Ray and Susan Huff

I did not know there was a Xantrex app. With the app, does your phone do the same thing the remote display does? Could you please share the link.

As one who doesn't really understand the intricacies of battery/charger/converter operation, I do not want to be attempting to trouble shoot the problem and experiment with possible fixes. I just want an inverter that does what it is supposed to do when it is supposed to do it. When the issue first appeared, we were told by Oliver that the inverter was simply not communicating with the remote display panel (that is what the "20" warning code suggested) and that the inverter itself was functioning properly. My main concern was mostly that the batteries weren't charging, but also that the entire electrical system might not be working as it should; there is no good way to tell, with no display panel (crawling under the bed is not a good option!). If this is a hardware/software issue, Xantrex should supply all affected with a properly working inverter/charger, assuming there are some that work. If the cause is related to installation, then Oliver engineers need to resolve the problem, come up with a solution, and get things working properly. Has either Xantrex or Oliver been able to duplicate the problem in person? There are many questions I don't know the answers to: does this problem occur with all battery configurations? Solar or non solar? Is it only a problem with 3000w inverter? Some, but not all? I'm not bashing Oliver; they build based on the assumption that third party components will perform as intended. However, a product is only as good as the weakest part and battery charging/controlling is not a minor component.

It took me a while to figure out what you were referencing. Then I read my signature! I must have been thinking about my "car" which has a 3.0l diesel. If only my X5 had the 6.7l diesel . . . . . . I could outrun anything on the road 🏁 🚔 Thanks for pointing this out; I will make the correction.

Thanks for the info . . . . though it is "Greek" to me. We are still getting the "20" error, though it does occasionally go away and the remote appears to be working. We haven't had a need to use the inverter, but it would be a real pain to have to access it through the street side bed hatch to turn on and off or to check the status of the batteries. The last information I had from Jason indicated that he has contacted Xantrex repeatedly and they still have no solution. Keep us informed as to what OTT or Xantrex says about your observations. I wonder how many inverters (Oliver installations or other) are having this issue. If they can't find a solution, I'd like to have a different inverter.

Thanks for the tip. Probably not a chance they have one in stock with the current power outages, although a 2200w generator isn't much good in a residential setting. The price is the same as other vendors; not sure about shipping cost. I'm going to call them and check on it.

Hope Monday works out for you! I am forever thankful that our delivery date was stepped up from February 4, 2021 to December 7, 2020! In light of the recent severe weather across most of the US, I will never again complain about the Oregon rain. Here in SW Oregon we have had nearly 6 inches of rain the past three days, but at least it is not freezing rain or snow. One of our sons, on the other hand, lives just east of Portland, OR. They just got their power back on last night (they are one of few - many are still without power). Trees downed by the February 13th PNW ice/snow storm caused massive power outages.

Thank you for the photos. I have been wanting to confirm that the neutral ground plug and Oliver power cord w/adapter will fit side by side on the Honda 2200i generator, but haven't been able to find one in a store to compare. Now, with all the severe weather power outages across the US, I don't have hopes of finding one, even to order online, any time soon. Your generator looks like those on the market now. They appear to have a black cover over the receptacles where the generator pictured in @Minnesota Oli's post, probably and older one(?), does not. And what is the 6' cord you purchased? It must be an adapter, but with a standard three-prong plug on the end of a short cord. Does the Oliver power cord plug into the other end? This option gives you more room for the two plugs side by side than using the larger adapter, again as in @Minnesota Oli's example. The Neutral ground plug you are using is the same one we have. BTW: I did find the Honda 2200i available online from Camping World, but Lowe's is out of stock and I found "short supply" of them at Home Depot in Corvallis, OR, but is pickup in store only. Our son lives there; might have to ask him to purchase it for us or make the 3hr drive to pick it up.

This is the dehumidifier we purchased. It doesn't have a great capacity, but has an auto shut off. You can also hook up a drain hose (included) and drain into a larger container. It is very quiet, if you plan to run it while you are on board. It does have a heating element which seems to raise the temperature about 5 degrees.

