SeaDawg

When we replace our old gasket, we'll order black. Like dewdev , I'll do it once, and done

@Rivernerd Yes, I understand the need for return vents, or jumper ducts, transom vents, undercutting doors, etc. in home hvac. We also built separate returns in each room in our new home 6 years ago. It made for a lot of extra ducting, and a big challenge for our hvac installer, but smoke and pressure tests showed that he did an amazing job, and it works very well. Balancing pressures and return air in a small trailer is another different, and interesting conundrum. If you haven't seen it, here's another link to @Mainiac's excellent mod, which suited his needs very well. It's another good discussion. In our older Elites, there is no duct to the bath. Central furnace, no ducting. We heat the bath by propping the bath door open. I'm certainly no hvac expert, but I'm thinking the original location for the vent , with a ducted furnace, at/near the furnace location, is probably the most efficient, though perhaps not the most quiet?

Red Rock in OK was one of those victims of budget cuts. It's no longer an OK state park (since 2018). Privately operated. I'm really sorry you had a bad experience. Beyond state parks, there are many camping opportunities, as we all know. COE, fish and wildlife, nfs, blm, county and town campgrounds dot the maps. (For example, driving through Iowa, little campgrounds near small towns are everywhere, if you Google camping near whatever tiny town. They won't have necessarily great views, but clean and neat, and less than $25 a night, for the most part.) I'm confident we'll all find spots, if we look. We've only camped in a handful of Florida parks, because we leave in the summer heat, and northerners and Canadians have booked many of the best parks before we even think about it. Our camping opportunities in prime park spaces are limited during our "season." I understand that, and that's why I'd find a reasonable surcharge helpful. Get some spaces open for us residents, and get a bit of additional revenue from those who don't live here. Not double. Not $50 extra, but $10 is surely reasonable. I wonder about the "tourist marketing" angle. Though we always try to spend local as we camp our way to wherever, I suspect campers don't really contribute that much to the local economy. From what I've seen, they buy groceries and gas, for the most part. There's only so much we can carry in our campers, after all. When we camp, we try to be an asset rather than a burden. But, the seasonal increase of traffic in our Florida communities is something we have to gear up for, year round. Roads, ems, police, etc. Quite certain we (as a state) make much more from foreign owners and renters of luxury condos on the beach, who pay some significant taxes.

Starlink is offering a new antenna, half the weight of the original, and physically a bit smaller, as well. https://techcrunch.com/2021/11/12/starlinks-new-rectangular-satellite-broadband-dish-is-smaller-and-lighter-than-before/amp/

I was thinking the same thing!

Atwood and Houghton are both common in Australia, but as far as I know, neither is made there. I'm looking forward to dimetic freshjet, now available only as retrofit in USA. Eventually, US will catch up with eu and Australia.

That was a very tragic incident. An epirb or gps spot emergency signal (charged) could have saved her life. Without electronics, knowing how to navigate, priceless, indeed.

@Minnesota Oli, and just the likelihood of being able to secure components, with today's broken supply chains, imo.

Thanks, John. I was snorting on this one. Our his and hers slide rules are archived in the office. I know I'd personally have to look up instructions for anything beyond basic math, this many years later. Yes, we still carry paper maps, in additionto gps and phones. But I also love technology, and what it adds to our trip enjoyment, and time saving. I'm with you there. As technology advances, we need to advance, as well.

The gains on an mppt controller vs pwm are somewhat minimal, on small solar arrays, like most olivers. There's been a lot of hand wringing on this in the past few years. Yes, you'll get a bit more. Is it worth the work and expense? Maybe. It really depends on personal camping style and needs. I suspect that for most people, the plug and play simplicity of the zamp systems is worth the bit of loss. Many, many new owners come from tent camping, or analog systems, or zero camping experience. For all of them, I'd say zamp is pretty much a great fit. For the experienced and more needy techies, victron or even blue sky may offer more flexibility, and some small gains. Even blue sky, with their great customer service, is far more complicated in changing settings. Victron could easily overwhelm new users. We have experience with both, btw.

