technomadia

I'll try and sneak some pictures in the morning. I'm hoping they come up with a way to do it more affordably.. right now, it's a several thousand dollar expense to create. But man, is it sweet!! - Cherie

We did actually consider this, especially before we discovered the Oliver and thought the Casita was our best option. We thought about making awnings out of solar panels. The drawbacks being that you would have constant shade over your windows (I prefer natural light whenever possible), and possibly total blockage (since we stealth camp a bit - that was a concern for us.) when you wouldn't necessarily want it. Also, you would loose a good deal of power potential by simply facing the wrong way towards the sun. For us, having them on the roof was optimal. We're also toying with the idea of a second/third panel that we could carry in the tow vehicle - or the under storage that we're currently lusting after on Jim & Evon''s Oliver parked next to us here in Virginia City - that could be placed in the best sunny spot possible and camp in the shade. - Cherie

Rather than the propane-converted Honda generator you use, I'm thinking about a small diesel (2500 watt) generator: http://www.electricpowergenerator.com/RGD5000.html I run my truck on biodiesel, which I brew myself, so I could also use it in the generator. That is an interesting generator, and you would get lots of cool points for running it off of home-brew biodiesel. But, looking at the specs - it is a LOT louder than the Honda generators. And it is twice as heavy. Also - I don't think it is an inverter-style generator that dynamically adjusts its speed to match the power load, allowing for dramatic fuel consumption reduction. If you had this generator, I'd match it with the fastest possible battery charger you could find and use it just 1hr a day to top off your batteries. It would probably not be well suited to running the AC for long periods of time. - Chris

I have not seen any high amp chargers that are not also inverters. Why not get an inverter / charger combo? Being able to charge the batteries quickly is nice. Our current setup can charge at 60A - 70A from the generator. If I had gone with the ProSine 2.0 Inverter / Charger, I think we would be able to charge at 100A, which would be even nicer. - Chris

How awesome! I know they'll fall in love with the Oliver! Interesting small world side note - my father served aboard the USS Robert E Lee (SSBN-601) which is in the same class as the Washington (SSBN-598). My father runs the SSBN-601 Reunion group (http://www.ssbn601.com) as well is the CTO of several national sub vet organizations - as my company provides all of the backend database work for the membership and reunion planning systems of those groups. I'm very proud of him, his service, the service of all submariners and veterans. - Cherie Submarine Angel of the USS Robert E Lee

Wow! What fun y'all must be having there in Hohenwald - wish we were there! We talked with Pete on the phone today while he was at the factory.. just before having lunch with Evon, Pam and Dave. I think tomorrow we will follow them to the Camel Races. I just *love* that Oliver Forums have been such a basis of community and friendship. What a wonderful thing we have going here. Oh, and have I mentioned lately how blessed I feel to have sold my house in Florida when I did? TS Faye flooded the Melbourne area, including my parent's neighborhood in the area. CBS did their national news reports from the front lawn during it (my parents were fine, by the way). And now, they're closely tracking all of the storms brewing out there in the Atlantic. - Cherie

How cool it is to walk out of a grocery store, and see an Oliver (that isn't yours)! We just ran into Dave, Pam and Evon while dropping off our recyclables and restocking our fridge at Save Mart in Reno. And now we're off for a lunch rendezvous, and likely joining them for camel racing! - Cherie

Any tips or advice on caring for the gel coat of the Oliver? After a month of living in it full time, I'm noticing some tiny nicks and scratches in it. And while I know I should just embrace them as battle scars, I really would like to keep our Oliver in as good as shape as possible. I've given the exterior of the Oliver a good coating of 'ProtectAll' carnauba wax protectant. And I've treated the bathroom and kitchen with Gel-Gloss a couple of times, as well as a coating of ProtectAll. I know I should probably do the rest of the interior surfaces as well. Any other products you'd recommend? And once scratches appear, are there any recommended treatments for them to 1) reduce risk of further damage and 2) make it look pretty again? Thanks! - Cherie

Awesome, we just pulled into Reno and had our showers. We're staying at the Grand Sierra Resort for the next two nights and would love to hook up you all! Will give Pam a call soon, or you can reach me at 321-243-3289. Cherie

