johnwen
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Posts posted by johnwen
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12 hours ago, gbergh said:
Hull 218 "Mouse" is for sale located in SE Michigan. North Dakota, I lived in Grand Forks for 5 years as I was attending UND to acquire a Chemistry Degree. The weather was worse than terrible. One has to live there to understand. -12 last night.
4 yrs in Minot, back in the 70's ...I feel your pain :(
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JD...I did save Geoff's number at Epoch. (888) 859-7544
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JD, I talked to Geoff last year about adding a new, third battery to my two existing 300's and he said that they indeed don't play well together. I couldn't tell you why as it's over my head. But he did tell me if I added a third battery I should only use it and not the other two until I cycle the new one through 20 - 30 charge cycles and then all should behave. But my disclaimer is to talk to Geoff. I'm not totally sure of the number of charge cycles. See you tomorrow :)
John
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8 hours ago, Roger said:
Don't ask how I learned this (more than once 😁)
Ditto :) Thanks Wendy...
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Always working....labor of love :)
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Count us in :)
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13 hours ago, John Dorrer said:
Goosenecks State Park, UT, not to far from Moab. Camped on the rim for $10/night. High above the San Juan River. You get an option, campground or along the rim. No brainer.
Been there a few times...don't get too close to the edge :)
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9 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:
We haven’t had any content shifting issues. My impression so far is that the trailer seems more sure footed with the ALCANs. Mike
Same here with 15,000 mi since install early this year :)
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Also, try "pip pins" :)
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4 hours ago, ScubaRx said:
No graphics are currently included on a new build. This is in response to many of the latest buyers requesting the trailers be delivered naked. So there you go.
:)
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11 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:
…speaking of coatings, the CGI guys (Gavin and Colin) did a renew on our ceramic coating this week. Looks better than new (except for the chips on the lower front)!
Nice :)
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Thanks Don! Safe travels :)
John
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On 8/6/2025 at 11:53 PM, dhaig said:On a recent trip from Dallas to South Carolina we stayed in multiple locations with no (or very limited) communications capabilities (cell phone or WiFi). Over the three years we have owned our LEII, there have been many other occasions with no ability to communicate. As a result, we decided to order a Starlink Mini and a Starlink Router Mini to use on our trailer trips.I have been following Starlink related postings on the OTT Owners Forum, especially since the release of the Starlink Mini. I have found the postings by @Snackchaserparticularly helpful in planning the installation of our Starlink system. I especially liked the use of a Power over Ethernet (PoE) injector to power the Starlink Mini and to provide an Ethernet connection from the built-in router back to the trailer, using a single cable. Installing the PoE injector and a DC powered router in the attic of the LEII seemed a reasonable location, being nearly directly above the exterior Furrion ports for connecting satellite and cable TV.So I planned to install in a similar location in the attic of our LEII, assembling a list of the components required. I ordered a PoE injector from MobileMustHave.com and the rest from Amazon. Once all the key components had been delivered, I began the installation, with the first step being to replace the Furrion Satellite coax port with an RJ45 pass-through connector and to fish an Ethernet cable from the basement to the attic. Replacing the Furrion coax connector with the RJ45 pass-through connector was no problem, even though enlarging the hole through fiberglass exterior shell was required. However, fishing an Ethernet cable from the basement to the attic proved to be a major obstacle.
Although I have prior experience fishing wires through difficult spaces, I was unsuccessful getting a fish tape (or rods) from the attic to the basement. I could get the end of the fish tape rods down near the ceiling of the basement, where the interior shell ends and multiple cables run up to the attic area at the rear of the trailer, but not into the basement. As suggested, I tried following the A/C drain line and multiple other locations but could not get past the bottom of the inner shell into the basement. I tried running the fish tape/rods in both directions. No luck.Consequently, I began to ponder other installation locations inside the trailer for the PoE injector and Starlink Router Mini. After a couple of days, I had an Aha! moment- install the PoE Injector and Router Mini under the rear dinette seat. I inspected the space between the basement and the rear dinette seat, nearly all of which is readily accessible from the two rear street side hatches and the rear dinette seat hatch. Only the space under the battery compartment is not accessible from directly above, but is easily accessed from either side. I looked for any obstacles to using this location and found none. I could easily route the Ethernet cable from the Furrion/RJ45 pass-through connector forward to beneath the rear dinette seat.
I located the PoE Injector atop the trailer frame member, just below the Progressive surge protector box, which is mounted on the aisle wall of the rear dinette seat. The PoE jack and the power terminals of the PoE Injector are positioned toward the front of the trailer.
