Two weeks of feedback Apex #2 (Hull 1739)

[Sentry62]

Picked up our Apex two weeks ago and have been in it every night - so far, so good. We planned to spend 3 weeks straight to learn and work out any bugs (very minimal issues so far)
Pros - A dream to tow & bike mount has been solid/Eco flow display easier to learn that anticipated/battery re-charge amazingly fast/Houghton AC quiet and have ran all appliances (simultaneously) and some “faux” boondocking on the 48 volt DC system w/ no issues. It has been wonderful to arrive at the campsite with 98% battery every time. Overall love the attention to detail and quality of the design. Dinette cushions (backs) could be improved and wished they would have included the solar suitcase connection. 

Cons: Black/Gray tank indicators don't really warn you of a full tank, but the toilet gurgling and the shower backing up are sure indicators 🙂 I haven’t attempted filling the fresh water tank yet (to be honest I am intimidated by the multiple valves under the bed - wish they were labeled but thankful for the poster size diagrams on the compartment cover.
 

Our background: Previous tent camper, then a Casita circa 2000s, and Airstream owner. So far impressed with the Oliver overall operation (Airstream could learn from Hohenwald orientation and pick up) and while tempted by the new Casita double axle trailer (significant price difference)  the Apex is a well designed trailer and we have no regrets. 

 

Edited October 9 by Sentry62

[BackofBeyond]

 

Great to hear the initial "break in" is going well. Honestly, it does take a little trial and error to get comfortable with the valve configurations. Interesting choice on the reg toilet, vs the composting toilet, as the APEX is skewed towards the non-facilities spots. Took a real hard look at the Apex, and really like the blacked-out style, although I don't understand the tire choice, it is a great looking rig overall. Seems the II is a better fit for our future RV needs. Hope your journey continues to be all that you imagianed.

[DanielBoondock]

12 hours ago, Sentry62 said:

Cons: Black/Gray tank indicators don't really warn you of a full tank, but the toilet gurgling and the shower backing up are sure indicators 🙂 I haven’t attempted filling the fresh water tank yet (to be honest I am intimidated by the multiple valves under the bed - wish they were labeled but thankful for the poster size diagrams on the compartment cover.

Assuming its the same as the 2026 its super easy, just remember there's basically two modes you use the majority of the time.

Pump or city: For the back ports you either fill the tank directly (streetside) and use the onboard pump, or you get pressurized city water (curbside) with the pump off.

Boondock fill: If you want to fill unpressurized from a container, use curbside, with all the valves reversed. Including the one that's far at the back of the trailer in the T. Reverse all the valves again to use the pump normally. 

That's it. The third configuration is for maintenance; winterize, sanitize or descale 

I (and others) only use the onboard pump and fill the tank with softened water. I have a small RV softener installed under the twin bedside table used during filling. I also have a few small inline bullet hose softeners I might use sometime for pressurized water, who knows. 

Edited October 9 by DanielBoondock

[FirstApex]

Hello Apex #2 from Apex #1, Hull #1738, 2Dreamin👋

Totally agree on the dinette cushion backs, it was annoying every time we got up from the dinette so I see a solution in our future.  

City water connection is on the curbside and Fresh water tank fill is on the street side.  

We got the compost toilet and are very happy with our decision, this was after months of contemplating it, then deciding not to do it and then changing our minds after talking with the Whitaker's at Denali National Park in Alaska earlier this summer.  

We did fill the fresh water tank to test out the pump and also testing out the pressure of the pump for the tankless hot water heater (THWH) and that worked great.  To set our preferred THWH temperature, I hopped in the shower, turned on the faucet hot water only while DH was setting the temp to 107 which worked great for both of us actually.  Using only the hot water side of the faucet eliminates cold spots with the tankless.  The only time we experienced any issues was while at a campground that had 'low' water pressure which reduced how hot the water came out, the tankless also works on water pressure, this is where the fresh water pump came in handy.

We find the EcoFlow to be a dream to manage, so much easier than our Airstream Interstate set-up, even after we had all the wiring ripped out, soft solar panels ripped off and an entire new battery system, inverter, etc and solar panels installed.  We love the ease of operation with the EcoFlow.

Enjoy your new Apex!!!!!

Are you going to the rally?

We are in site F20

 

 

[Dean and Mary]

Our 2022 is new to us this year, and I shared the same initial confusion when looking at the water‑valve diagram. While it’s a great feature to have the valve positions shown based on the function you want, I also wanted to understand the actual start and end points of each line.