We're still on the playa - will probably leave out in the morning. Since we have no time table, we like to avoid the mass exodus into Reno and put our time into helping clean up the city. We'll probably hit Reno mid afternoon Tuesday (which looks like we'll just miss the traveling Oliver crew.. bummer) and stay a day or to cleaning up before heading to Sacramento. Weather has been variable, as usual. High winds, white-outs, dust storms, gorgeously clear days. The temps have actually been rather mild - perhaps hitting the mid-90s. Today, it only got up to about 70 - it's been absolutely delightful. And the Oliver has been *awesome* to be in here on the playa. I feel so spoiled having A/C, fridge, inside cooking and our own bathroom. Now that we've been here about 10 days, we have nearby campmates coming up to say 'I kept expecting your trailer to start looking dirty.. but it's always so clean and shiny on the outside!'. We've given many many tours of it too to many impressed burners. I'd say Camp Nomadia ended up with about 25 folks, and BM as a whole had a population of almost 50,000 this year. Chris and I have likely been some of the few out here that are here to rest and not party. The past few months have been chaotic, and it's been wonderful to be still and watch the city come together and come apart from our comfy house. And, I think we have named our Oliver while out here. Orion seems fitting, as from across the playa the LED ground lights look like Orion's belt to becon us home. - Cherie

Quick message from the playa (only limited wifi here, and we're in the middle of a dust storm)... The monitor arm has been absolutely fantastic.. we've been facing the monitor out the back window and doing photo slideshows that people out here are just loving! The positioning vertically has been fantastic for us.. and the bungy cord system has worked fabulously. I think a locking arm would actually be a not as good a solution, as the vibrations would go to the monitor, not the arm. But, I'm not a physicist. Thanks, - Cherie PS. Since I've seen it twice today here, I'm taking pro-active measures to cut this off as soon as possible.. Chris and I are *NOT* 'The Dunphy's'. We are not legally married, and even if we were.. I would *never* change my last name and lump my identity in with someone else. So please please please, quit referring to us 'The Dunphy's' or our Oliver 'The Dunphy build'. I know it's usually a safe social assumption and likely a generational thing (and that many others prefer it otherwise), however I find it very disempowering to be reduced to being called by my partner's name, simply because I happen to have breasts. Our chosen unit name is 'Technomadia' - however we take kindly to being identified by our first names as well.

Just a quick reply while I've got some wifi at Burning Man... But one factor to consider is the height of Oliver. Unless you are about 8' tall - tiliting the solar panels on top of the roof does require some sort of ladder to be carried with you, or camping next to something you can climb up on. As a result, we've yet to tilt our panels - Cherie

Nothing inconvenient at all about it! Well, other than it's really not spacious enough to actually dance on *giggle*. - Cherie (Coming to you LIVE from the playa)

I'm not sure exactly how to describe the table in the Tab - and since it is currently 2000+ miles away, I can't readily get you pics. All I recall is that there was a lever we pulled that hinged it down, and it was pretty easy to use and pretty hefty too. It was a very nice design. We also heavily utilize the space under the bed for storage - I even have a plastic drawer under it that I use as my folded clothing (shirts, shorts, pants, etc.). So I admit, it has been kinda nice to not have to worry about table legs to work around when planning our storage space. I absolutely *love* the Oliver table tops.. they hand make them in the factory with textured finish that is gorgeous, so they're very unique for the RV industry. And they look so stylish and non-RV. But the pole system is a bit annoying as compared to what we were used to in the Tab (albeit a standard table part for the RV industry.) - Cherie

It's my impression that Robert is still gathering all the pieces to give us a full and comprehensive answer to our concerns. We talked with him, Jake and Brandon just yesterday, and there is no 'private talks' going on about this issue. Just the reassurance that it will be addressed with as accurate information as possible. - Cherie

We all have heard the legends of the stripper pole ever since it was mentioned in passing a couple months ago. I thought the legend was just contained to the forums here. And then Robert started referring to the chrome pole cushion support as the 'Stripper Pole' to us on the phone. I was curious that it had entered the lexicon at Oliver, but thought Robert was just humoring us. While we were at our pick up, and referred to it as the stripper pole - Robert was apt to correct us that it's a 'Chrome Pole'. And then, they let us camp inside the factory AND gave us free roam with their golf cart no less. BIG mistake if they wanted to keep the secret of the stripper pole hidden. As I was wandering around the assembly lines in amazement at the number of parts (and thinking of the massive research and trial/error that had to go on for each piece) that come together to create these incredible vessels... My jaw literally hit the floor when I saw 'Stripper Pole' written on the assembly board and the brackets box labeled 'Stripper Pole Brkts' I love how Oliver is so in touch with their customers that even the humor we banter about here makes it so far into the company that it ends up being part of the assembly line. Just think how our our more serious conversations impact this product. And it's funny as all get out too. - Cherie (And if you were expecting pictures of me *using* the stripper pole... )

