric, zippers with newly corded edges. Chris loves the color given her Red, White and Blue Oliver theme! We spent just under $500 out the door. Which for me was better than the $350 for upholstery only. Soon, she will look as good as she tows or provides inverter power!15 points
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This morning we had the 5 leaf pack installed on Hull #634 XPLOR at the Alcan shop here in Grand Junction, CO. We had an excellent experience from start to finish. We opted for the upgraded heavier duty wet bolts, nyloc nuts, Alcan HD 2 1/2â shackles. Our Monroe shocks are still in good shape with less than 2500 miles on them. Over all very happy with the work performed by Tucker at Alcan, he has installed the custom 5 leaf pack on a number of Olivers. Lew the owner was excellent to deal with and explained everything in detail. If you have questions about the install, parts or pricing, give Lew a call. Now we can get on with our trip to Utah, Wyoming and maybe Montana. Onward & Safe Travels! Drop off early morning - yes we hit the loves to top off with diesel, saving 76 cents per gallon with our TDS Open Roads Fleet card. We love LOVES. Ha! Thanking Lew 2.5 hrs later after the new leaf packs were installed. Gotta have a little swag.. Decal swag - Optional upgraded wet bolts. Torque specs -15 points
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Iâm sure everyone is aware of the flash flood we experienced here over the weekend. Weâre soggy but okay. Our neighbors north in Comfort, Kerrville and Hunt didnât fare as well. Youâve heard about the childrenâs camps along the Guadalupe River that were affected, there were also homes and a couple of RV Parks. Iâve learned that one RV park had all RVâs washed away, some campers got to higher ground, some didnât. July 4 weekend, everything was full and the river came up so fast there was little time to react. There is a huge first responder turn out, churchâs, and private companies also. Our local grocery store chain, HEB, was one of the first on site with disaster recovery products, supplies and food. HEB was founded in Kerrville. I know some fellow Oliver owners have camped at Guadalupe River State Park just 9 miles from our house. I donât have a status on the park. Please keep this area in your thoughts and prayers. There are still a lot of missing people so the death toll will continue to rise. Mike14 points
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14 points
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I visited Alcan Spring today in Grand Junction CO. I was impressed by their operation and service, what they were able to accomplish on a minutes notice. As a medium-sized manufacturer and automotive service company, I quickly noted their company quality, efficiency and fully capable staff (see picture of a portion of their operation). I purchased leaf springs for our Oliver, including HD shackles, new wet bolts and U-bolts (pic2). Our Oliver requires the 50.00 length axles. They measured our Oliver. For comparison they manually measured their 50.50 springs which they stock for Oliver customers. I asked them how can I go about getting the correct D52 axles for our hull. They replied that the could special order axles for me and charge me the same price as the axles they stock and buy in bulk for Oliver owners. And that's what I did. Getting my special-order axles will take 6-8 weeks and they will ship to me when ready. I was out the door in an hour. Four staff members were working together to help me. Simply put, they were awesome! I had a smile on my face, the whole way to Montrose to see our friend Ken. He was happy to see the parts, since he has a full installation scheduled soon. RE the purpose of this thread. Alcan only sells the Dexter Nev-R Lube axles. They report good reliability with these sealed bearings, not hearing of premature failures. So they do not have experience with the EZ Lube product. When asked about replacement bearings for the Nev-R Lub, they replied they would ask their Dexter rep and get me a quote. @CRM if you have a link for the correct Timken brand replacement Nev-R Lube bearings, please advise. I appreciate that @John Dorrer has posted his experience so far, and of course if/when any of us have failures, we should read it on our OTT Forum. I'll be working my installation later this summer and will start a new post documenting the job. Like I mentioned before, it will be fun getting into this! đ14 points
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We were on our Way home from the Hershey PA show when we stopped to stretch our legs. A couple came up to us and said they had been following us for about 20 miles hoping we would stop so they could see our trailer. It turned out they had a you tube channel. You never know who you might meet on the road. Bill14 points
