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We went back to Hackberry again, although it is getting a bit warm during the day, we are going to have to either stay home and swim in the pool, bring more gas for the generator, run the AC and hide inside during the day or find another place to camp where it is cooler. The nights are beautiful though!

This might aught to have been put in the BOONDOCKING THREAD. Here is the story: > Sitting quietly around the smouldering campfire, we had been talking quietly about our good fortune, and how we might take advantage of it. Firewood was getting scarce in the area around the camp. We were making longer trips with arm loads of gathered wood. Almost grudgingly, I placed another stick in the fire ring, tomorrow would be a firewood gathering day for us. Our conversation lagged, as we quietly waited in the descending darkness. While we were waiting, we had been chatting softly about our opportunity to stay camped for another week. The walk up the hill for better cell service had been fruitful. Text messages came and went well, at the campsite, but voice communication was sketchy, unless we walked up the hill. We had recieved a reprieve. Breaking camp to make an appointment would not be necessary. The appointment had been re scheduled. Suddenly, our wait was over. He arrived. With a stealthy flutter of wings the majestic bird settled onto the dirt road near the camp. It was what we had been waiting for. Cranning his head sideways the large Whiporwill glanced our way before begining his evening dusting. I thought, "He's a bit nervous about Dillon". Dillon had sat up, staring at the bird with his most intent canine stare, his ears focused for the least sound. We sat quietly, moving little, watching the bird's every evening ritual. Later that week there would be two dusting in the road. After he flew away to start his melodious night songs, questing for a mate, our conversation continued. We were discussing ways to be able to stretch resources in order to stay another week. We were boondocking by the lakeside, with no electricity, water or sewer hookups. We had been there for long enough that supplies were running low. All of the DVD's for the late evenings, had been watched. We would both start a new book. Coffee was getting low, we would cut back to one cup each in the mornings. Clean clothes would require washing up a few items in a dish pan with lake water, heated over the campfire. Black and grey water tanks were ok. We had been bathing in the lake in the warmth of the afternoons, and walking a short distance to the vault type outhouse. Butcherknife would use the last of the flour to make biscuits. We had ran out of sliced bread today. The generator had been inactive because we had about four plus hours of sunlight daily, for the solar panels, where we were parked, the batterys were doing fine. The days had been mild and nights were cool. A gentle breeze prevailed, we hadn't even been using the fantastic fan. The NOAA weather radio's long range forcast was for rain late next week, about the time we would be ready to leave. Water. Drinking water, was the issue. Clorinated water for the final rinse after dish washing. Water for the coffee pot. Water for brushing teeth. Water for making sun tea. We had some in a six gallon can. But we had never used the trick little valve and hose setup that the guys out in the Oliver shop at Hohenwald had installed during our last visit. We would try it in the morning after breakfast. As the Whiporwill started his wonderful chanting off in the distance, we retired to the interior of our Ollie to start that new book, before going off to sleep. The door was latched back with the screen door closed for improved air circulation. Dillon the retired drug dog lay by the bed on a throw rug. With the windows open and a light breeze blowing off of the lake, we couldn't read for long before the reading lights were turned out. About to doze off, I whispered to Butcherknife, " was that another Whiporwill answering off in the distance ?", no answer, she was fast asleep. Here is a look at the water transfer valve and hose setup. It will pump water into the Oliver's fresh water tank, using the onboard pump that supplies water to the sink and both showers. Just flip the valves and put the hose out of the window to your container, and you are in business ! >

Angler, We tow our Oliver with both our car (Volvo XC90 SUV) and our Chevy Silverado half ton pickup. We added Hellwig air bags to our Silverado because we often carry our 800 pound ATV, loading ramp, and extra "stuff" (grilll, hiking gear,tools, gas cans, etc.) in the truck bed along with towing the Oliver. The airbags are adjustable, so when we run empty in the bed, we can let most of the air out, eliminating most of the slightly rougher empty ride. With an SUV, you may not need any extra suspension help. We haven't found it to be necessary with the Volvo SUV. Probably depends on what you put in the cargo area and if you put extra weight on the tongue. (We carry only a little 35 or 40 pound 1000 watt Honda generator in the truck bed to top off the batteries when we boon dock.) Paul bought the Hellwigs on line, and had our local mechanic install them on the Silverado. Airbags, just under $300.00. Local guy, about 75 or 85 dollars... it's a very simple installation, and doesn't require removing anything standard. Both our vehicles have factory tow packages (hitch, coolers, etc.). Hope this helps. Sherry

