jd1923

Can’t be much. Haven’t tested but likely about 0.02A. Anybody test it power on then off?

Put a gallon or two of water in the black tank, laundry soap or something, and it will last longer than several gray tank fills!

Excellent work @rich.dev! Getting bored at Quartzsite?!

Excellent work on your part and the price is amazing considering prices today! Thank you.

We have Garmin in Kenwood receivers in two of our vehicles. I’ve been getting update warnings and have to figure out how to do so. Hope I don’t have to pay a license fee.

Not in our closet! Barely enough room for my few hanging items, if you know what I mean. If we had rain or bugs, less wind… I may consider one. Heck, we don’t even use our awning! 🤣

Thought about one. Found really good price Amazon used and ask myself, do I want to carry one? Which led to the answer no. And that was before reading this. @DavePhelps love the windsock pic. Reminds me of a past trip to Moab!

Unless there is anything wrong besides the door panel delaminating, you would not want to remove the jamb and do all that work, resealing etc. hope the price of the “core” is reasonable! Yes, let us know and thank you.

I no longer trust battery chargers to be on for months in any kind of advertised maintenance mode. Years ago I did that using a Battery Tender on an AGM motorcycle battery and I had to replace it the very next summer! Epoch Batteries states “for long-term storage maintain at least 50% SOC and periodically recharge to maintain battery health.” We never store our Oliver. It’s always outside, solar charger on, rarely connected to shore power, so no supplemental charging. I will only plug in if it gets under 50% but generally stays 80-90% with SC alone. It’s good know the batteries at night are mainly at rest, providing -2A (with Victron inverter and Outside Courtesy lights on), and in winter sun recharging slowly during the day. 😂

Route 66 between Kingman and Oatman is not for the faint of heart!

Quartzsite -> Parker -> Lake Havasu -> Needles CA -> Kingman -> Peach Springs -> Colorado River, bottom of the Grand Canyon! Heading to Needles is a bit out of the way but you can pickup Route 66 there and take a truly scenic trip through Oatman AZ on the way to Kingman! If you’ve been to Lake Havasu and don’t care to visit again, you can take US 95 from Blythe to Needles CA or jog over from Parker AZ for a quicker route. If you don’t want to tow your Oliver down, there is Grand Canyon Caverns RV Park on Route 66 just 12 miles east of Peach Springs. I’m thinking of a New Year’s Day trip, also weather permitting. I’ll report back if we do it.

About 5 miles west of Flagstaff Hwy 66 merges into I-40. Next place you can pick it up is 7 miles west of Ash Fork AZ and 18 miles on US 66 takes you to Seligman AZ. Next town is Peach Springs AZ. If you want a great side trip you can take Diamond Creek Rd, Indian Route 6 a 22 mile dirt road, and drive to the Colorado River at the very bottom of the Grand Canyon! We have not done this trip yet, but plan to do it this winter. Ash Fork btw is just 47 miles due north of our home up AZ-89. I've watched a few videos on this. They drive large school buses down there to pick up people from rafting expeditions, so no reason a solid truck with Oliver in tow could not make it. There are several campsites near the bottom too! You need a Hualapai Indian Reservation travel permit which you can get in town. The road should be fine during the winter. During spring you’d cross running water in the Peach Springs Wash in a few places and the road could get real. This stretch of Hwy 66 circles NE and later SW ending up in Kingman AZ. It’s a beautiful drive that has the look of Route 66 before there were Interstates!

Thanks @Steve Morris. I’ve always used the simple Ancra utility strap to tie down dirt bikes and motorcycles (for 30 years) and had not heard of Rollercam before. I’ll check them out! There is the place for ratchet straps, but I prefer a cam-lock for many needs. They’re smaller, quicker to mount and the large ratchet can bang and damage cargo if not placed carefully or wrapped. Two quick pulls on two Ancra straps to the handlebars of my dirt bike and it’s mounted for travel in a minute! https://ancracargo.com/utility-tie-downs/cam-buckle-strap-packs/

Then what you have is all you need!

