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ScubaRx

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Posts posted by ScubaRx

  1. We use military Scepter fuel and water containers that we carry in the back of the truck.  They are hard to find (not "available" in the USA), expensive but totally safe.  They are made to military specifications and subjected to UN transport code classification tests. These canisters have proven themselves for their ruggedness and durability offering options for fitting with various accessories.  They are the only containers certified safe to carry on board aircraft while filled with fuel.  The plastic construction prevents fatal explosion risk when the canisters are hit with shrapnel or projectiles; in fires they may eventually burn with the fuel, but no instantaneous explosions caused by pressure build-up as is the case with metal fuel cans.

     

    Water Canisters

     

    Like fuel, a potable water supply to the soldier in the field is an essential link in the supply chain.  Scepter's Military Water Canisters (MWC) are made to military standards with dimensions similar to the MFC.

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  2. ...Now the bonus is if we can get the folks from Oliver to enable advanced link editing for posts it makes it a lot easier. At that point you simply click insert link then click the gear icon and paste your link in and select open in new window. Hope this helps everyone out! Feel free to reply if you have questions or want to use this topic as a spot to test your hand at it.

     

     

     

    Testing:

     

    Let’s all go to the Airstream Forum in a new window…

     

    I find that the "gear" icon on the Insert/edit link tab, is already there but it only shows up if you submit a post and the edit it!!!! Obviously, as 

    says, there is some "Error In The System"

     

    But your method works for now (What's up here, Matt?).  Thanks for the information.

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  3. This would be a great upgrade if installed during a build.  Assuming it would fit somewhere, you would do away with the PD 4045 and get a charger that you could adjust the charging parameters.  If there is a downside it's the $2000.00 cost of inverter/charger, control panel and cabling that is needed.

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  4. Glad to hear your week end trip went well.  Every trip raises new questions, does it not?  It seems like there's else something I have to figure out each time.

     

    There are two white tubes sticking out under your trailer.  The one at the rear on the driver's side is the drain for the A/C.  The one on the passenger side is the drain for the fresh water tank.

     

    Condensate will collect in the A/C drain and will run out at weird times.  As you found out, when you raise the front of the trailer and when you first start the A/C it will sometimes dump water from the previous time.

     

    Probably nothing wrong with the A/C dripping on the inside occasionally.  With the heat and the high humidity like it is currently here in the South, I would not be surprised to see a drip every once in a while from the Air Distribution Box.

     

    Hope this help relieve some of your worries.  As far as helping with the wild boar problem, I bought this.

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  5. How much heat is generated by these big units under heavy load, and is it necessary to supply good ventilation? Does the output automatically reduce if it gets too warm? I have found this thread to be very interesting. John Davies Spokane WA

     

    John, as you can see, once everything is buttoned up I can't see the inverter.  We used it extensively this past Winter (mid January to early April) out in the deserts of the Southwest and had no problems with it.  The inverter has two fans built in that apparently run when or if needed (they're not on constantly.)  The heaviest load we put on it was the microwave and I suspect that, with the exception of trumpetguy running his A/C, this would be case for everybody else as well.  I would expect that if the unit gets too warm it would shut off rather than have a reduction in output as that might damage something downstream of the inverter.

     

    An interesting side note is that I have a small 110 volt lamp sitting on the nightstand.  It has no larger than a 40 watt bulb.  Turning it on draws 0.1 amp also contains the overhead for the inverter.  Turning on one of the LED lights draws 0.2 amps!  Go figure.

  6. ...Whats not clear to me is how, where you get your AC outlets? Normally the inverter itself provides a couple but then yours is hidden from access. Did you somehow find a way of wiring the existing AC outlets already installed in the Ollie to provide your inverted 110 V @ AC needs, or did you install additional outlets (fed by the inverter) which are dedicated to the inverter only. If neither I’m really confused then. Thanks for the pics and explanation. BTW, why is it that my “thanks” to peoples post do not show up, yet more confusion for a different discussion.

     

    Happy belated birthday, 12 miles round trip, 4000 feet of gain, and you were only WHIPPED, I would have been dead long before that hike was over.    WOW, I'm impressed.

     

    OK, back to the issue at hand and I apologize for not addressing the AC side of the install.  Earlier, I stated the reasons for choosing the Kisae SWXFR 1220. "It is true sine-wave, has a remote display module with on/off switch and a built in transfer switch."  Two other important aspects I completely failed to mention is the capability for it to be hardwired and the fact that it can handle two independent 110 volt circuits, one of which is GFCI protected.

     

    Our Oliver has nine 110 volt outlets.  The factory wired them on two 20 amp circuits.  Their locations are: Outside, the Microwave, the Fridge, over the galley, beneath the dinette, one over the head of each bed, one in the rear upper cabinet and one in the basement.  The way I wired the inverter for 110 volts was to remove each group of outlets from their breaker in the distribution panel.  I then replaced one of the 20 amp breakers with a 30 amp.  I fed the power to the inverter from that 30 amp breaker.  I fed each circuit inside the inverter to the breaker sub panel you see in the pictures.  Then, I simply reattached the original wires going to each group of outlets to the two 20 amp breakers in the sub panel.  This way there was NO new wiring to run, just move it from the old location (distribution panel) to the new (breaker sub panel.)

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  7. Steve I have to hand it to you, you’re never one for taking short cuts. So just for clarity though it appears you mounted your inverter out of sight and in the basement so to speak while implementing yet an additional breaker panel perhaps with 110 outlets for your AC elec needs? From your description it seems the inverter is not easily accessible, correct? Where was the 110 breaker panel installed? And is a surge protector really that necessary for someone who rarely if ever uses shore power?

