Tony and Rhonda

This was/is @dewdev's idea. I haven't pulled much wire but there seems to be plenty and this location may actually be a shorter distance to the panels. After watching the EXPLORIST Life switch installation video recommended by @rich.dev I wanted the dual circuit switch but I did not want the big breaker box as installed on EXPLORIST Life. Your m6010 switch uses the same size hole as my m6006 so I may change it in the future. @Galway Girl What gauge is your solar wire? Mine is 6awg and as far as I can see, they are separate wires, not the dual bonded wire in your photo. After looking at the crimps on the (undersized?) Zamp ring terminals, I don't want to reuse them. Perhaps the installers ran out of some supplies and made it work with what they had? @dewdev stated his solar wire is 8awg. Is that what most have?

I'm happy to report progress on my solar disconnect switch. I've drilled my first hole in our Oliver. And installed the switch. Unfortunately I ran into a problem as I was making the short wire between the 3/8" ring terminal post on the BlueSea switch and the ring terminal to the back of the Zamp. I ordered 3/8", 5/16" and 1/4' ring terminals for the 6awg wire attaching to the back of the Zamp. Unfortunately it uses 3/16". They should be in today. I also noticed something that makes me a little concerned about the solar wiring safety. I'm not an electrician but this install does not look like it was done by an electrician either. If you look closely at the red (+) wire connections in the photo below, it appears at least a couple of the ring terminals used on the 6awg solar wire are under sized. It's hard to see but the "excess" wire strands are wrapped around the ring terminal and covered by heat shrink. The black (-) wire connections look OK. Not sure if this is common practice but it seems unsafe and more like a DIY rather than a professional install. I haven't removed any of these ring terminals yet but, but once I do, I'm going to cut off the heat shrink to examine this more closely

@dewdev Thank you for the detailed "How To." It's finally cooled off here (for a couple days) so I'll be working on the trailer this weekend. Thanks again, Tony

@dewdev I know to tape the fiberglass and drill slowly. I plan to drill the pilot hole first and then follow with the hole saw. Did you use a toothed hole saw or an diamond or carbide edged saw? I have both a diamond and a carbide edge saw but the diamond saw (Amazon) is larger than advertised and the carbide saw (Harbor Freight) seems very course. I haven't been working on our Ollie since late June due to the weather here. Highs in the mid-90's with heat index in the 100's. Very frustrating! May be able to get something done by the end of next week, highs 'supposed' to drop to the low to mid-80's. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Thanks for the links, I'll take a look. Tony

Thanks for the responses. The pad on the front jack is round and it looks fine. At least for now, I'll take our rear pads, brush off as much rust as possible, then repaint. @Patriot Are there advantages to using round jack pads vs. the rectangular ones installed on our camper? Which jack pads (size, model) are you using? I had no idea there were so many options to choose from. @jd1923 Your jack shafts are shiny! Ours are not but I'm considering cleaning ours up. Did you use a wire brush in a drill to clean them? The Andersen Jack Blocks are on our purchase list. Thanks, Tony

The feet on our stabilizer jacks are pretty rusty. Is this normal for our age camper? If it's normal wear and tear, I'll leave it as is. If not, I'll remove, de-rust and repaint. The caulking where the jack penetrates the hull is not very pretty and it looks like gravity has caused it to separate from the camper body is a few places (not visible in my soft photo). What caulking is recommended? Thanks, Tony

I'll put tape on both sides of the fiberglass and drill slowly. I have some carbide hole saws so hopefully it will slowly grind thru the fiberglass without other damage. At least in the pantry it won't be very visable. It will be good practice for drilling a hole for the BMV-712 display. Thanks, Tony

@Snackchaser, not sure how this would work since the marine hatch rotates over 360 degrees.

@Snackchaser Which hatch cover are you referring to? @dewdev I'm warming to your suggestion of installing in the pantry wall. While I don't have a problem sticking my arm behind the Zamp controller to turn the switch, my wife may not be able to reach it. High in the pantry wall is out of the way but still easily accessible. I don't think the fiberglass is very thick there either so drilling a hole 'should' be easier. Since the back is accessible, I can use #10 machine screws with washers and nuts instead of sheet metal screws for more secure mounting in the thinner fiberglass. This is more or less the same location as in the space behind the Zamp but facing the opposite direction. And no epoxy. Thanks for the suggestion! Tony

@dewdev I considered moving the switch to a spot on one side or other of the the Zamp controller. but there still wasn't much room and the fiberglass on our 2017 is about 1/2" thick in that area. More than I want to drill though as a first time project. The solar wire in our 2017 is 6awg.

@jd1923 The inside of the outside storage area (trunk?) seems a better location. Looks to me like it's just 2 screws and the flat cable to the display. If I have enough slack cable I may move the PI EMS display at your suggestion. Thanks, Tony

I went to work on the solar disco switch this morning but didn't get very far. The circular marine hatch in my cabinet is 6" diameter so there is not room for the Bluesea 6006 switch next to the hatch. Based on @rich.dev's photo, it seems strange to me that newer Olivers have a smaller hatch than older models. I'm considering putting the switch inside the unfinished space behind the Zamp. I can epoxy some HDPE to the unfinished side of the pantry wall, then mount the Bluesea switch to the HDPE. This wouldn't be as convenient as having the switch in the over bed cabinet but 'may' be better than having it under the bench/bed. I'd have to reach in more or less blind to turn the switch but it's a big switch. Can anyone foresee other problems with this location? Is J.B. Weld the correct epoxy for gluing the HDPE to the fiberglass? Any advice on this? I'd like to confirm that the switch should go on the positive wire between the solar panels and the controller, correct? Thanks, Tony

I hope I'm not hijacking this thread but I am also trying to find the TV charge wire. Our 2017 does have a busbar similar to the photo @jd1923 posted but only the 3 fused wires are connected. I can't find any loose wires in the basement either. Is this the positive busbar? I checked the wiring diagram in our manual and it shows the charging wire connected directly from TV to battery (with a 40amp in-line fuse). I'll hook up our TV and check the wires connected to the + side of the battery. Please correct me if I'm wrong, I'll also have to cover the solar panels (no cut off switch yet) and disconnect the - battery side too. Very slow going here due to a heat wave for the last 2-3 weeks....

