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Showing content with the highest reputation since 03/26/2025 in Posts

  1. I just wanted to share the absolute amazing experience we had with David and Kristine Hess, Jeff and other team members at Sea Biscuit Metal Designs, Johnson City Tennessee. We had the Oliver rear basket installed today. What great service! David, Kristine and Jeff greeted me, and Jeff got right to work on the installation. The rear basket is extremely well crafted, made with high grade materials and expert craftsmanship. An awesome addition to the Oliver!! For those who do not have the Oliver OEM rear bumper receiver option (like us), no problem as Sea Biscuit will provide the hardware necessary to mount the rear basket. Now what happened next is service I have never experienced before! Long story short, after all the hugs from Kristine and David, (yes they love meeting and hanging out with their customers!) I hooked up the trailer, did all my checks, put the tv in drive and as I slowly took off I felt some resistance. Must be the emergency brake I thought, well, turned out I forgot to raise the tongue jack! Yes, I know, I guess I was just so impressed and excited about the new basket, and the excellent service that I forgot about the jack! I usually use 6”x6” blocks on all the jacks for 2 reasons, to avoid extending the jacks too much, and secondly for this exact reason, ie if for whatever stupid reason I forget to raise the jacks they will just slide of the blocks. Needless to say, the tongue jack inside shaft was bent backwards approximately 45° and buckled. Anyway, that’s when David, Jeff and team jumped in, Dave cut off approx. 4” where the shaft was bent/buckled, aligned the 2 straight pieces then welded them back together. This was shortly before noon, so the team worked into their lunch hour and David had to push out another appointment! I obviously offered compensation, but David refused! I cannot express my gratitude enough to David, Jeff and team! Sea Biscuit is a great company and David, Kristine and their crew are awesome people!!! Thank you so much again!
    7 points
  2. Why not just use the city water connection to flush all the lines? Then all the flush water will go into the gray tank. Also you don’t have to run your pump. Some folks (myself included) will sometimes overthink a simple issue. Oliver dropped the ball on this one.
    6 points
  3. The reason they are installed is that Oliver's main frame is Aluminum, but the axles are mounted with a reinforced steel frame. Where those two metals meet there could be corrosion unless some other "sacrificial" item is added touching both steel and aluminum. Due to electrolysis, the zincs dissolve away and will look ratty and crumbled so you see it when it's time to replace them. That can take a very long time on the Oliver hull unless you are driving in wet/salty conditions. (Like maybe 10 years or more.) They are available at most boating supply stores or online as "round sacrificial zinc". $3 each. The factory service center also has them in stock and can mail you them if needed. The round ones shown are often used on outboard motors which are in salt water and fresh water...thus available at marine suppliers. Take a look at the 1:35 mark in this video on the chassis construction to see the actual installed anode. Hope that helps. CS
    6 points
  4. Gary, To help you get a range let's think of it like this: Option 1: Factory Upgrade: $10K + If you upgrade at the factory you can get an accurate quote by contacting service via email. My guess is around $10K to add 3 Lithionics batteries and a new 3000 Xantrex Inv/Charger. One reason for the high price is uprading to a new 3000 Xantrex Inverter Charger would also likely have them change around some wiring in your trailer to enable it to run your AC off of your new batteries. The other thing you discussed was a fridge replacement with a compressor fridge. Those are a very time consuming upgrade and costly. A real quote for time and cost can be had via email to Oliver Service. Option 2: Self Upgrade with help from friends: $1-2K About the lowest cost would be to drop in (1) Epoch Essentials 300AH Heated with Bluetooth battery for $999 (SKU: 12300A-H) and charge it with the existing charging circuits. You would likely be able to reuse all the big battery cables you have now. If you dropped in 2 (about $2K including cables) then you would have 600AH capacity about 3x what you have now...and that would enable you to switch to a new fridge. Hope that helps. Craig
    6 points