As the previos owner of a small (13 foot) Trillium fiberglass trailer, my opinion is that the smaller, more aerodynamic trailer will survive a wind better than an RV with a large side profile. The ratio of total weight to wind resistance seems to be an important issue. One of my prior tow vehicles was a small pickup truck that was "OK" with a side wind until I added a cab high cap to the box. The added side profile area really made for some exiting driving in a cross wind.

RvBella, There is an a/c outlet above the stove-top in the galley that could be used for a toaster oven or any other small appliance you might bring along. As long as you're hooked up to shore power or you've got a generator going and don't exceed its wattage you should be able to do just about anything. The Fantastic Vent will whisk away the odors and smoke if you need it to.

Thinking of putting litter box cover at bottom of closet with access through opening at bottom of closet-any other ideas where box could be put and not in way? Also would love to see ideas for kitchen cabinet shelves under sink, etc. What is the metal pole sticking up in trailer? Charleen

Rick, I asked for a downsized A/C unit to be put on my trailer for the purpose of being able to run it with the Honda EU2000i generator. Calculating the cubic feet to be cooled, and checking several air conditioner specialist web sites, I figure the 9200 BTU output of my Coleman unit will do just fine given the dual fiberglass walls, Lizard Skin insulation and double pane windows. (The standard A/C puts out 13,500 BTUs) I use a thermostat to regulate the A/C. The couple of times I've used the generator with it, it did just fine. You could hear the generator go out of its eco mode and rev up the rpms. It handled the current requirement OK. I don't think I'll be running the microwave at the same time but don't forsee that as a problem since the microwave will be a rather short use item. Pete

Lisa That's reasuring. I had seen your combination but totally forgot about it. Do you take many long trips? How is that at highway speeds? Pete Thanks for the further weight info. I've seen pics of that box and it looks very nice. Do you have a smaller air conditioner that can be powered by your generator? Chuck It seems like I read or watched something about "noodling" for catfish....maybe on Survivorman??? I do not like to stick my hands anywhere I can not see them....thanks for the warning.

Rick, The 400# was with a Honda 2000, full of gas, strapped down, cabled down for security. All of this was inside a custom built aluminum box Oliver made for my trailer. The weight out on the front of the tongue was appx 75#. The tongue has thres available placements, I had mine on the middle one. By pulling it out to the longest setting, the tongue weight went down 20# to 380. I now have the aluminum box loaded with firewood and will carry the generator in the bed of my 4 door Tacoma. (Keeps the wood out of the truckbed) Tongue weight capacity on this Tacoma w/ towing pkg is 650#. Pete

Thank you both for the replys. Mountainborn Right now I am getting by with my work car and soon-to-be-wife's Equinox. I sold my truck last winter. I will probably hold off until after the wedding (June 29th) to buy another vehicle for me....saving $$ right now. I would love another Wrangler. It's been a few years since I gave up my last one. Over this past year I have been driving myself crazy debating what kind of trailer and tow vehicle I want. I have looked at everything from pop-ups to toy haulers. I had not even considered an "egg" type trailer until I stumbled across a thread by Rv-Bella on another fourm that lead me here. I was already falling in love with the trailer and then when I saw a picture of one hooked up to your Jeep I was totally hooked. I am just a little leary though after reading so many "weight police" threads on the other forum....seems many people think you can not pull any trailer with anything less than a 1-ton truck. I just may take you up on you offer when/if I do get another Jeep. Not sure what kind of drive I would be looking at from Indianapolis but I'm sure it would be well worth it. Pete Thank you for the tongue weight. Over the past week I have probably read every thread on this forum. I remember the one about the tongue but I'm going to read it again. You said 2nd notch. Is that all the way extended? I would eventually like to carry a Honda EU2000 generator on the tongue. The 400lbs scares me because the Wrangler's tongue weight is 350. Thanks again and sorry for such a long post. Rick

