jd1923

I finished the rear light! It looks great and lights up the park! The hard part is removing all the dishes, glasses, spices, etc. and putting them back! I worked a little trick and used some existing wiring. I'll run an extra switch leg, next time Chris wants to rearrange things up there! Thanks, Mossey.

The Oliver Porch Lights are bright for a dark campsite, so we rarely use them. But if you need to light up the area they work great. I've often wondered, why isn't there lighting on the front and rear of the Oliver? I asked a year ago about replacement lights for our OEM Porch Lights and just purchased some recently. OTT should install these lights in all four directions. I would have done one up front too, but running wire would be difficult. I got something else for up front, more on that later. https://itcshopnow.com/products/assurance-exterior-flood-light?variant=50392962007319 I carefully measured the four Porch Lights OTT installed, as the distance from hull belly line, which btw holds a tape measure nicely, up to centerline of the Porch Light at the mounting screws. Turns out they were all installed at different heights +/- 3/4". As a special bonus, this light is 1/4" off from front to the rear mounting screws. My new Rear Porch Light, I promise is the straightest of the bunch! 🤣 It's not easy to choose the best spot to drill into the exterior of your hull, this one especially. I cut away some of the white insulation in the back of the attic. I used a 2-ft piece of metal fish-tape with the ends curled back, running it down the inside of the back exterior hull. Repeatedly, it measured 12" form the bottom of the OLIVER taillight to where the fish-tape hit the top of the rear window frame. It measured 12" so I figured I should go 10" max. Looking from the outside, there is a flat fiberglass frame around the rear window. Above that, the top rear is convex. I had to find the best spot so that the approx. 8" x 1 1/2" light would sit flat in both directions. If not water would get behind it. I drilled a 1/4" hole centered to the window, so the light is just above the flat frame area of the rear window. I soldered and heat shrink extra length of wire to the light. If they only attached 18" of wire! Offset the splices so that they would fit nicely into the drilled hole. It wasn't an easy pull but a few ins and outs and the light pulled flush (would be easier with 2 people, one in one out). I eyeballed the light level to the window frame. I wanted to VHB the light housing vs. drilling two mounting holes but the design of the light would not allow for it. They do not include hardware. Found the stoutest 1" course thread screws that would fit the openings and I drilled 6/94" holes after marking the centers. Wiring? I wanted to add the new rear light to the Side Porch Lights (streetside). However, I could not find the switch leg in the back corner of the attic and I did not want to remove all the stuff out of the kitchen cabinets. But that would be the right way to do it. Cabinets empty, you can easily run wiring up to the main switch panel. Our hull had a rear camera and a separate switch to power it. I removed the camera a year ago, so I'm using this separate switch with existing wiring. I copied something Geoff did, where he used a Sharpie to black out the word "Awning." Mine has a thin cut piece of black tape over the word "Camera" so it just reads "Rear" now! 🤣 I had to wait patiently for dusk and dark tonight! The hull looks great with the new Rear Porch Light to compliment the side lights. And finally, it alone lights up the yard! 😎

Just looked at our faucet which overall looks similar except we do not have an Allen screw on top. I would remove the handle again to see if with some kind of tool it can be moved. You can’t make it worse! It’s likely not serviceable, so if it remains to be stuck it will have to be replaced. I was back there a couple years ago because the water lines on our faucet were loose and leaking. It will not be a fun job to R&R since there is so little room and you’ll need a mirror to see behind the sink. Hope you can get it to work somehow.

It is a little wimpy, but I use the outdoor shower often when boondocking. Chris showers in the wet bath, but when the weather is good enough, I prefer being outside, not getting the bathroom wet and not adding to the gray water! All I needed was a holder. I had the one pictured but now I use a suction cup version on the window. I like the standby function built into the shower head. I dislike the fact that the trunk, the rear basement door, has to be open to extend to hose and operate the faucets! So I lay a wash cloth and bottle of body wash on it. I don't use it for much else except for cleaning shoes on occasion. I have good hose attachments for when we have campsite water. If you get too crazy, your FWT will empty quickly! I'm interested in seeing what you come up with as your work matures! 😎

I assumed when Lamar wrote this in his original post that there was a separate breaker for the induction cooktop. There truly should be, but not according to the manual that @Steve and MA found. In our hull, OTT wired the microwave to the breaker marked “Outlets.” They wired two separate hots to the breaker (outlets GFCI and microwave on separate 12/2 Romex runs). Maybe they did something similar here. I corrected our situation by connecting the microwave to a free breaker when I disabled the OEM converter for the Victron inverter/charger. The fix I suggested above just got more complicated! I would still rewire the main panel so that induction cooking is possible off-grid! @Lamar last logged in 9 hours ago. Hard to say, but the first thing he should do when connected to shore power is to run the cooktop and trip each breaker to know where in the world OTT wired their True Induction cooktop!

