Thanks for keeping us up to date, rodt. Very interesting!
On the Elixir- You might check the reverse-polarity fuse on the far right of the fuse panel. Also- the classic test of a converter is disconnect the positive lead to the battery and see if you have 13.5-13.6 volts at the output (the red wire and white wires). Also- if that fuse in your battery compartment (in the spaghetti-wiring photo) is on the red wire to the battery, check it for continuity. Instructions for some inverters call for a fuse there. I don't see that in the Elixir manual but who knows.
On your water tank-- It's my impression that there is no consensus position here on WtW on water tanks. Some think they're ridiculous, some can't imagine camping without one. The good news is you're not trying to decide whether to put one in, you already have it. You have the great luxury of forming your own opinion without much expense. I think I'd go ahead and clean the tank and see how it goes on your shake-down trips but take along one or two one-gallon plastic jugs of drinking water (try to get screw caps). Also-- if you've not seen it, this Minimalist Approach? thread has some interesting perspectives and may help with your questions.
Also- don't know if you've run on to this yet but for the search, many use Google Search and put 'site:www.wanderthewest.com' in as one of the search terms.
