theOrca
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Posts posted by theOrca
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Your idea works great John. Thank you!
BTW, when my unit was delivered to me here in Washington, one of the 4 black wing nuts securing the solar panels was within two threads of falling off. One of the remaining three was merely touching the lock washer. I did as you recommended and drilled one end of each wing nut for the use of zip ties to keep the wing nuts from backing off.
Zip ties are sure easier to apply and remove than the "safety wire" I had to use when I was a USN Aviation Electronics Tech!
Bill Simons
Oak Harbor, WA
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Stand by for sticker shock if you have to buy Marinco products. The standard joke in the local boating community is that if it is "yellow" it has to come with a 100% mark-up because it is "Marine Grade" just from being yellow! I bought a 50' Marinco cable because the local West Marine store just wanted it to heck out of their store (heavy, big, took a lot of shelf space, had it for two years, etc.). The gave me a smoking good price, like half off! I then cut it up and made-up the sections and connectors I needed.
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On 5/10/2020 at 10:05 AM, John E Davies said:
What do you plan for that area below the steel tray? Access appears to be limited - it appears to be about a 6 inch gap. It would be great for wood blocks, if you can reach back far enough.
- I have only tested for 2x8 in one foot pieces, and 4x4 in eight inch pieces. Pretty much takes anything I would want to tote there!
What was your reason for keeping the Oliver tray rather than just mounting the new tray directly onto the tongue, (to save a little weight and lower the generator)?
- I wanted the tote space. The generator box height was a concern, so I made a cardboard mock-up and tested the idea on my boss. (She said it looked great...)
Are there drain/ debris holes in the bottom of the Ollie tray so gunk doesn’t get trapped there?
- There is a 3/8" drain hole in all four outside corners of the storage unit.
Do you plan to make a dust cover for the generator box? It is a pretty messy location normally.
- The box is water tight, and I have made it Yellow Jacket tight by pop riveting bronze screen over all the vents. I am going to wait and see if I have to come up with a dust solution...
Please post a followup report after using your generator for a while. Thanks.
- It is going to be a couple months before I tow the unit. I am determined to wait-out the idiots in Seattle/Olympia who objected to $35 Tabs (for the 4th time now). I will register/license the unit once the courts get off the dime and make a decision. Or.... if the lock-down goes away, once I get bored out of my skull.
Bill Simons in answer to John Davies
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1 hour ago, Overland said:
Nice write up, thanks!
Does the box provide any sound attenuation?
Nope, the box is essentially light weight diamond plate aluminum with 3 Deck Hatches and a door. The base plate is 1/8" steel. I put two layers of vibration isolating material between the generator and the trailer. (I had not intended to, that was just the way things worked out!)
It would not be a problem to apply the "one side sticky/other side foil" (and expensive) sound attenuation material that stereo installers use, but it would add about 10 to 15 pounds of weight. Three campers ago we owned an Arctic Fox 29' fifth wheel. The generator was located directly below the bed... I applied $120 dollars worth of that stuff in an attempt to be able to sleep with the generator running. It did not work unless you were really, really tired!
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There are so many great projects on these forums that I felt obligated to document mine (partly so that others can avoid my mis-steps!).
We dry camp the majority of the time. During the winter (until the snow flies) that is not a problem, but summer time on the Eastern side of Washington State can be uncomfortably hot. When we bought the Ollie we knew that the solar system would take care of most of our needs, but that we really wanted a generator capable of running the A/C. We specified the optional soft start add-on for the A/C so that the trailer would be ready. A bit of research showed that the new Honda 2200 would run the A/C, even if it was running on propane.
We chose “Hutch Mountain” as the best propane conversion for the Honda 2200. After 10 years of putting generators into and out of the truck I knew that some kind of generator carrier attached to the trailer was a must-have. We chose “Generator Box” as they have one sized perfectly for the Honda 2200. I asked Hutch Mountain if they would do their magic by installing all needed gear inside a Generator Box. They said they would be glad to do so. I had “Generator Box” directly ship the box to Hutch mountain. They did an install and then shipped to us. Perfect !! I did the install of the Hutch Mountain conversion kit into our new generator. BTW Honda service centers get very twitchy about propane conversions. There was/is a recall of a circuit board in the 2200. My local shop will do the recall, but will not even start the generator afterwards. I may have to school them about modifications NOT invalidating an entire warrantee. In my case the engine is now out of warrantee, but the generator section is still fully covered (federal law on this subject is well established).We bought the storage box on our Ollie. I wanted to save as much space in the box as I could for lightweight things, so I designed a frame to support the Generator Box. I initially intended to have the box dropped down into the storage unit by about and inch and a half. That was a bad idea as the latching assembly which secures the box to the mounting plate will not operate with more than about 3/8” of drop below the edge of the storage box. I used aluminum flat stock and 70 durometer Sorbothane to raise the box and give a little vibration dampening.
