GAP

We have an E2, hull # 701.picked up in mid December. Just trying our air conditioner for the first real test. As soon as it started up, we could hear what sounded like the impeller was in contact with something that caused a loud noise. Seems like the blades are still turning but contacting something they are not supposed to be hitting. I looked at the AC material supplied by Oliver but there is no model ID info. I tried to call the company directly but their initial phone message stated that customers needing tech support need to have the model and serial number. - does anyone know where to find that information? - has anyone had a similar issue and, if so, how did you deal with it? We are happy to open the housing to see what there is to see. Hopefully an easy fix but not sure whether to lift the shroud from the top of the camper or if there is a way to see the guts from inside.

The vent under the galley is supposed to allow for manual adjustment. One of the fins on ours was out of true so Jason from the shop told us how to realign. Basically, you stick a finger through the outer grate and pull as it is meant to just pop off. The vents were easy to pop back in their tracks after. We have closed ours entirely and turned to rear vent to blow air towards the galley. Plenty warm to fill the cabin. This allows more heat to make it to the bathroom

I have not heard any updates from Jason but was going to reach out to see what's up on his end. We are going on a trip to New Hampshire for a few days of skiing. Should be plenty of chance to continue testing my new settings. Will share anything of value that I come up with.

The adjustments to the Xantrex setting are quick and easy to do. Their instructions manual is intimidatingly long and certainly contains this information. In my case, I called them directly to ask about my overload issues with the generator and under voltage shut down of the Xantrex and they walked me through the rest. When I discussed this process with Jason at Oliver, he seemed interested and planned on following up with Xantrex to find out if my settings were a one off. My thought is that if you are not having a similar problem, there's nothing to worry about. If you are having the same problems, the adjustments are easy to do and either Xantrex or filing a ticket with Oliver should get things right. With the lithium system in our trailers being so new, I am not surprised that things required tweaks and was reassured (so far) to experience how easy it was to make adjustments. Over the next few days, I plan on running the battery level down lower and seeing how the under voltage cut off setting works. Will report back if further adjustment was required. To reiterate my tweaks: Tweak #1: The Xantrex charging rate was at "factory setting" running at 24 amps. My 2200 generator cannot supply that much for more than a short time so I adjusted down to 18 amps which is still high for running rate on that generator but has held for a full half hour of charging. If plugged into shore power and on a 20 amp (household type) circuit, 24 amps of charge would be too high anyhow but again, the new 18 amp setting seems fine. Tweak #2: My low voltage cut off (setting off alarm and a temporary shut down) was set to a battery level of 12.6 volts. Again, this was described to me as "factory setting". After asking for specs on my lithiums, I was instructed to adjust down to 10.5 volts. That held well with the batteries at around 50% and I'll experiment with them at a lower level. Tested with microwave, which was continuously causing a shut down, and all held well. Caveat: This is all way above my pay grade. It is probably prudent to file a ticket with the Oliver shop to get feedback and ascertain if your settings and situation are different then mine. Hope this info is helpful.

Actually, I recently went deep down the rabbit hole of charging the lithiums vs running AC based items (AC, radar range, toaster) by having a long talk with an awesome tech at Xantrex. May be an issue for another chain but... Turns out that the Xantrex charger is set up to prioritize feeding AC product first and does so by shutting off lithium charging till your AC done with. This is supposedly true whether you are plugged into shore power or running a generator. The tech also pointed out that the factory settings on the Xantrex is set up with shore power in mind so she hand held me through the none too intimidating process of making a couple of tweaks. One was adjusting the charging rate. Factory setting is to draw power at 24amps for charging which is too much for my 2200 Honda generator. Temporarily turned that down to 18amps which, so far, has worked perfectly. Had previously overloaded my generator a number of times while charging with no other AC based draw. Second tweak was adjusting the battery overload auto shut off which was set for something like 12.6 volts. She said that too high of a cut off so we adjusted down to 10.5v. I had been having occassional auto shut offs with an alarm an low voltage warning when using my microwave and the lithiums being at 75% charge. Since making this change, I've had no problem running the microwave at it's highest power draw and have tested with batteries down to 50%. Will test at some point with a lower battery charge level as the lithiums are good to drain effectively down to nearly flat.

