portable generator....??
 

Anyone using a portable generator?? If so what kind are you using??What size is good?? We are wanting to get one and not sure what to get. We want one that we can use a small heater in the truck so we dont have to idle in cold weather.

TIA
tootie

If you just want heat, try a bunk heater that runs off your fuel tank. alot better on fuel and a heck of alot quiter.


http://www.espar.com/

heater
 

a good inverter can run a tv nukerwaze ect,
if your thinking of heat look at buying yourslef a wabasco bunk heater.

try honda.com go to power tools check out their generators. kind of expensive but their smal and fuel efficient. a friend of mine has a dealer that has 4000w generators for like 1200 $ and eats up about 3 to 4 galons in 10 hours but still have to get a hold of my budy to see more info on it.

For your purposes, I would recommend a 3000 watt generator. Electric heaters put a considerable load on the gen, also you might want to run a few other appliances. 3000 watts would even run an RV-type roof air conditioner, I have seen them mounted on road tractors alot.

Honda and Yamaha make quiet generators that are expensive. "Contractor grade" generators like Coleman, Generac, Craftsman, etc. are much cheaper but loud enough to bother those around you. A happy medium that many RV'ers have found is a brand called Champion. There is a LONG thread on an Rv forum about these types of gens here: http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fu...d/15131645.cfm

The Champion 3500W gen that most of us prefer can be bought at many Tractor Supply Stores and Cabelas stores, but they can be found cheaper on this website for partsamerica.com :
http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductL...For=Generators

Scroll down to the yellow generator Champion part # 46540, that's the one many of us like, 3500 watts. This gen is alot quieter than the loud brands, but not quite as quiet as a Honda or Yamaha. Remember that most portable gens use a little oil and will shut down if the get a little low, so check it frequently. Also you know that you will have to have a source for gasoline, obviously most truckstops sell gas. Be sure you buy a gen that has a large enough fuel tank to get you through the night, some smaller gens of 1000-2000 watts won't hold enough fuel and might not produce enough power for your needs. A typical 3000 gen will weigh around 80-100 pounds. Here is a link to Champion's own website:
http://www.cpeauto.com/generators.htm

Thanks for the advice. I will check out the links and the Honda and Yamaha generators.

tootie

I have used the small Honda Generator and I cannot say enough about how efficient and quiet the lil thing is. When you talk about an apu running about 10 grand, a grand for a GOOD Honda generator does seem that much. The Honda is so quiet you can hardly hear it running ten feet from you. Literally!

Re: portable generator....??
 

You might want to check into ESPAR-I had that for bunk heating and it was perfect. They now have ESPAR for both heating and cooling. They run off of your fuel but is VERY efficient.

Take a look at this-should give you some ideas

http://roundtable.truck.net/viewtopi...&highlight=apu

My system is:

1.(3) Kyocera KC-130 panels (26" X 56" 7.39 amps each)
(1) Go Power GPR-25 charge controller (25 amp capacity with digital volt/amp readout.
8 deep cycle batteries to store the power.
(This system allows me to run almost indefinitely, as long as I use the webasto bunk/block heater system for heat)
RV style A/C unit with a heat strip.
A base model inverter for the large appliances, and a pure sine wave inverter for the delicate electronics.

2. A back up 65 amp alternator that runs off the engine to help charge the batteries, if the sun refuses to come out for 2 or more days.

3.1,500 watt gas genny (very quiet honda) to help boost the batteries if I am sitting and don't want to run the truck engine.

This is what I can remember, I have the spec's for the whole system at home. I had the system spec'ed for the ability to stay self powered for up an indefinite amount of time,(cause I'm a freak about that,..its the survivalist in me,..LOL)
I have been able so far to stay parked for 3 days without having to run my main engine, in the middle of summer and have the sleeper at 65 degrees.
For hot water I just had a on demand unit that runs off a small RV propane tank (it will heat 950 gallons with only a tank the size of a gas grill tank). I'll let you know how that works,..or doesn't

I am debating on putting an LP gas genny in place of the gasoline unit, but the smallest they sell is a 2800 watt, and the fuel consumption is higher than I like, and the honda is so quiet, I can barely tell when its on.
(its a pain sometimes to have 3 types of fuel on board)

Believe it or not, this whole system (power, not hot water) was less $$ than the cheapest APU, and so far I have used it for 2 years, and only had to replace the aux. alternator. (the bracket cracked and the unit shredded a belt and pieces went into the alternator).

