Overland

Yes, your problem may be the 150' extension cord.

Mike, I used to do that on mine, but then I started getting water seeping in at the joint between the cable and plug. Some silicone sealant probably would have fixed it, but I got this cover instead and it's worked great.

3 answers at once - this must be a pretty helpful forum. 😁

This is more common than you'd think. What happens is that moisture gets into the plug of the wiring harness and creates a path from the trailer's batteries to the lights. I've had it happen once, and just shaking the water out of the plug was good enough to get the lights off. The best way to prevent it is to keep the plug under cover.

Yep, $500 plus I know that Oliver is a little afraid of Victron gear since it allows people to change so many settings. Still, that would be $500 very well spent imo.

Just curious, what is the trailer plugged into? Is it a 30 amp circuit?

Ah, I didn't catch that in your earlier post. If Oliver has moved to an integrated inverter/charger then that's a big upgrade. edit - well I thought it was a big upgrade. It doesn't look like that Xantrex unit has power assist, nor the networking of a Victron system. It looks like it has slightly faster charging @80 amps, but unless I'm missing something, the only advantage I see for the buyer is the switchable lithium profile. It'll be easier for Oliver to install, of course - at least from scratch. It'll be a bit of a pain as an upgrade. Come on, Oliver - you're just one step away from a modern electrical system. You can do it!

More than I thought then. I think if it were me, I'd talk to Battleborn and if they said the regular PD4000 is fine, even if not ideal, I'd probably stick with it. Like the Lifeline rep told me at last year's rally - it's great to have the ideal setup, but unless your needs are extreme or your charging profile and habits are wildly off base, you're unlikely to hurt anything or notice any appreciable loss in lifespan from your batteries.

Definitely place the monitor inside the hull like Mike did - you'll use the buttons once while setting it up and again...never? Maybe if you swap out or add batteries someday. Speaking as someone who has zero problems cutting a hole in his Ollie, I regret having cut a completely unnecessary one for the BMV. Save the hole cutting for adding a Victron Color Control someday, since it actually has a useful display.

I'm not sure that's true. Before PD had a specific lithium profile, Battleborn used to say that the standard PD4000 was fine. And the charge profile for the standard charger is 14.4v bulk and 13.6v float, which is precisely what Battleborn recommends for programmable chargers. I think the only real difference may be that the standard charger does a trickle charge, which isn't necessary for lithiums, but is unlikely to hurt anything. I'd definitely talk to Battleborn about it - I'm sure they'd say that a specific lithium charger is better, but by how much is really the question. I'm 90% sure they'll say it's fine. On the other hand, you're talking about maybe a $60 part and 30 minutes to swap it out, so that's a pretty low threshold for deciding whether to do it. I'm curious what a lithium option might be on an inverter. Maybe it changes the shutoff voltage number?

John, I think that like you, I'd just stick to well known brands, like the Leviton you linked to above. Although, I might suggest their extra heavy duty version instead. Those are supposed to be impact resistant, which I have to assume confers some vibration resistance as well. Plus the weather resistance should offer additional protection from condensation. I'd also consider a 20-amp model.

We've run a space heater many times, so that won't be the problem in itself. If it's tripping the GFI as you say, then it may indicate a problem with the heater itself. A GFI switch is tripped by an imbalance of power going in and out of the circuit; i.e., some power is being lost to ground. Sometimes, too, a heavy load can cause ripple in the circuit when it switches on, and that can trip a GFI. If it's actually tripping the breaker instead, then it could be that the wattage of the heater is too high, or perhaps you have an additional load on the circuit and the overall draw is too high. There's also a chance that you have a faulty GFI outlet. What model heater are you using? Quite a few owners have had luck with the Vornado heaters like this one, which is what we have. We're able to run it on high (1500 watts) with no problem.

