Jack Pads? What do you use?

[RobertH]

Hello all,

 

As Im gearing up for a boondocking camping trip run Im buying a few items I consider essential that I never used with my toy hauler.  I value my Ollie a lot more than my money pit toy hauler.  We will be selling it soon and it cant be gone fast enough.  Anyway here is a list of items I have picked up and I wanted your thoughts on jack pads / weight of the Ollie.

 

So far I have the following:

Camco 40043 TastePure water filter (wont be going boondocking with me this round as I will be parked at the clearest mountain stream :)

Camco 40055 Brass Water Pressure Regulator (again not going on the boon trip)

Camco 22833 Permium Drinking Water Hose

 

Items Im considering are:

Camco 44595 Stabilizer Jack Pad - 4 pack  you can see them here at Amazon

Honda EU3000iS or the Yamaha EF3000iS  =  Your opinion on these would be great but I think its the ole blue vs red  Im leaning towards the Honda because of the run time and how quiet it is.  I hate the thought of being "That Guy" that has a generator running that sounds like a Harley.

 

 

 

Anyway toss some thoughts out and let me know if there is anything else you consider essential.

[John E Davies]

Honda EU3000iS or the Yamaha EF3000iS = Your opinion on these would be great but I think its the ole blue vs red Im leaning towards the Honda because of the run time and how quiet it is. I hate the thought of being “That Guy” that has a generator running that sounds like a Harley.

 

Do you need that many watts? Do you have the solar package? What is the intended use of the generator?

 

This 2400 watt Yamaha is on my wish list - it gets really excellent reviews and has a very high initial surge capacity, which is useful for starting an AC.

 

From one of the reviews: "More watts and amps than the Honda [2000]. The Yamaha is "rated" at 16.7 amps with "rated" surge capability to 20 amps. Very useful when trying to start electric motors such as a freezer compressor or and A/C unit. Hayes Equipment Company tested the Yamaha 2400 on a load bank and it held a 30 amp (not a typo, 30 amp) surge for 10 seconds, this is how the unit is advertised to start newer 13,500 BTU A/C units in RV's. The 10 second surge is enough power to start the compressor until the running wattage drops to below the rated amps when the unit is running. Give serious consideration to the Yamaha if you are going to run anything with a compressor such as a A/C unit. Honda Amps are 13.3 rated and 16.7 surge."

 

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00AYUWDZG/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=1X5H11EH41351&coliid=I2JD9IQIOTZ9EY

 

I've had a little Honda 1000eui for many years and it is stellar, but I no longer believe that Honda is the best choice in terms of best bang for the buck. I think they are all overpriced, even at Internet pricing.

 

Anyway, have loads of fun and post pictures... where are you headed? If into the Cascades, then bear spray or a large caliber firearm will let you sleep much better at night.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[RobertH]

Will be heading up near Mt Adams in Washington.  I will post some pictures of the camp grounds and such and might even give my camp ground away.  :)

 

I lived in Montana and South Dakota for my younger years.  Bears are just big scavengers and 90% of the time are more afraid of you.  The key is to not tussle or be to near to a momma and her babies.  :)

 

Anyway some details on the my Ollie.

 

320 watt solar package

4 x Trojan 6volt AGM sealed batteries

2000 watt inverter

NovaKool 12volt compressor refrigerator model R4500

Tankless on-demand hot water heater from Suburban

 

Standard Propane tanks but I travel with a extra as I have quick connects for it to hook to my camp latern - camp stove - camp burner

 

The Gen set is intended to be a backup in case I run my batteries down to low because Im in the shade.  Also it is to let me use the AC when needed.

[Commanche]

For jack blocks, I took 4 12" pieces of 6x6s, cleaned em up, and put some brown stain on with some fiber straps, and they work and don't look too bad either. I also carry a couple pieces of 2x6s, along with 2 4x4s for tire blocking. I like to minimize the amount I have to lower the jacks down. All stuff I had on hand.