Parts list, purchased or modified by me:
Honda 2200 Companion generator to get the 30 amp locking connector
5 feet of aluminum 2” C-channel, ¼” wall thickness
5 feet of aluminum 1½” angle
10 1” SS ¼” x 20 screws with NyLock and two flat washers each
6 1½” SS ¼” x 20 screws with NyLock and two flat washers each
30 1” SS 10x32 screws with Nylock and 2 flat washers each
I made a 69” section of Marinco 10 ga power cord
Hutch Mountain made a 69” connection hose to hook-up the front end trailer propane supply to the Generator Box quick disconnect.
Pictures follow…
Any questions, please ask!
Bill and Dorothy
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6 hours ago, Maverick said:
Hopefully you are using Slow Blow fuses.
Oh yes!
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6 hours ago, Mainiac said:
The fuse holders are now together? Not by each jack? If that is the case the red and green (port and starboard) marks make a lot of sense.
Actually there are three of those yellow fuse holders just aft of the battery compartment, and accessible thru the forward hatch of the port side bunk bed . I now know what two of them do, but not the third. The front jack has it's own fuse holder right at the bottom of the jack...
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Within 48 hours of receiving my new rig (Hull #615) I managed to blow the driver side "leveler jack" fuse. After the usual language and self flagelation I figured out which of the three yellow fuse holders located just forward of the jack held the correct fuse. Then I blew it again. Hmmm, sez I, I did not blow the bow jack or the starboard jack... what am I doing differently with this one. It turns out that if you change your mind about jack direction, LET GO OF THE SWITCH, then press it the way you want it to go. If you have the jack going in one direction and you reverse the switch position quickly, you stand a very good chance of blowing the fuse. The momentary current load for an instantaneous direction change must be pretty high! At least now I have a plethora of spare 30 amp MDL fuses...
Oh, yes,,, the yellow fuse holder for the driver side jack now has a dab of red paint on it, and the curb side has a dab of green paint.
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It was interesting to talk to the Timken rep about seals. National receives the seals, in bulk, wrapped with a piece of plastic from their contract suppliers in Taiwan and other places. National then packages the seals into boxes that Timken provides. The Timken seal boxes do not have QR codes, but DO have the word "Timken" in the latitude and longitude lines on the rear of the box. The seals I had purchased from Amazon were clearly counterfeit as there was Chinese script in the lat/long lines. Returned them, got my money back and reordered from a different Amazon seller. Those were legit. Mission complete...
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26 minutes ago, The Shackelfords said:
Don't forget the riveted aluminum exterior!!
Now THAT made me snort coffee onto my keyboard!!
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After having an Airstream (may it rest in Hades forever), where nothing was ever readily available, I plan on reveling in the stockpile of parts I will accumulate and have for the Oliver...
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This forum sure costs me money, and I don't even have possession of my Olly yet!
I ordered both types of wheel bearings and the bearing seals from Amazon. The bearings came with QR code boxes that scanned and came up as valid. However, the 473336 bearing seals did NOT come with a QR code, In fact they are plainly labeled "made in Taiwan." The label does have the almost invisible "slash-zero" symbol embedded in the label over North and South America, but the latitude longitude lines have Chinese characters instead of the word Timken.
I think I've been had! I will be calling Timken on Monday morning, and will post the results here. If these seals are counterfeit they are going back to Amazon...
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On 12/1/2019 at 8:54 AM, WhatDa said:
You could also look at a propane tank heater. They will take some of your electricity away (~150 watts) but your gas performance will be much better. If it's really cold, you might also look at insulating your propane lines.
Did not know they made such a thing! Will see if I can find one.
The lines are not an issue. The issue is "production of propane vapor." Cold temperatures reduce production. Production in and of itself further cools the tanks and propane liquid... For any given tank size there is a minimum temperature beyond which no more "useable volume" of propane vapor occurs. That is why I wanted a valve system which could select "both" tanks, AND still have a usable BTU rating.
Thanks!
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Since some Oliver users evidently use their rig in extreme conditions, I got to wondering what the limits were for propane use in cold temps. It seems that 30# propane cylinders have a "gas production surface" limit which gets pretty iffy under about 10 degrees F. Using the furnace and fridge and hot water will tend to starve a generator that is trying to run off the same tank. An answer is to use two tanks at the same time (twice the gas producing surface area). That brings us to the problem with "auto switching" RV propane gas regulators. When a regulator lever is pointing to a tank, the BTU capacity of that tank is at it's max rated capacity. However, if that tank is at it's lowest level, and has auto switched to the other tank, the BTU capacity is at some significantly lower level. For some regulators, as much as 50% lower. There is a huge range of "full" BTU capacity among RV regulators! Some as low as 150,000 BTU. I picked two of the units with the largest capacity, and asked the companies what their regulators were rated at if the lever was placed in the middle position. The only one which answered was the "Fairview Fittings" company. Their Fairview GR-9984 regular is rated at 345,000 BTU. They state that the reserve capacity (middle lever position, or auto switched) is 260,000 BTU, which is actually more than some of the other brand's full rated capacity.
There you have it. If you intend to camp in REALLY cold weather and want to use a generator, you might consider changing your propane regulator to a very high capacity unit.
