jd1923

Your picture makes it look like a good size motorcycle. I used to love cycling, when we lived in Texas and Florida. Thousands of road bikes all around Austin and the Hill Country. Here the steep climbs are too tough and the drops too dangerous. I see young guys coming down our road, coasting on bikes at well over 40 MPH! They'd have to ride their brakes all the way down to get any slower. At some point, I want to figure out how to bring my Honda CRF230 dirt bike (240 LBS). It's likely too heavy for the rear of the Oliver. Maybe front of the TV with a special mount or in the truck bed. I just ordered this device to measure tongue weight which I need for the Oliver and a flatbed trailer that carries our side-by-side, so I know the best position for it on the trailer). https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007REK28M?ref=fed_asin_title

That's another good idea... What is that on the back of XPLOR?!? And how many LBS? Please let me know! I've always see the front of your Oliver, parked in your storage shed. WOW!

Geoff’s short homemade stick, not near enough tool! The awning opener, not a good enough hook. I use one of these and it’s never where I need it, so just bought another one, just for the TV and TT! It’s 27” long or 40” when extended, it gets the job done! I’ve had mine well over 10 years and it has been a savior on many occasions. Not bad at $15. https://a.co/d/ci6xMqe

Thanks Patriot for this reminder. I read your original post over a year ago. Expensive but if truly no leaking in your years of experience, then worth it. They’re 10% off now and I like how you can order x number of male/female fittings. That will take some counting before ordering. On my upgrade list!

Yep, I get it Dewdev and you live up in the land of the Nor'easter! Last time it rained down here was September? No snow yet either. Several large capacity humidifiers running throughout our home! First, get better quality switches from a marine supply store. Drill the smallest possible hole and just add a thin bead of clear silicone inside the hole. I used these cheap Amazon switches for interior mounting, where being waterproof was not a concern. They've worked reliably for our fresh water motorized ball valves.

I only see one good-looking "old guy."

Sure, I meant for others who don’t need a new valve but would like the power assist. I just ordered one to check it out. If it works out I’ll get a second 3” and one 1 1/2”. I would really want the switches where the pull handles are. Or you could mount those switch plates just inside the rear storage on the wall to the streetside basement, easy to runs wires to get there. Waterproof DPDT switches are common in toggle switches. I purchased these to run my motorized ball valves to replace the manual fresh water valves: https://a.co/d/7vJmWl8

Given this statement, you would save money buying an Oliver with little to no solar or inverter and LA batteries. Would be good to have another DIY sort contributing on our Forum! 😂 Ours had two OEM Zamp solar panels (320W), 2KW Xantrex and newer LA batteries. Since you asked about costs, for $3300 we added 600AH Epoch LiFePO4, Victron 3KVA MP2 inverter, new buses, cooling fan, and mounting hardware. The net cost was $2700 after selling the used batteries and inverter. For another $1,300, I could add the 460AH Epoch Essentials, installed under the pantry, providing 1060AH total (or a third 300AH Epoch in the battery bay). How much is the Platinum Package? You could mount three 200W solar panels if your Oliver comes with none, or add a third if it has two. We went with adding the Renogy 400W suitcase (for 720 total with OEM rooftop panels) and Victron 30A MPPT SC, with cabling and Anderson connectors this came to $800. These prices are for parts only, DIY labor of course. And the Renogy 400W is $100 cheaper today than it was last year. Starting today on my DC-DC charger installation, adding a Victron Orion XS 50A. With 4AWG cabling and SB175 Anderson connectors and lugs it came to $525 total. This would be in addition to upgrading the alternator on your tow vehicle (TV). OTT recently advertised a sale on adding a DC-DC charger. They would supply the older less-efficient Victron 30A charger and install only the Oliver side of the system (tow vehicle cabling and installation not included), all for the sale price of $1,300, WOW! 🤣 You could also spend big bucks for the Truma A/C on a newer hull. Or replace a noisy Dometic Penguin II with an Atmos A/C with SoftStart for $1,650 shipped. The Atmos is the best A/C unit out there to run on inverter, since it runs efficiently on R32 refrigerant (10A continuous vs. 15A+). There are many mods postings on all of this, all of mine and from many other members. Like I said before, check out Modifications section or search for your keyword of interest! Best wishes in your pursuit!

