Try2Relax

Do you ever use the outside shower? I seem to recall that if the handles are slightly open and the shower head is not depressed, then there is bleed between the two systems. I'm not positive though, its just in the back of my mind. Otherwise, isolate out the pump, if necessary disconnect and cap output line, or disconnect input side (with screen filter) and connect a long hose to it and put in sink, this is to test the back flow valve (built into the pump), they sometimes just go bad or don't close fully, it's an easy change, is probably under warranty and it doesn't matter how much you paid, they use them in a Marathon Prevost. How fast is the flow going to fresh tank, does it seem like a bypass leak (slow) or like your trying to fill it?

I had inherited the Accurites when we bought the trailer, they worked well, he had the outside one mounted as David shows. Recently I picked up some of the Sensor Push Bluetooth ones, they are great and move around frequently as I decide I'm interested in comparison between locations. And it's nice to be able to see a history of what's happened, rather than just when I looked at the display, especially one in fridge and one in freezer to see how much cycling it does. Thankfully, the humidity had finally broken here, it felt like south Florida for awhile.

This one's for John

Mine was a broken fan on the roof. Everything seemed fine just no cooling.

WiFi boost would be if you intend to spend most of your time in campgrounds. Cell phone is the way you want to go. Depending upon how you plan to use trailer, if you boondock on the close fringes of society then it will work great as installed. If you are too far out of a boondocker then it will be slightly limited by the mounted elevation in the trailer, at which point a self install on a telescoping pole (which stores away when not used) and is positionable would work better and save some cash from the initial purchase. I have the WiFi and have never used it, use the cell booster all the time.

Tuson Sway Control

The nice part to a composting toilet is that you can get it now, set it up at home, anywhere, test it out see if you like it or if you don't. If you find you do like it, then when your trailer is built, save the money and have them install nothing and you can just install the one you already have. If you find out you don't prefer it, just have them install a regular setup and sell the compositing one.

That's what I love about this forum, people are so willing to be informative Steve went out and bought one to do the research and report back how they do.. dedication..

Water bouncing out of that would take more skill than one of those rigged games at a traveling carnival.

The only time I've removed the windows and gaskets was after I returned from the red desert sands of Utah, that stuff got everywhere.. otherwise I find that just hosing the frame work, from the outside, works really well. I hose around the window and then directly into the drain holes and back and forth until it runs clean. I haven't seen any water get inside the trailer. I've inspected after the process to see how it did and it worked reasonably well enough, obviously not like removing the windows and wiping it all out but I now think that is a once a couple years maintenance issue.

Thanks to both of you. I came across the following article in my search for information.

Is this something I should be concerned about?

That is actually good to note, ironically, for no particular reason, I've always carried it in the right rear corner, directly over the exhaust pipe, I think I'll be switching it to the left side.

It was a Jeep Grand Cherokee. I didn't read anything about them not having insurance... RogerS do you happen to sell insurance?

An old Oliver owner towed with a Nissan 3500 van, which was also DIY for camping, he has since sold the Oliver at the behest of his wife if I remember correctly. The Porsche would be more than capable of handling an Oliver. I've seen a photo of an Airstream Interstate towing an Oliver

I will add to anyone considering replacing their current fridge, I don't know about the truck fridge, but the Novakool can be ordered with a left hinge for better in trailer access. I didn't realize it when I ordered mine, so like Sherry, I have a right hinge. I would think the other brands do too, just something to keep in mind.

Sucking air before the pump will cause the same sort of problem. If any of the line connections aren't air tight it can be hard to locate, I found one of the plastic connectors couldn't seal completely.

