Rivernerd

I expect your "really long and hard" search covered this possibility, so you are likely aware that the 2022 Elite II models include a frame for the lower fridge access hole that is screwed to the hull. See photo below. The OD of the "screw-in" frame is 24 1/4" W x 16 3/8" H. The ID of the resulting hole is 21"W x 13 1/8" H. Oliver may still have some of those screw-in frames in stock, with corresponding vent covers. While such a screw-in frame might provide sufficient additional structural integrity to enable you to expand your access hole even further than the "2" toward the front 1" toward the top" you specified above, it appears it is too big to "nicely" fit your 2017 hull contour. But, I thought it best to provide the photo, with measurements, so you can decide for yourself whether the screw-in frame might enable you to cut your hull above the contour line while still preserving an acceptable fit. Good luck!

I encourage you to place your new return air vent in the wall between the toilet and the front dinette seat, as shown in the attached photo. This location enables return air to flow through the street side bottom of the trailer, under the battery box and eventually back to the furnace on the curb side. To be most effective, return air vents need a minimally-obstructed path back to the furnace. A return air vent in the recessed front of the vanity would have quite a tortuous path back to the furnace.

I agree with the comments posted by Steph and Dud B above. The new Indemnification paragraph is an improvement, but not enough to persuade me to join the program. "[V]iolation of any law, rule or regulation" can be intentional or negligent. Since that language is not limited to intentional acts by the Participant (you), it could be construed to require you to "defend, indemnify and hold harmless" Oliver if you are found to have been negligent, even if you didn't intentionally violate any "law, rule or regulation." This means that if, for example, you show your Oliver trailer to someone in the winter, and they slip on snow or ice outside the trailer that you are found to have negligently failed to remove and suffer significant injuries, you get to "defend, indemnify and hold harmless" Oliver for all of its defense costs, "including reasonable attorneys' fees." The end result could still be financial ruin, unless you have an umbrella insurance policy with high limits in place, covering you for negligence claims. With this new Indemnification language, Oliver is still foisting nearly all of the financial exposure off on to the Participant. It is not "We've got your back" language that would result in Oliver defending, indemnifying and holding the Participant harmless in the unlikely event that a personal injury claim arises from showing an Oliver trailer. In my view, since Oliver owners who enroll in the Rewards Program are acting as a nationwide sales force for Oliver, and being compensated for their sales efforts with the offered Rewards, Oliver should accept full legal responsibility for any litigation arising from a trailer showing. Oliver could simply buy insurance to cover this additional exposure, like RV dealers buy insurance to cover such claims arising out of RV showings on their lots. Instead, Oliver expects the participants to buy the insurance, or take the risk, in exchange for the rewards. In short, Oliver has not yet "done the right thing" (in my view) by agreeing to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Participants in the Rewards Program for claims arising out of trailer showings. So, if you choose to enroll in the Oliver Rewards program, I recommend you have a broadly-worded umbrella insurance policy in place covering you for negligence claims AND which does not exclude claims when you are engaged in compensated commercial activity, with limits of several million dollars. Then, if you are the unlucky owner who gets sued, you are protected. If the potential rewards are sufficient to cover the cost of the umbrella insurance policy, then enrolling is a sensible business decision for you. For me, the offered rewards are not even close to sufficient to persuade me to get my umbrella policy amended, if necessary, to be sure it covers me for negligence if I engage in commercially compensated activity. I still will not be signing up. And, my opinion of Oliver Travel Trailers as a "customer friendly" business is still lower than when we left Hohenwald last November.

You must have much better manual dexterity and body flexibility than I do! I can't get a grease gun, even with a Lock N Lube fitting on the end of a flexible hose, on to the two zerks inside the central bracket that holds the EZ flex assembly, without removing my wheels.