@NCeagle Thanks for the dedicated discussion. I expect this will gather some useful information regarding humidity control. So, you answered one of my questions: PNW conditions (above freezing/high humidity) do not crack vent/windows). I can see where this applies during storage. Would it also be the recommendation while the trailer is occupied (humans and cooking increase humidity) or is that a case where some ventilation is needed? When the trailer is occupied, we generally only heat the cabin during the day, not at night, unless it is extremely cold (when inside temps dip below 45 degrees). Honestly, we rarely camp in those conditions. When we returned from camping (after moderate interior condensation) we ran the dehumidifier for a day or so, with no additional heat. This removed a large amount of moisture; I didn't measure, but I'd say close to a pint. Now we are heating with an oil heater (with no dehumidifier). Maintaining temp around 60 degrees keeps the humidity level at near 50%, which I guess is a healthy level. It will be interesting to see the change when outside humidity gets below 90%+ (if it ever quits raining). I did monitor the basement humidity, with the hatches closed, and it did not get as high as the outdoor humidity. I will do some more testing in that respect. I'm curious to see if keeping the nightstand basement access hatch open makes an appreciable difference. Hoping to learn more as others contribute to this discussion. BTW: we do not have a 30amp plug at home, so when connected, we could probably run both the dehumidifier and heater, but if both kicked on at the same time, it might trip our extension cord breaker (it kicks off before the 15 amp house breaker, which unfortunately also has a freezer plugged into it). The dehumidifier and oil heater together draw approx 10 amps so there is potential for a breaker tripping.

Our 2021 came with LifeBlue lithium batteries. Blue-tooth monitors internal battery temp and state of charge. They also have an internal heat system to maintain proper temperature for charging, but Oliver had some issues with this system overheating. On our November 2020 built 2021 Elite II, the automatic heating function is disabled. Oliver installed a heat pad that you have to manually turn on, though it has a thermostat that turns it on and off, as needed, during prolonged cold conditions. We have not had to use it; on our trip home from Hohenwald, it was in the mid 20's at night, but the internal battery temps remained in the chargeable range (above 35 degrees). I understand Oliver is using a different lithium battery now; I'm not sure when the changeover takes place - later 2021 models or only for 2022 models. I'm not sure about battery management system; I know on ours the Zantrex monitor gives you all the charging info. The solar controller displays some as well.

This makes me feel better 😀

I've been wondering about running fan/cracking a window or two, when outdoor humidity is high. So, to maintain desirable humidity while parked in the driveway in the PNW with outdoor humidity at, let's say, 95% the fan/roof vent and windows need to remain closed? While camping for a few days recently, we had quite a bit of condensation in the trailer. Nighttime temps were in the mid-thirties. We ran the furnace, during the day, set to 68 degrees, but off at night. Daytime temps were in the upper forties and the condensation dissipated as we were outside most of the day, but returned at night. (I don't recall the humidity level registered on our sensors - my bad). When we returned home we ran the dehumidifier for a day. This brought the humidity/temp to 40%/45 deg and maintained it there through the night. The next day we swapped the dehumidifier for the oil heater we use in storage to see what this would do humidity wise. It is set to maintain approx 60 degrees. The humidity has stabilized at 50%. Outside humidity is 95%; night time temps in the low 40's. Is it better to run the dehumidifier to achieve a lower humidity, at the expense of lower temperature (40%/45 deg) or the heater that produces humidity/temp levels (50%/60 deg)? The dehumidifier, running on high heat, draws 3 amps; the oil heater, on med 900w setting, draws 7 amps. What is a healthy humidity level for maintaining a healthy environment in the Oliver while sitting idle?

We have some automotive sound deadening panels we purchased to quiet the hardtop of an older jeep we have. Would this be suitable for insulating the exterior hatches?

How many velcro strips did you use and does it stay on the wall when traveling or do you take it down? One thing I did was to label each zone: basement/fridge/freezer to avoid confusion.

We have an Acurite 3-zone monitor. I like that all four sensors are shown on the screen; you don't have to cycle through the channels. We did not camp in cold weather in our previous RV since it was not 4-season, so we used the sensors in the fridge/freezer/outside. While camping in our Oliver during cold weather, the sensors are used in the basement (near the exterior hatch)/fridge/freezer. When parked at home, we monitor the basement and water heater compartment (so we don't have to drain the water heater). If the HWH area starts getting near freezing, we simply turn it on. The basement temp isn't that much of an issue when the Ollie is parked at home, since we always put antifreeze in the water inlets and outdoor shower when cold weather is predicted. In our previous RV we had to monitor the refrigerator constantly as it (a Dometic) struggled to maintain desirable temperatures. With the Norcold we monitor to ensure it isn't too cold . . . . . thus far, the Oliver fridge is so much better than the "Demonic" ever hoped to be. Setting the temp to levels 2-4 has been good so far; we'll see how it performs when outdoor temperatures warm up.

