Overland

So you guys are keeping your Ollie? That’s great news! Please keep us updated on your trip to Florida - happy butterfly hunting!

Not long enough, probably. They say it will last as long as 18 months, but that’s apparently very highly dependent on the signal strength. I’ve read three days of life in worst conditions while moving. More importantly for storage, however, is that the Spot will simply turn itself off if it can’t find a satellite for too long a period. So, if you’ve stored your trailer somewhere without solar, then you probably won’t have GPS either.

Our Spot Trace has a battery backup (4 rechargeable AAA I think), but primarily it’s powered by a hardwired cable to the trailer. I think it will go for several days without power if thieves were clever enough to disconnect the batteries.

I don't know all of what goes into making semis stable (I've been around more than a few that didn't seem so - that, or their drivers weren't), but I do know that 5th wheels and semis are inherently more stable than bumper pulled trailers, since they eliminate the double pendulum effect.

Well, I hate to disappoint you, but their batteries don't have any connection to the outside world other than a voltage reading. You can get a midpoint voltage reading off the BMV but that'll be the best you can do. One of the problems with LFPs right now is that no one seems to offer a package that has everything, regardless how much you pay. Battleborn has great protection circuitry, a heated option, warranty, and the fewest limits on what you can do with them (turn them sideways, charge in colder temps, etc.). But they're big and pretty much a black box as far as knowing what's going on inside. Victron has the best connectivity and data, the best service, are compact, probably bulletproof, but they're more expensive, don't have as good a warranty, can't be changed beneath 40°, and lack anything but the most basic protection. LifeBlue seems to have most all the features, but with questionable service and iffy quality. Other brands are similar, some look promising but can't be bought retail, etc. So, pick your poison. After this problem, I was giving some thought to swapping out with Victrons - all of this would have been obvious with their software. But their lack of a protection circuit and a oddly high charging temp limit is a problem. Maybe after seeing NCeagle's temperature data, and some modifications to my battery box, I'll reconsider. But I just keep imagining that one cold night I forget and plug them in.

Looks great - I think you’ll find that the separate shower controls are a lot more convenient. And the higher mount for the shower head is a nice bonus too.

I agree. I assume that I’ll be having a conversation shortly with one of their tech guys concerning this new problem and I’ll press them about these others then.

Mossey is right, you can only get the individual battery info on the Victron app by using all Victron gear. But believe that the LifeBlue app is supposed to do the same for their batteries.

It does look like there was a slight decrease in the rate at which they where falling though. Some of that heat is being absorbed into the basement even if most of it is probably radiating out of the top and sides of the trailer.

I thought I'd update this with the final outcome - which is, roughly 6 weeks later, I have two what look to be brand new Battleborn batteries sitting on the floor next to me. I say 'look to be', because they told me that they repaired my batteries vs replacing them, but I suppose to repair them they have to cut open the case and then put them into new ones. Either way, they look brand new and I assume function like new as well. Six weeks is a long time, though one and a half of those were us still traveling and we can certainly spot them two or three days since it was over thanksgiving and Christmas. Still, if it's a month in normal circumstances to get warranty service, that could cause problems if you have travel plans. The biggest time issue is shipping - they send you boxes, you send the batteries, then they repair and ship them back to you. And while they pay for the shipping, it's not next day or anything. In fact it was almost two weeks for me to receive two empty boxes, one of which inexplicably went to a neighbor. From a service standpoint, they'd be much better just replacing batteries rather than trying to repair them, which would allow them to just ship you new batteries and then you use the same boxes to ship the old ones back. I can understand why they wouldn't want to do that, but still - 4 weeks could easily be one. I never got a good answer on what exactly was wrong with them. They told me that the BMS had gone bad. But when I packed them up I noticed that there was something rattling around in both batteries, so something came loose inside each one. And so that makes me think that the damage was physical and likely due to vibration or a single big bump or something. That makes me less than confident that this won't happen again. But if they honor the warranty then I guess the worst I can expect is a repeat of this last trip, which was annoying but by no means a disaster. I have a strong suspicion that one of these batteries went out on an earlier trip, but that it took two to go out to make it obvious. I say that because especially on the trip before this last one, it just felt like the batteries didn't have the life they should. I'll definitely keep a closer eye on the voltages from now on and not rely entirely on the battery monitor's percentage estimate. One more thing - I'm running a test on the other two batteries right now since I noticed something off with them as well. Another odd voltage drop when the batteries were supposedly at ~70%. I'm going to separate them tomorrow, check their voltage and then drain them separately with a slow constant load to see exactly what's up. This seems more like something that would be symptomatic of unbalanced cells.

