taylor.coyote

my hull is #124 (2016 production) and it is not prewired for solar. I spoke with jason to get help from him to locate the the plates in the roof so we can mount the panels on the roof but have yet to get the locations from him. he told me the factory uses a template to locate the points to drill the roof and would take some measurements indexed off the air conditioner. in the mean time, we have installed a zamp controller on the back wall of the pantry and run the solar panel cable inside the hull from under the pantry forward under the bath, through the front wall behind the propane tanks with the other power cables for the trailer jacks and generator input. from here we have installed a weather sealed zamp port under the rear jack switches at the nose of the trailer. we have mounted our 170w solar panels on yakima c channel tracks on top of our A R E truck cap that is on our f250. we use one or two zamp 25' cables from the zamp junction box at the nose of the trailer to the solar panel on top of the A R E truck cap. We have made a "umbilical safety cord" (between the cable end and the rack) grasping the end of the cable to protect from pulling on the plug at the panel. to date we are pleased with this set up. we can park the trailer in the shade and have the panels in the sun. we feel this setup is much more convenient than toting/setting-up portable panels. we may choose leave the panels on the truck so we not to put more holes in the roof of our oliver. one important tip if you choose to mount panels to a yakima or thule c channel track especially if your track is installed as an option at the cap factory. be sure to have the track cut long enough to support two 170 watt panels using the zamp mounting brackets (only used the top half of the mounting brackets / this keeps panel the profile low and integrates to the c track t-nuts with one bolt). the minimum usable track length needs to be at least 60" for two panels and longer if you wish to mount a yakima or thule rack to carry gear above your panels (the panels will nest below a yakima. i have not tested it for a thule but assume the thule will also be tall enough to clear the panels.

I spoke with one of the battery engineers at interstate battery (I use interstate batteries) about this very topic a couple of weeks ago. In fact you can treat them as as TWO banks of 12V, 4 banks of 6V or one bank of 12V. The simplest way is to treat them as one bank of 12v and use a 12v tender. I use a 12v tender that is mounted to the ceiling of my shop that supports 4 batteries (tractor, generator, mower) and now my four 6v treated as one bank 12v batteries. The battery tender may be the best tool I own. Prior to owning it, I was alway having dead batteries on one of the motors when I most needed to start them after sitting months at a time. After getting the tender, I have not had a dead battery in years. The system is super reliable and will not over-charge your batteries. please find this link. they make many good products that will serve your needs http://products.batterytender.com/Chargers/

very good stuff and educational. The fridge is not a problem or concern. We "charge the Oliver fridge the night before leaving town and then put all the food in it already cold or frozen from the house fridge. The Oliver fridge is a great "ice box". It stays cold all day until we stop to camp. At this time we turn on the fridge and all is good. Turn it off before we travel and so on. Never had a problem with food getting warm or defrosting. Doing this is super easy and worth the small effort to keep the fridge in good shape. Again I'm assuming we are operating with reliable information that it's very hard on the fridge to travel with it on and doing so greatly increases the likelihood of damage. I'm happy to learn the propane heat on its own gets the job done in cold weather. So far we have only had cold nights and mornings (high teens) but warm in the daytime. The concern is if we get caught when the temp is really cold 24/7 for several days in a row. I had a friend on a duck/goose hunting trip in Canada last year that made a mess out of his Lance camper in this very situation. The idea of just stopping and winterizing and blowing out lines is viable if the temp were to get crazy. All is good in my book as long as nothing internal gets broken. Seems like the biggest concerns are the outside shower and water input ports freezing if it gets really cold.

thank for all the input.. I was my understanding that it's not legal to travel with active propane lines in some states plus it can damage your refrigerator / appliances to run when they are not level. I'm i miss-informed?

We will be doing some travel this winter that has the potential to be below freezing while in transit. Has anyone come up with a solution to keep the cabin and between the hulls (water lines and tanks) above freezing with 12v low amperage heaters while in transit? Any solutions are of interest but don't want to travel with open propane lines and hope to continue to operate without an inverter.