If I were a manufacturer (who has to support the warranty) I'd follow the manufacturer installation instructions to the letter. Since some of us have gone rogue, and we're on our own, we chose a slightly different install method for our 2008, not outside normal bounds, but not per houghton. A neoprene gasket of good quality, instead of silicon caulk. We will see how it works out in the long run . I wouldn't encourage any manufacturer to depart from listed install instructions. Too risky. 4 bolts hold your ac on the roof. It's really important that you get it right. And keep it right. Imo. I don't really care that the condensate runs down the trailer roof and side, as we rarely use ac, anyway. Others might. I would truly have been fine with a second fan install, and would have saved a bunch of $$$, and still would have had more room for my bigger solar panels, which we also installed ourselves.

Welcome to the forum. Not a bad idea to post here, as well as contact the sales office, as you never know who might be camping up your way. We enjoyed our camping stays on Vancouver Island a number of years ago. Lucky you, to live up that way. Lots of great camping opportunities nearby.

Yes, it's a very small price, and actually no big deal. Most serial numbers have been easy to see, when/if we actuallyneeded them. Tradeoff for 14 seasons of great camping? Priceless, imo.

The most important thing to remember is to turn the water heater off, hours before winterizing. Especially standard water heater. We turned ours off day before when we had the 6 gallon.

Not complaining. Just noting that it hasn't been a consistent practice. I'm glad they've gone digital. Much better for inventory tracking, as well.

We didn't get a list with our 2008.

So, more than 6 months later, my free cover has arrived. (Probably only because I called to inquire.) A little over six months wait time. But, just in time to cover it up for the winter.😁

Hi, Lyn Hill, and welcome to the forum. A few more specifics will get you better answers,,and a range of opinions. Which trailer? E1 or E2? What year Yukon, engine, towing package, etc?

At a veterans day party last night, we had an interesting conversation with a couple who towed their new 5th wheel 6000 miles on its maiden voyage, from Florida to Quebec and back this year. They only stayed in a few state parks, because their trailer is so tall. They prefer Koa (which we don't), because of the amenities and level spots, lack of offending tree branches, etc. That gave me some heart, actually. Our smaller trailers fit in tinier spots, so maybe we only need to worry so much about the millenials, who tend to choise tent camping and/or buy littler trailers. 😁

I don't mind paying a bit more as an out of state camper. Maybe not double (yikes), but many states charge extra, or don't offer senior discounts for out of state campers. I don't get senior discount in Canada, either, nor do I expect to. My fees are the only way I'm supporting that spot I'm occupying. My tax dollars aren't supporting them, since state parks get little or no federal funding. State parks get twice as many visitors as National Parks. A lot of states have cut back funding from general taxes, and the only way they can pay their way is through fees. Frankly, it's always been really hard for a Florida resident to get a weekend site in the popular parks in the winter. They're booked way ahead by Northern visitors. Our camper sits through most winters. I wish our parks would charge a bit more for out of state plates, too.

I've seen photos of the black installed, and I agree with dewdev. I think it looks really sharp, and makes the windows look larger.

Interesting, as we've used agms for 6 or 7 years, at least, well maintained. Probably depends on manufacturer and owner maintenance. I would never discard agms after 3 years.

@Rivernerd please send an email to your rep. Oliver rarely monitors this forum. The forum is owners to owners. Not a factory space. Thank you.

Pretty shot! Glad you had a good stay.

@Zodd, I get it. Translation back and forth from 12v dc to 110 ac can be mind-boggling. Fwiw, when we switched from a laptop to tablets, we removed the inverter entirely. No need, and less to worry about. Everything we use on a daily basis is 12v. If we need 110, we'll, we'll go to a hookup. Or fire up the generator. Makes the math so much easier for my little brain. 😁