88 LD without a generator. December 29, 2010, 12:37:31 am Yahoo Message Number: 119243any suggestions for buying a generator for an 88 LD with an existing compartment with all the holes but has never had a generator. Where to go and have it put in? Would the LD factory do it?
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #1 – December 29, 2010, 08:08:26 am Yahoo Message Number: 119244Based in information I got a few years ago, the factory can do the install, but you will need to supply the generator (same model they were using then). They would not install the new generators in an older LD. As the interface of the current gensets is different than the older ones. But perhaps in the current economy, they may do it now? The best reliable source for used/refurbished (ie cheap) gensets that I could find was http://onanindiana.com/ . Funny enough, I couldn't find this link in my bookmarks, so I did an internet search and it found a post I made on this list a while ago about this place. :-)If you want to install a new/modern genset, & LD wont do it, any competent RV service center can do it. If you plan on sticking with an Onan, I would highly recommend going to a Cummins service center.Good luck,-Victor
Re: 88 LD without a generator. and it looks and operates Reply #2 – December 29, 2010, 08:27:53 am Yahoo Message Number: 119245For whats its worth....I bought a used Onan 2800W for my Toyota MH (I am a wanna be LD owner- nothing wrong with Toy's) for $200.00 and had it TOTALLY rebuilt for about $1,000 and it looks/operates like new. I did feel the rebuild was a bit high but maybe not cause its cheaper than buying a new one. You will need a bigger Onan I think but check your local newspapers and the White Sheet for ones for sale and your local phone book for a place to rebuild/recondition. I live in a small area and had no problem finding mine. That LD person Andy Baird seems to have answers for you LD owners and I would go to him if I had my LD.Dennis W - Ft Mohave, AZ__
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #3 – December 29, 2010, 08:30:54 am Yahoo Message Number: 119246Oh...I forgot to tell you that the guy who rebuilt my Onan (this is his full time job) also installed it and put in a muffler system and hooked it to my main fuel tank as Toyota's do not hold lots of gas (appx 17 gal) so I would not have to fill two tanks - main and gen.Dennis W - Ft Mohave AZ__
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #4 – December 29, 2010, 10:30:14 am Yahoo Message Number: 119247Keep an eye on Craigslist. I see 4kw Onans for sale ,
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #5 – December 29, 2010, 01:11:27 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119249BTW, This is my first LD! I was very tempted to by new but I've been raised by parents who've taught me to stay out of debt, and Andy's advice was reminding me of that so I found a nicely cared for 88 26 MB that I'm able to pay cash for and have some left over to make any upgrades. I will be picking her up this weekend and thinking about names. We're all very excited and looking forward to our adventures!
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #6 – December 29, 2010, 01:24:02 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119250Quoteany suggestions for buying a generator for an 88 LD with an existing compartment with all the holes but has never had a generator. Where to go and have it put in? Would the LD factory do it? My first suggestion would be to evaluate your needs and uses and decide if the hassle, noise, vibration, and maintenance is really something you want. Our '83 came without one, and getting a portable was high on my list. After a few trips and hearing those in the neighborhood, experiencing the effect from inside RVs with built-ins, etc, - a generator dropped right off the BOTTOM of the list. While I am now far more tolerant of generators in other RVs, we have accommodated quite nicely without, even extensively dry-camped, with OTHER electrical upgrades, solar panels, improved efficiency, and no nuker. For a similar or lower overall financial outlay to a generator, all of these require no maintenance, make no noise or vibration, and accomplish their task with no interaction from us. OTOH, however, were we to do a significant amount of hot-weather camping without hookups, the generator would be hard to live without. If your case is similar to ours, then converting the generator compartment to storage use would be a huge bonus!Steve
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #7 – December 29, 2010, 01:40:25 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119251CW sells the 4000 Quiet Onan genset, try them if near one. Hope this helps, Doc 2000FL
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #8 – December 29, 2010, 02:45:11 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119252Thanks for all the feedback from everyone! Would you say that solar should be a higher priority than a generator? I will have 5 maybe 6 kids this summer doing a long road trip back east. I anticipate wanting to run the A/C and swamp cooler extensively.
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #9 – December 29, 2010, 03:03:04 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119253I traveled across a few states in the summer once with 2 kids on board, and everyone on board including myself wished we had a generator. The wife was not to happy either. We cooked in there and the dash a/c could not keep up. It made for a miserable time while traveling. Solar is nice, but it does not help with comfort in hot weather while on the road. If you value the happiness of everyone, get a generator first. Anyone who tells you, you don't need a generator, has never traveled in hot weather with kids.-Victor
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #10 – December 29, 2010, 03:56:31 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119254Thank you! Do they do the install as well?
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #11 – December 29, 2010, 04:54:24 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119255Camping World will sell and install either a 2800 for $2319. plus $461 install, plus extra parts like remote start switch at $83. and time meter At $47. and $88 each to install same. The 4000 unit is $3258 plus same to install etc. Hope this helps, Doc
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #12 – December 29, 2010, 05:38:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119256Quote "Would you say that solar should be a higher priority than a generator?...I anticipate wanting to run the A/C and swamp cooler extensively." Consider your lifestyle needs. Will you have a constant and ongoing "need" for that A/C??? Many folks, including myself, have added powered fans to their roof vents. I have five (5) and rarely use my generator just to run the A/C. Solar's purpose on the other hand is to keep your batteries charged. I consider that of major importance. Without charged batteries nothing happens. But then I do a lot of dry camping (Boondocking).YMMVSteve S. Lazy Bones & Jiggs
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #13 – December 29, 2010, 05:42:56 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119257For the southeast, with that many people (including kids), I would go for the generator unless you want to be tethered to campground each and every night. Not only does the A/C cool off the coach, it knocks down the humidity. The best campsites in the SE are shaded. In fact, it can be hard to find one that isn't shaded. That limits the usefulness of solar (which can't run the A/C anyway). If you decide to go without the generator, you can manage if you get 30A electric at night and plan a little. Start out cool and dry (A/C on at the campsite before leaving) and keep moving throughout the day. If you park in the sun for a few hours and the coach heats up, it's very difficult to cool off without the coach A/C. 45min of coach A/C with the generator will cool it back down and make things livable again for the people riding far from the dash A/C. Boondocking without generator and A/C in the SE during summer - too hot and humid for me.
