SeaDawg

My quick camping recipe for creole jambalaya, that I forgot to include with the photo : I saute diced sausage (andouille or kielbasa) with a diced bell pepper, diced small onion, diced celery if I have it, and sometimes diced eggplant or summer squash. I add a small can of diced tomatoes (like rotel), a bag of precooked microwaveable rice. If I have Mexican bagged rice, I just add a little oregano and thyme. If white rice, I add chili powder, thyme, oregano and garlic, and a bit of crushed red pepper. Toss in any leftover diced chicken, or precooked shrimp, if I have some on hand. Ready in ten minutes, because the rice was precooked. One pan to clean- my wok skillet, or my small pot.

Eventually..

You could "try" compressed air. The hair dryer was a good idea, but likely not all that strong. Open windows, etc. At 3 or 4 years, it shouldn't be dead with age, but all things are possible. The top off the seat, and results, are a bit baffling to me. Ideas? Others?

Some of us (sensitive to "age") prefer the term "experienced." I can live with "seasoned," as well. 🤣🤣🤣 Btw, which size rivnuts did you use in your installation? Did you use backer material, or, just the fiberglass sidewall? I ask, because I'm really only familiar with these in furniture/wood. Thank you.

Thanks for bringing that up, @bhncb. Since the newer olivers have a thermostat controlling both ac and furnace, that's a consideration. Our older unit had a separate analog control for the furnace, and ac controls were on the inside unit of the ac, so our swap was much simpler. @IL_Travelers, I looked up current pricing at advanced rv. The $2500 is the ac unit, alone, installed, starts at $3143. That's a pretty good chunk of change, when the 13.5 low-profile unit is the same Houghton unit, same 2 year warranty. We (three people, my husband and I, and a younger friend who did the rooftop work) completed our removal and install in under two hours, without the lift and scaffold that a shop would likely have. Last time we had anything done at an rv shop, shop time was roughly $150 an hour. That's awhile ago, so probably more now. If it were me, I'd check with local rv shops to see if someone near you would install a Houghton, and offer a complete quote, including rewiring the existing Dometic thermostat, or replacing it with a simpler model for operating just the furnace. The Houghtons come with their own remote, and I don't think any of their models accommodate a thermostat. Many rv shops do ac installs. You might even find a mobile service that would come to your place. Just a thought, since you have a price difference of over $1600 plus, to work with, plus a trip to Ohio.

Advanced rv in Ohio has been installing the Quiet AC (made by Hiughton) for some time. It's the same or similar Houghton units several of us have installed, from recpro, though the new interior grille/adb is much nicer in ours, than in your photos. Katanapilot was the first. We have all been quite happy, so far . By doing the installs ourselves, we saved a lot. In my case, our 9500 unit was less than $1000, usd. It's gone up a bit. The larger unit is more .

Yes, covering the wires with tape, and securing, is a "possible" answer. Not one I'd like to travel with. If I were traveling, I'd want wires attached to "something." A single inexpensive group 26 or so battery will give you 12v for lights, pump, fans, etc. Just make sure wires are all connected, properly. Not a huge deal to change charger settings, for a short time, if you are boondocking, and working off solar. How far are you traveling, and how long would it take you to get the battleborns you want? Can you stay that long? The single cheap 12v flooded could work. Wired correctly. Either way, you need something, imo, in that cavity, to receive and deliver power, and eliminate loose wiring flopping around. And, give you a minimal 12v source for getting home with power for your 12v systems-- lights, fans, control board for 3way fridge, etc. I'm guessing there is only one positive and one negative in the whole octopus of wires that really makes a difference, in your original setup. It's now to determine what's what, if you go to a single 12v battery. The rest will be superfluous, because it was all connecting 4 x 6v batteries into a 12v bank, 2 x2.

I see those knockoffs all over Amazon. I wonder if they copied so closely that Lagun replacement parts will fit? Lagun USA doesn't state place of manufacturing, just "assembled in the USA". They're in central Iowa .

The charge wizard pendant is a very small ( about the size of a half dollar coin) mountable display on a cord that attaches to the charger converter. Ours is mounted with velcro. It blinks in various patterns to let you know which of the four stage the charger is working in--boost, absorption, float, or their 14.4 version of equalize/anti sulfate. These are programmed to step through automatically as the battery reaches the next state of charge. By use of a small button, you can manually stay in one of the four modes for a period of time. I thought it required buying a new board, not just moving a jumper. Yes, moving that jumper is what I was discussing earlier, or upgrading the charger. If we decide to go with lithium, we may go with Victron kit. We used Victron on the 600 watts of solar on the boat, it works well, offers easier communication and settings changes , we can monitor, and control through the phone, AND we'd simply be better off with one manufacturer's kit to work with in both places. Let us know what PD says about the pendant. I'm curious, too, if it works the same way with the lithium setting.

Thanks, 1lessworker. I think that's the same link in the thread Bill posted in the thread I linked, but it makes it easier. I reread the thread this morning. Looks like he's still making them, as someone posted about receiving his two weeks ago, with glowing comments. I sent the designer a pm, as I'm a (not very active) member of fgrv, also. I'll share when/if I get a response.

I've read about that, and I've seen a couple youtubes, but as far as I know, you're the first Oliver owner to give it a try. Wish we had a badge for that. So glad it worked for you! Out of curiosity, how long did you leave it flipped on its head?

See three posts above for the link to discussion of window louver vents. Just click on the photo, and that discussion should open for you.

Welcome to the forum! I see this is your first post. A number of people have posted checklists. Chances are, modifying the one your airstream friends shared with you, with Oliver specific changes, will work. It will be an early Christmas for you. Enjoy!

