I just located a 12 volt water pump and the correct capacitor for my unit. They should be here Wed. morning.
So far I have replaced:
1.The single cyl diesel engine (when the people who built it did the machine work for the coolant temp, oil drain, and coolant level holes, they left metal shavings in the crank case and it plugged up the oil spray nozzle for the crank bearings).10 hrs on it.
2.The starter shook apart, and the solenoid self destructed.25 hrs on it.
3.Fuel pump burned out with 30 hrs on it.
4.Capacitor burned out with 40 hrs on it.
5.Water pump stopped working because the capacitor burned out. So I changed it from a 110 volt pump to a 12 volt pump. 40 hrs on it.
6.I fabricated an idler pulley bracket to make belt changed more efficient.
7.I fabricated a new base plate with better rubber isolators to handle the vibration better.

Now this unit is a Dog House Express APU I'ma start selling these things online :wink:

That's just it Doghouse, their selling these APU's for ridiculously high prices, then they fall apart. I'd rather take a chance on something like the rev's generator and a roof top unit than pay these crooks 8-10 grand for something that "might" hold up for 2 or 3 months before it starts failing.

On another note:

I've got a friend who has a Rigmaster and just LOVES it. But, he was talking about how with fuel being as high as it is, buying an Espar bunk heater to keep from having to run the Rigmaster this winter. He thinks the fuel savings from NOT running the Rigmaster will pay for the Espar. AND NOW, we have Steve about to install a rooftop a/c on his truck because the Rigmaster isn't doing the job in the summer. What does that make the APU's out to be?

A set-up like rev's ( although I would go with the rooftop) coupled with an Espar (or similiar) bunk heater is the way to go in my opinion.

Arky

I agree, when I put my system together I planned on useing a rooftop, from years of RVing, I knew hot hard it was to cool a vehicle.
I paid $3,500 for my APU and it's just a diesel genset, nothing else. My mistake was not going with a better company. I chose A-Trans (they are out of business now also), they had a great web-site and great testimonials, 2 locations that did the work. I opted to do the work myself. The day it arrived I tried to return it. It looked like a 10th grade shop project gone all wrong. My mistake,...no return policy, so I'm stuck with it. I made the best of it, and if it doesn't work after this,...it's going into the bay.

For heat I chose a catalytic propane heater made for RV's also. I'm not kidding when I say I spent no more than $170.00 on propane from December to the end of March. I used it all but 10 nights (I idles 3 nights the whole time and the propane also powered my stove and hot water tank. It kept the sleeper at 68 degrees even in the coldest Missoula Montana nights.

I was going to put in an espar just in case I ran out of propane, but there are so many place to fill tanks,...I'll probably stick with the propane this winter as well.

Ok, since I've already got the rev's thread hijacked 8) I might as well finish up with my thoughts on the APU's.

If you consider breaking your idle time down into 3 parts of the year.

1/3 of the year you'll need a/c
1/3 of the year you can probably get by with nothing.
1/3 of the year you'll need heat.

Of course this may vary depending on what part of the country your in. But, if you accept those numbers and think about it. You can stop the idling for heat with a $1200-$1500 Espar heater (installed price from what I understand). Now with only 1/3 of the year left where your having to idle...how much is it worth to reduce that idling. Can you afford the cost of any of these APU's for 1/3 of the year? That's why I think an economical set-up like the rev's is the way to go for an a/c. Take it off and let it sit in the garage for 2/3 of the year.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to have something for idle reduction. I'm just not gonna pay these exaggerated prices for an APU (that may or may not hold up) when there are alternatives.

I plan to have an Espar installed by winter. I MAY have something for a/c next year...maybe not. I'll have to see something I like a whole lot better than I'm seeing now though...performance AND price.

Ok rev...I think you can have your thread back....till midnight anyways :P

lol...I better quit, I'll be here all night talking APU's. LOL

Your doing what everyone else is Doghouse....the best you can. Idling costs are tough and everyone just has to do what they think is best. Nobody can be blamed for trying to save money.

I'll just be glad to see a reliable AND affordable system some day.

Rev, I did say 8:00 right? :lol:

It's been a very eventful day. :?

