Generator questions

[splitting_lanes]

Originally Posted by btroxell

I made my neutral bonding plug to also adapt the 15A to 30A connectors using these parts:
http://https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076HF93QC?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_detail s
and
http://https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BQU576?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_detail s
The blue tape is so that this adapter stands out from my standard dog bone adapter.

Ben

Here’s mine, reposting your links with an internal wiring picture also. Great adapter. Thanks for the idea and links

-Rick

[BobG]

I have the Mach10 13,500 BTU unit. I like it, especially at bed time although I do run it during the day if it is really warm in the afternoon and I am inside.

The RecPro specs look pretty good to me. It is relatively quiet, it has speed settings and can run on a Honda 2200 generator. I primarily run mine on low but if I need to cool down the trailer on a hot day I have run it at high setting for a while.

[MyronL]

I have a WEN 2350 watt generator I bought just for boondocking. Was light, cheap, reasonably quiet, I liked it. Changed out the carburetor jet for the high altitude one and it works smoothly on regular gas. Has the ground neutral plug. My 11,000 btu Dometic Penguin has the MicroAir Easy start wired in. Thought I was good. This generator can run everything electric in the trailer, except the air conditioner.

I couldn't figure out why the A/C fired up nicely on the WEN, ran real cold, but then after 15 minutes run time - a hiccup - and all in the trailer shuts down. WEN goes into overload mode. You press the reset button on it and everything comes back to life again, but after another 5-7 minutes, boom, another shut down. Now I am thinking, after several years of non-use, did mice get up into the Penguin and eat the wires?

Then I read the very fine print on the Dometic Penguin owners manual. That's when I saw that a/c requires 3500 watts of run time.

[John in Santa Cruz]

3500 watts at 120V is close to 30 amps, the full load on the 30A RV power. I find that very hard to believe, on a 30A circuit you should be able to run the air conditioner, microwave, and dc converter all at the same time.

note most generators are rated in 'peak VA' not in watts. 2000VA is about 1600 watts. I have an off brand 2000VA generator that can only sustain a 1300 watt load.

[DT6]

Originally Posted by MyronL

I have a WEN 2350 watt generator I bought just for boondocking. Was light, cheap, reasonably quiet, I liked it. Changed out the carburetor jet for the high altitude one and it works smoothly on regular gas. Has the ground neutral plug. My 11,000 btu Dometic Penguin has the MicroAir Easy start wired in. Thought I was good. This generator can run everything electric in the trailer, except the air conditioner.

I couldn't figure out why the A/C fired up nicely on the WEN, ran real cold, but then after 15 minutes run time - a hiccup - and all in the trailer shuts down. WEN goes into overload mode. You press the reset button on it and everything comes back to life again, but after another 5-7 minutes, boom, another shut down. Now I am thinking, after several years of non-use, did mice get up into the Penguin and eat the wires?

Then I read the very fine print on the Dometic Penguin owners manual. That's when I saw that a/c requires 3500 watts of run time.

We had the same problem last summer at Yellowstone. I thought it was the altitude that was causing it to shut down, but maybe not. I also thought it might be the lack of a grounding plug which I recently learned was needed if you have an EMS. Now I’m not sure. Would be nice to know exactly what causes the AC to shut off after 20 to 20 min on the generator. We have a Honda 2200.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

3500 watts at 120V is close to 30 amps, the full load on the 30A RV power. I find that very hard to believe, on a 30A circuit you should be able to run the air conditioner, microwave, and dc converter all at the same time.

I think that is just CYA language by Dometic. Don’t want complaints from owners all over the place who are trying all brands and sizes of generators. Granted this was near sea level but our old 11K BTU Penguin A/C ran fine on Honda EU2000i. The only time I put it into overload was during a test with the microwave simultaneously.

[MyronL]

I give up. Really liked my WEN 2350i, was cheap, weighs only 32 pounds, db’s not seriously loud. But with all the wild weather out there these days it’s failure to properly run my a/c is not acceptable. No one even sells ethanol-free gas anymore.

When I bought WEN several years ago it successfully ran the air conditioner. That prompted me to celebrate with a U-Tube video on it. Got a lot of views. Maybe my original testing didn’t last long enough to reveal its overload problem. (?) What has changed? Must apologize for that.

Was tempted to buy a second, cheaper WEN - parallel connect to double the power. But, decided instead to go for the Honda EU2200i. First, I borrowed good buddy Ken’s and ran my a/c on it for an hour, just to be sure. Why take a chance? Honda delivers.

