Add a 3.6 Onan Generator LP or Diesel?

We bought a Champion 3800 watt dual fuel portable generator from CW several months ago on sale for $599 with free shipping. It is about 110 lbs and about 1.5 " above the bed of our Ram 3500 pickup. It has electric start and 30A RV plug. I need to install plug on front of our Keystone Alpine 5ver so we can plug into FW to generator in bed of TV. It is small enough to put it in the front compartment if we wanted to but I would need help lifting in as DW is not an amazon. I plan to tee into FW propane tanks with a 25' hose extension for boondocking or can use 25 lb portable bbq tanks. It has a 4 gal built in gasoline tank if needed. Just an option for you to think about.

I have a built in Honda that runs on propane. LP has a number of advantages - it does not gum up the carbs if it sits for a while, runs off the tanks on my RV, doesn't have any odor.

The downside has been mentioned. I think the propane bottles are harder to fill, and it does use a lot of fuel. When we boondock in Moab, and run the gen for the AC during the day, I will go through two 30 pound bottles in less than 2 days.

If it is only occasional use, I would say LP (or possibly 2 Honda/Yamaha 2000's in parallel). If you need to run it for long periods of time, I would go gas with a outboard motor gas tank.

The disadvantage to the portable units is you have to worry more about theft.

I have a 2014 27-5L with a 3600 gen. LP on board. Love it. You will not go wrong. It's a little more noises that the 5500 LP. But the 5500 is 50amp and the 3600 is 30amp.

We have a 50amp coach, but I put a 3600LP gen set in it since we don't have but one A/C unit. The 3600LP is a lot lighter than the 5500LP. The 3600 runs our 15K A/C just fine. Works great for quick stops on the road to either cool the unit or to heat-up a hot lunch in the microwave. We used to have a pair of Honda 2000 gen sets but they were a pain to get out and setup, not impossible just a pain. I also got rid of the portable solar system in favor of 300 watts on the roof.

Housted

If I was thinking diesel or propane, I would lean towards diesel just because diesel fuel is everywhere and you can always take a 5 gallon can down the road to the next station and get fuel for it. I also like the idea of a diesel tank in the bed of the pickup. From a safety point of view, diesel is also less volatile then propane. Just plain easier to deal with all around.

My .02

We chose the 5500LP and are happy with use and consumption. A trip on the 4th of july to Lake Cascade boon docking at 104 degrees we kept inside temps at 75 for three days using most of the two LP tanks with the one 13.5 KW air conditioner. I did go with two T-105 6V batteries and with the 3.6 Onan you have room for two more 6V batts giving you capacity for four. What year AF 27-5L did you find? Enjoy and have fun…..come out visit Idaho….I moved from the Bay Area in 1978

There is no such thing as too much battery power. Couple a large battery bank with a decent sized inverter & have a small portable inverter genny for those times when a charge is needed & you are not moving you should be good.

One thing about solar, it does not work under trees, clouds or at night. At the best of times the rate of charge is very low.

Solar: AM Solar

Upgrade to LEDs as well for all the interior lighting. This is where I've bought a lot of LEDs in the past. Looks like they have a holiday sale going on now

Housted wrote:
We have a 50amp coach, but I put a 3600LP gen set in it since we don't have but one A/C unit. The 3600LP is a lot lighter than the 5500LP. The 3600 runs our 15K A/C just fine. Works great for quick stops on the road to either cool the unit or to heat-up a hot lunch in the microwave. We used to have a pair of Honda 2000 gen sets but they were a pain to get out and setup, not impossible just a pain. I also got rid of the portable solar system in favor of 300 watts on the roof.

Housted

Exact same story here. I was done with dealing with the 2 Hondas. They were fine and very efficient when dry camping in a site for an extended period but if you do much moving it just became too much hassle to get them in and out of the truck, etc. When I bought our new trailer I got a quote from the dealer to add an Onan for over $9,000. Well, nothing was worth quite that much. I ordered my Onan 3600 LP generator and all the ancillary parts (automatic transfer switch, remote start, etc.) and had a mobile repair tech install it all and I came in at about $6,500. We are very happy with our decision.

I also added a 1,000 pure sine wave inverter and connected it through an "either/or" switch to 2 circuits off the main panel to run my entertainment center and a few other outlets.

Poppy,
I think the chrome tip on the exhaust pipe is pushing it!!! :B
Looks good.

Housted