Steph and Dud B

Yep, square cut opening for the water heater. This is the location of the crack. Considering that Oliver is a fiberglass company first, not to mention the premium prices they charge for their trailers, I'm really disappointed that they would cut corners like this (both literally and figuratively). I'm sure a good boat repair shop could figure out a repair, but would they be able to remove and reinstall the water heater with its associated gas line, plumbing, and wiring? We could go back to Hohenwald Service, but we've had sloppy work there, too, and it's a long drive. My wife just came in the room and suggested maybe we should get this fixed, then sell the trailer. Really sad to hear that because this was her dream camper. (And, for those keeping score, I missed one on my previous list. This is actually #22. 😕)

Back on topic, I'm still unsure of my course of action. Should I take the trailer back to Hohenwald for warranty fiberglass repair? That's a lot of expense and inconvenience for us. What kind of shop could do this repair locally? A boat shop? Or is OTT better equipped? Would a repair be permanent or just crack again at the same point? OTOH, is this only cosmetic and unlikely to spread further? Even so, a "cosmetic" crack won't help with resale on a very expensive trailer. I asked OTT how long a repair would take and I'm waiting to hear back on that. I think I may actually know when this happened. We had just set up at a campsite this fall. When I stepped onto the steps to go inside there was a sharp noise from the back of the trailer. It was odd enough that I actually went back and looked underneath to see what it was, but saw nothing. (Checked underneath again today, still OK.) Would gelcoat cracking make an audible noise like that??

Look, a butterfly! (Sorry...) 😁

In retrospect that's what I should have done, but this was on the warranty list for that first trip back to Hohenwald. They had the trailer for a day and a half. When we went back to get it, they told me they couldn't find a problem with the bolts. I asked them to fetch a torque wrench and I showed them myself. Then we had to wait another two and a half hours while they got a new bracket from the factory and put it in.

@jd1923 OTT must have changed their jack bracket setup. This is what we had at the base of our jacks. Looks like what you fabricated. Also the source of one of our other problems. If you look here, you'll see the square hole circled in red is larger then the other. Too large, in fact. The carriage bolt just spun around in the hole and couldn't be tightened. I found this trying to trace down the cause of that jack creaking under load. Don't know how that passed QC and got the little green marks on the head and nut.

This is valid. There were many, many RVs built around 2021-22 with far worse quality issues than we've had. The problem for us is that we paid quite a bit more than a standard RV's price to avoid those issues. I can forgive problems with 3rd party things like appliances and fixtures. Oliver couldn't control that. I'm far less forgiving of workmanship problems like wiring, plumbing and, obviously, their own fiberglass. Yes, I would like to know more about what's going on here. Is this strictly cosmetic or is that a significant stress fracture? (I've been underneath looking at the frame in that area and it all looks OK.) Should I worry about water intrusion and freezing? Will the crack spread up the curve onto the sidewall proper? Scheduling a long trip in advance is difficult for us because my wife's medical treatment plan can change on any given month. But I can't think of any shop around here experienced enough in both fiberglass repair and RV appliances to do the work. (I'm assuming the water heater needs to come out.) The last few trips this year had been uneventful and I was perfectly content waxing the trailer (and thinking we had come to some sort of understanding) when I found the crack. Ugh!

Unfortunately, this is not one isolated problem with our unit. We've had 21 documented problems with our 3 year old trailer, some minor/cosmetic, others very serious/safety issues. (The toilet broke off on the way home from our delivery. The 120V wiring for our fridge melted because of an improperly installed Wago connector.) I've repaired the vast majority myself, but we've still had to make the 1,000 mile drive to Hohenwald 3 times for warranty work beyond my scope, plus a few repairs by our local RV tech at our expense. We've had good good luck with Oliver support as far as sending us parts and supporting us with local service but one of our trips to the OTT service center was well below par. An example: I asked them to pull the left front wheel because on the way south I could hear something loose in there. They told me they pulled the wheel and it was fine. When we got home we found a brake plate backer nut rattling around inside that drum. And OTT charged us for that "inspection"! I'm not bashing the entire line, and apparently most people have had really good luck with their Olivers, but this trailer has been a constant battle with failures large and small and is, quantifiably, the most problem-plagued RV we've had. I suppose at some point we'll have fixed all the flaws it came with and go back to just normal wear and tear items. That will be nice.

Oliver will repair under warranty. That means finding a local shop or going back to the factory. Since we're already winterized and stored, I imagine we'll go back to Tennessee again in the spring. I have to call it now: This is the most problem-plagued RV we've owned in 26 years of camping. Very disappointed in Oliver.

Ticket already submitted.

Found this crack by the water heater while waxing the trailer today. Starts under the water heater lip and stops at the outward curve of the fiberglass. Thoughts?

Ok, that sounds better. There is significantly more resistance when I pump antifreeze through the city water port. It goes, but not real easy.

This is an odd one. @Dexter Adams Have you had any problems with city water pressure while camping this season?

In 2018 we toured the Forest River Rockwood plant making fifth wheels. Same thing, rushing through the entire process. Not surprising because it's piecework. The workers were paid by the number of units they completed each day. They did actually have a QC station that looked for things that were missing or obviously wrong, but there was no major systems testing. Amazingly, our 2017 Rockwood fifth wheel was actually pretty good. We had fewer problems with it then we've had with our 2022 Oliver. Maybe because it was pre-COVID. 🤷‍♂️

See what the OP said: There are 2 things that stop propane from exiting the tank, first the manual valve, then the pin actuated gate. If the manual valve is open - or faulty - connecting the tank to a propane line will allow gas to flow. That's what appears to be happening here.

As others have said, refer to the battery mfg manual. The manual for our Lithionics batteries (also 640Ah) says to leave them on and the trailer plugged in during sub-freezing weather. Ours have internal heaters.

I'd be suspicious of the RV shops that did your prior lube service, too. Unless the zerks just fell out after the last service, this is something they would have noticed if they did the work and should have told you about (or offered to fix).

The new rule isn't retroactive, it only applies to new RVs.

Speaking of damaged pedestal wiring, we saw this smashed meter on a pedestal in a COE campground in Arkansas.

If the ground in the pedestal was energized wouldn't the metal pedestal body itself also be energized? That would be super dangerous.

The problem they cite for the regulation is a "hot skin" condition where voltage leaks into the trailer frame (and skin on metal skinned trailers) via a short or bad appliance and can't reach ground because of an open ground connection to the pedestal. In this situation a person can complete the circuit to ground by touching a metal part of the trailer and potentially get electrocuted. I suppose, in that scenario, there would be voltage on the trailer ground wire as well as the other grounded metal parts. Still, any device that detects an open ground and cuts power should prevent that scenario. (BTW, I did get a little jolt from one of our trailers once because of a poor ground connection.)

At home I use a small platform. In the field I turn off the fridge and lower the nose of the trailer way down to make it easier.

Yes, exactly.

Just to be sure: clockwise to close.

How many cupholders does it have?

If opening the bathroom drain valve increased the flow of water, you probably have a leak in the bathroom drain system.