So my brother called me the other day inquiring about my generator in my RV. He bought an RV and was asking if there was anything he needed to know. I asked him if the sales rep didn’t explain all of this stuff to him prior to purchasing. He said no. I asked if he was sure. You see, my brother was always a little to gung ho about certain things and didn’t really sweat the details or repercussion. A purchase of a snow blower comes to mind when he rarely gets any snow. Probably a months worth of snow he gets. But I’m going off topic. Luckily, for him a RV is a great purchase especially since he likes to take his family on a lot of spur of the moment trips. So I gave him the rundown on the generator. He needs to make sure that he turns it on every now and then when he isn’t using the RV. About once a month. Also, I let him know that he shouldn’t have to worry about not using the RV’s A/C because its more energy efficient to use the RV’s A/C and not the console ac. I also went into detail about not running the portable generator past certain hours on a camp ground because the sound is inconsiderate to your fellow campers and you may get a stern talking to from an elderly couple. Like I did… But that’s about all I needed to tell him for now.
Tag Archive: RV Generators
Our motor home has been sitting idle for most or almost all of the winter. I went out last week to take a look and make sure the cold hadn’t gotten to it and that there were no obvious problems. I started the generator to exercise it for a while, and get it used to running again. I sat there mesmerized by the quiet purring sound of the generator, when suddenly the steady purr was interrupted by a surging sound. I immediately turned the appliances off that I had on, and listened closely to the generators RPM’s increasing and decreasing. After a few seconds of the generator sputtering up and down it smoothed back out to a nice, steady purr again.
When I worked at an RV dealership, our service department was always booked with appointments for generators that either wouldn’t start, or if they did, they had that all too familiar surging sound. This was a result of letting the generator sit for periods of time without starting and exercising it. Lack of use is one of the biggest problems with generators and can severely damage your equipment. In gasoline generators the fuel breaks down and thickens causing hard starting and surging problems. This can happen in as short a period of time as one month.
A generator that can come equipped on an RV shares its fuel supply from a similar fuel tank the engine uses. A failsafe is that when the fuel tank runs low the generator will shut straight down to prevent you from utilizing all of the fuel devoid of recognizing it. It is wonderful to use the generator whilst you are traveling. For instance, it is a lot more fuel efficient to run the generator with the roof fitted air conditioner on, than to use the dash air. An RV generator is seriously dependable and is a lot more often than not, outlast the RV if it is properly taken proper care of, which suggests using it on a regular basis. This is applicable to gas and diesel generators. It was talked about prior to gas generators can possess possible fuel associated issues in as little as calendar month of sitting idle. This is potentially the largest problem. Having said that, it can quickly be prevented if you get in the habit of operating and sustaining the generator on a monthly basis.
Generally, it is believed that it could be prevented by basically adding a fuel preservative to the fuel tank and then operating the generator lengthy enough to get the preservative through the generator. You surely should use a fuel preservative every time the unit is stored away , but there are much more factors to start up the generator regularly. Dampness build up will cause damage to the generator. When you run and maintain your generator it heats up the generator windings and eliminates this build up. This monthly event will additionally lubricate all of the engine seals and elements and stops carbon build up.
So, what exactly do I imply when I say exercise your generator? For a gasoline generator, you should run the generator with at least a 50 % load for at the very least two hours each and every calendar month. It is incredibly essential that you run it with this minimum rated load. Generators are intended to run with a load placed on them. Our motorhome has a 4,000 watt generator so I can both turn the roof air conditioner on in the summer, which is about 2,000 watts or I can use a couple of smaller transportable electric heating units
if it’s chilly out. It’s always greater to let your generator run for longer intervals than for brief intervals. Verify your generators owner manual for load ratings precise to your unit.
Other upkeep intervals for a portable generator are based on usage. Your generator set will possess an hour meter so you can keep track of the usage. Consult your owner’s guide for upkeep intervals.
The bottom line is, do not hesitate to use your generator, and when you do use it, put a load on it. A tiny exercise and preventive upkeep will hold you generator in top operating condition and produce quite a few years} of faithful service.
The bottom line is, do not hesitate to use your electrical generator and when you do use it put a fill on it. A tiny physical exercise and preventive maintenance could maintain you electrical generator in top working situation and provide many years of faithful service.