Cameron

If you are germ-phobic, don't get it. (although it's actually very hygenic.) If you have delicate sensibilities, don't get it. If the thought of wiping down the bowl if your aim isn't perfect makes you faint, don't get it. If the thought of putting your TP in a bag after wiping freaks you out, don't get it. If you plan on mostly camping in sites with water hookups and dump tanks, don't get it. However, If you consider yourself sort of rough and tumble, get it. If you plan to boondock, get it. If you're comfortable talking about (joking about) BMs, get it.

I never would have thought to do this until I read your post and now I feel I must do it. And I can, thanks to your super detailed instructions with parts and photos.

The SeeLevel monitor must be an industry favorite because in the past, when I was deciding whether or not I wanted a trailer, I rented a Jayco and also an Airstream. Both had the same SeeLevel monitor. It definitely wasn't accurate with those two trailers tanks. I like your advice John, and I'm going to do that just because I'm curious. If it turns out that I can pull out 30 gallons and the SeeLevel still says I have 20% left, I won't be surprised. That's why if I'm going boondocking I always have extra water jugs.

My pump started to pump air with my meter showing 19%. The trailer is parked, level. It's Hull 841 so I assume it's got the updated plumbing. Didn't try to raise the tongue or anything. Just filled up the tank again with a hose.

what was the issue?

This modification, the Fridge Defend, seems like a complete no brainer. Seems like the sort of device that should be standard on all RV fridges. Thanks for your posts (here and elsewhere). It's definitely on my list for this fall.

Here's my quick hack to get hot air away from the fridge. Big thanks to Katjo for turning me onto this fan from her fantastic series of videos. Love them! Anyway, the fan charges up with a USB, then runs on its own internal battery. I hung it onto the outside of the trailer with a bungee. I really felt the hot air coming out. Today it was only 90 degrees so it was just a test run for when I'm back in the desert again in 100 degree weather. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B091GRLBHZ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=A19DWMTD5OSZWP&psc=1

I've usually towed with both vents open, or at least the main vent. Haven't noticed any problems so far.

Hi Katjo I also gave this great thought last year before I picked up our trailer. I can't store it where I live so I keep it at a friend's property about three hours away. It's not covered. I consulted with SeaDawg who told me that they've never covered their trailer either and simply wash it and wax it twice a year with good quality marine products. I've done the same and so far so good. It cleans up very nicely. So, if your primary concern is about keeping the gelcoat clean and shiny, I think you'll be OK without a cover.

Hi Sak That's weird. Doesn't seem like the wind could crack it but who knows. The important thing is to make sure that the shroud doesn't come flying off to hit someone behind you on the road. If the other connectors are secure, you're probably OK but if it were me I'd want to fix that.

Again, I have to wonder if the speed of production is the culprit. I know Oliver has been ramping up production numbers in the last three years, which puts more pressure on the line workers. With that pressure I think it would be easier for the person(s) installing the wiring to miss something, resulting in this post. A sharper focus on quality control will benefit OTT, and I hope they're discussing this on a daily basis.

When you talk to service tomorrow, they'll probably recommend that you turn on and off all the breakers and switches and things. Go under the streetside bed, look for the two red button switches, hit the button to open the circuit, then close them again and see if that helps. That should reset the inverter. Also, once before when my Xantrex "died", i was able to bring it back to life by plugging into shorepower. Maybe try connecting and disconnecting a couple times from your shore power.

Do you mean that the screen material has come loose from the edging? Maybe a pic?

This is why I bought an Oliver. Rough, tough, ready for boondocking. This is off of Highway 395, north of Mono Lake in California. Take Virginia Lakes Road for about six miles (paved) then turn onto Dunderberg Meadows Road (gravel) and look for the spot you want. It's all national forest land so the price was right. We took a spur with big bad rocks, but by crawling along and trying to pick the least bad path, the Ollie performed like a champ. The boondocking inlet port let us fill our fresh water tank again from a couple of 6 gallon water jugs I carry. The sun charged up our batteries and let us use all juice we needed. A hot shower and cold cocktails made cloud watching even better. And the composting toilet makes finding a dump station a non-issue.

Oops, I mean Jim, you're the magician with this trick.

Hi Ralph, That looks very cool. (Pun intended.) Could you provide some instructions on how I might do that? Thx!