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I just got back from the facility where I store my Oliver. I'm very happy to report that all is well, Twist is still there high and dry. Unfortunately though I had several discussions with people that live in and around the town of Mills River. All of those that I talked to are still without power, water and sewer. Free water is being distributed in a number of places as is free food. Even while I was at the storage yard a young fellow drove by with cases of water in the back of his truck asking if anyone needed it. To his credit - he wouldn't even take the $20 bill I offered him to help pay for his gas. And, out of the five people that were near me only one took a case of water because the rest of us simply didn't need it. A local Holiday Inn is offering free showers to anyone needing one. FEMA has arrived in our town as of this afternoon and I noticed that several of the downed power lines that were down as I drove back towards town were being worked on. Our electric provider (Duke Energy) has posted that virtually all of the Transylvania County residents should have restored power no later than Friday evening. And, most important, it has been reported that there have been no deaths in the county due to this storm. Bill14 points
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@Mike and Carol Thank you Mike for your concern. As reported the Western NC foothills and mountain areas are in really bad shape in a lot of areas. A close friend of mine who works for Duke power told me it looks like a war zone. We did have had friends and neighbors check on our home and to our surprise we were spared and had no damage with exception of a few pines over on the ridge we live on. Sadly, this is not the same report for many of our neighbors. Our LNG Generac standby generator ran for 60 hrs before our power was restored keeping our home on đŻ full power. We are very grateful to say the least. All this said our hearts our heavy for ALL impacted by this storm. I40 which connects eastern Tenn with western NC is closed and it appears it will be for a long time. Our Starlink mini has been a game changer with regard to staying up to date. I have made several attempts to call and txt topgun2 and have not had any success. Mike I am glad hear you got through this morning. We are both relieved he and Sue are ok. I would ask everyone to take a moment and lift up ALL people impacted by this storm in your thoughts and prayers. David & Kathy14 points
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Whenever I'm in my Ollie, I find myself thinking, "This is a great trailer. I love it!" And then I read something like this: https://www.autoevolution.com/news/youtuber-goes-dark-after-getting-legal-threats-from-big-name-rv-brand-238585.html I know it's confirmation bias, but this article makes me feel good about my Ollie. I feel bad for those folks mentioned in the article, but I feel even better about my decision to drop the $$ for the Oliver. Yes, I've had a couple minor issues but really, compared to this article and hundreds of similar articles, my issues are nothing. And the best part is that whatever little issue I have, I can get immediate personal attention from the service department. It seems that a lot of people who buy SOB trailers have a lot of problems and when they try to get help, well, good luck with that. So, thank you OTT for selling me a quality product and keeping me far away from all those headaches.14 points
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The unimaginable has once again, tragically, become a reality. A large number of those lost were children. I cannot imagine the grief of their surviving families. Here's how you can help, at least monetarily. Click on any one of the links. They all need your support. The needs are immediate, but I can tell you from experience, the needs will be long, for many organizations. If you feel you can afford it, click on a monthly donation. Or, just remember to contribute from time to time. My first is always Salvation Army. They were first on site, according to my mom, when our home was destroyed by a tornado when I was a few years old. And, they do so much good, in so many ways, in every community they serve. If you're still working, some generous companies do matching funds. Sometimes, for retirees, too. You can help, outside of Texas, by giving blood, as well. May God wrap his arms around the survivors, and give them solace, and peace.. Here's where you can donate to help Central Texas flood recovery - CBS Texas https://share.google/mLDD7AfFVtWQ5fajI13 points
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Lots to celebrate today. Having lived in other countries it is clear to me that thereâs no place like the US of A!13 points
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Happy 4th of July! Let Freedom Ring! đșđžđșđžđșđžđșđžđșđžđșđž Patriot13 points
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BaseCamp550 - just S of Ridgway CO, 8 miles N of Ouray, our view from the back of campsite #17 looking southeast. The tallest peak on the right is Mt Sneffels, one magnificent Colorado 14er, simply amazing! đ Certainly our best campsite in 5 weeks travel. An older RV park from the 70s. Though I have a leaf-blower, if I had my weed-whacker I'd clean up this site a bit. The view makes up for it and we have a triple-wide spot between a cabin, their front facing away, and the laundry which makes it private, not having RVs left and right. It's just so nice!13 points