  5. If your current PD4000 Charging board does not have the AGM/Lithium Jumper setting, the PD4000 Series Lithium converter upgrade board is available via E-Trailer. Please check which original converter board you have....60Amp or 45 Amp. (ours was 60Amp) To upgrade your trailer if you have a 45Amp board, stick with the 45AMP LI plug in...if you have 60Amp board, then use 60amp LI version. (Safety for wires is important.) This upgrade only takes about 30 minutes to complete. Here's the overview link to the Progressive dynamics site that shows the lithium replacement part number. https://www.progressivedyn.com/lithium-converter-replacement-units/ Snip from that page: E-Trailer has both boards available. 45 Amp Version https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories-and-Parts/Progressive-Dynamics/PD4045CSV.html?feed=npn&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD_vMtnZsg_-Is9SAt6Ew5v33GB0V&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpem7gN-qjAMVpiytBh3oeBfeEAQYASABEgLqC_D_BwE 60 Amp Version https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories-and-Parts/Progressive-Dynamics/PD4060CSV.html?feed=npn&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD_vMtnZsg_-Is9SAt6Ew5v33GB0V&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIi-LJ9N-qjAMVY83CBB3qGQb2EAQYASABEgK0DvD_BwE One big difference between the bigger victron or xantrex charger/inverters is that they charge the batteries at >120Amp output...so faster charging. But you spend a lot more for functions you already have in your trailer. Often the simple path is often the best....with a simple plug in board upgrade and new LI batteries you'll be served for many years. Craig
    5 points
  6. @Imelda, to begin with you only need 2 (or even one) 12v lifepo4 batteries to replace x4 6v batteries. Your 6v batteries were wired to create 12v power.(first in series, then parallel.) If you don't understand this, and many don't. , I'd highly suggest that you a) go to the rally, and enlist the help of the many who have volunteered above or b) hire a local rv tech to install new battery(ies) and create additional important wiring connections. Imo, there is no real thing that is a "drop in" lifepo4 battery. Especially in your case, wired for 4 x 6 v batteries. You have done so many great projects on your own. But, this is critical. Loose, or improperly sized, or small wire diameter can cause a fire. Improper settings, or incorrect charging equipment can shorten the life, or disable new batteries, at the most inconvenient time. We have a lot of people on the forum who have "done their own" with lithium, but they have some extensive study and engineering and/or electrical background, including us. I've never heard of the second battety you posted. Imo, battleborn is great, and highly overpriced, but great customer service.. Please take some time, and continue to discuss here.
    5 points
  7. @Patriot finally got around to looking a my cables used to parallel the batteries. They are 4/0 and 12 inches eye to eye, I do agree with @jd1923 though that waiting until batteries are installed are probably best option. From the day I placed my orders I had the cables in hand 2 days later. This is a pic of my install, i chose to center each battery on existing tie down straps using 3/4 pvc sheet I had left over from previous project as a spacer. On the sides of the batteries on long length of battery compartment I used strips cut from a cheap Walmart cutting board so everything fit tight.
    5 points
  8. SOLVED - I think… Well, I feel a bit foolish, but the outside shower valves were open. They didn’t feel like it, but they were. Turning right (righty, tighty) there was considerable resistance, so I assumed (ass-u-ME) they were closed. Not the case at all he said blushingly. Dang I feel foolish! I believe a good test coming out of winterization, is to try and turn the shower valves on. If you hit a hard stop, they are on. A slight wiggle when turning right just may indicate an open valve. The temps went up to 96° before I turned the water off. The good news is the Truma is decalcified. Bad news is I am embarrassed.🙈
    4 points
  9. I see now in the pix that your trailer doesn't have solar on the roof. Sorry I forgot to look closely. Yes...you'll be good to go with new batteries that are being charged with 45A when plugged into shore power as a first step. Future: Rewiring for new Xantrex 3000 to run your A/C When you upgrade in the future to a Xantrex 3000 Inverter/Charger that you'll also likely be wanting to have some of the wiring swapped around to enable you to run the Air Conditioner off of the inverter and battery. In older units (Pre 2021) the Xantrex 2000W Inverter only unit, the AC inverter outputs are routed only to the Outlets of the trailer plus the Microwave outlet. The older units inverter is not wired to a breaker to feed the Air Conditioner circuit. In the day of AGM's it wasn't really a viable option to run AC off the inverter. Those wiring swaps will happen on installation of your new Inverter/Charger, and most changes happen on the back side of the PD4000 breaker box under the dinette. You'll also be needing to find a location for the new Xantrex 3000 display panel once the new Inv/Charger is in place. For future reference, here's a picture of the area under the street side bed where our Old Xantrex inverter was and the new Inverter/Charger was placed. It's the exact location of our hulls original Xantrex 2000 Inverter. We had to remove the old inverter and install a new carrier board for the new - larger size inverter. I could have gone with an Xantrex 3000 but did my design