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swinters · 03-15-2025, 11:02 AM

I noticed yesterday that my generator hoses and cable seemed to be hanging behind the generator so opened the generator slide and there's definitely a problem that'll only get worse if I don't properly suspend them. There's a loose clamp on the fuel hoses (red arrow in the photo) but nothing on the power cables and I don't see any rub or wear marks on the cables indicating there was one. I also don't see where there are any attachment points in the overhead. How are these cables and hoses supposed to be suspended? Should there be a spring or something that will allow the cables to pull up when the generator is stowed and, if so, where is it supposed to be attached?

I started getting pictures and of course, being the Pacific Northwest, the sky started dumping liquid sunshine but here are a couple of the hoses and overhead with the generator slide extended.

Alpine36 · 03-16-2025, 10:26 AM

That clamp with the red arrow is supposed to be secured to one of the rear Onan top cover bolts. Make sure to leave a “loop” in the hoses, in other words the clamp looks like it’s in just about the correct spot. The power cables zip tie to the fuel lines. At least that’s how our 2000 was built, and still is that way. Since you’re there I’d recommend opening up the grey junction box where the Kellems loom coming out of the Onan terminates to the house wiring. A known bad wire nut job may be found there, potentially causing all sorts of generator line voltage issues, or no output at all. Unravel all the wire nut tape job and look closely. I replaced the wire nuts with insulated heat shrink style crimp connectors.

Yeah, this cold liquid sunshine garbage is getting old…

Alpine36 · 03-16-2025, 11:07 AM

Here's how mine is. There's a clamp on the fuel lines and a clamp on the battery cables, then a few zip ties...
I guess there isn’t really much of a loop in there after all.
I do remember those clamps are sort of a pita to access.

swinters · 03-16-2025, 11:24 AM

Wow - thanks for the info and photos Alpine36. That's perfect! I see in my photo that the clamp for the electrical cables is there too, down at the end of the cables. That's a way easier fix that it could have been. I'll check out the wire nuts too. Reminds me of when I was serving my apprenticeship in a truck shop and one of the journeymen telling me that whenever I saw electrical tape, unwrap it and check what it was covering and how the corroded connections are a major cause of fires. I really appreciate the feedback. We're supposed to get a 3-hour break in the rain this afternoon and that should do it.

Alpine36 · 03-16-2025, 11:33 AM

This tells me someone has had the top cover off the Onan at least one time. I had to R&R ours last year due to a failed inverter control board. Not a terrible job, but I ended up doing a major service to it, including valve adjustment, belt, thermostat, coolant flush, filters and new fuel pump just for spits and grins.

It's nice at Lake Cushman right now.
From one retired truck mechanic to another...cheers!

swinters · 03-17-2025, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alpine36

This tells me someone has had the top cover off the Onan at least one time. I had to R&R ours last year due to a failed inverter control board. Not a terrible job, but I ended up doing a major service to it, including valve adjustment, belt, thermostat, coolant flush, filters and new fuel pump just for spits and grins.

It's nice at Lake Cushman right now.
From one retired truck mechanic to another...cheers!

Just to wrap this up, 10 minutes and it's fixed. Man, what disaster those things dangling under there could have led to. About 2 weeks after I bought this Alpine, I was headed South on I-5 probably 30 minutes north of the WA-OR border when a pickup pulling a flatbed trailer, both loaded to the max with bales of hay, flew in front of me from the on ramp and commenced to dump hay all over the Interstate. I was in the right and the left lane was full, so nowhere to go, but fortunately for me the bales mostly busted up before I went over them. Who knows what kind of fun I'd have had if these things had been hanging down at that point. What a relief to have it back as it should be!

Thanks again for the excellent info. I plan to do a major service on my generator this summer when the weather requires a pop-up awning, a lawn chair, and a cooler so I can think through the steps as I go. I don't want to do something like forget to put those clamps back in place. And I've spent enough time out jury-rigging fuel return lines on a jackknifed semi in the middle of an intersection in the pouring down rain. Not to mention, too old for that. We'll see what transpires on that project.