I spent 20 year of my career as a business partner and the VP of Sales and Marketing at Yakima Racks. Hopefully I can add some value to this conversation. To begin, the Yakima engineering team never liked mounting bikes to the rear of trailers. This was unpopular with the engineers because of the long fulcrum and the leverage at the bumper of a trailer can act like a launch. The further the bikes are extended behind the bumper the more dramatic the effect. The forces here are magnitudes greater than anywhere else you can attach gear to your rig. Anytime your trailer bucks or goes through a dip, the forces transferred to the bike/gear system are much greater than any other location. The bumper of a trailer is appealing because your gear is mostly out of the way and the access is really convenient. Unfortunately, the back of your vehicle is the absolute worst place for your bike’s drive train. Your chain and gears suck up girt like a magnet. Given other reasonable options, I would recommend to transport your bikes at a different location. There are many good brands/products available that can be safely secured your rig/trailer. If you want to mount bikes to the Oliver, I would favor the front of the trailer example provided by shallowgal in an earlier post vs the rear of the trailer. Below are the some general pros and cons for other locations you may consider securing and transporting your bikes and / or other gear. Top of your SUV/truck/camper shell • Bugs come into play on the front facing parts but the good news is the drive train will remain much cleaner than rear of the vehicle • Accessing your bikes on top of the car can be challenging • The forces on the bike and the rack system are modest • The bikes/gear is out of the way • Need to be mindful of overhead clearances • Allows for the option to transport boats and/or most other gear, even your solar panels • Theft security is modest Bed of Pickup with camper shell • Reasonable access to your bike • High function, low cost attachment systems available • Minimum of forces on bike or system • Can be a valuable space hog • The space is not as clean as you may think.. it’s hard to seal the tail gate on many trucks. This can be a tough location to keep your bike’s drive train clear of grit if you spend any time on gravel • Best theft security Open pickup bed with rack system that bridge over the bed • Functions much like roof racks • Does not impact pickup bed storage space • Easy access to your bikes and gear (standing in bed) • Bike drive train will remain reasonably clean • Bugs come into play like a roof rack • The forces on the bike and the rack system are modest • The bikes and gear are out of the way • Need to be mindful of overhead clearances • Allows the option to transport boats and/or most other gear, even your solar panels • Theft security is modest Rear of SUV / front of trailer • Does not impact other valuable storage space • Easy access to your bike and gear • Might hinder accessing rear of you vehicle • The forces on the bike and the rack system are modest • Terrible environment for your bike’s running gear • Theft security is modest Front of car (front receiver hitch application) • Most viable for larger trucks but are an option for some ½ tons and SUV’s • Does not impact other storage space • Easy access to your bike and/or other gear • Able to carry other gear • Can hinder accessing to engine / under hood • The forces on the bike and the rack system are modest • Bugs are in play • Bike running gear will remain reasonably clean but this is a tougher environment that the top of your rig • Theft security is modest

John, Thank you for sharing your experience and this is very thoughtful information. For sure, I'm going forward with the undercarriage gravel guards and mud flaps. I'm sold on the functionality and performance of the stompers but need to sleep on it. Seems another level of fabrication skills is needed to set up stompers plus futzing factor makes me pause. your point about camping "hooked up" mitigates some of this as we too camp "hooked up" good share of the time. You are correct about the AT3's being rock flingers. Darn, thought this was just the ways it is when off road. I'm a day late on this one. the Aussi wind screen guards mentioned.. do you mean like the image below?