It weighs in at around 900lbs, I could lighten it up by removing a couple of batteries, but I will probably just go with the super singles this summer, because my tires are about ready to be replaced.

The great part is when I an sitting for a couple of days, and another driver will ask me what kind of APU I have, because "it's so quiet".
The panels are on my flat roof, and the A/C unit is a basement model RV, so even though the side boxes on my truck are full to the limit, you really can't tell what is there.

Very nice ideas, AZ. I had not thought of solar panels on big trucks. How many BTU's is your RV air cond.?

Hey rambler,
The A/C is a 13,700 btu basement model (116lbs). I wanted to use the cheaper lighter unit that goes on the roof, but the 3 solar panels take up most of the roof, so I had to go for the under vehicle unit.
The battery pack was the weight killer, at 600lbs, it sure was heavier than the apu's, but worth it in the long run. My water supply is 50 gals, so if I'm too heavy, I just water the lawn wherever I am, and then refill at the receiver, I haven't met one yet who won't let me hook up the garden hose.
I chose this system because it has the indefinite capacity, pretty much wherever I go, the sun charges the batteries (in conjuntion with the 65amp alternator), and when I park, I just flip a few switches, and I have all the power I need.
If the battery pack is running low, I get out the little genny, (only had to do it a few times, the rest of the time I just use it to keep it operational)
I would like to get a genny that turns itself on at a certain point, but I have not found one small enough, as you can imagine, both sides of my truck are pretty well filled up with batteries, and water tanks.

Drive safe

Wow AZ....that is really neat!! How big is your truck? I would love to see this set up. A visual would really help! :)

I know we will have to figure something out since neither one of us can sleep with the truck running :?

Yooper, I am going to check that system out too. Thanks

tootie

I believe ESPAR is German Engineered and if you want perfect heat(you can fine tune your temperature to what is right for you) it's the best.
no more too hot-too cold and no I don't have a vested interest in ESPAR :P
Also It's completely Quiet and economical.This system typically runs for about 21 - 23 hours on a gallon of diesel fuel

http://www.espar.com/htm/applies/trucks.htm

tootie,
There is really not much to look at, the truck height is 10' 9", with the panels on the roof (you can't see them from the ground).
The inside dimensions of the sleeper are 96"long by 96"wide and 75" high, so even though its got nice floor space, the roof seems a bit low, but I don't mind,...it feels kind of cozy.
I have to crawl through a small hole (30" wide by 40" high) from the cab into the sleeper.
All of the batteries are on the drivers side inside large aluminum boxes, and the fresh water and waste water tanks are on the other side in matching aluminum boxes.
Its a single stack exhaust exiting on the pass. side.
I have 2 100 gal fuel tanks, (would like to have been larger, but to make room for all the other stuff, I had to sacrifice fuel tank size).
I will dig up some photos of the truck as soon as I get my old computer back from the computer shop (they've had it for 2 months now).
It has the photos of the conversion from beginning to end.

Yoopar,

Thanks for the web site :lol: ....when we get home we are going to have the system installed in our truck. I think 2000.00 for heat and air is not bad at all.

tootie

welcome-I had ESPAR when it was still relatively new and I was used to that too hot-too cold in the bunk. Now they have a/c also plus lots of new features.
I think you'll love it-I did

http://duropower.com/item.asp?PID=120&FID=1&level=0

im looking at this one super cheap one year waranty. the only downfall is it runs o gas and fuel tank is fairly small.

espar is the best for ther heat
 

I have the large Espar heater and it works extremely well. I also have the largest rooftop AC unit made with the heat strip. The heat strip does not work worth a darn. The espar is the best value. I have a 10 kw Onan quiet diesel that works pretty good. the 10 kw is overkill. I wish I would have gotten the 7.5 kw. I think that the smallest diesel Onan you can get is a 5 kw unit. Onan makes a nice unit. You can get them serviced at almost all Cummins service centers (the own Onan). They are expensive to get serviced though. The hourly rate to work on the generator is more than the hourly rate to work on a Cummins engine. It is normally about $10.00 to $15.00 more an hour. Solar panels is a neat idea. I pursued that when I designed mine, but could not make everything work.

