Generators!! Yes YOU!

memilanuk wrote:
Just out of curiosity... when y'all are pitchin' a fit over people running 'generators'... are you grumping about the folks with the nasty $300 open frame 4000 watt construction site gen sets, or people running something more like a Honda EU2000/2200?

In the past, when we've ran our previous generator (Champion 3100, still pretty quiet) we observed the quiet time hours, and tried to limit the amount of run time as much as we could. Because of the crappy OEM charge converter in that trailer (WFCO 8955), sometimes it was a struggle to get enough juice back in the batteries to be able to run the slide and jack to hook up and take off when the time came. Last trip we had a brandy-new Honda EU2200, and I honestly couldn't hear it running 100 ft away during the day, with 'ambient' noises (we were next to a lake, with people at pretty much every site). Now, middle of the night, with nothing but the breeze... I could see the sound carrying a *little* further. We could certainly hear the music from the group on the other side of the lake, 1/4+ mile away.

Our new (to us) truck camper has a Onan 2500 generator... that is noticeably louder than the Honda or the Champion. But it's built-in, propane powered and push-button start with an auto transfer switch, which is handy. Debating whether to pull it and use the storage space for the Honda, or to keep it in reserve and just add more solar & batteries. TCs being kind of space-limited, more so than a lot of RVs, it's a balancing act ;)

You can quiet down that Onan a bit. I lined my compartment with Dynamat, added a bottom to the compartment made of 3/4" stall mat, built new motor mounts out of the left over stall mat, built a screen over the ventilation holes in the door out of 3M pads, and added a tractor muffler. It's much better - not quite inverter better, but much better. Onan has a new inverter model for building into truck campers, and if I were to buy again that would be on the must-have list.

Regarding my fit, I don't want to hear any generators running, period. I understand occasional use but if you're out there using it daily, I'm going to be annoyed that you haven't bothered to invest in an appropriate solar setup for your usage. It's a different matter altogether if it's been raining and overcast for a few days, your panels are covered in snow, or it's simply too hot to survive without running air conditioning (which can be done on solar).

Regarding truck campers, you just have to be creative. We're about to pick up a custom flatbed with a bunch of storage for ours.