Running a generator

[Lokin4deer]

I have been knocking around the idea of buying a generator for home primarily but it would be nice to be able to use this when we boon dock as we travel for AC(mostly overnights at Walmart) My concern is running this overnight. Do any of you run theirs in the bed of your truck with a camper shell on the trucks? I have 2 sliding windows in my camper shell that I could open for ventilation but I am worried about over heating the genny or flooding the cab with exhaust fumes which could be an issue when we get back into to drive the next day. I would have to rework my electric tongue jack to be able to drop my tailgate to use the genny outside the truck and then obviously secure it somehow. Right now I am looking at the Champion generator. And NO I will not be running this at any campgrounds like I said primarily this is for home use just trying to duel purpose it, Thanks for help.

[rbpru]

We were boon docking at an archery shoot when the neighbor plopped a genny in the weeds behind us.

I was quite enough and he mentioned that since behind us was the only practical location we may as well plug into it. it was for daytime use only.

While the availability of electric was nice I am not sure it is worth the hassle to me.

In answer to your question, a log chain and lock are the best you are going to do. If the thieves want it and have time they will get it. Running it in the truck bed with a good exhaust fan seem practical also.

[jaycocreek]

Right now I am looking at the Champion generator.

You might want to check how long the Champion will run with the air on. It has a small fuel tank compared to others. My Honda will run about 8 hours with the air on.

I put a rug over the power jack and lay my tailgate down on it to run my generator in the pickup. Works good keeping the exhaust out of the truck.

[Community Alumni]

I once saw a guy who built a similar box for the back of this truck. The box had 3 alternating baffles on either side with the generator in the middle. The baffles and the box were lined with a sound deadening egg crate foam. The exhaust side had a fan that pulled air through the box. He even wired in a high temperature kill switch. It was one slick setup. The whole thing was mounted on littler rubber isolators in the bed. He put a lot of thought into it. It sounded just like a Honda.

[colliehauler]

hohenwald48 wrote:

colliehauler wrote:

hohenwald48 wrote:

2oldman wrote:

cbwallace wrote:
Additionally, CO2 is heavier than air so using the setup described over night would dump a lot of CO2 right under the front of the trailer where you are sleeping. CO2 detectors help, but mine is located in the back half of the trailer by my fridge and furnace. Not sure it is worth the risk.

You are probably referring to CO, not CO2. CO is slightly LIGHTER than air.

And yes, OP does not want to be sleeping with a gigantic CO generator a few feet away.

Motorhomer's do it every night. And in most cases those generators exhaust out below the belly of the motorhome. But it's a decision each individual has to make on their own.

Motorhome and toy haulers have a exhaust that vents out the side not under the belly. They also have a fan for cooling that draws in air and exits out beside the exhaust pipe.

Well, I'm not sure what kind of motorhomes you had but all 6 of the ones I had vented below the belly pan on the driver side.

All 5 of my Onans vented the exhaust to the side of the RV, not underneath the RV. The tailpipe comes out from the bottom of the RV and exits to the side, not under the RV.

[RoyBell]

Thanks guys. I am sure Dynamat or other sound deadening would work, but this worked well for me. The OSB and gasket for the top, work surprisingly well. It sits on grass, so that helps as well. I also have some clasps holding the lid shut that weren't installed on the first picture.

The exhaust port is on the fan side. It sucks the fresh air over through the holes and over the generator and exhausts out the port.

Make sure the fresh air goes over the middle of the generator, or whatever part is the hottest on yours.

I also caulked all edges where the boards meet. It took a couple nights after work and some brews to make. This year I think I will seal off the fan to the OSB (the 1/2" gap) with some foil tape to really ensure the air flows well.

I only use it at the outdoor music fest once a year so I am not that concerned about how much a hassle it is transporting it since it's only once a year.

The height overall is 24" because it had to fit in the back of my truck on my platform, where I only have 24" clearance. Length is about 5' I think?