Those who do their own maintenance may wish to simplify periodic greasing of the suspension by installing zerk caps. The caps keep road grime from coating the grease zerks, so you don't have to wipe them off each time you grease them. The zerk caps on my tractor have saved a bunch of time, so I installed them on my Elite II suspension as well. You must remove the wheels to install the caps, so they are most easily installed when already doing regular maintenance. Zerk caps are available for $11 from Amazon, or from the manufacturer, LockN Lube. Amazon link below: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0779K66DW/ref=dp_iou_view_item?ie=UTF8&th=1

The "Code C" on the fridge suggests you are running it on DC power. The first thing to do when boondocking is to switch the fridge to propane to reduce your power demand. It will be helpful to know what battery package you have (wet cell, AGM or LiFePO4) and how many amp hours of capacity. It will also be helpful to know if you are running your Champion 3500W Dual Fuel generator on gas or propane. This because it generates only 2880 continuous running watts on propane, which at 120V is 24A. 24A should still be enough power to run your trailer without changing the Xantrex settings, so I am at a loss to understand why you are not getting battery charge when running the generator. Are you trying to run other appliances, such as the AC? With 24A, you should not need to change inverter settings. But, if you still want to try changing the settings, you must have the Xantrex "FXC Control" app to do so. Once the app recognizes your Xantrex inverter, go to the "Settings" page (by tapping on the gear icon). On that page, scroll down to the "Breaker" setting. It should be set at the factory default, with is 25A. One thing to try is to scroll down to "15A," and tap "Apply". This tells your inverter that it only has 15A of incoming power to work with (even though you should have 24A, even if running on propane). To verify if you are getting solar battery charging, check the Zamp solar charge panel mounted just aft of the pantry. What voltage does it read during daylight hours? Good luck! And, please report how you solved your issues, so readers can learn what worked.

I also have high regard for John Davies' expertise, and his judgment on mechanical matters. I offer this post detailing the way I addressed jack re-greasing, deviating a bit from John's instructions, in case it is helpful to others performing jack maintenance. Knowing that the manufacturer, Barker, may not have properly filled the jack head casing with grease, I determined to follow John Davies' recommendation in this thread to open up the jack head casings on our two-month-old Hull #1291, remove the OEM grease and replace it with Redline CV2. That task turned out to be doable, but not easy. I followed Jason Essary's instructions here: He says to just tap the cover of the head casing, then lift it off. Jason warns not to use a slothead screwdriver or pry bar, to avoid damaging the mating surfaces. That worked for the front jack and the street side rear jack, but not for the curb side jack. After tapping with a deadblow hammer, with increasing intensity for about 10 minutes with no luck, I resorted to plastic pry bars, the kind designed to remove automotive trim panels. After another 15-20 minutes prying between the casing and the cover with the plastic trim panel tools, I eventually got the cover off. There was no damage to the steel mating surfaces, but the OEM gasket that seals between the jack head casing and the cover was torn in one small place. Fortunately, at the recommendation of Jim and Frances earlier in this thread, I had ordered a replacement gasket directly from Barker, using the phone number posted there. So, I was able to use that replacement gasket, rather than use Form-a-Gasket paste to repair the gasket, as John Davies did. The first photo below shows the plastic trim tools I used. The front jack already had plenty of grease, and the grease was fresh, of proper consistency and not thick, unlike what John Davies reported in his post on this thread. So I just put the jack head back on. But, after removing the covers on the two rear jack heads, I found that, although the grease was soft and fresh, the rear jacks had not been adequately greased. So, I proceeded to attempt to clean all of the OEM grease out of the street-side jack head casing, planning to replace it with Redline CV2. But, like Frank C, I found that it was a "pain in the rear" to get all of the old grease out. So, I "punted." As recommended by FrankC, I bought a tube of Mobilith 460, the grease recommended by the manufacturer, which I figured must be compatible with the OEM grease, and should not void the warranty, because it is recommended by Barker. Like FrankC, I concluded that given the limited amount of time the jacks get used annually (unlike wheel bearings), topping off with more of the manufacturer's recommended lubricant should preserve the jack mechanism just fine. The second photo below shows the tube of Mobilith 460, which is labeled "Mobilith SHC PM460." I then refilled the street-side jack head casing, and topped off the curb-side jack head casing with Mobilith 460. The third photo below shows the curb-side jack head casing topped off with Mobility 460. I followed John Davies' instructions in his original post here: Thus, I filled the jack head casing with Mobilith 460, and also added grease around the holes in the cover. Finally, I installed the gaskets and replaced the cover. The fourth photo below shows the cover back in place on the curb-side jack. I hope this will keep all three jack mechanisms "healthy" going forward. I welcome any comments or recommendations for doing this maintenance task better.

