Onboard LP gas generator?
I'm curious how useful the onboard LP gas generator is on some rigs. In Texas, A/C is a must from May to December, so when boondocking, a generator is important. This is an opinion thing, but for ...
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mlts22 wrote:
...Another nice thing is that if it is maintained, it doesn't have the issues of varnish like a gasoline genset does....
Wrong.
Okay, maybe not varnish issues, but it can (and will) have fuel issues with the propane. Propane is a by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining. When left alone, it will continue to refine.
I found this out the hard way when my Onan 2500 got finicky one day. It would not hold a load and kept dying. I took apart the propane line and found it was full of oil. Since the generator is at the lowest point of the system, that is where it was all accumulating. I had to disconnect all the devices and blow out the system with degreaser.
The generator has not run as good since then. Probably some oil in the carb, but I have not taken it apart to troubleshoot.
I ended up building a oil trap in to the system after the propane tanks. Essentially a T-fitting with a drain at the bottom of a pipe which goes up for about a foot. This allows any oil to accumulate there and drip down to the T-fitting. I pull the cap off the T and clean the oil out once a year.
So no varnish like gasoline, but propane does present a different set of fuel related problems.
-Eric