Novakool observations - model R5810 This was the closest fitting fridge to the opening from the Dometic, there is approximately ½" on either side (½" foam insulation extremely tight fit) and about 2½" both top and bottom, but not having all the propane components in the rear the fridge is actually deeper and this has more interior space. With the extra space above and below I utilized that two area for the ventilation. With the compressor only needing to be cooled and the exchanger in the back being able to exchange the air, unlike a 3-way which actually generates extreme amounts of heat, I decided to keep everything internal and closed off the outside vents. The compressor on it is in the upper left rear corner, which is good as it then keeps any compressor heat generation above the exchanger in the rear, for maximum fridge cooling performance. I blocked off the top area, to control airflow, and installed two 40mm (I think) super quiet computer fans to pull the warm air out, which connects to the OEM fan connector to run whenever the compressor runs. I used reflectix insulation, with the curve of the hull some places are 5 layers deep and the thinnest is 2. In the outside, I have cut to fit vinyl sheet, from some cheap the surround wall, between the tight fit and the stock vent covers it is held in pretty tight. I haven't determined a permanent resolution yet, but this one will last a while. As to performance, the fridge runs on an approximately 50% cycle and the overnight draw is usually 23AH, which is easily recovered by 10-11am most days. The fridge is extremely stable temperature wise, the difference between fridge and freezer is generally 16 degrees so at a 4.5 out of 7 on the dial, it maintains 35 in the bottom shelf of the fridge and 18-19 in the freezer. I do not have any sort of air circulation inside the fridge, everything is stock. I used rectangular aluminum under the fridge, secured to the floor, to lift the fridge 2", for the bottom air intake. I did not want to screw through the face so I drilled holes into the rectangular aluminum and used turn buckles to secure to the screws where the face frame mounts to fridge body. The bottom of the fridge is pulled tight against the cabinet frame and the airflow block on the top is a tee that spans the width of the fridge and is cut to fit height wise which keeps it tight and prevents the ability of tipping (just in case). The vent covers are held in place magnetically, this was an afterthought or I would not have had the screw holes cut. While in dead silence sitting at the table you can make out the sound of a fan hum the only real sound it makes is when the compressor kicks in there is a low vibration hum that fades out once it is going, I figure something I did is slightly loose and could use some padding but unless you're Archie Bunker it wouldn't be an issue.

When ours stopped blowing cold air, I found that the fan on the roof was broken (Coleman Mach 8) replaced the fan and all was good. Otherwise you may just need to clean everything up top so it can breathe properly.

Congrats on the moving ahead with the plan. I started basically the same way, she wasn't interested but gave the go ahead, we don't have separate money so that was required, she has since determined that she enjoys it quite a bit. Last year we came to for in the road, so I left the option of direction to her, she was good enough to have let me choose the last time and she rather emphatically stated that "we will not be getting rid of the Oliver" We both still work, my job is highly flexible hers is not, so I drive to our selected destination (slowly so to enjoy it) and then she flies in and it works great for us, it would be pointless to burn her valuable vacation time driving back and forth. I will only advise to ensure that the smaller Ollie will service all your needs should she find she likes it (unless the certainty is great she won't) the price difference isn't that great at the start but having to do it over might be and resale of the larger one is pretty good. Good luck with your planning and execution.

Thanks. I wasn't sure how long we were talking about. The old truck, 200 would have had me considering potential back up thoughts. The new truck gets 600 miles towing, so no worries.

As long as we're talking about seals and dust intrusion, it is good to check the seal on the wetbath vent, I found mine deteriorated after about 1.5 years (uncovered storage) and the same seal I purchased (from HD) would work to seal the basement door, with the extra.

What was the longest mileage between fuel stops then? And how bad was the terrain that might affect MPG? Whereas you have done that trip so many times, as one who has never done it, your opinion of a good route will go a long way

It's always great to watch the side mirrors as people come upon you, slow down, fall back a little, sit there all the while pointing and talking, then continue to pass and give a thumbs up as they go by. My favorite so far, was being down south, bad accident stuck stopped on the highway for about 45 minutes or so and out stretching the legs and other drivers requesting tours, so on the fast lane of whatever highway that was Oliver tours available.