Yes, those are acoustic panels that I installed with 3M VHB Velcro. I think they help a little bit to deaden the space but not enough really to recommend the trouble and expense. But as you said, they do break up the ceiling, which I think looks nice. One of my wilder ideas for a modification is to install a full length floating "cloud" panel that sits off the ceiling two inches or so. I'd cover it in acoustic material, add hidden perimeter strip lighting and let the gap around the edges be the vent for the AC and fan. No one should count on that happening, of course, but it's an idea. I do think it would look nice, and would also allow you to cut access holes into the ceiling for installing solar, etc.

Ours is from Rear View Safety. I think it's decent enough, but the resolution would have been cutting edge ten years ago and the nighttime view is just so so. It's dependable, but if I were to replace it, I'd definitely look at options.

That looks like a nice faucet. Sorry about the old one freezing though - and also your Truma!

Or until you get someone else to test it to failure for you. 😄

Bill, how do you like your camera mounted in the tire cover? I can see how it would give a more familiar view, but I do like the bird's eye view that I get from mine mounted up high.

Nah, we need data on freeze damage, too. 😛

I'm just curious how quickly the hull temps would fall. We do sleep without heat most nights, but in freezing temps, we'll typically keep the heat on, but at a very low temp - 50° or so - perhaps that's a more useful test. I know some other owners that do the same. A test with an electric space heater would also be interesting to see, since there'd be no air circulation in the hull. Quite a few owners carry a space heater to use when plugged in.

I think it's a good DIY project. The only risky bit would be drilling through the hull for the camera and making sure it's properly sealed. I actually wish that I'd done mine myself instead of getting Oliver to do it, because when they ran the cable they got it twisted around some other cables in places, which made it impossible to separate them when I was cleaning up the cable runs.

Great info, John - thanks for sharing. I think the only thing that surprises me is the outdoor shower, since I'd have thought that area would be colder than the basement if anything. I think the one important area that you're missing is the space underneath the closet. If you could get a sensor in there somehow, it would tell you how well the furnace ducting is working to protect the plumbing that feeds the bath. I'd be curious to see what the temps do without the heat going at night. It seems unintuitive that it would cool off while the other areas are warming, but the rear curb temps are going to be largely dependent on whether the furnace is running or not, so it does make sense. I'm actually surprised that the temps there aren't higher than the cabin, but I guess that depends on exactly where the sensor was placed. To a lesser extent, the bath vanity would be the same.

The only things I worry about with short freezes are the check valves at the fresh and city inlets, since it's metal to metal and in a small unheated space. A little antifreeze in those, or blowing them out with an air hose, might be prudent. The water heater is very close on the list, but moreso with the Truma, and that's super easy to drain or set to antifreeze so never a big deal. The rest of the plumbing is unlikely to freeze if the trailer is heated.

On mine, the camera is up top just above the Oliver light. The cable runs from there down the street side rear corner along with the other cable runs, then along the street side under the dinette and toilet into the vanity where it exits and connects to its plug, which is located on the front of the propane housing. You'll have to remove the side panel in the attic to feed the cable down to the basement (easy, as long as the cable doesn't get hung on something), then you could either run it along the top of the basement and into the hull space or pull the floor and run it underneath. Then just attach it where you can in the hull until you get to the dinette. There, you'll want to fish it through over the black tank drain, then do the same for the bath. You'll have to take out the bath caddy to retrieve the cable from under the toilet or shower. Then drill through from the outside and install a cable gland. Shouldn't be that difficult.

It could be that the bypass pressure needs to be adjusted. The telltale sign is a sort of whooshing sound right at the end of the cycle. It’s a very easy adjustment to make. On the front of the pump there are two small hex screws: the one in the center adjusts the maximum pressure, and the one below changes the bypass pressure. Adjust it in ¼ turns until you can’t hear the whooshing anymore. The other possibility is that the rubber diaphragm (or some other part) needs to be replaced. That’s a little more complicated but I wouldn’t call it difficult. You can find fairly inexpensive repair kits for the pump on Amazon.

The early Olivers had them I think in the top lip of the lower fridge vent, facing down. Oliver stopped putting them in for some reason after their production break. They put 2 on mine because I asked, back when they’d do things like that. We get a good amount of use out of them - mostly for lights and charging phones. I bought a Green Mountain grill this summer which runs in 12v, so I could use the outlets for that if I take it on a trip. I think it would be a very easy thing to add if you’re handy and not shy of drilling a hole or two in your trailer. Mine are located next to the outside 120v outlet, or right near the water pump on the inside, and are easily accessed. But I think I like the old location better.

I’d love to - maybe one day when I’m retired and don’t have to worry about actually making money doing it.

An all time favorite. Someone needs to name their trailer the Chariot.