SeaDawg

Acronyms aside, I know there are terms and abbreviations that can be confusing. Keep up the responses. I was reminded a month ago that many newbies didn't know that PM meant private message. Sherry

Years ago, we replaced the clear lens on our porchlight with an amber lens. Cost was about $10. I don't know if an amber lens is available for the newer trailers, as I believe they've changed brands. Sherry

That slideout kitchen is awesome...

Fwiw, we just replaced our brakes this spring. 11 seasons, around 100,000 miles. But, ours is an Elite. Sherry

Like that, Newshoes, but we prefer bound journals over spiral. We have log books from the boat over 40 years old. It's fun to go back and read and relive the old adventures... We add notations on important mechanical upgrades, repairs, and maintenance. Sherry

40 watts in the sun is better than none. Imo.

I would love to see an 8 inch stretch on the shorty...6 inches added to the bed, two to the door. If that added too much weight, though, to need a tandem axle, I'd say no way. Without any extra length, the original Ollie Elite is a fine boondocking machine. We've got the time and miles to know. (11 years, 100,000 miles). Love my little trailer. Everything we need, and then some. Sherry

Sailorashore, We had a number of friends at Islad Packet. Did you know Warren? Great boats. They lost a lot in the downturn. Sherry

That makes sense. You can live a lot longer on a trailer's needs than a home. Todays specs on your genset say 95 pounds, but still lighter than the Yamaha by almost 35 per cent. Just a bit louder. The yamaha purrs. Even servicing two homes, with doors and windows closed, we didn't hear it in the yard. On the road, we carry only an almost silent honda, very light Honda 1000, just to recharge batteries after the occasional string of crummy weather days. We love the silent, fossil fuel free solar. On the road, and at home, in our solar powered home. BUT, occasions like Hurricane Irma, can require breaking out the gensets. We were strictly gridtied then. We have ordered batteries for the next big one, and hope we will never need them.?

Landrover, Were you running ac in your Ollie, or your home? We powered our home, and our friends next door, we with a 3000 Yamaha, post Irma, just some fans,some lights , refrigerators, and igniter for the gas water heater, plus same for the neighbors, off our single genset. I wouldn't have even tried to run even one of our 2 ton variable speed units off the genset, withou tthe load of the neighbour's needs. Thanks. Sherry

Interesting idea. I've not seen it before, but makes sense. Heavy dc wire from 7 pin to battery. I'm assuming there is an inline fuse, somewhere? Never looked.

Hmm, this time, first in 11 years, we had a nicked bearing. Have the backup kit, now. Just in case. Sherry

Cruising for five years, you have certainly learned how to manage 12 volt power, though your battery banks in the boat were likely much larger than the batteries in the Oliver. Solar can always be added, and you'll find out along the way if you want/need it. We added ours 6 months after we got out Oliver. You could hedge your bets with a zamp or furrion port installed on your Oliver. It's easy to pick up portable solar along the way, or order it online. A couple minutes to set up if you have a port. We do feel we need our solar panels, but we almost never camp with electric hookups, and we have a dc compressor fridge now. We're just now adding solar to the sailboat this year. Beautiful boat. Sherry

Congratulations on the sale of your motorhome. Now the wait begins for the new Oliver. Welcome aboard!

For the new folks, that advice might be ok in a rural area, trailing freshwater as you go, but, a cop can't tell fresh from grey or black. In an urban area, you might just get pulled over... I'll give my water to the flowerbed... https://splinternews.com/the-time-dave-matthews-band-dropped-raw-sewage-on-100-p-1793849906 http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2009/04/keith_urban_steals_tour_bus_tu.html Sherry

Overland, glad to hear you like all the Victron equipment. We are Using Victron in our boat installation this year. We like our BlueSky in the trailer, and love their customer support, but the boating community uses a lot of Victron. Thought we would give it a try. Unfortunately, it's already getting hot, and the repaired hardtop hasn't arrived yet. Wolfdds, you'll be way ahead of us on your install. We'll look forward to seeing yours! Sherry

Good question. My RV insurance is through Good Sam's. Never thought to ask them. Good Sam's insurance does allow you a discount when your RV is in storage. You just have to call. Saves a few bucks in the off season.

So, I tried a different course this time, after all, and I can't really recommend it. Quite dull compared to the aarp course. The American Safety Council course is $15 instead of $20, but the aarp class is still a better value, to me. More thought-provoking, more interactive, and much more interesting way to spend 6 hours of online time, IMO. Sherry

Congratulations, and happy motoring! No better family memories for us than camping, sailing and travelling together. Cute kids. Maybe someday they'll reveal the story behind the cute trailer name. ? Sherry

Springtime in the Appalachians makes me smile. Laurel, dogwood, and early wildflowers.

Back in the early days, there were several couples who fulltimed in the Elite, the smaller trailer. That required some serious downsizing, but they managed. The smaller trailer could easily work for one person, and one small dog. The truck bed becomes important for storage, but the lesser weight of the smaller trailer could make up for it. Back in the day, some people tried to make the Elite into twins, which you can do, but the beds are only 26 inches wide, or so.Too small for most couples. You can, however, create a twin bed thwartship with a twin xl foam mattress, and have some extra space for added cubbies. The normal thwartship (east/ west) bed is the large dinette area.. queen long, more like full size bed width... We never set up the big dinette anymore. We leave the big bed up fulltime, and store three crates under it. The little dog sleeps on one her own bed, atop one of the small dinette seats. The Elite has the same equipment as the Elite II, but not a ducted furnace. (Unless that has changed... our 2008 is not.) With one person, less to tow, less to clean, easier to fit in tiny spaces... Have you seen either model in person? That's really important in such a big decision. Best of luck, Sherry

I only ask about the battery level because fridges are known to do odd things, or quit working entirely, when the battery level drops below a certain level. Sherry

Did the display panel show everything correctly when you picked it up? Is the new fridge a 410 or 412? I'm guessing you have the trailer at home. I've never heard of this particular problem, but, lucky you. If your trailer is at home, I'd take a photo of the model and serial number plate, and the control panel, and call norcold. Other questions, and Norcold will probablyask a nymber of them: Did you use the fridge at OTT, and on the way home? Has the trailer been plugged in since you brought it home? Is the trailer plugged in now? What's the voltage showing on your battery ( on the seelevel guage)? Are you running the fridge on ac, dc, or gas? Are the fridge functions working, other than the control panel display? Sherry

Our original (2008) fridge was a norcold, and I reallyliked it.. We never had that issue, but got really good help from Norcold tech service when we did have a problem. Try calling tech service at norcold first. The number is in your manual. They may tell you to take it to an authorized dealer near you. You're under warranty. Any authorized dealer can help you. We like the smaller camping world near us. Sherry

It's a nice feature for people who use private messaging a lot. You can download history, and delete old messages without losing the info. Not a big deal for light users. There is a limit to stored messages. In the old dsys, it was 100. I think it's a lot more, now. Sherry