So, I enhanced the diagram and placed a laminated copy under the bed next to the water pump. Below is that updated drawing. Please let me know if you spot any errors in it.

 

[Sentry62]

Thanks DB - great overview and it helps.
Thanks 2D, we can’t make the rally this year but hoping for next year. We are from Texas and currently in central Florida in a holding pattern due to the hurricane (but hoping to get home next week but I-10 and I-12 are going to be problematic) so we will see. We may crash the party 🙂  Yes on the Rec Pro water heater, use the hot water side to control the overall temp - same lesson we learned and I have also been removing our water pressure regulator to get the all important pressure for the water heater - that made a big difference as you stated.

Thanks D&M for the notes - those are helpful in understanding what valve does what. 
 

 

[Dennis and Melissa]

My wife’s solution to the dinette cushion 

YMMV

 

 

[ScottyGS]

21 hours ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

My wife’s solution to the dinette cushion 

YMMV

This was standard and provided by Oliver in 2016.  

Scotty

 

 

 

[Todd B]

On 10/19/2026 at 7:20 AM, Dennis and Melissa said:

My wife’s solution to the dinette cushion

We did the same thing years ago. Has worked great. So well I forget it was an issue. 

[Dean and Mary]

On 10/19/2026 at 7:20 AM, Dennis and Melissa said:

My wife’s solution to the dinette cushion 

YMMV

 

 

 

We placed rug gripper pads under the cushions, but they still slide off. We're going to try a different brand and hope we have better luck.

[jd1923]

6 hours ago, Dean and Mary said:

We placed rug gripper pads under the cushions, but they still slide off. We're going to try a different brand and hope we have better luck.

Prior owner left us a roll of this and more of it was under the cushions. This stuff works, Con-Tact Brand Grip Premium by KITTRICH Corp.

[BackofBeyond]

On 10/9/2026 at 8:55 AM, FirstApex said:

 

We did fill the fresh water tank to test out the pump and also testing out the pressure of the pump for the tankless hot water heater (THWH) and that worked great.  To set our preferred THWH temperature, I hopped in the shower, turned on the faucet hot water only while DH was setting the temp to 107 which worked great for both of us actually.  Using only the hot water side of the faucet eliminates cold spots with the tankless.  The only time we experienced any issues was while at a campground that had 'low' water pressure which reduced how hot the water came out, the tankless also works on water pressure, this is where the fresh water pump came in handy.

We find the EcoFlow to be a dream to manage, so much easier than our Airstream Interstate set-up, even after we had all the wiring ripped out, soft solar panels ripped off and an entire new battery system, inverter, etc and solar panels installed.  We love the ease of operation with the EcoFlow.

 

 

 

I never thought about this - great idea. I will try out - soon.

[Steve Morris]

On 10/9/2026 at 9:55 AM, FirstApex said:

We did fill the fresh water tank to test out the pump and also testing out the pressure of the pump for the tankless hot water heater (THWH) and that worked great.  To set our preferred THWH temperature, I hopped in the shower, turned on the faucet hot water only while DH was setting the temp to 107 which worked great for both of us actually.

We went through the same process. It saves water not having to make adjustments once you're in the shower. I like 105, and Deb likes 108. To further save water, we added a diverter valve to return  water to the fresh tank until it gets hot. This saves anywhere from a quart to more than half gallon.

Edited October 22 by Steve Morris

[larcat]

@Sentry62 @FirstApex

We're picking ours up in December --- is there really no way to sensibly route the cord from a folding solar panel to the EvoFlow main unit? Feels like a bit of an oversight.

[FirstApex]

@larcat @Sentry62

Congrats on your delivery date!!!!

We asked Oliver about the external folding solar panel connection which is on the 2027 Elite II and were told it was deleted on the Apex X23 since it had the 48V system.  There were 3 Apex's next to each other at the rally and Patrick Industries came to our Apex to go over some of the features of the system and answer any questions that each owner had.  On the way home from the rally we cracker docked 2 nights and one night at an RV Overnights Host.  We did not get the solar awning, not for certain how many opportunities we would have to use the awning.  Did you opt for the solar awning?

[larcat]

55 minutes ago, FirstApex said:

@larcat @Sentry62

Congrats on your delivery date!!!!