I went to Peterbilt and had them run fuel lines for me. We tried starting it, but the fuel pump on the genny wouldn't suck fuel from the tanks. I went next door to ThermoKing, and bought a 12V fuel pump for a TriPac - $219. Total cost for running the fuel lines - $354. :x

After that I went home and ran a power line with a switch to operate the fuel pump. After priming the system, it was up and running.

My first observation was - this thing is LOUD. Even with the box closed, it was far too loud. Much of the noise was coming from the exhaust, so I made a plan to head to the auto parts store tomorrow to pick up a car muffler (lol).

I figured I'd like to see how it worked, so I was going to spend the night in the truck. I hooked back onto my trailer, and fired up the generator. Inside the truck, I could tolerate the noise, but it was far too loud outside. If I were parked next to me, I'd slash my tires for the noise this generator was putting out.

After I had it running my AC for about a half hour, I went out and checked the temps. It was running about 170 degrees when I shot the engine, which seems like a decent temp.

Then all hell broke loose.

The wire I had the fuel pump hooked up with had a connector about halfway up. With the vibration, that connector hit the generator head. It immediately arced, and started on fire.

Yes, you heard me right. I started my truck on fire.

The fire spread quickly, and pretty soon that entire wire was in flames. I sprinted for my fire extinguisher, and managed to put it out. After some very cautious handiwork, I got the burnt wire (which was still live, mind you) off the generator.

It was a stupid oversight on my part that caused it.

It appears as if everything is still okay, except of course, my nerves are shot. I will try again tomorrow, and I will make sure I do it properly this time. I honestly don't know if running another muffler will quiet it up enough.

Flame away (pun intended). I deserve it.

Mine has 17,000 plus yes 17,000 hours. One water pump, fan belt ,radiator, mounts and the most expensive a new brushless generator end $1500. It has served thru 1,100,000 miles and should last years longer.

Give it to me to put on my truck. I'm scared of my generator now. :lol:

Q for you Rev,

How did the sound deadening material handle the fire - go up real quick or not? Something to think about.

I would also stop in the local Pete shop and get some split loom and wrap everything you can in it. Plastic but should prevent any arcing issues in the future.

Glad to hear the pump from TK works but will the system hold prime after shutting the unit off? Does the pump have a check valve to keep the fuel up in the system - something to consider if the pump is takes its lubrication from the fuel itself.

I can't comment on the muffler as I don't know enough about the unit. I would also check out mufflers for other gen-sets. I have a Honda generator that I use hunting - so quiet you really can't hear it running 10 feet away. It runs smooth and the electricty is so clean you can run a computer off it no problem. Perhaps something could be rigged with that exhaust. Don't know if it runs diesel or not but Honda gen-sets are QUIET - I am sure you could find one to fit.

You are not a real truck owner, It caught on fire and YOU put it out, I know several people that would have paid to be parked next to a truck on fire :D

The fire never got that big, but the sound deadening material is rated for 400 degrees.

I have a bunch of it. I was just in a hurry because I was losing daylight fast.

I had it running, then I drove across town and started it up again without a problem. I'll find out tomorrow when I start it if it loses its prime.

I'll see what the auto parts store can offer me. I think the one cylinder engine may just be too loud. If it comes down to it, I may end up having to yank the engine and put a 2 cylinder on in its place. I only hope it will fit in the box...

I do not believe that Honda gen-set is a twin cylinder - then again I could be wrong, never really paid attention to it - pull the cord and it runs like a sewing machine.

As to the prime thing - I think you should be ok - usually something like that will lose the prime rather quick if it is going to.

That reminds me of a funny story. About 11 years ago, I was driving for a farmer, pulling a grain wagon. I had a 12V cooler in the truck, and the cord was sitting on top of a greasy piece of carpet. The carpet started on fire, and I quickly grabbed the fire extinguisher and put it out. When I called my boss, he yelled at me for putting it out. :lol:

Ok Rev,...I've been down this road also, you might still be able to save this...here's what I did when I ran into this problem. Go online and get a generator specific muffler, you can run an exhaust line to it and then add a tailpipe. A car muffler will not work at all, you have to take advantage of the 1" exhaust outlet on the head of the engine. (I have 2 mufflers on mine and you can barely hear exhaust noise come out of them).

