topgun2

Very carefully?😁 Actually, I think that this would be a close to impossible task. The reason for this thinking is that it would be extremely unlikely that the location of the attachment of the emergency brake cable on the tow vehicle would be the same as the location of the emergency brake switch (located for most of us on the driver's side frame) and the tow vehicle and trailer would be lined up in exactly the same way during the accident as it was when initially secured to the TV and the trailer. Virtually any turn to the left by the tow vehicle would tend to shorten the distance between the switch and the cable's point of attachment and vice versa for a turn to the right. Then add any hinderance of the cable which might make that distance between the the cable attachment point and the switch relatively shorter or longer plus the braking differences of the two moving objects that you mention all would tend to make for this impossible task of getting the distance "dialed in". In the only case I know about where the trailer became detached from the tow vehicle, I believe that the emergency brake switch WAS activated and the trailer slowed much faster than the tow vehicle. In turn, this kept the safety chains tight preventing the bulldog from digging into the pavement. Bill

I've never noted any "testing" but I have always said that the Andersen does give the user an additional point of contact between the tow vehicle and the trailer. Of course, if the "accident" involved virtually anything to do with the hitch ball and/or its connection to the TV then the Andersen chains would be of little to no use. Bill

I have camped in the Telluride City Park campground. Its a bit crowded and they used to charge for showers via one of those quarters in the machine deals, but, it is very close to town (i.e. you can walk easily). I understand that they still allow camping there - but - you must make reservations online. Try THIS for info and reservations. Bill

Gj - The rest of that sentence is "of attachment to that tow vehicle". The emergency brake cable is there to slow/stop the trailer in the event it becomes detached from the tow vehicle. With any luck, the safety chains would keep the tow vehicle and the trailer attached to each other AND the emergency brake cable would become "tight" enough so as to activate the emergency brake switch - thus activating the trailer brakes in such a manner that the trailer would slow faster than the tow vehicle. This would help help prevent the trailer from slamming into the back of the tow vehicle but keep the safety chains tight enough such that the hitch would not dig into the pavement. This very thing happened once to our very own Bugeyedriver and there was no real damage done to either his tow vehicle nor the trailer. Bill

Mfg only - it saves wear and tear on the tank and insulation let alone safety underfoot for the workers. No real idea - other than they didn't have another piece of plywood? I'll take a look but I can't put my finger (mouse) on it right now. Bill

p.s. Of course I have assumed that you are getting an Elite II. Bill

Lamar - There are several places here on the Forum where you can see pics of the location of the fresh water tank (and grey/black tanks). I believe that these pics will generally confirm your idea of the placement for these tanks. Another consideration (for more than one reason) regarding the tanks is the depth of the tanks - they are not very tall but they are relatively wide and long. The good news is that this helps with the weight distribution of the contents - keeps the weight low and more evenly distributed over the frame relative to other RV's. The bad news is that the Oliver can be a bit more subject to its "level" - if the Oliver is slanted towards the nose, it will drain the tanks somewhat more slowly than other RV's. For what its worth - I generally try to not tow relatively long distances with anything in my tanks. This is not due to problems with either the frame or body of the camper, but, more weight due to the water is certainly not going to help with the MPG on my tow vehicle. In the pic below you can see the fresh water tank (on the left) and its relation to the wheel wells and front door. Hope this helps you! Bill

Below is a pic of the "hood" I made for my camera. Your camera housing is a bit different (I'd guess) but it was not too difficult to fashion the hood I made. It does cut down on glare but even though I painted the underside with ultra flat black paint, there is still some glare produced by the Oliver's "marker" lights when driving at night. Bill

As John D said above - a quick call to Oliver will get you these disks. If/when you re-install them , you can make sure that they will never again "pop" out if you place a bead of something like "E6000" (THIS STUFF) (which is available at WalMart, Amazon, Ace Hardware, etc.) all around the back side of the disk. Unfortunately, this requires that you remove each wheel in order to get to the back side, but, you will only have to do this once. Mine are going on ten years since I did this and I've not lost a single one since. Bill

Mark - Do you really mean "hub caps" like the ones jd1923 is referencing or do you mean "trailer hub dust caps" like THESE? The reason I ask is that it is rather difficult for the "hub caps" to fall off but (obviously) they are rather easy to "dent" and/or that disk with the Oliver logo that is normally in the center can fall out. Bill

Nope & Nope. However, I do turn off the solar panels and have no other electricity going into the camper. I check the state of charge on the batteries around mid February each year and they have always been good. Then, in April, I take my 25 watt solar panel and plug it into the batteries so that they slowly charge back up to 100% over the next month or so. Of course, if I had that sweet setup that you have I'd probably do things a bit differently, but, this seems to work well so far. Bill Note: I used a spoon (not very elegant) to carve out room for the existing rubber gasket seal on the door - I didn't want to remove that gasket (because it seemed to seal the battery compartment fairly well) nor did I want to simply cut the foam board to fit inside the gasket.

