CnC

They started out as a way to provide a hot spot for cell service to those overseas. With Covid 19 limiting foreign travel, they turned to seducing USA users. I've had one of the two we purchased for USA use for more than two years. They are 3G/4G and when it works, it works well. They have had a number of software updates that have improved their hot spot. However, I've have had difficulty with connections in the past. It sometimes reported "no partners" are available in the area when I see others using their cell phones. Lake Powell in AZ was one place and the Navajo Reservation in northern NM was another. In summary, I think it may be a good choice as a backup service as their cell phone plans have become more inexpensive and convenient to use, but it doesn't seem to work where there are only 3rd party providers for the major cell phone providers.

It's all relative to wants and needs. My company pays $425 a month for internet for one of our employees to work from his home - and that's for just 20 down and 20 up. It was the only thing available several years ago and we had to beg for it since it was for business from a residence. Obviously, we're interested in trying out Starlink's service.

Just be sure you mount it in an area that is accessible as you may have to make settings on it that are not available on the app - for example, the lock/unlock setting..

We can't imagine AGM batteries after having lithium. There are so many advantages to lithium batteries. While everyone knows they last longer, few think about the advantages of the built-in battery monitoring systems. No longer do you worry about over-charging, having to have a trickle charger, depleting them to zero, etc., etc.

Makes sense. I was thinking 50%. Thanks, Fritz.

Coming late to this thread, I'll add two things. I have concern about our 2020 LE2's first vent being too close to the return air grille - in the world of HVAC this is called short-cycling. I plan to reduce the flow at that air vent, which will lessen the short-cycling and provide better air flow to the bathroom. Second, in the world of ventilation there is one rule that is supreme - what comes in must go out and what goes out must come in - otherwise there is no transfer of air. I liked the baffled vent in the bathroom idea 👍

John, I'm fortunate to have a conditioned 24x60 building in which my shop, pontoon boat and RV live - so there is no problem with Phoenix heat. Also, I've insulated the previously vented battery compartment door as there is no longer a need with lithium. I found the BB stickers impossible to remove - they are a year old. The VHB tape sets up after about 48 hours and is kind of like Velcro - you may pry it up but lateral movement is nearly impossible. The batteries are stuffed within a thick closed cell foam that holds them very snug - I literally used a mallet to seat the foam between the sides of the rack and the batteries. The battery cables strap them together into one unit. After installation and looking at the reality of strapping them to the sliding rack - it became obvious that the slide mechanism isn't going to be much help in a wreck. Of course, I will be checking them frequently now that the switch and busses are located there. When I get time, I'll be installing a solar panel switch...

Here's two pics from a 2020 E2. Original: First is the way the previous owner set up three lithium three batteries. The previous owner did NOT wire them up correctly - he wired them up as if they were lead batteries. Also note his installation of the shunt does NOT measure the system's charge/discharge properly. Revision: I decided to re-arrange the three existing batteries. My arrangement meant I didn't have to remove the heavy, bulky mattress and stand on my head. I did have to make new cables for the batteries, shunt and busses and then used the existing Oli cables. Be careful not to arrange the switch and busses in a way that crimps them when closing the battery compartment. I used VHB tape to secure the switch and busses.

Hard to get 100 gallons a minute through a half inch hose. There's an old adage that electricity flows like water 😏

BB's great, huh. Since you know what you want to do, I'd suggest getting the 712 now so you can see and track your various loads - including that of the TV. Let me know if you need pics of how I easily corrected the previous owner's lithium install on our LE2.

Having done and re-done lithium systems, I am partial to Battleborn, their 10 year guarantee and their corporate ethics. Whenever possible, I like to stay with the same components and I'm partial to Victron equipment. That being said, I agree without John that the DC to DC wire sizing needed from the TV alternator and onward to the Oli seems problematic.

Sorry, I'm a new to the forum and thought the file name of the pics would be shown. The top pic is the way the previous owner connected the batteries and shunt. The bottom pic is the way we changed them. We used VHB tape to secure the switch and busses.

Hi, we're coming from experience with Battleborn batteries and Victron equipment in an Airstream Interstate motorhome. Having recently purchased a 2020 Oliver E2, we're now selling our Airstream. I wanted to note that our experiences with Battleborn as a company over the past several years has been exceptional. With 4 BBGC100s, 350 watts of solar, a Victron 100/30 MPPT, a Victron 712 shunt, a Victron 2000 Multiplex and a PC lithium battery isolator for alternator charging - we frequently went a week boondocking without using the on-board generator. In fact, the black tank was the frequent limiter to longer boondocking. Our "new to us" 2020 Oliver E2 came with three Battleborn batteries hooked up as one would connect a "dumb" lead battery. I spend Saturday building new cables so we could make the three lithium batteries compatible with each other - I'm specifically referring to their BIMs. Now the number one battery is the system's positive and the number three battery is the system's negative. I was amazed the 2020 Oliver E2 has no readily available "master switch" to isolate batteries. So now, we have the main positive running to a battery switch before going to other positive connections via a buss. We also corrected the Victron 712 shunt connection. It had one terminal connected to one battery negative and the other terminal connected to a different battery negative. Clearly it could not report total usage in and out as was intended. So, we took the main negative lead to one side of the shunt and the other to the load side via a negative buss. Now that it's connected correct, I need to manually go through the settings to check if everything else is OK and that the unit isn't "locked." If it is locked, any settings made via the Victron app will not be saved! I learned this the hard way by going from 200ah to 400ah and finding the reported SOCs were never correct. I think I remember scrolling to somewhere near the mid-sixties in the manual menu settings to unlock the 712 and then used the Bluetooth app to make changes. BTW, I started this response to agree that SOCs are frequently reported differently by different instruments and to point out just one example - I had a Victron 712 which had the wrong inline fuse installed by the factory in some units. That simple fuse caused the units to report the SOCs incorrectly. Our next task for the 2020 Oliver will to place a master switch into the line before the solar controller to isolate the solar panels - I'm trying to decide whether to just bite the bullet and install a Victron 100/30 at the same time.

We recently purchased Hull #617 from the Nau's and are personalizing it before heading out for the first time in it. We have been in a MB Airstream Interstate for 6 years and while we love it - it's time for a change. We have decided to sell it and take up the Ollie experience. We first contracted for a new 2022, but the wait for the promised May, 2022 delivery date was just too much. The late model 2020 had most of the options we wanted and was pretty appealing when compared to the all too distant May delivery date. I'm a project guy, so now it looks like there are plenty of mod projects in my future now. You'll find me chiming in occasionally on some of the future posts - just know that I frequently just cut to the chase so don't be put off by my short answers 🙂

If you're referring to sliding the screen - Consider spraying silicone lubricant on cloth and wiping the slide surfaces.