as a drop in replacement as opposed to a full upgrade for running the A/C off battery. Battery Box: You may or may not need to take out the battery tray. It depends on the height/size of the new batteries. In our upgrade we put in 2 - 315AH Lithionics and they fit in the tray with some spacers to take up extra space. Other folks that have upgraded to the larger form factor >400AH batteries have needed to remove the tray because the new batteries wouldn't fit the tray. Final Cable Cleanup: At the time that you do the upgrade of the Xantrex, you may want to consider cleaning up all the various wires that come into the battery box. This is what our 4 AGM cabling looked like at the factory. After cleaning up and adding buss bars you'll only have big battery connection cables left in the box. THIS is completely optional and not necessary but clearing out clutter makes troubleshooting on the road much easier. To clean up the mess of cables you would have all the grounds run to a single buss bar (under the street side bed) and then just one ground cable to the battery box. Likewise for the + 12V cables (red) that run out to the battery box. Good luck on your journey to Lithium. CS
    4 points
  10. I am not familiar with your specific setup, but in general there would be no limit on the size of the battery bank that your charger would be able to charge. We usually get about 130-150 Amps of charge from our Xantrex inverter/charger depending on the settings of the Xantrex. As you mentioned, a larger battery bank will take longer to reach full charge. Generally Zamp external solar charge ports connect directly to the positive and ground bus bars, assuming the wiring has not been modified to connect to an internal mounted solar charge controller. I think most if not all zamp freestanding solar panels have a built in charge controller. If so, no other charge controller is needed. If your trailer doesn’t have rooftop solar, it likely doesn’t have a solar charge controller.
    4 points
  11. GREE manufactures several like units including your Tosot, they are all seemingly the same as the Atmos. You got a very good deal and current pricing on Amazon is now $100 higher, but still a value buy. Others may be interested in knowing what added costs there may be, specifically tax and shipping if applicable. The TURBRO soft start is interesting and value priced, as well, however I would be concerned with its quality. And yes, you are better off having a soft start device if running on LFPs, good move and install! You may want to add an informational ‘Signature’, go to Account Settings.
    4 points
  12. Gary, aH stands for Amperes Hour, the number of amps a battery can provide in one hour. 100aH means the battery can provide 100 amps in one hour. There might be a more technical explanation that some of our techies can provide. We’ve found that our 300aH has been plenty and when we had 200aH for over a year we never had an issue. There is more useable power in a lithium than in an AGM. When we had our 400aH AGMs we got very near our limit while camping in cool cloudy weather at Glacier NP and Grand Teton NP. I had to run the generator because the solar was unable to keep up. Because you can take lithiums down lower than AGMs I don’t think we would have had the same problem. I will add that we don’t use the AC on battery power, run the fridge on propane, and are generally pretty conservative in our electricity use. Occasional microwave and blow dryer are the big loads. Mike
    4 points
  13. I'm currently in process with "option 2" and my "friends" have been @jd1923 and @Derek B here on the Oliver forum 🙂 Today I removed my 4 6v AGMs and installed 2 Epoch Essential 300aH lithium batteries. I happen to be 6'5" and strong enough to lift the batteries so the weight was not an issue for me..but it certainly could be for others (Each AGM battery is 66lbs. Each 300aH Lithium is 58lbs). I still have some work to do on the spacers in the tray but will post pics of my finished upgrade soon in the thread that I started in "Ollie Modifications." The info and photos from JD and Derek were super helpful and encouraged me to give it a go myself. Big thanks! I reused existing cables. It did require a bit of modification/McGuivering so I would say you need to be at least C+ category like me for using tools and thinking through projects. I took advantage of the recent Epoch sale and paid $1698 total for the 2 300aH batteries plus $25 for the BlueSky disconnnect switch on Amazon. Then I needed one longer battery bolt so $2 at the hardware store and some scrap wood I already had in the garage for spacers in the tray. $1725 total for 600aH of lithuim power and no other new equipment needed! Epoch batteries checked all the boxes for me -- self-heated as I camp in CO/UT/WY, built in BMS with Bluetooth App that shows SOC and all data, highly rated by folks here on the Oliver form with expeirence as well as 3rd party experts. They are not the cheapest option but they are far from most expensive. It's only day 1 but I'm impressed so far... Hope you find what will work best for you!