@Annwn Thank you so much for the personal observations! I agree, this will be a game changer for so many people in rural areas.

Thanks for that reminder, Mike. I'd forgotten about Don Thompson. Yes, we try to keep it honest and fair. The reason you won't see a lot of serious off road experience here, is twofold. Most of us don't go there. And, the Oliver is not built for boulder crawling, and river fording, imo. It's a wonderful trailer, purpose built for off grid, but not serious off road. Ask me again, after another 14 seasons. It's a great little trailer. But, like I said before, I don't think it's designed for Bigfoot hunting.

I've cut the foam toppers for my elite, with dressmaker shears, but the biggest has been 2". The down topper i never bothered to modify. Don't worry too much about the exact, ahead of time. Get a full size topper. I use queen sheets, and tuck under, because it's easier . I've used full, and it's more of a struggle.

Doesn't mean it's not a good truck. Toyota has a rather meager share as well, compared to the big three, but a very loyal following. I've never driven a Nissan Titan, but one of my friends tows a Casita with their Frontier. She's very happy. I've driven many Nissan rental cars and suvs, and the seats are all great. I liked her smaller truck. Honestly, it's hard to find a bad truck these days. Titan may not have all the bells and whistles, though. and watch the payload. Many safety features are standard in newer models. I'm sure you've seen this, but I'll add the link, anyway. https://www.caranddriver.com/nissan/titan The Alfa Romeo comparison tickled my funny bone. My husband and I drove to Orlando to test drive their new sports car, several years ago. From the photos, and specs, he really wanted one. When we actually folded ourselves into it, we decided it was a really, really bad idea. I don't think you'd have that "folding" issue with any Nissan truck. 😅😅 Every Nissan seat I've ever sat in gave me a happy drive.

You may want to search and read posts by Raspy, who has owned both an Oliver, and a Black Series, and has moved on to yet another another Aussie designed trailer. He's a boulder crawler/serious off roader. And, a winter camper. Off grid and off road are two different, though not mutually exclusive, terms. If I were chasing Bigfoot in the Rockies, (which is not my cup of tea) on goat paths at altitude, I'd probably look for a smaller, more nimble single vehicle, personally. Maybe a popup truck camper, (like xp) , maybe a smaller 4 x 4 and a tent, with a heater and electric fence. The Aussies have it all figured out, except for how to stay warm, much of the time. Folding tents and campers, rugged trailers with amazing suspension systems and hitches, etc. I have no desire to drag my smaller Elite over boulders, though we've done it, a few times, over relatively short distances, with the inept assistance of Google maps in the early days.

Nissan Titan doesn't have a huge market share, but we do have (or had) several members who tow with a Titan. You can read a number of discussions if you click on this search link. Seems proportional to Nissan's sales, or better. https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/search/?q="Nissan titan"&updated_after=any&sortby=relevancy&search_and_or=or This is from tfltruck, April of this year.

Many lithium battery manufacturers advertise "drop in" replacement. This is ok, as they "fit," but your oem equipment may not be able to fully charge them. That's ok, too, but you need to know what you are working with, in solar and on-board chargers. And wiring, as well. Drop-in is rarely drop it in, and go on, from what I have read and seen.

Definitely not plumbing expert here, but I'll bump this with a few questions Everything is working fine, except the bathroom sink faucet? If that's so, I'd remove the faucet aerator, and soak it in vinegar. While that's soaking, run it without the aerator. If it's still lame, it's probably the cartridge, if flow is lame both hot and cold sides. It's the only thing in between you, and good flow . Really sorry for your troubles. Maybe someone else has better ideas.

@ChrisMI, We're home for a week, and trailer is in storage. I haven't taken the cover off the ac, all summer. No need to, at elevation. I've needed a light blanket, more than ac. A small fan has been fine on "hot" nights, in the high 70s. When I bring the trailer home, it may be necessary. I'll check then. I don't know if Paul has the appropriate meter in his arsenal, but, we have a bunch of meters. Possibly. Whether you could be comfortable with a 9.5, in the larger trailer, is debatable. My suspicion is, yes, unless you camp in the desert in summer, but I really don't know. We have the smaller 2008 Elite. Less cf to cool. Also, keep in mind, if it's at all important to you, that the 9.5 only has cool and dehumidifier modes. No heat pump. Our main concerns with our replacement was the lower and narrower profile, so that we could adjust our bigger solar panels, without hitting the ac. In retrospect, I could have replaced the old Dometic with a $50 manual vent, and been fine, for as seldom as we use ac. I'm sorry we didn't take readings when we installed the ac, and used it at home in Florida. I didn't think very many people would be interested, except for the db measurements. Those were great. It's very, very quiet. It cools our smaller trailer quickly, in 90+ weather. If that's enough in the bigger Elite, I couldn't say.

We use our fixed solar to charge our batteries. If I had a cover, I would do exactly what Bill does. No one is likely to steal a small 25 watt panel. A suitcase solar, hmmm, another story . Too expensive to leave lying about.

Spacex launched another full raft if satellites a few days ago. As long as they don't go broke, this will likely be our best bet for reliable mobile satellite internet, I think. https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-29-internet-satellites-launch-webcast Someday..

I went to the eze rv gutters site today. Seems they only offer white, or black, these days. If you find colonial white, I guess it's old stock. It was beige-ish, and pretty ugly, but probably worked with a lot of the tan and brown sunblocker stick built class c's. Polar white seems to have replaced the description of ultrawhite. Trimlok also makes a similar gutter trim, but we've not used it. Other products I've used from trimlok have been great, though. The eze rv gutter is one of the best, and cheapest, mods we've ever done, imo.