I suppose if you had never had certain upgrades you wouldn't probably miss them but I definitely would not go without the fantastic-fan, shocks, lift, monitoring system or the shades. The shades are SO nice and very useful. I love that at night we can have on all the lights but you would never know it from the outside as the shades block all of the light. It keeps it nice and dim as the sun rises so we can wake up when we are ready. I like the fan because I don't really have to think about it. If we take our dogs and leave them in the trailer the fan will open up and turn on if it gets too hot in there and close back up if it starts to rain. We find the outside shower station handy for washing up after putting gas in the generator or cleaning up dirty kids and big kids without tracking it in the trailer. We definitely appreciate the extra shocks and lift on our trailer because we are often on bumpy dirt roads. Everything is where we put it when we get to where we are going. We have used the monitoring system throughout our trips because we boondock. It has really helped us to conserve water and power. It would stink to run out of either with no warning. Hope that helps, Lisa

Inks Lake State Park photos are up at http://www.peteandthewonderegg.blogspot.com Note the alternate use for the generator basket . . . firewood!

Hi Lisa, Keep in mind if you use a generator that you will have to MANUALLY go to LP so that you can run your AC! Chuck

(1) We understand from the Oliver brochure that we received at an RV show that the Oliver comes with three 110-volt outlets and one 12-volt outlet. Is 110-volt current supplied to the 110-volt outlets at all times or just when the trailer is hooked up to shore power or to a generator? From what I understand, this would require a built-in current inverter to provide 110-volt AC from the 12-volt DC of the batteries. Does the Oliver come with an inverter? If not, have you added one, in order to use the 110-volt outlets? If you desire additional points for power, Oliver will accommodate. I have five 110v ac outlets (4 inside, 1 outside) and five 12v dc outlets (4 inside, 1 outside) Without shore power connected to the trailer you will only have dc power available from the battery(s) unless you opted for the add-on inverter, which will then power up your 110 outlets. I use the Coleman 2000w Power Inverter which turns battery 12v into 120v ac. Just because you have ac available, don’t think it’s an endless pit of power . . . the percentage of the drain on the batteries depends on the overall energy storage capacity of the battery selection you made. Also, initial start load may be higher than running load and you inverter will shut off if you exceed its capabilities. Multiply: AMPS X 120 (AC voltage) = WATTS Your battery pack can be replenished through solar power, from your TV’s alternator as you move along down the road, from a portable generator, or from plugging into shore power. (2) Does the Sound and Video package (LCD TV, DVD/CD player, AM/FM radio, etc.) run on 110-volt AC or on 12-volt DC? 12v dc (3) Additional 12-volt outlets are available as an option. Would you find that useful? I added one near the galley for my coffee maker, one under the small dinette, and one in the main walkway just before the full sized bed on the passenger side. They are not that expensive an add-on and the convenience factor is well worth it. (4) Does the "convection oven/microwave" described in the Oliver brochure require shore power or generator power? If so, how many watts does it draw? Does convection operation require more power than microwave itself? If so, how much? An correctly sized generator or shore power will be required unless you've got one heckuva humongous battery/inverter setup. They call it a Microwave Oven & Grill – It will brown your food as you microwave it, or you can grill thinner slices of meat such as steaks, chops, kebabs, sausage, pieces of chicken or sandwiches. (Not useful for a whole chicken or the Thanksgiving Turkey!) Manual says Microwave/Grill output power is 1000w. Doesn’t show consumption – you may not be able to simultaneously run you’re a/C and this at the same time without shore power or one very stout generator. (5) Similarly, the 13.5 KBTU A/C unit would seem to require quite a lot of power to start. Have you run it with a generator? In particular, have you used the Yamaha EF2400iS successfully? Don’t know, I downsized my A/C unit to the Coleman 9200 btu unit. I uses 900-1100 watts for cooling and max cooling draws 8.0 amps. I run it easily with my Honda 2000w generator. Given the insulation of the Oliver and the relatively small cubic feet to cool I believe it will be up to the task. “Doing the numbers” I will not try the A/C and microwave at the same time without shore power. If I need to use the microwave, I’ll power down the A/C for those few minutes . . . (6) I understand that a "generator quick connect" may be available for the Oliver as an option. Can you tell me what that is and what the advantage would be in having one? The quick connect is a connection on the tongue where you can keep a power cord going from your generator . . . it is pre-wired into the trailers electrical system with all of the safety bells & whistles in place. If shore power quits, simply hit the start button on your generator and your powered up without the having to move cables in the rain or the middle of the night. LP Gas System: (7) I understand that 30-pound LP tanks and regulators are available as an upgrade. That sounds like it would allow one to go for quite a while longer without having to get a refill. Would there be any downside? The reason I ask that is that sometimes I have found that something that seems like it could only be for the better may present problems that would not be considered until they actually show up. Downside – heavier to lift to take for refilling / more weight on the tongue (mine is still very respectable for my TV) / you lose a small bit of empty space you might have used to place hoses & such. Upside – more flexibility for boondocking - the equivalent of adding a third 20 lb bottle! more time between refills to work on you upper body strength to get ready for the refill lift . . . (8) I understand that there is a "gas line quick connect" available as an option. Can you tell me what this is and what the advantage would be in having one? It runs from the trailer’s propane tanks to the rear bumper and is accessible on the street side by folding down the bumper. With the right hose connection from your grill you can connect directly to your on board propane source . . . gives you lotsa gas and precludes you from having to purchase and lug extra propane tanks for grilling. Phew! I see Mountainborn just posted his answers. I'll send this one anyway and let his response do the last two about towing . . . Steve, feel free to call me tonight if this has spurred on additional questions. CarolAnn . . . As I was getting ready to enter this new world of Rving, I went to the local big-box book store and picked up “Rving Basics” by Bill & Jan Moeller ISBN 0-07-042779-8. I have found it most useful – it covers systems / towing / campsites & hookups / and a myriad of other things. I take it with me for reference.

