technomadia

Eeeps... that's scary! Oliver has two different tires for the trailer. Did you have the default ones, or the upgraded ones? We have the upgraded ones and have done lots of miles in some pretty extreme temps.. so far (*crossing fingers*) without problem. - Cherie

The folks at Oliver, when we asked them what would be the most difficult thing to replace in the trailer, told us that the refrigerator would be the most challenging. I do believe it would involve taking out the shower wall for a total replacement (which isn't as big of a deal as it sounds.. it's a separate insert and was designed to come in and out if needed.). It's not uncommon at all for appliance manufacturers to only cover parts and not labor. Unfortunately, most RV appliance companies are not as consumer friendly as our dear Oliver. For instance, our Fantastic fan has needed several parts replaced - they're very helpful in diagnosing our problems and shipping us parts, but never to pay the labor to do the work. (Which since it was within Chris' realm of comfort, he was able to do the replacements himself... so not an issue in that case.) Do definitely contact Oliver however, I believe labor is included in the warranty for appliance repairs/replacements. - Cherie

The other weekend we attended a regional burning man event in Potosi, MO (about an hour-ish south of St. Louis). It was a small camping event of about 100 folks held on private very primitive land. There had been lots of rain in the weeks leading up to the event, and potentially even threats of the event needing to be canceled due to the 'road' conditions leading in. I use the word 'road' loosely, because they were no where near developed roads - just cleared paths through a forest. And they had turned to mud. The rain had stopped long enough for the mud paths to turn to soft clay.. so they held the event, but would not be allowing most vehicles to the camping area, they'd have to be parked near the entrance and then 4x4 ATVs would be used to cart camping gear up. Obviously.. that wouldn't work so well for our set up with the Oliver. But they said come on out anyway.. they'd get us in! The path in was bumpy and rough to reach the check-in gate. And then the path up to the camping area was uphill along a mud path with several deeply treaded and slippery looking spots. At the top of the hill, they had a huge 4x4 truck with a tow strap ready to give us a tug if we needed it. A deep breath, and we went for it! Chris maneuvered our Jeep Diesel 4x4 pulling Orion up that hill with mastery! The entire event staff had their jaws on the ground in disbelief - both at Chris' skill, and at how well the Oliver towed behind. When we reached our campspot, we had folks swarming by to check out the Oliver and it's amazing off-road ability. The 4" raised axle was definitely a hit, and Oliver gained a bunch of new fans. - Cherie

We've found such a wide variety of prices and fill options across the country. In Hemet, CA back in April - we filled both our 30 and 20 (both almost completely empty) for a mere $17.. total! They were charging like $1.39/gallon. Incredible. Wish I coulda filled a 500lb tank at that and stored it And then in Hohenwald in May at the CMart station that Oliver takes you to.. they charge a flat rate which came to a ridiculous $46!! Even worse, they charged more per 'pound' to fill a 30lb tank than a 20lb! I highly recommend avoiding refilling at Cmart in Hohenwald if you're passing through to the factory. What a rip-off. We only utilize tank exchanges in 'emergency' sort of situations.. such as running out after business hours or when there are no other options. It's nice to have the option, but we try to avoid it given the corrupt business model. We got a giggle the other day when we saw a sign on an exchange rack what said 'A full tank is a happy tank'. Yeah, right - Cherie

Can anyone using the ANT1550 tell me what the output voltage of the power adapter for the amp is? Hopefully the answer is going to be 12 volts. It is 12 volt, if I recall correctly. The 1550 is just a 1500 sold packaged with a separate external amp. We have it on hand for future experimentation, but In my testing though the amp hardly helped at all, so so far we have ended up leaving it out. - Chris

By the way, I neglected to mention that I had previously filled the space above the refrigerator and behind the black rubber-like flap with home wall insulation (the pink fiberglass batting) which helps keep the heat from the refrigerator radiator fins and pipe from migrating above and to the front of the refrigerator. This is a great idea. We opted to leave the microwave out, and instead have a large food storage cabinet over our fridge. The bottom of this storage area gets warm though, and it would nice to not need to worry about accidentally storing melty things (chocolate!) here. I may need to copy this mod... - Chris

