Mike and Carol

Wow, that is quite an accident! So glad you are okay!! I have a dash cam that I don’t use much…. looks like yours provided key evidence. It’s interesting that the trailer separated the way it did, just leaving the bottom outer hull. There’s another Oliver out there waiting for you - hope you can get back on the road soon!! Mike

If diesel gets rationed there will be more problems than just for RVers! Long haul trucks and trains live on diesel so supply chain issues will shut down the country. I’ll pay the extra amount to travel. Let’s hope there continues to be some supply for all the serious users. Mike

We replaced our rubber stems with metal when I installed the TST. Mike

Higher fuel prices should dampen a lot of the new RV enthusiasm. Folks that have been at it a while will probably just suck it up and drive on. I’ll be driving a little slower to bump up mileage, but we will still be on the road. Mike

Past rallies have been mostly owner run. Then we had the COVID gap without any rallies. This year, Oliver has taken responsibility for the organization and schedule so it is difficult to answer your question. At the park, there are common areas that could be used for spontaneous gatherings. I’m sure Oliver will have a central spot where the organizers will be stationed, either up at the lodge or down in one of the campground facilities. Not sure if there will be bulletin boards, but there should be a fairly busy agenda provided with displays, orientations and classes. Mike

Wow, a frightening experience for sure. Dumping at night while deprived of sleep would be a challenge for anyone, but adding in the stress of the storm increases the challenge! Don’t beat yourself up too much! A few years ago we were camping on the Missouri River north of Kansas City (Leavenworth, Kansas side) in a city campground. There had been quite a bit of rain north and the river was rising. We knew there was a chance for flooding and possible quick evacuation. I had disconnected the fresh water hose and hitched to the truck. Sure enough, at about 3am the city police drove through the campground, lights flashing and announcing that everyone had to evacuate, immediately! We got up, dressed, disconnected power and were the first ones out of the campground. We watched others fumbling with things and a tent camper just left his tent and drove off. The campground was under 4 feet of water when the sun came up. Mike

Fuel prices stink but won’t deter our summer plans. We’ll be in Colorado in June and July, partly for family events. We may not do an extended trip around the rally, just head to Alabama then come home. Mike

Is there any data on noise level differences between the 9.5 and 13.5?

The PD 4045 that came in your trailer should work fine for flooded batteries or AGM. It won’t work with Lithium. I had to swap mine out when I went with lithiums. The new chargers have a little switch on the front that you move to lithium if you go in that direction. I’ve still got my old charger, works fine, just not with my batteries now. Anyone need a spare? Mike

The assumption in your question is that the suburban tank is prone to problems. It’s not. There have not been very many suburban issues raised here. Ours is now a full 6 years old. No issues. The only thing I’ve had to replace is the little on/off switch which seems prone to get stuck in either on or off. The switch is about $6 and takes a few minutes to swap out. I carry a couple of spares. I also swap out the anode every year or two and clean out the deposits. We’ve been happy with it. Someone else can address reliability of the Truma. It seems a bit more complicated, mechanically. But, there haven’t been that many issues raised with it, either. Mike

I’ve been to discount tire twice with my Oliver. I put a tall block under the front jack to stabilize and then a tall block on the side I want to lift with the onboard jack (“stabilizer”). When done with one side I lower it and raise the other side using a tall block. The jack only extends 3 or 4 inches. When done with the other side I raise the front jack, put the blocks in my tongue box and go home. Mike

We don’t rely on the bath vent for much heat. I’ve had the panel under the sink off a couple of times (for other things) and didn’t see any kinks in the duct. I haven’t felt like tracing it back to the furnace. We keep the bath ‘door open and our electric heater by the nightstand blowing toward the bath. If we don’t have shore power we still keep the bath door open and it stays comfortable with the furnace. Mike

Eggsactly.

Glad to hear it went well! Any pictures? Mike

Steve, glad to hear it looks good. We will definitely be by to see your shiny trailer! Mike

That’s good to know and I’m glad Oliver is doing that. It wasn’t the case in 2016! Mike

Hey Lee, welcome to the group! June 15 will be here before you know it. You can tell from our map that we haven’t been up to your neck of the woods but it is high on our list! Mike

Nicely done!

For my trailer (2016), there is a box in the attic that toggles between the cable connection and the antenna. There is a little button that switches between the two. If it’s in your attic, push the little button and then try scanning for cable channels again. Mike

Congratulations and great picture! Glad to hear it went well. You should be able to find a few weekends before the rally to get out for some relaxed camping. See you at the rally! Mike

Yes, 2” ball. I think the recommendation is 23.5” unloaded. Not sure what the sag would be on a Q7, the ball on my truck is at 24” unloaded and drops a little over an inch when the trailer is lowered. Had almost a 2” drop with the half ton. Mike

Sounds like fun! Check everything out in the campground before you leave. Post some pics! Mike

You’ll usually get an abundance of thoughts and opinions here!

We always stop by Amber Falls Winery when we’re in Hohenwald. Last time we did the HH thing and camped there, too. It was very nice. Glad to hear your pick up and trip home went so well! Mike

If it was me I would just park it. Let the solar charge the batteries each day. There will be some discharge overnight. When I asked my Battle Born rep he said open storing would be fine. They just don’t like the charger to be on all the time. Since you won’t be hooked up to shore power that isn’t even possible. Hopefully we’re done with freezes, especially around Houston. Hope your return trip went well! Mike