Camping with the Sound Police

[TomG2]

This is not intended to be another quiet generator versus noisy generator discussion, but I am curious where people camp who run their generators for much of the day. I am a full timer and travel extensively. I use my generator for overnight parking in Walmarts etc. I either stay at parks with hookups or where none are needed. I do not go camping where I need to hear my generator or yours all day and all night.

[Grit_dog]

If we have a "top 10, wth was this thread even about?" List going for this year, congrats to the op for getting this one snuck in at the 11th hour! Lol

[jake2250]

Sam Spade wrote:

TomG2 wrote:
It has never happened to me in hundreds of campgrounds and traveling forty states over fifteen years. That is why I asked. I must be lucky.

Didn't you say that you are a NASCAR fan, Tom ?

If so, does the above statement include "campgrounds" at major races ??

Having done about 15 of the tracks myself, I would find that near impossible to believe.

After working NASCAR and many other race events around the country for over seventeen years, I don't really consider the so called camping area's as a campground.. They are just mass gathering spots where you are jammed together with your RV. Only lakes are settling ponds near by, most have large lighting towers running all night and a check in and out gate manned 24 hours.
Even at large space tracks such as the Glen, you still get jammed into a So called camping area that is so tight you barely have room to walk between the rigs!

At most of the events I have "Camped", if you don't show up with som type of generator you are considered a rookie!! And if you don't have a twenty five foot tall flag pole and whirly gigs displaying your favorite driver,, you are considered a rookie!!
I would also like to point out that about five years now,, maybe longer,, if you don't have some type of LED blinking light on top of your flag pole you are---------you guessed it---Rookie!!

Thats why I have separated Events from actually camping.
At Events, loud crazy behavior is welcomed all hours of the day and night!! Doing burn outs and popping wheelies on you ATV or having all night corn hole or washer or ladder ball tournaments are accepted behavior. The best I have seen is a bag piper on a skate board riding around all hours playing music!! Hell we stopped him and offered him a beer or three and fed him smoked tri tip and all the fixins!!

Now "Camping" this is VERY unaccepted behavior! I believe we all go camping for relaxation time and to get away from the hustle bustle life we encounter! But it seems on both sides of the reality scale,, some folks take it to far and we need to meet in the middle some times!!

[toedtoes]

I think that's the point. Is the noise expected for the situation. At a NASCAR event, it's expected and people accept it as part of the "ambience". In the middle of a national forest, it's not expected and people don't accept it as part of the "ambience".

Just because it is acceptable to do at one place, doesn't make it acceptable at all places. Knowing the difference will go a long way at preventing problems.

As for leaf blowers, they are rotgut. Their engine noise is far different than a lawn mower and it cuts into your head like an ice pick AND all it does is blow all that dust, mold, and pollen up into the air making it impossible for people to breathe. And when did it ever become acceptable to just blow all your leaves and dirt into the neighbors' yards and street rather than to pick up your "trash".

[TomG2]

Sam Spade wrote:

TomG2 wrote:
It has never happened to me in hundreds of campgrounds and traveling forty states over fifteen years. That is why I asked. I must be lucky.

Didn't you say that you are a NASCAR fan, Tom ?

If so, does the above statement include "campgrounds" at major races ??

Having done about 15 of the tracks myself, I would find that near impossible to believe.

I expect lots of noise at "Events" like Nascar races.

Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain - - - and most fools do............... Dale Carnegie

[CarolynandBob]

What I find funny is the ones that complain about generator noise but are ok with starting their 15 year old diesel truck up at 7 am to hit the road.

Noise is noise. Some are ok with hearing a baby cry or dogs bark. Others are ok with hearing a generator.

My father in-law would complain about leaf blowers constantly saying it was noise pollution. Yet his lawn mower was ok and the plane he flew on was ok.

When I would point out to him the he could cut his lawn with one of those old push lawn mowers that doesn't have a motor, he would get upset and say that is different. LOL

I choose to enjoy my time instead of worrying or complaining.

[ata3001]

When camping on a holiday weekend, around us if you don't get your Memorial Day weekend reservations by the first of the year at state parks, you end up without electricity. When there is nothing between you and a camper even 50 yards away a generator is still loud. We had a guy there with all his toys, TT, boat, 4 wheeler and a running 14 hr per day generator. Only time it stopped was for refueling it. Not cold enough for AC or hot enough for the furnace. Why don't these people have some type of enclosure around it to direct the sound upwards other than they could give a rats a$$ that that constant noise bothers others. Yes Hondas are quieter but they don't sound like birds and wind rustling through the trees ie....nature sounds. Not everyone has the luxury of camping during the week when campgrounds are mostly empty and in the NE there are no boondocking locations.

[Sam_Spade]

TomG2 wrote:
It has never happened to me in hundreds of campgrounds and traveling forty states over fifteen years. That is why I asked. I must be lucky.

Didn't you say that you are a NASCAR fan, Tom ?

If so, does the above statement include "campgrounds" at major races ??

Having done about 15 of the tracks myself, I would find that near impossible to believe.

[Strabo]

Lol....We camp in the open desert, and we all use our gennys to power our needs. You all need to get over the abrasive noise issue and go with the flow. I and all I camp with are thankful we have these items to make life better. Technology has given us this option, so we use it.

Complain, Cry or Moan....I don't care.