Older hulls are equal to the newer and every used dollar saved allows you to add mods that are important and special to you. Check the Modifications forum. Who needs more water? We do! 🤣 Olivers have a boondocking port where the onboard water pump will fill the FWT from an external source. Many members have 1-2 small 5-gal tanks for this reason. Not good enough for boondocking in Arizona (or Colorado)! We always have an extra 35 gallons, don't leave home without it! https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/horizontal-leg-tank-35-gal

I just found something that may be better for those of us who have waste drain valves in good condition but with a hard pull or merely wanting to go electric. You do not have to remove the valves to install this motorized helper: https://www.barkermfg.com/auto-drains.html

And that's the hard part! Running wire and mounting switches NP! Yes, of course more expensive with much greater functionality! Thank you, I just added this to my Wishlist! If you are going to all the work of replacing the valve, I would certainly go this path. I like the short pull (backup) handle that would be more reliable than a 12 FT cable and simple electric motors are generally reliable. I replaced ALL my manual water valves to electric already. This is a no-brainer for our hull! This valve is rated 4.5 on Amazon with 200 reviews. @rich.dev has the best idea, I think. Put the switches where the current handles are located. I would scrap the supplied wire harness (likely not long enough) and the supplied (awkward) switch and plate and buy 3 marine grade (waterproof) simple toggle switches, up for open and down means closed! They will fit in the holes left by the pull handles once removed. Run stranded 14 AWG wire which should be fine since they use a 5A fuse in the switch. I would also relocate all fuses to my 12VDC positive bus. Handy since I relocated it to under the rear dinette seat. Better to have all fuses centrally located than at the switch or the motor (for all appliances). I would replace all three (3) valves, sooner or later. Really dislike the one by the toilet that keeps the gray from backing up. How many times have we forgot that and have to climb back up in the trailer. All switches together, in the same outside location makes sense to me. We always have that rear hatch open when leaving a campsite anyway. Added a couple pics, food for thought, and thanks again for this idea! 😂

This appears odd. Generally an inverter runs on battery power with full functionality. There are several Xantrex 3000 experts here, @rich.dev being one of them.

What me worry? 🤣 According to OTT specs the Oliver Elite II is "Outside Height to Top of A/C is 9' 8." This is not an Oliver consideration. We had a Class A RV well over 12 FT, still not a highway consideration. ALL RVs are of lower height than the common 18-wheeler truck. Are you worried about your garage height? Talk to @Geronimo John!🤣 From what I understand he has a storage unit at right about 10 FT!

I had the older 2KW Xantrex, inverter only/no charger. It worked fine and was quiet with a simple on/off switch under the pantry shelf. Nothing wrong with it. It worked great and it's now installed in another Oliver. The new owner only wanted to run a coffee pot, occasional microwave use, etc. LiFePO4 batteries first is a fine idea. I wanted an inverter to run air conditioning (A/C) a few hours a day, often needed afternoons in the desert sun. In the next 3-4 months, I will install the new Atmos A/C which runs under 10A (the 13.5K Btu Dometic P2 draws 15A at 120VAC, more in extreme conditions). The MP2 running the Atmos with 600AH Epoch should be an awesome combination! At a future date, during another Black-Friday sale, see me install another 460AH of Epoch Essentials in the raceway under the pantry, for 1060AH total! 🤣 Then we can run A/C as needed. Our MP2 is wired to the entire 120VAC power panel (2KW inverters are usually wired to microwave and 110V outlets only). All appliances in our hull can be run via the MP2 3KW inverter. See the pic, what a beast inverter!!! We will only be at Quartzsite for 3-4 days, the first week of Feb. PM me if you will be there that week and want to meet up. I'd have the day, roll up my sleeves, and together we could get a lot done! You purchased my batteries of choice! Best wishes, JD

