topgun2

Mine is very similar to THIS. I've had it for seven years and it continues to function without any issues. Even though I am mostly camped at altitude in the Rockies I do enjoy having the humidity readings along with the temps. I keep one sensor under the propane tank area, one under the spare tire cover and one between the hulls (usually on the street side near the outdoor shower. The main readout provides the temp and humidity for the main cabin - I have this mounted via "command strip Velcro" - between the bathroom and closet doors up fairly high so it can be seen from most places in the camper and yet is out of the way of the entrance. Bill

In order for the automatic switch over to work - both tank valves must be open. Many of us leave one of the tank valves closed so that we know when that first tank runs out of propane (i.e. we do not use this automatic switching feature). When the first tank runs out you will notice that something running on propane simply isn't working. If this happens to me with the fridge or the water heater or the furnace I will try to light the stove just to make sure that it is not an issue with that particularly appliance. It also helps that after awhile you get a sense for when you are about to run out of propane. If the stove doesn't light, I simply go outside open the access port, open the full tank, go back inside and light the stove. Perhaps there might be a couple of seconds before the stove lights but usually it lights very quickly. If you are using the automatic switch feature then you will have both tanks open. Basically when the switch occurs you will not know it. This is very nice if you are right in the middle of something or if it is pouring rain, gloom of night, middle of a long hot shower, etc.. But, it could be very bad if you do not remember to check to see if you have run out of propane in that first supply tank. Bill

Last night I saw video footage of the 100 vehicle pileup near Fort Worth, TX that killed at least 5. Scary stuff! Hopefully none of our Oliver family was involved. With the large amount of cold and snow now gripping the USA, please be very careful out there. In particular this applies those that are soon to be picking up their new Ollies. Bill

I'm not sure that I could handle that big of a fuel tank but I sure do envy your possession of the Forscan. Virtually anyone with a later model Ford can change the dash "theme" from many that are actually available in the computer. But, in order to not have to change it each and every time you restart the vehicle, you need Forscan. Particularly I like the themes they have for the Navigator. Enjoy all that estimated distance to empty! Bill

MandD - See John Davies post (5 posts above yours). As with so many things the real answer to your question is - it depends. Where and how was your Oliver stored, where and how was that 200 miles put on it - at the beach, in a dirty place, during a very hot or cold period, at high speed for the 200 miles or just poking along, what's your risk tolerance, quality of grease used, etc.. If it were me and basically the answers to the previous questions were not "bad" then I'd at least take a look by popping off the bearing grease caps to observe the condition of the grease. If it appears to be separating then I'd change it. If I was planning that 5,000 miles you talk about to be mainly interstate driving, I'd strongly consider at least replacing the major part of the grease. Of course I'd also check the bearing "play" by giving the wheels the old "shake" test and "spin" test. To be on the very safe and anal side - redo the job completely. Good luck. Bill

JD - Mister Heater claims the following fuel consumption rate for the Buddy heater - Fuel Consumption/Burn Rate (Gal/Hr) at 4000 BTU = 0.044 Gal/Hr. Obviously this is a fairly expensive way to get heat in that these one pound containers are relatively expensive AND for the most part there are very few places that recycle the steel tanks. However, they do save electricity in that they do not use the furnace blower motor or igniter. When using mine, I place it near the dinette basically pointed towards the rear of the camper - well away from any wall. Leaving the bathroom door open (as I virtually always do when camping) I simply pop open the bathroom vent. This supplies enough needed ventilation without creating those cross breezes you mention and I don't have to worry about rain either. Bill

Note that the little shorty extension that BHNCB mentions above is to be used so that you do not "dent" your chrome hub caps in the center of the wheel. The set that mjrendon mentions right above that gets you the socket and the extension for a good price and the quality from Harbor Freight is good enough given the number of times you will actually use these parts. Bill

I never have my Mister Heater - Buddy on anything but low - 4,000 btu. At that setting the heater will bring the interior temp up from the mid 30's to about 65 degrees within 45 minutes. That is just enough time for that little snooze before really getting up. Also, with the heater on the low setting the one pound propane tanks last longer. I did purchase a long supply hose so that I could connect the heater directly to my 20 pound tanks but I rarely use it. See the pic of that little electric heater I talked about above - I've posted it as an edit 4 posts above here. Bill

Garyjona has got a very good point there - I too carry a Mister Heater propane heater in the event - read that "just in case". Since I camp more often than not where I do not have shore power, these heaters provide heat without draining ANY electricity. The only "problem" with them is that due to the combustion of propane they add moisture to the interior of the Oliver. Also, even though they have sensors for CO and oxygen levels the moisture issue plus the (remote) possibility of sensor failure causes the absolute need to have a fresh air source open at all times when this heater is operating. Bill Mister Heater

Boy! I wish I had one of dem thar things! Really looks nice. On the topic of TPMS - I too have metal stems for my TPMS. But, metal stems are not necessarily the greatest thing on earth. While I believe that metal stems generally do a better job when these external TPMS sensors are used since they "flex" less than the rubber stems. But, in the event you are going down a rough road (off road for the most part) and hit a rock, tree root, deep rut in the road, etc. the metal stem could get broken or cracked where it is possible that the rubber stem would simply bend a bit and keep on trucking. Also, generally speaking, a rubber stem would be a bit easier to repair in an emergency situation versus the metal stems. Bill

It never hurts to throw in an adult beverage (or two), some flowers, or chocolate for your hosts of course.