We do not know yet... - What inverter/battery setup is installed in this LEI? - Will it still work on Shore Power? (if so, then not a CGFI issue) - Error codes? If so, then the usual Xantrex settings issue, but @Lamar made no mention of a failed startup, just no power. - Is the induction cooktop wired to the inverter circuit? To be or not to be!

Your first picture is very dark, so it's hard to see how it broke and what's left there. If you have can physically connect this Sharkbite female adapter, have enough PEX on both sides that would be great. You need the PEX on both sides to be cut square with minimum 3/4" length to attach Sharkbite fittings. If there is not enough PEX on the water heater side, the broken PEX must be removed (get Sharkbite PEX removal tool to push in the collar) and a new short piece of new PEX must be added. This kind of failure is odd and at the same time your kitchen faucet is stuck!

Lamar, the GFCI under the dinette should power ALL your AC outlets in line. Plug something into the outdoor outlet (or the one above the kitchen sink) and trip the GCFI under the dinette. The other AC outlets should then ALL be OFF. @topgun2 Bill suggested this in his comment. However this is NOT your main issue re your induction cooktop. If the induction cooktop is on a GFCI circuit it should be wired to an independent GCFI (not that outlet under the dinette). And if your induction cooktop works on Shore Power, then GFCI is not your issue either. I see you have a Legacy I. What inverter and battery setup do you have? I hate to think that what @Steve and MA wrote is correct in that OTT did not wire your induction cooktop to your inverter circuit. If you have the Xantrex 3000, all 120VAC circuits should be wired to it, but not so with a lesser 2K inverter. Wow, if this is the case, OTT should have installed an LP cooktop instead! You wrote that your microwave works on inverter. Given all this is true, you need to get this corrected for the long-term. (OTT wired several things in very strange ways in our hull, so I have rewired everything!) Not the right time while boondocking, but I have a short-term on-the-road fix for you! 😎 First be OFF shore power and turn your inverter OFF. This ensures there is no 120VAC in your hull, so you can safely rewire the AC power panel. You can do a quick fix in your breaker box! Do the following at you own risk (I would do it)! Remove the breaker box cover and remove the breaker labeled for your inverter. Loosen the front screw and pull the black wire free (the hot). Do the same for the microwave breaker. Replace the hot for the induction cooktop into the breaker for your microwave. Now you have induction cooking on inverter but your microwave will not be powered. You could wire both hots to the microwave breaker, if you want to use both on inverter. However if you do so, it would not be wired "to code" and you'll only want to use only ONE appliance at a time. However, if you turned both ON at the same time, the breaker would merely trip, no big deal. If it was me and I found it to be TRUE that OTT did NOT wire the induction cooktop to the inverter circuit 😒, I would get this done in 10 minutes just in time for breakfast! 🤣

We always called it the "kitchen junk drawer." Had one in every home we've owned, now including the Oliver! No remotes in ours, but most of the other stuff on her list, yes! 🤣 We have a spice rack above the cooktop in the overhead cabinet. Ours too would not fit in the junk drawer. I wanted all the many remotes, nicely held in the nightstand drawer. This picture is old and btw we traded in the Rummikub game for a Carbles board which doesn't fit in the nightstand! With our new A/C installation, I mounted the two most important remotes (fan and A/C) on the wall. We have two (2) TV remotes (since I always misplace one) so that one is always bedside on my custom shelf! I did screw into the interior of the nightstand drawer (should have used tape), but only 3M 4950 VHB tape on the fiberglass. Holds these shelves tight! More ideas Dan! 😎

I was thinking by the front edge of these windows will collect bugs. Let us know next time you have a windshield full of bugs! 🤣

Didn't know there is a 2026 ONLY variant. I was referring to our old sliders. The frame on the sliders sits on the hull, yet the glass is recessed and protected. The 2027 windows in the video look like the glass sits on top of their frame outside of the hull.

