Mike and Carol

Ours did that occasionally. To remedy, while hooked up to city water and getting overflow from the fresh tank, I turned on the water pump for 15 or 20 seconds. Turn it off and the problem is resolved. There’s probably an explanation that involves physics and fluid mechanics but as long as it works I’m happy.

We always run on propane while towing so if you don’t get it figured out you can use propane and don’t need to worry until you get it fixed. We have the older Dometic so hopefully someone with the new Norcold will chime in. The plug issue seems to be common, I hope the factory folks figure out a solution. Mike

Lee and Linda, welcome! You’ve got a classic trailer with number 36. Hope to meet you out on the road! Mike

Sometimes the blade on the black tank won’t close all the way. We’ve had it happen. There might be a little “something” that gets lodged where the blade seats at the bottom of the valve. You can access it from under the dinette seat by the bath. What we have been doing the last few years is to manually push the blade down all the way after dumping. We’ve had no issues since we started doing this. Also, while you’re looking at it, you can also check for adjustment of the cable. Loosen the screw on top which frees the cable, then adjust it so that when the dump handle is closed you have max pressure on the blade. Also, you can pull the entire cable out clean and lubricate it and then snake it back in to the blade valve. I did that a year or so ago and it did make the operation a bit smoother. If you need to, you can also replace or just remove and clean the valve. It’s not too difficult. Just make sure your black tank is nice and clean. I removed mine when we were having some full hose issues and cleaned and lubricated it. Have fun! Mike

If you’re around Flagstaff, Walnut Canyon National Monument is worth at stop as is Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. Enjoy the dry weather! Mike

I got the aluminum box off of Amazon. About $100. It carries my heavy rubber chocks, wood blocks, 20 legos, gloves, flashlight and a couple of other items. I never lock it. It’s held up well the past few years. For what I use it for it’s perfect. Mike

On the positive side, you are getting a crash course on some parts of your Oliver. Steve suggested some work in the attic, I’ve had that insulation out several times for various projects. Learning where all the possible leak location are, where the weep holes are, etc will come in handy in the future. Every time I have a maintenance issue I look at it as another short course in my Oliver expertise. Plus, all of your Casita experience will be invaluable. Pretty soon you won’t be the question asker here, you’ll be one of the professors. Mike

Both of our 1500 5.7’s towed fine in the mountains. One had a 10,400 lbs capacity and the latest was a Rebel with a 9,000 lbs capacity. You have to get used to some higher RPM’s when going uphill, but we never had any issues staying at speed or any overheating issues. That includes up and down highway 550 (million dollar highway) in Colorado. I knew I was always at or near the limit of my cargo capacity, but the 1500 towed fine, was comfortable and reliable. Mike

If it is a difficult situation where a large trailer is being backed in to a site with lots of trees or other obstacles, maybe. I’ve had a couple of offers but I always politely refuse. Normally, we don’t use any hand signals at all. Carol quietly talks to me on our phones or our little Motorola’s if there’s no cell service. She stands at the end of the site, no walking backwards and if I can’t see her I don’t move. We always do a site check before backing in to determine location of utilities, if there are any, or just where we want the door to open. Routines are a good thing. Mike

I second this. When we camp we eat like we do at home. Lots of beef, some salmon, brats (and sauerkraut), some chicken for fajitas. A few peppers, broccoli and brussel sprouts. All do well on the grill. Bacon and eggs for breakfast as well as full fat plain Greek yogurt topped with blueberries, cinnamon and sliced almonds. Snacks include humus and snap peas, various cheeses and sliced salami. Some Pinot Noir and/or Sauvignon Blanc (bottle or box) in the fridge and some Cabernet Sauvignon in the pantry. Desert is usually a square of 85% dark chocolate topped with a little peanut butter. Clean, not complicated. We can find what we like almost anywhere. And cashews…. almonds, pecans, Brazil nuts, walnuts! Mike

Glad that was it. It took me a while to figure it out. When checking the Blue Sky display make sure you discharge any static electricity! Mike

Another thing…. several times, while I was backing into my site with Carol back there guiding me, I’ve had someone come up to the truck and start asking me about my Oliver. Normally, I’m happy to talk about my trailer - but not when I’m trying to back in or when I’m dumping, hitching, unhitching, etc. I try to be polite, but…. 😤.

I have an aluminum box on the tongue to hold chocks, blocks, gloves, etc. It has been very handy since it’s the first thing I open when we arrive on site. The generator (when we take it) is in the bed of the truck. We only use the generator to charge batteries when the solar can’t keep up so being in the bed is no big deal. It’s also only 37 lbs so it is easy to lift.

If you are in the process of backing in and someone drives up, they wait. If you haven’t started then you should let them go by. You’ll get better at the backing part and most folks remember how it was for them and show patience. There are a few out there that don’t, they are the exception rather than the rule. Mike

My display has gone out a few times, always when I touch it with some static discharge. To fix, unscrew the four screws, pull it out and disconnect the telephone type wire from the back (power). After a few seconds it will reset itself, reconnect the wire and put it back. That should get the display back. Mike

On our way from Bardstown, KY to Fall Creek Falls State Park, TN we stopped by Hohenwald to see the new sales office and service area. We had a good visit with all the Oliver folks and were impressed with the new building. We stayed the night at Amber Falls Winery, a Harvest Host location. We’ve been to Amber Falls many times as a result of our visits to Hohenwald. We had a great tasting and a quiet evening in the vineyards. Camping in the vineyards. View from my chair. Filet Mignon with some Amber Falls Cab.

We usually stop at Clines Corners on our way to/from Durango. Maybe you can find a new pocket knife? 😎

I think your observations are right on. In the case of my son (38) and family I’m sure this venture into the RV world isn’t temporary. They relocated from Houston to Durango because they are big outdoor activity enthusiasts. Hiking, biking and skiing with an occasional Ironman triathlon thrown in. Now, instead of making day trips to local areas to hike and bike they can pack up and go for the entire weekend. Both kids also hike, bike and ski, so I believe they will be RVer’s for a long time! Also, the first few weekends they went out he had paper plates on his new Powerwagon and on his 27’ NoBo! Mike

Will be interested in how it goes without resvns. For July I’ve reserved two Colorado state parks and one USFS campground. Otherwise, we’ll be winging it. Mike

Congrats on your Oliver purchase! I haven’t done anything to my back Oliver light in over 5 years and it has never leaked. If it ain’t broke…. 😁 Hopefully everything is in good condition! Mike

Welcome! You’ve come to the right place to learn and have questions answered. Glad to have you here - Mike

Ignore the bubbles in your graphics. They will go away. I installed my front graphic as carefully as I could and still had a bunch of bubbles. They are all gone now. It’s the same if you get your car windows tinted, there will be some bubbles, but they go away. Mike

Hey Clare - welcome! We’ll be in Colorado the entire month of July. We go often since our son and family live in Durango. Mike

Hey Dan, welcome to the group! We really enjoyed our trip through Montana and plan to return. We’ll definitely check out your RV park! Mike

There is a spring arm that attaches to one of the arms, see the photo above that Mike highlighted. If you did not remove the arms from the gear assembly it should close correctly. If you removed the arms (that are connect by the hex shaft) from the gear assembly and didn’t reinstall it exactly in the same position that was in when removed that could be the problem.