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Topic: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes with  (Read 2 times) previous topic - next topic
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How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes with
Yahoo Message Number: 106205
Hi, I am still looking for an LD and am interested in one that belongs to a group member.   A question:He describes a small portable Honda  generator, which he says has no standard place for hookup on a LD.
 This summer, in another rig, we found a generator necessary to run A/C all night.  Should I be looking into buying a generator if this is the LD for us? How does one dry-camp without one?   Thank you.  Dawn
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes w
Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106209
At 12:28 PM 9/29/2009, you wrote:

Quote
This summer, in another rig, we found a generator necessary to run A/C all night. Should I be looking into buying a generator if this is the LD for us? How does one dry-camp without one? Thank you. Dawn
If you need a/c on, you'll need an electrical hookup or a generator.
I don't believe even the best-equipped solar units will power full-on air conditioning, though they certainly would run a swamp cooler.

We boondock and almost never use campgrounds with hookups. We also avoid camping in really hot areas or during really hot weather, so we rarely use a/c (and if we think we're going to seriously need it, we do go to a campground with electric hookups). Camping in the shade, judicious opening and closing of windows and vents, and the good old Fantastic Fan makes most hot weather quite bearable.

When we had an older LD with a swamp cooler, we found that it was more than adequate for most hot weather. We now have roof a/c and also a generator, but we really dislike the noise from the generator (and a/c), so use it rarely.

Sonsie
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes w
Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106215
"This summer, in another rig, we found a generator necessary to run A/C all night. Should I be looking into buying a generator if this is the LD for us? How does one dry-camp without one? "

Dawn
 I have meet few LD owners, with generators, that wished their LDs did not have a generator.
Our first LD did not have one and we got along fine, as long as it did not get too hot. Our evaporative cooler was in good operating condition and still was close to useless if there was any humidity.
So, what conditions do you expect to camp in and how tolerant are you of heat?
 With the exception of air conditioning, if you have enough solar panels, you can run your LD without hookups or a generator. Adding significant amounts of solar can get to be very expensive.
Solar works great in the summer months but in the dead of winter, when the sun is low, the panels put out only a small percentage of their rated output. When camped in the same place for several winter days, your batteries will need to be charged by shore power, a generator or by running the engine.

Like many on this forum, we live in earthquake/fire country.
A generator can provide the power needed to keep refrigerators running and to provide light and other comforts during power outages.
It's reassuring to know we have a fully equipped survival shelter parked in the driveway.

Larry
2001 MB
* Not to be confused with Larry W (3000 of my posts are actually from expert Larry W due to Yahoo transition mis-step)
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes wi
Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106221
"Should I be looking into buying a generator if this is the LD for us? How does one dry-camp without one?"
 I traveled for about five years in a Lazy Daze without a generator. (It also lacked an evaporative cooler, an item of very little use outside the ultra-dry southwestern US.) I got by, but in summer I really needed hookups. I spent one summer in Wyoming state parks, which don't offer hookups, and it was VERY unpleasant. After that I bought a more recent LD with a generator. I'd never want to be without one again.
 As for portable generators, we've discussed this ins the past, so you might want to check the archives for relevant messages. In a nutshell: you'll need at least a 2,000W generator to run your air conditioner, and even that is reportedly marginal. A Honda EU2000i weighs 60 pounds and is bulky. You'll have to find a safe place to store it AND its gasoline can when traveling. (Gasoline containers can't be stored inside the coach; they need to be in a vented external compartment.) It's a tempting target for thieves, even if chained to your rig. (Bolt cutters are cheap and readily available.) I lost a Honda generator that way. My personal opinion is that it has too may drawbacks to be worth considering.
 Bottom line: unless you will be spending your summers far enough north that you'll never need the air conditioner, or spending them tied to an electrical hookup, I strongly recommend looking for an LD with a factory-installed, built-in 4,000W generator--either the older Onan Emerald or the newer Onan MicroQuiet. Just my two cents worth... :-)

Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes w
Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106228
Quote
This summer, in another rig, we found a generator necessary to run A/C all night. Should I be looking into buying a generator if this is the LD for us? How does one dry-camp without one?

 You really need to move to cooler areas if you're trying to boondock in areas where you need A/C at night. ;-)  ( I certainly hope you were not in a campground running your generator at night!)
 If you compare the cost of the gasoline it costs you to run the generator and the A/C for a minimum of 8 hours (and probably more like 24 hours a day since, if it's hot enough to need A/C at night, it's hot enough to need it during the day), you may find it would be just as cost effective to stay in an RV park with hookups.
 We dry camp/boondock a lot, have solar, and rarely need a generator. We try not to stay in places where it's hot enough to need A/C, particularly at night...if it's that hot, we check into an RV park, and then start moving to a cooler area.

Linda Hylton http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com/
Linda Hylton
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes w
Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106231
Quote
...This summer, in another rig, we found a generator necessary to run A/C all night.... How does one dry-camp without one?  ...
As the others have pointed out, this depends a lot on where you're camping and what the local weather is, as well as details like whether your site is shaded.
 It also depends on how you ventilate your rig, and what types of fans it has. In a Lazy Daze Twin/King, I have found that opening the side windows and the window over the cabover bed, in combination with the ceiling exhaust fan in the "livingroom," will quickly bring the interior to the same temperature as outdoors. Add a clip-on fan or two to create a breeze inside, and the interior is comfortable without AC.

Joanne in Boston NE-44
Re: How long can you go without a generator? What generator comes w
Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 106232
"You really need to move to cooler areas if you're trying to boondock in areas where you need A/C at night. ;-) ( I certainly hope you were not in a campground running your generator at night!)"

We will move to a cooler climate or get hookups if we need the A/C at night.
Often we run the A/C, on generator power or shore power, for a few hours in the afternoon, then, as the evening approaches, the air temperature drops enough to be comfortable without the A/C.
 The generator helps expand the zone of comfortable camping without being tied to hookups. Most of the places we camp do not have hookups.

Larry
2001 MB
* Not to be confused with Larry W (3000 of my posts are actually from expert Larry W due to Yahoo transition mis-step)