Generator to charge Battery - R-pod Owners Forum

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dsmiths

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Joined: 10 Oct 2011
Location: Southern Ind
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Posts: 866

Topic: Generator to charge Battery
Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 9:04pm

Direct and to the point furpod

Dane and Donna Smith
2011 RP-172
2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4
lift kit
prodigy wireless brake controller

furpod

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Joined: 25 Jul 2011
Location: Central KY
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Posts: 6128

Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 8:06pm

Just to point out.. IF it will charge the batteries.. it certainly WILL NOT run your microwave. You have or should have a 1200w microwave... a 800 watt genny isn't going to do anything but ruin it.

I refuse to do any math on if it's financially smart to buy a genny vs paying for electricity.. thats the path of.. How many nights can I stay in my tent vs a camper vs a hotel room vs not going at all.. etc etc.

We have a large generator at home that will run our whole house, but none for the campers.. may get one someday, but it will be one that CAN run the A/C...

dsmiths

Senior Member

Joined: 10 Oct 2011
Location: Southern Ind
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 866

Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 7:57pm

oh p.s. the Chicago Electric is Chinese throw away, you wont be able to get parts for it, run it until it quits, throw away. sorry we have a harbour freight about 15 minutes from the house and all the "chicago electric " thingy's come with spare brushes for the commutator, I have never bought an American made drill, buffer, saw, ect that came with "spare brushes"

Dane and Donna Smith
2011 RP-172
2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4
lift kit
prodigy wireless brake controller

dsmiths

Senior Member

Joined: 10 Oct 2011
Location: Southern Ind
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 866

Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 6:19pm

I am with techntrek and Dave, the 800 watt is to weak, I have a 5500 continous/6875 surge at home, I have a clip board where I keep track of hours run, I run it every 1 or 2 months for 15 minutes, It is in an out building that has an underground feed to my main panel in the house, so when power is out, cut off main breaker in house, preflight gen set, fire it up, switch on line and let it power the house, you need to put Stabil in the fuel overwinter. the float bowl in the carb of your gen set has to have a vent to let fuel flow, this also allows gas to evaporate and create a gummy shellac material if not run regularly. the 800 will run a charger to help keep your battery charged but will not keep up with hi consumption devices. gosh after all this talk I wonder how my g-pa and g-ma made it on the farm before electricty. kerosene lamps, smoked meats, canned veggies from the garden, a hand pump from the sistern that collected rain water from the roof of the house. and a clothes line, I grew up there after electricity but learned so much. good luck

Dane and Donna Smith
2011 RP-172
2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4
lift kit
prodigy wireless brake controller

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Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 5:03pm

My position on everything is.....it's your camper and your $$$$ so do whatever pleases YOU.

With that said, however, I agree with everthing that Techntrek wrote. I doubt it would have near enough "umph" to do what you want. One thought I keep going back to is; how many nights could I pay for the difference between sites with no electricity vs. ones with electricity vs, the cost of buying and maintaining a nice inverter genset? You also have to transport it and gasoline (some extra oil might be a good idea).

Some folks like 'em , some don't. But, some folks like lemon in their tea, while others don't, also. Do what would make you happy.

techntrek

Admin Group - pHp

Joined: 29 Jul 2009
Location: MD
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 9062

Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 2:29pm

800 watts won't be enough for the microwave (or A/C). The converter has a very large surge when it is first plugged in, so while 800 watts should be enough to run it, it probably will stall the genset when you first plug it in. You may have to use an external battery charger with the generator.

A genset needs to be run once a month to keep the seals moist and evaporate condensation out of the oil. Often people buy one, then pull it out of the box for the first time 3 years later and find it won't run which is why they get a bad reputation. Its yet another engine to maintain, for better or worse. Personally I would recommend saving up your money and getting one of the Honda 2000 watt gensets.

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual

mt868

Newbie

Joined: 04 Oct 2011
Location: DALLAS
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 34

Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 1:57pm

I keep seeing an ad on Harbor Freight for a 800 watt portable Chicago generator. I was thinking about getting this to charge my batteries and maybe use the microwave while boondocking.