    4 points
  14. Gary, I will be at the rally and would be glad to give you a hand getting the new batteries hooked up at no charge. Would be helpful to determine whether you have the Xantrex inverter only or inverter / charger. If unsure post a picture and could help you identify. Also a pic of your current battery layout with good clear images of your current existing cables and connections.
    4 points
  15. Back in 2020 Battleborn was a favored alternative. They have good product quality and many loyal followers. Over the last few years, they market their quality position hard but have not reduced prices relative to other manufacturers. Want an inexpensive solution, what Ron showed above is great (nice installation also)! The 460AH of LiTime batteries should cost about $900 about the list price of only one 100AH Battleborn. If I remember correctly, Bill @topgun2 did a similar install more recently. A 300AH Epoch Essential battery lists for $999 (sorry last week it pwas 15% OFF). On sale, you'd need to spend $2,250 in Battleborn batteries (and a lot more space) to get the same 300AH. https://battlebornbatteries.com/shop/applications/towable-rv/
    4 points
  16. Hopefully you were able to check which PD Charger section you currently have and order the direct replacement. Oliver factory either put in a 45 or 60 amp charger. (Example: Our 2019 has a 60amp version - 4060CSV) Answer: YES - you can charge as large a battery bank (Pair) as you wish and it will simply take longer as it's only putting out 45A or 60A depending upon model. Example: Charge a pair of 300AH batteries (600AH total) from 50% to full charge) - you are essentially charging 300AH. With 4045CSV best case would take 300AH divided by charge rate of 45A/Hr = 6.6 hr. With the 4060CSV 60A model it would be 300/60= 5hrs. If you had a new inverter/charger and set it up for 120Amp charging it would take 300/120 = 2.5 Hrs. Solar Controller and charging expectations: For your specific trailer do you have ROOF Mounted Solar Panels, or just external on the ground panels? Roof Mounted Solar: If you have roof mounted solar on the roof then you should also have a ZAMP display and control panel on the wall of the trailer. The roof mounted solar panels provide either 360W or 380W depending upon unit Those panels on the roof connect directly to the ZAMP Charger/Control panel on the wall of the trailer and from there down to a buss bar in the basement street side...and thus to the batteries. On the ground panels: The Exterior ZAMP connector is connected to a buss bar which then connects with wires to the batteries. The solar controller is normally "with the ground panels". If you have only one 180Watt panel you'll take a very long time to charge. The ROOF mounted panels typically put out about 12 AMPS so to fully charge 300 AH that could take 300/12 = 25 hours with direct sun. A 180Watt ground panel typically will output about 6 amps in full sun and that would take 300/6 = 50 hours to charge. What we've found with our setup with >630AH total lithium, 380Watts Solar on the Roof: We we use about 100AH/day using all appliances, tv etc. but NOT using the AC off the battery. That means without any hookups we can off grid for about 6 days...before we are running low. Hope that helps. CS
    3 points
  17. ZLarryb, the plastic connector/tee fitting nut is the red notation. the black plastic tie-down is the yellow notation. the green arrow is pointing to the green "witness marks". Witness marks are sometimes used to mark a 2 part connection like a nut and bolt or in this case it marks both sides of the water pipe connection. It is marked during installation on both sides of the connection and it is a quick visual confirmation of a connector being in the original position or not. Due to the angle of your picture, I can’t verify its position because I can’t see both side of the mark, but you can do a quick verification. Mossey
    3 points
  18. Tosot A/C installed this winter just finished also. Looks similiar to Greer. Very similiar to Atmos. Caught amazon at weak moment Prime day (900.00) and just finished install. Pretty simple if you have a good back mine is not had most of my friends help get a/c on roof with painters scafolding. Has great reviews on dehumidifying. Not needed up here in mt but maybe able to retire someday and head south. Picture below of unit on top is not mounted(FYI) Just set on top. Hardest part was leveling a/c because of factory bump. Could not modify drain lines to get them to work without ton of modifications. Here is a few pics. I installed with 100.00 dollar tosot soft start. I was told really did not need, but decided to install for running on my lithium. Heater works great. (Slow warm Heat 850watts not warm enough to test a/c quite yet. Pulling 900 watts on high but still cold up here in Montana. Great job on Atmos.
    3 points
  19. @Teaney Hull 292 there are 3 ongoing post on the forum right now about lithium up grades and I must admit I have gotten confused on what was said in each one. What I haven’t seen in your post is mention of disconnecting the charge wire for you 7 pin connection. Just want to make sure you don’t miss that requirement when going to lithium. It was discussed recently @tallmandan thread below, https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/10748-epoc-lithium-keep-it-simple-upgrade-advice/
    3 points
  20. @tallmandan nice work, you will see a huge improvement in capacity with your upgrade.