We asked Oliver about the external folding solar panel connection which is on the 2027 Elite II and were told it was deleted on the Apex X23 since it had the 48V system.  There were 3 Apex's next to each other at the rally and Patrick Industries came to our Apex to go over some of the features of the system and answer any questions that each owner had.  On the way home from the rally we cracker docked 2 nights and one night at an RV Overnights Host.  We did not get the solar awning, not for certain how many opportunities we would have to use the awning.  Did you opt for the solar awning?

Nope, didn't go with the solar awning. Hoping to use a 400w folder for supplemental.

The external plug isn't necessary --- just need a way to route back to the EcoFlow for a folding panel. Is there any sort of external cable routing at all? Nothing for starlink or similar? If not that seems like a pretty fundamental design flaw.

[jd1923]

On 10/29/2026 at 7:14 PM, larcat said:

Nope, didn't go with the solar awning. Hoping to use a 400w folder for supplemental.

The external plug isn't necessary --- just need a way to route back to the EcoFlow for a folding panel. Is there any sort of external cable routing at all? Nothing for starlink or similar? If not that seems like a pretty fundamental design flaw.

The Apex is powered by 48V system and was designed to add 1-2 solar awnings. You could ask OTT for a schematic showing your electrical system (with integration of the awning panels). The solar charger (SC) you install should have 48V output but for some reason OTT advertises the 400W rooftop solar on the Apex is 24V. New panels must be on an independent SC.

I would trace everything down and create your own system drawing. In our older hull, I had to pull every wire to fully learn the system (not good when under warranty)! 🤣

In the Elite we have 12VDC and 120VAC systems. The Apex has 48VDC and 120VAC systems and it must have a 48|12 DC-DC converter. The 48V system must be stepped down to 12V to run lights and other 12V accessories. You should locate this step-down converter for general purposes.

I would start at the batteries. See how many wires are connected there, follow them into the hull to see where they are connected and where is your main fuse. A new solar charger must connect to +/- battery somewhere. The other active Apex thread shows many pictures and some show unused terminals labeled "battery."

I would encourage you in that adding our Solar Suitcase was the easiest major electrical upgrade I've made to our Oliver. I've attached my upgrade link here for example. Of course, you have a 48V system so system components may differ but the basics are the same.

Re Starlink, there are some complex installations and some who just plug it into an outlet and lay it on the ground! 🤣 From the HOME page of the Forum, search for "Starlink" for many discussions.

 

Edited Saturday at 06:06 AM by jd1923

[larcat]

On 10/30/2026 at 3:59 PM, jd1923 said:

The Apex is powered by 48V system and was designed to add 1-2 solar awnings. You could ask OTT for a schematic showing your electrical system (with integration of the awning panels). The solar charger (SC) you install should have 48V output but for some reason OTT advertises the 400W rooftop solar on the Apex is 24V. New panels must be on an independent SC.

I would trace everything down and create your own system drawing. In our older hull, I had to pull every wire to fully learn the system (not good when under warranty)! 🤣

In the Elite we have 12VDC and 120VAC systems. The Apex has 48VDC and 120VAC systems and it must have a 48|12 DC-DC converter. The 48V system must be stepped down to 12V to run lights and other 12V accessories. You should locate this step-down converter for general purposes.

I would start at the batteries. See how many wires are connected there, follow them into the hull to see where they are connected and where is your main fuse. A new solar charger must connect to +/- battery somewhere. The other active Apex thread shows many pictures and some show unused terminals labeled "battery."

I would encourage you in that adding our Solar Suitcase was the easiest major electrical upgrade I've made to our Oliver. I've attached my upgrade link here for example. Of course, you have a 48V system so system components may differ but the basics are the same.

Re Starlink, there are some complex installations and some who just plug it into an outlet and lay it on the ground! 🤣 From the HOME page of the Forum, search for "Starlink" for many discussions.

 

This is why I'm so flummoxed --- a separate charge controller shouldn't be necessary with the ecoflow "power hub" product that the apex has. You should be able to plug in and go. There's three dedicated photovoltaic in ports on the head unit, and they sell dedicated mc4 <==> power hub cables. The charge controller is built into the system.

All oliver has to do is provide an easy way to route the cable out for really flexible supplementary solar support.

On a fully optioned unit, all three of those ports are filled (roof, awning, awning.) On a not fully optioned one, one or two ports are free.

I can drill the door to the battery compartment with some sort of gland or port, which will provide easy routing up to the ecoflow head unit, but shouldn't have to.