Our Oliver went back to OTT for service with a prior owner (April 2018) and among other service had an EasyStart installed. I imagine, but not certain, it's still working since we can run the 13.5K BTU Dometic Penguin II by inverter, our Victron 3000VA MP2. After startup, the compressor cycles ON-OFF-ON and then stays on and blows cold. Not sure if this behavior is standard and it's always the same pattern. Is it the EasyStart that creates the initial cycling? We will purchase an Atmos early next year and wondering, can I reuse this EasyStart on the new A/C? Is there a way to test it's functionality? Is the EasyStart product equal to the SoftStart? If it still works and is viable, I would be very happy to save $300 on a new one! The way OTT installed this worries me a little. Why would OTT install it upside down (see picture), so that the wire harness is on top? Hoping the wire gland truly sealed the opening and the electronics stayed dry through the years. Maybe they thought the upper area near the cover would stay drier than down below. I will be able to see internal condition when I remove it and will need to know before I order the Atmos, as SDG will install a new one with purchase. I will talk to EasyStart tech support and Kevin at SDG about this soon. I'm sure he would supply a wiring diagram for the Atmos. What do y'all think?

Likely not a fair competition! Ron has only had 4 years with his Oliver, me a poor little 18 months now. Steve is the original Oliver Pioneer! 😂

You too Tom! Didn't we meet at the dump station upon leaving? Too bad it wasn't a few days sooner! I met Ron at the Rally and what a pleasure to meet this Southern Gentleman! Can I say @Ronbrink is a nut? 🤣 Or perhaps a pack rat?! Love the guy and I know we've learned a lot from each other on this forum, long before meeting in person. There is NOBODY more prepared than Ron, though I must say, I have not yet met Steve! 🤣 @ScubaRx Hoping we will run into each other soon. I have the first week of Feb open to get down to Quartzsite, or points between! I prefer to pack a bit lighter than Ron, and Steve, but their mods are the tops! EXCELLENT well-presented post here. Thank you Ron, for posting ALL your great work! I've copied more than a couple of your mods.

To each their own. If I was going to replace the front basket, I would consider paying extra for Made in USA quality, good point. It must fit when turning, steering full-cocked, and be careful when backing up, as the angle can get tighter and even hit the smaller OEM basket. I know, as there's a crease in my rear bumper, whoops! I don't travel with gas cans, period, for the spills and smells alone, let alone safety reasons. Everything we need is connected to the two OEM installed 30# LP tanks. If you must, consider a safety container, one that has less chance of exploding in an accident. Not sure of the safety rating of the gas can above, and I'm not recommending these brands, but this link will give you the idea: 5 Best Off-Road Gas Cans for Overlanding and Wheeling - Adventures on the Rock Then there is also the issue that ethanol-based fuel should be used within 30 days. Learned recently that Stabil doesn't really work. You can buy ethanol-free fuel which lasts somewhat longer. Maverick sells it in our area. LP tanks can be filled and kept in storage for as long as you would need. I'm of the mindset of going high-end inverter, MORE AHs and solar wattage, and leave the ugly (sounding) generator at home! It's not worth the weight and they're heavy, so is the extra fuel. As @Patriot noted, 42 days out west without the need! I imagine he uses LP, but if he carried gas, it would be bad by the time they got home. I'm always emptying the fuel tanks of our dirt bikes, within a few days of returning home, and my yard tools before winter, pouring the left-over gas into my son's old truck (he appreciates it)! Do this in time, or not at all. I also keep a 5-gallon steel gas can for old gas and use it to clean auto parts for my restoration projects. Kerosene or Diesel is safer, but I use what I have. 3 trucks, 2 cars, 3 dirt vehicles and 8 gas-powered yard tools, the last thing I would need is another 1-2 gas cans!!! I understand those who live SE and need to run A/C all day either need shore power or generator. Our remedy is don't travel during summer months. Our usual travel season is late September through May. Next year we will travel early summer, only to visit family in MN and northern states to and from. Chris doesn't like summer, so we stay home where she plays pickleball indoors 3-4 times a week! Me only 1-2 times weekly, since I'm always working on something! If our 720W solar (with Renogy 400W suitcase) will not keep our 600AH LiFePO4 batteries up to par after a week of boondocking, we find a spot with hookups for the night! Next year, after I install the efficient Atmos A/C, we will be able to run the A/C for a couple hours a day off-grid. Food for thought and best wishes to all. JD

They were likely getting tooooo many people living in their RVs for 14 days, then another 14 days. There are too many in AZ for sure. The economy is not getting better for many. We just pay for a few days here and there, so it looks like that's just $5 more per day. On our recent trip to Ruidoso NM, we noted there is camping ANY direction just a few miles out of town. If you need hookups, that's an issue, but think BLM vs. State Parks, in most western states for a better experience! Camping | Bureau of Land Management

Likely not allowed to per their Truma agreement. I found 4 on eBay. Two in the UK for $200+ and two in Australia for $400+!

