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Water heater and furnace strap failures


Ronbrink

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Less than two years into ownership, I made two repairs to the factory-installed metal straps used to secure the Truma water heater and the Dometic furnace. These straps were the typical HVAC metal galvanized hangers, which broke due to stress fractures likely caused by the over-inflated tires Oliver advocated a few years ago; at pickup, my 2020 OLEll Cooper tires sported 80 psi! The water heater strap broke first, repaired, then the furnace, repaired, then the water heater again. With each repair, I used a heaver gauge metal strap, to no avail. After the third failure, I decided to try some other means in hope to permanently fix this reoccurring issue. Aside from reducing the tire pressures to 55 psi, I utilized some cam-lock web straps for the fix. One year in and all good; no more worries of potential damage to the water and gas lines or electrical wires servicing these units from bouncing around while merrily driving down the road! 

Lines and wires at jeopardy!
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Cam-lock to tighten strap for optimum securement.

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Stainless steel self-taping screws and fender washers to fasten strap ends.

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Starboard strips to insulate web strap from heat and abrasion, secured with cable ties.

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Excess web strap bundled and secured with a Velcro cable tie.

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2020 OLEll, Twin, 579

No installed solar, Renogy 40A DC-DC charger, 460Ah LFP battery bank/Victron SmartShunt, Hughes Autoformer, dual Lagun tables, auxiliary Cerbo-S GX/Victron 30A Blue Smart IP22 Charger combo, Dreiha Atmos 4.4 a/c upgrade.

2012 Silverado 1500 4x4

A.R.E. truck bed cover/BedRug bed liner, 200W solar array/Victron SmartSolar MPPT 75/15 and 100Ah potable power station, Rancho QuickLIFT front suspension strut/coil spring upgrade, Advanced Technology vented/slotted disc brake rotor upgrade, Air Lift LoadLifter 5000 Air Suspension/wireless remote controller, Mechman 320A High Output alternator/upsize cables.

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That's a nice and neat solution to the problem.   Fortunately I was forewarned (thru this forum) about the correct OTT tire pressure (50 is what I fixed on).   I did notice that the metal straps seemed a bit sub-par in securing the furnace and water heater.   I like your solution better.   (another someday project)

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2022 Elite II, Hull #1097  Elli Rose 🌹 and she has the solar panels with the 390Ah lithium batteries.  Our tow vehicle is a 2019 Ford Lariat F-150 4wd, 3.5L Eco-boost, 3.55 rear end, with the Max tow package.  Elli Rose also has the street side awning and several walnut and cherry mods on the inside.

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Nice, a lot of people just cannot fathom how much force 6 gallons of water inside a steel tank can generate when moving on rough surfaces!  Mine never failed, but I never towed with hard tires either.
 

What straps did you use? Regular ones? Those have some stretch which in this case is probably not a bad thing to have, but for other applications such as battery tie down straps, you don’t want to have any at all, so you should seek out mil-spec zero stretch webbing. This is excellent, with a footman loop at the bottom on each side, you can position the buckle up top where it is easy to reach and inspect. These straps will stay dead tight, they actually “twang” when you flip one with a finger, very excellent stuff!

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https://raingler.com/products/blockoff-kit

For a lithium battery upgrade, consider adding these to keep them secure and safe.

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https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/5356-how-to-fabricate-battery-hold-down-straps-and-anchors/

John Davies

Spokane WA

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SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: 

Tow Vehicle: 2013 Land Cruiser 200, 32” LT tires, airbags, Safari snorkel, Maggiolina Grand Tour 360 Carbon RTT.

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22 minutes ago, John E Davies said:

What straps did you use? Regular ones?

These were some heavy-duty straps once used to tie down an ATV. I modified them for this application; the end hooks were removed, length shortened and cut ends heat treated. Although the Truma is tankless, it still has substantial weight; and restricting movement imperative, in that the lines are hard plumbed. I am very pleased with this mod. 

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2020 OLEll, Twin, 579

No installed solar, Renogy 40A DC-DC charger, 460Ah LFP battery bank/Victron SmartShunt, Hughes Autoformer, dual Lagun tables, auxiliary Cerbo-S GX/Victron 30A Blue Smart IP22 Charger combo, Dreiha Atmos 4.4 a/c upgrade.

2012 Silverado 1500 4x4

A.R.E. truck bed cover/BedRug bed liner, 200W solar array/Victron SmartSolar MPPT 75/15 and 100Ah potable power station, Rancho QuickLIFT front suspension strut/coil spring upgrade, Advanced Technology vented/slotted disc brake rotor upgrade, Air Lift LoadLifter 5000 Air Suspension/wireless remote controller, Mechman 320A High Output alternator/upsize cables.

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Like JD - I too have never had a problem in this area.  And, I keep my tires at 62 to 65 psi.  And, I have traveled down some pretty rough roads.  However, it is what it is and your solution to the issue appears to be a good one - nice work.

Bill

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2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

Near Asheville, NC

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Between Ronbrink's (very doable) MOD & JD's recommended straps,
I see a winter project that I soooooooooo want to complete before our 2024 Alaska Oli-venture.

The plumbers strap that held (past tense) the WH has snapped.  And I have what I believe is a great replacement for it and to add it to the Heater while I am at it.

Thanks Ronbrink & John Davies,

B~out 

Edited by SNY SD UP
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Maggie & Bryan | Arnegard, ND | 2020 LE II "Twins" Hull #665 | 2021 RAM 2500  6.4L HEMI Gasser  4dr  6.5' bed

 

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Those straps look great!!  We just replaced our broken straps with new plumbing hanger material and some fender washers.  We are hoping that the fender washers are enough to spread the load on the new straps but we definitely will look at the nylon strap solution if there’s any more trouble.

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Heather and Eric

2022 LE2 Standard hull #1147, tow vehicle Toyota Tundra Double Cab 5.7L Pacific Northwest

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