Weights of Options for Oliver Travel Trailers

[Boudicca908]

Greetings -- 

I'm weighing decisions with my Oliver order.

I toured the e2 over a year ago, and I'm hoping to tour the e1 very soon, because I want to be SURE that I really need the extra weight, space, and expense of the e2. I'm a single person who hopes to have friends join me on long sojourns now and then. I love to cook and plan to make all of my food from scratch (it's a thing). Therefore, part of the 'extra space' in the e2 that I consider important is actually the ability to carry more food and water. As a self-supported adventure bicyclist, clothes don't weigh more than about 20 pounds.  

When I talked options with the sales team, I was very surprised that they couldn't cite the weight of any of the options. How can that be? Many options are tempting, but maybe superfluous and if they limit my food and water capacity, I'll tend to rule them out. Right now I am considering many options including 

• 2022 Power Package for e2 - Lithium Pro package: lithium batteries, solar panels with charge controller, micro-air easy start for a/c, 3000 watt pro inverter [$9,500];
• 2022 Outdoor Pro - 30# propane tanks, quick connects, storage basket, rear bumper receiver, 30 amp convenience connection [$2,000];
• convection microwave
• composting toilet 
• tankless water heater (good? bad?)
• Cell phone booster & WiFi booster
• backup camera (though now I'm beginning to believe that the new trucks will ALL come with one?)
• Anderson no-sway hitch

Can anyone let me know what their final build-out actually weighed with same or similar options? 

Better yet, has anyone discovered the weights of any of these features? 

Thanks!

[Mike and Carol]

I don’t think you need to be too concerned with weight even if you get all the options you list.  I haven’t weighed our trailer fully loaded but I don’t think we’re anywhere near the upper limit.  We load the fridge and freezer with as much as we can stuff in.  Our pantry is also packed tight.  We travel with a full fresh tank and carry bottled water as well.  We carry plenty of clothing, way more than 20lbs.  Add in pots, pans, coffee makers etc and we’re still good.  We’ve got the big propane tanks, inverter, 6 gallon water heater and more.  I wouldn’t let weight concerns cause option elimination.  Mike

[Overland]

My guess is that some of those options are actually lighter - Truma and compost toilet. I might think the same about the solar package with lithiums, since the weight savings of the batteries probably more than makes up for the panels. So the biggest hit is probably the larger propane tanks (and you can leave one empty if desired). The weight of the other options is minimal.

In other words, like Mike, I wouldn’t worry much about it. 

[VBistro]

We have just about every option you could ask for, and I don't think we'll have a hard time keeping our rig under ideal towing weights at all.  The GVWR for the EII is 7000lbs, with a cargo carrying capacity of 1525lbs. 

We, too, are cyclists and anticipate bringing both gravel and mountain bikes (in the tv) on most extended trips. That also means we'll have our bike toolbox, repair stand, pump, etc.  I also cook all meals from scratch (or bring frozen meals that I cooked at home).

I made a spreadsheet to account for everything I could possibly anticipate bringing with us on a 10 day boondocking trip, and even with aggressively rounding up my weight estimates I don't come close to the carrying capacity of the EII. I think you run out of storage space (especially for bulky items) long before you run out of weight allowance.  Now....I think the struggle would be real with an EI with 2 cyclists on board.  Solo, I think would be just fine.

Here's a link to my spreadsheet if anyone is interested (and hopefully no one finds a fatal flaw!)

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_SI7qJR_-7Uo0rUY2nrS83XIjPciVuvnmP2E-ek4hb4/edit?usp=sharing

[dewdev]

We have the Elite II with all the options you listed except we have the 4-6V AGM batteries (which are heavier than the lithium batteries). We also have a heavy Thule bike rack for our fiberglass bikes.

I weighed my Elite II (on a certified truck scale), with all the kitchen pots and pans, silverwear and dishes on board. No clothes or groceries or water were in the tanks.

Total Oliver weight = 5760 lbs.

I would go for the Elite II for the following reasons:

1. If you like to cook and want to have adequate food storage, you need the pantry and the extra Kitchen cabinet drawers.

2. Room to carry tools for the bike (and the Oliver).

3. If you have a second person traveling with you, the extra room is preferred.

4. If you are tall, the Elite II has more head room.

[Boudicca908]

This is all welcome feedback -- thank you all! 

When I hit the road, I want to be meandering for months at a time, and as I looked again at the photos online, I see that the Elite 1's space for food is pretty limited. It also requires tearing down the bed for a decent table, though maybe I'd learn to not care -- all these years of tent camping, I hardly spend any time in the tent because I want to be outdoors! 

This weight and space issue recently became a question for me, because a friend who bought a used RV last spring has discovered scant capacity in her rig. 

@dewdev I think you nailed it for me -- 

[SeaDawg]

We store food for two for easily two weeks and more in an elite. You'd have tons of empty space in a 2.

See both. Decide what you're comfortable towing. Either is great for a single person. The lighter, smaller Elite opens up a larger universe of campsites, and tow vehicles. But the price is pretty steep for a little trailer.

Making twin beds in an elite is tough. At least one will be narrow, at 24". 

We leave the rear/big dinette set up as a bed. The small dinette is fine for  inside dining, when we hit ugly weather . We usually eat outside.  Good luck in your decision. 