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To all those that served our great nation - THANK YOU To all those that served our great nation and didn't make it back - WE REMEMBER AND HONOR YOU13 points
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Yesterday morning we left Hull #634 XPLOR, with Collin and Gavin owners of CGi who gave it the CGI 3 step Ceramic coating process. We really like that they kept our Oliver overnight which allowed the ceramic coating to cure for at least 4 hours inside their shop. All we could say this morning when they opened their shop door was WOW! WOW! WOW! đ€© Our Oliver looked better than the day we took delivery June 16th of 2020. Their work is excellent and the attention to detail is truly amazing. With over 130 Oliver Travel Trailers under their belt they truly are masters at their craft. The CGI team knows exactly how to take care of ALL things Oliver gelcoat. We also had our windows and wheels ceramic coated along with everything white on our Oliver. This was an excellent seamless experience and a valuable investment in our Oliver. đđđđđ Patriot đșđž One of several of their YouTube videos-13 points
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10,000 mile update on Alcan springs: A year had passed since my dreaded roadside leaf spring break and 10,000 miles are on the Ollie with Alcan springs underneath so I thought I would provide my update. Ride height - rear bumper rides approx 1/2â higher than stock Ride performance - first 500 miles seemed a bit stiffer than stock with a few more items from counter and beds on the floor but the springs settled-in after that and there is no observed difference inside the trailer now (no additional stuff found fallen to the floor). Trailer tracks the same as stock, however visible jouncing (up and down) and side to side (roll) are observed to be less pronounced than stock. I also noticed when doing annual bearing maintenance that the spring shackles no longer invert when both wheels on the same side are jacked off the ground. Overall impression - had I known that a heavier capacity, 5-leaf spring, made in the US with US steel and featuring a design with the second leaf which extended all the way under each spring eye was available sooner I would have swapped sooner, just as I had previously done with solid stainless lug nuts and US made Timken bearings. No regrets on the upgrade from stock springs.13 points
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FYI: Quartzite "Proving Grounds" -- We opted-in on a Solar Tracker at the owner's rally last year which Coy and his business partner, Joe designed. It's been running straight through since arriving at the Q last Monday. The tracker uses onboard GPS, MPPT charge controller, and other programs to "track" the sun's progression throughout the day. It stows itself at sunset then "wakes" up after sunrise, resets its position and its 200W solar module angle to optimize power generation. Even with the low winter sun angles here at the Q, the tracker get's our 300A-Hr Battle Borns back to 100%SOC by noon-ish to 1pm. We're still putting it through its "shake-down" cruise during this trip. More later...13 points
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I updated my batteries with assistance of a friend who does solar installs for a living. This is a bit different than most of the installs I have seen here in that we used two 400 AH EG4 rackmount batteries. After removing the rackmount handles from the batteries and the battery tray from the Oliver they fit perfectly. There was a bolt in the bottom of the battery cabinet that was an issue. We put in 1 inch square aluminum rods on the floor of the cabinet to raise the batteries above the bolt head. We also replaced the Xamp solar charger with a Victron solar charger 100/30, added Victron lynx shunt, Victron distributor, and Victron cerbo with a touch screen (7" model). This fit perfectly in the hole left by the removal of the Xamp solar charger. To get the cables from the cerbo to the touch screen I ordered an extra HDMI extension cable and USB cable (approx. 15'). I ran the cables to the back of the camper in the tray behind the cabinet and then down the wall in the back, under the basement, and back up under the street side bed. Trying to pu the wire down next to the pantry would not work. It was too tight. I believe Victron is planning on replacing the HDMI cable with the small USB connections this spring. Didn't help me, but maybe it would help you. In addition we added a solar disconnect which you can see below. In the pictures below. These batteries can be powered off and the breaker thrown to disconnect. They also come with automatic fire suppressants, two per battery. Cost was $1200 per battery (400 AH, each). This was the first stage of the upgrade. At some point I may replace the Xantrex 2000 inverter, but for now it works well for us. Unfortunately the Xantrex and Victron do not talk to each other. That is why you don't see information on the touch screen about the AC loads and AC input. We have taken it on a couple of trips now and we do not come close to making a dent in the batteries. I added an extra battery in case we need to replace our 3-way fridge in the near future. So far it is doing well. I replaced a power board on it a while back, but since then no issues. Parts are harder to come by now though.13 points
