Help--Hurricane Irma--any crash courses or opinions on purchasing and connecting dual fuel generator?

[klp605]

2018 Mallard M32 50 amp with 15k and 12.5k a/c units. Need to figure out, purchase and hook-up a dual fuel generator this weekend in preparation for bringing to FL.

My parents are in the Keys and the likely hood of having a home are slim or extremely damaged as they are on the Atlantic. Not to mention the loss of power as all lines are overhead. The plan is to tow our camper to them filled with supplies. But we need a generator. Propane can be pumped without power so is easier to access along with they have a buried propane tank at their home if it is accessible. Noise is not a factor. I read through a few forums and am 100% green to generators and campers.

1. Would any dual power generator would work for the M32?
2. To connect to the generator do you use a "50 amp to 30 amp" adapter then a "30 amp to generator" adapter?
3. If it was you, what generator would you purchase?

 

[CDN]

Hello

You can use a 50 to 30 amp adapter. To run all that AC you will need a big generator. As far as being able to pump propane without power I have never seen a gravity feed propane filling station, they all have a pump.

As fas a dual fuel you get a less out of propane vs gasoline power wise.

To run a 15 K BTU AC you will need at least 4,000 watts. Being that far south and in the sun the head pressure in the AC will be high and you will be running close to 15 amps for the one AC. To run both you will need a bigger generator like 7 kw. Maybe look at a Diesel Generator at that size, you can always sell it after.

Good luck with your relief efforts and of course be safe.

 

[danemayer]

My experience with propane fill stations is also that they have pumps. So if power is out, you may not be able to fill tanks.

Also, for reference, an Onan 5500 on-board RV generator uses quite a bit of fuel. While it varies by load, and is a bit different between gas, diesel, and propane, for rough planning, assume about 1 gallon per hour of operation under heavy load. A 40# RV tank has a bit over 9 gallons of propane.

So if you're planning on running the generator on propane, assuming you can get it, you'll be schlepping tanks around quite a bit.

Make sure you get good adapters. You don't want to lose one leg of power because of a poorly made adapter.

 

[klp605]

Hello

You can use a 50 to 30 amp adapter. To run all that AC you will need a big generator. As far as being able to pump propane without power I have never seen a gravity feed propane filling station, they all have a pump.

As fas a dual fuel you get a less out of propane vs gasoline power wise.

To run a 15 K BTU AC you will need at least 4,000 watts. Being that far south and in the sun the head pressure in the AC will be high and you will be running close to 15 amps for the one AC. To run both you will need a bigger generator like 7 kw. Maybe look at a Diesel Generator at that size, you can always sell it after.

Good luck with your relief efforts and of course be safe.

I just need the 50 amp to 30 amp adapter only? Never even thought of Diesel nor knew propane provides less. Diesel is easier to come by and in less demand then gas. I lived in FL and everyone was always advised for propane generator (that is what we had for our whole house generator there). Thank you for your help.

 

[klp605]

My experience with propane fill stations is also that they have pumps. So if power is out, you may not be able to fill tanks.

Also, for reference, an Onan 5500 on-board RV generator uses quite a bit of fuel. While it varies by load, and is a bit different between gas, diesel, and propane, for rough planning, assume about 1 gallon per hour of operation under heavy load. A 40# RV tank has a bit over 9 gallons of propane.

So if you're planning on running the generator on propane, assuming you can get it, you'll be schlepping tanks around quite a bit.

Make sure you get good adapters. You don't want to lose one leg of power because of a poorly made adapter.

As a numbers person, that helps. Our 50 to 30 amp is a Camco Powergrip. Do you consider that a good adapter? If not, what would you recommend?

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[CoveredWagon]

Diesel is the most efficient, but also the most expensive. It's the best workhorse.

 

[danemayer]

As a numbers person, that helps. Our 50 to 30 amp is a Camco Powergrip. Do you consider that a good adapter? If not, what would you recommend?

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

That's probably fine. But you should test it before getting to a place where it would be hard to get a replacement.

If the generator you select has a matching receptacle, that's all you'll need. But on many generators, to use the 30 amp receptacle provided, you might need another adapter. Again, you need to check this out and test operation before traveling.

With respect to fuel, if you think you'll have to run the generator for more than a few days, availability and storage of of fuel will likely be problem #1. Running on propane may require daily refilling of propane tanks.

Also, if planning to run any electronic devices, an inverter generator may be a better choice as it provides "clean" power.

 

[Buster537]

Hopefully your parents are nowhere near the Keys at this time.

 

[Roller4tan]

If you plan on hooking the generator to the buried propane tank, you may need some hose and adapter fittings, assuming there is propane in it.

 

[klp605]

Thankfully they are out of the Keys. I suspect the propane tank will be no good as they are calling for a solid 10 feet of water over the keys and then the waves on top (15-20 ft storm surge). Most likely catastrophic for the keys.

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[esscobra]

Honda eu7000is can be found in many places will run your a/cs and other things- had success in south texas in summer 100+ heat for 2 years - will use about 9-10 gal 24hrs running full time - less if you use economy mode and don't run both a/cs all day and night- normally campng , world, norther tool and many others stock them- only reason I don't have is I sold wit trailer before getting my heartland wit built in onan- I know of newer landmark tat runs off one a texas nascar races s well