VBistro

Not a good one, so far. 🙂 We picked up VellOllie last November and she's been under wraps until yesterday. When we took the cover off, we noted that about two feet of the seal on the rear street-side was hanging loose, as well as about a foot on the front curb-side. We're going to attempt to re-attach today with some alien tape (unless someone has a better suggestion). We get lots of afternoon showers where we camp, so having a dry patio/entry is one of our favorite things -- and one of those things we missed dearly with our awning-less sprinter van.

We installed that (LevelMate Pro) and use Anderson levelers (aka Marriage Savers). I can attest that the combination is absolutely perfect when travelling solo. mb

I'll double check our thermostat, but I don't think it is bluetooth compatible. I did see a nice replacement online last night that also operates over wifi (good for remote monitoring for the doggos, when we have signal...). But it was pretty pricey! https://smile.amazon.com/Hutch-Mountain-Micro-Air-Thermostat-ASY-350-X01/dp/B08PHMW4J2/ref=rvi_2/141-6090754-5049931?pd_rd_w=8LSog&pf_rd_p=f5690a4d-f2bb-45d9-9d1b-736fee412437&pf_rd_r=WAWV92HDHKB2AT32EB01&pd_rd_r=53dcd96e-0f0a-4485-b3f5-df9902576a26&pd_rd_wg=lgLX0&pd_rd_i=B09NS43KTT&th=1

We also like to sleep cold - our bedroom windows are cracked/open year round here in CO. Well, at least until we hit negative temps…. But I have to ask, how do you just reach over and turn the heater on? The thermostat in our ‘22 is above the aft dinette seat. Time to figure out a thermostat replacement - something with a remote! 🙂

I have a camp chef 2 burner stove that comes with all sorts of accessories, including griddle and grill. Heck, even a pizza oven.

We have 2 set-ups -- aeropress and the little dripper. For extended trips in a single location, we'll find space for the breville barista espresso machine! mb

I prefer "S-1" where S= the number at which your spouse leaves you. 🙂

We picked up in winter (Monday after Thanksgiving) and opted to do so dewinterized -- it was important for us to check all systems since we live so far from TN. I was glad we did -- the only real issue we found on our first night was that the fresh water tank indicator wasn't working. Oliver ended up replacing it on the spot. At a minimum I would recommend taking possession dewinterized to check all systems. Then if you think extreme cold will be an issue, you can always winterize again before you leave Hohenwald. Bonus -- since you're new, if something is unclear in the winterizing process, you'll be at the right place to get clarification!

The Renogy suitcase I have has a controller and comes with cabling terminating in an MC4 connector. It has a set of alligator clips that couple via MC4, so they aren't hardwired. This allows me to use an MC4-to-SAE adapter to connect to the Zamp Solarport, but I would like to minimize the number of adapters. Not a deal-breaker as-is, but not as clean as I would like either.

I haven't yet, but would be interested in replies. We have a 200W Renogy suitcase + controller with converting/polarity reversing adapters (I haven't determined yet whether I need the polarity adapter). It would be nice not to have to use those and just plug straight into an MC4 outlet.

I have Tire Minder. Set it up before our drive back from TN and it worked fine the whole way without the repeater. I keep the base unit plugged in in the back seat. I do think the repeaterh might be necessary for big rigs and/or 5th wheels and dualies, but maybe not for the smaller Ollies.

I didn't even know such a thing was available....but I wouldn't have purchased if I had. The only extended warranties I get are AppleCare (I take advantage of that one a LOT) and anything that is added automatically via purchase with a specific credit card. Otherwise, we "self insure". mb

Wonderful! Welcome home, Ollie.

Excellent! Stay tuned. I'll post more information once I have the site reserved. I'll take a lot more pictures when I'm there this coming June, too. mb

Thanks for posting the measurements. I'm not terribly crafty, but my sister is, so.....you never know when she can be convinced to sew me something! 🙂

Very Clever! I'm going to look into this a bit closer. Thanks!

What is the temperature where you are camped? The bathroom is usually the coldest place in the camper, and if you didn't have the heater on overnight, or didn't keep the bathroom door open, is it possible that the lines in there froze? Longshot, but you never know.

Welcome! February 15th will be here before you know it!

I'm interested! Visual learner, here, so pictures are worth 1000 words. 🙂

Thanks for this. What is still unclear to me from the manual is if you should always use the supplied rack (called a grill rack) when in convection mode, or is putting your pan/sheet directly on the turntable the correct mode? Convection relies on air flow, and I would suspect that airflow under the pan would be important. If you have to use the rack, though, then that would even more severely limit the size of your cookware. Maybe I'm overthinking this... I fully intend to use convection feature -- I have a bunch of favorite "sheet pan" recipes from NYT Cooking that will be super easy to make on the road. We have the platinum package, so as long as the sun is shining I'm planning on putting the convection oven on regular rotation. I prefer cooking outside most days, but it's nice to have options. mb

Are you looking for camera monitoring? Temperature? I don’t use anything for the former, but I imagine a simple google/nest camera would work fine, and could also alert you to a lot of barking. Internet required, of course, either your own via cellular/satellite or campground Wi-Fi. For temperature we have used both temp stick and most recently the SensorPush . Both require an active network to monitor remotely. Neither is inexpensive, but if you want to use multiple sensors, the SensorPush is probably the more affordable. You do need to purchase a Wi-Fi gateway for remote sensing, but that gateway can connect to an unlimited number of sensors. TempSticks sensors are 3x the cost of a SP sensor, but are each an independent device and do not require using a separate gateway. SensorPush HT1 Wireless... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AEQ9X9I?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share Temp Stick Wireless Remote... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M1OPOZB?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I posted a little while back that @MarkVgot a nasty little sliver from some rough fiberglass in the compartment under the curbside bed while we were winterizing. I noticed that Oliver had trimmed out the exposed fiberglass in the pantry, so I emailed them and they kindly provided me a link to this Outwater Plastics product: I ordered 2 packages, which wasn't quite enough to cover the 4 underbed openings, but we did manage to protect all of the edges that were the most likely to give us slivers. Easy to cut (PVC cutter worked like a charm). The only thing we noticed was that some of the exposed edges are a little thinner than others, so the fit wasn't as tight as we would have liked in a few places -- we simply used a few pieces of duct tape under the opening, so it isn't visible. I'm pretty happy with the result!

We used to carry our bikes in our old hard side travel trailer, but it really only works when you are camping somewhere you feel comfortable leaving the bikes out while you are sleeping. Fine while boondocking in the middle of nowhere, not so fine when at a commercial campground or even some state parks. Especially with bike theft rampant in CO like it is now. Plus, the interior of my old TT wasn't nearly as nice as the Ollie. If a bike fell over or slipped, it didn't really bother me. We have a LOT more $$$ invested in the Ollie, and I'm not going to take the risk that a bike rips a cushion or dents a fiberglass wall. I don't know how I would properly tie 4 bikes down to keep them from flying all over down a washboarded forest service road.

Our first choice was going to be a hard shell for an F-150. Priority for us was the ability to carry 4 bikes in a semi-secure enclosed environment. You know what they say about the best laid plans, right? We placed an order for our F-150 in April 2021, and by early October, Ford still had not given us a production date, so we pivoted quickly to an Expedition Max. It didn't have all the bells and whistles of the hybrid F-150, but still satisfied the requirement of an enclosed home for our bikes. mb

Anderson levelers for side-to-side. We've used them for years. We call them "marriage savers". LOL And on the Ollie we added a LevelMate Pro. I hemmed and hawed about it, but the first time I set up on my own? Zero regrets! mb