Forum Discussion

paulbeauchemin's avatar
paulbeauchemin
Explorer
Jun 19, 2017

Which Generator?

My Jayco Pinnacle fifth wheel is pre-wired for I assume an Onan 5500 Generator

My original plan was to buy a couple of Honda 2000's and hook them together

Looking at the specs for the Onan the sound rating is about 70 dB while the Honda's is 59 (since dB is logarithmic, that is twice as loud)

Just curious what others opinions are of having an on-board generator Vs the Honda's?

Have 2 A/C units to run. Like the quiet of the honda's and the convenience of the Onan

20 Replies

  • Bionic_Man's avatar
    Bionic_Man
    Explorer
    Jun 20, 2017
    paulbeauchemin wrote:
    Bionic Man wrote:


    Advantages:
    Don't worry about theft
    Runs everything in the trailer
    Much more convenient


    Trade offs:
    Louder than the Hondas
    Uses a lot of propane
    Wife would rather run an inverter if all we are doing is charging batteries

    If I were to do it again, I probably wouldn't install an generator, I'd just go with two inverters and the parallel kits.



    How much propane does it use? How long would a tank run the gen?

    I didn't notice that the Onan is not the inverter type


    When we have been at Moab, and started the generator at 7, and run 12 hours, it will go through a full bottle in a day.
  • laknox's avatar
    laknox
    Nomad
    Jun 20, 2017
    lee worsdell wrote:
    gonna run the whole campground with 25kw lol


    Hell yeah! Charge my neighbors for power! :B

    Lyle
  • laknox's avatar
    laknox
    Nomad
    Jun 20, 2017
    Personally, I'd love to just tow my dad's old MutiQuip Whisperwatt 25kw, Isuzu-powwered generator, behind my FW. It's much quieter than my old Generac 4k and I can't even hear the MQ change pitch when the A/C kicks on. :-) Frankly, I'd love to hear what it does when there's a =real= load on it. :-)

    Lyle
  • avvidclif1's avatar
    avvidclif1
    Explorer
    Jun 20, 2017
    paulbeauchemin wrote:
    Bionic Man wrote:


    Advantages:
    Don't worry about theft
    Runs everything in the trailer
    Much more convenient


    Trade offs:
    Louder than the Hondas
    Uses a lot of propane
    Wife would rather run an inverter if all we are doing is charging batteries

    If I were to do it again, I probably wouldn't install an generator, I'd just go with two inverters and the parallel kits.



    How much propane does it use? How long would a tank run the gen?

    I didn't notice that the Onan is not the inverter type


    According to the book, on propane it burns 3.3 lb/hr @ 1/2 load. Mine is gas and it shows .6 gal/hr @ 1/2 load. In real life unless the AC's are running continuously I can go well over 60 hrs. of continuous running on a listed 30Gal tank(???). One reason I got a toy hauler.
  • lee_worsdell's avatar
    lee_worsdell
    Explorer
    Jun 20, 2017
    Honda 7000 sitting in my truck running on 120 /240 volt 50 amp runs both ac,s and fridges ,fans ,lights and pretty well anything else I plug in
  • paulbeauchemin's avatar
    paulbeauchemin
    Explorer
    Jun 20, 2017
    Bionic Man wrote:


    Advantages:
    Don't worry about theft
    Runs everything in the trailer
    Much more convenient


    Trade offs:
    Louder than the Hondas
    Uses a lot of propane
    Wife would rather run an inverter if all we are doing is charging batteries

    If I were to do it again, I probably wouldn't install an generator, I'd just go with two inverters and the parallel kits.



    How much propane does it use? How long would a tank run the gen?

    I didn't notice that the Onan is not the inverter type
  • whatimmadoboutm's avatar
    whatimmadoboutm
    Explorer
    Jun 20, 2017
    Unless you have a plan to install the Hondas in the generator compartment of your unit, I assume you will be running them outside of your trailer. If they are outside, they are more prone to theft and exposure to the elements.
  • 2oldman's avatar
    2oldman
    Explorer II
    Jun 19, 2017
    Trackrig wrote:
    Are two Honda 2000s going to run two A/Cs?
    x2. No, not easily or quietly.

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