(11) The description of the trailer on the Olivertraveltrailer website says that "The axle also contains a powered braking system. The installation of an electronic brake control is necessary for use." Does that mean that one needs to purchase an outboard electronic brake control box (I have searched the Web and see them advertized for $60 to $200 or so) and have it installed in your tow vehicle's cabin, so that it can be accessed by the driver? As part of the tow package for our Suburban, we received a "brake controller pigtail." It seems that this would be what we would use to connect the electronic brake controller to our vehicle's electrical system. Would you agree? > Yes. We use a Tekonsha Prodigy brake controller because it gives us a readout of any problems that we may have with braking, such as a shorted wire not allowing power to get to the brakes on the trailer. It also does a system check upon start up and sends a code that lets us know that the system check was ok, or not, before we release the parking brake on the tow vehicle. The Tekonsha Prodigy comes with a pigtail that will match your tow vehicle if you order it that way. Insuring a quick and accurate install. Most trailer supply places can install the brake controller , and charging circuit wire to the trailer so that the trailer battery charges while driving.

(7) I understand that 30-pound LP tanks and regulators are available as an upgrade. That sounds like it would allow one to go for quite a while longer without having to get a refill. Would there be any downside? The reason I ask that is that sometimes I have found that something that seems like it could only be for the better may present problems that would not be considered until they actually show up. > This is a upgrade that we have thought about several times. It is a good option for those that boondock a lot. However, the regular 20 lb. tanks leave room to store small items such as two water hoses, water filter and generator cord.

(6) I understand that a "generator quick connect" may be available for the Oliver as an option. Can you tell me what that is and what the advantage would be in having one? > Ease of hooking up to the genset when mounted on the tongue, some owners with this option leave the genset connected all of the time , letting the automatic transfer switch decide if it is getting shore power of genset power. It is a seperate cable that doesn't require pulling out the shore power cable. A boondocker's friend !

(5) Similarly, the 13.5 KBTU A/C unit would seem to require quite a lot of power to start. Have you run it with a generator? In particular, have you used the Yamaha EF2400iS successfully? > The 2400 Yamaha will run the A/C quite well, however the Oliver is insulated to the point that some owners are putting the smaller 9.5 KBTU unit on their trailer, making it easily ran by a 2000 watt genset.