John, thank you for your thoughtful post/reply on this topic a couple of days ago. I like what you have done with the gravel-guards. You have covered the sub frame gravel-guards pretty well but i have few questions: you defined the size and the ground clearance will be the result of the size. can you give a rough guideline for the resulting ground clearance from the bottom of the guard to the ground? the reason i ask is many roads have much of the gravel in crowns between the tire groves worn in the road. I want to insure the guards are not dragging on the crowns and contributing kicking up more gravel. I had this issue with tampers. I set up my hitch / truck hight before fully loading my truck that includes a 30gal water tank. needless to say, the truck squatted a little thus contributing to the the tampers taking rocks off the gravel crowns. you have made a significant effort to keep steel components away from the Aluminum frame, why are you not using Aluminum fasteners? i'm thinking the open gap in the front of the rear bumper needs some protection. the inside of my bumper is filled with rocks and grit.. do you have any thoughts? ---- Questions and thoughts about your stompers.. I see the value of the stompers and what i perceive to have has solved the rock problem. Even as a proven solution I'm struggling with what I perceive to be a lot of extra stuff to "futz with". I can’t see myself dealing with all that stuff to hitch and unhitch each time, maintaining and carrying extra service parts. when i had my 1/2 ton truck, i hated dealing with the extra stuff using the Anderson weight distribution hitch. I used the hitch because i think it was the best in-class and I really needed it. I like the gravel guards because they seem to be a good solution with a one-time investment on the front-end doing the installation. Once together, just use it with a small amount of maintenance required. If push come to shove, I'm not unwilling to use stompers if it is the only way to get good rock protection. I'm still seeking a solution that does not require dealing with it every time the trailer is hitch and unhitched. The Oliver owner calling himself "bugeyeddriver" seems to be satisfied with the Vortext coating with a few limitations. I'm inclined to try using Line-X (no experienced Vortext guys near by) with good mud-flaps on the truck + modified Tampes (close of the gap between the flaps), open tread tires with next tires before sub-coming to managing a Stomper system. I have read pretty much all that has been written in the forum on rock protection. Knowing my aversion to managing a stomper system, do you have any general advice or things I should consider before pulling the trigger? Unfortunately, I just purchased a new set of Cooper AT3's. This is my third set and I really love the way they handle on and off road and they last 55K+. I thought all tires threw rocks and it was just part of being off road until you mentioned mud/open tread tire throw a lot fewer rocks. Makes a lot of since now you have brought to my attention. Unfortunately, I just purchased a new set of Cooper AT3's. This is my third set and I really love the way they handle on and off road and they last 50K+. I thought all tires throw rocks and it was just part of being off road until you mentioned mud/open tread tire throw a lot fewer rocks. Makes a lot of since now you have brought to my attention.

Please tell us more about your Vortex coating process. Do you perceive Vortext to be similar to to Line-X coating material? why did you choose Vortext over other pick-up bed liner material? Did you choose the skill/trailer/fiberglass experience of the installer as the primary reason to go with your coating process? did you have a special application of more layers/thicker than the standard that is done to pick-up bed application? the cost to line pick-up beds for Votext range from $500-$700 in California. the prices I have heard for Vortext trailer applications have ranged to $3k+. Do you know why trailer applications has such a large price difference from pick-up bed applications? please tell us about the color matching process.

John, thank you for your thoughtful post/reply on this topic a couple of days ago. I like what you have done with the gravel-guards. You have covered the sub frame gravel-guards pretty well but i have few questions: you defined the size and the ground clearance will be the result of the size. can you give a rough guideline for the resulting ground clearance from the bottom of the guard to the ground? the reason i ask is many roads have much of the gravel in crowns between the tire groves worn in the road. I want to insure the guards are not dragging on the crowns and contributing kicking up more gravel. I had this issue with tampers. I set up my hitch / truck hight before fully loading my truck that includes a 30gal water tank. needless to say, the truck squatted a little thus contributing to the the tampers taking rocks off the gravel crowns. you have made a significant effort to keep steel components away from the Aluminum frame, why are you not using Aluminum fasteners? i'm thinking the open gap in the front of the rear bumper needs some protection. the inside of my bumper is filled with rocks and grit.. do you have any thoughts? ---- Questions and thoughts about your stompers.. I see the value of the stompers and what i perceive to have has solved the rock problem. Even as a proven solution I'm struggling with what I perceive to be a lot of extra stuff to "futz with". I can’t see myself dealing with all that stuff to hitch and unhitch each time, maintaining and carrying extra service parts. when i had my 1/2 ton truck, i hated dealing with the extra stuff using the Anderson weight distribution hitch. I used the hitch because i think it was the best in-class and I really needed it. I like the gravel guards because they seem to be a good solution with a one-time investment on the front-end doing the installation. Once together, just use it with a small amount of maintenance required. If push come to shove, I'm not unwilling to use stompers if it is the only way to get good rock protection. I'm still seeking a solution that does not require dealing with it every time the trailer is hitch and unhitched. The Oliver owner calling himself "bugeyeddriver" seems to be satisfied with the Vortext coating with a few limitations. I'm inclined to try using Line-X (no experienced Vortext guys near by) with good mud-flaps on the truck + modified Tampes (close of the gap between the flaps), open tread tires with next tires before sub-coming to managing a Stomper system. I have read pretty much all that has been written in the forum on rock protection. Knowing my aversion to managing a stomper system, do you have any general advice or things I should consider before pulling the trigger? Unfortunately, I just purchased a new set of Cooper AT3's. This is my third set and I really love the way they handle on and off road and they last 55K+. I thought all tires threw rocks and it was just part of being off road until you mentioned mud/open tread tire throw a lot fewer rocks. Makes a lot of since now you have brought to my attention.

