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Is this too much for a toyota dolphin?


rongconcrx

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I didn't think of lowering, might be simpler. Its 10 deg, I'm not going to go look now. :-)

Does yours have a A/C????

I added a high power inverter to run my microwave and make coffee (WORKS GREAT)

Also added a small A/C unit to keep cool, but need shore power for that. (It might run off the inverter, but have never tried it, and it would run the battery down pretty fast.)

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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Derek, I was reading up on that regulator, there is no way to override it, Other than to just close the valve on the spare tank.

Lower would be better, can mount the regulator up high between the tanks and run a copper line down to the pipe. should be able to get the tanks in and out with no problem, and can reach the valves and connectors a lot easier.

ACTUALLY - If you went down, your probably going to be messing with the pipe anyway, so may as well move it to the back center of the compartment so its out of the way. then its a straight shot to connect to the regulator.

I LIKE IT. -

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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I didn't think of lowering, might be simpler. Its 10 deg, I'm not going to go look now. :-)

Does yours have a A/C????

I added a high power inverter to run my microwave and make coffee (WORKS GREAT)

Also added a small A/C unit to keep cool, but need shore power for that. (It might run off the inverter, but have never tried it, and it would run the battery down pretty fast.)

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

Sorry its actually not an AC its the stock cooler in the rv.

How good does a high power inverter compare to a generator?

Can you give me a sample of a good high power inverter?

Does this one look good enough to run all the appliances?

NEW Cobra CPI1575 3000 WATT Car Power Inverter DC To AC

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Cobra-CPI1575-3000-WATT-Car-Power-Inverter-DC-AC-/390356344229?_trksid=p4340.m1374&_trkparms=algo%3DPI.WATCH%26its%3DC%252BS%26itu%3DUCC%26otn%3D15%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D5664664419655802772#ht_5099wt_1270

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DEREK and i both have small cheap portable generators myn will fit in the outside storege. at 1200 watts 850 running watts cant run ac but run small microwave and charge rv battery. myn is a cheap 2 cycle unit . a nice honda 2000 watts about 1000 dollors. i paid 140 dollors for mine. run some outside lights too . in the back woods. never use ac in the mountains in wa state. what you need depends on what you want too do.

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Can I use this generator for the rv?

http://www.ebay.com/...#ht_3033wt_1037

That would probably be enough power to run a 13.5k roof A/C. That's the good news. The bad news is that it's probably made in Chindia, so getting any parts and service will probably make it a 'throw away' item. To quote the immortal bard (Dirty Harry), "Do you feel lucky, punk?" :ranting2:

They quote a noise level (59dB) but fail to mention if that's at idle, half or full power. 68lbs is not a 'fly weight' but at least it has a handle and is pretty conveniently shaped. There's a reason the built in wheels!

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Agreed that is a lot more too thro away at 140 dollors i can aford too toss myn if it died. hope i did not make you mad. myn ways 40 pounds.

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I see.. well you guys know this stuff so I'm learning and take your advice.Do you know if the Toyota Sea breeze have all the hookup for a generatGreat price though, but like people says you get what you pay for.

Edited by rongconcrx
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Ok so I have been reading the forum and the best are honda EU2000i's and honda 3000is?

I have look around in craiglist and found honda 3000is for $1200 used or I can get a honda eu2000 on ebay used for $900.

I would like to have the smaller one and hopefully it fit in the storage but do not know if it would be enough power to run a/c.

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Inverter / generator is a difficult question, because it depends greatly on what / how you use your Toyhouse.

GENERATOR

To date, I have never had the need for a Generator. If I were boondocking in very hot weather and wanted to run the A/C - that would be one the few cases where having a generator would be required.

In that context, depending on where I'm boondocking, I would probably want a quite generator, (some campsites, this is a requirement - look at the "sound level "db" rating - I think 55 is the magic number (55 is very quite)

Onboard generators are nice as they offer the greatest convenience, Although they are kind of quite, they are still somewhat noisy and most camps have a moratorium on generators after certain hours.

Some of the portable generators (I like the Honda 2000) are very, very quite, and can run a reasonable time without re-fuel. A The advantage of a portable is just that, they're portable and can be used at home, work, etc.

