Generators

[6x16inside]

I see Onan a lot and I believe my coach came with that orginially but was relieved of it before I bought her.
I found the basement door which is obviously for a generator and I ended up buying Harbor Freight's least expensive one back in storm season. A 4000 something or other. It will fit in the space but would be a royal pain to guesstimate fuel consumption as would refilling it thru a funnel with barely an inch clearance (if I could even get it up into the space)
And now I realized that if it has to sit in the compartment sideways, so much for that because I would not be able to yank the pull cord
Should I put it up for sale and put the cash towards a more "convenient"
generator?
And for the stupid question that may have ya'll going "please stay off the roads, we beg you!" Is there a cord or two that comes from a converter maybe that the electrical wiring thereby outfitting to the wall outlets thru out the unit is already attached to that would ideally be very close to or in the next bay for plugging into the gen.
I've considered that would be how I would recharge batteries while driving so as not to bother anyone where I park, by running the gen during drive time.

[windsorbill]

Coach is diesel, propane tanks and now a gas genny?

4kw won't run your 2 roof airs at same time. I think harbor freight Ginny's will likely overheat in an tight enclosed space. Every time you want to stop or start gen you, you have to pull over and get out. Hummm. It wouldn't be a hard decision for me.

[twinboat]

Let the engine charging system charge your batteries. There should be a system in place to do that.

You can't just stuff a portable generator in the spot where a RV one was.

If the RV had a generator, it also had, #1, A wired outlet that the shore cord would plug into or , #2, An automatic transfer switch that would be hard wired to the generator output.

Either one would supply 120 volt power to everything in the RV, including the converter.

The converter is a device that converts 120 volt AC power to 12 volt DC power, to run 12 volt items like lights, heater fan, water pump and also charge the 12 volt batteries.

[Lv2Roam2]

Please give some careful thought to putting a gas genny into (inside) your rig. Some folks place them into the bed of a truck or build a carry platform at the rear of the RV to set it on.

[triplewide]

A temporary solution could be to mount a portable on the rear bumper and plug the coach into it. May need a shield to protect coach wall from heat.

This one weighs about 100 pounds and will run one AC:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Champion-...346596&veh=sem

Could use smaller one if just charging batteries. A compartment mount Onan is a bit more pricey.

[6x16inside]

Not diesel, do no intend to use propane, front a/c doesn't cool, rear a/c may not work at all thereby considering installing a window unit into a cabinet.
And gen compartment is not enclosed.

Originally Posted by windsorbill

Coach is diesel, propane tanks and now a gas genny?

4kw won't run your 2 roof airs at same time. I think harbor freight Ginny's will likely overheat in an tight enclosed space. Every time you want to stop or start gen you, you have to pull over and get out. Hummm. It wouldn't be a hard decision for me.

[6x16inside]

Or tell me how i can get 3-4 days of power into how many more batteries plus the two there.
How long does it take to recharge 6 batteries with solar power if I were to park on a scenic turnout for instant and literally take a hike?
Believe me, I don't want to hear the gen anymore than I want to see people's dirty looks.

[triplewide]

If all you want to do is charge batteries and be as quiet as possible, look at this one:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Champion-...erator&veh=sem

Only 58 DB.

To determine batteries needed you need to calculate your planned load. What do you plan on running off the batteries?

[6x16inside]

Originally Posted by triplewide

To determine batteries needed you need to calculate your planned load. What do you plan on running off the batteries?

At any given time, something to cool with or something to heat with, a fridge and recharging or using computers

[6x16inside]

Updated to add:
Bought an Onan 6NH series off craigslist for 600 and it cost me about 1400 to have it installed LOL It is a 1979 model if you can believe it. Cummins Onan here in OKC did a great job of putting it all together right.
It runs properly and turned out the lack of one is why the rear a/c never came on.

[Wundertaker]

Originally Posted by triplewide

If all you want to do is charge batteries and be as quiet as possible, look at this one:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Champion-...erator&veh=sem

Only 58 DB.

To determine batteries needed you need to calculate your planned load. What do you plan on running off the batteries?

I have this identical genny for my 38 foot fiver...love it and hate it! It will not run even one AC but i knew that going into the purchasing...mostly used for batt charging and running the coach sans A.C.. It runs great and is relatively quiet. I hate the size of the gas tank as it will give you 8-10 hours on FULL tank, depending on which mode you have it running in. We tend to go to bed earlier...say 9-10 pm and I will fill it just before turning in. Invariably I will wake up 6-7ish or so to a dead CPAP and 120 volt fans shut down. A plus for this is that it's an Inverter and it only weighs 48ish pounds.

I guess if I had to do it over again...i wouldn't. I like the Champion quality, but I'd go for one a bit bigger that could at least handle one A.C.. I'd find an easy and safe place to keep it where I wouldn't have to muscle it around.

Sorry to bloviate...