New RVer generator help

[Benbill]

My wife and I just took the plunge into RV camping life and while we are very excited, we are still also very green and seeking knowledge. I am interested in advice on the safety of using a permanently mounted generator. We purchased a 2020 Montana Legacy edition that came with a generator prepped compartment next to the battery compartment. It is my assumption that the metal mounting bracket and electrical connection cables were designed for the Cummins Onan generator that have an exhaust pipe that goes out of the compartment. While I know those are great reliable work horses they also come with a steep price and seem to have a reputation of being a bit noisy. I want to mount a Honda EU3000 generator in that compartment, but I worry about the carbon monoxide safety if the unit does not have a dedicated exhaust running outside of the compartment. Would such a set up be safe to operate as long as the compartment doors were always wide open? Thank you for any and all comments and suggestions.

[chuckster57]

Welcome to the forum

Gen prep is usually for an LP fueled gen in a NON toy hauler and and a Gasoline fueled in a toy hauler. That said, lets see if we can figure this out.

Onan gens will be exhausted out the bottom of the unit and you run a tailpipe out to the edge of the unit, seems lately Im seeing then exhausted at the front right In front of the compartment. Onan gens aren't really that noisy and when you figure its inside that compartment, enclosed in its own case and exhausted out the side, I don't think its that bad...I have installed lots of them.

Your trailer may already have the wiring for "remote start" which means you can start it form the comfort of the inside of the trailer, there may also be an automatic transfer switch in place and no need to "plug in" your trailer with the shore cord.

I would opt for the Onan LP fired gen if the wiring is there. Install isn't that hard, and Im sure we can guide you through it.

[Ken / Claudia]

My opinions from 40 plus years using 5 different gennys while camping. I had a AF with a built in Oman fueled by propane. Other gennys were placed outside on the ground near the unit.
I liked the powered up electric switch and hour meter in the RV. No need for gas to be poured into the genny. When running it was loud inside the RV, so loud TV was on highest setting. I could fell the vibrations on the floor and at dinning table. Those were the good and bad.
It was exhausted out through the bottom of RV, the pipe ended at the outer edge underside of the RV. I really think any mounted genny must have that style of exhaust system to be safe.
I have finally found the best genny system for me. A small easy to lift and quiet portable genny, placed away from the RV. I have Yamaha 2000, but there are others just as good and you need 2 if in that size to run the A/C. I carry them in the truck bed.

[Benbill]

Chuckster57 Thank you for your comments, suggestions, and encouragement to do my own installation with help from others. I am still concerned about the noise of the Onans as confirmed by Ken / Claudia’s experiences.

Another consideration I have been pondering is to use two Honda 2000 generator’s in line and installing the Micro Air Easy Start 364 on both air conditioners which are 15,000 BTU each. I have been watching a couple of YouTube videos where this scenario has worked very well, but as was mentioned this requires maintaining two units, fueling two units, and setting up two units at each campground. Has anyone else tried this?

[chuckster57]

A pair of 2K watt gens tethered together doesn’t get you 4K watts.

If your ACs are still covered under warranty, changing anything will probably void that, and they aren’t cheap.

[Benbill]

Yikes! I sure don’t need to be risking our warranty being voided. Thank you for bringing that to my attention.

Does anyone know how many decibels the Onan 5500 generator produces? I believe that some state and national parks do not allow noisy generators in their campgrounds.

[ChuckS]

If you’ve got the bucks the propane generator is nice.. but two Yamaha 2000s parallel or two Honda units parallel is less expensive and will run one 15K AC unit fine with no need for micro start mod...

I run two Honda 2000s. If I don’t need AC then I run just one for TV, coffee pot, charging batteries, sat dish, etc.

[roadglide]

I found a onan site PPL motor home generate running sales on 5550 The DB is 56. I have a 5500 in my toy hauler that is very quiet when the air conditioners are running I can't hear the generator in side my camper.

[CaptnJohn]

I had an Onan 4500 in a 5er some time ago. Never again unless they are more quiet and have less vibration. I have 2 Champion 2000 watt in a series. They are 4000 only on start up and run at 3700. When running AC they are both on, without AC only 1 is needed. My entire set up has been trouble free for years. They weigh less than 50# each. I keep them in the truck bed. Best of all the entire set up cost less than 1 Honda 2000! My friend just ordered one from Amazon last night. By getting their credit card through Chase he paid $369.00

[Benbill]

CaptnJohn and Ken / Claudia, if I may enquire, how old was your noisy Onan 4500’s. Is it a factor of age why some run quiet and other RVer’s are quite happy with their performance? It just seems like an expensive gamble to spend $4500 on an Onan 5500 only to end up disappointed.