    3 points
  21. I use mine to run the a/c at nights, as needed, which is often as we make our way to and from a far destination. In doing so, my house batteries get a boost, as well, with no solar. Although I can run the a/c on inverter for several hours, I like knowing we can stay comfortable in the event of a lengthy unplanned holdover. Happy wife, happy ‘travel’ life!
    3 points
  22. Personally, I won't go anywhere without my little Honda generator. Haven't had to use it yet but it's nice to know it's there in case of emergency. Can run the AC on it for 6-8 hours on just a gallon of gas. Not having solar installed yet is another reason I carry it, so I can top off the batteries in the unlikely event we're ever boondocking (wife hates it 😂). Also, I get that lower charge amps might extend battery life, but in your setup you're only charging each battery at 25 amps, not 50. To get to the recommended 50amps you'll have to set your charger to 100.
    3 points
  23. Thought I would follow-up with photos of my finished install. BIG, BIG thanks to @Derek B and especially to @jd1923 for sharing their photos and offering info to help! I don't think I could have done this without you! I would say my install is more "DIY amature" compared to their professsional work because I did not reconfigure the 6g wires inside the trailer on bus bars. This would be best, but I just didn't feel comfortable enough in my level of skill and also didn't really want to spend the time - so my battery compartment is messy compared to theirs but everything works. I wanted to install a manual disconnect switch and this turned out to be a needed extension in my case if I wanted to avoid replacing the main negative cable with a longer one. There was no extra lenght to be pulled through from inside, so the cable was too short to reach far enough forward in the battery tray (without packing the batteries together in the back requiring shorter jumpers to be ordered as well). The switch is connected by re-using one of the short red jumpers and I put black gorilla tap around it to mark it as negative. The switch provided a large/long connection post to stack the multiple neg wires. I did have to use a drill and dremel tool to slightly enlarge the terminal connector holes on the neg 6ga wires as they were slightly too small to fit on the post of the switch (a professional would have replaced these terminal ends with the correct size). I was going to secure the switch to the battery with 3M VBR tape but decided to let it simply sit on a piece of rubberized foam. This allows it to shift slightly as the stiff wires bend to close the drawer. The OEM bolt on the main + terminal had to be replaced with a slightly longer one to accomodate the stack. I have a bit of concern that the stacked terminal connections could be more prone to loosen with vibration over time so I will be checking on this periodically (they were stacked by Oliver's original configuration without a problem) I can easily reach the disconnect switch without pulling out the tray. It was very easy to program my Xantrex 2000 inverter/charger and my Zamp solar controller as they both have settings for LifePo4. My total cost was $1725 ($1698 for the two batteries, $25 for the switch and $2 for the longer terminal bolt) and I'm loaded with 600aH of lithium power. I have SOC and detailed charging/discharging data available in the Epoch app on my phone via bluetooth. Really appreciate the info/help/advice available in this group! Hope this might be valuable to anybody else with similar OEM equipment considering a DIY lithium replacement upgrade. Here are photos of before/after -- not a professional install but it works... IMG_1478.HEIC
    3 points
  24. I have a tractor with a front loader bucket so I was thinking of sliding the old 6V batteries from the storage compartment onto the tractor bucket at the same height and getting the new ones on that way. If all else fails then get a neighbor.
    3 points
  25. @Imelda If you decide to replae the btteries yourself, make sure you cover the solar collectors so they are not sending power down to the battery compartment. Also take a picture of the existing battery cable placements so you can hook up new similiar batteries (if you chose) the same way.
