SeaDawg

Do you mean that you want to run the ac while parked at home, off the battery, and solar? I think , personally, that would unnecessarily "cycle" the battery. The lifetime of all batteries are dependent on cycling. "Exercising" is part of cycling. Lithium is not immune. Cycling determines life. Every partial cycle "adds up." Please excuse me if I'm misunderstanding your question. But, if it were me, on your situation, I "think" I'd run the lifepo4 batteries down to recommended storage state, shut them off, and run a 110 cord for a portable dehumidifier while in storage, and not deal with ac. My husband and I have been talking about all this, recently. We know we need to replace house batteries in the boat next year. With the many heavy lead acid batteries in the boat house bank. we check fluids, periodically, and solar runs everything on the boat. We don't ever plug in (and many times, can't. ) But, there are essential systems, like bilge pumps, that must work 24/7/365, so turning off lithium wouldn't work for us, if bilge pump ran off a lithium bank. We're probably looking at some kind of hybrid situation, for agm starter battery, (another agm battery?) bilge pump etc., and lithium for storage (runs everything else. ) One of our friends who works in the marine industry, and designs systems, is camping with us this weekend. I'll see what he has to say for you, and us.

Can be paused and restarted, pay as you go, in one month increments. 30 days to return for a full refund of equipment cost, per the website.

We have very good friends in that area, and we owe them a visit. Hopefully, this year or next. I agree. Beautiful country.

Cutting into the lav front plate is a bit of work, but not particularly onerous. It's really a question of what you would like to see, and gain.

@imelda, this has been discussed several times. Here's a link to one good thread, among others. Good luck, and kudos on your willingness to tackle so many projects on your own.

@Oldharry, would you mind sharing which brand step you bought, since you like yours.

Bold are senior members. Blue are moderators. Red are admins.

Definitely, get a tpms.

@John and Jodi, seriously, I'd relax, and enjoy the trip home. Spend your time in Hohenwald, learning systems.

We carry a tire plug kit, just because. Actually, our car doesn't have a spare, so we just double up. We've had one flat on the trailer, in probably 150k miles. In a driveway, many years ago. It's our nature here, as somewhat overprepared/anal to carry more than we need, imo. I'll add that the plug kit works for tug and tow, weighs little, and is good insurance. Worth the little weight, imo.

We have dry camped most of the time with our Oliver Elite. But, we camp (like you) as if we're in a hard sided tent. Experience will help. We carry a little Honda 1000 just for charging batteries. We also have portable solar, but only use it if we're at a site for many days. Unless you drive an suv, and don't want to carry a generator in the cabin, I'd opt for the small generator "insurance policy. " easy to carry and deploy. I'll add this. I have a good friend with a Casita, single group 27 battery, can camp 2 to 3 days or so without power, in decent weather - in the fall, in treed north carolina, and upstate new york. She is also a veteran tent camper. We camp the same way, but we have an electric dc compressor fridge. Fall is much more problematic than spring, because just the fridge uses 60 to 70 ah a day. So, we can't go 5 days in full shade, in the fall, even with 400 watts fixed solar. That's not your situation, since you can run your fridge on gas. Your fridge takes gas and minimal power. You do need to monitor amp hour consumption. And replenishment. Everyone is different in their style and needs.

Hi, Kelly, and congratulations on getting your Oliver. Do you have an Elite I or II? Which batteries do you have, as that will help us estimate your available amp hours. As tent campers, you're used to managing without power, im sure. Not only will the tree cover reduce your charging ability, especially if the leaves are still up, but the hours of sun are less in the fall. You'd probably still be fine, if you don't have to run the furnace much at night. We've camped up that way in October, though never Fish Pond, and got some rainy cold weather.

Gotta love those impromptu mini rallies! How fun that must have been!

@viola, congratulations on your new to you Ollie, and welcome to the forum. We've enjoyed our Elite so much, now in our 15th camping season! You said that you were afraid the lit leds were running down your batteries. What readings are you getting on the zamp solar monitor and the seelevel? (You should be seeing something at or slightly above 13. 2 in full sun, and something like 12.6 or so at night, even if you're not getting shore power, if you're not running any other loads like fans,, fridge, etc. Those led tail lights don't actually use a lot of power.) Even if you're not getting a charge from the house circuit, imho your solar should be enough to keep the batteries up, if you're not using a lot of other things in the trailer. Tell us about the house circuit you're plugged into. 15 amp? 20 amp? Anything else in your house using power on that circuit? Anything else running in the trailer? @John E Davies is correct, if your connector is corroded, its best to replace. However, we've also had new owners who left the pigtail up in the rain or condensation, and moisture caused the "ghost" lights. Their issues disappeared when the connector was allowed to dry out, by hanging the connector so the openings are down, out of the rain. A photo of your connector would help. As John said, you may have tripped the house circuit breaker or its gfci, or you could have tripped the gfci of the trailer. When you plug the trailer into the house circuit, you should hear a "click" inside the trailer when the transfer switch kicks in, and the microwave (if you have one) makes a chirping sound. Sometimes, all it takes is disconnecting the trailer, and reconnecting, with someone inside the trailer listening. Guessing you've already done so, but first step is to check the house circuit breaker, see if it's tripped. If there's a gfci on that circuit, test and reset that. Make sure you actually have good power coming from the outlet you're plugging into . And, check that outlet for proper ground, and reverse polarity. I think you have at least two separate problems here. Possibly three. Best to just start from the beginning, and rule things out.