I had to get creative for carrying cargo when I had my popup. GF and 2 daughters really don't know the definition of "packing light" lol. This platform I made did play into how large I could make the box.

[Lokin4deer]

Roybell I like the box! Is the genny exhaust right next to your attic fan or are you just venting the box it self. I am thinking if I did something like that I could pipe the attic fan air out of my truck and to the ground. That is a great idea you have! Thanks for posting pics!

[hawkeye-08]

Nice box!

[christopherglen]

I wonder if a layer of dynamat or similar would help that enclosure even more, or does the 3/4? inch osb do a really good job?

[RoyBell]

popeyemth wrote:

RoyBell wrote:
I made a box to put over mine with an attic fan. When closed, you can barely hear it. I only use it once a year at a 4 day outdoor m usic fest with no hookups.

Could you post some pictures?
Sound very interesting
Thanks,Mike

It's not the smallest contraption, but about $40 in material (most I had laying around) I turned my $250 generator into a $2,500 generator. The guy next to me had one of those Honda IU ones. I would say it was on the same level as far as sound. Obviously quite a bit larger though.

the Attic fan I had laying around, the plywood and hinges were the only items I needed to buy. The key is to make it so the sound has to change directions. The baffles allow air in and out, but the sound really gets muffled.

This is a 5KW generator which was large enough to run my pop-up and it's AC without much effort. 5,000 watts should be 40 amps @ 120 volts. I haven't tried it with my TT yet.

[hohenwald48]

colliehauler wrote:

hohenwald48 wrote:

2oldman wrote:

cbwallace wrote:
Additionally, CO2 is heavier than air so using the setup described over night would dump a lot of CO2 right under the front of the trailer where you are sleeping. CO2 detectors help, but mine is located in the back half of the trailer by my fridge and furnace. Not sure it is worth the risk.

You are probably referring to CO, not CO2. CO is slightly LIGHTER than air.

And yes, OP does not want to be sleeping with a gigantic CO generator a few feet away.

Motorhomer's do it every night. And in most cases those generators exhaust out below the belly of the motorhome. But it's a decision each individual has to make on their own.

Motorhome and toy haulers have a exhaust that vents out the side not under the belly. They also have a fan for cooling that draws in air and exits out beside the exhaust pipe.

Well, I'm not sure what kind of motorhomes you had but all 6 of the ones I had vented below the belly pan on the driver side.

[ozkamper]

We have done something similar to what you suggest without problems. While on vacation at a Land Between the Lakes campground, on a hot sticky night, I decided to try running our EU6500is Honda all night to supply power to our Keystone Premier 22RBPR. We have a Dodge 1500 truck with a cap/camper on the bed. We were unhitched, so I had the tail gate down and the two side windows open on the truck camper (I don't recall if I ran a fan to help exhaust the fumes or not, that is a good idea). I had the genny secured to the steel loops in the bed of the truck to deter theft.

It worked great. I don't see how fumes in the truck cab would be an issue, since you would not be in the truck cab anyway and, assuming fumes migrated into the truck cab, it would presumably dissipate readily by opening the truck doors.

If you can't open the tailgate all the way, I would leave the truck cap/camper door open and I would run a fan to aid in exhausting the fumes from the truck cap and to keep the space cooler.

Joe

[Sinnettc]

popeyemth wrote:

RoyBell wrote:
I made a box to put over mine with an attic fan. When closed, you can barely hear it. I only use it once a year at a 4 day outdoor m usic fest with no hookups.

Could you post some pictures?
Sound very interesting
Thanks,Mike

+1

[popeyemth]

RoyBell wrote:
I made a box to put over mine with an attic fan. When closed, you can barely hear it. I only use it once a year at a 4 day outdoor m usic fest with no hookups.

Could you post some pictures?
Sound very interesting
Thanks,Mike

[RoyBell]

I made a box to put over mine with an attic fan. When closed, you can barely hear it. I only use it once a year at a 4 day outdoor m usic fest with no hookups.