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Old 04-06-2020, 12:50 AM   #1
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Lessons learned

I am new to the Class A diesel pusher world and new to the RV full time life style. I have learnt a lot in the last few weeks. Thing I like and things that drive me a little nuts about my purchase/ walk through/ pickup and class given.

The people doing the walk though were not fully knowledgeable on the coach as I was hoping a lot of the things I lost here I learnt just my accident. But o still have many questions and need to learn a lot more.

Well let’s begin. I have a 2020 Fleetwood Discovery LXE 40G.

The first thing I should mention I am boon-docking and solely ruining off the Onan 8000 for power on my rig. I am currently living on my friends property because of the Covid-19 thing I can’t move anywhere. Luckily my friend is understanding. I love full time In my RV as I stared before. So far I really love my RV. But there are things I have found that kinda suck. I will go into detail more later about that.

But my first question to the masses is if I am running my Onan 8000 full time when needed. Does it matter how often I change my oil and oil filter? That if I use AMSoil? What about a non-OEM oil filter. When should I change the fuel and air filter? What about tune ups? Are they really needed?
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Old 04-06-2020, 02:53 AM   #2
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Welcome to the RV. world and full timing. Sorry you didn't get all your questions answered before leaving the lot.

You should have received a manual for the generator. In it will be the answers to the questions you are asking about servicing. Are you running the generator 24/7 or do you run it to charge your battery bank. That will make a lot of difference in the number of hours the generator racks up.

Good Luck.
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Old 04-06-2020, 04:21 AM   #3
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I have the 2018 Pace Arrow LXE 38 B DP that's quite similar to your Discovery. In reference to the Onan 8000 oil and fuel filter maintenance. I changed the oil and oil filter using the same oil I use in the Cummings diesel so not to carry different types. I bought both oil and fuel filters at O-Rileys auto parts . I plan on changing oil and filter every 250 running hrs. . A lot of times I park in drive ways and use the 120 v dog bone to keep the refrigerator running and maybe a tv or light and not run the genny except when requires a lot more power than that 20 amps
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Old 04-06-2020, 04:22 AM   #4
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Welcome to the wonderful world of class A rv. The Onan generator is designed to run, so don’t worry about that. You should change the oil and oil filter after the first 50 hours of run time and then every 100 hours of run time. Rotella oil is great in any Diesel engine. You can order the oil filter on line pretty easy, you will however need the model number and maybe the serial number to make sure you get the correct one. The fuel filter should be changed every other oil change. The oil filter can be tricky to reach so you will need to find an oil wrench that can reach it. There is only about 3 quarts of oil in the unit. Make sure the coolant level is correct and you will be good to go.

Have fun,
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Old 04-06-2020, 05:04 AM   #5
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I agree that diesel engines are made to run and are happy doing it. I would venture to say there are more problems with gen under use than over use with 2 provisions...
1) You perform PM per manufacturer recommendations
2) They are run with a decent load (40-50%) and not very lightly loaded (batty charging & a few lights, TV)
These take very little power compared to gen output capacity and you run the risk of glazing cylinders causing a significant and costly repair.
So, don't be afraid to use it but make sure it is loaded / producing 50% +/- output.
Also best to reduce load and let it run for 3-4 mins unloaded to cool down before shutting off.
Get a copy of the mfg manual and read and follow it.
Many of us have electronic copies and willing to share if you specify make/model or search online or look in the library section.
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Old 04-06-2020, 09:33 AM   #6
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Quote:
Does it matter how often I change my oil and oil filter? That if I use AMSoil? What about a non-OEM oil filter. When should I change the fuel and air filter? What about tune ups? Are they really needed?

You've received the by-the-book answers already. That's fine, but probably very conservative, so I'll offer some alternatives.


There are several alternative brands of filters that can be substituted for the OEM Onan brand. Onan doesn't actually make filters - they just have one of the big filter makers private label for them. You can cross-reference the Onan brand filters to filters from Donaldson, AC Delco, NAPA, Baldwin, Bosch, Purolator and a dozen others.


The fluid and filter change recommendations in your manual are conservative and intended to cover any situation. Regular use can run up a lot of hours, but if the genset is under load and always running long enough to heat up thoroughly, you can safely extend those change intervals. I would probably change oil & oil filter once or twice a year. Air filter maybe once a year but inspect it every 3-4 months to be sure. A dusty environment can really shorten the filter life.