(4) Does the "convection oven/microwave" described in the Oliver brochure require shore power or generator power? If so, how many watts does it draw? Does convection operation require more power than microwave itself? If so, how much? > Tough question, because some models may run both the microwave and the convection function seperately or at the same time. > Power consumption is a critical issue for those that boondock, for it determines how long they can stay in their favorite place. We use a model P4400 KILL A WATT meter to measure current draw and other things such as voltage, cycles and power factor. Now that seems a bit complicated, so to boil it down: It isn't important when on shore power or genset, unless you try to run the Air conditioning and the microwave at the same time. That all changes however, if you use a inverter to run the microwave on batterys, and it's not really practical. Here is a photo of our Kill A Watt meter: > > You plug it into an outlet then plug your appliance into it. Various push buttons give you the different data you need. The meter sells on eBay for $20/25.

Astrocaster, I will give it a try, but i'll bet that Pete has already given quality replies by telephone. > (1) We understand from the Oliver brochure that we received at an RV show that the Oliver comes with three 110-volt outlets and one 12-volt outlet. Is 110-volt current supplied to the 110-volt outlets at all times or just when the trailer is hooked up to shore power or to a generator? From what I understand, this would require a built-in current inverter to provide 110-volt AC from the 12-volt DC of the batteries. Does the Oliver come with an inverter? If not, have you added one, in order to use the 110-volt outlets? > With shore power or Genset. We use an inverter, one that we added later, but it doesn't power the same three outlets. It has it's own outlets. The outlets need to be seperate.

Hi, Everyone, My wife and I are planning to purchase a travel trailer and are seriously considering the Oliver Legacy Elite. We are very experienced car and tent campers, and I have done some extended backpack camping. However, neither of us has every owned, operated, or even stayed in a travel trailer or RV, nor have we towed a trailer with our vehicles. Therefore, we know very little about what to expect in the electrical system or other systems in the Oliver. Some things that may be common knowledge to most of the folks on this forum are probably a mystery to us. So, I will post our "newbie" questions, in hopes of getting lots of help and advice from the good folks here on the Oliver Forums. Some of you have already responded to a couple of questions I posted recently. Thank you. So here goes: Electrical: (1) We understand from the Oliver brochure that we received at an RV show that the Oliver comes with three 110-volt outlets and one 12-volt outlet. Is 110-volt current supplied to the 110-volt outlets at all times or just when the trailer is hooked up to shore power or to a generator? From what I understand, this would require a built-in current inverter to provide 110-volt AC from the 12-volt DC of the batteries. Does the Oliver come with an inverter? If not, have you added one, in order to use the 110-volt outlets? (2) Does the Sound and Video package (LCD TV, DVD/CD player, AM/FM radio, etc.) run on 110-volt AC or on 12-volt DC? (3) Additional 12-volt outlets are available as an option. Would you find that useful? (4) Does the "convection oven/microwave" described in the Oliver brochure require shore power or generator power? If so, how many watts does it draw? Does convection operation require more power than microwave itself? If so, how much? (5) Similarly, the 13.5 KBTU A/C unit would seem to require quite a lot of power to start. Have you run it with a generator? In particular, have you used the Yamaha EF2400iS successfully? (6) I understand that a "generator quick connect" may be available for the Oliver as an option. Can you tell me what that is and what the advantage would be in having one? LP Gas System: (7) I understand that 30-pound LP tanks and regulators are available as an upgrade. That sounds like it would allow one to go for quite a while longer without having to get a refill. Would there be any downside? The reason I ask that is that sometimes I have found that something that seems like it could only be for the better may present problems that would not be considered until they actually show up. (8) I understand that there is a "gas line quick connect" available as an option. Can you tell me what this is and what the advantage would be in having one? Towing: (10) Have you found the use of a weight-distributing hitch necessary or helpful? Sway control devices? Our tow vehicle will be a 2002 Suburban with the factory tow package. (11) The description of the trailer on the Olivertraveltrailer website says that "The axle also contains a powered braking system. The installation of an electronic brake control is necessary for use." Does that mean that one needs to purchase an outboard electronic brake control box (I have searched the Web and see them advertized for $60 to $200 or so) and have it installed in your tow vehicle's cabin, so that it can be accessed by the driver? As part of the tow package for our Suburban, we received a "brake controller pigtail." It seems that this would be what we would use to connect the electronic brake controller to our vehicle's electrical system. Would you agree? Again, we would really appreciate your help with these newbie questions. Thanks, Steve