Carl - IMO there is absolutely no substitute for having a number of these remote temp sensors - particularly if you are camping in cold weather. In addition to the sensors for between the hulls, don't forget about putting one under the propane tank cover and another under the rear spare tire. With these in place, you will be able to read the rear sensor in the event the sun is shining on the propane cover or vice versa, thus giving you a more reasonable idea of what the exterior temp currently is. With regards to electric heaters - due to the fact that these heaters take a fair beating while traveling down the highway and those heating elements are fairly delicate, I bought one of the little square "ceramic" jobs at a garage sale a number of years ago (actually I bought two thinking that the first would die). Fortunately, after 6 years it has not missed a beat and the very small size is excellent for storing in any sized Oliver. I'll take a pic of it tomorrow and post it here as an edit. Bill

What bhncb said above if you are doing this service at home. However, if you are interested in carrying an "emergency" pack to be used in the event you have a problem on the road, you can either simply buy a third (or forth ) set of bhncb's recommended parts, wrap them up in bags and rags, or you can get something like the picture below to carry around with you. I've been carrying two of these for the past five years for the "just in case type of thing" plus a small can of bearing grease and (thank goodness) have never needed them. Bill

Pat - I don't know the exact date answer to your question but mine is a 2016 and Oliver started installing them as standard sometime in 2017 (as I remember). Bill p.s. a fair number of owners have converted to the EZ Flex to include me. The older axle assembly had plastic bushings that would need major help of some sort by between 10,000 and 15,000 miles.

Do I see hull #50 in New Zealand? Or is Steve waiting for that "new" model first?

Does that Tundra even know the Elite I is there? Sounds like you're having fun - and - that's a really good thing. Bill

Ready? I've only included sites between just west of Vail CO and Saint Louis that are on or very near interstate 70. Before I forget - when headed east on I-70 through the Saint Louis metro area, it is best to exit I-70 some 25 miles west of the city onto I-64. Generally there is a bit less traffic on I-64 and it is a bit of a straighter shot. Once on I-64 you can stroll along until you obviously hit near the center of town - then be sure to be in one of the two LEFT lanes. These will automatically dump you onto a bridge over the Mississippi River. From there just follow the signs or your GPS to I-70 (actually it simply goes straight over the bridge and straight onto I-70 unless there is construction). River Dance RV - 39.65006, -107.00831 (regular RV camp right off I-70 some 35-40 miles west of Vail - nothing fancy but OK showers, h2o and electric at site and dump) Gypsum BLM camp, Edwards, CO - 39.65570, -106.97616 (right on CO river west of Vail - no water, electric or dump and right by I-70) Free Wolcott BLM, Wolcott, CO - 39.71200, -106.69586 (again right on the river closer to Vail but no services and right next to I-70) Free Gore Creek, Vail - 39.63069, -106.27221 (nice campground very close to but east of Vail on north side of I-70) Might be snowed in though in March. Red Lion Inn in Vail has a great burger and Vail is a great place to people watch. Or Three Amigos mexican is not bad and relative cheap for Vail with a great view of the slopes. Pine Cove Camp, Frisco, CO - 39.58692, -106.06897 (nothing but a parking lot on SE side of the reservoir, pit toilets, h2o in season, no dump. might be spots in regular campground that you will see as you drive in. Frisco is a nice little town right on I-70 for drinks/dinner. High Plains Camp, Oakley, KS - 39.18561, -100.87067. A restaurant and bar and gas station are very close. This is a regular RV park very close to I-70. h2o, electric at site and dump on exit. If you stay here it is worth taking a short drive towards the town of Oakley if it is a clear day to see the Buffalo Bill Statue right near the road. Kansas Country Inn, Oakley, KS - 39.11988, -100.84371. Less road noise than High Plains but not much else there. Motel Breakfast used to be included with camping fee. Sites have full hookups. It is still worth the short drive to see that statue. There is also a free "fossil" museum in Oakley if you are into that sort of thing. Blue Spring Lake Camp, Kansas City, MO - 38.86822, -94.32020. One of my favorites but Google shows that it is "temporarily closed" - check at 816-503-4805. Easy to get to off either I-70 straight through KC or (better yet) take the southern belt around KC and exit to camp off I-435. Full hookups or h2o/electric with dump are available with decent showers/restrooms. Bass Pro Shop and Duluth cloths are near if you care. From here, Columbia, MO is right at 2 hours drive and there is a Cracker Barrel there. Then Saint Louis is about another two hour drive from Columbia. Lazy Day Campground, Danville, MO - 38.89626, -91.56015. Nice commercial camp about 1.75 miles off I-70. Very nice restrooms/showers. Flying J/Pilot Gas, Warrenton, MO - 38.84047, -91.22814. If you think you will need fuel get it here. Shortly after this traffic and congestion will get worse and after ST. Louis fuel will get more expensive due to higher taxes in Illinois. In addition, they sell Kettle Corn in a tent outside the station! That's all I got. If you have questions - yell. Bill p.s. Phil Long is the owner of the Red Lion Inn in Vail. He also puts on a good show (singing one man band) that usually starts about 7-7:30. Please tell him I said "hi" if you go there.

