Generators?

[zilla68]

anything you buy from lowes, home depot, harbor freight, etc. are extremely loud (I have 2) and there is no real way to quiet them down. check around locally for a rv salvage yard, I know there is a big one in California, but I dont recall the name. There is a couple over on glamisdunes.com under misc for sale, or rv parts for sale, towards the bottom of the forums page.

[dunedog]

Originally Posted by Big_Gunz_

A new Onan 4k will run you about $2,000.00 but you might be able to find a used one for half the price. Most toy haulers should have a compartment big enough to fit a Onan 4k. As far as the install, I would pay someone to do it. The two battery cables might be from your batteries to start the generator, but its the wiring to the rest of the rig that you need to worry about.

I have a Onan 5.5k in my toy hauler. Its wired to an automatic transfer station (switches back and forth between batteries and/or generator without loss of power). This way if I have anything turned on (TV, lights, heater, refrigerator) and its running off the batteries and I need to power up the generator, the transfer station will change power supplies to all the above without flipping a switch. And when I turn the generator off, it switches back to battery power without skipping a beat.

I also have a small Kipor 3k generator I run most of the time (very quiet). It runs everything in the RV but the two AC. I have it sitting in the bed of my truck and plugged into my shore power outlet. I have this because it only uses about 1 gallon of gas in 8-10 hours. The Onan 5.5 uses about a gallon an hour.

Another thing, will you need an inverter along with a good battery charger installed in your rig?

Inverter=converts DC power to AC power (so you can run stuff like tv's off your batteries)

Maybe it would be easier to just get one of the loud ones and build the three sided box around it. LOL

I would think the TH would already have the inverter and evreything needed It just needs a power source! Lucky I would really look in to finding a used onan 4k micro , I have one and i love it very quit and dosent use much fuel!! I have seen them on craigs list, or try to find a RV junkyard or used parts place or maybe try calling a independent RV repair man " he might have the inside connection !

[Big_Gunz_]

Originally Posted by dunedog

I would think the TH would already have the inverter and evreything needed It just needs a power source! Lucky I would really look in to finding a used onan 4k micro , I have one and i love it very quit and dosent use much fuel!! I have seen them on craigs list, or try to find a RV junkyard or used parts place or maybe try calling a independent RV repair man " he might have the inside connection !

Hopefully your right, it would make it a lot easier for her.

I checked the Skyline website and on the 2009 models, the Onan 4k is an option and under the specifications, it doesn't say anything about fuel capacities. I guess one thing she has to check if she has a fuel tank and if its rigged to the generator compartment.

It also comes equipped with a converter but not an inverter. That could be because it doesn't come standard with a generator. Either way, the Onan 4k would be a good choice for her.

[dunedog]

LOL I never thought of the gas tank ! I wonder if she has a fuel station ?

[Lucky13]

oh.my.god. that was like chinese. what kind of place do I have install the generator then??

That sounds cool about the transfer station....so if you don't have one of those how do all the appliances know what to run off? Or do they do it automatically there is just an interuption in the power while it switches......?

Really the only thing I'd need the generator for at this point is the AC and the microwave except that I'm sure the batteries will only last a day or so without being charged and running the lights, etc?


The inverter...what's that?

[Lucky13]

wow and in the time i could write that there were like 4 more posts.


Ok, no fuel station on the TH. What do you mean "check for a fuel tank and if its rigged to the generator compartment"....for what?


How do I tell if it has the inverter? The guy before me used his generator on it all the time, it's just that he kept the generator for the new trailer he bought. So it's not like it's never been hooked up to a genny?

[Lucky13]

just found this, it's actually in my town....
Onan 4.0 RV Generator

is it just me or does 300 hours sound like a lot? opinions on this one?

[Big_Gunz_]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

oh.my.god. that was like chinese. what kind of place do I have install the generator then??

That sounds cool about the transfer station....so if you don't have one of those how do all the appliances know what to run off? Or do they do it automatically there is just an interuption in the power while it switches......?

Really the only thing I'd need the generator for at this point is the AC and the microwave except that I'm sure the batteries will only last a day or so without being charged and running the lights, etc?


The inverter...what's that?

If you want someone to install it, find a good rv dealer or repair shop.

If you don't have a transfer station, you'll have interruption while your appliances switch over. This mainly pertains to your TV, it will shut off when power gets interrupted. Your lights run off of your batteries, so they just dim a bit, or get brighter when the generator turns on. Your frig will or should covert back to gas if you have it set to "auto."

An inverter converts your battery power (12v's) to 120v's (which most household appliances run off of).

[Big_Gunz_]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

wow and in the time i could write that there were like 4 more posts.


Ok, no fuel station on the TH. What do you mean "check for a fuel tank and if its rigged to the generator compartment"....for what?


How do I tell if it has the inverter? The guy before me used his generator on it all the time, it's just that he kept the generator for the new trailer he bought. So it's not like it's never been hooked up to a genny?

Oh no, no fuel station. You need a fuel station/tank to hold gas for your generator. Minimum 20 gallons to last a long week if you plan on running your genny for long periods of time. If you plan on adding a fuel pumping station (to fuel up your quad) I'd get a 40 gallon tank.

The fuel station/tank normally get mounted to the rear of a toy hauler. At that point, you need to run a fuel line up to the front of your toy hauler, where generators are normally installed.

You can tell you have an inverter if you plug in something that runs off of 120v's, and it turns on. The easiest way is take a lamp from your house and plug it into your toy hauler and try to turn it on without the genny running.

In my rig, I only have a certain number of outlets wired to my inverter. To use the rest, I have to have my small or big generator running to use them.

[Lucky13]

Well no TV...don't really care about that at this point. I'm used to just having to have the generator ON to run the TV anyway though.....? Then when the generator is on it does charge up the batteries, correct?

The fridge converts back to gas when on the auto setting and that part I understand.

Big gunz, you see the link to the Onan on CL?

um am I confused...do generatos not have there own fuel tank on them? how would the other guy have run his generator.....? I am not talking about running it nonstop for the whole weekend I'm talking about running it when I need the AC and micro on...?

I have no intention of adding a fuel station to it...and I know tons of people that run generator's who don't have a fueling station so what would they be doing? I want to do that.......lol