Best generator

Lantley wrote:

As for shade, depending on your camping style many will carry a small portable genset to recharge batteries when required.

So, your solution to the shading problem on solar systems that are touted as being replacements for a generator - is to use a generator instead?

time2roll wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

time2roll wrote:
Solar panels... very quiet.

Very true...you can't even hear the air/con blower going because it's not.

Many do have this curious obsession with air conditioning.

Many live in the South, not in SoCal. They have to deal with real heat.

valhalla360 wrote:

time2roll wrote:
Solar panels... very quiet.

Very true...you can't even hear the air/con blower going because it's not.

Many do have this curious obsession with air conditioning.

time2roll wrote:
Solar panels... very quiet.

Very true...you can't even hear the air/con blower going because it's not.

StirCrazy wrote:
actualy a 1db is noticable but you need something to compare it to, and it depends on the range it is at. because it is a logrythmitic scale it works out that every 3db is twice as loud, so 50db is twice as loud as 47db and 47 is twice as loud as 44 and so on, but not exactly. in reality it is all compared from 0db and on a 10 fold scale, so 10 db is 10 times louder than 0db and 20db is 100 times louder than 0db and 30 db is 1000 times louder than 0db and so on. I find even a very quiet 48db generator drives me nuts after a bit if I dont have music or somthing going to mask the sound, but that is getting better with the more hearing I lose evey year haha. when I first started camping I bought a 58 db generator not knowing better... used it once and i wont subject anyone to that again haha

Steve

A common misunderstanding. 3dB is twice the sound power but the human ear will struggle to detect the difference at 1 dB.

Our trailer has a built in Onan but I use our twin Yamaha 2ks more often. They are so quiet and sip fuel.

Skibane wrote:

Lantley wrote:

In his case he doesn't need or want to run his A/C 24/7.
He spends his days hiking,sightseeing,or just enjoying camping life outside and away from the trailer.
However on Hot nights he has the ability to run the A/C to cool down the trailer for sleeping.
For the most part he can do this wherever he camps and he manages this quietly while being fully self contained.

So he has adopted a lifestyle that allows him to live within the limitations of his solar system.

Do you think the average RVer would accept a scheme that only allowed him/her to operate their AC for 5 hours per day - and required the RV to be parked in the sun in order to use it - and paid a hefty price premium for it?

I don't.

Solar allows you to have A/C without the noise it is a came changer.

Until its very obvious disadvantages and limitations are addressed, it is NOT a game-changer.

You claim to have brushed up on solar but its obvious you have not. 5 hours is not the run time limit for solar powered AC. The sytem I mentioned is limited to 5 hours but that is simply because the owner only has 4 batteries. 4 batteries is not a defining limit.
You can easily improve the run time by adding more batteries.
One can develop any run time scheme they desire.
Large solar system are now being installed as OEM equipment by many major manufactures. You mention paying a premium, but prices on solar equipment is dropping. Batteries are getting cheaper. Panels and controllers are getting cheaper. Meanwhile as prices drop the equipment is getting better and more capable.
10 years ago when I purchased my rig solar powered AC was an impossible pipe dream. 5 years ago it was an expensive possiblity.
Today there are affordable DIY packages available. Give it another 5-10 years and solar AC will be commonplace.
Yes there are lots of RV'ers that want to go off the grid a boondock away from everthing and everyone. They don't want to rely on fossil fuels for electric. Renewable solar energy gives them lots of options to develop power schemes. They can stay for months on end with solar power. They don't need to rely on gensets and gas for power.
As for shade, depending on your camping style many will carry a small portable genset to recharge batteries when required. keep in mind this genset may not be AC power capable but it is capable of charging batteries
At this point if you don't realize solar has changed the game you may have been sitting on the bench too long!

Lantley wrote:

In his case he doesn't need or want to run his A/C 24/7.
He spends his days hiking,sightseeing,or just enjoying camping life outside and away from the trailer.
However on Hot nights he has the ability to run the A/C to cool down the trailer for sleeping.
For the most part he can do this wherever he camps and he manages this quietly while being fully self contained.

So he has adopted a lifestyle that allows him to live within the limitations of his solar system.

Do you think the average RVer would accept a scheme that only allowed him/her to operate their AC for 5 hours per day - and required the RV to be parked in the sun in order to use it - and paid a hefty price premium for it?

I don't.

Solar allows you to have A/C without the noise it is a came changer.

Until its very obvious disadvantages and limitations are addressed, it is NOT a game-changer.

Skibane wrote:

Lantley wrote:
I have a neighbor with a Grandesign with 4 lithium batteries that can run his A/C about 5 hours.

That's only 20 percent of the time.

What does he use to power his A/C during the other 19 hours of each day?

If he's only running his A/C for 5 hours a day, he could probably avoid running it all if he didn't park in the sun to get power on the panels.

time2roll wrote:
And for me to run a generator 24/7 to have air conditioning would ruin my style of camping.
If I need A/C like that I am finding hookups.

Yes, I prefer camping in quiet areas, too - and generally avoid using the A/C at all.

However, there are a lot of locations where running a generator 24/7 isn't objectionable, due to all the ambient noise already present in that location - Race events, tailgate parties, camping on the beach, etc.

In his case he doesn't need or want to run his A/C 24/7.
He spends his days hiking,sightseeing,or just enjoying camping life outside and away from the trailer.
However on Hot nights he has the ability to run the A/C to cool down the trailer for sleeping.
For the most part he can do this wherever he camps and he manages this quietly while being fully self contained.
I understand if your at a race track enviroment running genset 24/7 is considred normal. However in CG's , or most other public places 24/7 genset use is not typical or desireable.
Solar powered A/C is the wave of the future.
Everyone wants A/C however no one wants genset noise.
Solar allows you to have A/C without the noise it is a came changer.

time2roll wrote:

Skibane wrote:

time2roll wrote:
Solar panels... very quiet.

And impractical for powering RV air conditioners and other high-power loads that run a lot.

Also useless in heavily-shaded campsites.

OK that is fair. And for me to run a generator 24/7 to have air conditioning would ruin my style of camping.
If I need A/C like that I am finding hookups.

To each their own.... enjoy your own style to the fullest.

X2
I wouldn't go camping just to sit in an air condition trailer 24/7.