I've got mine at 7.5

I've got the Xantrex app and the Lithionics app on my Android phone. Both work great and give me all the info I need. The Xantrex app was VERY important in my initial shakedown of the trailer when I learned that I didn't have the correct firmware. I was able to correct it via the app. The Lithionics app is very accurate in showing me how much juice I'm using, and how fast I'm recharging either on shore power or via the solar panels.

Hi Jim, Welcome and congrats on your new Ollie. I know you're going to love it. I wonder if you got your new truck to go with your new trailer. I know I did. White, just like the Ollie. For some reason the Chevy has a better MPG rating with the 3.0 diesel than my GMC Sierra. I've had the same experience you described. Good mileage. And coming west on I-80 down the continental divide I did discover I was going 80 without noticing it, and immediately backed down to 70, but the Ollie tracks so well!! Just changed my fuel filter yesterday after 31k miles. It was clean as a whistle, but got replaced anyway. I've found that the computer is a little wonky on the DEF warnings, like warning me when the DEF gauge shows half full, and sometimes the gauge isn't so accurate. But I'm loving my 3.0.

So, when it's time to fill up you give this program's card as well as your credit card to the cashier, then fill up and get the discount? How much is the discount? Thx

Hi Roadlotus, Welcome to the forum and the Oliver family. It seems like getting an Oliver is a major life milestone for many of us. You've gone through a lot in the past year and I hope that the adventure of buying and traveling in an Oliver will help you transition. Regarding the tow vehicle, I have a GMC Sierra 1500 4x4 and no weight distributing hitch on the Oliver Elite II. I've got about 3000 miles on the trailer so far and haven't noticed a problem. Before I decided to buy a trailer I rented three and pulled them with my old pickup, a 2014 GMC Sierra 1500 2wd, short bed. It only had a 6 cylinder engine and had to work too hard getting over some steep passes, but overall it was fine. One one of our rentals we had the weight distributing hitch. On the other two, no. Never had a problem even with the old, less powerful pickup. I'm definitely a newbie here compared some of our colleagues, but so far so good with a half-ton pickup and no WDH. I'm in San Francisco and often travel up to the Sierras so if there's anything I can do to help, let me know. P.S. I'm seeing some of the Rivian's on the streets here in SF, they're sharp!

Service sent me a rivet gun, rivets and five new puck lights. I've started with one so far, drilling out the rivets, pulling out the old light, replacing with a new puck light, and installing three rivets. Works just like new. I'll do the other four the same, but I'm hoping that this problem is solved. What caused it? That's still a mystery.

Sometimes I feel like the buyer is the final quality control agent in the process and that we have to go through each and every component in the trailer and make necessary corrections and repairs. Of course if I lived in Hohenwald I could just pop over to chat with Jason and the team. But I don't. The upside is that each problem solved (and shared on this fantastic forum) increases our ability to keep our Ollies going wherever we go out on the open road.

Yes, when you plug in the trailer cable to the bumper, it notifies the software that there's a trailer there. The software then reminds the driver to put the truck into tow/haul mode, which switches over the dash gauges to include a tranny temp gauge. It also tells the tranny to act like a trailer brake (common on diesels) when going down hill so that it shifts to a lower gear to try to hold your downhill speed and not rely on braking. The trailer tab on the center screen also shows trailer tire pressure and temp (when the GM TMPS is installed), and it also keeps a trailer odometer so I know how many miles I have on the Ollie. There's a bunch of other stuff but overall I'm very happy with both the diesel engine and with the trailering software on the truck. I know most of the companies have something similar on new models but so far so good with the Chevy/GMC system.

Hello, I'm also towing with the new(ish) GM engine, the 3.0 diesel, which is in both the Chevy and GMC half-ton trucks. On a 800-mile trip a couple weeks ago I averaged 16.7 mpg. Before the recent changes in fuel prices, back when diesel was less than unleaded, I was very happy. Now, not so much. Plus i do have to add in DEF, which I used to get at Walmart (store brand) for $8 but now it's $14 for a 2.5 gal jug. When not towing, the DEF lasts for a long time. When towing, the engine uses more DEF. So, even though right now I don't like that I'm paying more for fuel than anyone else, I do like the mileage and the low-end torque that makes it a breeze at the freeway onramp or going up steep passes. PS to Tallmandan: I've done my own calculations on mileage when filling up and found that I'm actually getting 1 to 3 mpg more than what the truck computer says.