Keystone Gens?

BeagleMan · 10-14-2020, 09:58 AM

DW and I went to a dealer on Monday to pass the day looking at Montana and talking to a pretty good sales guy, he mentioned something about the one model we liked, that it had a 1000 watt Inverter and is gen prepped and it has a storage place in the front storage for the generator. Keystone has their own Generators? Exactly how does that all work anyhow?

Javi · 10-14-2020, 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

DW and I went to a dealer on Monday to pass the day looking at Montana and talking to a pretty good sales guy, he mentioned something about the one model we liked, that it had a 1000 watt Inverter and is gen prepped and it has a storage place in the front storage for the generator. Keystone has their own Generators? Exactly how does that all work anyhow?

Not to my knowledge.. but if they got a residential fridge they going to have an inverter. And yep.... the Montana, Alpine & Avalanche are genset prep'ed ... Most folks go with a Cummins Onan RV genset.

BeagleMan · 10-14-2020, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Javi

Not to my knowledge.. but if they got a residential fridge they going to have an inverter. And yep.... the Montana, Alpine & Avalanche are genset prep'ed ... Most folks go with a Cummins Onan RV genset.

Pricey little buggers, aren't they? Yeah, I hit rewind.

travelin texans · 10-14-2020, 10:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

DW and I went to a dealer on Monday to pass the day looking at Montana and talking to a pretty good sales guy, he mentioned something about the one model we liked, that it had a 1000 watt Inverter and is gen prepped and it has a storage place in the front storage for the generator. Keystone has their own Generators? Exactly how does that all work anyhow?

I don't think Keystone has "their own" generator line, but if there's a metal enclosure in the front compartment then it's wired for them to add a Onan genset into that enclosure which will likely be enough to power the entire coach when shore power is unavailable.
The 1000 watt inverter is probably connected to a dedicated plug &/or battery to run the residential fridge while traveling & nothing else.
Just FYI if you're looking at a rv of that size, 32'+ or over about 12000 GVWR, to offer these options a 1 ton truck will be mandatory, a 3/4 ain't gonna be enough truck due to too little payload regardless of brand or what the rv/truck dealer will/did tell you.

BeagleMan · 10-14-2020, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelin texans

I don't think Keystone has "their own" generator line, but if there's a metal enclosure in the front compartment then it's wired for them to add a Onan genset into that enclosure which will likely be enough to power the entire coach when shore power is unavailable.
The 1000 watt inverter is probably connected to a dedicated plug &/or battery to run the residential fridge while traveling & nothing else.
Just FYI if you're looking at a rv of that size, 32'+ or over about 12000 GVWR, to offer these options a 1 ton truck will be mandatory, a 3/4 ain't gonna be enough truck due to too little payload regardless of brand or what the rv/truck dealer will/did tell you.

So, I'm back to getting a 450 again?

Javi · 10-14-2020, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

So, I'm back to getting a 450 again?

Thought you was going with a dually... F350

when did you change to a 3/4 ton?

BeagleMan · 10-14-2020, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Javi

Thought you was going with a dually... F350

when did you change to a 3/4 ton?

I haven't yet. I was going to go with F-350 Dually, but TT in the post above suggests I might need more. If I get a 40+ footer, will a 350/3500 not do it? I kinda thought so.

Javi · 10-14-2020, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

I haven't yet. I was going to go with F-350 Dually, but TT in the post above suggests I might need more. If I get a 40+ footer, will a 350/3500 not do it? I kinda thought so.

Remember they got the same GVWR... high dollar tires, little bigger brakes and wider frontend is the only difference.

sonofcy · 10-22-2020, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

I haven't yet. I was going to go with F-350 Dually, but TT in the post above suggests I might need more. If I get a 40+ footer, will a 350/3500 not do it? I kinda thought so.

I have a 450 but for the other 450 reasons. A properly configured 350 can carry more payload. My 450 GVW by scale was 14,325 or 325 lbs overweight.

Other reasons are tight turning radius, bigger brakes, MDT vs LDT, 1 class higher than 350 so a 'tougher' truck overall.

ChuckS · 10-14-2020, 12:22 PM

And there are variations of “Genset prepped” so ask if the transfer switch is wired in already and verify enclosure is there for Onan 5500... usually what’s factory installed... or retrofit install

Also with residential fridge and inverter to power it IF you are going to boon dock then you need two batteries for that fridge and two batteries for coach power... and an isolator between both banks...

My model Alpine doesn’t come genset prepped nor would I want to give up that storage space all the time ... not to mention the added pin weight

The inverter in the 3 units mentioned above is solely for AC power from a battery to run that 120 volt AC residential fridge...and nothing else

Also with that Propane powered Onan generator you will burn a lot of propane that will take away what you have for heater, water heater, etc depending whether you boon dock camp or not...

Lots to read about and gain as much knowledge as possible prior to making a purchase.

