SeaDawg

In our 2008, its probably different, but still a pain, because it's a really big screen. I push up, twist a little, and down. Once you figure it out, you'll forget a bit til the next time you clean the screens and window. 14 seasons in, big screen is stiil not fun.

If it's running at all, its getting dc to the controls. So, the place to check, I guess, is dc to the cooling unit. Also, the control push button. On our dometic, this was an issue. (Eyebrow board.) Not sure which model norcold you have. Never had an issue with that. Til it died. And, we rarely, if ever tried to run on dc. Too much power loss for our batteries. We're one of that group that runs on propane . Or, used to be. Dc danfoss/secop compressor fridge runs fine, underway.

Thats nice. We just wirebrushed an repainted our propane shelf this year. Looks like you have plenty of ventilation. I might add a few drain holes, if I did this, for condensation.

That said, other us rv manufacturers build all electric units. Even fgrv Egg camper and Little Snoozy did it. Of course, they both went out of business. (Though Snoozy II is working again, with a new owners.) The biggest problem is the furnace, from my point if view. Carrying diesel, or having to hook up for electric to obtain heat, isn't appealing to most people. Everything else can be solved with enough solar, and enough lithium battery, imo.

I would say, that is the crux of the problem. I think Oliver chose Zamp solar, for example, for several reasons. Wide service network. Usa made. Quality. Ease of use. The choice of the noisy Dometic ac is based on availability, and serviceability, I'd suspect. No matter how great a component is, if there are no parts, no service network, and unreliable imported supply chain, a manufacturer would be taking a big risk. Those of us who mod with imported or rare units take that risk. But it's on us, and not holding up production.

Absolutely. Buy a quality stinky slinky.

The last few years, we've adopted loctite marine fast cure. Good adhesion, good elasticity, for both the boat and the trailer. So far, so good. And, it gets good ratings on Practical Sailor testing, which is why I first considered it. Polyether, not polyurethane, and compatible with fiberglass, polycarbonate, and most plastics. If the lens is acrylic, which I really suspect it is, you would want to avoid polyurethane.

I don't think the factory ever used butyl tape for the lens, Scubarx, because butyl requires some type of mechanical fastening in addition to the butyl. (In absence of a trim ring with fasteners, we added screws to our continuous seal of butyl.) I do recall the factory using the vhb tape that Celia encountered, and I agree, it's an ineffective way of fastening and sealing the lens. It's a great fastener, but it doesn't seal the window, making caulk your only line of defense. Resulting in the failures you described. Using a good marine sealant/adhesive should work fine. That's how some boat fixed, trimless ports are fastened. It provides a good seal, and a good adhesion. Even those have to be refreshed over time, though.

Btw, the older coleman cub was more quiet than today's dometic. Also, much smaller for smaller trailers. If you mostly camp at elevation/cool temps/ boondock, I'd let it go til more of the European and Australian units become readily available. We recently replaced our dometic with a houghton 9500 btu, mostly to make space on the roof for our solar panels. Since we run the ac only once or twice a year, to check it out, noise is irrelevant to us . But, I am not dismissing the issue. Most usa rv ac systems are really noisy. Fortunately for us, we've only used rv ac a few times, camping.

We used a heat gun, in the attic, and a metal putty knife. One inside, one outside . We didn't want to heat, or chip too much , as the fiberglass is not that thick at the edge. We took our time. Since ours is a much older trailer, you may never see this. The application has evolved over the years . I hope not, at least. We could see blobs of brown epoxy stain. Hope you don't . A heat gun, in the attic, on low, was very helpful. You don't want to take it too high, and mess up the fiberglass Sherry

As an aside, ive said it before. I truly wish Oliver would adopt an applied light. The third tail light has been an issue for over a decade, requiring maintenance and care . It's certainly not impossible, but could be easier. In my opinion. Sherry

A new lens cost us something like $30. It was a pain to remove, with the spots of epoxy. Ours already had hairline surface cracks, so we ordered a new one before we began (Remember, our trailer is now 14 years old.) Like you, we're not newbies. We could have cut a new lens ourselves, but thought it easier to order. I don't love the "new" typeface, but, its ok . The lens was a perfect fit in our 2008

It's all good. I just don't want people to use 5200 indiscriminately. It's a bear to remove, from personal experience. My evening tonight. Get out, and camp. And, enjoy your new trailer.

@Erika E, not criticizing your decision, its just not one id l would recommend. You'll likely get 3 to five years. Maybe more.. Depending on how you travel/hull flex. I just think 5200 is not the best choice, and lots of people look at these posts for years to come . My reasoning is the lack of elasticity in 5200. And its incredible bonding, which we've personally experienced, even when the stuff cracks and leaks. It is really really difficult to remove

In theory, it's quite possible. Especially, with lithium. This week, we're running two fridges on solar, only, as a friend brought his thermoelectric fridge to camp with us. It's been slim, with only two agm 105 ah batteries in our 2008 legacy I, but we manage. We unplug the thermoelectric at night, as we did, camping in iceland with a thermoelectric cooler. (It's a beer cooler, and it's not hot here. We park it in the shade at night, and it's still 40 in the morning. ) Add up the amp hours. Add 100 per cent extra to solar for expected charge. Carry a really small genset for a string of crappy days Pretty sure we could do it . I'd carry an outdoor gas/butane or propane burner, for cooking. The big gas hog is the furnace. If you pack good sleeping bags or bedding, you won't need as much heat. 12v heat is a mystery to me. I doubt it's worthwhile.

