topgun2

Yes, basically the cushions do fit the platform exactly and they are using 4 inch foam. Bill

For virtually all "basic" things I'm positive that you will not have to pay them during orientation. However, I'd be willing to bet that a nice box of donuts would help both you and them get things going.😃

SherMica - I simply did a search for "chain" and came up with this post - there just may be more there but this should get you started. Bill https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/4567-boondocking-and-securing-valuables/?tab=comments#comment-46261

Great - just in time for hurricane season. 😁

Congrates on your retirement and thanks for what you did. I second Mike's thoughts on the factory tour. You'll learn a bunch about how these things are built, get to touch, feel and see if an Oliver is really right for you. There really isn't any pressure. Good luck! Bill

You might want to take a look at THIS recent update review (and the previous review by the same person) for information on this generator. Bill

Voyager - I feel your pain. Prior to finding Olivers I looked at Casitas. At the time I felt that it was bad enough that I would need to adjust to a wet bath, but in the Casita I could not stand straight up to take a shower (I'm "only" 6 foot tall). Add to this the single shell and "rat fur" and overall lack of "quality", it didn't take me long to know that Casitas were not right for me. The first thing I did when I got to see a real Oliver was to step into the bath to make sure I could stand straight up - success! Obviously, with your being 6'2" you have a slight "height problem" in the Oliver bath. I'm not the one who had this idea, but, it has been explained to me that the "real estate" inside all campers is fairly "expensive". That is, there is only a finite amount of it and one has to decide what they want to do with every square inch of it in order to maximize the utility, comfort, etc.. Oliver could make a dry bath - simply get rid of the closet. But, I, for one, am glad that the closet is there. Given the amount of time the average person spends in the bathroom each day, let alone the shower, I'm guessing that the closet has much more use. Bottom line - if a wet bath bothers you then do not purchase an Oliver. Or be willing to do a fairly extensive alteration of your new Oliver. Bill

I don't really think there are too many "tips on buying" that you probably don't already know. Since you have already owned a Casita, you are aware of how this type of camper holds its value and how they tend to stay solid as long as they have had even minimal care. And, with the aluminum frame of the Oliver, worries of rusting are virtually eliminated. So, if you are truly interested all you have to do is decide which model is to your liking and then be prepared to write the check quickly. Good luck! Bill

And/or try THIS. Bill edit - if your new to the Forum simply left click on the underlined word in the sentence above. Good luck with your research and (if you can) be sure to take a look at each model you're considering in person before you make your final decision.

Certainly I agree but sure do wish someone could find a way of keeping all those cows quiet 😆.

You're welcome. The 12 volt socket that I used is very similar to THIS ONE versus the one I link to above but (for what its worth) I think the one at WalMart was a touch cheaper. In conversations with Patriot, he has told me that his new Ford Tremor has powered switches at the top of the windshield - bottom of the headliner. If an easy way of feeding the power wire exists to allow going through the firewall where the fuse box is located for these switches, wiring into these would provide a slick result with the ability to switch on/off the power to the rack. I did consider "fishing" the power wire over to the fuse panel that is located on the outside of the passenger footwell. Once there I would have found a circuit like the one for the sun roof that is switched via the ignition. But, obviously, I was simply too lazy and since the Garmin doesn't consume very much power (particularly when the screen is off) I'm not worried about draining my battery if I forget to unplug the Garmin when I stop for the night. Bill

Craig - Thanks to both you and Patriot for the kind words. The 12 volt outlet that I used is THIS. I mounted this to the underside of the Builtright rack with double sided 3M VBR tape. Then I drilled a small hole in the bottom of the Ford's dash tray to feed the outlet's wires through and attached the negative to a bolt (to ground to the frame of the truck) that is located directly below the tray. Then I ran the power wire down to the 12 volt outlet that is in the Ford's dash and spliced into the power wire coming out of the back of that socket. All of this is fairly easy as long as you are "gentle" making sure that you do not break any of the plastic clips holding your dash together. There are a number of YouTube videos showing how this is done. Bill p.s. The actual outlet I purchased at WalMart has one 12 volt socket and two USB ports in it versus the two 12 volt sockets shown in the socket on Amazon. I did this because I plan on using the 12 volt outlet for the Garmin and at least one of the USB ports for a cell phone. Also, as far as I'm aware, most of the dash cams and my TPMS can/are powered by USB and if I want to mount either or both on the rack I will have the power right there. Further, I should note that when all is put together, I can not see the outlet from either the driver's or passenger's seat. I take the Garmin's power cord, plug it into the outlet and then stuff the excess wire under the rack - you can't see any of it and yet the Garmin can easily be dismounted from the rack and transferred into another vehicle.

Larry - Since I rarely camp in the winter and (as you point out) the 20 lb tanks are very easy to either swap out or get refilled, I chose to not upgrade to the 30 lb tanks and have not regretted that decision. Since I really don't know what temps you will be camping in during the winter, it is hard to tell or even guess what your propane usage might be. But, I only use just over one 20 lb tank in the two months during the summer I'm fishing. This includes having the fridge always on propane and heating water from time to time when there is not enough sun for my solar shower and for a brief warming of the interior on those mornings when it is cold outside due to usually camping above 7,000 feet. Bill

Steven - Depending on how much shade you are getting, the ac should be able to cool the interior down anywhere from 15 to 20 degrees below the exterior ambient temperature. Obviously, it also reduces the humidity. Bill

I'll add my welcome - both to the Forum and (almost) to the family. Traveling with the pups I'm sure that you will find that the Oliver's sleek interior is very easy to keep clean and looking like new. If only you could train those pups to do the cleaning for you! Bill