 

 

 

Stan

[John E Davies]

Will be heading up near Mt Adams in Washington. I will post some pictures of the camp grounds and such and might even give my camp ground away. ? I lived in Montana and South Dakota for my younger years. Bears are just big scavengers and 90% of the time are more afraid of you. The key is to not tussle or be to near to a momma and her babies.  

That is a gorgeous area ... is it buggy this time of year?

 

The bear spray is for the other 10% of the time, or for that chance encounter with momma, which is not always a predictable occurrence. Around here I worry just a little about grizzlies wandering west from Montana, but I worry a lot about moose, which are common in the Idaho Panhandle, and they are big, stupidly aggressive and just plain dangerous

 

At least with your Ollie you are buttoned up pretty tight at night with a solid structure around you. That is really tempting to this old tent camper.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

 

 

[RobertH]

That is really tempting to this old tent camper.

 

I cant help myself.  Reminds me of the saying "People in sleeping bags are the soft tacos of the bear world".

 

I went up to scout the area out last Thursday and spent 5 hours on my TTR225 just enjoying the fact that nobody could get in touch with me on my cell.  I would stop now and then to rinse my head in the creek that flows through that entire area.  Pop a beverage out of the ole mini ice cooler and relax.  Its amazing how much my stress level lowers once Im far enough into the hills to not receive calls.

 

Anyway I didnt notice many bugs if any last week.  Before my kids moved out we went up each summer because it was free and nobody was around.  Dirt biked and paint balled and just had a good ole time.  I had not been back for several years and figured it was time to see if the ole stomping grounds was still as empty.  In the 5 hours of riding we ran into 1 camper.  They happened to be in one of our fav spots but during the ride we located at least 4 other spots that would be excellent off the path camping.

 

In the past I have typically used 2x6 for pads but I figured I spent enough on my Ollie I should spoil it a bit :)

 

The Ollie that is now mine is the one that was listed out of the Seattle area for sale.  I went up seen it paid cash and smiled all the way home.  Sure the 2017 would be great but as a business owner I would have likely had to pay someone to hall it over from TN and then stressed about how they treated it the entire time.

 

If it had not popped up I likely would have ordered off their site as I was losing patience looking.  I was considering a Escape 19 but their wooden interior just made me think of the amount of repairs I have had to have done on this Toy hauler because of the wood.  I was done with that and wanted full on fiberglass.

[routlaw]

JFTR, the Yamaha's are actually quieter than the Honda generators. I have one (Yamaha) though never use it anymore and don't even bring it with us now that we have the solar package and 4 Trojan batteries. At the risk of ad nauseum repeating myself for umpteen times, we've never come close to running out of electricity even camped in dappled shade in Glacier NP for a week or two at a time. So our generator just sets in the shed collecting dust. I should run an ad on craiglist and get rid of it.

 

We use a combination of 2x6's and the plastic leveling blocks that come about 8 to a package for stabilizers.

 

Hope this helps.

[Tralien]

With regards to the generator dilemma we have been using them considerably less than anticipated. That being said, we were poised to purchase the Yamaha 2000 (times 2 for the AC) due to reviews, fuel gage and petcock. We ended up purchasing an offering through Costco with Yamaha engines with identical features for close to 1/2 the cost. The link is depicted below:

 

http://www.costco.com/Smarter-Tools-2000-watt-Parallel-Capable-Inverter-Generator-with-Yamaha%C2%AE-Engine.product.100121916.html

 

So far we are very satisfied.

 

Bob

 

 

 

 

[SeaDawg]

2 x 6 and 2 x 8 cutoffs work fine for us. We always have replacement scrap lumber.

 

Like John, we carry a little Honda 1000 to recharge batteries if we have a series of days with no sun. We have 200 watts of solar. If it gsets hot enough to need ac, we move on to someplace cooler.

 

Hope you enjoy your Oliver as much as we enjoy ours. Our 8 years of Oliver camping have been wonderful.

sherry