Truma products are not for DIY-ers! My understanding is that they will not sell replacement parts but must be dealer installed. A Truma service tech installed about 8 SoftStart units in Truma A/Cs at the recent Texas Rally. From what I heard at the rally, the SoftStart had to be installed by Truma Service to retain product warranty. Wow, not a considerate policy! This aftermarket part can be purchased anywhere for under $300 and any first-year installer can splice the few wires and strap the part in place in a half hour or so. You can read here many positive testimonies for Truma products, yet also many posts reporting product issues. Truma seems best for those who had them OEM installed by OTT and those who service their Olivers with OTT. Why did you want Truma? You may have hit a dead-end on that used heater, or perhaps you can source a used control panel somewhere. Best wishes.

Yep, $1200 for a toolbox no way for me! 🤣 With another $150 an Atmos AC system can be shipped to my door! Certainly a good price on this one. You made the frame weaker by drilling through it in 4 places. They show it mounted with U-bolts. I would add a steel plate under the compressor, large enough to cover all frame members short of the outer perimeter. Hold it down by the same 4 bolts to strengthen those points and better support your generator. I also like the ability to pull U-turns, steering fully cocked. I've found that even with my long-bed truck, Oliver in tow, I can pull a rather tight U-y when needed, as sharp as I can turn without the Oliver in tow. I'm happy with the basket OTT installed. We don't carry a generator, and our LP fire ring and several accessories fit nicely up there.

@T-Oliver glad to see you got the Epoch sale! Which one(s)? #AHs? I don't remember HW dipswitches on the Blue Sky (did I miss something?), just a whole lot of menu selections on the IPN-Pro interface. I talked to and emailed with Ryan Gurin a few times. What a great, very detailed and helpful guy He even advised me on setup of the Victron MP2, that's going beyond the call of duty! He sent me this link and it's just what you need. Later part of the video bottom of page goes through the setup steps. It took me 3 tries to get through all the keystrokes without making a mistake! How to program BSE charge controllers for LiFePO4 batteries – Sunforge LLC The settings are similar to what Ken wrote. Off my head, I remember Epoch suggesting 14.2V where Battleborn states 14.4V but check your battery Epoch battery manual to be sure. It's great to have the settings list in writing in addition to the video to keep things straight.

Yes, this will work if all you want is the battery upgrade. Today is the LAST day for 15% OFF Epoch Batteries if you're thinking this product!

I moved the scaffolding all around the Oliver this weekend to wash her thoroughly. It's been forever LOL, actually never in 18 months, since on prior trip returns, I have only hit the travel dirt with my pressure washer! It's great how this scaffolding can be set at different heights left-to-right. Given the slope of our driveway, I had one side mounted up two holes about 4". And BTW, notice the in the pictures above, how the original install has the 4 monstrous brackets attached to the Sat Dish (Winegard makes big extra bucks selling these). Notice how in my installation, I could have used 3 of the same brackets and drilled a bunch of holes, but NOT. Picture below shows the 3M 4950 VHB tape I used. I probably used too much but our old fiberglass is a bit porous. I used a V-shape up front to deflect wind & rain up front. Lastly, love this scaffolding! We stored the extra parts in our shed, but the main section as pictured will always sit somewhere in my 3-car garage for a variety of projects. It will store nicely in front of or behind any car and provide a storage shelf that can be rolled around. This is where I kept it while working recently. I could also use it at just a 2' height when working in the truck engine compartment, to get up and in there, instead of standing on a milk crate or something else sketchy! 🤣 Those of you who have ever serviced a HD 2500 4WD truck should understand.