Portable generator instead of APU

They already have diesel Gens,.. like the APU's,.. they are expensive and most like the APU's are not very quiet. Most I looked at had the Perkins motor in them. I explored diesel options. Owning a diesel truck,.. that made the most sense at first. But when you really do your homework and look into it, weighing the pro's and cons of both. The gas gen offers a lot more options that wont kill your bank account to set up. This is why guys like me will go with the gas generator every time.

After you price out what creature comforts you want in your truck and then explore the options of how to incorporate them into the truck,. the resourceful DIY guy will go with the gas gen every time. Its thousands less. And if it ever breaks down,.. its cheaper to just toss it and replace it, when compare to an APU.

As for theft of mine,.. its inside a locked side box when not in use. Its bolted down into the box. No one knows what is inside the box. When its running,.. the lid is open,.. the Honda EU3000iS is a heavy beast of a generator. Roughly 275 lbs. I dont see anyone just walking off with mine. Besides needing some wrenches and time to unbolt it,.. they will need a hand cart or 2 strong guys to carry it off.





Hurst

 

Guess you asking me.
Tare weight is plus 130 pounds, 95 is generator and 35 is AC.
AC is not window style. Don't need to cut sleeper wall with saw only small hole.The hole to run hoses inside is 2'' in diameter and in case I need to take AC out the standard rubber plug will cover the hole. Split system AC is $200 -250 more expensive compare to window style but advantage is huge. You don't have to move forth and back every evening, you can drive truck with AC running if truck AC is down what I already did in Texas this summer.
Sleeper body wasn't compromised. In Volvo sleeper there is easy to remove piece exactly where it need to be then cover this area with suitable size rug from Walmart . BTW it was no any insulation between cardboard and sleeper wall. Volvo is amazingly cheap crap.
Fifth wheel is adjusted to have gross weight and honestly I never had to move it with reefer trailer.

 

Whoa. Awesome. All I can say is outstanding!

The reason I asked is because trucks that were issued to me, stood to be taken away and myself fired proper if i made so much as a cut to tie down a cb radio stack on top of the dash for example. Or spliced into the existing wiring to feed it. Lease terms prevented me, the driver from committing judicious vandalism to improve the ability to hollar you get your ears on out there swift? Pick it up and get over the right please...

 

I toyed with the idea of going diesel but to get a good one costs plenty , no remote start and the idea of trying to get it started in sub zero temps wasn't appealing either .

 

I saw some of these mini split a/c systems like yours snail. It says they are a heat pump also. Is yours only a/c or can you get heat from yours too. Just curious how it works.

 

The honda 2000 won't be enough to run both of those. Honestly it might not be enough to run an oil filled heater. I have one at home that pulls 1500 watts. Plus it puts out too much heat even on the lowest setting.

What I did was get an 800 watt electric heater that will keep the sleeper toasty all the way down to diesel gelling temps.

Also don't think the 2000 would be enough power to run a block heater even if that was the only load.

I burned up my 2000 running 700 watt A/C and a hurricane fan and tv all the same time. Next time will be the 3000 or maybe one of those cheap 3200 or 4000 Champion gens I see at harbor freight. u

Don't need it now anyway, leased a truck with and APU and bunk heater, but when/if I go back to my truck I will be looking at getting the portable generator again.

 

Yep get the biggest generater you can so it's only running at half load .
My mistake with my last one was buying to small of a unit and was always at full load so it drank gas and didn't last long .

 

In all honesty,.. the main reason I went with the Honda 3000 was because it has a built in pure syn inverter. The voltage is regulated to mimic exactly what comes out of a house outlet. I have my TV, Satellite dish and receiver, computer, printer,.. I didnt want to have concerns that any of those would get fried from irregular voltage or a voltage spike from an unregulated source.

The cheaper $400 - $600 generators are fine for something like an AC, hot plate, space heater etc. But more sensitive electronics no. That was the sole reason for me to opt for the much more expensive 3000. $1900,.. compared to a $500 to $600 gen that would have been fine for basic needs.

Also the 3000 has a 12 amp DC lead in which I can use to charge or jump start my truck if the need was there. The other option would be to buy an AC powered DC battery charger,.. and plug it in that way,.. which is what I have in the truck now.

The 3000 has a 3.5 gal tank, it will run my 8500 BTU window AC or Infrared space heater, plus my TV with periodic moments of 1000watt microwave usage,. or forman grill (Sausages, burgers, grilled ham and cheese etc) and will run for 15 - 18 hrs straight before I need to add gas again. So no worries falling a sleep and waking to a generator that has run out of fuel.

Hurst

 

Yes it does working as heat pump. Never tried it and probably wouldn't. I have webasto heater