Importantly, a Zamp external port would be a downgrade vs. arbitrary access, since the zamp panels are heavy and expensive for what they are.

https://us.ecoflow.com/products/power-hub-solar-charge-cable-20-feet?variant=40309252390985

 

 

 

Edited 17 hours ago by larcat

[jd1923]

3 hours ago, larcat said:

... a separate charge controller shouldn't be necessary with the ecoflow "power hub" product that the apex has. You should be able to plug in and go.

Outside of this post, I have not studied any Ecoflow literature, nor the product manual. However, based solely on the diagram you shared it appears you have what you need. Meaning the Ecoflow should have two (2) internal solar chargers (terminals #7, #8 as pictured).

Given this is true, then all you need is cabling from the panels to a port in the hull, then wiring to the Ecoflow. The link you provided shows a hybrid solar cable. It has standard MC4 solar connectors for the panel side and it has the Ecoflow proprietary terminal on the other (just plug it in).

You'll need to build a cable like this since the MC4 terminals will be outside of the hull connected to the folding panels and the special terminal connected inside on the Ecoflow. I found about 40 ft +/- of cable exterior to the hull is a good length for panel movement. More length will be needed interior to the hull, wired to the Ecoflow.

Per my earlier comment to get with OTT for wiring schematic...
You're taking delivery in December, so get OTT to walk you through the Ecoflow.
Given you are NOT adding awning solar, is your rooftop solar wired to terminal #7 leaving #8 open/available?
Ask re the fully optioned Apex with solar awning(s). How do they wire it? To #8?

Then per the Ecoflow manual, what are the amperage ratings of the two internal SCs? You'd want to know, but given OTT can add awning panel(s) a 400W folder should be a go!

I put my solar port in the rear of the hull and two years later I like the choice I made. OTT had installed a useless cable TV port in the rear of our hull. Repurposing it made it so I did not have to drill new holes (it was 2016, were people still using campground cable? 🤣).

You can install a solar connection terminal left, right, front or rear of your new Apex. I like rear since the cable can easily be laid left or right and it's back there out of the way. You don't want to drill in the hull? Then put it up front under the doghouse. The front location may actually be the best since many campsites are more shaded at the rear, but then you may be tripping over the wiring when camping.

There's a bit to think through, but if it was me, the last thing I would do is drill into the curbside or streetside of the hull in a highly visual location.

Since your SC is integrated to the Ecoflow which is close to the batteries, your solar wiring only needs light gauge wire. I made my calculations 2 years ago and a 400W suitcase requires 12 AWG for 50+ ft of length. I used 10 AWG, one gauge heavier mainly because Lowes had #10 stranded clearance priced. Copper is very expensive today!

Hope this helps! Best wishes on delivery day and to ALL of you new Apex owners (3 so far?). Enjoy this exciting time to your fullest! 😂

[jd1923]

14 hours ago, larcat said:

All Oliver has to do is provide an easy way to route the cable out...

On a fully optioned unit, all three of those ports are filled (roof, awning, awning.) On a not fully optioned one, one or two ports are free.

I can drill the door to the battery compartment with some sort of gland or port, which will provide easy routing up to the ecoflow head unit, but shouldn't have to.

I wouldn't expect OTT to route the cable not knowing customers' future needs. They learned that lesson with Zamp ports a few years ago. And I wouldn't want them drilling more holes into my hull. This is custom work and routing a suitcase solar can work many different ways. They have standard interior wiring to connect to the awnings when purchasing that option. All that’s needed is a simple connector port and wiring given the ECOFLOW has these solar input terminals.

The Ecoflow is under the street side bed (copied photo from other Apex thread). You haven't had your head in the basement of an Oliver yet, but trust me having mine down there for toooo MANY hours and the Apex and Elite hulls are basically the same. Wiring can very easily be run the full length of the streetside basement. Up to the doghouse is a just little more work. There are also ways to wire to the curbside, the easiest being stringing wire around the rear of the basement.

Please don't "drill the door to the battery compartment!" You'll likely be sorry later, since there are far better locations. Give it some time after your delivery to think about it.

We've camped 200 overnights in 3 years, with 65% of our stays unplugged (spreadsheet data). I've only setup suitcase solar about 8 days (4%). We did truly need it last trip which was a first. Additional solar is only needed for long boondocking, like going to max the 14-day BLM limit! Most of our stays are 1-3 days at one campsite, so DC-DC charging is generally what's needed! 😎

I like these ECOFLOW terminals. Through the years, some OTT wiring has loosened/crusted up over time causing issues. These look to be rock solid! 

Edited 3 hours ago by jd1923