generator question

[crazytruckin]

Just wondering if anyone has installed an RV diesel generator on their truck and used roof top air unit to eliminate idling. With the way business is now it is obvious there will a whole lot of sitting waiting for loads. We are in Laredo now (since Saturday morning) and just yesterday morning I counted 18 straight trucks in the RV parking lot at the FJ alone. Fun time to be had by all!!

 

[greg334]

Phil has if I am not mistaken. I noticed that Northern took has an RV generator in their winter sales catalog for under $1600.

 

[Booker]

We have a Onan 7500 Quiet-Diesel generator with a Carrier rooftop mount air condition on our new truck. It has been in service for approximately 7 months and there has been no problems with it. I would recommend this setup to anyone.

 

[crazytruckin]

Booker, I'm real interested in doing something like what you have. Did you do the install yourself? Just curious about mounting, hooking up to A/c unit and unit install, fuel, etc.

 

[Booker]

We had the unit installed when the sleeper was installed. We have a SST100 truck from Stoops in Ft. Wayne, IN and everything was installed by Bentz Transport Products in Ft. Wayne. They did an excellent job with the installation.

 

[chetjester]

My truck from Blair has an Onan and a rooftop unit. I hate it. I can get air conditioning, but the heating element is too small for temps below 30 degrees. I have to use a quartz heater for that.

I also have had problems in Laredo when the temp goes above 90. The Onan gets too hot and won't run.

I would never do something like this. And, when the whole thing was installed, nobody made arrangements for the generator to recharge batteries. I had a converter installed when I had the rooftop unit replaced (the original wasn't strong enough for the constant motion of the truck).

If I had my choice, I'd go for the Cummins Tripac APU. I've had trucks with ProHeat, Rigmaster and the Tripac. ProHeat kept breaking. Rigmaster was too powerful. Therefore, the Tripac was best. My logic.

Chet Merithew
The Prodigal Son of A. Blair
Truck #81105
OOIDA #828583

 

[Packmule]

Chet said:
>>I had the rooftop unit replaced (the original wasn't strong enough for the constant motion of the truck).

Huh???

Please explain in more detail the problems you experienced.
This is the first negative I have heard about this type setup. I run a Coleman rooftop air W/heat and a Onan generator on the PackVan and we love it. But I don't think this counts because it's not a real truck.
I do heat and cool the entire truck (including cargo area, which becomes part of my sleeper when laid over) and it will make you shiver in 120 degree Arizona summer heat.
As for as heat, We were in 18 degree cold in Salt Lake City a few days ago and could not stand the heat higher than LOW without being too hot.

How BIG is your sleeper? Is your sleeper insulated at all? What size rooftop air did you have?
Maybe it's not the best setup, but then can 2 million RVer's really be wrong?

Very interesting,
Danny

 

[chetjester]

The Onan is an HDKBB. Genset only. The current rooftop is am RVP Product Roughneck Series. I have a 96 inch insulated sleeper.

We have another truck with the same arrangement. Their rooftop has been replaced and their Onan breaks down all the time.

I don't care how much money was saved by not installing a complete APU. If I could, I would get rid of the Onan and put in the Tri-Pak.

Chet Merithew
The Prodigal Son of A. Blair
Truck #81105
OOIDA #828583

 

[Packmule]

Interesting!

Danny

 

[Booker]

We had an SST100 with a ProHeat unit on it and it would not keep the sleeper cool. It wasn't powerful enough. We have never had the same problem with the Onan with the rooftop air. It will actually get too cold if you do not watch it. This truck comes with an electric baseboard heater that works real well in the cold weather. It sounds like you have more problems that just the Onan or the rooftop air unit. The same setup has been used for years on motorhomes with great success.

 

[chetjester]

I'm very aware that the setup on this truck is incorrect. I'm hoping to improve on it when I shut down over Christmas.

Maybe I'll be satisfied when I'm finished. This just isn't the way I would have set up the truck. Also, my muffler on the Onan is damaged and it sounds louder than most reefer units going full speed. That is my first priority. I'm so embarrassed every time I start the Onan up. Which, by the way, takes 2 to 3 tries before it runs continuously.

Obviously I have a lemon.

Chet Merithew
The Prodigal Son of A. Blair
Truck #81105
OOIDA #828583

 

[ManLaw]

We drive an SST100 with this very setup. As Booker said, the AC can get so cold that it can feeze you out even in the middle of the summer in the deep south. We had many times this past summer that it took some fine tuning on the thermostat to get the temp in the sleeper just right for us to be comfortable. We got to put the heater to the test this past weekend in Minneapolis. With the temps in the low 20's during the day and overnight temps in the 5 degree range. We were perfectly comfortable the whole time we were there. We got tucked away early Saturday afternoon just as the storm took hold and left Monday morning after things got nicely cleaned up. We experienced all the storm had to offer, including high winds Saturday night.

Having had most of the aformentioned generators on various trucks in the past I CAN tell you that the Onan is the BEST setup we've ever used. The Onan is BY FAR the quietest. ChetJester, get the exhaust fixed....it's VERY quiet when working correctly.

The Carrier rooftop air and the Onan generator is BY FAR the best setup we've ever had. I've yet to find the limit of it's workload. With the others we could only have one or two things working at a time. No such thing as having the AC running and making coffee or using the microwave or convection oven at the same time. This past weekend we had the heat running, made a pot roast in the oven and had the FanTastic fan going, both TV's on, the satellite on, the computer on, and of course the LARGE refridgerator all going at the same time. Not even a blip from the gen. One of the nice things about THIS Onan is that when there is no call for power it shifts to a slower idle and when it needs extra power it automatically shifts into a higher idle.

I highly recommend that you walk around a TS and listen to the various generators that are running. Talk to as many people as you can about the setup that they have and how they sound. Find someone with an Onan and stand beside it while it's running. I'm SURE you will hear the difference for yourself.