    3 points
  26. I assume in 2018 model, your xantrex is the INVERTER only function, and for 12V charging you're using the internal progressive dynamics charger (under the dinette seat). Some folks with the Progressive Dynamics charger see a jumper switch for charging lithium. The issue with that setting is it's not the "best" way to charge lithiums as it's simply a constant 14.6V voltage...not a ramped profile. The WIZ setting is a PROFILE for AGM or LEAD Acid. The LI Setting is just 14.6V (no ramp/no profile). Some battery manufacturers (including Lithionics) won't warrant their battery in presence of the constant 14.6V no profile setting. Whichever battery manufacturer you select, LI Time, Epoch, etc....be sure to check what they need as a charging profile. If a constant 14.6V works for them, then you might be able to a drop in maintaining your existing Inverter and existing charging system. I know that battle born did warranty their batteries with the Progressive Dynamics chargers. Also, there are new "Lithium compatible" plug in boards for progressive dynamics that now offer a lithium profile wizard. So just upgrading the charging board in your Progressive Dynamics energy center is a possibility. In our case (2019 model) we swapped out the Xantrex 2000W Inverter (only) for a newer Xantrex 2000 inverter charger before installing new Lithiums. My full upgrade article is here. This may be too much of an effort for what you want to accomplish. https://4-ever-hitched.com/ggs-blog/f/lithium-battery-upgrade?blogcategory=Electrical+Upgrades
    3 points
  27. We replaced our 4 AGM 6V batteries with two Battle Born 12V 100aH lithiums in 2020. We had the configuration for over a year with no issues, we’re about 50% dry camping. We did add a third Battle Born when they went on sale. 300aH of lithium has been plenty. Mike
    3 points
  28. Hi Gary, I would also add that you'd probably be better off buying 2 batteries instead of 4. Less complexity with cabling/connections and larger batteries usually have a better BMS.
    3 points
  29. Thanks Bill, I’m just irritated at myself. But… some good stuff were a result.
    2 points
  30. Decalcified the Truma, but it’s good news- bad news. The water is much warmer, but it’s in low 80s. The temp is consistent now, so I guess I’ll run the decalc process again. Almost had a genuine OH SUGARFOOT moment. I did the flush in the bathroom, forgetting to open the drain. It had about an inch to go when I remembered to hit the switch 😳
    2 points
  31. This spring as we were prepping for a new road trip, I noticed the battery box door seemed to be sticking out further than normal. I thought I would adjust the latch to pull the door in a bit tighter. What I found was that the battery box had started to tip forward away from the main hull as shown the pix below. All the rivets up both sides and all across the top of the box had sheared and the box was tipped out about 1/2". I contacted Oliver Support to understand how the box was designed, mounted etc. They cleared me for travel after having me check the support strut inside the trailer (under the pantry area) . After some further consultation I was able to perform a repair. Here's a sketch of how the battery box is installed in our Hull 505 (2019 Elite II) trailer. The repair steps I took following Oliver instructions were: 1) Remove the batteries from the slide tray to get weight off the box. 2) Drill out all sheared rivets. (3/16" bit) 3) Release the 2 support bracket bolts inside the trailer under the pantry (one of which is adjustable). (This step is a pain and requires some long extensions for the ratchet wrench to make reaching nuts possible.) 4) Tip box back into position. (Check that the box base still has a slight outward tip for water drainage.) 5) Re-tighten support bolts. 6) Re-rivet all around the perimeter. 7) Clean seams and add a bead of boat life white sealant around the battery box seam. (See pix below). Repaired Box Above: Door closes with a good seal all around and the box sealed to the body. We are going to keep an eye on this as we travel this next year, and make a trip to the Oliver factory for them to inspect and repair if necessary. I'm not sure of the root cause or mechanism by which the box tipped out in the first place. One concern would be that the box is putting too much pressure on the outer hull while bouncing down the highway. I don't see any indications of cracking in the glass hull or box at this point. Hope this helps if anyone else see's an issue. Craig Hull 505
    2 points
  32. Thought this might help someone else out. The water pump was not working. The main switch light was on and functional. The bathroom switch was functional. No noise from the pump at all. I opening the compartment and immediately saw that one of the wires had come loose from the pump. I plugged it in and all is well. I think I will go back in and try to tighten the connection. Hull 1467
    2 points
  33. Can you please confirm if the Tosot you have runs on R410A or R32 refrigerant? With R32 it means it is equal to the Atmos today. The Gree last year was advertising R410A and it's hard to know what you're getting since this Amazon ad and other sources often do not specify. See this article for the superiority of R32: https://aircondlounge.com/types-of-refrigerant-in-air-conditioning/ Still a good "Spring Deal" on Amazon now at $1, 020 + tax, delivery included. Wish we lived in one of your no sales tax states! With the high AZ sales tax, this comes to $1,105. The Atmos is $1,350 + $150 shipping + tax (both numbers without StartStart). https://www.amazon.com/TOSOT-Conditioner-Non-Ducted-Rooftop-High-Efficiency/dp/B0CDWR5RP9/?th=1 The Turbro soft start you show in the picture is $84 plus tax, also on Spring Sale today: https://www.amazon.com/TURBRO-Installation-Compressor-S15-Plus/dp/B0DK8BXHWH/
    2 points
  34. I get it. With home base of Houston or Tampa you guys have different needs. We will never come to visit you during the summer months!