I connected a 20 foot shielded Cat 6 cable from the inner side of the Furrion/ RJ45 port, then routed it under the floor of the basement, around the street side rear stabilizer, then following the waste water line, forward to the area under the rear dinette hatch. About 3 feet of excess cable are coiled in the basement, concealed by the rear wall of the basement.I installed a lighted rocker switch through the forward basement wall, mounted high, almost directly above the side-to-side bubble level on the left side of the basement entry. This switch is to control 12VDC power to the PoE Injector and the Starlink Router Mini.
Using 14 AWG silicone coated wire, I ran two purple colored wires from the space beneath the rear dinette hatch back to the rocker switch on the forward basement wall. A third, 14 AWG black wire was also run along the same route to the rocker switch. The switch has two terminals with red lead wires,: one to the DC power source and one to the load. The third terminal has a black wire, which connects to ground (the bus bar). The ground wire enables the light on the switch to operate when DC power is ON.On the DC power panel, position 15, I installed a 15 amp fuse. One of the purple wires connects to the 12VDC positive terminal on the PoE Injector. The other purple wire connects to position 15 on the rear of the DC power panel, using a crimp on connector. The single black wire from the switch connects to the ground bus located under the rear dinette seat. Another 14 AWG wire connects the PoE Injector negative terminal with the other end connecting to the bus bar. All wire-to-wire connections were made using Wago lever lock connectors.I also added a 12VDC auxiliary power outlet (cigarette lighter type) which is connected to the same circuit as that which powers the PoE Injector. An Anker 323 USB-C Car Charger Adapter (USB Power Delivery (PD) capable) plugs into the auxiliary power outlet. A USB-C to Male to DC 3.5 x 1.35mm Male Power Jack is used to power the Starlink Router Mini from the Anker charger. I found the Starlink Router Mini conveniently fits on top of the Progressive Surge Protector box. I later secured it with a releasable zip tie around the surge protector.
The 20 foot Cat 6 Ethernet cable from the rear connects to the PoE jack of the PoE Injector. A 5 foot Cat 6 Ethernet cable connects to the LAN jack of the PoE Injector and to the WAN/Satellite port of the Starlink Router Mini. All Cat 6 Ethernet cables used are shielded.
I believe this installation location approach has several advantages over an attic installation:
- Access is MUCH easier.
- Fishing wires is no challenge.
- A dedicated circuit from the DC power panel provides power to all Starlink related components.
- A lighted switch for the PoE Injector and Starlink Router Mini is located in the basement, near the exterior pass-through Ethernet jack.
- The PoE Injector is located where it cannot be covered by clothing or other cargo stored in the attic which might cause overheating.
- The VERY bright blue light on the PoE Injector is not visible in the cabin (always ON if power to the PoE Injector is ON).
- The Starlink Router Mini is located centrally in the trailer and should provide uniform WiFi coverage within the trailer.
We have not yet taken the Starlink on a shakedown trip, but plan to do so at the end of August.Regards, DonHi, Don,
Sorry for the intrusion on this holiday weekend... I'm about to hook up my SL Router Mini. I see on your picture of the POE injector that you have 2 blue wires and one red feeding into a 3 way wago. Is that red one the positive to the 12VDC auxiliary power outlet (cigarette lighter type)? which feeds to the Router Mini via the Anker plug?
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12 hours ago, dhaig said:
@Dennis and Melissa, we have carried a small 120V ceramic heater when traveling during months when below freezing is possible. I included this heater on our trailer delivery trip in February, 2022, based on recommendations I had read on this forum. When enroute back to Dallas we encountered freezing weather and stopped for the night at a convenient RV park along I40, about an hour east of Little Rock. The temperature was below freezing when we pulled in, about 10PM. I had to chip ice off the water spigot to take on some fresh water.
We had the furnace running and the temperature inside the trailer was comfortable when we went to bed. Several hours later, I awoke cold and the furnace was not operating. Assuming we had exhausted the propane in one tank, I dressed and went outside to switch the regulator to draw propane from the other tank, which we knew to be full. The outside temperature was in the low to mid 20s.
Long story short, we were unable to get the furnace to startup by drawing propane from the full tank. I messed with the regulator, but could not get propane to flow. I tried connecting the hose from the first (now empty) tank to the full tank, but still no flow through the regulator.
Consequently, I pulled out the ceramic heater and got It running on shore power. The ceramic heater could maintain the temperature in the trailer at about 60 degrees. I had no way to measure the temperature between the hulls, but I knew very little of the heat from the ceramic heater would benefit that space. We decided to forego morning showers and prepared to get underway back to Dallas, where the temperature was likely to be above freezing.
