Generator suggestions needed.

[katkens]

Ken, right. I have emailed them with that exact question. But still, that's not a lot of shipping costs on an item that big.
So, you've been very happy with yours? Used it at home? Does it run everything you need there?
Thanks,
Mark

I'm truly pleased with it and no regrets. I have not tried to push the limits on the house use but it will run everything that needs to keep life tolerable. It will keep the frig. ,freezer, some lights and a televison going. We have a gas fireplace that keeps the the upper level nice and have not tried to wire into gas furnace. The things with electic motors use a lot of juice but our outages are generally in cold weather and the frig. and freezer don't come on that much or at the same time. I guess for a house bigger would be a lot better but will get you through....Ken

 

[campntn]

Ken, I'm gettin ready, I think to order this unit. It's 100 lbs, I think. HOw do you move it around? Is it too bulky and heavy to just move or do you have a lot ofhelp?
Thanks,
Mark

 

[katkens]

Ken, I'm gettin ready, I think to order this unit. It's 100 lbs, I think. HOw do you move it around? Is it too bulky and heavy to just move or do you have a lot ofhelp?
Thanks,
Mark

Tis a bit on the heavy side, I roll it around on a 2 wheel dolly ,thought about putting wheels on it but the dolly seems to work good for now. When I take it with us I grab the heavy end and the DW grabs the other end and up it goes. If you have a set of ramps or some boards that works well , if your by yourself.... just walk it up the ramp or pull it with a rope...Ken

 

[campntn]

Yea, if we boondocked a lot, I probably would want a lighter one. But this one is a first for us and we dont' dry camp. I want to be able to plug the camper into it if we loose power and just live in it till we get power back.
We might take it boondocking, but it'd have to be away from everyone else since, apparantly, it's pretty loud. I don't know where we'd boondock though. LOL. NEver done that.

 

[katkens]

Yea, if we boondocked a lot, I probably would want a lighter one. But this one is a first for us and we dont' dry camp. I want to be able to plug the camper into it if we loose power and just live in it till we get power back.
We might take it boondocking, but it'd have to be away from everyone else since, apparantly, it's pretty loud. I don't know where we'd boondock though. LOL. NEver done that.

If ya bought the comparable (quieter) Honda 134 pounds-- Yamaha 147 pounds dry weight.... makes this model seem really light. You will be surprised at the noise level , nothing like the contractor models on the store shelf. We do many dog shows per year , have heard them all and they all make noise. I guess if one truly wants to boondock , none of them should be used....Ken

 

[campntn]

Good point.And you've had that 4000 model with no problems?

 

[Uncle Rog]

Here is a link to the best deal I could find on most units that were of interest to me, no tax and no shipping....http://www.mayberrys.com/indexnew.htm
They can answer most questions and ship promptly......

 

[katkens]

We have had ours almost a year and have had no problems Kenny is not hear but I can tell you that much I know he starts it once a month and it starts on the first pull. -----Kathy

 

[Larryheadhunter]

Hi I must not understand this generator business. I just bought a 2009 big horn 3400RE and I was thinking of getting an Onan 5500LP but its about $3000. Is that overkill? I may do some dry camping with my buddies with toy haulers in Yosemite and with all the accessories I was told to get this model. Any suggestions. My rig is prepped for the big generator already. I am a rookie rver with zero experience trying to get a new start on life with the wife.
Thanks.

Larry Kuhn
2008 Ford F-250 2WD Lariat
2009 Big Horn 3400RE

 

[snuffy]

Hi I must not understand this generator business. I just bought a 2009 big horn 3400RE and I was thinking of getting an Onan 5500LP but its about $3000. Is that overkill? I may do some dry camping with my buddies with toy haulers in Yosemite and with all the accessories I was told to get this model. Any suggestions. My rig is prepped for the big generator already. I am a rookie rver with zero experience trying to get a new start on life with the wife.
Thanks.

Larry Kuhn
2008 Ford F-250 2WD Lariat
2009 Big Horn 3400RE

Larry, it's according to what your needs will be when you dry camp. You most likely will need at least 2800-3000 watts to run the air conditoner. A nice quiet Honda or Yamaha 3000 watt is about $1800 if you shop around. Two Honda 2000's can be paralleled to achieve 4000 watts surge, 3200 watts running. A propane genset is not portable and burns a lot of propane. That would be my last choice.

 

[StevieWonder]

There's a HUGE leap from the 3KW level to the 4KW in size/weight. If you can modulate your needs and keep the AC compressor from running while you load up with other items (hair dryers or such) you can get away with a 3KW unit that will be truly portable. I have a smaller AC unit and use a Yamaha 2800 inverter unit. It starts the AC just fine as long as I'm not trying to run the microwave and the TV at the same time. It's QUIET and much less expensive than the bigger/heavier/larger models.