Hondas weigh in at 60 pounds. Found out the they are also very popular theft items. Drove to 3 Lowes stores claiming to have them only to get there and learn they hadn’t upgraded their inventory – told me all their Hondas had likely been stolen! Thought now would have to take my chances and order one online. When you want the Honda you want the Honda.

The Sportsman’s Warehouse in ABQ also sells them. After negotiating with management into granting me the 10% Veterans Discount… got a great deal. Beautiful.

What followed was instructions from a miserable bad back: Make a trolley for it.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by MyronL

I give up. Really liked my WEN 2350i, was cheap, weighs only 32 pounds, db’s not seriously loud. But with all the wild weather out there these days it’s failure to properly run my a/c is not acceptable. No one even sells ethanol-free gas anymore.

When I bought WEN several years ago it successfully ran the air conditioner. That prompted me to celebrate with a U-Tube video on it. Got a lot of views. Maybe my original testing didn’t last long enough to reveal its overload problem. (?) What has changed? Must apologize for that.

Was tempted to buy a second, cheaper WEN - parallel connect to double the power. But, decided instead to go for the Honda EU2200i. First, I borrowed good buddy Ken’s and ran my a/c on it for an hour, just to be sure. Why take a chance? Honda delivers.

Hondas weigh in at 60 pounds. Found out the they are also very popular theft items. Drove to 3 Lowes stores claiming to have them only to get there and learn they hadn’t upgraded their inventory – told me all their Hondas had likely been stolen! Thought now would have to take my chances and order one online. When you want the Honda you want the Honda.

The Sportsman’s Warehouse in ABQ also sells them. After negotiating with management into granting me the 10% Veterans Discount… got a great deal. Beautiful.

What followed was instructions from a miserable bad back: Make a trolley for it.

Myron: Honestly I was skeptical when you bought the WEN. The Honda will not disappoint. They are great machines. Make sure to run the carb free of gas at the end of each use. That should be a built in feature of the 2200i. I had to retrofit a kit from Hutch Mountain on the older 2000i to allow for fuel shutoff.

[Ron in BC]

I have a 2000W Hyundai that I could take with me on trailer trips but since I don't have an A/C I haven't had to. Maybe if we're taking a cold weather trip I might if I suspect that there'll be minimum solar.

It's main purpose is to act as a standby generator in the event of power outages. We don't have a lot and there's been years that we haven't had any. Rather than drain the gas I keep it filled with premium and every 3 months or so I give it enough of a run to warm it up. A bit of work but nice having it ready to go.

Ron

[Dcboyd]

Download the Pure-Gas.org. Website. Ethanol free fuel is everywhere. I keep a minimum of 50-100 gallons on hand at all times.

[TWebs46]

Originally Posted by Steveanson

The 2500w Champion (I mistyped 2400w) will start and run our 13.5k soft start AC on propane. I can't speak for the AC without the soft start. Also, this gen will run about 60% longer on propane though to my ear, seems to make a bit more noise.

Now, this and most small generators has a floating neutral. It's not a big deal unless you have the optional EMS on your trailer. If so, when plugging the gen directly into your power input the EMS will give you an error code E1, indication an open ground.
It's an easy fix using a neutral bonding plug. They can be purchased for about ten bucks, but I made my own from parts on hand. A male 120v plug and a 3" piece of appliance wire. Simply jumper between the green gnd post to the neutral (silver) post, and plug into the generator. The neutral is now bonded to the ground, and the EMS will accept the 120v input.

Thanks for this information, as we are taking delivery of our E19 with Coleman AC and softstart next month and I plan to buy the Champion 2500i dual fuel.



My question: Have you used your quick connect to supply propane to the Champion? I am set up to run my CampChef Versa top stove from the quick connect and it'd be very nice if I could also run the generator that way when needed.



(We'll have solar with 2 lithium batteries and two panels, but want to have the option for brief use of AC and refilling our batteries when too much shade or cloudy skies).



Thanks to anyone who can reply


Tom Weber

[John in Santa Cruz]

quick-connects on a trailer are after the primary regulator on the tanks, and only have 11 'water-inches' of pressure, which is less than 1/2 PSI. I doubt thats sufficient pressure to run the generator, unless the generator has a similar 11 inch regulator on its tank hose, which you would bypass with a quickconnect hose. a propane engine tends to have two regulators, a primary high pressure regulator and a low pressure regulator that acts as the carburetor.

