BackofBeyond

The schematics in my manual depicting the Zamp solar wiring diagrams does not include any reference to the remote plug. Does anyone know where it ties to the system: straight to the batteries, or to the solar charge controller. I can see where it enters the interior, and has an inline 10 amp fuse, but I don't want to pull all the access points to trace it down. I have a spare small 40 watt panel and charge controller I am thinking about carrying. Thus the question. I thought I read somewhere the plug went directly to the batteries - but I cannot find that post. I'll check with Oliver Mon if not answered sooner. Thanks all. RB

As an example below are a sample. Not sure about the best ones, these are what I've found and used. www.ultimatecampgrounds.com/index.php/products/full-map Camping spot locator https://www.campendium.com/ camping spot locator https://www.recreation.gov/ camping reservations https://www.reserveamerica.com/checkAccountStatus.do camping reservations https://rvdumpsites.net/ waste water disposal locator RB

The Oliver forum continues to be a valuable resource to me on a vast array of topics. As I was reviewing the number of applications, web sites, and such that I have bookmarked to help find "camping" and other RV related topics, I wondered if I was missing some = I'm sure I am. I queried the forum and found a good deal of suggestions scattered around in many posts, but not any centrally located spot. The wise folks out there know that you use one reservation system for federal parks, another for some state parks, and many other sites for - well almost anything. My question, would it make sense to have a topic page - or whatever is correct- that would put all these resources in one location. (Perhaps it's already there, and I haven't found it). I am sure the new Oliver owners would benefit, as would I. Thanks in advance for your input, RB

JD, After my last trip through BC, Yukon, and around Alaska, I mostly agree with you. The amount of damage gravel roads, roads under construction, and the like do to a TV and tow behind RV is amazing. A few hundred or thousand miles of dirt and gravel can be enormously destructive to the undersides of a vehicle. I had similar questions as Geronimo John, thanks for the reply. I still believe protecting the "frontal" hull is also something I need to figure out. I have a few ideas - and as I try them out, I'll post results. From a suction cup mounted "bra" to an aluminum deflection shield, mounted to the front basket, I have ideas. The energy - questionable. RB

Dwain: Welcome to our Oliver Community! This is an interesting topic - backroads or interstates. For me, it all just depends, on many things, - where am I headed, how much time do I have, seasons/time of year, and past travels/experience. Certainly not all inclusive, but it serves me well. We currently reside in Mid-Tennessee, if we are headed west, say this summers trip destinations, for the first 1k miles its almost all interstates. There is not much of GA, MS, LA and TX that I haven't seen or driven through. But once we reach - say Midland TX - and head north, I'll kind of hop scotch around in a northerly direction, exploring. Also understand for us, most of the south - and across Texas in the summer, is drive through, head to altitude, asap territory. Now, early spring, fall, winter, I love the south. We will spend the bulk of our time in less traveled areas, use the interstates to get between them - use them as fast connectors - quickly. As far as where to camp - well that's also variable. On the "I"state scene it can be a good rest stop, a wally world, side road RV, or such, -- in the less traveled areas, its explore, try out the unusual, maybe a destination spot, requiring a little pre-planning. Given the connectivity and resources we have today, figuring it all out can be simple and somewhat stress free. Since finding Campndium, (and a few others) my world of camp spot possibilities has greatly expanded. We optioned our Oliver to be flexible, variable, no need for improved RV sites. Thus pre-planning is much more seat of the pants. Our best experiences usually happen in this mode. Perhaps I'm not making much sense here, but for us, the best times and best trips come about from exploration and spontaneity, somewhat contained with in the time and ultimate destination construct. What I'm saying - is - don't constrain yourself to much - feel it out - have fun. Try the full service, and the not so full service spots. Head west, turn right enough times to finally arrive back home. Works for us - 43 years and counting, from tents, to vans, to the Ollie, all good times. Go have fun. RB

Choied, Can you post the retailer whom you purchased this valve. Brand, manufacturer, specs. It appears this is what I need - thanks RB

Where are my manners, I apologize for my behavior here. Randy - Welcome to the Oliver Forum. Jeesh, I'm losing it. RB

