Mike and Carol

We’ve used a key for years and it’s not really a big deal. Sometimes simplicity is good, especially in something that goes bouncing down the highway. Sometimes I marvel at all the new technology in newer Olivers, but then I also appreciate the simplicity of our older trailer. Mike

I’m not an expert, but I would certainly use it. A light coat of any quality grease seems to last a long time. Mike

Great news, John! The new Truma heater must be a great improvement over our old Suburban furnace. The learning process will be fun! Mike

If gray water is leaking into the hose when the valve is closed, raise the street side bed access hatch nearest the pantry and you will see the gray water valve. Push the silver cylinder at the end of the cable as far down as you can. That should solve the leaking. It is probably time to remove the cable from the outside and clean and lubricate it. It’s not difficult, loosen the screw on top of the gray water gate (under the street side bed), then pull it out from the outside. Clean and lubricate the cable then stick it back in and push it until it reaches the gate inside. While the outside handle is in the closed position, re-tighten the screw on the cable inside. That’s really all there is to it. I’ve done mine (and the black tank gate cable) twice in 7 years and it works fine. Mike

Read the posts that you want to read then hit “Mark site read” in the upper right hand corner then refresh by hitting “unread content” and the posts you don’t want to read will be gone and you will have a blank unread screen. Mike

We’ve had black since new, almost 7 years. No issues. I remove and clean a couple of times a year. Mike

There is no plumbing around the windows. So leaking water is either rain or condensation. Your windows should already be caulked. That’s a lot of water if it is soaking your bed. Mike

When you say between the “two rear bunk beds” assume you are talking about the twin beds since bunk beds aren’t available in an Oliver. I also assume based on your description that the water collecting is on the floor inside the trailer and not between the hulls. What year is your trailer? Is it under warranty still? Have you opened a service ticket? The service team at Oliver can help troubleshoot if they are aware that you are having a problem. Folks here on the forum can also help troubleshoot but we need a little more information. Start checking under the curbside bed and under the dinette to see if you can find any moisture. Does it happen if you are hooked up to city water or when you’re using the water pump? Any leakage outside of the trailer from the back? Keep us posted. Mike

Hmmmm. Did you smell propane when it was on? Mud daubers nests can usually be cleaned without replacing the appliance. I had a nest in my AC, cleaned it out and all is fine. Not sure why that would cause a leak. For water leaks, open your access panels under the dinette and curbside bed. Use a blue paper towel and feel around to see if you can locate any moisture. Do this with the pump on or while hooked up to city water. With an electric heater and the ceiling vents open we’ve not had any condensation issues even in overnight temps into the teens. We have had some dampness, but nothing that gets a bed wet. Jason and his team at Oliver service will help. Click on the Service tab at the top of the web page and fill out a ticket for each issue. They will give you a call and may be able to do some long distance troubleshooting. I hope the previous owner didn’t sell a trailer with known issues. Keep us posted. Mike

Sorry to hear about all of your issues. For the Colorado folks it would be helpful to know your location before recommending an RV tech. For your leaky windows, did you try putting some water on them with a hose since you’ve had no rain since cleaning the tracks? It sounds like a lot of condensation. We’ve not had any significant problem with condensation and we’ve camped all over to include many Colorado locations. Do you keep one or both of your ceiling vents open at night? Are you able to run an electric space heater? I’m surprised no RV techs have been able to locate your freshwater leak. Do you have the leak when using the water pump or just while on city water? With the system pressurized you should be able to look under the dinette seats to see if there is moisture that might indicate it is coming from the bathroom. Checking under the curbside bed (both access points) for moisture on the floor would tell if it is from all the plumbing on that side. A blue paper towel is your friend when doing checks. If there is no moisture on either side of the trailer then looking under the basement floor in the back would be the next area to check. That entails emptying the basement and lifting the floor to examine the water lines that run from the city water inlet on the back side of the trailer around the curbside, past the furnace and hot water to the water pump area. If you raise or lower the front of the trailer does it make a difference in the amount or location of water leaking from under the trailer? I just repaired a freshwater leak that I had. I checked all the hull access points and found no moisture. I disassembled the basement to find moisture, but the pex lines were dry. When I checked around the furnace and hot water heater I found a cracked plastic Pex T-joint coming out of the hot water tank down below the heating ducts that was dripping whenever the water system was pressurized. I had missed that when checking the back access hatch at the bed. When I stuck a blue paper towel down there I found the leak. I replaced it with a brass T-joint. If you have a serious propane leak I would have that looked at right away. You might be able to find a propane guy that would help. The guy we use for our home propane told me once he could help with any propane issues I might have with my trailer. Same with your electrical, I’m not an expert and would have a regular electrician or qualified RV tech troubleshoot. Is your trailer still under warranty? Have you opened trouble tickets with service? Once you do they will call to help.

