Newbies taking the plunge - Are we missing anything

[Dennis and Melissa]

I appears to me the water pressure at the sink and shower heads does not match anything like the pressure coming from the city water inlet.  Moreover, it appears to fluctuate continually.  Maybe I have air in the line?

Any thoughts?

[Dennis and Melissa]

We have just decided that we will be returning home (for the first time since MDIV was born) immediately after the rally in AL.  That means we will be making a dash from Lake Guntersville to Tampa in May.  Dash = 3-4 days 😀

Any suggestions on itineraries or nice places to stop along the way?

[topgun2]

Just now, Dennis and Melissa said:

Any suggestions on itineraries or nice places to stop along the way?

Be sure to look up Mossemi at the Rally.  Krunch and Mike have done this route many times.

Bill

[MAX Burner]

If you like oysters, try the Coastline RV park near Apalachicola - real nice, but "buggy"...

https://www.coastlinervresort.com/?utm_source=campgrounds.rvlife.com&utm_campaign=RVLife_Campgrounds&utm_medium=referral

See y'all at the rally next month!

Edited April 22 by MAX Burner
Spelled Apalachicola incorrectly

[Steve Morris]

On 4/21/2024 at 10:04 AM, Dennis and Melissa said:

We are already registered for the rally.  Site D5.

I've added you to the list of attendees I've been accumulating. Nothing official, and not related to Oliver's registration list. Just an easy way to connect faces to forum names once at the rally. I'll be posting a PDF for folks to print out before we leave for Alabama.

[Dennis and Melissa]

On 4/21/2024 at 10:17 AM, Dennis and Melissa said:

I appears to me the water pressure at the sink and shower heads does not match anything like the pressure coming from the city water inlet.  Moreover, it appears to fluctuate continually.  

User error 🤣

I eventually realized I could look at the pressure gauge (I was told to buy here) while my wife looked at the flow from the faucet.  The fluctuation was coming from the campground.  And, apparently, I wasn't the only one to notice.  The camp host told me they were having a plumber come by today.  So the water might go out intermittently.

Edited April 24 by Dennis and Melissa
spellink

[Dennis and Melissa]

Is it normal for the "washers" on either end of the rod in the top stair to rust?

[topgun2]

5 hours ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

Is it normal for the "washers" on either end of the rod in the top stair to rust?

No - not mine.

[SeaDawg]

No.

[MAX Burner]

21 hours ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

The fluctuation was coming from the campground. 

This is a good example of why we always fill the fresh water tank with the RV park plumbing system via our fresh water hose & activated carbon filter.  Once the FWT is full (indicated by water exiting the overflow tube near the main hatch steps), we stow the hose/filter for a tidy "look" outside(*).

This way - using the OTT water system is exactly the same procedure whether we're boon docking or staying at an RV Park (usually with unknown water pressure unless we ask).  This practice exercises the water pump "ON/OFF" procedure used by OTT owner/occupants.

If you're feeling "froggy" - as your FWT begins to drop in volume, use your 6-gal spare fresh water container to exercise your "boon docking" water valve procedure by topping off the FWT with the spare water.  Then reposition your water valves, refill the FW container, and stow it and the hose.

(*): Don't you just love seeing that SOB at an RV park leaking precious water everywhere from their fresh water hose connections that's spread helter-skelter between the hose bib and the trailer?

Edited April 25 by MAX Burner
...added some detail

[ScubaRx]

16 hours ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

  The camp host told me they were having a plumber come by today.  So the water might go out intermittently.

I'd unhook from the water there until the plumber is long gone. You don't want contaminated water from where they worked on the lines to get into your system.

Another reason to use from your own water tank when the other choices are questionable.

[Dennis and Melissa]

On 4/24/2024 at 7:10 PM, topgun2 said:

No - not mine.

IMG_2737.heicIMG_2738.heic

If you can see these pictures, any suggestions?

[topgun2]

11 minutes ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

If you can see these pictures, any suggestions?

Yes - after I downloaded the pics I can see them.

Suggestion - send the pics to Oliver Service and ask for a replacement rod and washer.

Bill

[topgun2]

Here are the pics in jpeg format:

 

[Rivernerd]

The rod and washer on our Hull #1291 are not rusted either, even though they have been wet many times.  They appear to be galvanized steel. Makes we wonder if Oliver recently received a batch of poorly galvanized rods and washers.