John, thank you for the thoughtful post. I will attempt to contact you directly so I don't hijack Bobfist's original post regarding film and coatings.

I'm new to this party and understand value of the items everyone is requesting. it's clear that Oliver is good at making and delivering about 150+/- very big ticket items and not set up to encourage or manage a large number of small ticket transactions. I have yet to visit the factory but from afar it's pretty safe to assume this needs to be considered and budgeted as a marketing expense. Yep an expense. Even if they take fat margins on these items, they will mostly likely be financial losers because of a lack of infrastructure for this very different kind of business activity. Yep an activity with great feel good and good will affirming value for all involved. This said, I think it's time for them to find a way to put their toe in water, keep it simple and have available a few good quality items. I might suggest they consider outsourcing the inventory, transaction / fulfillment to a third party that good at managing larger volume, small ticket business activities so the folks at Oliver can focus on their core strengths and keep making great trailers.

Landover, Do you feel a "graphic wrap" + tampers provide protection good enough for an Alaskan trip ?

We doing the same investigations as we spend 50% + time on gravel. We are using Rock Tampers and they help but don't get the job done for us. There is a lot posted about clear 3m film and the like but we would like more protection than film can provide and a permanent low to no-maintenance solution. Vortext and Line-x spay on pickup bed liner materails are high on our list as a possibility. The Vortex looks really nice but there are no suppliers within a reasonable distance of our home and the cost is $3k+. We met with our local Line-x dealer last week that has done a great job on two of our pickups about spraying a "mask" on our Oliver. He has done several trailers (fiberglass and Alu) and said has had good bonding and overall durability with the Line-x process on fiberglass trailers. We were told "Line-x's boding to fiberglass is more than sufficient for the application/function of heavy duty rock protection. This said, it will not be as "bomb proof" as are applications on steel or aluminum pick-up beds. You can throw hammers onto Line-x in the bed of a pick-up with little if any damage. " We were quoted $800 for a full front mask (tongue to lower front marker lights to the bottom of shell seam). We discussed black but Line-x offers color matching so will follow up to see if white is a line-x option. We have yet to pull the trigger and are interested in what everyone will have to say about vortex vs line-X vs other film/coating options per Bobfirst's post.

The Alu pop rivet head failed on one corner that secures the tray to the slides and the tray collapsed on one side. I have wet batteries so had a mess to clean up with some spilled liquid. Now i'm seeing the wisdom of dry cells for off road travel. It was and easy fix. Replaced all of the alu pop-rivets with stainless steel bolts / nylock bolts with washers on both sides.. if you are doing off road driving, i would recommend checking or even proactively replacing these soft pop-rivets. after this, my greater concern is the weight of 4 batteries (250LB+) and how the slides are bolted to the trailer when off road.. i have already snugged up the space where the tray latch can rattle with some alu L channel but wanted to know if anyone knows how / and what the battery slides are fastened to under the fiberglass. your thought will be appreciated