Marine shops offer plenty of products to do this. For my fiberglass kayaks, which are similarly finished in gelcoat, I keep a couple of products on hand. I have a fiberglass rubbing compound, light duty, which is good for buffing out minor scratches and scuffs. After use, the surface has a dull shine to it. Also have a finishing polisher/wax which brings back the original, high gloss shine. If there are scratches that need deeper attention, I will hit the area lightly with sandpaper as needed. I may start with a middle grade such as 120 or 150, than go over it with 400 than move one to wet sanding with 800 and, if a critical spot, will finish by wet sanding with 1200. Than onto compound and finish with the polisher/wax. I've brought beat up hulls back to factory finish by doing this. Plenty of instructionals on youtube as well.

I do have a clamp on meter but on a quick glance, saw no single runs off the heating pad to be able to wrap around to check for load. Will have to take another look. the tail that runs to the negative is a double so I would assume that covers the led on the on/off switch. I believe there is a single that runs to the positive.

Thanks on that John. I'll keep an eye out to see your update. I've been camping in the cold here in New England a couple of times since getting my E2. As far as I can tell, after a number of tests, the battery heating pad is having zero effect on the battery internal temps. It may be that the light is on but no one's home - meaning that the battery pad light works but not the pad itself. Even after hours at around freezing temps, there is no effect and I cannot feel any difference on the bottom of the battery tray. Will eventually figure out if the pad is the problem but, either way, feel it is worth it to be able to do as you suggest and be able to condition air in the battery box by sharing flow through from the cabin.

Sounds like a great and worthwhile project, John. I can almost wrap my brain around the approach. Question is that you mentioned it will assist in cooling the battery box in summer and heating it better in the winter. The former makes immediate sense but I can't picture why the latter would work. Is the assisting heat source going to drawing ambient air into the box from the under street side bed area and, if not, what type of dedicated heat source were you considering? Thanks much, GAP

This seems like a super attractive add on. If I understand the results, the thought of running the fridge DC while underway, would be fantastic. We just picked up our new E2 and were on the road with it for a couple of weeks. Was surprised to see how much power the fridge used while running on DC even with the lithium package. Winter sun is too low to replace that amount of power and truthfully, I'd expect that even summer sun on a clear day would produce enough power to do so. I'll search the forum to see chains on this subject. John, do you have a suggested gauge wire to run from TV battery?

Thanks folks. That is the answer I was hoping for. Aside from monitoring traffic behind the trailer, another benefit could be as a security camera while parked. Always a good thing. Would some day like to add a forward facing camera as well.

Thanks on that John. Much appreciated.

Hey John, Per your suggestion, I picked up a Level Master level. Similar to your sage, the first one arrived with a leak. The second one looks clean but, both have a pretty decent sized air bubble in the tube. Is that just the way they are or did the second somehow spring a leak as well? Thanks

While on the subject, does anyone have the rear view option that comes with the trailer. We went that way and, as we have not yet done our pick up, I'm wondering if it is wired into the back up lights or is always on? Hoping it's the latter. Gerry

Ours will be ships passing in the night. We'll be on the road already by the time you get to Oliver. Will have to meet you some time down the line. Hope everything goes really well for you guys and that you have a great trip.

Interesting timing on this discussion. As things stand now, the fed solar tax credits are phasing out. If my memory is accurate, 2019 and before allowed for a 30% credit. 2020 goes down to 26% and 2021 is 19%. Could be a good time to do a cyber Monday upgrade!!!

Fantastic for you guys. What days are you going to be in the campground? We are doping our tutorial on the 3rd and will be there December 3-4. Decided to take 2 days at the campground to run through everything thoroughly. Let us know if we'll overlap. Could have a socially distanced adult beverage - or two.

I have a pair of under tire levelers similar to the Anderson wedges. They too are built to be cut down, if needed, to fit between the tires on the Elite 2. The overall length is 15" so pretty much the same as the Anderson's. Does anyone know if there is a need to cut these down and, if so, by how much? I am picking up our Oliver in just a few days and prefer to do that surgery at home.