I just read that the National Park superintendents have been given permission to close their facilities as they deem necessary. Lots of visitor centers and other indoor facilities closed, some restaurants, a few campgrounds, etc. The Zion shuttle is closed. A few urban parks are closing entirely. https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2020/03/park-superintendents-given-authority-manage-coronavirus-facilities-closing

Eventually, trailers will need their own battery banks. Shortly after that, you’ll see trailers incorporating their own drivetrains, with stability systems built in so that you can tow with anything. That’s my opinion at least.

I have moved several posts from this topic to this thread. The moderators felt it would be best if this thread didn't get sidetracked into a more general discussion about travel issues related to the coronavirus. Please feel free to continue that discussion in the other thread, but we ask that you help us keep this thread focussed on the rally itself. Thanks.

FYI, I have removed several posts from the Rally thread and merged them into this one. Hopefully that hasn't disrupted the flow of conversation too terribly. Please keep the discussion relevant to Travel Related Issues and the coronavirus. The moderators understand that this issue is on everyones mind, but we appreciate everyone's help in not venturing too far off topic.

I assume this is the case, but since it wasn't mentioned, I'll ask - are attendees being notified individually about the date change?

No, and I threw it away so I can't check. I had to hack it to pieces to get it out through the dinette. I didn't do a post on it. I actually haven't finished the job, since part of it is putting in a new bath sink. But I finally found just the right sink and have it here now. I've got the new vanity top, too, so I'm jus waiting for the drain to arrive and I need to get by Ikea for the faucet. Probably I'll have both this weekend. It won't be long before I get back on it. Just a couple hours work after all. 😛

I suspected as much on the black tank, but it's good to have it confirmed. Getting a new tank in would mean pulling the floor, unless it's a smaller tank. The existing one won't come out via the dining seat in one piece unfortunately.

I have to quote this as famous last words, but I’m eager to see what you come up with.

Oliver uses their PD 4000 power centers. I believe it’s the PD4045 but they may have switched to the PD4060 - same unit but higher charge rate. Progressive dynamics now sells a lithium specific charger - but before they did, Battleborn said that the standard PD charger worked fine. So it might be worth a call to Battleborn to see what they say. I called them a couple of times when I did my install and they were extremely helpful. I think that you can buy just the charger section of the PD unit if you want/need to swap it out for their lithium version - it’s an easy job to do if you go that route. No video for my install but I can send you photos if you want. But Battleborn have a vertical battery now that may be easier to install. Mine required placing the batteries on end, which just made the connections a real pain to bolt together.

The answer to your first question is yes, you can store them without the bungee. We also use the felt pads between the pots to keep them from scratching. It's still a pain to get the pans out, since you have to pull the whole bag down, so I don't know if it's easier or not than the bungee. We have both the wok and the pasta strainer; and if I'm not mistaken, I'm pretty sure that we can get the whole kit into the bag. It's a bit more of a puzzle, and I think one of the pieces goes in upside down or something. We keep the wok and the low saute pan in a separate stack, though, since we use those two all the time. The wok we pretty much just use for eggs in the morning - I don't know why, just that two eggs seem to sit nicely in the bottom without spreading out, so they're easy to flip. We don't use one at home, but I'd guess it's on the smaller size compared to standard woks. It also has a flat bottom area that's maybe 3 or 4 inches diameter, which may make a difference to regular wok users. You can probably get a good idea of the size from the photo above, since it's sitting completely inside of the saute pan.

My trailer didn't really come with much on that side of the electrical. Literally four cables coming from the solar coiled up on the floor. That just left a base battery and the charger, both of which I replaced. So I didn't try to take a credit for anything standard. The solar package was an option of course, so I had that figure, and everything else I bought separately. Buying Oliver's options, I think you could take the tax credit on the solar package, battery upgrade, and inverter. Maybe even the generator port if you were to opt for that. Perhaps even a generator? That's probably pushing it, lol.

Sounds like a job for Cap’n Tolley

We keep ours right above the sink, in two stacks - one with the two pans we use the most and then the rest in their bag. We got the nonstick version. I usually prefer the regular since the nonstick stuff eventually wears out, but as little as we’re able to travel now, they don’t get much use.