Thanks for the enthusiasm, mountainborn We're currently in Reno - camped overnight for our staging area. Traveled over the Sierra's with empty tanks - so we will top everything off here this morning and make the 3-4 hour drive out to Black Rock City soon. Chris is still snoozing No need for us to rush out there, we had our first Nomadians arrive yesterday morning to stake out our claim. And, we need to make one more trip to a store to get some other essentials to keep us hydrated and non-sunburnt on the playa. Upon our return, we may just stay in Reno and try to rendezvous with the Oliver road tour, as it looks like they're in Reno post-Burning Man too. Should probably drop them a line and check-in before we leave out. There is limited wifi access out on the playa, so we may be checking in from time to time. But no promises - it may be 10-12 days before anyone hears much from us. Y'all have fun - wherever you are! - Cherie

I love this idea! We had a very similar design on our table in the T@b, and it was awesome! Speaking of table legs.. has anyone else had problems with the table leg getting stuck in the receiver part on the table? We had this happen during our shakedown night, and Oliver replaced the leg and receiver for us. But it's still happening (to the point that we have to unscrew the mount from the floor to convert the table to bed). Thank goodness we keep the bed down most of the time.. but. Oliver is aware of the continuing problem.. but curious if it's happening for anyone else, and if there are other solutions. Spraying graphite in the receiver hasn't seemed to help. - Cherie

As we were driving through Nebraska in what seems like eons ago (actuality - just over a week ago), we came across the little town of Oliver, NE. I was really hoping they had a water tower to park our Oliver under for some great photos.... but alas, they're not that big of a city. But, they did have a little campground called Oliver Reservoir Recreation Area. How cool is that? Possible future Olver Rally spot? - Cherie

They're basically the same.. Chris remembers researching out the difference between the 'K' and 'F' model, and doesn't remember finding any differences. Maybe it was just a model year designator or something? I believe that on this item, Chris spec'd it and found the best price for it.. and Oliver ordered it and had it shipped directly to them for installation. - Cherie

Agreed, mountianborn! All Oliver really needs to do is provide a fairly accurate base number. It's up to the consumer to know if their vehicle is capable of towing with their expected loaded and configured trailer. - Cherie

Actually, the 6 cylinder automatic Liberty without tow package has a GTW of 2000 lbs and tongue of 200. With the tow package, it's 5000/500. Which is the same for the diesel CRD that we have. The 3500 is for the manual transmission version. (This comes directly from the owner's manual for the 2006 model.) - Cherie

If the GVWR is only 4000 and our base weight is potentially 3400+ (yes, I know - we need to get weighed), then surely we have potential of exceeding that. It's the CCC that the trailer is overall rated for that I'm worried about. (And we carry the generator in the Jeep, not on the tongue) And even if we carried spare fresh water in the Jeep, we'd still have grey water issues to be worried about (unless we're at place where we can ecologically and legally dump grey water.) And I know there's not much else we can do to bring the weight down.. that's what I'm complaining about. There was 250 lbs of weight of insulation (plus other potential weight) put on our trailer that we weren't aware of, and we only found out via you posting your private e-mail discussion with Robert. This isn't the way that customers should learn about the specs of their trailer. - Cherie

Doug - a larger capacity tow vehicle will do nothing to help with the limitations of the weight on the axle of the Oliver. And *that* is where my concern is. Our tow vehicle already exceeds the capacity of that and is NOT the concern I'm talking about here. And aside from a couple of bikes that fit nicely on a spare tire bike rack of the Jeep, we don't have a lot of 'toys' to be hauling around. (Thank goodness, today we're putting Chris' airplane in storage and getting back the room in the Jeep!). A full size pick up makes no sense for us right now - as it would be a significant decrease in fuel economy when we're not towing (which we're hoping to get to a place in our journey soon where we are in one spot for weeks/months at a time, and actually unhitch and use the Jeep/bikes to get around locally.) Perhaps when we get ready to do a veggie oil conversion and need to haul around a drum of french fry grease for fuel, a pick-up would make more sense. But for now, our Jeep 4WD CRD is meeting our needs just fine (other than going up mountains in 115 degree weather, like we did last week - and even then, we just took it slowly). - Cherie PS. Thus far, the solar system is working great. Post Burning Man we should have much more to share on that after we've had a chance to actually use it for a more extended period of time.

Oh, and the 24" feels like a perfect size, for us. Of course, if we could have fit a 30" in here, it would have been even better