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My wife Jane (Hospice nurse) and I (former Bosch employee) retired earlier this year and after a cross country trip to California from home base in Chicago by car, decided we needed to investigate trailers. We had followed Oliver for a year or two, and looked at fiberglass truck bed campers prior to purchasing this Elite2. Very happy with our decision - but making many rookie mistakes as we werenât camper prior. So far, only correctable mistakes and a few serious close calls! We head to Hohenwald tomorrow for a factory tour. Currently enjoying Green River Lake State Park in Campbellsville, KY ( beautiful park)! hope to meet you all in our coming travels! Rich and Jane Walker13 points
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Just brought her home, new to us 2017 Elite II. Hull 207. We are so excited to be here and to be the proud new owners of this beauty! We have a Casita independence which we will be selling. We live in NH. We both retired in the past few years and want to explore our amazing United States while we are still in our go go years. We are looking forward to learning about the Ollie and enjoying adventures on the road.13 points
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Our SL mini arrived today. Very impressed with the ease of a 10 minute set up including PW and latest updates. I think this will do the trick for us as far as comm goes. It even fits down in my Osprey Day Lite pack. Waiting on the Stiker protective case which is scheduled for delivery this sat. I will post up more user info once we get back on the road and put this tech to use. SpaceX we have a Starlink lift off!! đ Front yard initial set up. The mini fits easily in my Osprey Daylite plus pack.13 points
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I always thought that it we had a blackout or local crisis, God forbid a forest fire (we live in the Prescott NF) that we could get in the Oliver and relatively quickly get to safety! Those of you in hurricane climates should certainly understand the idea! We keep ours as many of you do, 95% ready for the next trip. We start the fridge, stock the pantry, pack clothes, fill the TV with grill and lawn chairs, all kept in one area of a shed, and we're ready to go in little time. So we just got back from a 5-week trip, washed and parked the Oliver Saturday. Were out for the day yesterday and when we returned the house felt hot. Later is was apparent our home A/C was not cooling, thermostat set at 77F was 83F actual. We didn't sleep well last night, opened the windows where at our elevation we got down to 75 hours after the blazing Arizona sun had set! Called for service and the best they could do is Wednesday afternoon. We plugged in the Ollie this afternoon. We are back to camping the next two nights on the edge of our property! đ12 points
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This will be a first for us, though common to many of you who have more time for travel. I have 6 weeks off work, for our personal longest camping trip ever. I was inspired by a post our friend Steve @ScubaRx made last year where wrote that he and Tali often travel across country without reservations! This is difficult for the Project Manager in me, but should make for a spontaneous and exciting adventure! First stop just 5 hours from home, weâll stay 2 nights up at 7760 ft in this beautiful McGaffey Campground SE of Gallup NM.12 points
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Mike, Good to hear you and your family are OK. We have been following this tragic storm aftermath closely. So sad to hear about this after our recent hurricane in NC. One of the charities we like are normally on the ground quickly in disaster situations like this one. Will do on the thoughts and prayers for everyone in the area.12 points