We're all very happy for you, @MAG! No one is born knowing any of this stuff, and there are always plenty of people here to offer help and advice from their experiences. And, Ryan at bluesky is one if the best tech support people I've ever had the pleasure to work with. You've learned some things along the way, and now it's time to get out there and enjoy some camping and relaxation time in your Ollie. You've earned it.

Ralph, did you put screening on your fridge vents? That cuts air circulation. We always had them, but didn't routinely camp in high temps. Do you run fridge on propane or dc while driving? Are the fins clear or frosted over, and fridge not packed so tight that air can circulate? On our older dometic and norcold fridges,, the thermostat could be adjusted a bit by sliding the thermistor down the fin. I'm not sure how the new ones operate . Someone else will have to chime in on that. I'm guessing you have the norcold fridge. 45 is not a good temp for foods. Ok for produce, meats won't last as long. Any ground meat, and raw poultry, I'd put in the freezer. If it's 90 to 100 daytime, your fridge may take awhile to cool down a bit after nighttime temps. A fan inside the fridge can help circulate air. A clip on fan outside top vent while camped can help pull exhaust . You can also just open the top vent, for awhile, to allow more exhaust area.

The anode is intentionally made of a metal that erodes more easily than your tank material, to keep the tank whole. Your anode did its intended job. It doesn't matter whether you run the water heater on gas or electric. Dissimilar metals will create a chemical reaction called electrolysis that will eat away at metals. Better that it eats the anode than your tank. I suspect your hard water has more to do with the anode's rapid demise than anything else. Draining your water heater tank before storage will help it last longer, as well. And, as a bonus, you'll see how much your anode has eroded, and replace it as necessary. ($20 for an anode is much cheaper than replacing a water heater. Don't buy the super cheap ones. They sometimes aren't made to erode as quickly as they should.) You'll likely want to start using that filter to fill your tank.

Go to the three bars/"hamburger" button. From the drop down, selrct account, then account settings, then settings area, then signature. It's quite the treasure hunt to find it....

Even the least effective camco cuts out a lot of solids. Not all, of course, but it definitely helps. Good question, Mike. @Imelda, I'll look for instructions in another post, but basically, you'll want to pull a strong vinegar solution in like you are winterizing. do not draw it in to the water heater. Pull water through the lines by opening one faucet at a time, just like you do when winterizing, but you won't see pink, you'll smell vinegar. Don't forget the showers, and the toilet. The acid in vinegar can mess with valves and seals,, so let it sit for twenty or thirty minutes,, and flush very thoroughly with plain water, everywhere, every faucet. (That's my opinion. Others may think otherwise. )

Geo, in your photo, it looks like you might be using stacked patio blocks/pavers to support your jacks? I'd be extremely uncomfortable with that, as well. I had a bad experience once with a concrete block shattering under the weight of a jack. Never again. We always use wood. Sometimes, you can't see the hairline cracks, or internal cracking, in those formed concrete blocks.

Or, if codes allow, you could dig a pit, and build one of these: https://homestead-and-survival.com/18-outhouse-plans-and-ideas-for-the-homestead/ My cousin in Alaska has three cabins, and three outhouses, on her property. We helped her set up and build an outdoor shower room on the back side of one of them. The eccotemp portable propane units are awesome. We've used one for 14 years, on our camping property. (We have a spring collection system for washing water.)

You were probably/hopefully out camping when we discussed this again a few weeks ago. Here's a link.

Liana, the portable tanks are mainly used to slowly transport contents from your trailer to a campground dumpstation. Some people just roll them along, pulling behind them as they walk, some tanks are made to attach to the ball of the truck and be slowly towed. If you don't have a septic system at your camping property, you probably want to look at some alternative methods for handling waste, like a composting toilet, luggable loo, wag bags, etc. for long term camping without moving the trailer. Or, perhaps that rv park you mentioned before as being nearby has a honey wagon service that would come by your spot and pump out your black tank, for a fee?

@Liana, did you reprogram/ change settings on your solar controller for lithium? Congratulations on the upgrade.

We're rather partial to silicone, as it doesn't attract and trap dirt as much as many other lubricants. And doesn't smell as bad as wd40