Moto related-ish camper/generator question

7/18/2020 2:02pm Edited Date/Time 7/25/2020 12:56pm
My 4000watt generator will not run my camper without the overload light coming on, what am I doing wrong? 4000watt should be plenty right? Forrest river 22rbs
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JeremyK
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North Tonawanda, NY US
7/18/2020 6:02pm
What could you possibly be running in a camper to trip the overload ? I'm guessing AC and a small refrigerator, most campers now use LED lighting . Hopefully someone chimes in whos about this stuff more ,i'm curious myself.
agn5009
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7/18/2020 6:10pm
The AC is using the vast majority. Are you running the AC, microwave, fireplace (if it has one) appliances etc? You could certainly overload it with a few different things running at once.

Is your AC 13,500 or 15,000 btu's? If its 15,000 you're looking at roughly 3500 watts at start up I believe. Roughly 2700 with a 13,500. Coffee makers draw some wattage at start up too, something like 1800.
ns503
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7/18/2020 6:34pm
Is your gennie 240 volts?
SEE ARE125
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7/18/2020 7:14pm
Hope someone helps find out watts wrong.
6

The Shop

AJ565
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7/18/2020 8:02pm
SEE ARE125 wrote:
Hope someone helps find out watts wrong.
Currently the best joke here. Got me amped up.
7
Timo_2824
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7/18/2020 8:51pm
Is your generator 4000 watts max, or 4000 constant? They tend to name them at max output, not what they can do constantly. If you have an electric water heater make sure it's not turned on when the AC is starting.
plowboy
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7/19/2020 4:24am
Turn off/un-plug everything except the a/c. Leave it running on high (a/c is the ONE thing is a must to survive in summer). Then, one by one, choose your priority items and turn them on. When the overload light comes on then you will know where the big draw is. Or you can get a bigger gennie. Remember, the solution to almost every problem is MONEYSilly
3
7/19/2020 8:47am
Timo_2824 wrote:
Is your generator 4000 watts max, or 4000 constant? They tend to name them at max output, not what they can do constantly. If you have...
Is your generator 4000 watts max, or 4000 constant? They tend to name them at max output, not what they can do constantly. If you have an electric water heater make sure it's not turned on when the AC is starting.
4000 start 3400 running
7/19/2020 8:49am
Only thing I Have on with the ac is a few lights, fridge off and all appliances off. Turn ac on and generator immediately goes into overload
Jeff K
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7/19/2020 9:20am
What brand ? Did it work fine before ?
7/19/2020 2:10pm
Jeff K wrote:
What brand ? Did it work fine before ?
It’s a ryobi, first time I’ve tried it with the camper, I bought the generator for something else a while back.
Timo_2824
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7/19/2020 3:29pm
Does it run fine when plugged in? Put an amp meter on it set to max to see what your AC is pulling at startup. It should just be the fan first, then the compressor a minute or so later. There is a run Capacitor in the AC that assists the fan and compressor, if its lost capacitance you'll definitely be over amping.
7/19/2020 4:35pm
Runs perfect when plugged in, as soon as the ac kicks on, the Rpms on the generator go up and the overload light flashes
Timo_2824
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7/19/2020 8:03pm
You're probably going to need a larger generator, I would get one that is 4500 watts running.
dmm698
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7/20/2020 4:16am Edited Date/Time 7/20/2020 4:17am
Does your generator have a 30 amp camper style plug or are you using an adaptor chord and plugging it into a 20 outlet house style plug?

If you end up needing to buy one to run what you need, I would highly recommend the Westinghouse I bought 2 years or so ago. I had a small pop up with a regular generator and when I went to a larger toy hauler type camper I decided I was sick of the POS loud one I got for free.