I am very sensitive to sound, good ears, can hear a toilet leak, every little sound in the house and odd sounds an automobile or RV. Don't like to sleep with a fan running or A/C on, any motor noise. In the Oliver, I can hear the fridge cycle and the HWH turn on even in electric mode, etc. The Victron Multiplus II is a heavy-duty inverter charger. You can certainly hear it when the inverter is ON pushing enough amps to run the A/C or our Air Fryer. The thing is these appliances are so much noisier, so it doesn't really matter at the time. I have heard a couple Xantrex and several PD chargers and they make more noise when charging. I have our MP2 set at 50A charging and that may keep the sound down some (you can set it up to 120A charging which may get louder). For our LiFePO4 batteries, 50A is an easy charge so I keep it there. Usually when we connect to shore power, +50AH is enough to get the batteries back to 100% soon enough. I sleep directly over our MP2 and I do not hear it at night. Never hear it while watching TV on inverter. We do have 10" 3-layer foam mattresses which helps to insulate. If it was still at a high charge rate by the time I go to bed, I would hear it a little. If that was ever the case, I could open up the VictronConnect app on my phone and switch the MP2 to OFF or inverter only modes. I have not ever had to do this, but it is an option. This beast is quiet! We run our MP2 24x7x365 days a year. IT is ALWAYS in on position unless wanting to be in charger only or inverter only modes.

Mike has several pictures in a mod post. BTW, two (2) of the more expensive Epoch 460AH battery with "Victron Comms" will just fit! Two of the less expensive Epoch Essentials 460AH will not fit. They are about a 1/2" too wide.

We could swing by you too! 😂 Looking forward to meeting you.

Who will be attending the Fiberglass Rally February 6th thru 9th, 2025 at Dome Rock? It seems that many of you are down to Q already and wondering if you are sticking around through first week of Feb. I don't want to repeat last year, getting there in time to see 40 Casitas and all the Olivers had gone! We'll skip Q except to meet up with some of you. I'm off work and can travel Feb 1-8. Thinking of staying at Alamo Lake earlier that week (80 miles and 1 1/2 hours from the Q). There are MANY sites available there always. Rustic sites E loop is where we would book, no hookups but large pads for $15 and if you want hookups check out C Loop, sites at $25. Love to see some of you up there. It would be a very nice change of pace vs. the crowds of the Q!

Not much difference, given 4/0 cables, between 1 ft and 3-5 ft. You can have a pair of LiFePO4 batteries in the battery bay and another 1-2 LiFePO4 batteries in the basement nearby. I do not have room under the "rear dinette seat" nor under the streetside bed since I installed our Victron MP2 inverter/charger there, but that raceway under the pantry could host a LiFePO4 of considerable size. You could even install a pair of batteries under the front dinette seat, where there is a LOT of ROOM and the cable lengths would be further but doable. I'm not going that way since under the front dinette seat is Chris' territory. She has many items up there that makes our camping so much more comfortable! 😂

Another component that can fail and adds resistance to the circuit. Most DC breakers are China made junk too, hard to find a quality DC breaker but quality fuses are readily available. There is really no maintenance required, no reason to disconnect the 12V+ to the rear bumper of the truck. Just push the Anderson SB175 to connect and pull it off when parked. I would not pop the hood to throw a breaker on/off each time. The Anderson connecter as shown above will be well insulated. If I'm working on a truck electrical system, I will disconnect ground on the battery anyway (1/2" wrench on US trucks, 10mm on Jap trucks). I did the same with my 600AH Epoch LiFePO4 batteries. I wanted one straight 4/0 cable connection from batteries to the Victron MP2 inverter charger, no breakers or switches, but there is one 400A ANL fuse (Victron spec). I have not needed to disconnect it in the 6 months since it was installed and I don't see a need going forward (we do not put our Oliver in storage). I should be able to install the Orion DC-DC with the Oliver batteries connected, given my +tive bus installation. Whenever I need to, instead of opening up the battery bay, or worse uncover the Oliver basement to throw a switch, I will grab a 1/2" wrench and disconnect the battery ground cable.