Before departing, at 8AM Eastern time, I phoned Oliver Support and described our problem. They suggested measures we had previously tried, and suggested trying to light the cooktop to determine if propane was flowing. The cooktop would also not light. Oliver Support suspected the regulator was faulty and committed to shipping out a new regulator the same day. About two days later the new regulator was delivered to our home. I installed the new regulator and the problem was solved. All gas appliances now operated normally.
The lesson I took from this experience was to carry the ceramic heater as a backup to the propane furnace if traveling during months when freezing weather is likely. So long as the propane furnace is operable and there is an adequate supply of propane I would rely on the propane furnace as the better protection from freezing water lines within the trailer. I would turn to the electric heater ONLY as a backup to the propane furnace. Especially at night I feel the safer option is to run the furnace, not knowing how low the outside temperature may drop to during the night.
We have had no further occasions when the furnace would not operate and have stayed in the trailer multiple nights in similar temperatures.
Good to know, Don. I have to call Oliver today about a new bolt for my entry steps so I think I'll add a regulator to the order. I've often thought what a pickle we could find ourselves in during winter in the boonies. Thanks for pushing me over the edge on this :)
John
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6 hours ago, jd1923 said:
I'm going without the rubber caps this time. The ones I took off seemed to be dirt magnets! I'll do what I've always done, use a brass brush and paper towel, clean them before lubing! I've never seen Zerks capped on a car or truck suspension.
I may follow suit John :)
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2 minutes ago, Mike and Carol said:2 minutes ago, Mike and Carol said:
We had one fall out after a few years. Oliver service replaced it during a service 5 or 6 years ago.
Thanks, Mike, I suspect the sheared one came loose some time ago and all those miles we've been racking up caused the shear. Hopefully no damage to an oncoming vehicle. I've never checked them...I thought they were riveted on.
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Has anyone had to replace the mount bolts for the entry steps? Found this problem after arrival to campground. One sheared and half was missing, the other was loose but still useable. I'll check with Oliver on Monday. We have a few weeks of downtime starting tomorrow so I'll get to start on my "fix-it" list :)
John
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3 hours ago, Boudicca908 said:
Does everyone have this same foam material as the base board for the mounting of your water pump equipment? Or is it possibly a substitute used during the 'short supply' years of Covid?
We have it...2022 Hull996. Our accumulator mount screws pulled out and left craters where the screws were. We tried VHB tape to no avail. I'm also looking to replace that board and looks like everything attached to it will have to come off. I haven't really studied the situation. We will be back in SC this weekend for a few weeks so I'll tackle the problem soon. We have hit some monster bumps and dips on the roads this year. Our "Bessie" joined the 64,000 mile club last week so I expect a few issues like this will crop up...gives me something to do :)
Good luck,
John
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Bessie....for our Dads...Bob and Wes...and the result is our lady Bessie :)
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1 hour ago, mountainoliver said:
My basement area collapsed a couple of years ago in a very similar way as yours. On mine the rails that supported the basement floor was held to the wall sections with screws that penetrated the wall by only 1/4 inch. As shown in the photos I made a framework to support the floor out of vinyl 3/4 x 5 1/2 material. I would recommend not using wood anywhere in the trailer. Vinyl board and stainless screws. The actual basement floor rests on the framework and is attached to the framework with stainless screws. I also reinforced and sealed the aluminum plate that closes off the rear of the trailer. About half of the sub basement was insulated so I also added complete insulation in the area.
Nice! :)
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Thanks Mossey...I dug up an old photo from my first visit and indeed the gray tank appears to stop short of that space. The factory provided floor snapped in two and needs replaced. I'll use wood this time if I cover the space.
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Has anyone put in a shower curtain who originally didn't have one installed as an option? Are you glad you put one in or not? It's getting a little more difficult to clean up the area as I age and am considering installing one :)
TIA..John
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I'm sure some have experienced problems with the integrity of their basement construction. My 1/2 inch pvc/fiberboard/not sure of the material... has bit the dust and I'm going to reconstruct this area. I'll be using a different material and will post pictures of progress soon. My question is what is below the old basement floor? The whole area is insulated and I'm wondering if I can take advantage of the space below the previous floor. I've included pictures and would appreciate any help with any ideas. It seems I could utilize the area beneath (approx 28x18x5 inch deep space) the previous flooring but don't know what's beneath the insulation. Does the fresh/grey tank exist below?
Thanks,
John
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One note about the repeater...even if you don't need the extra boost it gives you, you still need to install it for warranty compliance. At least that's the way it was 2 years ago..
John
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Stabilizing versus leveling
in Mechanical & Technical Tips
Posted
Hi David...hope ya'll are well. We're n Quartzsite at the moment. Do these pads add any stabilization against rocking (IYO)? They do not sell in 3 packs but will sell individually and that makes them a little more expensive than the discounted 4 pack of $121.45
Thanks :)
John