You may have heard some of the buzz (posted on the Oliver front page, and mentioned a few other places) about how Oliver has pushed back production of new trailers until probably January. This was certainly troubling news to us, but hardly surprising considering how many of even the biggest RV manufacturers have gone under recently. When we visited the factory a few weeks ago, we asked a lot of questions, and we managed to get a look at how Oliver is managing to survive the economic downturn without laying people off or shutting the doors. Rather than shut their doors, they have instead managed to repurpose a lot of their equipment and skilled people towards building some rather amazing high-end handicap accessible bathtubs - an apparently booming market for aging boomers. Oliver may not be building many new trailers right now, but we are really impressed with how they are managing to keep the expertise and equipment in house and ready to ramp up again once the market for RV's turns around. We think this is a highly innovative and responsible way of handling the down economy and its effects on the recreational vehicle industry. Oliver has demonstrated their commitment to taking care of both their existing customers and their employees, and we fully expect that they have a bright future once the market picks up again. We also very much appreciate how open they have been about the tough times they are going through. A lot of other companies would pretend everything was great right up until the doors shut, and we salute Oliver for embracing a more open and honest path. We just published a blog post on this topic, including a video interview with Jim Oliver, and a look at the tub. Check it out and let us know what you think: http://www.technomadia.com/2009/06/oliv ... -adapting/ - Chris & Cherie

Yes.. we completely left the amplifier out of our system, thus it has no power overhead. - Cherie

Black Canyon is awesome.. we loved our visit there! Our summer plans are still up in the air. We're currently in St. Louis visiting Chris' family, and probably heading up to Indiana/Chicago/Michigan area later this month. Right now we're contemplating ducking up into Canada and then exploring the east coast down through Maine, and then the Appalachian Trail to start our westward trek to Burning Man at the end of August. We're also tempted to find a perfect spot somewhere for a month and work on some business building. Who knows what the summer will bring - Cherie

Wow... I'm envious of your travels in NZ and Australia!! How awesome! We have some folks camping with us at Burning Man who full time around Australia. We had a cassette toilet in our T@b that we lived in for 7 months together. It was functional in a pinch, and did have the advantage of being able to be dumped in pit toilets, etc. But I wouldn't go back now that we're spoiled with the capacity of our Oliver . - Cherie

Will do Jam49.. we're not at the factory anymore (they handled everything on our list), but camped at the *fabulous* Meriwether Lewis National Monument campground just a few miles down on the Natchez Trace. If y'all are ever visiting the factory and want a FREE place to stay, this place is absolutely gorgeous. No hookups (and very treed, so even if you have solar, you won't recharge much) - but with a generator or an overnight stop, it makes for a great landing base near the factory. We'll likely be seeing Robert socially over the weekend and will for sure show him the hook that Daniel installed for us to keep the swing arm more stationary while in motion. - Cherie

We're using warm lights for the 'living areas' (over the bed and side dinette) and cool lights for over the kitchen and in the bath. The cool lights are a bit harsh to my eyes, but much brighter.. a light I prefer for 'doing things'. But for more ambient lighting and work light (we do computer work), I prefer the friendlier-to-my-eyes 'warm' lights. I think you'll find the preferences will vary quite a bit tho. It's all about what YOU like.. bluer or yellower light? - Cherie

Our doors have never fell out or came open while traveling. Actually, neither have ours.. and I don't think Chris said they did. However, ours fall out quite frequently just opening and closing them. If you slide one of them over just a touch too far and put pressure on them, they fall right out of the bottom track, and then thus the top track. And it's very easy to get it lined up incorrectly and go on the wrong track when closing them, causing a jam. And quite frequently, stuff will shift inside the cabinets, blocking the track of the doors. Surprised others haven't encountered this.. maybe I'm just using them wrong But overall, I'd just really rather have full access to each cabinet. Oh well, Oliver says the 17' cabinets can't be retrofitted with the style of the 22'. Our Ollie doesn't have the bathroom water switch and we often wish it did Are there Ollie's with a switch in the bathroom? That would be far more convenient than one under the sink. Will this eliminate the ability to exchange tanks on a weekend or some other emergency ? Yes, going to a 30lb tank in general eliminates that option. That's why we went with a hybrid of a 20 and a 30, so we could have the capacity and the ease of exchange if needed. I'm personally not in complete agreement with Chris that a tank with a gauge is necessary however. Spring-Loaded Tow Hooks: When we picked up our Oliver, it came with locking D-rings to attach the tow chains. We immediately replaced these with heavy-duty spring-loaded hooks, which making hitching up MUCH easier. These sort of hooks should be standard. Not for us. They can come unlatched in deep snow as we were yesterday, or even in dessert chapparal Hmm.. not sure we're talking about the same hooks here. I think what we went with are referred to tractor claw hooks. It'd be quite difficult for them to come opened and unattached without deliberate effort to do so. - Cherie PS. Since we're making a list.. I'll bring back my desire to have lighting over the 'cutting board' and/or over the mirror bathroom door. And I do rather like the upper cabinet in the bathroom too of 22'.