Geoff, maybe you can help me... Our older hull already has the Entry and Side Porch Lights on separate switches. What I'm working on is adding a 5th light, facing rear of the Oliver. I want the rear light to be on the same switch as the Side Porch Lights (streetside). So, when I close that switch all 3 lights, left and rear, will power ON. Without thinking this through, I was hoping to splice into the red wire you found above the speaker. However, this RED wire appears to be a power run for all cabin lighting. With a clamp amp meter, Side Porch Lights ON only I get close to +0.9A. When I turn on the Main Cabin Lights that same RED wire gets another +0.6A and each pair of lights, Kitchen and Rear Lights above the beds adds another +0.3A. Power is running through the RED wire no matter which cabin light is powered ON. Perhaps it worked for you to cut it off there, since it was the end run and you ran new wires from a new switch for the left side. I'm trying to piggyback, adding a 3rd light to the Side Porch Lights switch and was hoping to grab the switch leg back there above the speaker vs. running new wire all the way to the entrance switch panel. Then I tested for amperage at the switch and it reads only when the switch is ON. I need to find the switch wire at the rear if possible! I tested every other wire I could find above the speaker and could not find the negative switch leg, meaning no other wire showed 0.9A with the switch turned ON. Loved the idea of only removing the speaker, but perhaps a waste of time for my needs. It would be so convenient to wire at the rear, with a very short run not feeding wire all the way back through the curbside upper cabinets! Any ideas? And BTW, thank you again @Patriot for the link to the OEM lights! They were out of stock for a while and there back now On Sale! I purchased one for the Oliver rear and I got a couple extra for when one goes out I can renew both Entry side lights. These are correct and are quite pretty, brand new out of the box! https://itcshopnow.com/products/assurance-exterior-flood-light?variant=50392962007319

WOLFBOX MF100 or MF200, or MF200 with dual batteries. I have an Amazon business account, so the MF100 is $75.49 with the business discount, $95 for the MF200. The dual battery MF200 comes in at a whopping $123.49 https://www.amazon.com/WOLFBOX-MF200-2PK-Compressed-Duster-Hurricane-Force/dp/B0GH6L9CP3/

Thanks Dan for linking this video! I don't look much at the new models and this is a nice presentation, just 7 minutes long! Also no sour beans here, from someone who spent 2 years restoring a 2016 model! We will not be a new Oliver customer, just continue to upgrade and fully enjoy ours. They are really going with a Dometic A/C?!? 🤣 In all these years, still at the bottom of this learning curve. Looks like all the Truma issues will be behind OTT going forward. I'd have to use the awning more than 5 times in 2 years with all that solar up there! I wonder how practical this will be? Must be a heavy awning! We need all LP appliances to work effectively in altitudes up to 10K ft, a must for Colorado travel and elsewhere in the Rockies. 20A on a built-in DC-DC charger, but using the 12 AWG trailer wiring? OMG, you're not going to get 20A and if you do be worried about the wiring! I'll keep our Victron Orion 50A charger, that averages +40 Ah every hour towing. One very knowledge Forum member argued that the 4 AWG wire I used may be too light! You might get +10A on average with this configuration. This leads to OTT sticking with the Xantrex and Lithionics brands. This is not new! Almost everybody on this forum that has added or replaced an inverter has gone to the Victron Multiplus, most with the MP2. I do remember reading one post where a Xantrex was used to replace a FAILED Xantrex. Given the failure, I would have changed brands, but I believe it was chosen to simplify the installation with like kind. There are 100s of posts here citing Xantrex issues. And with all the new LiFePO4 batteries in the marketplace, a new quality brand at a better price point could be chosen. You'll get used to knowing your tank levels. More accurate, yeah sure, we've heard that one before! 🤣 That's what they said about our external tank monitors. We have learned very well how many days it takes us to fill our black and gray tanks. We're not ready for composting, the pee and poop handling, but it is the black tank that makes us return to the dump station! Gray water can be dumped on BLM and FS lands, so we can last a while leaving with 70 gallons fresh. I can guess exactly when we need fresh water, just before the water pump starts gurgling! Then we refill, from our auxiliary tank in the pickup bed. I have seriously not looked at that tank level display in two years, just don't need to. Windows? There are many here that truly dislike the current windows. Some leak when it rains and some have lost their seal between the panes. Our windows are in like new condition, no defects to date, knocking on wood. I enjoy the one-hand operation, especially when lying in bed. Awning windows, something else to worry about in high winds and rain? And if left open at all, even one inch when away, a thief could easily rip the window off and enter the cabin interior. I also do not like how they stick out on the exterior, where our windows are recessed into the hull, flush so taking no wind. We usually close our windows when towing, but if you forget these, there will be damage. I do really like the trimline blinds as the old-style sticks out almost 3" into the cabin interior. One gets in my way when I'm in bed. Our blinds need another hosing down this summer, Like I did when we first purchased our Oliver used My favorite part is the new kitchen counter setup. The new sink and cooktop looks great! However for boondocking, I'm not sure the compressor fridge and induction cooktop are preferable, appliances that cannot operate on AC/DC and LP. But with 900 Ah, oh what the heck! Chris loves cooking with induction, so we have a single-burner cooktop we plugin indoors or out (search for keyword 'induction'). For 2027, did they fix the cramped bathroom countertop/sink? Someday, I'll fix both, like Mike did for their kitchen:

