Onan EC30-W Wireless Gen Start

[jhaig99]

Well, Onan has just released the EC30-W wireless automatic generator start after being on shipping hold for almost a year. I tied to buy one last summer at the Good Sam Rally in Atlanta, but was told they were on hold. Just found out last week they are released from shipping hold. I ordered mine from Onan for $499 plus $60 for the diesel Y adapter. I have not yet installled, but plan to do soon. Any advice out there?

Interested in location of generator module and inside wireless control module for my 2013 Allegro Red 34"

[becks]

Just wondering....why were they on hold?

[bokobird]

Was it only on hold from Onan direct? I purchased one back in April (thread I reported it in) from an online vendor.

[Sky_Boss]

Yep...I bought mine a few months ago without any delay.

Anyway...

I have mixed emotions about the purchase. It installs very easy and works as advertised. Still, I wish I had gone ahead and completed my Magnum Energy set up with the Battery Monitor Kit and the ME-AGS. Equipment wise that would have been about the same as the EC30-W. However, the installation cost of the ME equipment would have pushed the cost up a fair amount. The advantage of the ME system is integrating everything into one remote control.

Again, I can't seriously complain about the device performance. My only concern is that the highest voltage trigger you can set is 12.1V. I would rather be around 12.4V for the AGS to start the genny. I don't feel the need to run my batteries lower than that plus that reduces the recharge time.

I had a unique problem finding a power outlet that was NOT inverted in a location that was a little more stable with temps. I had to mount on a panel in the front of the coach that get hot because of the windshield. So, I had to set the temp based auto start parameter to around 95* so as to not be too sensitive.

I don't know if I am misunderstanding something but I also found that if I started the genny manually while in the autostart mode that the genny shut down when I moved the coach. No big deal but it took a couple events to figure that out. That must be related to the autostart being disabled when the coach is in motion.

All and all, I can't say it is a bad unit at all. I'm just too anal retentive for my own good and now wish I had gone with all the ME equipment instead.

[jhaig99]

At the Good Sam Rally in June of 2013 I was told the units were on shipping hold. No specific reason was given. I tried to order from Onan a few months later and still on hold. Was told something about a communications issue between the units. When I ordered recently was told they had be released for about a month. There were units still out there at various companies, but at higher prices. I suspect these were shipped before the shipping hold.

[Hikerdogs]

We had one in our 2001 Winnebago Adventurer. There are a few things to watch for when installing the EC30-W generator auto start.

First of all the remote control has to be plugged into a non-inverter outlet. If you use an inverter outlet the unit won't sense loss of shore power.

Secondly before permanently mounting the remote unit try temporary mounting it in several locations.

Since it's not physically connected to the Ac thermostat you have to find a place that mirrors the cooling and heating rate and final temperatures of the thermostat that actually controls the AC. Our first mounting attempt was in a location that heated faster than the AC thermostat and cooled faster. As a result it started the generator before the AC needed to come on, but turned it off before the AC thermostat shut off the AC.

As for the Auto start shutting off the generator when the coach is moved it's supposed to do that. Anytime it senses motion the auto start is disabled. It also disables itself after a long period of setting (I believe 30 days) so it doesn't start the generator when the coach is in storage.

[vettenuts]

I have a question on using this as I too have been looking at one. If you have power and the A/C is running and there is a subsequent power loss, then the generator will start with an immediate call for lots of power. This goes against the generator start procedure in my manual. Also, isn't this bad for the transfer switch?

[Hikerdogs]

Originally Posted by vettenuts

I have a question on using this as I too have been looking at one. If you have power and the A/C is running and there is a subsequent power loss, then the generator will start with an immediate call for lots of power. This goes against the generator start procedure in my manual. Also, isn't this bad for the transfer switch?

The generator won't start immediately. When the EC-30W senses the loss of power it waits a few minutes (10 minutes I believe) to determine whether it was just minor blip in the power supply or an actual outage. In that time the AC will stabilize so when it does start there's not full head pressure in the compressor(s).