It hasn't quite been a year yet, but Cherie and I are back where it all started last July -- camped inside (yes - inside!) the Oliver factory in Hohenwald, TN. Even though a year has passed, we are still in love with our Oliver and we don't regret our decision to get one in the slightest. I couldn't imagine going back to a Tab like we had the year before, and I am SO glad that we didn't settle on a Casita. Our little 17' Oliver is the perfect trailer for us - anything less (or more) would have felt like a compromise. Even though we have had our share of issues (some even serious), the overall quality of the Oliver design, and especially of the Oliver people, has continued to blow us away. The folks at the factory have always come through for us, even when we are on the opposite side of the country. Today we are back revisiting the factory to get our uneven tire wear resolved and a few other minor things handled. They have been great in handling all of our issues, and they even threw in brand new tires to go along with the replacement for the defective axle! The folks here really do make us feel like family. After a year living in our Oliver, we do have a few design suggestions on ways that future models can be improved. This is a long list, but most of the issues are extremely minor: Cabinet Doors: The sliding cabinet doors are the one area of the trailer that doesn't feel up to the quality standards of the rest. Ours do occasionally jam or fall off the tracks. The new cabinet design in the 22' Oliver model is a VAST improvement, and it would be great to make these sort of cabinet doors standard on the 17'. Water Pump: There are too many water-related switches! There should be only one pump switch inside, and (maybe) one outside. The switch under the sink isn't really necessary when the master switch is just a few feet away. Hot Water Switch Location: The hot water switch should be located adjacent to the water pump switch, not hidden away under the bed. Ours occasionally gets knocked on in the current location, and it can too easily go unnoticed when it does. SeeLevel with Switches: The otherwise identical SeeLevel 709-PH tank monitor incorporates both a water pump and a hot water switch. Combining these functions into the tank monitor would make for a much cleaner and clearer setup than the current separate switches. Propane Gauge: It would be nice if the Oliver offered propane tanks that can display their status on the SeeLevel display. I have found a 30lb tank that should be compatible. (I just posted in the propane thread with details...) Grey Water: There should be a way to leave the grey water drain open while leaving the battery bay closed. This would be nice for when semi-permanently hooked up to a sewer system. Battery Chamber Size: We rarely use the outside shower, but we would often appreciate having space for four batteries. Offering an option to forgo the shower for an extended battery compartment would be nice. Battery Chamber Lock: It would be nice if there was a way to lock the battery chamber, and perhaps even the tongue propane storage area. (This may potentially not be allowed by law??) Bumper Storage Chamber Height: The back bumper storage area does not have enough clearance to store a typical sewer adaptor, meaning that it can not be stored along with the hose. One inch more clearance would make a huge difference here. Excessive Thermostats: Three thermostats on the wall next to the sink is overkill. It looks as if it is possible to wire the furnace and AC to a single thermostat - that would make for a cleaner design. (The third thermostat is for the remote control for the FanTastic Roof Fan.) Interior / Exterior Master Switches: It would be nice to have separate cut-off switches near the door for interior and exterior lights. Often when leaving the trailer you will want to leave the outside lights on, but shut off all the inside lights. Dusk-till-Dawn Lighting: I would love to be able to set the outside ground lights to be dusk-till-dawn... (And I have an idea of how to do this using some features in the solar charge controller!) Clear Door Slider: Using clear plastic for the screen door slider lets in a lot more light when using the screen door... We bought a clear plastic slider at Camping World - it is a great simple upgrade that should be standard... Door Window Curtain: There really needs to be a standard way to block the door window for privacy, particularly since all the other windows offer such great privacy with the blackout blinds. We have used some of our extra seat fabric to make a velcro attached curtain... Perhaps this should be standard for all Oliver's? Spring-Loaded Tow Hooks: When we picked up our Oliver, it came with locking D-rings to attach the tow chains. We immediately replaced these with heavy-duty spring-loaded hooks, which making hitching up MUCH easier. These sort of hooks should be standard. A Better Manual: Like every other RV I have ever seen, the Oliver documentation leaves a lot to be desired. I would love there to be a clear and simple owner's manual with maintenance guidelines very clearly stated. Advanced documentation like plumbing diagrams and electrical system schematics should also be available. I wonder what other long-term owners think of this list. Do you have any other suggestions or ideas - major or minor, to add? Overall though, there is very little that we would change. Having looked at a LOT of RV designs out on the road, I remain convinced that the Oliver is the best thought out general purpose travel trailer design to be found. I am very much looking forward to our next year on the road in ours! - Chris