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New Mexico is a wonderful state in its hidden treasures from the area NE of ABQ (where Art lives) up to Santa Fe and to Taos NM, then further up to Raton NM for the Santa Fe Trail Balloon Rally (we just happened by this rally when moving from VA to AZ back in 2005)! Then there is Ruidoso! It's Gods Country in Lincoln County NM of Billy-the-Kid and Smokey-the-Bear fame. Don't travel across southern NM without spending some time here. The area is named the White Mountains of NM, wild elk and feral horses walking the city streets daily and so many cute carvings Smokey is shops everywhere. If you're ever traveling through Albuquerque and need breakfast, lunch or dinner, or just great sides to go, like their amazing salsa and beans, Mexican meats and stews and much more, you've got to stop at the Frontier Restaurant. Just one exit S on I-25 of I-40, head a few blocks east on Central. This is my 4th visit here but the first time I parallel parked with an Oliver! (There was a car behind me when I parked and just a narrow alley in front). It worked out great and we could even keep an eye on our rig from the window seat! Chris had the Taco Salad and I enjoyed the Frontier Burrito, pints of salsa and beans to go for upcoming campsite dinners!12 points
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Hi, new to the community, having bought hull #1165, a 2022 LE2, on January 2nd! I've gained lots of pre-purchase info browsing these forums as a guest and would like to start off with a thank you! I appreciate everyone's help so much! Paul12 points
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Wishing everyone and their families Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Bill and Debbie LE2 #75 North Carolina12 points
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I decided to chime in on this because I donât think youâre missing anything, your discharge rate is perfectly correct! All the given advice is good, but itâ can be a bit miss-leading to fully understand whats going on. I hope to provide a better explanation, and show you a simple and very accurate way to check your âparasiteâ loads, which Iâll refer to as normal âstand-byâ loads. Your 390 amp hour battery with a daily discharge rate of 3% equates to a loss of 11.7 amp hours over a 24 hour period. This further equates to a stand-by load of 0.48 amps, which is not overly excessive considering all the electronic devices in the Oliver. Devices with memories, remotes, touch lights, rain sensors, USB ports, electronic boards, etc., can each draw milliamp currents even when turned off, and they do add up quickly. I took some current readings from my own trailer to show you what I mean. Itâs the same year as yours and it also has a 390 amp hour battery. Remarkably, the values add up to exactly the same current as your calculated load. But more importantly, it shows that there is no single extraordinary load: Fuse 2, Various electronics = 0.117 amps Fuse 4, Furnace = 0.012 amps Fuse 5, Main lighting = .003 amps Fuse 6, Fans = 0.016 amps Fuse 7, Water heater = 0.113 amps Fuse 8, Radio = .204 amps Fuse 9, USB outlets = 0.007 amps Fuse 10, USB outlets = 0.009 amps Total = 0.481 amps These measurements were done with a precision multimeter having a resolution of 3 decimal points. My Victron shunt has a resolution of 2 decimal points and it showed a lessor current of 0.42 amps. My Clamp-on Amp Meter has a resolution of 1 decimal point, and it showed a higher current of 0.5 amps. This demonstrates how subjective and inaccurate some of these measurement methods can be when dealing with such small milliamp values. Another potential misconception is that the Lithionics BMS App will provide the overall charge and discharge values. Itâs only true to the extent that it provides values for the battery selected, but not for each battery combined. For example; the 390 amp hour package consists of three 130 amp hour batteries. If the overall load is 3 amps, then the App will show each battery discharging at 1 amp. Additionally, itâs only accurate to 0 decimal points so it wonât show anything less than 1 amp. This is another good justification for installing a Shunt. There are a number of ways to measure stand-by or parasite current, but the easiest and most accurate way is with an inexpensive Multimeter through the fuse box. It will show the load of each circuit, but not each component on the circuit. Thats okay because some of the individual component loads are too small to be accurately measured anyway. Caution: When using the ammeter function, the meter is in-line with the circuit. This means that the current is running through the leads and meter. So donât use it with loads greater than itâs rated maximum current, which is typically 10 amps. Before testing, make sure that everything is off including the inverter/charger and solar (Solar switch is in the street side overhead cabinet.) Make sure shore power is unplugged too. Pull each fuse one at a time and the red LED âblown fuseâ indicator will light-up if there is any load. Put your ammeter leads on each leg of the fuse socket and read the current. Add up the values and you will have an accurate overall stand-by load. FYI, the inverter/charger does not go through the fuse box, but it will add another 0.2 amps load if left on. I keep my trailer undercover without shore power and the batteries also discharge rather quickly. In fact the shunt screen shot below shows that it will discharge in 10 days. I considered adding a battery master switch, but it wasnât a viable option for a number of reasons which is why I believe that Oliver doesn't install them either. I ended up getting an auxiliary solar panel, with charge controller, and I mounted it on the roof to keep the batteries at 100%. It was better than running an extension cord and risking complete discharge mishaps. Hope this helps Cheers, Geoff12 points