[Roscommon48]

'I want to mount a Honda EU3000 generator in that compartment...'


answer is no.

[Ken / Claudia]

In my RV, the Oman was a 3800? as I recall. It was in a 2003 camper. They could be different now, but it was loud. I checked into a better muffler at the Oman dealer and there were not any better. Dealer said it was a loud engine,
a better muffler may not help much. The dining table and TV were around 6 ft from the genny and that likely caused more inside noise than would be in a large 5er.
I just slept through 8 nights of the 2000 yamaha running all night 4 ft behind the trailer. The trailer's furnace when running drown out the genny noise. For me the genny was about as loud as leaving the cheap bathroom fan on.

[chuckster57]

I have put numerous Onan 5500W LP gens in fivers and could hold a normal conversation with the gen cover in place and compartment door shut, standing at the pin box.

[K_N_L]

We dry camp and boondock overnight quite often, the gas Onan 5500 in our TH is very quiet and vibration free. Considering it is right under our bed, the bedroom a/c is generally louder. Our first toyhauler had a 4K gas Onan, and I swear it seemed louder and induced more vibration. My guess is the single vs. twin cylinder motor. I suspect there may other units that you could fit in and adapt but then you have to consider the time and fabrication costs to get it safely installed.

[gearhead]

We just came from The Dirt Track at Charlotte with hundreds of RV's dry camping. I ran my 2 Honda 2000's with a 5 gallon Berg/IPI long run tank. There were also a lot of 5th wheels with built in gens. All of them I was around were very quiet.
But I also saw a lot of Predator 3500 gens from Harbor Freight. I talked to one owner and he said just be sure to buy the warranty.

[xrated]

I'm on my second T.H. and both of them were/are equipped with the Onan/Cummins 5500W gasoline generators. In my experience neither of them were loud and both of them were located in the front area of the T.H.....right in the bedroom area and exhausted out the street side of the camper. Both of mine were already installed from the factory (Keystone on the first one, Grand Design on my present one) and they live in a compartment and that has a insulated/noise barrier all the way around it except the front, which is where the hatchway for access is located. I've slept several nights with the generator running and yes, you can hear it slightly, but to me it wasn't an issue. Vibration from either one of them was basically non existent so both have been a good experience. Hope this helps.

[DrHolliday]

2017 Keystone Fuzion with a 5500 Onan generator that's gas powered. I here it and feel it, but it's not bad. In the 5th wheel it's quieter than a box fan. The furnace is louder. I haven't had the AC units on with it running yet. In the living room with the TV on you don't even know it's running.

Out side the trailer I can talk in a normal voice in front of the generator compartment or by the exhaust pipe. It's really not loud. This was a factory installed unit. I do like having the hour meter and remote start inside the trailer. Hope this helps!

[travelin texans]

IMO running a portable in the front box with the door open would amplify the noise level, but the door must open to vent the exhaust & hopefully keep it from overheating.
Personally if I needed a generator I'd put the one that the RV was designed to have in that spot rather than try to southern engineer something a bit cheaper that MIGHT work in that spot.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by travelin texans

IMO running a portable in the front box with the door open would amplify the noise level, but the door must open to vent the exhaust & hopefully keep it from overheating.
Personally if I needed a generator I'd put the one that the RV was designed to have in that spot rather than try to southern engineer something a bit cheaper that MIGHT work in that spot.

Sort of brings to mind the question: Who would put a YUGO motor in their VEGA that had a cracked block??? Sometimes the "best option" is to stick with what was designed to be in the space...

That said, I remember (somewhere way in the back of my memory) a statement in the Honda owner's manuals (maybe a warning instead of a note) that their units were not designed to be permanently installed or operated in an enclosed space and that doing so, even with exhaust venting, could lead to CO leakage into the RV and was considered "dangerous" by Honda...

I've looked at a couple of manuals I have, can't find that specific statement, but I remember reading it "somewhere". If I run across the document, I'll post where it's located.

[flybouy]

All the "stand alone" generators that I'm aware of state "do not use in an enclosed space" or something to the effect of "use only in a well ventilated area" Many have warnings not to use them in a garage even with the door open.

I'd suggest contacting the manufacturer of the generator you're considering and get their endorsement to install it in the compartment.