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
jharrell wrote:pnichols wrote:
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.
Again if you just get a good high output alternator rated for continuous duty and feed batteries then have a big inverter off the batteries you basically have a inverter generator, but even better unlike the Honda it has a battery based buffer/regulator and even functions with the engine off for a time and can be easily augmented with solar :)
My stock 175amp 12v alternator->ACR->Battery->Magnum 3000 inverter works pretty well. The alternator seems to be able to do 80-90 amps continuous or about 1000w. I don't like to push it like that if I was serious I would upgrade the alternator or perhaps add a second just for house. A few times I have accidentally run my roof A/C going down the road with my generator off, the Magnum was running it from batteries and the alternators and solar where doing what they could but the batteries where slowing going down.
Winnebago and others are doing a Volta system now on their class B that uses a secondary 48v alternator->Lithium Battery->Inverter setup instead of generator:
https://voltapowersystems.com/energy-storage/
Thanks much for your very informative link on Volta systems!
Their systems look like a near perfect way to provide motorhome RV power that is free of dependence on the sun or traditional generators when drycamping ... right up there with another ultimate solution - propane fuel cell battery maintenance systems.
I'm curious ... why 48V instead of 12V? It seems that large gauge wire to minimize voltage loss within motorhome internal wiring lengths would be a less expensive approach than designing around the use of "somewhat exotic" 48V system components.
I'm betting that Volta systems cost $$$?
