John E Davies

Has anyone read the actual thesis? The abstract shown doesn’t say anything new or exciting, it is common knowledge. I would be very interested to see charts showing the rate of degradation compared to temperature and SOC. If 100 degrees and 100% SOC is bad, how much worse is 120 degrees? 140? It can get toasty hot inside that box, as delivered. I do try to park with my battery box facing north and/ or pick a site that is shaded after noon when the temperatures are expected to be extreme. And I keep the batteries well below 100%. If I lived and routinely camped in the arid SW desert states I would probably pass on lithium batteries entirely. EDIT, never mind, you can download the entire thesis on the History tab, it is 197 pages so it may take a while to digest the information. I will try to read it when I have a lot more time. I am off to grease jack actuator gears…. https://diysolarforum.com/resources/calendar-aging-and-lifetimes-of-lifepo4-batteries-and-considerations-for-repurposing.263/version/463/download John Davies Spokane WA

Chaco is 5 miles of “very rough” road followed by 13 miles of “rough” road. Heed the warnings on websites like this, with a big grain of salt. https://www.nps.gov/chcu/planyourvisit/directions.htm Government websites are hyper cautious when it comes to road descriptions, usually the roads are not nearly as bad as they say. BUT if it rains, they can be completely impassable for a day or two. It depends on the type of dirt. An Ollie is fine for dry conditions, on most maintained two lane access roads, but you have to proceed at a jogging pace over bad washboard. You can’t go fast or it just beats up the trailer and the TV. So ten miles of washboard takes me an hour or more, it is frustrating! Airing down all tires helps a lot. 80 psi is no good at all…. I keep pushing for a better suspension design, there are much better choices than the Dexter Ez-Flex/ drum brakes for where you and I want to take the trailer. Tell your sales person you want better! https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/4265-timbren-independent-rubber-suspension/ John Davies Spokane WA

The roof is slick and it should be kept that way, just like the hull of a boat, so it will still look that way 30 years from now. A senior should not spend lots of time up there! If you do have to go up, you can lay down strips of high density foam for padding and slip protection. A blue Coleman “egg crate” sleeping pad split lengthwise works great. This are not like a flat roof with rubber membrane on top on a stick and staple trailer, with a ladder in back. With that type, the owner is expected climb up often to walk around and clean and reseal everything. OFTEN. Ollies are different, expect to spend very minimal time up there, most stuff can be done by a regular ladder or telescoping one when traveling, if storage space is tight. John Davies Spokane WA

TomW - a personal tour, or better yet, a factory tour, will show you how fine these Ollies are. Water leaks happen, but on a scale of 1-10 they are a 2 at most. More a minor annoyance, to be fixed when you get back home, rather than a “OMG a leak, the walls are going to rot, we have to stop this right now!” Which is a 10, and very common to 99% of the other trailers in the market. Even the glass egg trailers like Casita have major worries, because they use SO much wood for the interior. Do read other brand forums for a true perspective !!! There are so few truly big problems with our trailers that we have to talk about the little stuff to stay busy…. Do keep in mind that most appliances in all trailers will not be remotely up to the standard you expect from your home units. Which is a shame, but to be expected for their cost, and the fact that the whole trailer gets rattled and shaken over tens of thousands of miles. Your home furnace could not withstand that. BTW there are a few Ollies with way more than 100,000 towing miles. Stick and staple trailers fall apart long before that. Often on the first trip. Google this term: “travel trailer broken frame tongue” or “Airstream popped rivets” or “Airstream hail damage” and weep. John Davies Spokane WA

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10695961/Indiana-woman-rescued-Nevada-mountainside-reveals-husband-got-LOST-following-GPS.html I have been following this for a week. They made a WHOLE lot of very simple mistakes that added up to personal disaster. They were not even able to backtrack properly in their TOAD, and that also got stuck on a side track…. Please, don’t follow your gps blindly, and never venture into the remote boonies without a satellite communicator and adequate emergency supplies. This spot is truly remote. John Davies Spokane WA

I will add that you should contact a news tv station in Alberquerque, usually the bigger city stations have a consumer advocate reporter that might be happy to post a story with your dash cam picture and very dramatic rolled Ollie images. The odds are VERY high that the guy is local, and somebody will see the pic and notify that news station. Nobody likes hit and run drivers, especially the ones that flee a potentially fatal accident scene without even stopping... By getting away, he most likely will re-offend, meaning the high likelihood that he will kill some people. Have the police made any progress, or have they given up? It is time to get mad about this, and actively pursue leads. Did you see this story from exactly a year ago from Idaho? Unfortunately, dramatic crashes are newsworthy. I think yours is too. Good luck. John Davies Spokane WA