The Kipor units are pretty good value, but the cheapo Chinese units won't last if you're planning on using them on a regular basis. They are also considerably louder which may present issues from time to time. The Honda units are great but VERY expensive. I believe the Yamaha units are just as good as the Hondas and cheaper, albeit just a tad louder (and I do mean tad).

Here are just a couple of websites for outfits specializing in generators:

http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect.com

and

http://www.wisesales.com

Consider weight and size of the unit while considering a purchase. If you can't lift it by yourself, can you move it when you need to? Where will you put it? How loud is it and where will run relative to the "quiet" zones of your trailer (the bedroom, etc)?

FWIW, I have some considerable experience with generators from my motorhomes where I had 12.5KW diesel Onan down to my very portable and very usable Yamaha with Honda 6500's and 10KW's in the mix. The Yamaha is portable and can be used to run a full size fridge & freezer. Any knowledgable generator user will tell you just to run the freezer for a couple of hours every 8 hrs. As long as you don't open the door with any regularity, the contents will remain solidly frozen. Ditto, on the fridge. Just run it a couple of hours every 6-8 hours and everything inside will be in good shape.

If you want something to run the AC, two TV's, the microwave, a hairdryer and the coffemaker at the same time, then you are talking something in the 6KW range but that's not the real world if you just plan a wee bit.

 

[goldenbetty]

My opinion.

One A/C 4 KW, two A/C 5.5 KW. Better to be safe. That is what is recommended.

 

[StevieWonder]

a 2.8KW generator holds up 24.3Amps at 115VAC. That's WAY more than enough to run one AC unit. Anybody who says you need 4KW for one AC unit is trying to sell you something you don't need unless you're operating other high-draw items like a coffee maker, etc.

 

[katkens]

a 2.8KW generator holds up 24.3Amps at 115VAC. That's WAY more than enough to run one AC unit. Anybody who says you need 4KW for one AC unit is trying to sell you something you don't need unless you're operating other high-draw items like a coffee maker, etc.

I guess I can't visualize someone buying a gen to only run just the air conditioner. If one wants power get the one that will do the job to begin with IMHO.....Ken

 

[goldenbetty]

Exactly....

Katkens, that is my opinion. Buy bigger, planning for the future. I have two A/C on my 5er, and do watch alot of TV and I use the microwave alot, so............ 5.5 kw for us.

 

[StevieWonder]

Bigger generators are:

Loud
Heavy (not moveable by one normal person)
Expensive
Bigger fuel burners

You can watch TV and run the AC on 2.8KW. If you want to run a high load item like a coffeemaker or the microwave, you just turn off the AC for a couple of minutes. You can run the fan but not the compressor. It just takes a little planning/thinking.

My Yamaha 2.8KW (3KW surge) inverter generator fits in the belly boxes, can be lifted there by just me (I'm 5'8" and not a Gold's Gym addict) and is quiet enough to be run all night without raising the ire of any neighboring rigs.

http://www.wisesales.com/YamahaEF2800i.html

 

[jpmorgan37]

One of the great things about RV'ing is that there are so many different options available to us, and each of us has an opinion as to what is best for our own particular situation. That's why some have a 3/4 ton tow vehicle and some have a Freightliner. The same is true for generators. My little Honda 2000 serves me well, but I will not be doing any dry camping for any length of time. We have a gentleman in the park with three big solar panels that says he can go forever without electricity. Other's have Diesel Onan's. It's whatever works best for them. So when we are offering suggestions and making recommendations, keep in mind that it may not be what the other person wants or needs, so try not to personalize it.

Just my opinion,

John

 

[WRIGHT ll]

I have a genny installed in the front compartment of our BH 3400RE, which I need for health reasons. It's a Generac 6500 Queitpac, gasoline driven. It will run everything in the rig at one time. It is quiet inside the bedroom which is directly above it. I use a boat gas tank that I got at Wal-Mart and it gets about ten hours of run time . If we use it while overnighting at a truckstop, I simly refuel the gas tank while I'm refueling the TV. We've had the genny for five years and when we bought the BH we had it transferred from our previous rig. My advice would be this; buy what will do the job that you will need done and if you get it built in then you won't have to worry about lifting it. If you're worried about weight you will learn to work around that issue. OP

 

[Lickitysplit]

Hey guys,

I was in our local TSC (tractor supply co.) store last week and they had the same Champion 3500w generator for sale. It looked like a very high quality gen. for the price. I believe they had it priced at $290.00. I will probably buy one this week to use on the occasional dry camping trip and for emergency power outages here at the house.

I need to measure to see if it will fit in the front storage compartment of the 3400RL.

Jeff

 

[jimtoo]

Hey Lickitysplit,
I have been looking at the same generator. It might fit in the front compartment. I'm sure you have thought of this, but I would like to remind you that you will need to have plenty of intake air circulation for cooling and most important, you will need to add exhaust piping so it can exhaust to the outside.

Jim