Below is a photo of a Zircon battery-operated water leak alarm under the kitchen sink in Hull # 1291. The second photo shows the drawer closed, with the water leak alarm still in place. So, the Zircon water leak alarm fits behind that bottom drawer. It will provide peace of mind when using the kitchen sink.

I stand corrected. Only the yellow bulb (turn signal?) is easily replaceable by reaching under the hood on my 2019 Tundra. Replacing a headlight seems almost as involved as on the Ford F250. Ouch.

Another Oliver improvement. The original poster on this thread, Imelda, has this connection for the pull-down faucet in her 2020: Our Hull #1291 has a more robust connection, which should be much less likely to pull apart. See photo below. Note: If you happen to notice the drip on the side of the ABS p-trap in the photo (like I did, to my alarm), it is not a water leak. I put my finger on it. It is just excess ABS glue from when the fitting was glued together. In sum, I am pleased to find that Oliver continues to tweak, and improve, a number of things that have come to their attention through service tickets.

Oliver has improved its design to place the receptacle for the refrigerator in a dry location. In our Hull #1291, that receptacle is under the "floor" of the cabinet under the sink. See attached photos. The first photo shows the bottom of the cabinet under the sink with the plywood cover plate in place. The second photo shows the receptacle underneath that floor, with the cover plate removed. Note that in Hull #1292, there are two such cover plates: one on the floor and a second on the vertical back wall. The one on the floor allows access to the fridge receptacle. The one on the back wall allows access to the sink plumbing. These are significant design improvements, in my judgment. I applaud Oliver for theses simple, but important, changes in their manufacturing process.

How many clips and bolts must be removed to change a light bulb on a newer Ford F250? More than 25! How many Ford engineers does it take to make a simple light bulb change that difficult? Only one. Why am I Toyota guy: let me count the ways....

Santa Rosa Lake State Park in Santa Rosa, New Mexico provides a scenic and affordable place to stay in Eastern New Mexico not far off I-40. There are good hiking trails that take off right from the campground with nice views of the lake. I second the recommendation to see the Grand Canyon, if possible, when near Flagstaff, Arizona on I-40. As mentioned by AlbertnTerri above, since the north rim will likely be snowed in this time of year, he will need to drive out of his way to get to the south rim. Worth the drive, IMHO. It offers some of the most spectacular hiking in the world.

I just completed the mounting of our Tire Minder TPMS booster, following your excellent instructions and photos. I am pleased with the location of the booster and the relative ease of installation, relying on your post. Thanks for posting!

Agreed. Unless and until Oliver deletes the present Indemnification paragraph in its Terms and Conditions for the Rewards Program, and substitutes language providing the opposite, i.e., that Oliver will fully defend and indemnify Oliver owners if they get sued for personal injuries incurred when showing their Oliver, I will not be signing up.

Strange that Oliver would promote the sale of toy haulers when they don't make one. I agree with John Davies: does this thread belong on the Oliver Forum?

To avoid any further confusion, I have included in the quote above the sentence preceding the sentence you quoted in your post. The "indemnity provision in Oliver's Terms and Conditions" is the source of my concern, not any language found in the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Hold Harmless document.

That language is not in the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Hold Harmless Agreement. The Indemnification language is found in Oliver's Terms and Conditions applicable to the Rewards Program. If you sign up for the Rewards Program, you are bound by Oliver's published Terms and Conditions.

When you receive the replacement EMS, I would apply red Loctite to the attachment screws, precisely because we take our trailers "bouncing down the highway." In fact, I now plan to take the cover off the EMS in our Elite II and apply red Loctite to the mounting screws before our next adventure. Thanks for posting.