Another way or as an addition - you could always add insulation in the form of "foam board" to that door. Bill

Steve - I almost sent you my condolences regarding the K-pop music. But the jazz and blues brought me back to what I believe is the real world even though I didn't see any Keb Mo in your list. Best of Keb Mo Bill

I'd guess that if you check the details, you will find that a weight distribution hitch will be required by the manufacturer when towing an Ollie II. Also, remember that the hitch weight gets deducted from that 1547 and with most Elite II's that will mean something like 600 pounds which will leave you with under 900 pounds. So, you will need to be a bit careful on that weight. Bill

HERE'S another YouTube observation on the subject - start the Battle Born segment at 2:27 of the video. Bill

Gary - There is already a three page thread on this subject. Try CLICKING HERE to start reading. Bill

Have you tested this Silence/Test switch? Does it really Silence the alarm for more than a couple of minutes? If so, how do you turn it back "on"? Bill

This is NOT the greatest pic below of the frame I made for a switch and the place that the frame was located - just inboard of the detector under the dinette seat. I used two part epoxy and left it dry overnight and it has been in that spot for the past 7 years. Make special note of ADKCamper's note above about "flagging" this or any other safety unit when you have it out of service. Bill 2 inch square bracket for propane switch.jfif

Yet another reason you got that Ollie! 😀

Of course the answer to the first question depends on a number of factors - how cloudy is it and for how long is it cloudy? How depleted are the batteries to start with? I replaced my lead acid batteries (400 ah) with two 230 ah li batteries thus just about doubling the usable capacity of energy. But, my actual usage has stayed just about the same as it was before the upgrade. So, my standard Oliver solar panels have absolutely no problem fully charging these new batteries to 100% every day AND I have plenty of capacity in the event there are several days of no sun. Asking about brands of batteries is akin to asking about brands of truck, cars, etc.. To each his own. For what its worth, I purchased LiTimes and have had zero problems. However, I understand that Epoch is making a nice battery and, of course, there is always the higher end Battle Borns. Check to make sure that the manufacturer is using #1/grade A cells and then it is a matter of the features that you might want/need (i.e. bluetooth, heated, on/off switches, etc.). I'd wait on the DC to DC charging until you have the experience with the new batteries. If you actually need the extra charging then you can add it later. Bill

AI has the following to say on the subject of AGM battery life: "AGM (Absorbent Glass Mat) batteries generally last 3 to 8 years, but the lifespan depends heavily on usage: expect 3-5 years for deep cycling (RVs, marine) and 5-8 years for standby/float (backup power), with high-quality units potentially lasting longer. Key factors include temperature, quality, depth of discharge (how deeply it's drained), and charging practices, with extreme heat or shallow discharges shortening life, while proper maintenance extends it. " Therefore, as Mike says above - you are probably at or very near the end of life for your current batteries. Bill

Ditto for me. Relatively speaking, our installs are at the lower end of the scale of difficulty. Without additional monitoring devices (think Victron stuff here) there is some requirement for having a bit of experience with energy usage. Speaking for myself - while using my "old" lead acid batteries I never had an occasion where the batter charge of those was below 83% FULL! So, when I got my LiTime Li batteries that had even more amp hours of capacity AND they could be discharged much lower than the 50% limit of the old lead acid batteries, I found myself virtually bathing in a wonderful supply of energy. I should note here that I VERY RARELY have a need for air conditioning and I am VERY conservative of even using the furnace (think blower motor using electricity here). But, if you are in a similar boat, you too can do this conversation VERY easily. But, if you want/need more bells and whistles then adding what you need is really not too difficult. Bill

With shop rates getting to the point of about $150.00 per hour, you are probably a touch low on the $50. But around $75 per wheel would probably get it done. Bill p.s. while just about any boat or regular trailer can do this job - I'd ask around a bit to get some recommendations. Bearing service is NOT difficult. But, if it is not done properly it can cause you some real headaches down that lonesome road.

Or--- How about this for a little back ground/elevator music? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JC3h7z83OeI&list=PLc9188Xa99jH0yPXAQzo4pDbbilSfFWGE&index=4

Gene - There are a bunch of posts here on the Forum about anything ranging from minimal (me) to substantial Li overhauls that were done by anything ranging from rank novices (me) to certified professional outfits. Have fun reading! Bill