I'm a little confused by this thread but I have minimal experience towing the Ollie. Why would a half ton with WDH need one of these suspension mods With my 1/2 ton and Anderson WDH, my truck/camper appears to be pretty level. I do have the Anderson chains pretty tight. Can these be over-stressed trying to distribute the weight? Does extra payload in the bed require the mods?

A previous owner had the "Yearly Maintenance Premium Package" completed in 2023. As best I can tell from the service sheet I have, there where 23 maintenance items in the package: 1. Inspect & Clean A/C 2. Inspect/Clean/Test Furnace 3. Inspect & Service Fridge 4. Pressurize & Test Plumbing System 5. Inspect & Service Water Heater 6. Decalcify Plumbing Lines & Fixtures 7. Lubricate Blade Valves 8. Lubricate Jack Pivot Points 9. Check Brakes, Repack, if req'd, Grease EZ Flex 10. Prep & Caulk Exterior 11. Perform LP Drop & Operating Pressure Test 12. Test GCFI function 13. Inspect & Test 7-pin 14. Inspect & Lubricate Coupler 15. Inspect Axle & Suspension 16. Check Tire Pressure & tread Depth 17. Inspect & Clean window Tracks 18. Charge & Load Test Batteries, if app. 19. Sanitize Fresh Water & Flush System 20. Wash Exterior 21. Clean Interior 22. Complete Torque Check 23.Complete Visual & Operational Test of Appliances The service sheet says a 4-5 day appointment is required. Price, as best I can tell was about $1600 but not everything on the list was done because the previous owner replaced the A/C with a Truma and replaced the 3500# axles with 5200# Never lubes. I don't know how, or if, these replacements changed the service cost.

Following @Patriot's Amazon link: Currently unavailable. We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock.

I was mostly concerned about changing a flat, so it sounds like the on-board jacks are the best route if that is necessary. A previous owner installed the 5200lb Never lube axles so I think we have the longer steel sub-frame to lift on if needed. Thanks for the links @Patriot, I read the old jack thread with interest and I've not seen a bottle-jack-stand combo before. I should have searched the forum before posting this thread. Sorry.

Thanks for the replies. I had read that Oliver does not recommend using the stabilizer jacks but that will make one less thing to haul around. It will be replaced by a jack stand or two, which I had not thought of. Thanks again, Tony

I've seen photos in the mudflap threads indirectly showing decals pointing to the jack points. I couldn't see exactly where the jack points where from the photos. I'm assuming the jack points are on the steel axle sub-frame behind the rear tires/axle but would someone please confirm their location. Are there jack points in front of the front tire/axle? What type of jack is recommended? Do owners use the TV jack, bottle jack or some other jack? Thanks, Tony

I have a Victron BMV712 that I bought for my FWC but never installed. Maybe it will make it into the Oliver, someday....

@rich.dev I watched the YouTube from Nate about installing a solar disconnect after reading the post by @mossemi above. Nate's video shows installing a double pole circuit breaker so both pos. and neg. wires are disconnected at the same time (per code). In my opinion, this would not be a very clean install for the upper cabinet. However, the two photos of disconnect switches posted here in this thread (by @Snackchaser and you @rich.dev) show BlueSea switches (assuming on the pos.) installed by Oliver. This is a clean install with no exposed wiring but may not meet code. I know you can't answer this but, if it doesn't meet code, why did Oliver install a pos. only switch??? Or no switch in our case? It seems the BlueSea switch is good enough, so that's what I'm planning to install. Also, I second @T-Oliver's question about bending copper busbars. I bought a 1/4"x1" busbar for my battery disconnect. From what I've read online, I can heat the bar almost red hot and bend it. I'm trying to find a way to make a smooth radius bend rather than clamping in a vise and whacking with a hammer. Any suggestions? But I can't work on it right now, the cat is sleeping on it.

@mossemi Thanks for the link to the Solar Panel Disconnect Tutorial video. I'm going to have to spend some time watching his other videos. @Snackchaser Thanks for the photo of your switch. The switch looks like it's flush mounted since I don't see any wires. Nice clean install and much more convenient than inside the marine hatch. Installing a switch will have to wait until I can bring the Oliver back to my house but that will give me time to order parts and tools. Thanks all! Tony

@jd1923 When I opened the door on the storage bay and went inside the trailer, the Zamp was not happy. It was making a buzzing sound and all the lights were on/flashing. I covered the solar panels with a moving blanket and checked the Zamp again and it was silent and the lights were off. If no one on the forums can answer this, I'll call Zamp or Oliver. Thanks ,Tony

Moving to the Zamp SC. I'm trying not to make assumptions here since I've never had solar before. Does the solar panel disconnect switch go between the panels (after the roof cap) and the Zamp SC or between the Zamp and the battery? If it's between the panels and the Zamp, there isn't much room in that space. Where/how is a switch installed in that area? Pictures please. Thanks again, Tony