Assuming you are talking about the Facebook group?

It’s actually Grand Teton National Park, named after the tallest mountain in the range, Grand Teton. There is only one Grand Teton. The range of mountains there are called the Tetons. It’s one of our top 3 favorite national parks. The town of Jackson, close by in the valley of Jackson Hole, is also a fun visit. Gros Ventre campground, in the park, is a good place to camp. We haven’t done the NPs in Northern California or anything in Washington or Oregon, they are on the list as is Alaska. Mike

I had a fellow Oliver owner give me plugs that he cut from a piece of fiberglass he had. They fit perfectly into the ventilation holes from the inside. Then, I cut a section from a yoga mat and used contact cement to stick it to the inside of the battery compartment door. You could use any moisture resistant material to cut plugs out of. Mike

They also used to have a stack at past rally’s that owners could take to give to curious folks.

Thanks, I did the same and saw that it was a newer trailer and so was hesitant to provide too much comment on what might be a different furnace than I have. It’s just a good practice to remind folks to put their trailer info in their signature so we don’t have to bounce back and forth between posts and profile pages! Mike

Which furnace and thermostat do you have? Info about your trailer would help with suggestions. Mike

That’s strange. Our furnace will run for 10-20 minutes or more if it is really cold. Is it on for 2 minutes and off for 2 minutes constantly? Does it ever warm up the living space? I’ll be interested in what Oliver service says. My first guess is a faulty thermostat. Mike

Your frustration is understandable. What are the obvious areas you’ve checked? Have you determined what fluid is leaking? Probably fresh water and not gray? Since it is leaking all the time, have you emptied your fresh tank to rule that out? In Arizona you aren’t getting enough rain to make it leak all the time. Is there any moisture that you can see between the hulls? Have you checked under the dinette seats and under the beds? Does it make any difference if you raise the front of the trailer? If your tanks are empty and it’s not raining I can’t think of what would be causing a leak or what could be leaking. Did your reconnect the black wire to your light? Have you thought about getting a local RV repair shop to look at your issue? You should still be under warranty and Oliver should reimburse any cost. Have you opened a ticket with Oliver service? There is a long time Oliver owner down in Sierra Vista, not far from Benson, that has an RV guy there who has done work on their trailer that might be able to help. If you are interested, let me know and I can PM you their info. Mike

Will the temperatures be below freezing during the day? If not, you can move about without worry. If they are below freezing while traveling you can run your furnace while traveling. If you are camping at campgrounds with electricity, a small space heater is a good investment that will save you propane. We’ve camped with night time temperatures in the twenty’s many times without issues. Mike

I looked through the offerings. Missing is the Coffee Drinkers upgrade with Oliver mugs and the Camping Attire upgrade with Oliver branded shirts and hats. I can think of others, too. Mike

The blower on the furnace is 12V only. It is powered by your batteries. Your solar doesn’t run anything, it just charges your batteries. I don’t know the specifics of the new inverter arrangement Oliver is using. My old Xantrex is only turned on when not on shore power and I want to use a 120V outlet, which is rare. If you have shore power using a space heater will save you propane. Mike

The furnace runs off of 12V (your batteries) not shore power. No reason you couldn’t run both if connected to shore power. It doesn’t matter if you are winterized or not, the furnace is independent. When I run a space heater I am always connected to shore power. Your batteries will drain pretty quick if you run a 120V space heater through your inverter. Mike

Glad it’s going well. There’s a steep learning curve in the beginning. The best way to learn is to use it! Have a great trip home. Mike

Ours is folded up while driving, not down. In fact, it’s been folded up for several years since we don’t really watch TV while camping anymore. I should just remove it. Mike

Our son and family live in Durango. We visited for a week in January two years ago. Night time temperatures in the middle teens. Furnace did fine. We were not winterized and we had no freeze issues. Mike