I don't think that it is sail switch either. I've never had this issue with the furnace but have had a similar issue with the fridge. I solved it by taking compressed air - a can of THIS kind of stuff is sufficient. Be careful to NOT blow back towards the needle valve but do blow out around the burner, the igniter, and up the flue. It doesn't take much dirt, dust, bug stuff to cause a failure on that igniter sensor. BIll

Over the years I have not had all that many situations where I needed to lift the tires (one side at a time) off the ground. In all but one situation I have used the onboard jacks/stabilizers for this purpose. However, there was one situation when I used the jack included with my tow vehicle. With all of my campers owned previous to the Oliver, I simply used a 4 ton bottle jack. If you decide to use the bottle jack, consider preparing a block of wood to accept the rather small head of the jack. Not only does this help prevent the head of the jack from slipping but it also helps distribute the load over a greater surface area when jacking. Bill p.s. (edit) also consider carrying something that can be used to raise the jack higher towards the frame and/or reduce the distance from the jack/stabilizer(s) to the ground. This "something" can be as simple as a couple of 1 or 2 by 6 boards or 6x6 blocks.

Which is why one gets something like THIS. Bill

Yes - I've heard it said before - "when it gets hot, get high" 🤣

Carl - I'd like to add to your plus points for the Andersen by saying that the Andersen will also greatly help to reduce "porpoising" (i.e. that bouncing that occurs when towing over something like the expansion joints on the interstate). I believe that this is particularly so when towing with relative lighter weight vehicles. Bill p.s. Congratulations on actually joining the family - it really is nice to have you with us. October will be here before you know it and that is a great month for getting to know your new Ollie.

TexasGuy - Many of us have wrestled with the same items as you are dealing with. To some degree I very much agree with SeaDawg - it depends on your camping style and where you tend to camp. Having said that - 1. I didn't have as many choices as you did on the subject of awnings, but, I chose to go simple. Even with wind sensors I would not trust that sensor to protect what could be a fairly expensive repair in the event the sensor was not fast enough or simply failed outright. Also, since I rarely camp in the desert I have not missed getting the streetside awning. 2. There is no question in my mind about solar since it gives me so much additional freedom and choice. However, that is not the question you asked. I chose the standard flooded wet cell batteries with the addition of the watering system. My thinking at the time was similar to yours - just how much time can it take to add water to those batteries - and I've found that indeed I was correct, it really doesn't take much time at all. Without the watering system I think that I'd have a different answer due to the sheer number of cells and the ability to reach those cells towards the back of the battery tray. I don't remember the numbers, but, with the addition of the watering system, the price difference was not as much as $500. But, even for a couple hundred I would have made the same decision as I did. Both AGM's and flooded wet cells should last 5 to 7 or 8 years with good maintenance. Hopefully at that time the price or alternatives will be even cheaper than they are today. You might also want to take a look at the "Lithium vs others" thread for a discussion about the long range costs of the various battery types in today's market (primarily this discussion only talks about the batteries themselves and not the associated costs of other "supporting" items that you will probably need to run or maintain lithium). 3. I got the standard water heater. That sure is a bunch of money to upgrade to the Truma. When I'm camping all I have to do is to remember to turn the water heater on ten minutes or so before I want hot water. If I forget, then all I have to do is wait the ten minutes. It really isn't like I'm rushing off somewhere and there is always something to do during that ten minutes - perhaps a glass of wine? Then, I simply turn it off - I NEVER just let it stay on since there is no reason to heat water just in case. 4. I also stayed with the standard toilet. Again, I simply could not justify the cost and already knew that emptying the grey and black tanks are no big deal. Add to this the fact that the Natures Head sits higher off the floor, it was a no brainer for me. Yes, from what I hear, composting toilets do save a bit of water. But, there are fairly easy ways around that issue too - portable tanks (heck, even the Nature's Head has a portable tank of sorts), "Double Duty" bags for instance. 5. Contrary to the "saving money" issues above, I did get the fiber granite option. I believe that this is a matter of taste and felt that the standard interior was simply not to my liking. This was a fairly simple way to give my Oliver a bit of decoration without having to tax my lack of decorating skills. Given that both the standard and optional surfaces are made of basically the same material I don't see where one would be "better" than the other. However, with the fiber granite, should you damage the surface below the pantry, or on top of the fridge, or on top of the night stand, these can easily be replaced. 6. I think that ctshort09's comments are good. Certainly do not get the WiFi option if you plan on using it in commercial campgrounds since these places simply do not have enough "bandwidth" to satisfy all campers demand. Since I do not have a cell phone, I rely heavily on email for communication while I'm on the road. I was/am surprised at a benefit of the WiFi booster that I had not considered prior to getting my Oliver - how much I use that booster while actually traveling from place to place. No longer do I have to cart my tablet or laptop into McDonalds, Starbucks, Wendy's, WalMart, Lowes, etc. I simply pull into the parking lot and with my WiFi booster I've got all the signal I need to send and download email and/or get to the internet. Good luck with your decisions. What is good for one is not good for all. Just take a hard look at what you intend to do with your Oliver and let that be your general guide. Bill

From time to time I've viewed the YouTube channel "Mortons On The Move" - particularly when they were touring Alaska. However, it wasn't until I viewed the video linked below that I found out that Tom Morton is an electrical engineer. In any case, in This YouTube Video Tom tests Battleborn Lithium batteries against AGM and regular flooded cell lead acid batteries and shows much of the data from these tests. If anyone would prefer to read versus watch, you can co that HERE. Bill

Yes - that location for the fuse on the propane alarm is a very good thing to know. Somehow these alarms always seem to find a way to "ALARM" in the wee hours of the morning and trying to find that fuse at that point is difficult. Bill

tallmandan, Welcome aboard and welcome to the Family. Pictures are always welcome and don't be shy with the questions as you learn all about your new Oliver. Bill