[TWebs46]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

quick-connects on a trailer are after the primary regulator on the tanks, and only have 11 'water-inches' of pressure, which is less than 1/2 PSI. I doubt thats sufficient pressure to run the generator, unless the generator has a similar 11 inch regulator on its tank hose, which you would bypass with a quickconnect hose. a propane engine tends to have two regulators, a primary high pressure regulator and a low pressure regulator that acts as the carburetor.

Thanks, John!

Tom

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by TWebs46

Thanks for this information, as we are taking delivery of our E19 with Coleman AC and softstart next month and I plan to buy the Champion 2500i dual fuel.

My question: Have you used your quick connect to supply propane to the Champion? I am set up to run my CampChef Versa top stove from the quick connect and it'd be very nice if I could also run the generator that way when needed.

(We'll have solar with 2 lithium batteries and two panels, but want to have the option for brief use of AC and refilling our batteries when too much shade or cloudy skies).

Thanks to anyone who can reply

Tom Weber

Tom: I don't have a propane fueled gen or a quick disconnect but even if it could work I will tell you from experience you will not want the gen that close to the trailer due to noise and fumes. As John indicated those dual fuel generators are typically designed to run directly connected to a 20 or 30# tank and not from behind another regulator. Personally I would remove a propane tank from the front of the trailer and place the generator and tank in the best location given the campsite circumstances at the time. With the proper extension cords this will give you the best flexibility.

[TWebs46]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Tom: I don't have a propane fueled gen or a quick disconnect but even if it could work I will tell you from experience you will not want the gen that close to the trailer due to noise and fumes. As John indicated those dual fuel generators are typically designed to run directly connected to a 20 or 30# tank and not from behind another regulator. Personally I would remove a propane tank from the front of the trailer and place the generator and tank in the best location given the campsite circumstances at the time. With the proper extension cords this will give you the best flexibility.

This is very helpful and achieves my original purpose - avoiding carrying an additional propane tank.

Thanks very much.

Tom

[Dcboyd]

Yes I have used myChampion 2500 DFI. with the quick disconnect. You must attach it to the supplied regulator inlet. It will function properly. I am using the supplied 12’ hose furnished by ETI.

[hugh]

Originally Posted by Dcboyd

Yes I have used myChampion 2500 DFI. with the quick disconnect. You must attach it to the supplied regulator inlet. It will function properly. I am using the supplied 12’ hose furnished by ETI.

Same here. I'm running a Champion 200961 dual fuel from my quick connect on the camper. But to do so, I had to connect the quick disconnect hose directly into the second stage of the two stage regulator supplied by Champion.

[TWebs46]

Originally Posted by hugh

Same here. I'm running a Champion 200961 dual fuel from my quick connect on the camper. But to do so, I had to connect the quick disconnect hose directly into the second stage of the two stage regulator supplied by Champion.

Thanks Hugh and DC Boyd..


Tom

[geomoore6]

Originally Posted by Dcgrout@icloud.com

Hi - We have a 21C on order. We are planning on going with a RecPro AC3400 unit, and powering it with a Honda EU3000is generator. Where are folks carrying their generators while in transit? We have a F350 with a canopy, so no problem there, other than getting it in and out of the bed while in camp as it weighs 130 lbs. Suggestions/solutions? Thanks.

Had the same problem, and not as young as I want to be…..made a lift to move my generator and other heavy objects. It’s a one person job now. See photos

[Selkirk]

I will be living out of my E19 approximately 2-3 days/week through-out the summer season next year. I will have access to shore power, but just a single 15A circuit. It will be sufficient to power the fridge, keep the batteries charged, etc...but not necessarily run the AC.

I just acquired a pre-owned, well-maintained, low hour Yamaha EF2800i inverter generator in order to power the AC when required. It should be more than sufficient for either AC option that Escape offers (have not decided which unit yet). This generator is set up with a floating neutral. The trailer will be configured with the EMS option, so a bonded neutral will be required.

The Yamaha includes 2x15amp standard outlets and a single L5-30 twist lock receptacle. The deal included a short adapter cable that that allows a standard 3-prong 30 amp RV plug to connect to this outlet.

What's the best way add a bonded neutral? I know I could make a new adapter cable that features strapped neutral and ground lugs on one end. Does anyone know if a pre-made version exists?

Alternatively, I could pick up a standard bonding plug that's been discussed in this thread and plug it into one of the 15 amp outlets....but I'm unsure that would work (since the 15A outlets are on a separate circuit). Even if it did, I don't know if that would be the best approach.

A photo of the panel is provided for reference.