Once the EC-30W determines the AC needs to run it starts the generator. When the generator does start again it takes a minute or so for it to start producing electricity and move the transfer switch to the generator supply position.

If the AC is on and the inside temperature is above the set point it will start in the normal fashion. The 1st AC unit, or 1st compressor on a basement unit with multiple compressors will start. Once the 1st unit or compressor is started the thermostat waits an additional 30 seconds or so before starting the 2nd compressor/unit.

We used it in our 2001 Adventurer with the 2 compressor basement air. Although it never had to run because of an emergency power outage I did try it to make sure it worked properly. The outdoor temperature was about 85*F with the internal temperature up to about 80*F. I set the thermostat to 70*F and the AC started in the normal fashion.

After about 10 minutes of runtime I shut off the breaker to the coach and waited to see what happened. After about 10 minutes the generator started. Another couple minutes later the 1st AC compressor started. Another 30 seconds later the second compressor started. The sequence was exactly the same as If I had manually started the generator and the AC.

Another feature of the system is a minimum (20 minutes I believe) runtime. Even if the batteries are fully charged or the temperature requirements are met in less time the generator will run for the minimum set time period. This allows the EC-30W to monitor the temperature and battery charge conditions to be sure they are fully satisfied and prevents the generator from being short cycled every few minutes if the temperature and charge parameters aren't stable.

Here's a link to the EC-30 and EC-30W system information sheet and operators manual on Generator Joe website.

http://www.generatorjoe.net/html/onan/F-1824.pdf

http://www.generatorjoe.net/html/onan/ec30Wman.pdf

[Sky_Boss]

I think hiker dogs did a pretty darn good job explaining it all. I would be a tad concerned if someone was using the ECW temp feature to act like a thermostat to turn on and off the AC such as at night in a boon docking situation.

For us, using the temp function to turn on the AC is more in line with an emergency because we are away, the shore power has quit and our dogs are in a hot coach while we are away. That should be rare and the ATS should be able to survive occasional transfers like that.

Also, keep in mind that the AC compressors have their own delay built in to avoid compressor overload because of too much pressure built up after a shut down. Different systems have different parameters but the essentially will protect themselves.

The bottom line is that I think the ECW programing covers these potential situations pretty well.

[Hikerdogs]

I forgot to add the fact that we have the Onan EC-30 generator auto start in our 2013 Adventurer. The only difference is that with the wired version the system uses the actual AC thermostat to determine when to start and stop the generator for cooling purposes rather than the thermostat on the remote as in the EC-30W.

It's a little easier to operate in that you don't need to coordinate the reading on the remote with the one on the AC thermostat.

Like SKY_BOSS we use it to make sure the dogs don't have problems if we're away from the coach on hot days.

[Dr4Film]

The Onan EC-30W is NOT a thermostat for the A/C's.

It acts as a thermostat solely for the generator to start the generator in case of a loss of shore power. The generator will run continuously powering the A/C's UNTIL shore power has been restored. The generator runs an additional 10 minutes once shore power has been detected.

The A/C's have their own thermostat and will cycle on and off depending on your temperature setting on the A/C thermostat.

If in doubt or have questions read the owner's manuals.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[Sky_Boss]

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

The Onan EC-30W is NOT a thermostat for the A/C's.

It acts as a thermostat solely for the generator to start the generator in case of a loss of shore power. ...

Just to clarify, I wasn't saying it was. I was trying to say if someone was to try to use it in such a way to indirectly control AC (ACT like a thermostat), I would be concerned.

That was actually tossed out because of a discussion I had with someone off-line. They were thinking they could use the ECW "like" a thermostat while boon docking by setting it to a temp to start the genny and having the AC set at a very low temp to force it on when the genny started until the ECS reaching the target. they thought it would save fuel. I said that it was probably a very bad idea to have that kind of ad hoc cycling of genny and AC. I suggested that if they thought they would need AC through out the night it was better to keep the genny on full time. Besides, the fuel burn for when the genny was near idle during the times the AC was shut down would be minimal. In short, don't get stupid. LOL