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Brand new, going to live in a 5th wheel soon, looking for generator help

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Circus.bear

RVF Newbee
Joined
Mar 1, 2021
Messages
1
Hi everyone,

My wife and i are moving to North idaho in 2 months and we'll be living in our 5th wheel while we save money to buy land and start our own homestead/ horse ranch.

We have a place lined up with full rv hookup, so i expect the generator will be used as a backup power source. What do i need to take into consideration for buying a generator?

We're brand new so any help is great. Thanks in advance!
 
Even though my trailer is 50A I can get by fairly good with a 3600 watt generator. I would shut off the electric for the water heater and the rest is just watching your load. I have run both ACs on the generator, but would need to shut one down to use the microwave or toaster. You would be smart to get an inverter type genny.
What all are you planning to run off of it?
 
Welcome to RVF, @Circus.bear; glad you found your way here. Your new adventure sounds exciting; be sure to keep us updated on how things are going.

As for the generator, you need to determine the load it needs to support. Add up the wattage on all of the electric items it will need to power and add at least 25% as a cushion. As @Gronk has indicated, there are some ways to minimize the electric draw that can help reduce the size of the generator needed, especially since it will be a standby unit. That said, if you will be living in the 5th wheel over the winter, you need to be sure you have enough power to withstand an extended power outage. I think I would be looking at something in the 5KW (5,000 watts) range for extended outage protection.

Good luck.

TJ
 
My favorite word: Depends


When we were also new to RVing we too bought a generator for the times we would need it "in case". I can count on one hand how many times we used it over the years. If you're going to live in a RV park you might want to rethink it.

If you are going to get one I'd suggest getting 2 2000 Watt inverter generators and what is called a Parallel Kit so if needed you can join them together.
 
Even though my trailer is 50A I can get by fairly good with a 3600 watt generator. I would shut off the electric for the water heater and the rest is just watching your load. I have run both ACs on the generator, but would need to shut one down to use the microwave or toaster. You would be smart to get an inverter type genny.
What all are you planning to run off of it?
I'm with this. However I think you should think ahead.

Will you want backup for your ranch in the future? Buy once and save. There are essential and pleasure loads. If you cover essentials then the smaller the better at saving fuel.

Propane has lower maintenance so dual fuel might be in the cards.
 
I'm with this. However I think you should think ahead.

Will you want backup for your ranch in the future? Buy once and save. There are essential and pleasure loads. If you cover essentials then the smaller the better at saving fuel.

Propane has lower maintenance so dual fuel might be in the cards.
Propane is clean but a 5000 watt generator will eat it quickly. You get a large propane tank but if the power goes down for several days or a week plus even then you might run out. Would you be able to call your supplier and get it refilled during a power outage? I would recommend a small diesel powered unit. It will cost more up front but diesel fuel with a anti gel additive and fuel stabilizer will keep for several years. At my previous home, I bought a used Onan RV generator. I think it was a QD5000. A google search will give you the answer. If my memory serves me correctly it used .66 Gal/ hour at full load and .4 at 1/2 load. It's water cooled and has a oil filter. That adds up to a long life if you follow the manual. It was all in a box and relatively easy to wire up. The BTU of diesel fuel is close to 20% greater than propane per gallon. I'm just throwing it out there. I had gasoline, propane and diesel powered generators. Another thing to think about is how often you need to change to oil on the small engines. The ones I had were around 20 hours of use. The diesel with the oil filter went 150-200 hours depending on operating conditions. Look around and do your research.
 
My last few RVs have had generators. However, I got a good buy on a solar powered 1800 set up and decided to try it. I keep it charged so I have over 760Wh (60Ah) of stored power. Now I'm not going to run my a/c units, but I can keep my frig, lights, mircrowave, and outlets powered up for as long as I want. The benefit is as long as I have decent sun I can constantly keep it charged and it doesn't make any noise while I am using it. My 100w panel is portable/foldable so I can set it up either inside by a big window or outside when I'm charging.

Just another option.
 
I would put the money into more or better (lithium phosphate) batteries if you need a backup power source and not into a generator. With a propane furnace there is little electrical power needed to run the electronics and the fan motor and the house batteries will handle the load for days.

If you have a DC only fridge then you need a lot more power than can be provided by one of the small portable generators from Honda or Yamaha. There is also the problem of the gas going bad sitting in the fuel tank of the generator. Many are difficult to refuel when hot which is a separate matter. The small Honda can be feed by multiple fuel cans and so better in this regard than the Yamaha.

I hope you bought a 4-season 5th wheel trailer. Most are not made for winter use and their is negligible insulation provided by the manufacturer.
 

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