Then wrap all wires with heater hose, not the plastic wire wrap, there is too much vibration and it will wear through the plastic in a short time.

Also an air-cooler twin will be just as loud as a single. The only way you will be able to quiet this down is to get a bigger box, super insulate it with lead lined foam,,,,,,,or a lower rpm genset. Most run at 3600rpm (screamers) try to get one that runs aroun 1800-2400rpm, that will make a huge change.

Does you genset have a cooling fan? or is it an open jug/head with cooling fins? If it only has the fins, you may have to put another higher speed fan that blows over the fins and your existing fan can help remove the hot air from your box.

Your headed down a road of testing things out, everything you have done, I have already done over the last 20 years of trying to put a cost effective genset into a moving vehicle. It's very difficult,...you will need to be calm and feel the force.

And for criminy sake don't get yourself killed,.....Steve'O would like that too much.

Why don't you just admit that while I was paying my bill today (which you and Tom clearly padded :lol: ), you sabotaged my system.

I still don't know how that bill got to $350+ :?

HA! I never touched the bill. Given the tech on it - I would say he is the only one that would touch my truck when it comes to custom work like that. He is very exacting as to what he will allow his name on it - used to build motorcycles and the like. They fact he didn't say a word negativly about what you are doing speaks VOLUMES about the quality of your work. He has seen some real crap and usually lets us know when he does.

You did have 80 bucks in parts as well and you may have not noticed the labor rate went up to 87.50 :)

As to the muffler/prime thing - never occured to me until I read the post here.

A $1,000 honda 2,000 watt portable generater would work. Keep it in your box, take it out at night, fire it up. I've seen a few guys do that. Problem is fuel consumption. I think it hols a gallon of gas and only lasts 4 hrs per tankful.
It is very quiet.
Thats the easy way out.

get off your billfold and get one of these, no muss, no fuss, no fire

http://www.trucksleeper.com/images/generator7000.pdf

Heavy, do they offer a watercooled twin? Thats a real nice looking unit. A Kubota 905 direct drive gen-head 1,800rpm sweeet!!
A nice low maint. unit right there.

Do you think an RV store would have something like that?

Mine is 1 1/4"

That actually sounds like a good idea right there.

I was actually talking about a water cooled engine. :lol:

Cooling fins.

Why? Do you think 170 degrees is too hot? I thought that seemed like a decent temp. :?

Getting myself killed is half the fun. :lol:

Dog, It is a copy of my gen which they used to sell and then made their own.
http://www.powertech-gen.com/product...products_id=30

The 3 cyl runs so much quieter and smother. I can hear other APU's and trucks running more than I can hear mine.With over 17000 hrs the engine oil is still clear after 200 hrs, a very good tight engine. I can change oil and filters in a few minutes, it will prime it's own fuel filter, it does hold a gallon of oil so oil and filter changes are about 20 bucks.

The 3 cyl Kubota is the proven engine for gen sets, Powertech has them in thousands of trucks and motorhomes. Average life is 35000 hrs and I know of one with over 50000 hrs.

HD, I have to admit that seems to be a good APU. I feel the price is still too high, but with the service your getting out of it, it's worth it. I've just talked to LOT of dissappointed APU owners.

I just can't imagine that they can't put one of these systems together for 4 grand.

Do they build a smaller unit? I don't need 7000 watts.

The markup on APU's is insane.

No doubt about that. I know of a manufacturer here that is building zero turn lawn mowers with like 30h.p. engines for less than the price of these apu's. I may be wrong, but I would think there is a heck of a lot more expense to building the mowers. Their actually pretty well built mowers too, the guy that mows my yard has two of 'em that he runs commercially. At one time (couple of years ago), you could buy one retail for $7500.

Well, anyway was gonna say glad you didn't smoke up any of that fresh paint.

Have you thought about describing exactly how you were able to cause the wire to burn? You'd probably want to copyright the instructions, but no telling how many copies you could sell on Ebay these days! :twisted:

LOL.....Sorry Rev but I did have a good laugh. You gotta lotta balls for fessing up. I wonder if they make wire NUTS big enough for them...lol
I think you need to change your avatar to a previous one you had, at least for a few days.

Ya well, live and learn and I think we all just threw a little more caution to the wind reading about what happened to you.