I am looking for non-permanent (no drill) racks for shower sundries (shampoo, body wash, tooth paste, face towel) and also pill bottles and contact lens solutions in the galley, high up behind the range. There is 24” wide x 9.5” tall space there (with the range cover lifted for use, which we rarely actually use.) I haven’t measured the bathroom walls, but there seems to be plenty of room. None of the racks would be loaded while traveling. There are a bunch, here are three I found. Any comments or other suggestions are most welcome. I am leaning toward the last one, because it doesn’t rely on a big adhesive sheet of clear plastic. And I only want 304 stainless, not “chrome metal” or plastic. My wife has been bugging me to get this done. Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

How do the prices compare? Doe the oil separate from th waxy carrier in the Mobile 1? Redline does but only a tiny tiny amount.... so it is great for the suspension, it doesn't leave a drooly mess. I am a huge Redline fanboy.... John Davies Spokane WA

Some of us would prefer the Alde hydronic furnace/ hot water system….. it is much more compact, SIPS DC power and is completely silent. The Ollie double wall design is perfect for this! Running all the heating water lines and radiators along both sides of the trailer at the bottom of the walls would eliminate cold spots that are prone to freezing, and it would also eliminate those huge troublesome air ducts. Pleeeese! I would do this myself in a heartbeat, but Alde will not sell parts to anybody but OEM manufacturers like nuCamp. https://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-reviews/alde-hydronic-heating-system-test-and-review/ Check out some of their accessories, like heated towel racks. https://www.alde.us/our-products/ John Davies Spokane WA

I forgot, you both really need to get checked out medically, you can have all sorts of whiplash injuries from a high speed rollover, better make sure those aches are not broken bones or worse. I guess this may sound a little morbid, but can you post the full video of the accident? John Davies Spokane WA

Holy cow, you are so very lucky to be alive. Good luck with your search for a new truck and a new Ollie. Stuff can be replaced, lives cannot. I installed a dash cam several years ago, I have recorded lots of stop sign and red light runners, but thankfully there hasn’t been a collision. Did the guy ever get arrested? I think your insurance companies will want a word or two with him. John Davies Spokane WA

FYI, that red southern Utah dust is full of iron, 1% + iron oxide, thus the red color, it gets on printed circuit boards and unsealed butt splices and wire terminals. Add a little moisture, like in your fridge compartment, and you can get serious corrosion, if it is a bad enough layer it could actually short things. After my trip to Canyonlands my LX450 trailer lights quit working, I opened up the split loom protecting the wires and red dust poured out, and two splices were severely corroded..They don’t mention this at the Utah or Moab visitor centers. I live the red rock country, but not the red dust. If a bunch gets inside your Ollie you could have issues. John Davies Spokane WA

The first step is to make sure it is actually the windows. A roof leak can let water run down inside the air gap between inner and outer hulls and appear as a window leak. John Davies Spokane WA

My personal opinion: The fridge outlet is put in place when the lower half of the outer hull is wired (in compliance with the RV code) to make it very fast and easy for the tech to connect the fridge when that is installed later. It would take much longer to connect a hard wired junction box and install its cover, perhaps another ten to fifteen minutes. That adds up in production costs. This is the same reason they use regular solid core “house wire” and outlets with “back stab” connections which are flaky and unreliable even in the stationary walls of your home…. . Those make it fast and simple for relatively untrained people to install electrical components, compared to the much higher quality (and much more expensive) marine grade multi-strand wire ….https://www.amazon.com/10-AWG-Triplex-Marine-Wire/dp/B06X6L6W2C ….. and crimped end terminals, which IMHO “should” be used in Ollies. These are used in those high end expedition vehicle$; no way would Earth Roamer select house wire…. Oliver would either need to just absorb that extra production cost or bump up the price again to compensate. Improvements like this j-box change are “death by a thousand cuts” to a company’s profits. They have to weigh that against customer satisfaction, future warranty costs, and the very remote likelihood of a lawsuit from somebody who has a lethal accident fumbling around back there with wet hands…. I think they are much more likely to switch to a GFCI outlet there instead of a waterproof solution like mine. That would probably cost less in the long run than the increased installation labor needed to hardwire a j-box. It is also a much easier solution for retrofitting earlier hulls if they ever decide to issue a Technical Bulletin. My OPINION. 😀 John Davies Spokane WA

That is an important consideration, definitely. In this case I am not concerned since the drawer sides and bottoms are both made from wood. If they were different materials, then definitely do not glue. I think this is one of those situations where you have to decide whether you want the bottom to bow down and perhaps fall out of a groove, or stay in place and possibly crack. If an owner is concerned, he can Google “floating drawer bottom”, do some reading in the woodworkers forums, and decide for himself. BTW, I live in, and generally camp in, an arid part of the country, so prolonged high humidly or dramatic moisture changes is rarely a worry. And a couple of my drawers are quite heavily loaded, they are not all filled with plastic utensils or lightweight personal items. Thanks very much for the comment. John Davies Spokane WA