Certainly not right. I would fully extend and retract your awning a couple times to see if you can get it to kick into place (hearing your "clunk"). If it stays out, I would tie it up on that end or both ends prior to traveling at highway speeds. Our Fiamma manual awning does not fully engage on the rear when closed. We travel with this strap in place. There is also a recent thread on this:

Most window shops will not handle RV windows. This happened in a bad way to the Bigfoot we had, where the vacuum seal between the pains had shrunk, cracked and moisture got inside clouding it up. I found a shop in Mesa AZ that specialized in this, but sold the RV before I had any work done. Yes, the entire window assembly is removed. Then they disassemble the frame to remove the glass sections and strip the seals along the edges, between the panes. They clean the glass thoroughly, seal the two glass pains, rebuild the window assembly and reinstall. At the time 4 years ago they charged $90 a panel which is a great price if you only have a few, but gets expensive for a lot of panels. Between Mesa and Apache Junction AZ is one of the RV capitals of the country. There are several hundred RV dealers, 100s more service centers, parts distributors, etc. RV business is big here. Maybe unlikely to have this kind of service company in Maine and other small markets, but worth asking at some of your local RV shops. I'll locate their contact info if anybody is coming out this way next season and is interested. I did replace the glass on our main living room window on the bigfoot instead. Bigfoot service gave me contact info to the window manufacturer and I was able to buy glass panels, the fuzzy liners, rubber borders, etc. Maybe Lippert service with the ID tag Bill showed, replacement panels and parts can be purchased. You must remove the blinds, then all interior screws to remove the interior section. Then the window is removed from the outside. Get some putty knifes under the outer lip to cut and loosen the butyl. Once the entire window assembly is removed, you will find small set screws holding the frame together and the stationery glass in place. It's a bit of work. Of course, have the parts or a way to reseal the double pains first. Take pics as you go. Clean everything in and out. Reassembly should be straightforward using new butyl for the main seal.

First thing I did was to replace the TV with a 32” 4K monitor, sound bar, and Blu-ray player in the attic, all Samsung, my brand of choice. Love your thrift store finds! We use the Furrion for occasional FM radio, CDs and Bluetooth. I disconnected the HDMI from Furrion to the TV. When it goes, I should make the space into a cabinet since ours has the huge cutout for the older DV1200 model.

No, not at all, please allow me to explain! No detailer includes ALL the prep work, at least the way I see it! First, I removed all the silicone caulk around the windows and everywhere else. This is something detailers work around, CGI included. I removed the brackets for the awning, the surrounds on the taillights, the faces of the HWH and furnace, and every piece of trim on the doghouse and spare tire cover (see before/after pics) and so much more! Why? When something as little as the awning mount is screwed into the body, CGI or any detailer must polish around the item, never getting the fiberglass right close to the trim part. They must stay clear of these parts when using a power buffer. Remove two screws in two minutes and they can use a buffer machine over the full body panel vs. working around it. Meanwhile, I'm cleaning and detailing all the trim parts, replaced some with new parts, so the end result is far better. CGI is not doing this and nobody would expect a detailer to do so. I know the end result on Hull #113 came out WAY BETTER compared to merely "dropping her off for ceramic coating." I know the difference, but most people will not take it upon themselves to do this work. I even removed the Dometic Penguin, plugged the opening, and did not install our new Chill Cube A/C until my guy polished every bit of the roof, right up to the 14x14" hole! The gelcoat shines, even under our new A/C. It is apples to oranges, but not in the way you were thinking.😎 With my experience in auto restoration projects, it would be like me taking a car in for paint with all the trim still bolted on. Not my car! The painter would have to mask everything that should not be painted. "Better get Maaco!" 🤣 Years ago, when my '59 Chrysler 300E went in for paint and detailing, every single trim piece; lights, mirrors, stainless moldings, bumpers, etc. were all removed. The bumpers were re-chromed, the stainless straightened, dings removed and polished, taillights fully restored with NOS lenses, the list goes on. Afterwards, she won People's Choice awards at a few car shows. IMHO, $3000 is just too much to pay, though I've heard of shops that charge even more. Considering travel costs and the condition of our hull, the CGI price "starting at $3,000" would total much more. Once they advertised +$400 for their service at distant locations. We don't have that kind of money just to be pretty! Chris said once, "Why does an Oliver have to be shiny." Love that woman, for her common sense and everything else! October 2024 at the Texas Rally, I observed the CGI work on a few hulls. No question, they do very good work. Our hull was still pasty at the time. I was taking my time working mechanical and electrical mods first, waiting for when I could do this right. My extra efforts along with detailing work of equal quality together produced a superior result. At Quartzsite this year, there was not a better optioned or better looking hull. 😎 Not only IMHO, but from the comments of several other Oliver owners attending. I spent 2 years getting our Oliver optioned better than most and now our Ugly Duckling has turned into our Beautiful Swan. My latest restoration project is just about done. The pictures to follow show just one small example of the work required to fully restore a 10-year-old hull which had, and will still have, a whole lot of sun exposure! Glad we have the local guy who worked extra hours to get this right. Cameron will see our Oliver again, every year or two for a going over. I won't need to do all the work I did the first time. With his help Hull #113 will look good another 10 years!