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That has to be a "male" racoon. He has that "what?" look on his face....
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I measured 4-3/8 one side, 4-7/16 other side. ...(snip)...
Yay. That equates to a size L in Roto Chocks. Just so happens I have the plates for size L, and I can take all other parts from my size M which is what the Airstream took...
Thank you, thank you!!
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As I cleaned out my Airstream 23D in preparation to selling it, I realized that I might not be able to use my "Roto Chocks" on the new Elite II that will be delivered next April. Roto Chocks are no longer made, but pretty well last forever. I have both the Medium and Large sizes, so actually have some flexibility. There is also a pretty active swap and trade group of Roto Chock owners, so even if my sizes are wrong, I may be able to trade someone for the right size.
Would someone please measure the space between your Oliver Elite II tires, crown to crown (i.e., right in the middle of the tire tread, front to back). It is probably a good idea to stick to 2018 and 2019 model years?!? That will tell me exactly which size Roto Chock I need to look for.
Thanks,
Bill
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I actually found a local graphic guy who specializes in "cut vinyl." I have seen a bunch of cut vinyl graphics here on Whidbey Island. The WA State parks system uses them for all of their signs, and every ICSO patrol car has that style of graphic, i.e., no transparent back layer. Cut vinyl uses the vehicle paint color as the background.
Thanks to all. I learned a heap about "graphics!"
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At the moment all is on track to take delivery of a Legacy Elite II the first week of April 2020.
The only item that Oliver is no longer willing to do is custom graphics (of any kind!). I would like to have a 22" graphic of my company logo on the front of my trailer. (The logo is what is shown on my profile.)
I know that some of you good folks have had other companies do custom graphics for your rig. Could you please post links to the appropriate web site? Everything I find is limited to lettering or 3"x5" card sized dreck...
Many thanks,
Bill Simons
Orca Consulting
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John:
Wouldn't your Fridge be on 12V when towing? I have to admit that I run my Airstream fridge on propane even when driving down the road. I am looking forward to the much safer use of 12V instead!
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OK, time to fess up... Who was towing their Oliver North on HWY20 at 1445 local today, just North of Coupeville, WA?
I must confess, two months ago I would not have even noticed an Oliver. Now my wife and I both stay alert for a sighting.
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[quote . Is the higher ratio enough? Absolutely.
To quote Admiral of the Soviet Fleet Gorshkov:
"Better is the enemy of good enough."
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Hi:
I'm in Oak Harbor. Our plan is to order a 2020 model for pick-up next March.
Just out of curiosity, how many days did you plan for, or actually take, to drive back?
I'm going to be solo for the trip east and west (my other half sez "that does not sound like a vacation trip!")
Bill
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Thanks John!
Amazon sez it will be here tomorrow...
Winter Temps and pipe freezing
in Mechanical & Technical Tips
Posted
In late October this year I took my Elite II Oliver (Hull 615) to Republic, Washington for Elk hunting. There was 2 to 6 inches of snow on the ground and temperatures of 8 degrees F at night, and highs of 22 degrees F during the day. I stayed in an RV park so as to have AC power readily available. I have a 5 probe digital temperature system installed in my trailer. Probe #1 is near the propane tanks, #2 is under the forward dinette seat, #3 is under the drivers side bunk, #4 is under the passenger side bunk, and #5 is attached to the spare tire. (Note, numbers 2, 3, and 4 are as low is I could get them.)
During my first night I noted that #2 temp was at 28 degrees, #3 was at 22 degrees and #4 was at 38 degrees. The "ducted" heat kept ONLY the starboard side of the trailer above freezing. I put small AC heaters under the dinette seat and under the port side bunk. After that, all internal temps stayed above freezing. The drivers side bunk area never got above 36 degrees, even with the 300 watt heater.
Having foreknowledge of the expected temperatures, I pumped 8 oz of pink antifreeze into all 3 of the exterior water fittings. I then wrapped the fittings in pipe insulation. I believe that I had not done that, all three fittings would have frozen and cracked. I completely forgot about the exterior shower, but evidently lucked out as there has been no leak so far.
I intend to purchase 3 each 100W DC heaters, and install one under the forward dinette and 2 under the drivers side bunk. There is a spare fuse for the drivers side awning which I will use to wire all three heaters through. Have not decided where to put the switches yet.
NOTE: Pulling the Olly over salt covered roads can cause a real mess inside the RV 7 pin plug. Oliver service talked me through a very strange set of symptoms, but a set they knew quite well. Symptoms were - with trailer in a camp, no AC connected, occasionally the outside lamps of all 4 of the trailer running light/turn signal assemblies would come on (very dimly). The would stay on until late at night when the battery charge fell below 12.6V. Then they would go out. Service said "it is stray voltage from your 7 pin plug, take it apart, clean it and put some dielectric grease in there." When I took it apart it was so corroded that I replaced the 7 pin plug. Remember, this trailer was delivered to me last March (2020). Service told me that they have switched to a molded 7 pin plug to prevent recent trailers from experiencing this problem.
The exterior of the plug looked pretty good, but the interior was a mess!