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Old 03-27-2008, 08:26 AM   #1
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Ok, this may have been already discussed to death, but I would like to know current opinion...

I'm looking at a 1999-2000 vintage Winnebago - either an Adventurer 34V or a Journey 36G.

Many of them have LP gensets with a 39 gallon LP tank. A few have the diesel genset, but it's much less.

How much hassle is it to fill the LP tank? Are there places to fill at truckstops? If I want to run the house A/C I need to run the Genset... well the heat, stove, fridge and everything else also run on LP - so if I run out - I'm dead in the water...

Is it possible to take along additional 20lb or larger tanks to tie them together for extended runtime? (a backup tank?)

How much "less" is a RV worth with a LP gen? I know to buy a new diesel genset today is $6000 or more, let alone if it will fit? (I would hope)

How many hours is too many for these things?

I do plan to do some drycamping at state parks, as we have a lot of really nice parks in MN, and that's how I'd like to camp for most of the time.

Thank you!!
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Old 03-27-2008, 08:26 AM   #2
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Ok, this may have been already discussed to death, but I would like to know current opinion...

I'm looking at a 1999-2000 vintage Winnebago - either an Adventurer 34V or a Journey 36G.

Many of them have LP gensets with a 39 gallon LP tank. A few have the diesel genset, but it's much less.

How much hassle is it to fill the LP tank? Are there places to fill at truckstops? If I want to run the house A/C I need to run the Genset... well the heat, stove, fridge and everything else also run on LP - so if I run out - I'm dead in the water...

Is it possible to take along additional 20lb or larger tanks to tie them together for extended runtime? (a backup tank?)

How much "less" is a RV worth with a LP gen? I know to buy a new diesel genset today is $6000 or more, let alone if it will fit? (I would hope)

How many hours is too many for these things?

I do plan to do some drycamping at state parks, as we have a lot of really nice parks in MN, and that's how I'd like to camp for most of the time.

Thank you!!
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Old 03-27-2008, 12:22 PM   #3
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I think most would agree that a diesel generator is preferable over an LP generator. More durable, reliable, and you have the convenience of refuelling thru the diesel tank, not the LP tank.

With that said, LP generators work just fine. I had one in my prior Journey. The obvious disadvantage is that you have to fuel thru the LP tank.

I never had a problem with my LP generator in the 5-6 years I owned my prior Journey.

You can get LP refilled at most if not all Flying J truck stops, and many campgrounds can fill your LP tank for you as well. Not to mention most RV service locations.

If the MH you're looking at meets your needs in all the other areas, don't sweat the LP generator. In fact the more hours on it the better in some respects, as it was used frequently keeping it well lubricated and dried out.
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Old 03-27-2008, 02:11 PM   #4
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We have an LP genset in ours and it works out fine - most of the time. The first consideration is how you plan to use it. We seldom (read this as almost never) camp without electric hookup. Thus, the principle use of our genset is running the roof A/Cs while driving. When driving, we've only had a few times when we had to do a little searching for LP. Twice, it has caused us an extra stop in a little town as there were no truck stops along our route.

Our 38 gallon tank is good for about 28 hours of running the genset, depending on how much of a load it has on it. If you boondoock a lot and would plan to use the genset to drive A/Cs while parked, it might be a lot more of a hassle.

One of the things that we have going for us now is that LP hasn't quite reached the same price structure as diesel, at least here.
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Old 03-27-2008, 05:39 PM   #5
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My coach has a 7.5KW quiet diesel Onan. It burns about .6 gal/hr. I have a 100 gal fuel tank; of which between 75 to 80 gal shoul be available for generator use. That would get you about 5 days constant running. Diesel is more expensive but you get a longer run time per gallon.
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Old 03-27-2008, 07:53 PM   #6
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Yes, you can add a "tee" to the gas line and tie in an external tank to extend your LP usage time. However, most LP gensets run on liquid propane (rather than gaseous), so the additional tanks only supply gas to the rest of the coach and not the generator.

If I planned on a lot of dry camping and extensive generator use (e.g. running the air conditioners, I would NOT want to have an LP genset, but if you are only running the genset 2-3 hours a day to charge batteries and maybe do dinner in the microwave, it's not a big deal.
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Old 03-31-2008, 09:46 AM   #7
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I have gone from an LP genset to diesel and there is a world of difference. Yes, propane may be cheaper than diesel, but there is less heat value in a gallon of LP, so it uses much more per hour than a diesel.

You can use the Toad and Jerry cans to add diesel to the fuel tank, but, as previously mentioned, the LP generator requires liquid propane, so adding a 20 lb tank or two will not help too much.

After having both, the lack of a diesel generator will be a deal breaker on future motorhomes.

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