As for synthetic oil, I don't think it would benefit enough to be worth the extra cost, but it's always a good choice if the budget permits. Don't think I would try to extend the change interval based on that, however. Your call...
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Old 04-06-2020, 10:07 AM   #7
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Since you are not going anywhere in the near future, and have nothing but time on your hand, now is a really good time to sit don with your owner manual(s) and a liquid referent and go over every page in here and get a real understanding of how things work. As to your question about the generator, follow the Onan manual for oil change and frequency. Rotella 15W-40W is all you really need for the generator. Onan rebrands products for their generators and generally charge a hefty markup for the name.
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Old 04-06-2020, 10:48 AM   #8
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Can you understanding neighbor run a HEAVY duty extension cord for your fridge and/or microwave to take some load off your inverter and coach batteries? This could be very helpful if you have a residential fridge.

You may want to build (buy) a snorkel for your generator exhaust (Gen-turi is a brand name). This will get the diesel exhaust up over your rig instead of right under your slide out.

I assume you've found a local company that can pump out your tanks as well as fill up your water (call the local Port-O-Potty company, perhaps). If not, you may need to go for a ride every week or so.

A bottle of wine and roll of toilet paper (LOL), left on your neighbor's doorstep would be quite apropos!

Please post other concerns and solutions that you find.
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Old 04-06-2020, 11:37 AM   #9
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Here is a link to a Cummins/Onan document that provides a heap of informtion including service intervals.


https://cdn.ltvdns.com/leisurevans.c...r-Handbook.pdf


As your unit is new and under warranty, I would stick with the 150 hour interval for oil and oil filter changes. 500 hours for air and fuel filter changes.


These generators like to run and like to have a load.



Enjoy your new rig!!!
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Old 04-06-2020, 01:34 PM   #10
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Can't offer up any advice to the ongoing discussion, but will be tagging along for the educational journey you're on now. We are looking at upgrading to this exact same make/model of MH now, and I'm trying to learn as much as I can about it. Knowledge is power! Especially when dealing with salespeople...

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Old 04-07-2020, 11:01 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by txcpl View Post
Welcome to the RV. world and full timing. Sorry you didn't get all your questions answered before leaving the lot.

You should have received a manual for the generator. In it will be the answers to the questions you are asking about servicing. Are you running the generator 24/7 or do you run it to charge your battery bank. That will make a lot of difference in the number of hours the generator racks up.

Good Luck.
They did come with a DVD manual but I don’t have any means to look at the PDFs and documentation on that DVD because it doesn’t play in any DVD player most laptops and PCs nowadays don’t come with DVD players so I guess I’m gonna have to make the investment and go out and buy an external DVD player 🥴
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Old 04-07-2020, 11:07 PM   #12
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Here is a link to a Cummins/Onan document that provides a heap of informtion including service intervals.


https://cdn.ltvdns.com/leisurevans.c...r-Handbook.pdf


As your unit is new and under warranty, I would stick with the 150 hour interval for oil and oil filter changes. 500 hours for air and fuel filter changes.


These generators like to run and like to have a load.



Enjoy your new rig!!!
It’s been a hot one lately so running the generator is not a problem here in the rig I’d like to try to keep my temperature is anywhere between 70 and 80 and try to let my generator rest at least 5+ hours a day most the time it rests at night when it’s cooler outside.
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Old 04-07-2020, 11:10 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by DuaneMiller View Post
Can't offer up any advice to the ongoing discussion, but will be tagging along for the educational journey you're on now. We are looking at upgrading to this exact same make/model of MH now, and I'm trying to learn as much as I can about it. Knowledge is power! Especially when dealing with salespeople...

Duane
Well you’re definitely in the right place for lots of knowledge I wish that there was a lot more people that kind of have the same rig I have now to give me advice on things to look for I had a lot of headaches on the first week or two of owning this rig. A lot of growing pains in a lot of learning has happened I learned that I can’t run the microwave without the generator being on(boondocking)
I have learned that the toilet that is built into this rig has a emulsifier built into it. I also learned that you cannot run the AC units without the generator being on.
I also learned that you need to have vinegar in a spray bottle on standby to help keep the shower glass clean with a light scrub additional with A magic Mr. clean eraser.

I’ve also learned by Boondocking that I can run the generator moderately on a full tank of diesel for over two weeks before reaching half a tank of gas
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Old 04-08-2020, 05:51 AM   #14
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There is a Discovery owners club dedicated just to Discovery owners. Google it. This is an active forum and most of your questions unique to a Discovery will be answered there.

The owners manual for the generator is the first place to start. Any questions after reading that can be answered here. You likely can get the owners manual in PDF format off the internet without buying a DVD player.

If you plan on boondocking awhile upgrading your battery bank will allow you to give the generator a rest. Night time temps even here in central FL do not require air conditioning - yet.

With a little trial and error you can probably find a way to turn off the fridge at night for several hours saving your batteries from needing to be recharged as frequently.

Even getting 15 amp power from your neighbor will run your refrig and TV to help save generator run time. Figure on almost .75 gal/hr fuel burn when running generator with the AC on. That's $36/day running generator 24/7, you can find a campground for cheaper.
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