Good luck on your decision

OK, do you thihk something like this is safe to use in the truck?

http://www.mrheater.com/productdetai...catid=41&id=24

Do you think it would be safer to use the 20lb bottle and keep that outside.

I'm basically in the same boat as tootsie04; I want to be able to sleep without idling. I'm having some difficulty sleeping with the noise and vibration.

The thing is, i'm a company driver so the espar thing probably won't work. Great idea though.

Personally I wouldn't-First of all cuz it's propane and I'd be very nervous with a Possible IED going off in my truck and I've used Propane heaters(Mr. Heater Actually) in my deer blind and have gotten fumes from it which is probably why Canada put this in on the site you posted:The Portable Buddy is Certified for Outdoor Use Only In Canada

I wouldn't trust it but that's just me and I know I wouldn't be able to sleep in my bunk thinking about it.

You can get a Heater pad at a Truck Dealership-I know you probably wouldn't get the company to ok the ESPAR(Even though it would probably safe the company you drive for quite a bit of money).

Yeah, i'm just a little unconfortable with the concept of using anything that burns something for heat inside the truck.

I've priced out portable generators such as coleman powermate 3750 (pumps out 3000watts) $360 at pepboys. This idea would work; The company wouldn't have any problems with me bolting one to the catwalk. And then i would just use a small ceramic heater. Fetching gas everyday is not what i consider a big deal. I forget how large the tank is, but coleman says it will run for 10 hrs at 1/2 load.

The idea i find most interesting is to use deep cell batteries and an inverter.

http://www.idlefree.net/

Yoopr stole the words from my keyboard! :lol:

The Espar works AWSOME. Why you would want a portable (loud, smelly) generator is beyond me, especially with the advances in inverters.

I'd be pretty p-o'd if someone ran a loud generator next to my truck. Plus, it could be a safety hazard.

To each is own though! :wink:

we are going with the Espar system. BUT since this is a lease\purchase truck Arrow has final say. Which will most likley be NO....they want us to buy the APU unit at 10,000 We dont want an APU unit!!

The salesman called this morning from Kenworth and our truck deal is a go....not the 86" we wanted but this will get us started anyway. So the Espar system will go into OUR truck in a few weeks.

tootie

good luck and i know you'll love it

Good luck and you'll love the Espar unit.

One tip, dont turn it up past a 1/4 turn the first time you turn it on, it puts out alot more heat then you think it will.

Hi,
I bought one of the $600 generators and although it still runs it is slowly falling apart. Pretty much all the switches have fallen off and the start cord snapped after only a couple of starts, they are also very heavy compared to the Honda.
You can check more inverter reviews to get best as per your requirement.

best portable generators
 

Who has been able to sample the various brokers on this list and can be able to pick out the best one?
https://bestportablegenerators.website/

I got one in my backyard since I graduated high school. Tell me if you need this. It sounds like a frickin' machine gun, smokes up like a chimney, breaks down every 30 mins, and I'll sell you for a buck.
http://oi56.tinypic.com/2lvhajd.jpg

That's a weird ass generator.

First you should confirm the generator power. The portable generator you like is gasoline or diesel? For portable generator brand, I recommend Honda, Champion, Perkins and Genera, etc, You can choose what you like.

portable generator....??
 

We just purchased the Champion 3500/4000 generator from Amazon. We got the one with the wheels for $372 (plus tax and Amazon's new $2.97 delivery fee). It is "RV ready" with the 30amp outlet plus a couple of other outlets on the panel.

We used it for the first time while tailgating last weekend. It is not as quiet as we would have liked, but we were able to baffle the noise somewhat. The noise was tolerable and what I would consider not excessive when compared to others around us.

It ran our whole trailer very nicely. Read more here about generators.

I am using a Durostar Generator and it is really performing well and helps me in all power shortages.

If the power goes out at exactly the wrong moment, I have about 45-60 minutes to get a generator running and plugged in to keep the basement dry.

The battery backup generator runs automatically in an outage and is powered by natural gas (in an epic disaster, it can run on propane too but I'll need lots of tanks to feed the beast). It also starts itself once a week and does a self test.
Inverter review

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