Does everyone have a smoke detector and CO alarm in their truck?!?!?!?!?
Does everyone have a fire extinguisher on both sides of the truck!?!?!?!?
Does everyone have a fire extinguisher next to their bed?!?!?!?

I do.

As far as the 1/3 1/3 1/3 rule stated earlier, not true. I travel all 48 states and Canada and use my heat and A/C non stop throughout the year. I'll be in the Mohave and it's 100 during the day and 35 in the morning. I'm in Canada right now and had the A/C on when I went to bed and the heat is on now as I type this.

I do not think there is an APU on the market that can cool the whole cab to a comfortable temp. You can close your curtains and cut the cab space in half, have the air blow directly on you and survive going to sleep.

For the most part, the Rigmaster does a fine job but when the temp hits 90 and above that's when you start to make concessions and only cool the sleeper part.

I've been in 2 trucks so far that have had a Rigmaster in one and another APU in the other one. They were both running the Carrier 15,000 btu unit on top and it was below 70 inside.

I want comfort, not survivability. I may even put an Espar in also if it doesn't take up too much room.

Now, as far as your loud engine goes. I don't think your going to be able to do much about it. It's a single cylinder engine and they run their nuts off.

I would suggest going to Meinike muffler and have them install the pipe and muffler for you. They can reduce any pipe to any size. The trick to making an engine quiet from what I was told is to have the longest pipe possible from the engine to the muffler like a car. The closer the muffler is to the engine, the louder it is.

Here are a few tips for all you brave souls that want to "roll your own" APU........
Liquid cooled engines are quieter than air cooled.......
Generator heads come in two main types, two pole that must run at 3600 RPM and 4 pole that run at 1800 RPM. This is for direct connect and 60 HZ.
Figure about 2 horsepower per 1000 watts needed.
You will use about 0.09 US gallons per hour, per 1000 Watts.
Larger engines are slightly more efficient.
Belt drive systems are slightly less efficient but offer more flexibility.

Look for used gen sets in RV scrap yards.....They usually are not used much..........

Have Fun :P

Last year, I moved a guy who was in charge of the APU division at Kohler. He had offered to sell me an APU system at cost. It was $2500.

I really wish I had taken him up on the offer.

Go to a Harley dealer and see if they'll let you have a stock muffler for a decent price, they should have plenty given all the straight pipe aholes running around.

I think you can get a muffler at the RV shop's, just ask for their universal model. 1 1/4 outlet will be fine as long as you have a length of pipe that sizes down to the RV muffler. Steve is right, if you have some length between your genset and the muffler it will run quieter. Mine is 8' long and then goes into a snake work of 2 mufflers, and you can barely hear sound come out of it. It has good exhaust flow, be sure not to restrict you exhaust too much, or you will over heat your engine.

170 seems OK, but the cooler the better. Mine runs around 145, its uses the trucks radiator.


Steve I have a CO,propane,&smoke detectors all hard wired into my 12 volt system. Also 4 fire extinguishers.
1-In the cab
2- in the side boxes
1 Under the bed
Safety first!! fun later.

A water cooled engine will cost you atleast $1,000 and then you have to use the trucks cooling system, or a small radiator, then fabricate a base plate to hold the two units in place for belt drive. Direct drive like you have now takes major machine shop costs.
You will probably exceed the $3,600 cost that the jax generator people I found who have a self cooled unit for $3,600 and a tied in cooling system for $3,200.
Its a water cooler twin cyl Kubota with a 5,000 watt gen head. It seems like a good deal.

Hey Doghouse this might interesr you

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...romZR41QQfviZ1

I knew you would.

Crapolla Heavy that thing is bigger and does more than my DD 60 :lol:


I also found a couple of units like yours on E-Bay that came out of high end Class A RV's. One was going for $4,999 with only 200 hrs on it.
What kind of fuel consumption does that 3 cyl Kubota run at?

I knew you knew I would :wink:

Loud pipes save lives.

I'm sure that loud pipes make it easier to hear a bike coming, but why do some riders with the loud pipes go out of their way to make so much noise. I could understand the whole thing better if they would have some respect,....look you know your bike is loud,...why do you have to be immature about it. Get off the throttle while going through a neighborhood and have some respect for a cager with their window down, or a person on the sidewalk.