INVERTER

High Power Inverter Install

These run off your coach 12 volt system and make 110 volts. Although they are very efficient, they can pull a lot of 12 volt power to generate the 110 volts.

Math is simple, for every "amp" you need at 110 volts, it will require 10 amps at 12 volts

My Morning coffee pot needs 1000 watts (about 8 amps) so when I make coffee, the inverter is pulling about 80 amps from the coach battery. ( about two minutes)

The Microwave is about the same. The "watts" that you'll see are cooking watts, look at the data plate to get "amps" or multiply cooking watts by 1.3 to guess what the power supply watts will be.

Inverters aren't magic or free 110 volts, there are some things they won't run (because of power OR sine wave) i.e. Motors that require a high current start may not work (Air conditioner Compressor) because the inverter simply cannot supply that large surge for the time needed.

Don't even think about running heaters on your inverter - run your furnace or your truck.

ALSO - high power Inverters require very strict wiring requirements. Inverter performance and capacity can easily be impacted by wires that are too small or too long.

Speaking of truck - I installed a Remote Starter on the truck. if I start getting inverter low voltage warnings, I start the truck to charge the coach battery (you shouldn't do this at 3am in a campsite)

ALSO - Sine wave vs Square wave - Without getting into a three day dissertation, your normal wall outlet puts out a sine wave, Inverters put out a square wave. (You'll see "Modified Sine Wave" in the sales language). Most 110 devices will work fine with square wave, a few will not ( some electric tooth brushes), i.e. if your installing a microwave, run it on the inverter a couple times to make sure it works)

Conserving 12 volts power.

I replaced all the lighting in the coach with LEDs (they use about 1/10 the power as a bulb) Bulbs run abut 2 amps, 5 lights running is 10 amps.

LED Lighting upgrade

Your going to learn some basic electrical skills and need to do a little math when you deal with high power inverters.

The Inverter you linked to should be OK - You need to read the sales literature carefully - This is NOT a 3000 watt inverter, its a 1500 watt inverter that can surge to 3000 watt. 1500 watts will do a microwave or coffee pot just don't do them at the same time, and after the coffee is finished perking, turn it off or unplug it. coffee pots have a "keep it warm" heating element that draws 200++ watts, no need on running down the coach battery just to keep the coffee pot warm.

I have a remote ON/OFF for my inverter mounted near the frig. Even though the Inverter is OFF, it still draws a small amount of current (will run the battery down over a few weeks)

IMPORTANT - Google the inverter your thinking of buying and look for problems - I think the inverter your looking at may have had some issues.

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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Ok so I have been reading the forum and the best are Honda EU2000i's and Honda 3000is?

I have look around in Craigslist and found Honda 3000is for $1200 used or I can get a Honda eu2000 on ebay used for $900. I would like to have the smaller one and hopefully it fit in the storage but do not know if it would be enough power to run a/c.

Using info in posts here and the Toyota Campers Yahoo Group, it seems that people with the Honda EU1000 manage just fine doing everything other than running A/C. The EU2000 allows operation of smaller A/C (8000-9000Btuh). The big clunky 13,500Btuh A/C needs the an onboard generator* (2500-2800w). I'm sure a portable of equal capacity would do the job too.

Kohler are reported to be noisier than Onan. Both are deemed 'antisocial' it seems. I notice that many MH are for sale with generators with VERY low hours. Less than 100 seems pretty common.

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I have a couple small generators we use for emergency power (I live out in the sticks) One of them is a small 900 watts, I might hook it up and see if it will run my small 5000 btu Air Conditioner, just to get an idea on small portable generators.

Running the A/C while out in the sticks is the only reason I would need a generator. everything else can be done with 12volts (and the inverter)

My general thoughts regarding this - If its hot and I have to stay in the A/C, I'll stay at home. Although its nice to have A/C at night if its muggy (Spent a Night at an Indian Casino in Iowa (had shore power), it was a cooker outside and I didn't sleep very well (windows open and the top vent fan running). That was the deciding factor on installing the small 5000 btu A/C unit.

Thats kind of a decision point on spending a night boondocking or at a RV park (with shore power). If its hot and muggy, its shore power and the A/C unit running.