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I have been on this forum for many years as my wife and I researched, learned, and awaited when it made sense for us to join the clan of Oliver ownership. First, I want to thank this group for all you have shared and knowledge over the years. My wife and I were introduced to Oliver a few years back. Like many of you once we saw the quality, community, and how Oliver conducts themselves we had a hardtime accepting anything we saw in other places. We have camped with our kids as they grew up and camped in many different ways including car camping, tent camping, yurt camping, popup camping, teardrop, and renting a few different types of TT. We thought it would be a few more years before we jump into Oliver ownership since we still have one at home for 2 more years. But all the stars aligned this summer and we decided to pull the trigger. We are now the owners of hull #1305 after working with @Snake River Idaho who were great to work with and had a wonderful trailer they had decided to part ways with (such great people to work with and a great reflection on the Oliver community). We just got home from a one-week trip to bring her back home. There is certainly a lot that goes into anyone making this decision. For us, we had heard stories on this forum about health issues making it hard or impossible to do things like this. We have also been personally close to a number of these stories with quite a few of them happening recently. So since we found ourselves in a place financially to do it we decided we were not going to wait any longer even though we have to account for a 3rd sleeper for 2 more years (which on the week trip home she did wonderfully on via the dinette setup each night). The trip home was wonderful. Despite spending a few years learning and researching, doing it for real still had me learning and trying to figure things out. We did have a few minor events on the trip home we had to figure out like the overly sensitive LP/CO2 sensor that woke us up in the middle of the night the first two nights. Or that leather cushions on fiberglass don't stay in place and slide right off (does anyone have a remedy for this?). But we got to experience things on the trip home we have always wanted to but never had before like Bannack State Park Ghost Town one of the most well-preserved ghost towns in Montana and a beautiful sunset in the middle of nowhere outside Dillion MT. Or the Atomic Museum (way cooler and more educational than my wife, I, or our girls expected) outside Arco Idaho along with Craters of the Moon (meeting up with some friends who just happened to be passing through). Not to mention and most importantly having some dedicated time with our youngest laughing, talking and playing games (she is in the final two years of High School and missing her older sisters so getting her away from all the teenage struggles and into a quiet place allowing her to connect with mom and dad and nature and history was wonderful!). We did the showering in the Oliver and I have to say it was easier than I thought. I am 6 foot 1 and while tight it worked great. We had a couple of nights when all our girls were able to come meet up with us and we spent those nights in the Ollie playing games, and eating dinner while watching the Olympics. I have to give a shout-out to @Foy_Mirna for his lagoon table as it was a major win for those nights being able to get all 5 of us around the table again (I expected it to feel more cramped with 5 in the trailer but it did not)! Towing the trailer was also a great experience. I am glad because my wife towed pretty much the entire trip given I was on a business trip the day before pick up and lost my wallet so no driver's license for me. We live in North Idaho so going up and down mountains will be a thing for us no matter what direction we head. It and the truck did great up and down passes, construction zones, and passing semi-trucks. We even had a day driving where we saw 20 MPH wind gusts and my wife did not even realize how windy it was until I told her. My wife did great (she even backed us into a camp spot on the last night and did great!). We head out on the next trip in a week and are very excited! Thanks for letting me learn and take part in this community over the last few years. We hope to see some of you on the road in the coming years.12 points
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I am currently acting as the Service Director overseeing the service department & technical support. Jason B. & Mike will be handling more of the daily activities while I will be putting a bit more time in traveling to our dealer partners assisting with Sales & Service training. I would say 75% of the time I will still be here onsite working with Rodney in sales & Jason B & Mike in service.12 points