I concur with Topgun's recommendation:  send the photos to Oliver Service via a service ticket, and request a replacement rod, washer and cotter pin. 

[Dennis and Melissa]

Reading through the manual for the Ollies air conditioner I see it has a dehumidify mode. Knowing that will I ever use the little standalone dehumidifier I bought?

[Tom and Doreen]

On 5/5/2024 at 2:36 PM, Dennis and Melissa said:

…will I ever use the little standalone dehumidifier I bought?

We use our stand-alone at times as the Truma dehumidifier feature of the AC sometimes makes the trailer too cold. 

[Dennis and Melissa]

On 4/26/2024 at 11:52 AM, Rivernerd said:

The rod and washer on our Hull #1291 are not rusted either, even though they have been wet many times.  They appear to be galvanized steel. Makes we wonder if Oliver recently received a batch of poorly galvanized rods and washers.

I concur with Topgun's recommendation:  send the photos to Oliver Service via a service ticket, and request a replacement rod, washer and cotter pin. 

I opened a ticket that was "sent to production and quality for review".
That was on 4/26.  Is it normal to wait this long for an update?

[topgun2]

With all that has and is going on in the Service area I'd say to give them a bit more time.

With the Rally coming up and owners stopping by for service on the way I'm sure things are rather busy for the guys/gal.

While its not the best looking, I'm guessing that your steps are still functional.

Bill

[RodgerS]

I just read your initial post, but have not read the replies to it, since my time is a bit limited this morning. So I hope this is not repetitive.  What your post did not include, assuming I didn't miss it on my quick read, was personal RV experience. Personal RV experience, IMHO, is more important than research and more important than the experience and expertise of others.  A two week to one month rental trip, with the type of RV you plan to buy, could be an eye opener and significantly influence your eventual purchase and travel decision.   And this is not at all to denigrate the experience or expertise of other RVers, just that IMHO it can't substitute for some on the road time. The cost and timing may dissuade you, but the RV road is littered with new RVers that found out that all their hard work failed to account for the reality they experienced once they owned an RV. The cost of a rental would, on hind sight, have been a sound investment for many. 

[RodgerS]

Just as a note, I took my wife of several years on a cross country trip in a rental truck camper for two weeks. I loved it, she hated it. 

Edited May 8 by RodgerS

[Dennis and Melissa]

6 hours ago, topgun2 said:

With all that has and is going on in the Service area I'd say to give them a bit more time.

With the Rally coming up and owners stopping by for service on the way I'm sure things are rather busy for the guys/gal.

While its not the best looking, I'm guessing that your steps are still functional.

Bill

I heard back from Oliver today.  They said that it was supposed to be that way and "engineering is looking for a solution".  I think that's just wrong, so I am going to follow up with them.

But I'm not going to air my dirty laundry here.   So I'll only post on this issue again if I get a good result.

[Dennis and Melissa]

On 5/8/2024 at 4:20 PM, Dennis and Melissa said:

I heard back from Oliver today.  They said that it was supposed to be that way and "engineering is looking for a solution".  I think that's just wrong, so I am going to follow up with them.

But I'm not going to air my dirty laundry here.   So I'll only post on this issue again if I get a good result.

I just got a second reply which corrected what I thought I had understood the first time 😜

 

Bottom line, Oliver agrees it’s a problem but they don’t want to take corrective action until they understand WHY it happened. I’m 100% happy with this 🥳

[Dennis and Melissa]

Finally made it back to Tampa 🙂

73 nights, 13 states, 4 national parks, 3 state parks, a couple of KOAs, 2 siblings' driveways, and one highway rest stop.

5,000 miles on the new truck.  3,400 on hull MDIV.

Changed the composting toilet twice.  Greased the zerks once.

Learned soooo much, saw many beautiful places and met loads of nice folks.  Thanks to everyone for all the hand-holding and advice.

Ollie gets a very well deserved bath tomorrow.  Then we check out the storage facility.

He might get to rest there for a few days before we get the energy to head to a beach or some place else close by. 😜

[topgun2]

Glad to hear that the trip was a success!  The first of many to come.

And, it sure was nice meeting the two of you in person at the Rally.  Wish that we could have spent more time together.

Certainly you are no longer "Newbies".  However, into my 9th year I'm still learning new things about the Oliver company and the fine product they make.

Bill