But when towing, you'll have it switched on anyway. Also, I would not run the positive cable "under frame." I will see if I can run it inside of the frame (safest location) or above the frame, up where the truck bed sits. There should be no chance of running over road debris that could damage the cable. Likely the Orion DC-DC charger would be fine connecting with engine ON or OFF. It allows input up to 17V and should have the internal protection to be connected to a running alternator, pushing 50 amps at 14.2V. That being said, I would always have the engine off when connecting. This way the Orion would first be connected at a lower voltage (12.6V lead acid truck battery) and without immediate extra amperage to manage. The charger would wake up, take readings, become ready, and very likely would not start charging until after the truck is started, alternator generating considerable amperage at higher voltage. I always turn the engine off anyway when hitching the trailer once the hitch ball is where it needs to be. I don't like diesel noise and fumes while connecting and with the addition of a DC-DC charger, there is just one more cable to connect!

Yeah, but so do the positive connections to the truck starter and alternator, and there are no fuses for protection in those circuits. That's why the first step in most auto service procedures is to disconnect battery ground. Only mechanic working on my truck, has been and will be me. 🤣 I want things up and ready vs. having switches under the hood or worse under the streetside bed! (or even the dinette.) I don't mind the additional parasitic draw when chargers are on standby (I'll have 4 always ON, the MP2, two MPPT SCs and soon the Orion). The Anderson Environmental Boot is enough protection for me.

Must be close enough. If you're running 4/0 wire, which is over-engineered unless you're running A/C on inverter, you are more than OK for a few feet. I would put extra batteries dead center under the pantry. I have our Victron Mp2 Inverter-Charger just 4.5 ft (1.4M) from our Epoch 600AH LiFePO4 batteries and all DC runs are connected directly to the MP2. I could simply add another battery, say an Epoch 460AH and install it under the pantry. The terminals would be only 2 ft from our inverter connection which would make it closer than the 600AH in our battery bay, NP! Hey JD, when you have time, let's talk about your upcoming trip to AZ. Looking forward to seeing you when you get to the great Southwest!

Is a switch needed in the DC-DC charger installation? I'm going with fuses vs. breakers. Is it OK to merely connect and disconnect the Anderson SB175 pole connector at the truck-trailer connection? I would assume engine off would be better when connecting, starter battery present of course but not the extra current of a running alternator. When the connection is open the Orion DC-DC charger should go into a sleep state. This is how the the Victron MPPT SC works. It's always wired ON. The app shows zero voltage and current until I plug in the solar suitcase. I'm hoping to leave it wired ON. I purchased the environmental boots pictured above which keep the Anderson connectors insulated, dust and waterproof. I meant to list this in my previous post. These are the MRBF fuses I purchased from South Bend: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BR4X7ZP5?ref=fed_asin_title&th=1

I always understood this in Residential and Commercial AC power panels, but did not realize this in DC circuits until recently. There are no breakers in an automobile or truck, where is my experience. When I relocated ALL the breakers and fuses from under the streetside bed to the rear dinette seat, this became obvious from the terminal markings on all DC breakers. OTT had wired the 40A breaker in our hull, powering the rear positive bus (leveler jacks and more attached to this bus) in the wrong direction. After all of your excellent feedback, I decided to go with MRFB fuses on both sides vs. ny sort of DC breaker> Blue Seas is the gold standard! However, their fuse today are made in Mexico. I found this company, made in South Bend IN, USA with a 4.7 Amazon rating (not easy to achieve) NP, I have a good 4" above the starter batteries in my old Dodge! Also have nothing but room above the positive bus that connects all solar chargers, etc.