    2 points
  35. I'm an engineer, certainly a numbers geek, and OMG! I never added this up before. 🤣 Yes, you are absolutely correct. The Epoch app displays total amps +/- and amps to each battery. This was taken on a recent winter day, snow on the solar panels and I plugged in after several days of this weather. You can see +48.4A net charge to the batteries, with individual batteries receiving 22.8A and 25.6A (see pic). I should set our Victron to 100A charging and next time I'm down to 20% SOC we can recover in under 5 hours.
    2 points
  36. @tallmandan thanks for posting this and you're certainly welcome for my help. It was only written advice, you did this! You asked for advice and put it quickly to use in your own way! 😂 There are two other threads going here, where others could copy what you did. As you now know, it's not that difficult once you dig in and just do it. There is no better upgrade on our Olivers than 600AH in LiFePO4 batteries!!! Your installation looks great! I would say better than the factory, as compared to the before picture. OTT has a way with plastic loom that is not needed in most cases and yours looks clean. We are all amateurs on our first mods and we get better over time. Good job and I know you'll be happy with it. It was a good idea of yours to add the cut-off switch and the shorty cable you had to add the required length to the battery ground. Otherwise, having all the terminals in the rear would be a pain over time. Your bolts should be fine as long as you have a 1/2" of thread connected. Yes, check them again but if they are still good with time on the road, they'll stay good, and you can forget about them soon. I'm jealous as I paid $100 more for our Epochs! Hope to meet you on the road one day. We'll be in parts of CO this June. Definitely come see us in Arizona when you're down our way!
    2 points
  37. Yes. I have the Houghton/RecPro 13.5k heat pump which draws quite a bit less than the Dometic turbojet penguin. I want to add a soft start to the Houghton to reduce the inrush current. I have no idea yet how long the Houghton will run off the batteries, but it will start. My hope is it’s long enough to cool the trailer down at a lunch stop.
    2 points
  38. Waiting may be good, but be prepared! I waited over four years and finally decided on the Atmos 4.4, no regrets! I especially love how quite it is; this ‘light sleeper’ no longer needs earplugs at night, and we can easily watch TV and carry on a conversation at the same time regardless how far apart or chosen fan speed. As for the continuous fan run when in Cool Mode, not a concern of mine. If ever a spike in cabin humidity is detected, Dry Mode is activated which rapidly drops the moisture level. However, a small room dehumidifier helps to mitigate such issue and high cabin humidity is a rare occurrence. I truly like the feel of continuous air movement via the ‘swing function’, whereby up and down circulation is felt at the furthest reaches within while factoring in the higher operating CFM rating of these units. The ‘cool breeze’ is an added comfort and talk of mods to make change are unnecessary measures IMO. Like others I too am disappointed in the cost increases and thus, so glad I didn’t wait any longer for the ‘ultimate’ unit that may or may not become available and at what price. ‘Nuff said!
    2 points
  39. New Mexico camping New Mexico Free Camping I know this thread is rather old , But I wanted to share this I am planning a trip to New Mexico and I stumbled across this YouTuber that has quite a bit of New Mexico content the videos are not that spectacular but the information is detailed see you out there edit ( added New Mexico Free Camping )
    2 points
  40. A few days ago I completed an installation of a front receiver hitch on the Savana. I previously installed same on the Silverado, specifically to carry a bike rack when underway for use with our folding ebikes once in camp, and liked its functionality. However, no such hitch was found available for the van and thus, removal and modification of the one that was on the former TV was in order. Once a mounting plan was devised for proper fitment and securement, necessary cutting, shaping, welding and painting was done. Modifications in progress. Hitch readied for install. U-bolt and plate securement. Front spoiler remounted with thru-hole, hitch extension installed. Formerly fabricated roller skid plate I made to protect the bike rack got new paint job. Savana sporting hitch/skid plate and QuikrStuff dual bike rack with ramp.