[NYCgrrl]

CopilotCompanion wrote:

toedtoes wrote:
The way I see it is as long as you follow the rules, then you're fine.

If the rules say "generators between 6 and 8 a.m. and 4-8 p.m., and you insist on running it at midnight, then YOU are in the wrong; If you are running it at 7 p.m. and someone else complains, then THEY are in the wrong.

If you want to be able to run your generator all day and night and/or at will, then you need to pick campgrounds/camp spots that allow that.

If you want to not hear a generator all day and night, then you need to pick campgrounds/camp spots that don't allow that.

If you are boondocking, then be courteous. Don't park next to someone and start running the generator non-stop. Maybe ask them (they were there first) if they have a problem if you run it all day and night and maybe even explain why you want to run it and why you want to park next to them.

I suspect most people would say "no problem, please do what you need" if you explained that your child has medical devices that run on electrical but this is his favorite place to fish. Be prepared for the neighbors (who were there first) to say they do have a problem with the generator and be prepared to move away to another spot - don't just ignore their wants because you think yours are more important. Heck, maybe a conversation with them will result in finding a new perfect fishing spot.

Maybe if both sides would take a moment to COMMUNICATE instead of ASSUMING, we'd find fewer problems with the use of generators, scare lights, and so on.

It's really a shame that compromise has been lost to our society.

X2. Yeah, what TToes said.

X3

I tent camp off the grid with 3 kiddos for up to three weeks every summer. 2 of them are up to eating like stevedores and the last one still eats like a "normal American 8 y/older".
Never hear complaints about not enough food. Just silliness about say too much Italian vs BBQ vs Chinese vs French.
Jaded lil buggers..

I expect when the RV is delivered I'll still be more dependent on the Coleman white gas stove and fire pit to cook or heat up on. A microwave is useful but still a secondary cooking tool in my life, on and off the campground:).

[2gypsies1]

toedtoes wrote:

pconroy328 wrote:
I'll fess up we run our on-board Onan more than I wish. And I do think about the noise bothering the neighbors. I feel really bad when I'm the first one starting up.

But - we're a family of five. 3 teenagers.
The predominate reason we're on the genny is not AC, not the TV.

It's the microwave.
Three starvin' teenagers - I can feed one or two off the campstove, but I do need the microwave.

cream of wheat, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, etc. can all be made easily on a campstove (or RV stove) in bulk without needing a microwave.

If the kids are so hungry they can't wait 5 minutes for the food to cook on the stove, then they can eat a poptart or fruit to tide them over.

Or pick up another campstove and let the teenagers fix their own breakfasts.

What do tent campers do with teens? They seem to eat very well. There are options for a microwave, electric coffee pot, toaster, etc.

[TomG2]

It has never happened to me in hundreds of campgrounds and traveling forty states over fifteen years. That is why I asked. I must be lucky.

[Sam_Spade]

TomG2 wrote:
I still ask the question, "Do people really park next to each other in campgrounds and run their generators?"

Yes. You don't always have a choice in the matter.
Sometimes all or most of the spaces are full.
Sometimes the owner/manager puts you where HE wants you to be.

And some of those times it is above 90 degrees with a heat index over 100 until a couple of hours after the sun goes down......and there is no shade anywhere nearby.

[CopilotCompanio]

toedtoes wrote:
The way I see it is as long as you follow the rules, then you're fine.

If the rules say "generators between 6 and 8 a.m. and 4-8 p.m., and you insist on running it at midnight, then YOU are in the wrong; If you are running it at 7 p.m. and someone else complains, then THEY are in the wrong.

If you want to be able to run your generator all day and night and/or at will, then you need to pick campgrounds/camp spots that allow that.

If you want to not hear a generator all day and night, then you need to pick campgrounds/camp spots that don't allow that.

If you are boondocking, then be courteous. Don't park next to someone and start running the generator non-stop. Maybe ask them (they were there first) if they have a problem if you run it all day and night and maybe even explain why you want to run it and why you want to park next to them.

I suspect most people would say "no problem, please do what you need" if you explained that your child has medical devices that run on electrical but this is his favorite place to fish. Be prepared for the neighbors (who were there first) to say they do have a problem with the generator and be prepared to move away to another spot - don't just ignore their wants because you think yours are more important. Heck, maybe a conversation with them will result in finding a new perfect fishing spot.

Maybe if both sides would take a moment to COMMUNICATE instead of ASSUMING, we'd find fewer problems with the use of generators, scare lights, and so on.

It's really a shame that compromise has been lost to our society.

X2. Yeah, what TToes said.

[CopilotCompanio]

DutchmenSport wrote:
Yup, I see where this is heading. Time for the:

Please pass the salt.

??

[jake2250]

To the OP: Only places we have noticed or expect generators to be running All Day and Night are at large events,Festivals,NASCAR,Tailgating,large parades ETC.

We try not to camp in the California heat around here. If we need to go in because it is over 95 or 110 degrees out then we will make sure sure we get a site that has power. Or we head to the Coast where it is usually cool and windy and only need the generator for short periods at a time.

Only time we experienced generators running for long periods of the time have been at fishing tournaments that require camping, but then that goes back to EVENTS in general.

I do understand that the East Coast tends to stay warm at night and some folks run their generator to stay cool,, but again the situation seems to dictate the use. Like the two pictures of camping out in the middle of no where,, Yeah, I would have no problem bringing my generator out there,, after all,,,,whos going to care or know???