John and Debbie

I bought the Bulldog HD1213-0656 for my upcoming Alcan 5 leaf conversion. John

Our Truma Aquago water heater has worked great since new. I wouldn't go back to a tank water heater. We had that in the previous trailer. I also wouldn't try to repair it as I don't have the tools or knowledge. John

What is your "preflight" inspection? Is that in the manual or a list you made up? Thanks. John

What's the best tool/app to use to avoid roads that might have low overpasses or road conditions that we need to avoid? I don't have a Garmin. John

Welcome to the Oliver family. We took a bit of time deciding also as they are not cheap, but like you, we decided that you do get what you pay for. Have a great time with your Ollie. John

Mike, there is a cycling map put out by the Adventure Cycling Association that is called Route 66 cycling map. I cycled part of the old highway 66 when I cycled from Amarillo, Texas to New Brunswick, Canada in 2019. There aren't a lot of original segments of route 66. We were on some parts when they were the frontage roads along I-40. No shoulder, two lanes, a little shallow curb to direct rain water. It's amazing that it was the main highway from Chicago to Santa Monica. There are some great sights along the way. Shamrock, Texas stood out to me. John

Thanks for the info. You and I have very similar hull numbers, which I knew. John

Hi all, I have received two different recommendations for care of lithium batteries. Initially I was told it was ok to just have the trailer plugged into shore power continuously. Later, I was told to cycle the batteries monthly to bring them down to 12.1 volts. Last month I unplugged both at the trailer and the house and watched the voltage drop. It never got down to 12.1v, but at 12.6v and 10% soc the batteries turned off. I then plugged the trailer back in. Batteries are at 100% soc. I haven't unplugged since last month. What is everyone else doing with battery maintenance with their lithium batteries? Thanks. John

What's the payload ?

Mike, I use a five pound canister for our 30+ year old Coleman two burner stove. I have a short hose about three feet long that works. I have the quick connects front and back on our trailer, but this old stove works fine. I couldn't find a hose that would work with both the quick connects and the old stove, hence our solution to use the small tank. John

"I have had zero problems with exchanging the bad shocks at O'Reilly's (lifetime guarantee...thanks Steve L) but am thinking I'll want to try another brand to see if it lasts a little longer. Still happy campers here... :)" I got a message from Lew at Alcan Springs and he was hoping that RadFlo could be the best choice for a shock, but theirs were about $200 each. I will be bringing four shocks with me of the Bulldog equivalent to the Monroe 555001 if those are available. We will have the five leaf spring replacement done in April. John

We had CGI do ours after owning it for a year. I assumed that since it was only a year old that they would have an easier job. No. The price was the same. Colin said that even on a new trailer, they have to buff out the swirls and imperfections on the gel coat. They did a great job and we have no regrets. We did buy the cleaner and the spray that they sell to extend the ceramic coat. I cleaned it and used the spray a couple months ago. It's been a year since they did it and it looks fantastic. I am nearly 73 so waxing every 6 months as recommended wasn't going to happen. When it needs it again, we will have them do it. John

Contact Lew at Alcan Springs in Grand Junction, Colorado. I have been in contact with him and he has a shock in mind for when we visit him in April for a five spring leaf spring replacement of our current four leaf. John

I do have two red auto ramps. I wonder how hard it would be to hook up using those to get the hitch up that high. It would be easy to use those to unhook though. Maybe reworking the gravel pad to make it more level, just thinking outloud. John

Hi all, I use yellow Camco jack stands and a couple 2×4 pieces on top for a slip surface on all three jack stands. I park the trailer by the garage and there's a slight downwards slope to where that gravel drive meets up with the road. The rear jacks only need to extend a couple inches, but the front jack extends 12 inches out to the jack stand/2×4 pieces to get to level. Is that too far? Obviously, the less travel the better, but when I back the trailer into the spot, one jack stand and one layer of two 2×4 on top are all that will fit while hooked up. John

Congrats from #1290. We have enjoyed ours. It tows so easily. Nice to know there's an Oliver dealer in Denver as our daughter lives there and we could get some service done there while visiting. John

Hi all, I use yellow Camco jack stands and a couple 2×4 pieces on top for a slip surface on all three jack stands. I park the trailer by the garage and there's a slight downwards slope to where that gravel drive meets up with the road. The rear jacks only need to extend a couple inches, but the front jack extends 12 inches out to the jack stand/2×4 pieces to get to level. Is that too far? Obviously, the less travel the better, but when I back the trailer into the spot, one jack stand and one layer of two 2×4 on top are all that will fit while hooked up. John

Did you replace the leaf springs or have them with you in case you do need them? Is there a particular weight rating for the 5-leaf springs from Alcan? I plan to get the 5-leaf springs next April and have the shop in Grand Junction install them. What did you do with the shocks? Lew said he could put better shocks on our Elite II than the Monroe. Our trailer and yours are only one hull number apart. Thanks.

John How do you flush the gray tank? TIA. John

That was my thought too. I would think that their 500 pound limit takes into account the forces on the hitch of a static weight of 500 pounds hitting some movement. With highway movement that weight would be higher on the hitch. From physics the formula F=ma would explain it I would think. F is force, m=mass, a=acceleration. I would think that at driveway speeds it would be ok too. Thanks for your comment. John

Hi all, I have a tight parking spot next to the garage and thought a front mounted hitch would make it easier to maneuver the trailer into the spot. E-trailer has one that would fit my 2017 Ford Expedition EL, but the specs say it's only good for 500 pounds of vertical force. If anyone uses a front hitch, what did you do to make it work? Thanks

I have one too. Don't unscrew and loosen the gripper too much as you can lose the little parts that grip on to the zerk. There are about three or four little pieces that will be lost. How do I know this? I did just that and had to buy another 90 degree attachment. Great tool though! John

Hi John, what shocks are you going to use? Lew at Alcan suggested RadFlo. We plan to do the job in Grand Junction and do springs and shocks at the same time. $52 sounds like a good deal to avoid doinf the job. John

John, what do they charge you to do that? I need to crawl under the trailer this week to grease ours. John

Welcome to the family from #1290. You will enjoy yours. John