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #14 – December 29, 2010, 06:27:07 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119258This discussion is somewhat amusing. Just like when people don't think life is possible without a cell phone, they think that an RV generator is absolutely indispensible. When we bought our Lazy Daze
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #15 – December 29, 2010, 07:04:16 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119259"Would you say that solar should be a higher priority than a generator? I will have 5 maybe 6 kids this summer doing a long road trip back east. I anticipate wanting to run the A/C and swamp cooler extensively." I agree with Victor and "rsawin." A trip with half a dozen kids (plus adults) in a 26' coach is going to try everybody's patience--yours and theirs. A trip with half a dozen hot, sweaty kids (plus adults) will be that much worse. If you carefully plan to go from one full hookup campsite to the next, you might get away with it. But that would limit your options considerably... and inevitably there'll be times when you just want to stop for lunch, and the lack of an air conditioner will be very noticeable. A swamp cooler can run on battery power for awhile. But it's only useful in very dry climates (and even there, it's not nearly as effective as an air conditioner at keeping you comfortable)--so east of the Rockies, it'll do you little or no good. Solar panels won't help with air conditioning, and as "rsawin" notes, most sites in the eastern part of the country--especially the desirable ones--are well shaded, so solar panels won't work in those cooler sites.Victor summed it up best: "If you value the happiness of everyone, get a generator first. Anyone who tells you you don't need a generator has never traveled in hot weather with kids."Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #16 – December 29, 2010, 07:36:23 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119260Thanks Andy for chiming in! I'm very appreciative of the experience you and others share. It sounds like this generator could cost me as much as $4,000 to get a new unit installed. but worth every penny!
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #17 – December 30, 2010, 08:49:07 am Yahoo Message Number: 119268A cheaper alternative may be a Honda EU2000 and a hard start capacitor for your AC. Downside is you will have to physically take it out, plug it in, and start it. They are light and easy to hand start. It will also use a separate fuel source. Marine 3 gallon tanks are easily used to extend run times. If you plan on being stopped when you run the AC, this may work for you. These gensets are very quiet and reliable. No vibration
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #18 – December 31, 2010, 08:34:06 am Yahoo Message Number: 119284Remember to ALWAYS use a big, strong, cha
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #19 – December 31, 2010, 09:15:57 am Yahoo Message Number: 119286Holly: Forgive me as the year closes out, but it sure is ashame that someone has to "lock" their generator!!!! I was born during the FDR era
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #20 – December 31, 2010, 11:02:56 am Yahoo Message Number: 119290"Remember to ALWAYS use a big, strong, chain and lock with a portable generator!" Amen to that. As most of you know, I lost a Honda generator a few years ago at Quartzsite, even though it was locked and cabled to my rig and I was in a friend's rig only a few feet away. Bolt cutters will go through just about anything, except maybe hardened steel chain with BIG links--and I wouldn't bet on even that surviving a determined thief.hugs, Andy
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #21 – December 31, 2010, 11:51:34 am Yahoo Message Number: 119293I would recommend the same kind of cable locks used to lock motorcycles. Such as this: http://www.amazon.com/OnGuard-Rottweiler-5024-Bicycle-Armored/dp/B000FL3EDYVery difficult to cut.-Victor As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #22 – December 31, 2010, 12:44:38 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119295"I would recommend the same kind of cable locks used to lock motorcycles." Victor, I have to respectfully disagree. I wouldn't use a cable lock on anything I cared about. Here's the problem with cables: no matter how strong a cable is, it consists of many fine steel strands, and each strand is easily cut. A bolt cutter can chew through those strands a few at a time. To secure a motorcycle or generator, a better solution is a hardened steel chain such as this one:http://tinyurl.com/2b4xjbw While it's possible to cut anything with the right equipment, it's much harder to cut through a thick, solid-steel link than a multi-strand cable. The main problem is to find a cable long enough. Most bicycle locks are too short. I'd talk to a local motorcycle shop. That's where I bought the chain I used to secure my motorcycle when I was riding. It had THICK hardened steel links coated with vinyl. Unfortunately, I didn't have it with me when that generator was stolen at Quartzsite, so to protect it I bought what seemed like a heavy, sturdy cable. It wasn't heavy enough. Of course, the best solution in my opinion is to get a built-in generator and avoid the multiple hassles of portable generators. :-)Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #23 – December 31, 2010, 01:12:53 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119297People who ride nice ($500 and up) bicycles in urban areas have been fighting this battle for years. Nothing sold at chain discount stores is up for the task. Suppose you do find a lock that is too difficult to cut. The thieves will just cut the handle (or whatever the cable is threaded through) on the generator. Review of bike locks (a similar lock received the comment 'Cable locks are a surefire way to get your bike stolen in the city'): http://www.slate.com/id/2140083/ Rich '03 MB
Re: 88 LD without a generator. Reply #24 – December 31, 2010, 02:54:19 pm Yahoo Message Number: 119301"Suppose you do find a lock that is too difficult to cut. The thieves will just cut the handle (or whatever the cable is threaded through) on the generator."Good point, Rich!Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
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