35 years of litigation practice confirmed the truth of this observation to me. Yet, the odds are very low (but not zero) that the tightly-drafted Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Hold Harmless agreement being required by Oliver as part of the new rewards program will not be enforced. I appreciate Oliver investing the $$$$ to get it drafted, and insisting that it be executed before a trailer is shown. Of greater financial concern to me than the possibility that the agreement will not ultimately be enforced, is that many thousands of $$$$ must be spent on attorneys to defend the claim before a decision regarding the effect of that document is ever made. In this country, defendants in such cases get to pay their own attorneys, "win, lose or draw." Much expensive motion practice by defense counsel is required before the enforceability of that document is even presented to the judge for decision. That is one reason we have an umbrella insurance policy, in case our regular homeowners' policy, and our vehicle insurance on the trailer, don't cover such a claim. We hope our insurance carrier will get to pay defense counsel to try to get the claim dismissed, not us. That is why the indemnity provision in Oliver's Terms and Conditions is so critical. As presently drafted, not only must an unlucky Oliver owner pay its own attorney(s) to defend the claim, but Oliver's attorneys as well! As I have noted in earlier posts, I would only be willing to sign up for the program if Oliver deleted that Indemnification language, and substituted in its place a covenant to fully defend, indemnify and hold harmless Oliver owners who get sued for injuries incurred when showing a trailer. Then, an unlucky owner who gets sued should tender defense of any such claim to Oliver, and Oliver (or more likely its insurers) would be obligated to retain and pay defense counsel. It would then be Oliver's obligation to get the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Hold Harmless agreement enforced, and the claim dismissed. No risk of financial ruin for the unlucky owner. In my view, Oliver should assume this legal obligation, and simply pay the additional insurance premiums to cover that contractual commitment. Given the very small odds of such a claim even being made, the additional premiums for such coverage should be relatively low. I believe the profit from the increased sales, and the goodwill with its existing owners, would more than cover the cost of the additional premiums. But that is a business decision only Oliver can make. Unless and until they do what I believe to be the "right thing," this retired lawyer will not be opting in to the Rewards Program.

Here is a link to the "Review and Sign" page that Matt sent me yesterday. https://olivertt.eversign.com/document/6de0db0844e943999cdaeb43606ccc47-bfec2ff9138843c0bc12e48d1a8391ba/sign

Glad all went well. How did you resolve the "hot, then lukewarm" water issue?

Understood. But, I, for one, have never agreed in writing to "fully defend and indemnify" the manufacturer of the camper, the company that made my car, or the builder of my home, if someone I invite to join me inside it decides to sue them for negligence. In my view, it is unfair for Oliver to include such an agreement in its non-negotiable Terms and Conditions.

Please forgive me if this is a dumb question, but how do you "drain fresh water out of the shower from time to time" without that water draining into the gray tank?

I have reviewed the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Indemnification document Matt Duncan sent me. It is tightly and carefully crafted. Requiring those who view an Oliver trailer to execute this document should provide as much protection as can reasonably be provided to the Oliver owner showing a trailer from suit by an injured third party. Not incidentally, it also protects Oliver Travel Trailers. But, no such document can be 100% enforceable in every state, by every judge. But in my judgment, that is not enough to persuade me to sign up, given the Indemnification language quoted in my earlier post from the Terms and Conditions for the Reward Program. Were Oliver to get sued by someone injured during a trailer tour, that indemnification language allows Oliver to drag you into such a suit, even if you were not already a defendant, and make you pay Oliver's attorneys' fees and pay all of any judgment in favor of the plaintiff. You would likely get dragged in, and incur attorneys' fee expenses, before a decision was made about the enforceability of the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Indemnification document. This could ultimately add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars (maybe millions in Texas or California). Although the odds of getting sued are very low, the result could still be financial ruin for the unlucky Oliver owner--but not for Oliver or its insurer. If, instead of shifting the burden of defense and indemnity to the Oliver trailer owner, Oliver's Terms and Conditions accepted responsibility to "fully defend and indemnify" the trailer owner in the event such a suit is commenced, I would be willing to sign up. Such a change would, in my judgment, also be fair. Should an Oliver trailer owner be required to take even a very small chance of financial ruin in order to participate in the Rewards Program? Or, since Oliver receives a significant financial benefit from Oliver owners showing their trailers, should not Oliver bear that risk? In my view, it is more than fair for Oliver to "watch the back" of the owner, not the other way around. When I was practicing law, I would not have advised any client to sign up for the Rewards Program under the existing Terms and Conditions, even with Oliver requiring execution of the Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Indemnification document. And, I plan to follow my own advice--we will not be signing up unless and until Oliver removes the present Indemnification paragraph and substitutes "we've got your back" language in its stead.