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Milton made landfall at Siesta key/Sarasota around 8:30. Moving very fast. Damages from wind, torrential rains, and tornadoes will be seen in a big part of the state. No power in many many places. About a quarter of our county, so far. My extended family and friends have all reported in. Safe and good.12 points
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I am talking to topgun2 as I type this post. He and Sue are safe and sound, with all services. I called again this morning and I was able to reach them. Iâm sure he will have stories to share when has full communications back. Mossey12 points
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As promised - below are some pics of Mr. Oliver's "Beast". I assume that the name derived from the fact that it is estimated that this Oliver weighs in at something at or near 10,000 pounds. Partially this is due to the interior counters being made of Corian - not fibergranite - the addition of the under carriage storage areas, the bed risers, etc. Shape eyes will note things like the lack of a rear window (no emergency exit), the location of the front and rear under carriage storage, the location of the water heater, the design of the reading lights and "coat" hooks and bath faucet, single entry step, etc. Enjoy this classic! Bill12 points
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Did I say ordered? I did! That is incorrect. We put down money on one of the showroom demos. We are/will be owners of #1550. And going back to lessons learned: We were insured with Safeco for replacement cost. But, we only get the replacement cost IF we purchase a NEW "similar" unit. And that money goes straight to the dealer. If we never buy, we only get the valuation. That's why the valuation was so important. I believe another consideration for everyone is that with ~ 2000 units out there and with more on the market, a good first cut valuation is much easier for the insurance companies. Finally - on the long 6 hour drive home after the accident, the traumatic events settled on us and became real. We had lost a central part of our retirement plan in just a few seconds! The "what next?" question finally came up. I won't lie - we talked about the options of more room or a fridge that you can access without sitting on the floor. We quickly came to our senses and realized that if we were ever in a similar situation again - we wanted to be in an Oliver. By the time we got half way home we were dreaming of the quiet Truma A/C!12 points
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After talking to an attorney friend itâs time to eat some crow and admit my mistake. The Oliver is an extremely well balanced trailer and I can get the truck and trl within all legal weight limits without the Anderson hitch, however, it was explained to me that vehicle oemâs install the class 3 hitch and derate it with the caveat of using a weight distribution hitch, he told me that there is no federal law to require me to use the wdh, however I could get in trouble on a state by state basis. so⊠after 8 yrs my options are, get an Anderson, or replace the class 3 hitch with a class 4, and replace my bumper to make it fit, I ordered an Anderson this morning. The next vehicle I order will be specâs with a class 4 hitch, sometimes lessons learned can be embarrassing, but it happensđ€·11 points
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We pulled into a campground for the night in Ft. Stockton Texas, I started to unhitch and noticed that the front jack foot was loose. I tightened it and checked the other two. The rear ones were tight. I checked them all right after we purchased our trailer in 2017 and havenât thought about them since. Probably something to check periodically and will add some blue loctite to each bolt. Probably not good to lose one, at least Iâd hate to run over one.11 points
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As usual (19th year in a row), Twist spent two months in the western states enjoying the scenery while I enjoyed the fishing. This year I basically did a repeat of the past few years by starting the fishing west of Buffalo, Wyoming and exiting via Dubois, Wyoming. Stops (in towns) on the way included Ten Sleep, Worland, Meeteetse, Cody, Cooke City, Moran Junction, and Dubois. Rivers and Creeks included Ten Sleep Creek, Wood River, Greybull River, North Fork of Shoshone River, Elk Creek, Clear Creek, Clark's Fork of the Yellowstone, Beartooth Creek, Hoodoo Creek, Dead Indian Creek, Cantrell Creek, Gros Ventre River, Fish Creek, Torrey Creek, Horse Creek, Frontier Creek, etc. Trout landed ranged from 8 inches to 18 inches and were brooks, rainbows, brown, cut-bows and cut throat. Early in the trip at about 5:20am the Ollie started rocking! Checking to make sure I was alone I peeked outside thinking I might see a grizzly bear. Yes, the fur was black but it was only a couple of cows scratching their faces on the bumper. Here are a few pics from the trip. Bill11 points
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