Another day, another fire. (okay, not really) :lol:

I spent all day rebuilding the system. I went to a tractor supply store and got a tractor muffler. I then went to a auto parts store to get the proper reducers. I re-ran the electrical that burned up yesterday (the right way this time), and fired it up with the muffler at the end of the tailpipe. I definately noticed a difference in the noise coming out of the tailpipe. It was much deeper sounding. The engine still is loud as all hell.

I decided to run my exhaust the way most APU's do it - along the side of the unit. My reasons for this were twofold - one, I had nowhere to mount the muffler on the frame rail, and two, this thing puts out a lot of exhaust. After checking and rechecking everything, I fired it up again with the AC on. I had it running for about 45 minutes, and the sleeper was COLD. I had to turn the AC up from 60 to 65, because I was FREEZING. I checked the generator twice in that 45 minutes, getting temp readings both times. The outside of the box sits at about 135 degrees. The engine head is at about 185-190 degrees.

I realized something this evening - the manufacturer used a generic manual for both their gas powered and diesel powered generators. In the manual, it said to use 10W30 motor oil. That seemed odd to me, but I figured I'd listen. I was looking at the top of the generator, and it said to use 15W40 motor oil, which makes more sense. I'm going to let it cool down a bit and then do an oil change on it to the correct motor oil. The heavier weight should have the engine running a bit quieter, and a bit cooler (I hope).

I've come to the conclusion that I won't be able to use this system every night. I will only be able to use it when I'm not around others. Since I try to avoid sleeping at truckstops, that will help, but I figure if I can use the generator 10 nights a month, I'll still get some savings out of having it, and it will eventually pay for itself.

http://www.worthless1000.com/0715081940.jpg

http://www.worthless1000.com/0715081940a.jpg

I just finished doing an oil change on the beast. It took about 20 minutes to do from start to finish. The oil that was in there was like water. Hopefully the 15W40 will work better. I haven't noticed any change in the sound, but I did notice that when I started it, I didn't get any of the nasty black smoke out the exhaust like I was getting before. It definitely smelled a lot better when it was running too. I'll be going out in about an hour to check temps.

The AC is running like a champ. It is actually getting colder in here than it does with the truck AC running. The noise of the AC and the generator are tolerable - not great, but tolerable. I can feel a very faint vibration from the generator.

I was standing outside earlier talking on the phone with the generator running, and had no problems hearing, or being heard, from anywhere except right in front of the generator. I am definitely going to be altering the engine on this thing. I think I could probably fit a water cooled twin cylinder diesel in there if I ran the generator sideways off a pulley system. At worst I would have to run the radiator outside the box.

It was running so damn good. Then I smelled an all too familiar smell.

Needless to say, the engine is a failure. I sprinted outside to see smoke coming out of the box. I flipped open the lid, and found the same thing I did before - the fuel pump wire had melted. No fire though. I grabbed the fire extinguisher and gave it a good once over just to make sure, and disconnected the generator from the truck batteries. I did a quick temp reading on the engine at that point, and it was reading about 240 degrees. It's quite clear to me now that an air cooled engine does not work in this particular setup. I also think there was an issue with the fuel pump, although I cannot be sure.

I will salvage what I have, find a better engine that is more suited for what I am doing, and turn the rest into a boat anchor. For now, I am back to idling. I am just glad the fuel lines held up under the extreme heat, and I am glad that smell wafted into the truck. I hope to never smell it again.

Thus ends this chapter of the saga. Stay tuned for part 2. :?

Rev, they have some replacement diesel, water cooled engines on ebay. I saw some today in the $1,000-$1,200 range. I know I've seen some of the Rigmaster replacement engines for around $1,500 I think it was. I'm not sure if the Rigmaster engine was new or rebuilt.

Note to self: Watch Rev's saga very closely....learn from HIS mistakes :)

Sorry it didn't work out Rev. At least ya tried and at least you don't have an $8,000 boat anchor like alot of folks have had in years past. Now we've gotta start a new thread and figure out what we could use that generator for (something destructive and fun, of course) LOL

I plan to salvage what I can from the system. I think the system design overall was sound, but the engine itself just couldn't handle it. For now, it will be staying on the truck. I'm sure I'll find the perfect engine eventually.