Good info John. I am probably going with Progressive as well so it helps to know that one can decline the RA for the trailer. We are doing the same policy as you with AAA. Also good to know that one can cancel their call if you find a quicker tow source on your own and try to get reimbursed for those expenses. Our customer service person stated that those attempts sometimes get denied.

I'm not surprised to hear about these problems being common. The overvoltage from an older generator may be able to be regulated if there is a manual throttle or by using an appropriately sized dimmer/rheostat in line. The former is easy if it already exists and the latter is pricey unless you already own. Undervoltage in areas at campgrounds is probably the norm. The further you push power through a line, the more power is lost. As I understand it, low gauge (thicker) wire offers less resistance and carriers electricity better and further but costs much more. Even a relatively simple multi meter can test for voltage and hertz. If shore power is supplied by a generator that is not well maintained, the hertz (60 cycles) can be off and delicate electronics hate that. Should be protected by the on board "surge protector" . If the power in a campground comes off the pole, over/under voltage, reversed polarity and/or open ground is easy enough to detect using the set up Mountainlover and John describe above but the Hertz should be fine. My plan is to test to allow moving to another site - if that is an option. There is always the chance that otherwise clean power can go awry after hooking up but that is where a good surge protector proves it's value. If using one at the pedestal (as opposed to an on-board, in-line model) it is worth noting that it offers auto shut off for all the maladies described above. They are pricey but can help avoid a story with a sad faced ending.

After doing some additional research, we are taking your advice to heart on the extended warrantee stuff. Seems like it's better in this circumstance just to "self insure" especially considering the reasons you've listed above. Doing homework now on a policy to cover the Oliver. Have a couple of quotes but it's hard to find good suggestions as travel trailer insurance seems to be a different animal than typical RV insurance. Anyhoo, looking at Progressive, Good Sam and Farmers so just in going through the process, we should come up to speed. Of course, any/all suggestions are welcome. One thing we've come across are multiple suggestions that we get an additional roadside assistance policy even if one is offered by the insurance policy on the trailer. The thought is that the specialized roadside companies do that best and offer more complete coverage including potentially covering associated costs like having to stay in a hotel, rent a car, towing longer distances, etc... Seems like AAA may be the way to go there. Thanks for the input. Hope your maiden voyage next month goes well.

Bill & JD, I concur! When working around electricity and expensive equipment, "anal tendencies" save the day. As Bill said, the on board surge protector should protect everything on board even when I'm not standing at the pedestal with a meter or tester (like to Sperry unit RB linked to above). The meter and/or tester will catch switched polarity or open ground but over/under voltage can happen anytime and not be caused by anything happening within the pedestal itself. If problems are caught early, it offers an opportunity to switch sites to one that has a clean feed.

Hey Bill, Perhaps a silly question but considering that the on-board surge protector supposedly has built in protection including over/under voltage, reversed polarity, ground fault, etc... why is it worth it to go through the steps you described with your portable unit? I would have assumed that the trailer itself is well protected with the on-board unit acting as a stop gap for any questionable electrical situations. I habitually use a multi meter to quick check polarity and ground when working with an unknown source but would have that step would be redundant in this situation. Do I have it wrong?

I checked out your link to level mounting instructions. As usual, they were very clear and nicely laid out. I'll bring the bits and pieces to do so on my maiden voyage at the beginning of December and do the mounting down south before coming back to the wicked frozen north. Thanks on that John.

Really great info all around. Now I know the footprint of the lever(s) base. Super useful. If 6x6 has been working in a boondocky situation, that is awesome as it saves me the extra weight of super sizing to 8x8. As mentioned, the buckets seem like a great item but are not space efficient and wouldn't save much weight. I can use a few 2x boards to 1) build up the jack blocks as needed and/or 2) build up the leveling wedges as needed. A secondary benefit is avoiding having to buy more plastic stuff (leveling buckets, blocks). We feel good about avoiding where possible. Thanks for the input.