Good point - I saw the two black marks on the inside of the strike plate area but didn't put 2 and 2 together. Unless someone with a later model can take a look then there is nothing to lose by contacting Oliver before getting out the drill and/or grinder. However, given the marks left on the strike plate it appears as though the latch does have plenty of "purchase" (as does the dead bolt) in order to make the bottoming out issue a non-event. And, the reported problem of having no problem with the latch when it "clicks" doesn't square with the bottoming out issue either. Bill

Interesting! Looks like the strike plate is reasonably flush with the outside "plane/surface" of the body of the Oliver. And, it is obvious that the strike plate is adjusted just about as far as it will go towards the outside. I can see nothing "wrong" with the latch side and the latch is marked right in the center thus showing that it is probably not tweaked or skewed in some manner. If it were mine and I was still under warranty and I was close enough to the Mothership, I'd take it in and have the Service department deal with it. Assuming that this is not an acceptable option then I would get the old grinder and remove a SLIGHT bit of material from the latch, and, a SLIGHT bit of material from the inner edge of the strike plate. OR, I'd take the strike plate off, remove a SLIGHT bit of material from the outside edge, and elongate the screw holes toward the back edge. OR, remove the strike plate, drill new holes a bit further toward the outside of the Oliver and then after grinding a SLIGHT bit of material off the outside edge (to make sure that it didn't extend beyond the plane of the outside surface of the Oliver) and reinstall the strike plate adjusting it as necessary until I was happy with the way the door operates. Out of these three I like the second option the best. I'd be very careful on elongating those new holes but there does appear to be enough material there in order to give you at least 1/8 inch. If you were to mess up this job then a new strike plate would not be very expensive either. Good luck! Bill

Those pics seem to show that, if anything, the latch is hitting slightly high (odd since you said that the door is a bit low on the latch side), and, not surprisingly it is certainly "resting" on the outside most inner surface of the plate. How about a pic or two of the latch itself? Bill

Hopefully anyone that is planning on attending and planning on playing golf will reply here. However, unless your husband is a scratch golfer and Matt Duncan from Oliver shows up, tell him (your husband) to be careful with whom he plays 😁. Bill

My guess is that you are not getting a good seal between your hose and the inlet. If you can, I'd try putting another or thicker washer on the hose and see what happens. Note that if you are not getting a good seal then it is easier for the water pump to be "sucking" air versus "sucking" the water that it is supposed to. Bill

I used Reflextix type insulation on the exterior basement door in addition to what was already there. Added to this I used window foam tape insulation similar to THIS around that same opening plus around the exterior shower and dump valves. After adding this insulation you will, most likely, need to adjust the latch on the basement door, but, this is fairly simple to do. On the interior I continued with the Reflextix type material and 1/2 inch pipe insulation on anything that I could reach. This included the back side of that exterior shower faucet assembly. Note: I have insulated any and all pipes that I could in any way reach in any and all parts of the Oliver. I'm not too sure that this really does anything worth noting but it made me feel better 😃. Sorry no pics - my Oliver is in a storage facility. Bill

Your idea is a bit problematic in that the exterior is much like a regular two supply faucet assembly - it has a line for hot and a separate line for cold. It certainly would be simple enough to cut those lines and insert a plug with either a simple "adjustable" type hose clamp or a regular pex band to secure the plug. Or, since you would have the supply lines cut - simply install a shutoff valve in the supply lines and reattach then to the rear of the faucet. That way, you could still use the exterior shower if you wanted but you could also shut the water off to the outside. The vulnerable part of this faucet is that - 1. its made of plastic which will crack more easily than metal, and 2. it is fairly exposed to the outside where there is little to no heat. While the shower head is slightly at risk, it really is the hot and cold supply knobs/valves that you have to worry about. Bill

The Venturi Effect can be your friend - sometimes. Bill