Portland, OR/SW Washington experienced freezing rain yesterday and a bit of snow in the surrounding hills today. Be aware if you plan to be traveling in the PNW. Definitely not a good time to be picking up your Ollie. Our delivery was originally scheduled for Feb 4, but was moved up to Dec 7. In light of recent weather conditions, I am extremely grateful for this. As it was we had no weather related problems going to Hohenwald (via I-80) or coming home with our Ollie (via I-40). Though it was a bit cold, we only experienced one little snow flurry around Cheyenne, WY. Always be sure to check weather/road conditions before departure; stay safe on the road.

Question on auto switchover: Does the switch occur when one tank is empty and both tank valves are open? We had our tank run out last weekend. I happened to notice it as I was cooking at the time and the burner flame started sputtering and turned a bit yellow. I told my husband we were out of propane. He went to check and assumed the second tank was empty (we have not filled them; still running on the Oliver fill) but it was full. Did the valve not switch? I asked him is the second tank was on, but he couldn't recall. My question is: when you see signs of the LP supply running out, as I did, how long does it take the system to switch over, assuming both valves are open? Was I just being impatient? As it was, we had shore power, do we turned the fridge onto 110v and hooked the LP up to our BBQ grill tank so I could finish cooking dinner.

Spent three nights last weekend at a local park - Powers (Coos) County Park. It's less than an hour from home, so we often stay here while exploring the surrounding USFS. There is a large pond, for fishing and kayaking, but it was too cold for that. We did some biking and explored FS roads. Powers Park is our basecamp for the annual Tour de Fronds bike ride that we and several of our family participate in each year. It was cancelled for 2020 (Covid), but they are hoping the event will go on this year. Wishing you safe travels.

The information Oliver gave us for extended warranty was from a third party. Unless this has changed, Oliver does not sell the extended warranty; they only recommend. As I stated earlier, we did purchase an extended warranty for our MB Sprinter based RV, entirely because of the chassis being costly to repair. We sold the RV before the manufacturers warranty ran out, but the transferrable extended warranty was a major factor in the buyers purchasing our Leisure Travel Van. We also purchased an extended dealer warranty for our BMW X5 (same reason - costly to repair). That being said, I have more faith in the reliability of my BMW X5-35d (6 yrs old) than I do of the MB Sprinter. We have the BMW maintained regularly by dealer techs. The only mechanical repair has been an EGR cooler safety recall (your engine could catch fire!). We did, however, have the entertainment/nav sys screen go wacko. The cost to repair it paid for the extended warranty, even with a $250 deductible. So, it's your call. Personally, an extended warranty on a non-motorized RV is probably not worth the hassle of finding a shop willing to do warranty repair, getting the repair authorized by the warranty carrier and/or filing a claim and waiting for reimbursement. If we have a breakdown that we can't fix by DIY, I want to be able to walk into the shop and say: tell me if you can fix it; I'm paying cash 😀

We use an electric heater when shore power is available. On our trip home from picking up our 2021 Elite II (December 9-15), we traveled via I-40. In the higher elevations of NM and AZ, it was in the upper to mid 20's at night, but above freezing during the day. We did not winterize during the trip home, though we came prepared to, if necessary. We put remote temperature sensors in the basement and under the bed where the plumbing resides, monitoring temperatures closely. At night we ran the space heater to maintain upper 50s inside and opened the basement access hatch in the nightstand. I don't know how much having the access hatch open affected the basement temps that ranged from the upper 30's to low 40's during the night. We did hand pump antifreeze into the two water inlets (city and tank fill); the winterization and black flush ports had not been used, so we did not winterize them, as per Jason E's suggestion. We used onboard water the entire trip as most of the RV parks we stayed at recommended not connecting to water, since the supply hose would most likely freeze anyway. We kept the standard water heater running on electric during the night. While camping last weekend at a local park, our electric heater quit working so we used the furnace, but only during the day. Nighttime temps were around 37 deg. With no heat on at night, the basement stayed in the low 40's until we arose and turned on the furnace. During our trip home we monitored the internal temp of the Lithium batteries via bluetooth. Never did we have to turn on the battery heat mat.

Are they also going to be using these in the Elite II? Instead of LifeBlue?

That would explain why our bathroom was getting good heat. I didn't think to evaluate it after we opened up the galley vent.

We are on a first name basis at Ace Hardware 😄

Being without an RV is like being homeless. We endured from September to December (and a couple of months of the best camping weather in the PNW); that was long enough!

Congratulations! Coincidentally, our delivery was Dec 7, 2020 . . . . . for this reason, our Elite II is named, "Pearl" 😊