Check this out: http://www.vintagetrailersupply.com/30_ ... ts-169.htm This 30lb aluminum tank costs $159, plus $70 for the gauge feature. This should be lighter than a regular tank - this one weighs 18lbs. I think the gauge on this tank is compatible with the SeeLevel in our Olivers - I found the link to it on the SeeLevel website. This might be the ideal gauge solution, the a bit pricey. - Chris

If you want to read about an impressive bike adventure... My friend Steve Roberts was the original technomad - on a bicycle! In the mid-80's he sold his house and moved onto an uber-geeked out bike that is now in the computer history museum. The final version of his bike had several computers on board, heads up display, GPS, enough radios to power a taxi service, and more. All with mid-80's vintage technology, much of which he invented himself. He even wrote a book (Computing Across America) while underway with his handlebar mounted chording keyboard. Steve has been one of my nomadic inspirations, and he is also a good friend. He's now working on the ultimate geek sailboat, in large part because there are no hills to pedal up at sea... You can read about his bike and small boats here: http://www.microship.com And his new boat and blog is here: http://www.nomadness.com Cheers! - Chris

An update on our tire situation... It does indeed appear to be a camber issue with the axle, as after rotating the tires (and adjusting the PSI as per Jim Oliver's recommendation), we've had the same exact wear pattern on the new non-bald tire. It started showing up somewhere around New Mexico (just about 1200 miles after the tire rotation). Upon arriving in St. Louis - it was pretty much even with the other tire. We're currently meandering our way towards Hohenwald, where new tires and axle await us. The Oliver folks sure do treat their customers right. We're looking forward to seeing all the Oliver folks this week! Thanks for all the help in diagnosing the potential causes of this. - Cherie

We're up to 3 Olivers in Camp Nomadia at Burning Man this year.. are you coming too ? We just started a social networking for organizing the camp.. if you have any inclination to join us at Burning Man this year, point your browser to: - Cherie

You all are a hoot! Cannonballs into a hot tub. Keep having fun! - Cherie

We enjoyed the Three Rivers Petroglyph site too on our way into White Sands. With our National Park Pass, drycamping (and admission) was free... or just $2 without. The regular price for hook-ups was only $10, which is quite a deal too! It was a beautiful location, just too early in the day to call it quits. - Cherie

Verizon has the best / biggest network - particularly now that they have gobbled up Alltell. But they also have the worst phones, and the worst priced data plans. You just can't win. We have Sprint for our data card, and AT&T for our iPhones. At some point we may add a Verizon card to the mix, but their overage charges are $250 a gigabyte if you go over your 5GB monthly allotment. Insane. - Chris

No complaints here on the ANT1550 we installed. Of course, we may have watched about an hour cumulative of TV since installing it way back when. We're just not TV people. - Cherie

Wow, you're quick Mountainborn! I just uploaded that last night when we had some bandwidth to spare. We'll be using it in an upcoming post about our tour of the 22'. Glad you're enjoying the Tales from Technomadia video, Sherry.. there's lost more in the works. - Cherie

Thanks for the advice everyone.. really appreciate it. Unfortunately as we don't have the luxury of a ladder (haven't found one small enough to stow in the Jeep), we've had no way to check out the roof ourselves. Getting the tarp up was a challenge enough with ropes. So, that's one reason to get in somewhere that they're set up to really inspect the roof and work with Oliver to diagnose where it might be coming from. As we already have plans to visit Hohenwald in late May/early June.. if anything drastic needs to be done, we'll likely just take it in to the factory to repair. - Cherie

We have to take ours out while traveling, as ours was originally cut too big to fit so they had to sand it down. Now it's slightly too small and easily slides out with motion. We keep a desktop clock/weather station on ours, and it holds my cell phone overnight. It's also a perfect width to hold our Tervis Tumbler mugs, so I can sip a drink while working or laying in bed. Kiki also likes to sleep on it or under it. I've not had too many troubles sleeping next to it. I sleep cuddled up between Chris and a body pillow. The body pillow fits nicely under the table, keeping me far enough away from it for it not to be a problem. And Kiki loves to wedge herself between the body pillow and shell of the Oliver underneath the table. - Cherie