The fridge in Hull 218 (2017) is also a separate, dedicated circuit. Jason in Service told me in an email that Oliver is looking into this and he will post an official comment when he knows more. I cannot say more. John Davies Spokane WA

How much do they weigh? They look a little large to me. These are the ones I use, they are quite compact and they don't need solid valve stems. In fact, I like the way they flex, it makes it easier to wake them up in the morning before departure, with a finger flick. They are only 0.5 ounces. If you add too much weight the tire will be a little out of balance. Yours ARE balanced, correct? 😉 John Davies Spokane WA

Here is a pic from that other thread showing how the screws can pull out of the front part of the drawer. John Davies Spokane WA

Here is a new “roving” test from Outside magazine. https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-gear/camping/starlink-high-speed-internet-camping-test/ It sure sounds interesting but the subscription price would be hard for me to swallow. Will they offer a month by month subscription? My inReach one can be cancelled any time and started right back up again later, no worries. I still have issues with all those tens of thousands of darned satellites clogging up the sky. I think that is going to turn out badly. John Davies Spokane WA

It is not cavitation, the system is full of water and all the air is bled out. John Davies Spokane WA

These drawers are not at all intuitive when it comes to taking them out of the galley cabinet. It is dead easy if you pretend that you are a simpleton and don't over think things... . Stand over the end of the open drawer, reach under the sides at the very front with both hands. Put your fingers underneath on the inner edge of the orange release thingies and squeeze, move your fingers toward your palms. The latches will release and you can lift the drawer up and out, away from the slides, which will probably spring back out of sight. That is the "self closing" feature at work. Here is what is going on: The drawer is held to the latch assembly by two TINY SHORT screws. They are known to strip out the soft wood. Sometimes you will find the drawer lying up by the bathroom door with spatulas and other stuff scattered everywhere. Tighten them gently, they will move! If they are stripped, install longer ones. FYI this is a six year old drawer, Oliver may have altered these parts. For example, mine don't have the inner safety latches. Note that you might want to wear disposable gloves. EDIT: one member installed 1” long screws, driven into new holes at an angle, and found that to be a very solid way to do this. Here is the end of the slide, showing the opening that catches the latch. THIS IS SO VERY COOL! I just discovered it after all these years.... On the bottom of each slide, about 5 inches in from the end, is a tiny pin that sticks down. When reinstalling the drawer, you can use it to pull the slide outwards until it clicks into the latch. It keeps your fingers away from the grease too. Finally, you can flip each drawer and lay a thin bead of wood glue around the joint between the bottom and the sides and let it sit overnight. It will dry almost clear, so don't worry about minor mistakes. Plus nobody but you will ever know. I do not recommend gluing the inside of the drawers, that will show and it also has some sort of protective clear coat, so the glue might not stick. This thread is very much related: ... https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2151-how-to-galley-drawer-travel-straps/ John Davies Spokane WA

This pump has worked flawlessly for five seasons, it was good just a month ago when I serviced the water system. Now suddenly it won't make any pressure, it just sort of stutters and lurches.Could this be a pressure sensor failure? Video - SHURflo 4008-101-A65 water pump hiccups I am ready to order a new one - $59 Prime, I guess I got my use out of it. Thanks for any comments. https://www.amazon.com/SHURflo-Revolution-Water-Pump-4008-101-A65/dp/B010TKMK4O This is a really weird week for me, I am losing water pumps. The hot water recirculation pump in my house started chirping like a lost baby bird two days ago, and I ordered a new pump for that system..... John Davies Spokane WA

???? The second one, in the back, is a combo CO/ smoke detector. I am not sure how you interpreted it differently. At least with propane, the nose works really well to detect even small leaks. John Davies Spokane WA

Would you mind sharing the cost for the new Truma and the replacement labor? Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

You have a SECOND CO detector, in back with the smoke alarm. Removing one isn't going to kill anybody, as long as the other one works. A malfunctioning alarm that keeps blasting for no reason is 100% useless, and must be silenced IMHO, until it can be replaced. Which should be done ASAP, not at the end of a long trip. The two red wires coming off the detector get spliced together, I don't recall wyhy the second one is there, I think it is for an alternative power source. Just connect them onto one terminal of the switch and run a new wire back from the other terminal to connect to the Oliver power wire. I used a SPST switch (Single Pole Single Throw) switch, it doesn't matter which terminals you use. If you use an illuminated switch with an LED, then polarity does matter, and you also have to run a separate ground wire for the LED. What is really confusing is how Oliver uses non standard colors for their DC wires ! I don't understand how they expect an owner or technician to do anything since they no longer publish diagrams. John Davies Spokane WA