3m 5200 is a powerful adhesive, and very, very difficult to remove in the future. It will require expensive solvents, and mechanical methods, and probably heat, as well. 3m 5200 is really meant for permanent bond, but doesn't flex as well as some other products so not as great as a sealant. We use it very, very selectively on the boat. Have never used it in the trailer . There are other strong products I'd recommend, that are more easily removed when it eventually fails, like Loctite Marine rapid dry. Even 3m 4000 uv, maybe, but I don't know about the compatibility with the lens material.

You have been very, very busy! Nicely done! I especially like the shower head holder for the outside shower. Very useful.

Back to Claudia's third tail light lens question. In our 2008, the lens was attached directly to the fiberglass with some type of tough marine adhesive sealant, I'm guessing probably 3m 4200. We were able to remove that with a heat gun on low, from the inside, and a putty knife, working carefully. Unfortunately, a couple spots were held in place with a dab of epoxy, which was much tougher. Yours is likely held in 3m4200, or something like that. I know you've seen my thread on what we did, using butyl and stainless screws, but that's an experiment in progress. If you can get the lens out in one piece, (we couldn't, because of the dabs of epoxy), you'll want to clean it and the surrounding fiberglass thoroughly, and apply and seal with a compatible marine adhesive sealant. If we had gone that route, my choice would have been loctite marine fast cure, or Dow 795 (dowsil), as they're compatible with fiberglass, polycarbonate, and most plastics/acrylics, and easier to deal with and remove later than silicon or polyurethane. I don’t know if the lens is polycarbonate or acrylic, so I'd want a sealant compatible with both.

The ac is noisy, but shouldn't be any more noisy than the (probably) same ac installed in your previous Casita. Might want to check the flange bolts, to make sure the upper unit is properly tightened in. Check that the shroud isn't loose and rattling, also.

Sorry you're having these issues in a 4 year old trailer. Tey putting a layer of blue shop toweling in the attic. The leak you are describing is almost always a third tail light that has lost some of its seal. The rainwater finds its way down. Barring that, put some clear duct tape around the light. If the leak stops, it's the light lens. If not, try some over the top of the rear window. Work your way down, and around. It's also possible that the bedding or caulking for the rear window has failed, and never been renewed. The weepholes aren't very big, for the size of the window. We installed ez rv gutter years ago, and it really helps to divert water from the window/weepholes.

Just remember, if the guide can't see the mirror, the driver can't see the signals. Then again, most of you probably have newer trucks, with backup camera on the trailer. We don't.

When we had three ways, I learned to use manual settings, never auto. What probably happened was there was air in the line, causing the fridge to go back to dc, as default. Before running a fridge on lp, I always ran a burner on the cooktop, first. The cooktop draws more fuel, and isn't as sensitive to an air bubble in the line. Fills the gas line.. the fridge uses a very small amount if lp, and will shut down with just a bit of air in the line, in my experience. After running a burner for 20 or thirty seconds, I'd shut down the burner, and fire up the fridge. Glad you checked everything, and didn't deplete your batteries, running the fridge on dc, unintentionally. Good for you!

I tend to shop from my home fridge, freezer, and pantry first. I keep and reuse (after running through the dishwasher) small containers for short trips. Right now, my ketchup is in a sri racha container, filled from the big bottle at home. Dollar tree has name brands bottled to their dollar size, so sometimes I buy salad dressing and mayo there, just to save space . They also carry (at least in my area) tetra pack milk quarts, from an Oregon dairy, for the usual dollar. I make some salads (pasta and potato salad, cole slaw) at home, and pack in quart containers. I sometimes bring frozen soup or chili, as it's quick and easy in crummy weather. I make up hamburger patties, seasoned, vac pac, and freeze flat. Marinate and/or season chops, Alaskan salmon, haddock, and steaks. Freeze flat on a cookie sheet. Everything is grill or campfire ready. If you start with frozen, vac packed, they're good for a week near or in the freezer. Hardboil and chill a half dozen eggs for snacks or breakfast. I bring enough ground coffee for the trip. We've yet to buy a manual coffee grinder, so I usually just bring ground Gevalia. I also carry two or three "emergency" meals that often come home with us. Dried soup mix. Fixings for jambalaya, with rice mix and canned chicken, shelf stable sausage. It really depends on what you like to eat, and if you like to cook, and how. We prefer campfire cooking when possible. If we are only camping 5 to 8 days, I can bring everything I need. Even sometimes 2 weeks, in the fridge and cabinet. But, I like to visit the local farmer's market for produce, if we can. Lots of produce is fine outside the fridge... potatoes, onions, squash (wonderful on the fire). Oh, some good hot dogs or brats. We like a couple brands from western New York, and it's hard to find decent hotdog on the road. And, what's a better lunch than campfire hotdogs, or a pie iron pizza?

You could offer, but most people will refuse. Different people use different methods and hand signals. Paul and I rarely have to speak to each other. We just use the same hand signals we've used forever. Handheld radios are great for many people. No shouting, one hand operation for the guide, and the driver will hear what the guide is saying without having to touch the radio.

Gotcha. Going to bed. I'll check back tomorrow. Please post a photo of the ipn pro remote, tomorrow. Fully charged