And... I’d have to ask the salesman if you are looking at Montana, Alpine, etc if the issues with KeyTV have been resolved yet... if sales person says there are no issues find another salesman

**sourdough** · 10-14-2020, 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChuckS

And there are variations of “Genset prepped” so ask if the transfer switch is wired in already and verify enclosure is there for Onan 5500... usually what’s factory installed... or retrofit install

Also with residential fridge and inverter to power it IF you are going to boon dock then you need two batteries for that fridge and two batteries for coach power... and an isolator between both banks...

My model Alpine doesn’t come genset prepped nor would I want to give up that storage space all the time ... not to mention the added pin weight

The inverter in the 3 units mentioned above is solely for AC power from a battery to run that 120 volt AC residential fridge...and nothing else

Also with that Propane powered Onan generator you will burn a lot of propane that will take away what you have for heater, water heater, etc depending whether you boon dock camp or not...

Lots to read about and gain as much knowledge as possible prior to making a purchase.

And... I’d have to ask the salesman if you are looking at Montana, Alpine, etc if the issues with KeyTV have been resolved yet... if sales person says there are no issues find another salesman

Just left the dealership about 3 hours ago checking on my trailer. One of the items was non functional KeyTV. We did decide on a cure for mine - remove it. They are just going to put standard faceplates with the coax attachment at all locations. In that way I can connect whatever I want to whichever location. The KeyTV replacement parts are still on order without any idea of when they might get them. We are prepping to leave for FL so don't have the time to wait. Told them I would just pick it all up when I got back and put it in a drawer for the next owner if they wanted to use it. SM said they are still coming in with problems.

Danny1955 · 10-22-2020, 07:40 AM

That's ridiculous. I pull a 36' Cedar Creek Silverback that's 14,434 GVWR with an F-250. No problem at all.

Javi · 10-22-2020, 07:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny1955

That's ridiculous. I pull a 36' Cedar Creek Silverback that's 14,434 GVWR with an F-250. No problem at all.

Yeah... but you're from Louisiana

LewisB · 10-22-2020, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny1955

That's ridiculous. I pull a 36' Cedar Creek Silverback that's 14,434 GVWR with an F-250. No problem at all.

Slow learner? A year ago you reported "pulling" over weight with an F150 until you burned up the transmission - so you bought an F250. Now you are likely "pulling" over weight once again. What is ridiculous is not understanding "pulling" vs. "hauling", your tow vehicle payload, and the highway safety of those whom you share the roadway. If you are over payload, you are over weight, not legal, and not safe. JMHO

bsmith0404 · 10-14-2020, 12:50 PM

As mentioned the generator that would go into the unit from Keystone is the Onan 5500 and it would run off your LP. Personally I prefer portable units so you can take it when needed, leave it at home when not. They fit perfectly in the front of the truck box between the cab and the 5th wheel hitch. The inverter is for the fridge only and will run about 1-2 days on two batteries.

BeagleMan · 10-14-2020, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsmith0404

As mentioned the generator that would go into the unit from Keystone is the Onan 5500 and it would run off your LP. Personally I prefer portable units so you can take it when needed, leave it at home when not. They fit perfectly in the front of the truck box between the cab and the 5th wheel hitch. The inverter is for the fridge only and will run about 1-2 days on two batteries.

At $4k plus, I'll pass. Might do that somewhere down the line, but we would be stationary for a while I work on getting my TV. But, DANG!! They like them! Are they THAT good?

bsmith0404 · 10-14-2020, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeagleMan

At $4k plus, I'll pass. Might do that somewhere down the line, but we would be stationary for a while I work on getting my TV. But, DANG!! They like them! Are they THAT good?

On board gens are typically in the $7-8 k range. For the portable I’d go with the onan P4500i. It’s around $1,000 and will run a 30 amp coach. If you want to run both ACs on a 50 amp, get two of them and a 50 amp parallel kit total investment is less than $2500.

nellie1289 · 10-14-2020, 07:32 PM

I am about to pulll trigger on Montana with the onan. Can you run it when going down the road for an hour or so before you get to location. This is why I want it. To run the ac

bsmith0404 · 10-14-2020, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nellie1289

I am about to pulll trigger on Montana with the onan. Can you run it when going down the road for an hour or so before you get to location. This is why I want it. To run the ac

Yes you can as long as you’re not in an area with tunnels that require LP to be shut off or empty. I’ve never run into that, but have heard about it. I think that’s mainly east coast areas.

travelin texans · 10-14-2020, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsmith0404

On board gens are typically in the $7-8 k range. For the portable I’d go with the onan P4500i. It’s around $1,000 and will run a 30 amp coach. If you want to run both ACs on a 50 amp, get two of them and a 50 amp parallel kit total investment is less than $2500.

Problem with this pair is at 98 lbs each I wouldn't consider them as very portable.
The Onan 6500 LP model is $5700 & would/should run everything onboard.

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