[dewdev]

i agree with SeaDawg on the point that you should go to see each of the two Oliver trailers yourself (if you have not already done so) and decide which one fits your needs best.

It is best to see each trailer in person and not just look at pictures.

Oliver sales people can set up with existing Oliver owner's in your area for you to visit.

[Boudicca908]

14 hours ago, dewdev said:

Oliver sales people can set up with existing Oliver owner's in your area for you to visit.

Yes, I toured the E2 November last year with owners who were amazingly helpful. They had everything set up, and shared information that was so helpful, including lists for "departure" and "arrival" tasks.

I'm waiting for a confirmation from another owner to see the E1, with my fingers crossed; the closest owner is about 3.5 hours drive from me on the east coast of Florida, but I think worth the effort to get there, to know for sure. 

[Jim and Chris Neuman]

The factory weight of our hull 770 was 5020# as it left the factory last May.

We went with the Anderson, Lithium package and 30# tanks ... the only things in your build that will really effect weight - the propane tanks and Anderson add weight and the Lithiums will lose you quite a bit of weight over a wet-cell battery setup.  Your composting toilet will probably prove out lighter as the "loaded" weight will be less than a full black tank.  I suspect the weight of the head itself will be a wash or perhaps a bit lighter than the standard head.  I am also guessing the Truma may be a few pounds lighter than the standard water heater / tank combo but do not know this for a fact.

[Trainman]

I would say here that your tow vehicle is probably the most important choice here, if your thinking about towing with anything less than a 1/2 ton fully size pickup, you might give loading your trailer some good thought, but from what I see at camping grounds 90% pull there trailers with a 1/2 / 3/4 ton full size pickup and all types of loads without problems. You can overthink this and carry a calculator with you all the time and as you eat your load level will change, then what. Remember Walmart is just around the corner so you can re-load. 

[John E Davies]

If you will be boondocking for long periods, make sure you fully understand the limitations of the lithium battery packages. As delivered, your tow vehicle will not charge them, in fact Oliver leaves that 7-pin wire disconnected. You must add a special DC to DC charger to the trailer, which is not a huge deal, but it is something to consider. If you are hooked to shore power or a generator every few days, it becomes a non issue. It takes a whole lot of power to recharge a big (depleted) lithium battery bank. The solar array is insufficient.

Four AGMs are pretty much maintenance free, but they can fail in just a few years and they weigh four times as much as a comparable lithium battery bank. As a former cyclist, that weight penalty really bugged me, and when I switched to two 100 AH Battle Borns (31 pounds each), I rejoiced at the tremendous weight saving. I used to study Performance and Bike Nashbar catalogs, choosing the component that would save me 100 grams. Saving over 200 pounds was a revelation, like angels singing.

These trailers have ample payload, do not stress about reaching their limits. As Trainman commented, your choice of TV is far more important.

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

[SeaDawg]

8 hours ago, John E Davies said:

As delivered, your tow vehicle will not charge them, in fact Oliver leaves that 7-pin wire disconnected. You must add a special DC to DC charger to the trailer, which is not a huge deal, but it is something to consider

I would change "must" to "may want to." At least, for many people.

With a three way fridge, limiting power, we could camp for weeks on those lithium batteries,  with even a few hours of sun each day. (Mind you, we have zero 110 appliances on board, and don't use ac, unless hooked to 110, which is seldom.) Oh, yeah, we can (and do) camp for weeks on agm batteries,  with solar, but, so much easier it would be with that enormous capacity. 

The beauty of the lithium batteries is the depth of discharge allowed, and, the lack of requirements to fully recharge each day. Lead acid batteries live longest with daily recharge.  Lithium is actually better with running way under 100 per cent. 

Our agm batteries last 4 to 7 years, generally.  

Other than those items, I agree with John.  Understand not only with upper limit freedom, but the limits,  and enjoy the bounty of electrons.

 

[Overland]

There’s two ways of looking at it. Do you want a self sustaining setup?  If so, then John is right, Oliver’s lithium system isn’t balanced - there’s not enough charge capacity in solar or vehicle charging to match the batteries. But if you just want extended time out in nowhere before heading back to recharge, then sure, buy as much battery capacity as you want and don’t worry about it.

The real question, which few really ask or answer, is how much power do you need each day. I think most people would be surprised that Oliver’s standard AGM and solar will give them a balanced, sustainable system that gives them enough power per day. 

[topgun2]

I would say that I'm fairly similar to SeaDawg in regards to energy usage.  In my almost 7 years of camping with my Oliver, I've never been below 83% FULL on my batteries even though I almost exclusively boondock.

As Overland says - 

10 hours ago, Overland said:

Oliver’s standard AGM and solar will give them a balanced, sustainable system that gives them enough power per day. 

Bill

[Mike and Carol]

10 hours ago, Overland said:

The real question, which few really ask or answer, is how much power do you need each day. I think most people would be surprised that Oliver’s standard AGM and solar will give them a balanced, sustainable system that gives them enough power per day. 

I’ve been surprised that my 2 Lithiums have provided plenty of power.  They rarely get below 70% by morning and recharge quickly.  I’m still debating on whether to add a third.  

[Boudicca908]

So much good information! Thank you all for comments, ideas, information. I am running out the door, but will reply later.... Thank you!