Rv Generators

If you are going to use the genset during cold weather, drain engine oil and re-fill with 5w30 oil. This should allow you to start the unit in cold weather. Once ambient temperature reaches 45 to 50 degrees you will have to change the oil again for warm weather operation. To be on the safe side, check the manufacture's recommendations for cold weather operation.

 

not bad idea butch. i'll change the oil the next time i go up. i was able to get it running, with a little starting fluid. i don't like using it.

i brought the new generator up with me and fired that one up. electric start. nice. plugged the trailer in and let it run. it wasn't as quite as i hoped but once i walked about 20 ft away it wasn't all that bad. inside the trailer i could not hear it at all. during the winter there is nobody to disturb anyway.

happy camping and hope this winter gets over with soon. bob

 

Hi Dog Bone,

I'm glad to hear the electric start generator worked "like a charm".

I've started my Kipor at -26 C and just got back from a 2200 kilometer trip from Regina to Invermere. I had a blast! I ran the generator for 8.5 hours (from full to empty) on the 2nd last night of the trip. It was powering a 1400 watt heater and the engine block heater. It surely does save on propane!

I carry the generator on a rack (mounts into hitch receiver) inside a home built box. I use a dog cable and padlocks to prevent "casual theft" (fastened to the hitch and the generator). The cable is 25 feet long, so if I'm stopping for more than an overnight I can roll the generator down a ramp (lid doubles as a ramp) and have it far enough away that I can not hear it inside. I generally put it on the opposite side of the RV to the campsite so the RV acts as a "burm" to further reduce sound. I make a little "tent" for it from a tarp, two electric fence posts, a fiberglass rod as a ridge pole and four "nail" type tent pegs.

I can set it up in about 20 minutes with about 1/2 of that for "creating" the ramp out of the lid (I bolt on two 2x4 for support). Fortunately the generator is on wheels.

I have a Carbon Monoxide meter in the RV. The Kipor produces 62 to 65 db of motor noise--I can hear it when I run it "on the rack" but it is still quiet enough to allow me to sleep well. The tarp and some bungee cords double as a rain cover for "running in the box".

In the summer time I have run a cord supported by a thin cord to the power point on the RV allowing me to trundle down the road and have the generator available to keep the RV cool using the roof air when I stop to do tourist things. That came in very handy two summers ago when the dash air failed in the 2nd day of a two week trip!

I store the generator in my garage--and have installed a power transfer switch with six circuits so if the electricity goes off--I can run fridge, freezer, furnace, tv, computer, and some lights. I have a home brew "tail pipe" for it and so can run it with the garage door nearly shut.

The one item I do wish it had is a remote start--but the exercise to walk over to it is probably good for me.

QUOTE(dog bone @ Feb 17 2007, 02:19 PM) [snapback]6128[/snapback]

not bad idea butch. i'll change the oil the next time i go up. i was able to get it running, with a little starting fluid. i don't like using it.

i brought the new generator up with me and fired that one up. electric start. nice. plugged the trailer in and let it run. it wasn't as quite as i hoped but once i walked about 20 ft away it wasn't all that bad. inside the trailer i could not hear it at all. during the winter there is nobody to disturb anyway.

happy camping and hope this winter gets over with soon. bob

 

pianotuna

just a couple of things. watch you don't cut off to much ventilation. it is an air cooled engine. we use a bending machine at work ,for bending rebar. i took the muffler off and added a piece of pipe to get the fumes and smoke away, old motor and burned oil bad. when the mechanic came out he told me that the pipe screws up the back pressure and can ruin the engine. that engine was shot anyway, but yours is brand new.

i know they sell extendsions for the generator exhaust. maybe he was throwing the bull.

my new one runs at 58 db. i think the honda's are 48. the difference in price off set the sound.

 

Hi,

My Kipor runs between 62 and 65 depending on load. The Honda of the same size runs at 49 to 58 db. However the Honda figures are measured from over 22 feet away from the unit. (I think this is cheating, don't you?) The difference is one of price and voltage stability. The Kipor costs about 1200.00 and the Honda about 3400.00 (Canadian dollars). They are both rated at 2800 watts with a surge value of 3000 watts. Identical Honda's can be "strapped" together to double outputs. The Kipor weighs 132 lbs and the Honda 134.5 lbs (dry weight). Either unit will run a 13500 btu AC unit with their "eco" switches on.

My Kipor came with a wheel kit included--it is an Option that you pay for with Honda.

Here are some urls:

http://www.kiporgeneratorsonline.com/kipor3500.htm

http://mayberrys.com/honda/generator/models/eu3000is.htm

The Kipor is already in an enclosure--so the sides don't need much clearance. I have an L shaped lid that leaves the exhaust end open "to the world" and keep 25 cm (about 12 inches) clear on the other end when running "in the box".

Thanks for the tip about back pressure. In my case my "extension" has a diameter twice that of the "real" exhaust, so I think I'll be "ok".

QUOTE(dog bone @ Feb 19 2007, 09:56 AM) [snapback]6149[/snapback]

pianotuna

just a couple of things. watch you don't cut off to much ventilation. it is an air cooled engine. we use a bending machine at work ,for bending rebar. i took the muffler off and added a piece of pipe to get the fumes and smoke away, old motor and burned oil bad. when the mechanic came out he told me that the pipe screws up the back pressure and can ruin the engine. that engine was shot anyway, but yours is brand new.

i know they sell extendsions for the generator exhaust. maybe he was throwing the bull.

my new one runs at 58 db. i think the honda's are 48. the difference in price off set the sound.

 

my generon cost $449 with free shipping and cover. weighs about 110lbs, feel a bit heavier than that though.

the amount of time i use it, i didn't want to spend that much. plus i would have gotten killed when i got home. :blink: they say you get what you pay for. time will tell. i'm kinda nuts about taking care of things so maybe i'll get lucky.

again good luck. spring only around the corner. happy camping