This close: 1. Were I you, I'd find out the tow ratings, payload, and hitch weight capacities of my Toyota, to insure my Toyota was rated to tow the smaller ollie. The larger one, the EII maybe out of the question. You may need weight distribution simply due to hitch weight limitations. For sway, no, the Ollie tows just fine. 2. Options are what fit your camping personality. You didn't state any profile. Boondocking, only stay in RV parks, a little of both, must have electronic connectivity, and on, etc... I would like to help, but I can't. Good hunting. RB

TN - about as cheap as your going to find for tags. Sales tax is the kicker - around 9% depending on your county. After the purchase its just yearly renewal - my truck is $26.50 and the Ollie $17.50, plus a fee if you use online. I just go the county courthouse - takes about 5 min. RB

For whatever reason, I can't get that pdf to open. I reduced the air pressure on my tires to 60 PSI this last trip. Didn't notice much difference in towing, if any. I believe the Oliver has a softer ride, less road jarring at 60. With the weight of my ollie (loaded and 1/2 water) approx. 6100lbs - it is well within the tire load ratings. I am also running the TireMinder TM55-B Wireless Tire Pressure Monitoring System. It is kinda cool - actually. My wife says I'm gonna have wreck if I don't stop checking it out...... RB

My two cents, I use the Meguiar's G18216 Ultimate Liquid Wax and the Meguiar's G17220 Ultimate Compound on my truck. After a thorough clean and polish I put the Rejex on the Ollie this winter. I've washed my truck 4-5 times since last wax, and the Ollie 3 times since taking it out of the garage - 1500 road miles and a month or two outside. Today I washed them both - I cannot see any real difference on the water beading, cleaning, black streak removal, or otherwise. Both look great. Given that, I'll probably use up the remaining bottle of Rejex on the Ollie, and go from there. It is harder to apply - that is for certain, I may experiment with the Duragloss products when the Rejex is done. In the areas where I know I've probably put two or more coats of Rejex on the Ollie, the product is performing very well. (the front areas). RB

I agree the seal really holds an inordinate amount of trash behind the awning, as do the mounting brackets (as JD shows), but I think I'm going to live with ours for awhile. I'll just hit the area with a good strong water blast when Ollie gets a bath. At some point it may become history, but for n0w, not. At some point, I've got to just use the Oliver, and stop re-engineering stuff...…… well, that and buying more chairs....and, and, and... RB

Carnivore, good question, I'll take a little different approach to the question. Are you interested in expanding your Oliver camping opportunities? If so, the full Monty solar set-up fits the bill. I must say I really enjoy the freedom that the total solar/4 AGM/inverter setup provides. It is our general goal to explore places that are not on the beaten path, and given that, having our setup really opens up possibilities for camp spots. As an example, during planning of our extended "summer" trip, I have gone from planning and reserving camp spots, to merely loosely planning the direction of travel given - the time factor of getting to a predetermined destination. Using such apps as Campendium, I see little need to reserve ahead of time. Places to camp are endless, (and can be very cheap) if your open to discovery, and flexible. We will not need any sort of electrical hook-up unless for some reason we stay in a lower elevation and its too warm for sleeping. Other wise, we have no need of shore power, water and sewer connection. I don't plan to carry a gen set. Filling up the fresh water, and emptying the grey water, are simple also - again there's an app for that. We have basically a 5 star camp experience - anywhere I can get the Ollie into safely. For the cost, I believe the full package is a great value. Add the composting toilet, and you end up with a very freedom inducing set-up. Now - given one rarely camps sans hook-ups - I would not spend the $$ on the additional batteries - but I would install an inverter. We camped for many years - all across the country, Canada, Alaska, etc., with a van based conversion - with one "house" AGM - charged by the vehicles electrical system, and a 1000 watt Xantrex inverter. Worked great and was very simple set-up. However, finding ourselves on the cusp of retirement, we really enjoy the comfort and ease our Oliver set-up provides, while also fulfilling our desire to explore the paths less traveled. RB

