John and Debbie

"After 3 months, Lithionics recommends discharging, then recharging the batteries, as described in the Long Term Storage paragraph of that Storage Procedure document. Then the batteries are o.k. for another 3 months." We both have the same battery package. As I understand it, as long as I am connected to my 30 amp outlet, there's no need to do anything. I have the battery warmer switch turned on and solar switch on also. The first paragraph of the Lithionics directions says that "doing this will eliminate the procedures below". Those procedures are the ones that says what to do for short term and long term storage and discharging and bringing it back up to 100% SOC. John

But look how close they all are to each other! John

"I'm going to file an amended tax return (using that form) and the very worse that could happen is it could be refused... but based on common sense (it's still makes a good argument) and with enough persons that have already successfully done so, I don't think our tax credit will be denied." Thanks Dave or Kimberly for your post. It makes sense to me that the whole amount could be used for the basis of claiming the 30%. The point about whether or not it would be excluded because the batteries CAN be charged via shore power and the converter shouldn't matter. What about people that only boondock and never plug in? I plan to claim the whole amount also. If the IRS says no, then I could appeal. Nothing to lose if I try, but if I don't, then I could be giving them $3000+ that they shouldn't have. John

It goes surprisingly fast. Nice to get yours in the Spring so you can start using it asap. We got ours in November. John

"It seems to me that our Oliver trailers can't meet the 100% requirement because the inverters can, and do, charge the batteries from either shore power or solar. So, it appears to me that regardless of the installation date, batteries installed as part of a solar upgrade in an Oliver do not qualify for the federal tax credit." It would appear to me that only the panels and the wiring possibly would be the only items that would qualify. I will let our tax accountant figure it out. John

Bryan, we have an LE2 and find it's easier to back up than our smaller tent trailer that we had before. The shorter the distance from the hitch ball to the tires of the trailer, the harder it is to back up. At least that's what I experienced. I think you made a good choice. Ours tows very easily behind our Ford Expedition. Congrats on your upcoming trailer. John

In looking at the directions for federal form 5695, it appears that the only tax credit is for a home or primary residence. That could be something other than a house, but it's where we primarily live in. I was under the impression that we could write off as a credit on taxes owed, the cost of the solar panels, and possibly the lithium batteries and inverter. Has anyone looked into whether there is a way to take a credit on taxes owed because we have purchased solar panels on our travel trailer. If you live in your Ollie and that's your primary residence, then it may qualify, but as a vacation trailer, does it qualify? TIA John

"I am learning more and more and feeling more comfortable each time out about how things work. This is our first travel trailer so we were alittle overwhelmed at first." There is a steep learning curve at first, but it's rewarding to understand all the systems. It does get easier. It's easy to feel overwhelmed at first. John

Your selections are very similar to ours, just a few differences. We didn't go with the upholstery upgrade either as it seemed slippery to us. We had cloth in our last trailer and prefer cloth interiors in our cars too. You're quite close now to delivery day. I love the back up camera and being able to see what's behind the trailer while driving, but also find that my stock mirrors on our Ford Expedition work quite well too. Enjoy your new trailer when it arrives. They're great trailers. John

Welcome Rich and Christine. I second Patriot's suggestion to stay in the area for a few days. It's so tempting to get it and high tail it back home. We picked up #1290 in November and tried everything out. We had one issue that I didn't address at the time. I had smelled an odd odor, but I mistakenly thought it was just new furnace smells. It was a small propane leak. It's being fixed now, but it was a two month wait to get it into a local shop here. Lesson here is to be very thorough on pick up, test everything, and if anything is not quite right, address it before leaving Hohenwald. Oliver is paying the local shop to fix it, so it's great knowing that once you leave, they still take care of you. It's a good company. Great choice for your first trailer. There's a lot of junk out there! Happy travels. John

What does Truma say? I would check if they have some sort of filter product for the Varioheat. Maybe you already did that and hence your filter. What if you put some filter material on the air grill on the trailer on the inside since that's where most of the dust will come from. Just thinking of possibilities since we have the same furnace. John

I would think that placing the 4x4 piece at a 90° right in front of the tire with the flipped axle would do it. That 4x4 would only need to be just a little longer than the tire width when the tire is being flattened by going over that 4x4. If I understand your question, I don't think you would need a 3 or 4 foot 4x4 to have it act as a curb length. John

When I was drywalling our daughter's garage, I bought a 10-12 foot 2x12 and placed it about mid way up between two step ladders. Her garage ceilings are 10 feet high. Granted that's a stable floor surface, but I wonder if something like that might work. You just have to be very cognizant of your feet at all times. Just thinking of possibilities. John

Our three kids always enjoyed camping when they were growing up. We tented initially then moved up to first a used pop up trailer, then a new pop up. I am looking forward to taking our grandson camping with our LE2. He just turned one so it won't be immediately. John

Usually you can choose to save user name (apparently a number in this case) and password, or just user name and supply the password. On things other than my Cayman Island or Swiss bank accounts, I opt for the KISS method and just save as much as they allow for ease of logging in. I would be surprised if there's not an easy way to just save log in information. John

True that too, Bill. But then think of all the things we sign up for everywhere that have pages of legal statements that very few of us read. When you sign up for phone service even! You probably missed the part where if someone from Mars lands and takes your phone that you won't hold the phone company liable for loss of use. John

It looks to me that it's thorough and protects both OTT and the owner showing their trailer. I am not an attorney, but it seems to cross every "t" and dot every "i". John

Matt, I will study this program some more. Initially, I was skeptical of it, but you have gone the extra mile to explain it. I may change my mind and willingly participate. Rivernerd brought up a good point about liability which if reviewed and revised to everyone's satisfaction, we may get more owners willing to participate. Thanks for explaining the program to us. Have a great week. John

My first impression was $20/year for a credit card that I don't want! No thanks. Lots of legal mumbo jumbo that I didn't want to wade through. Not too excited about this program. Maybe if a lot of us opt out of the program, they will come up with one that's a bit more user friendly. Sort of like going on strike. The company needs willing owners to show their trailers. I have no issue with showing our trailer, but at first glance of this program, I don't feel inclined to do it in this fashion. If someone stops by at a campground I can answer questions or show them. I made sure that the two people that showed their trailers to us got credit when we picked up our trailer. Hopefully they were compensated. My basic feeling...not thrilled about it. John

Great idea! John

"AS far as the original cord being used - I'd make sure that it had UV protection applied to it at least every couple of months." Bill, how is that done? We live on a north facing hill and have sun on the trailer area only about half the day due to some tall fir trees, so it's not as solar intensive, but I would be interested in what UV protection you use. Thanks. John

Thanks. I think that I will get that. I want to reserve my supplied power cord for camping use and using that 15 foot cord will save wear on my 25 foot cord due to weather. It also might come in handy for those rare times when we might need more than 25 feet to reach the pedestal. I assume that I could use both cords together in those cases. John

Good to know that occasionally you need an extension. John

Hi all, strange question, but our trailer is parked by the garage and I am using the OTT power cord plugged into our new 30 amp outlet that we had installed for the storage time. Should I have a different cord for that purpose? It's maybe 15 feet to the outlet. I just wonder if having my trailer power cord exposed to the elements for 5-6 months is wise. Maybe I should get a cord that's shorter for storage season and leaving the "good" power cord for actual use camping. TIA. John

That's a great spot for remotes and the cartridge. John