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Nothing will go wrong with the generator if you don’t put a load on it this winter or next.
Main reason to run it is to run some gas through it and keep the carb from gumming up.
Sounds like you have it all ready for winter!

Any reason you can't just plug the little electric heater into an outside outlet?....or if no outside outlet, run an extension cord to inside?

How will using an electric heater in the cold create condensation? It doesn't add moisture to the air, so there's nothing (new) to condense out. If anything, it would (temporarily) remove condensation as the warmer air can hold more moisture, and some of the already condensed water will evaporate or sublime into water vapor.

If you're in with the electric heater, breathing and perspiring, you will of course be adding moisture to the air that can condense out...but that's also true if you're in there without the heater.

IMHO, an electric space heater or two makes a dandy load for the generator. At some times of the year, the combination of a heater and the air conditioner works well, too.

Does your air conditioner not have an electric heat strip?

If you leave water in the water heater when you winterize, another option is to turn it on - It draws a nice chunk of AC power.

When running the generator for its monthly winter exercise, I will turn on the toaster, and electric heater. These will give the gen. enough demand.

I do not want to start a battle but why would anyone leave water in their water heater over winter! The water heater needs to be drained, if you winterize your coach thats part of the process.

Good Luck

Thank you all. Not familiar with electric heat strip on ac so I guess I don’t have that! Water heater is drained so I guess electric heater is the way to go. Thanks again.

Grit dog wrote:
Nothing will go wrong with the generator if you don’t put a load on it this winter or next.
Main reason to run it is to run some gas through it and keep the carb from gumming up.
Sounds like you have it all ready for winter!

Along with keeping the carb from gumming up, exercising the generator keeps the copper slip rings from building up corrosion and dries out any moisture in the windings. From an Onan owner's manual:

Two of the 1500 watt space heaters if it is a 4000 watt generator in the winter. The air conditioner in the summer.

Grit dog wrote:
Nothing will go wrong with the generator if you don’t put a load on it this winter or next.
Main reason to run it is to run some gas through it and keep the carb from gumming up.
Sounds like you have it all ready for winter!

And to keep the brushes from corroding, which is why you need at least a 50% load on the generator. While nothing may go wrong this winter or next, letting it sit without running WILL eventually make it non-functional.

Skibane wrote:
If you leave water in the water heater when you winterize, another option is to turn it on - It draws a nice chunk of AC power.

After 20 minutes, the water is hot and the heater cuts off. If running the generator for 2 hours, you need something that lasts longer.

fill the tank with stabil or seafoam and drive it to stir it up. then run the generator long enough to get it into the carburetor. it will then be fine to sit all winter.

@ Bobbo and Dutch, I understand the concept, but real world, the concern is virtually none.
Examples, just the recent ones with my own generators, 7kw backup power for the house. It's probably 15 years old? Runs when the power goes out. Sometimes, several times a year, during the rainy periods. Sometimes sits for a year or more.
Honda 2k, hadn't used it in like 2 years and used only during summer trips occasionally. Just fired it up a couple weeks ago to use it briefly. No issue.
Our "new" camper, 4+ years old. Onan genny had a total of 8 hours on it as of this spring when we bought it. Owner hadn't camped in it or used the generator since 2018. Somehow it fired up and ran ok on the 4 year old gas in the tank...and no issues with the generator, generating.

Is it better to use it than let it sit indefinitely? Absolutely, I believe so. Not unlike any other ICE powered anything.
But if one takes the right care (draining fuel or treating fuel, run carb dry if possible, etc) then no harm will come to the generator by sitting over the winter.

Also, OP is in NY. It may not be a good idea to heat up the camper in the middle of winter. Or may be more effort than it's worth. If you heat up a camper covered in snow, once you start melting the snow, you kinda need to get rid of all of it, so it doesn't turn to ice.