What are your thoughts on this? Is it worth it or should I just suck it up and buy a bigger generator? Or should I just do without a generator? I hear they break down easily and are difficult to maintain.

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dsmiths Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 10 Oct 2011 Location: Southern Ind Online Status: Offline Posts: 866	Topic: Generator to charge Battery Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 9:04pm
	Direct and to the point furpod
	Dane and Donna Smith 2011 RP-172 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4 lift kit prodigy wireless brake controller

furpod Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 8:06pm
	Just to point out.. IF it will charge the batteries.. it certainly WILL NOT run your microwave. You have or should have a 1200w microwave... a 800 watt genny isn't going to do anything but ruin it. I refuse to do any math on if it's financially smart to buy a genny vs paying for electricity.. thats the path of.. How many nights can I stay in my tent vs a camper vs a hotel room vs not going at all.. etc etc. We have a large generator at home that will run our whole house, but none for the campers.. may get one someday, but it will be one that CAN run the A/C...

dsmiths Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 10 Oct 2011 Location: Southern Ind Online Status: Offline Posts: 866	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 7:57pm
	oh p.s. the Chicago Electric is Chinese throw away, you wont be able to get parts for it, run it until it quits, throw away. sorry we have a harbour freight about 15 minutes from the house and all the "chicago electric " thingy's come with spare brushes for the commutator, I have never bought an American made drill, buffer, saw, ect that came with "spare brushes"
	Dane and Donna Smith 2011 RP-172 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4 lift kit prodigy wireless brake controller

dsmiths Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 10 Oct 2011 Location: Southern Ind Online Status: Offline Posts: 866	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 6:19pm
	I am with techntrek and Dave, the 800 watt is to weak, I have a 5500 continous/6875 surge at home, I have a clip board where I keep track of hours run, I run it every 1 or 2 months for 15 minutes, It is in an out building that has an underground feed to my main panel in the house, so when power is out, cut off main breaker in house, preflight gen set, fire it up, switch on line and let it power the house, you need to put Stabil in the fuel overwinter. the float bowl in the carb of your gen set has to have a vent to let fuel flow, this also allows gas to evaporate and create a gummy shellac material if not run regularly. the 800 will run a charger to help keep your battery charged but will not keep up with hi consumption devices. gosh after all this talk I wonder how my g-pa and g-ma made it on the farm before electricty. kerosene lamps, smoked meats, canned veggies from the garden, a hand pump from the sistern that collected rain water from the roof of the house. and a clothes line, I grew up there after electricity but learned so much. good luck
	Dane and Donna Smith 2011 RP-172 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4 lift kit prodigy wireless brake controller

Guests Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Guest Group	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 5:03pm
	My position on everything is.....it's your camper and your $$$$ so do whatever pleases YOU. With that said, however, I agree with everthing that Techntrek wrote. I doubt it would have near enough "umph" to do what you want. One thought I keep going back to is; how many nights could I pay for the difference between sites with no electricity vs. ones with electricity vs, the cost of buying and maintaining a nice inverter genset? You also have to transport it and gasoline (some extra oil might be a good idea). Some folks like 'em , some don't. But, some folks like lemon in their tea, while others don't, also. Do what would make you happy.

techntrek Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group - pHp Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 2:29pm
	800 watts won't be enough for the microwave (or A/C). The converter has a very large surge when it is first plugged in, so while 800 watts should be enough to run it, it probably will stall the genset when you first plug it in. You may have to use an external battery charger with the generator. A genset needs to be run once a month to keep the seals moist and evaporate condensation out of the oil. Often people buy one, then pull it out of the box for the first time 3 years later and find it won't run which is why they get a bad reputation. Its yet another engine to maintain, for better or worse. Personally I would recommend saving up your money and getting one of the Honda 2000 watt gensets.
	Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual

mt868 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Oct 2011 Location: DALLAS Online Status: Offline Posts: 34	Posted: 09 Nov 2011 at 1:57pm
	I keep seeing an ad on Harbor Freight for a 800 watt portable Chicago generator. I was thinking about getting this to charge my batteries and maybe use the microwave while boondocking. What are your thoughts on this? Is it worth it or should I just suck it up and buy a bigger generator? Or should I just do without a generator? I hear they break down easily and are difficult to maintain.