We are going camping again tomorrow so I thought I would post these latest mods before we head out. We wanted a flashlight within easy reach from inside or outside the Oliver so we mounted one near the closet with some flashlight clips. http://oliver.hewus.com/Mods/Flashlight_Clips We also noticed that our trailer came with an automatic changeover propane regulator (very cool!) and saw that there was an optional remote propane changeover indicator available so that we can tell when a tank is empty. It came on a box that was much larger than we wanted to mount conspicuously so Andrew re-soldered the LED light to the other side of the circuit board and then mounted it inside one of the benches with only a hole big enough for the light to fit through. http://oliver.hewus.com/Mods/Remote_Pro ... _Indicator Lisa

OK, it's been a while since I looked at these responses, but let's try again -- 1. Does shortening the tongue put more weight on the hitch ball than lengthening? 2. Does shortening the tongue reduce the tendency to sway? I would want to keep my tongue weight as low as possible with the least tendency to sway -- so would the tongue be in or out? Towing, weights, sway and all the physics associated with that stuff just makes my hair hurt!!! Greetings to all from the Texas Hll Country where I'm nestled amidst about 150 friendly Casita owners at the Texas Bluebonnet Rally! I believe I can provide a definitive answer to this . . . There's a guy here with the device Mountainborn mentioned for getting an accurate tongue weight. Currently, my tongue is on the middle of three settings due to the added aluminum box I asked to be fabricated to accommodate my Honda 2000 generator. it is strapped down with two ratchet straps and secured with two lockstraps. Gas is full, I guess its about an additional 75 lbs of weight hanging out in front of the leveling jack. Trailer is loaded for travel and Oscaar is sleeping peacefully on the bed over the axle. Fresh water = 50% / Grey = 50% / Yucky = 29%. Tongue weight = 400 lb. After moving the tongue OUT to the final position tongue weight = 380 lb. Proof positive that extending the tongue lessens tongue weight. Don't ask for the nuclear physics behind how it works, I just read the numbers! SSSSSOOOOOOOOO . . . tongue out = less tongue weight. I understand about 10% of the trailer weight should be on the tongue and that if you get it TOO light you "may" encounter stability problems. Tongue extended also provides an easier back up experience for some because it is less likely to over-correct when changing directions. ps I am lovin' life LARGE in my new trailer

efelker said: 1. Does shortening the tongue put more weight on the hitch ball than lengthening? a. Yes 2. Does shortening the tongue reduce the tendency to sway? b. No, but the most common sway contributor is too much weight behind the trailer axle, which will have the effect of lifting up on the trailer hitch ball. ( making the rear of the tow vehicle lighter ) I would want to keep my tongue weight as low as possible with the least tendency to sway -- so would the tongue be in or out? ED, I think that hasn't mattered much to butcherknife and I. We have towed both ways, in and out. Also with the generator on the tongue and off of it. Without the even the slightest hint of sway. One sure way to reassure one's self about the tongue weight is with a Sherline tongue weight scale. Here is a link to the manufacturer: http://www.sherline.com/lm.htm The last time I priced them they cost around $100. it looks like this:

It has been raining for days and days here in the Ouachita Mountains. We had a camping trip planned, but, instead we will try to catch up on stuff we got behind on. For example : > > Barely visible in this low light photo, is the exhaust splatter from a cold started engine, the 3000 watt Yamaha mounted on the Oliver's tongue. The splatter is not bad at this point, but as the hours pile up, will likely get worse. In the photo the exhaust tip is removed and a 45* tubeing of the same diameter is by it. We are looking at getting the 45* welded onto the tip to divert the splatter away from the coach body. When the generator project was planned we pointed the exhaust towards our direction on purpouse. Though the gen set is extremely quiet, we wanted the noisest spot around to be ours, so we would limit the use of it. Tomorrow, a trip to the wire welder's shop. Then reassembling of the gen set and testing.