Nice job JD. Is there a reason you selected the solid red over the alternating red/white. I noticed the retailer you referenced has several "colors". The tape really brings an added safety factor, it stands out very boldly in your pics. Seems I have at least one more mod to do, my bike rack and rear bumper are perfect candidates. I also like that yellow on the other spots. Thanks for the post JD. RB

Nemo Stargaze Recliner Luxury Camping Chair So After trying this one out at REI, I was impressed enough to purchase one on sale - still expensive at $180. It arrived yesterday and I really like it- comfortable, light, and packs into a nice smaller package. Although we also like the zero gravity lounger it is not as easy to load and pack in the rear of the truck. Ok, I have spent all the $$ I'm going to on chairs. RB

What great pics David - just wonderful. I love the Moab area, Arches, the whole area. The MTB riding is insane. A few years back, I did a few miles in the slickrock site, its all rock, about 5 miles in, I thought, if I have "crash" something is gonna break, and its gonna be me. The ride back was somewhat slower and much more "careful". I saw some off-road jeeps and such in places I would NOT dare to drive. Next time we go, I'll have the Ollie, and we will spend much more time exploring. JD: I feel ya. Seems I'm not as good once as I ever was..... some days, some projects - jeesh. RB

Some days that's cheap for marital bliss. Bobfirst _ yea I agree, the rack does make the rear access harder - I've begun leaving the sewer pipe connected to the outlet, much easier now. I don't worry about the plate - never had a problem with similar blockage on other vehicles, guess one day it might come up. As far as the difficulty installing/removing the rack - I took a flat file and removed a small amount of material from the "male" side of the R/L assembly. The square tubing corner edges were rounded, and all the flat surfaces filed/planed down until the surfaces were "flat" The tubing is somewhat concave, and as you remove material, it begins to flatten out. I coated them with waterproof grease, and stuck them in the female tubing. I am happy with the results - the rack assembly slides in and out with to much effort. As for the weight rating - its my swag - I'm about 200 - I've bounced up and down on the far rear of the thing - its very rigid - and the trailers suspension takes out some of the physics of the dead load. So that's why I estimated 150lbs. RB

As others have stated, the new design with the smaller single mount is just not going to handle much weight, 100lbs sounds about right. I prefer the original rack mounting scheme Oliver offered. The current one has a similar frame mounting attachments which are quite sturdy. It would not take a lot of effort to fabricate a stronger mounting platform similar to the old system. I have a tandem Thule attached to the one on my Oliver. It is very sturdy, and I am confident it will handle up to 150Lbs with no issues.

I hate looking at this forum - just last trip Cindy commented on the fact we needed a remote temp for outside - and Walla!- you folks provide. How much more am I going spend, Jeesh . ;-) Ambient Weather WS-10 Wireless Indoor/Outdoor 8-Channel Thermo-Hygrometer with Three Remote Sensors - is on the way per the big A. RB

I would start there - the inverter and the GFCI. If you can replace the plug, do that, if problem persists, its probably an inverter issue. But as has been suggested, verify all connections are sound. Good luck.

John, On our way to AK a few years back, we marveled at the amount of places to just stop and admire the scenery. We plan to return for an extended tour of BC and the Yukon. Please keep us apprised of any great places you discover. Have a great trip. RB

Congratulations on your new Oliver. Enjoy

Current groupthink culture demands that you ask people you've never met for their preferences on what you should purchase. Take plenty of pictures, mostly selfies, post them in as many places as possible, and tweet a few hundred times on how smart you were for taking everyone's advice. In no case think for yourself, do any investigation, or give any indication that your a discerning shopper. Wait - wait - you didn't get any "likes" awww, bless your little heart. However, in most cases, when asked, I try to share my experiences, and not make a judgement on which "brand" is better. I have no vested interest or ego to stroke, and truly wish the best for all. But I reserve the right to silently say to myself - well, never mind... The best TV is... the one you are happy with. RB

We purchased the extra snap-together back cushions for one side - we just don't use them - and will let them go - very reasonably - they are the grey fabric. Have been bagged and stored since new. RB

Bill, Yes I tried that, and some adhesive cleaner, along with rubbing compound, wheel n tire cleaner, and on. Its just stained permanently. RB.