Excellent advice Ken (the metal working guru you asked for). I would choose the set screw kind and drill an indentation on the shaft so the screw sits to hold the collar nicely. Yep, for sure! OTT should replace this under warranty on your 2024 hull. They used to make them to last 10+ years.

More time in the prep than the ceramic coating. I spent hours in prep prior to handing off our Oliver to “the shop.” I felt the more I did, the more time he could spend on the shine. I will start a thread on my pre-work and restoration project. Our local guy charged $85 per linear foot. The CGI starting price is $128/ft, figuring the Oliver EII at 23.5 feet long.

Received an email from Fogatti today. Got on their list when I was looking at their tankless HWHs. Looks like this unit, advertised "18K BTU" dual variable-speed fan motors and small footprint, could be a Chill Cube clone. They have a heat pump version too. https://fogattiliving.com/products/fogatti-instacool-pro-18-000-btu-rv-rooftop-air-conditioner/

So, I had the one overnight mentioned above, where the Chill Cube made the cabin much colder than the set temp. This was a one-off, not experienced again. I had it on AUTO MODE and AUTO FAN that time. I noticed it switched itself to DRY MODE during the night. We were in the desert valley at 20% RH outside and a very comfortable 40% RH inside. When we got home, I ran the Chill Cube 24x7 for 8 days and nights unplugged, on batteries/inverter only! This time I set to COOL MODE, fan in AUTO MODE. The cabin started at 90F and it was 88F outside. I set temp on the Chill Cube at 76F and the Chill Cube kept the cabin at 76F daily for most of the week, got down to 74 on day 7 and 72 on day 8, as ambient temps got lower. I ended the test after 8 days, since it got cold again up here again (highs low 70s, lows high 40s). We're having a wonderful long spring in the AZ High Country! In the first 24 hour period, we used 60 Ah. This would be -10% SOC only for those of you with 600 Ah. Day two was about the same. Ambient temps lowered a little and on Day 3 we ONLY used net -15 Ah! These numbers include the 320W rooftop solar adding about 12 Ah every sunny hour of the day. The next few days were the same, only using about -2% SOC per day. I believe the Chill Cube will get colder than set temp ONLY when A/C is not really needed, like overnight in the desert where it gets cool outside. Next time when sleeping on a cooler night I should just turn it off. Our lovely spring temps will end soon. I'll run a similar test in 60-90 days when it gets very hot even at high elevation. Last 3 summers, I had the Oliver plugged in with the Dometic P2 set at 80F. It would run nonstop during afternoons with near 100F highs. Without A/C the Oliver could get to over 110F sitting in the sun outdoors, not good. We could hear the LOUD P2 from our deck 100 ft away. Last week while the Chill Cube was running, I thought once Chris had turned it off. I was outside walking around and behind the Oliver and I could not hear the A/C running at all! When I entered the cabin, I could hear the Chill Cube on its very lowest fan setting. In Auto FAN it will run slower than the LOW FAN setting, very low and quiet! 😎

Camping (Boondocking) northern Minnesota? Check out Kenny! https://youtube.com/@kennyofalltrades?si=6CfmBy2YHWxDcnbk

Take the Oliver with you! https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/route.shtml https://www.alaskaferry.com/FerrySchedules/ShippingVehiclesToFromAlaska

Thanks again, Bill. I would use glue or VHB tape and cover (hide) the existing screw holes. Also with 1/8" stock, add something like Geoff suggested. Maybe use aluminum stock vs. "wood cleats" for better strength and durability. Drill mounting holes through both after everything is glued in place. This way your mounting screws can grab the cover sheet and the metal behind.