Is an RV generator worth it?
My RV has an Onan Microlite 4000 generator that has been well maintained. It now starts but stops running as soon as I release the Start button. My mechanic identifies the problem as electrical and ...
Forum Discussion
I guess I see a potential product brewing here: An box that can be mounted under the hood close to the engine with a pulley sticking out the front/side so as to be conveniently belt driven off the engine. The output of the box would be just like that coming out of inverter portable generators - 120V 60Hz single phase AC - with the amount of current available depending upon how fast you wanted to spin the engine ... with all engine speeds being allowed ... including idle engine speeds.
FWIW, I prefer to idle our RV's V10 gasser for an hour here and there for quiet non-solar 14V DC battery charging. Having to run it at 1200-1500 to do the same - or to supply 120V 60Hz would be a non-starter for me. Given this, the ultimate version of the product I suggest above would be various current/wattage versions of it so one could purchase any capacity they want but still have it powered via pulleys from an idling (500-600 RPM) engine, instead of a rev'd up engine.
However, I guess the market would be so small that the pricing would have to be sky-high.
FWIW, I prefer to idle our RV's V10 gasser for an hour here and there for quiet non-solar 14V DC battery charging. Having to run it at 1200-1500 to do the same - or to supply 120V 60Hz would be a non-starter for me. Given this, the ultimate version of the product I suggest above would be various current/wattage versions of it so one could purchase any capacity they want but still have it powered via pulleys from an idling (500-600 RPM) engine, instead of a rev'd up engine.
However, I guess the market would be so small that the pricing would have to be sky-high.