I bought the igen4500 I think it’s called. Has a handle like a suit case to pull it around, super quiet, runs my ac no problem and I believe I’ve had my microwave going at the same time. It’s got electric start and a remote so if you want to shut it off at night without going outside you can, same thing in the morning if you want to get the coffee pot brewing. Just ran it almost 4 days straight at unadilla and maybe burnt 10 gallons of fuel. Has a nice led display to show hours, current power output with whatever load is currently on it, run time remaining given fuel level, and fuel level. It was a bargain at like 900 IMO. Similar Honda or Yamaha would of been 4K I bet.
2
Markopolo400
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7/21/2020 12:55pm
SEE ARE125 wrote:
Hope someone helps find out watts wrong.
AJ565 wrote:
Currently the best joke here. Got me amped up.
Yes those were shockingly good
1
MelonFan123
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7/21/2020 1:23pm
If it ends up being an issue with your generator and you need another, have a look at the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight. $700 and thing runs like a champ, runs my 27ft travel trailer with 15K BTU A/C and appliances just fine.

I used to drink the Honda Kool-Aid and had a single EU2000, but it wouldn't run the AC by itself. Almost got a second one to run parallel but I went with the Predator and more than happy I did,

1
7/21/2020 4:28pm
If it ends up being an issue with your generator and you need another, have a look at the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight. $700 and...
If it ends up being an issue with your generator and you need another, have a look at the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight. $700 and thing runs like a champ, runs my 27ft travel trailer with 15K BTU A/C and appliances just fine.

I used to drink the Honda Kool-Aid and had a single EU2000, but it wouldn't run the AC by itself. Almost got a second one to run parallel but I went with the Predator and more than happy I did,

How loud is it?
Shiftfaced
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Ruby Ridge, ID US
7/21/2020 5:30pm Edited Date/Time 7/21/2020 5:33pm
SEE ARE125 wrote:
Hope someone helps find out watts wrong.
AJ565 wrote:
Currently the best joke here. Got me amped up.
I would try alternating the devices that are drawing current.

Should be able to find a direct line to one item that is tripping the breaker.
Dixon893
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Bay City, MI US
7/23/2020 6:01am
Make sure there is not a ECO mode switch on the generator, My Champion has one when I forget to flip it off it will trip to overload.
captmoto
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7/23/2020 3:49pm
dmm698 wrote:
Does your generator have a 30 amp camper style plug or are you using an adaptor chord and plugging it into a 20 outlet house style...
Does your generator have a 30 amp camper style plug or are you using an adaptor chord and plugging it into a 20 outlet house style plug?

If you end up needing to buy one to run what you need, I would highly recommend the Westinghouse I bought 2 years or so ago. I had a small pop up with a regular generator and when I went to a larger toy hauler type camper I decided I was sick of the POS loud one I got for free.

I bought the igen4500 I think it’s called. Has a handle like a suit case to pull it around, super quiet, runs my ac no problem and I believe I’ve had my microwave going at the same time. It’s got electric start and a remote so if you want to shut it off at night without going outside you can, same thing in the morning if you want to get the coffee pot brewing. Just ran it almost 4 days straight at unadilla and maybe burnt 10 gallons of fuel. Has a nice led display to show hours, current power output with whatever load is currently on it, run time remaining given fuel level, and fuel level. It was a bargain at like 900 IMO. Similar Honda or Yamaha would of been 4K I bet.
This is the answer you need 30 amp service minimum to run your AC. My Onan 4000 doesn't like running the microwave and AC at the same time.
7/25/2020 12:45pm
Got it to work, flipped the water heater breaker off, even though it wasn’t on, and there is an auto idle on the generator I turned off, also turned the water heater to propane via a switch outside the camper, but like I said the water heater wasn’t in use. Took it to budds creek for its maiden voyage, promptly ate shit and hurt my knee and had to go home though
wwdiii
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League City, TX US
7/25/2020 12:56pm
Amp Probes are cheap enough, thats thats the first thing I would do. Check amp draw.
Idaho747
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Idaho Falls, ID US
7/26/2020 9:57pm
If you have a cheap plug adapter hooked to it sometime those can cause too much resistance. Thay might be the problem.

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