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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Hi guys, I just started the project today and its much more work then I thought. The whole cab is wet need to change everything in the cab.

I'am having trouble finding the edge trim, or that's what I think it's called.

I have attach a picture of it in red, can you guys tell me where I can get those parts?Thanks

post-5966-0-72597800-1326848899_thumb.jp

Edited by rongconcrx
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I believe what you're looking for is called 'Insert Roof Edge'. Seems to come in 16' and 20' length. I'd suggest getting it shipped to your nearest RV store so that if it gets damaged in shipping, it's their problem and not yours!

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/rv-locks/insert-roof-edge-31-1913.htm

http://www.americasrvstore.com/rv.cfm?clientid=709&priclass=Roof%20Edge

http://www.rv-supercenter.com/product_p/tr311994.htm

BTW, when you see the prices, you might want to take the advice "remove carefully for reuse!"

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I'm thinking that price is for 10 pieces. You might be able to get one piece from a local RV dealer for around $50. One of the links sells it in pieces, but shipping will kill you unless you cut it in 1/2

Don't replace all the trim, splice the pieces together and just replace any small pieces. ALSO, unless you have the jigs to form the curves, those will be a real challenge. Like I say, save the reuse the old pieces.

If you remove it do it very carefully, try not to bend in any way.

You can get new plastic insert cheap. DO NOT seal the ends, leave the ends open so water that does get in can drain out.

If the cabover is wet, look at the front window, this is where the leak is.

With all that said, unless your doing a complete teardown. you may not need to remove any of this. A lot of damage can be repaired from the inside.

Heres some work I did on mine:

Front Window Replacement

Cabover Rot repair

Several others have done some pretty extensive repairs. Read through the Rot thread and there are some links so you can see what others have done to fix rot.

JOhn Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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I'm thinking that price is for 10 pieces. You might be able to get one piece from a local RV dealer for around $50. One of the links sells it in pieces, but shipping will kill you unless you cut it in 1/2

Don't replace all the trim, splice the pieces together and just replace any small pieces. ALSO, unless you have the jigs to form the curves, those will be a real challenge. Like I say, save the reuse the old pieces.

If you remove it do it very carefully, try not to bend in any way.

You can get new plastic insert cheap. DO NOT seal the ends, leave the ends open so water that does get in can drain out.

If the cabover is wet, look at the front window, this is where the leak is.

With all that said, unless your doing a complete teardown. you may not need to remove any of this. A lot of damage can be repaired from the inside.

Heres some work I did on mine:

Front Window Replacement

Cabover Rot repair

Several others have done some pretty extensive repairs. Read through the Rot thread and there are some links so you can see what others have done to fix rot.

JOhn Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

awesome, this is what I need. Thanks

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Well.. I just pick up a Yamaha ef2400 from a local dealer, paid 1500 I know that I can get a better price online but didn't want to wait.

Anyways I love it very nice and quiet. I wish it was one inch shorter so that it can fit in the storage.

Isit safe to drive with it running to rum the roof ac and accessories?

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I seen on a thread somewhere where the person modified their generator compartment, added exhaust, added a couple fans, etc so a Honda would fit. There was discussion about not running the Honda in an enclosed space, but IMHO, all the reasons to not run it had been mitigated. (I think it was over on the Yahoo group)

If your talking about the Yamaha running while driving down the road, you need to mitigate all the reasons why you shouldn't, i.e. fresh air cooling, exhaust, fuel supply, tie down, etc, etc

People do run their roof top A/C while cruising down the road.

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

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People do run their roof top A/C while cruising down the road.

John Mc

88 Dolphin 4 Auto

True, but usually only with a built-in genset OR one mounted on a rear bumper rack.

I'll assume that the Yamaha Owner's Manual must include some information about how and why to operate it safely. IIRC, the Honda Manual says 'not in an enclosure' and 'a 10' clearance'.

Here's a link to the 'permanent' Honda install John mentioned:- http://fubigoil.net/...erator-install/

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Freaken awesome,that's a great idea,that should also work for the propane mod also.thanks guys for the link and advice.

With couple of desktop fan and extended exhaust and something to hold it down,I really don't see why not.

Another thing is that I wouldn't do is open any windows on the generator side just to be safe.

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