    2 points
  41. No specific experience with the VIP3500 but both models should be standard for replacement on ANY trailer. The upgrade it likely a good idea. It would be great if the VIP 3500 was stronger and faster! I would check the manuals for both and compare measurements. It should be 3 bolts and one wire to replace! 😂
    2 points
  42. In my case I also added solar and a battery shunt. Since I was already doing the wiring I added a positive bus bar under dinette and negative under street side bed to move the 6 ga wires out of the battery compartment. Not a hard job but takes a little more planning and wiring of course.
    2 points
  43. Found a brand new burner assembly from a "cosmetically damaged" AquaGo on eBay and bought it for $200. One goal was to see what is involved in removing said assembly, since we do not have access to a service manual. I also wanted to see what was required to crimp the ends of the intermediate burners. Having done that now, I will also put a small TIG weld bead at the ends to make sure there is never any movement. Still have not heard back from Truma to schedule a replacement unit, but now that I've seen what is involved in replacing the burner, I'm not going to bother. I'll wait for Oliver to get to me in their recall queue, but I'll have a burner that I am comfortable with already installed.
    2 points
  44. Gary, I have not heard of anybody buying this brand on this forum. Epoch and LiTime are go-to brands. LiTime is also on Amazon. Found these listed on Amazon and these are LiFePO4 batteries. Besides battery replacement, you may need batteries cables or new ends/lugs. You would also need to reprogram your solar charger and perhaps replace the main charger connected to shore power, given age of hull could be an inexpensive Progressive Dynamics charger. If instead your Xantrex is an inverter/charger then program that instead. it is a bit of Work. OTT would charge a lot for this. Given your FL location you likely have many solar companies in the neighborhood who could do this work. Easy would be to replace with same size and quantity AGM batteries, nothing else required, but we are all moving to liFePO4 batteries!
    2 points
  45. Flooded Lead Acid (FLA) starter batteries usually employ maintenance-free designs. But FLA deep cycle batteries require regular maintenance to each of their cells. The plug you are showing typically serves as a vent path. They are not intended for service, but on many battery's they can be removed for adding DI as you suggested. The question is does this vent provide a pathway that DI will flow equally to all the individual cells? Regardless, doing so can be very dangerous. A small droplet of sulfuric acid splashed out of the battery can easily blind and/or disfigure. Personally IF it were mine, I would not even consider trying to refill these batteries. Just not worth the risk. Especially since they are 5 years old. Bad news you need new batteries. Good news is you need new batteries, and it is a perfect time to upgrade to Lithium. See JD's and several other posts on DIY battery upgrades. Good luck, GJ
    2 points
  46. The FWT drain is at best slow draining given the design constraints of the system. One issue that can make it much worse is when bits of plastic end up inside the tank from drilling the various holes and not meticulously cleaning it out before installing. I have had these bits bunch up at the tank outlet and at the drain valve. When I added my new water supply draw tube, I cleaned and vacuumed out the tank best I could, and cleaned out the drain valve while I was in there as well. Now, not really wanting to go through that all over again, if it seems plugged up, I'll take my air compressor and blow up the outflow tube (30psi is good) into the tank. This usually clears the occlusions long enough to let the tank drain more normally, which is still slower than I'd like. Hope that works for you. Dave
    2 points
  47. Scott Oliver's design is amazingly effective in giving us a very safe towing trailer. Heavy, compact, non-swaying, a shape that reduces side loading of gusts, tandem axle, four shocks, EZ flex, the strongest frame of any trailer in this weight class, E-rated tires, and the Anderson Hitch transferring weight forward for those that need it and an extra long tongue. The amazing part is the design. Even more amazing is that it is Stock on all our trailers. GJ
    2 points
  48. It’s really quite simple and well within the skill set of anybody who can change their engine oil or a set of spark plugs. You WILL need a couple of Torx wrenches. I forget the size, but both/all were included in a small Elkind folding set, I’d guess a T-10 is one of them. Two open end wrenches to remove the gas fitting. (I don’t think there’s room to use flare nut or “line” wrenches.) About 5/8 or 11/16” I think. Also the big wrench for the nut holding the gas line to the manifold. Other than having to ease it out and caress it back in is to pull out the black control box at the top right of the heater enclosure when you open the access door. Easier than removing the ignition and flame sensor leads and less likely to break them. DO take the picture as Galway Girl suggested to put the disconnected leads back in the right place. Turn off the LP first of course. Once you overcome any trepidation about working on an unfamiliar piece of equipment, it’s a pretty simple job. As others have pointed out - if you fiddle with it, you likely void your warranty.
    2 points
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