Is a generator necessary?

[RVcrazy]

We are likely to spend a couple of days without hookups from time to time. Do we need a generator? Will solar panels do just as well? How far do the batteries really take you. I know to skip a/c and we can live without TV & microwave for a couple of days.

[JoeChiOhki]

All depends on how you plan to travel. On my last 10,000 mile jaunt through 15 states across the northern and middle parts of the country, I used my generator every day to power the big power appliances in my rig and to recharge the batteries as I only stayed a short part of the time at campgrounds, the rest of it was at walmarts and truck stops.

[cabanaman]

Carried mine for 6 years and never used it.Put it in storage.I now use a 2000 watt inverter for power outages.

[Roads_Less_Trav]

For the same price as a Honda 2000i you can get a small solar panel setup that will allow you to dry camp for weeks at a time without having to do anything (no setup, no gas, no noise, no maintenance, no trouble).

For the past six years we have lived full-time on a sailboat and in trailers with solar power and no hookups. If you want to learn a little about solar, we have lots of info on our website.

If you do get a generator, I'd suggest the Yamaha 2400i. Ours has seen very little use, but it is able to run our 15000 btu air conditioning unit when we need a/c. Even after a year of no use it still starts on the first pull.

RV Solar Power Installation

RV Solar Power Tutorial - Part 1

[carp65]

We use our generator in hot weather while traveling. Dash A/C will not cool
enough and generator will run both A/c's if necessary. It also excercises
generator on a full load. We full-time and would not be without one.

[vermilye]

One 5 mile tow between Turquoise Lake & Camp Hale in Colorado. By the way, the furnace was necessary - down in the low 30's every morning in mid August! The Leadville, CO area is at 10,000'.

[Tech_Dude]

Computer cellphone charged thru cig lighter

[Gale_Hawkins]

vermilye wrote:
The longest I've gone without hookups is 2 weeks. No generator, but a 95 watt solar panel, LED lighting & a pair of 6V, 232 amp/hr batteries. Includes making a pot of coffee each morning with an electric drip coffee maker, running the furnace 45 minutes per day, a laptop, cell phone amplifier & and various chargers.

Did you tow it to any different locations during that two weeks without hookups? Those are large batteries for sure.

[vermilye]

The longest I've gone without hookups is 2 weeks. No generator, but a 95 watt solar panel, LED lighting & a pair of 6V, 232 amp/hr batteries. Includes making a pot of coffee each morning with an electric drip coffee maker, running the furnace 45 minutes per day, a laptop, cell phone amplifier & and various chargers.

[RV_CONUS]

Tomorrow we rap up a 3 day, 1k mile trip. We use the gen when we stop for the convection oven, Blu Ray movies, charging the computer cell phones, and A/C when needed.

When we travel from point A-B we never use RV Parks.

We have a reservation, which we rarely, rarely make tomorrow.

We enjoy comfort and convenience, anywhere, we never leave home without the gen.

[Gale_Hawkins]

I would want at least a Honda 2000 class generator that is great for many other things too besides an RV trailer. In a MH I think having a working generator is more or less a given.

[Sandia_Man]

No, it is not a requirement, but we prefer to dry camp and boondock, so for us a generator is a necessity. We can pretty much run most 120 VAC items (as needed) through our onboard MSW or PSW inverters for a couple of days with our current battery bank, but with the genny replenishing our 12 VDC reserves, it becomes a non-issue. We didn't buy a RV to not be able to utilize the creature comforts it provides by scrimping on energy usage, could of just stayed with tent camping if that was the case. We run our genny mostly to supply power to our high current draw items that we may use for an hour or two a day, all the while our Iota IQ4 quickly returns lost capacity from our taxing 12 VDC requirements when camping off the grid. To point, yes is the answer for if a genny is needed.

[missourijan]

Solar panels will work as well but are far more expensive than a generator. We have a generator and usually use it only once a year. When we need it we are glad to have it. Sometimes we just want to pull over at Cabela's or some remote spot. In 7 years fulltiming we have had to use our generator once for a power outage and that was at a state park we were volunteering at.

[invstr55]

needed,no. I would not camp without mine though, we have had power outages at RV parks and have run into high and low voltage that required us to provide our own power. Our RV only came with one 12 volt battery so it does not last long without support. I would recommend either having a very good battery bank and inverter, complete solar system or a generator.

Happy Camping

Dan & Janice

[retired4fun2002]

As some one said, go ahead and try it in the manner you desire to camp - if it works then your okay. We started out with the same concept, but then seen where having a small generator available would be nice, so we bought a Honda 2000i, and it has been worth every dime we spent.....back in '02! We could pull into a Rest Area, turn on the generator and make a pot of coffee, and then be back on the road. It was also great when we boondocked for a week or more...charged those batteries right up. It is a personal call, but you can always change your mind. Safe travels.