     

    ....

     

    Much to consider.

     

    Rob, you are indeed correct that the inverter is not easily accessible.  On the other hand, it's not necessary to access it for any reason other than to work on it.  In fact since I installed it in January, yesterday was the first time I've been back to it (I moved my shunt closer to it.)

     

    The 12vdc positive wire comes in from the right side and goes directly to the Switch. From there it continues thru the fuse and on to the positive terminal of the inverter.

     

    DSC_1691.thumb.jpg.397b13c74ce8a9f9425e59bf53dc0f91.jpg

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    DSC_1695-2.thumb.jpg.060ebda19978a42428f843e9a5e35f00.jpg

     

    I mounted the detachable remote display and switch on the opposite side of the coach right above my bed.

    DSC_1696-2.thumb.jpg.e37f22ae19e4db992d134b3c5810dda9.jpg

     

    DSC_1697-3.thumb.jpg.8566a16edd4b4496bb246f3474e5eaca.jpg

     

     

     

    A surge protector offers nothing to the boon-dockers.

     

     

     

     

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  8. An inverter was not an option when we bought our trailer so I installed one myself.  I went with a Kisae SWXFR 1220.  It is true sine-wave, has a remote display module with on/off switch and a built in transfer switch.  They also have a top notch tech support.  I mounted it on top of the wheel well behind the cupboard on the street side of the trailer.  The top of the wheel well in front of the cupboard on the street side is where I mounted our Progressive Industries Surge Protector.

     

    For an inverter install there are several additional pieces you may want to add: 4/0 wire, lugs for the wire, tool to crimp lugs, heat shrink tubing, fuse, fuse holder, cut off switch, etc.  I also added a 110 volt 2 breaker sub panel.

     

    We have enjoyed the added versatility of having the inverter.

  9. I’m hoping that they will make concessions for us desiring the composting toilet, by removing the black tank and replacing with an extra fresh water tank.

     

    In following this thread I've become confused about this extra fresh water tank.  It seems like folks are over thinking this and possibly making it more difficult than it really is.  Why not just use the black water tank as installed and just re-purpose it as an extra fresh water tank?  The tanks in the Oliver are custom made for the space they occupy so any tank that is placed in the black tank position would have been made as a black water tank.  Now, obviously it would never have been used for black water so it could easily be filled with potable water instead, in fact, it actually has its own fill connection (the black tank flush.)  Aside from the extra plumbing needed to connect the two tanks, I can't see a reason to make other changes.  What am I missing?

  10. As our Oliver was one of the first off the line, we did not have the opportunity to order most of the options that are now available.  Early on, I bought a Progressive Industries EMS-HW30C Hardwired 30 Amp RV Surge Protector and installed it into our trailer.  It has worked flawlessly and has proved to be a useful addition as it has caught several "problems" in other people's wiring.  Its one failing feature was the butt ugly remote display that came with it.

     

    First, it is designed to be surface mounted and it does stick out almost an inch.  You could possible overcome that obstacle but the connecting cable from the suppressor is plugged into the bottom rather than the back.  So you're sorta stuck with a surface mount.

     

    Second, the display remains on all the time and is constantly rotating through several different values.  This may not bother some folks but we have so many idiot lights that are always glowing, that it's not possible to achieve a really dark interior at night without covering them all with tape or something.  That's not feasible for us.  As far as brightness goes this display is far and away the worst of the bunch.

     

    I do agree that the display should be easily visible without jumping thru too many hoops.  Some have suggested that it be mounted outside so that it is able to be seen as you are plugging in.  There's nothing wrong with that idea but the way the suppressor works we did not find that necessary.  If there is a fault outside the trailer, the nanosecond you plug in, the electricity is stopped at the suppressor BEFORE it can reach anything in the trailer and do any harm.  The readout will give the error code and you can take it from there.  You have the ability to turn off the suppressor and bypass it if you need to (probably not the best idea in most cases.)

     

    We chose to mount our display inside the cupboard, cabinet, pantry (whatever name you've assigned to it) centered right under the upper shelf.  Our reasoning was: it is out of sight, it is easily viewed at any time, it is usually not covered regardless of how much you put into the cabinet and wiring was a snap with only one hole to drill.

     

     

     

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    Progressive-Industries-EMS-HW30C-Hardwired-30-Amp-RV-Surge-Protector.jpg.6e288a797a9b3b8fa88a879673a42bcd.jpg

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  11. ...That air scoop on your side window, is that for getting air in the trailer when you’re on the road? Stan

     

    Stan,

     

    That is a Maxx Window Vent by MaxxAir.  Unfortunately, it has been discontinued by the manufacturer.  It allows you to have the windows open about 4-5 inches and still keep the rain out.

  12. We’ve all had those “Awwww Shoot” moments where you wish you could have a do-over of the past few minutes. In July of last year I had taken the Outlaw Oliver back to the factory for an upgrade to the body where the rear jacks exit. This modification is now built into the mold and is standard on all current production models. While there I accidentally allowed the upper left rear corner of the trailer to come in contact with an “immovable” object. The first three pics show the results of that encounter.

     

    [attachment file=DSC_0918.JPG]

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    The next day at the factory Phil Andrews started work on the hole. First, gel coat was ground away and the deformed piece was pushed back into position.

     

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    Then the grinding, filling and polishing began.

     

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    DSC_0939.thumb.jpg.178cb3c6118917db419cf1f7dfccb77a.jpg

     

    Now, you can't tell the hole was ever there. I cringe to think what a repair like this would cost if it had been an Airstream. I love fiberglass.

    • Thanks 5
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