robertsunrus

Hi, one of the main reasons that I replaced my Navigator with an F-150 was so that I could mount a generator in the bed and run it from there. Some later trailers [Airstreams] came with a front mounted generator inlet; This system needs a transfer switch. I designed and made a front generator inlet that uses a jumper cable instead of a transfer switch. My system is easier, safer to use, and no transfer switch needed. My plan was to be able to run my generator, in the bed of my truck, at rest stops and maybe run the air conditioner to cool my trailer, while driving, until I get to a camp ground with full hook ups. I purposely bought a Retrax Pro roll top bed cover because it can be opened and locked in any position allowing me to open only the rear area of the bed so my generator can get some cooling air.




More to this story, if interested.

mike243

Have you tested on the ac? pretty small unit to handle a ac.Thats capable of 20amps and you need about 2.5 more amps than the ac runs at in order to start it.

Dunrollin

I bet it will do fine. I have a Honda EU2000i and it does my trailer fine. I like this setup and plan to do the same this winter. This summer I used shore power everywhere I went.

mark waller

Those are good generators but to run the A/C in you trailer you will need a larger unit. I have 2 Honda Eu2000's which will run my A/C.

robertsunrus

Hi, my Yamaha 2400 runs my air conditioner just fine. It ran my air conditioner, [11,000 BTU] my refrigerator, my converter, and my TV at high altitude. People with the same generator, but with 13,500 or 15,000 BTU units, turn their refrigerators to propane and only run their air conditioners off the generator. After doing this complete set up, I only had one problem and that was the exhaust too hot on the inside of the bed. So I shut it off. I now have my exhaust turned up and wrapped to prevent this problem.




A friend of mine runs a 13,500 BTU air conditioner from one Honda 2000, but he installed a hard start capacitor.

robertsunrus

Hi, Mike; I did quite a bit of research before buying this generator. I have had this one for about five years now. I picked this one because I wanted the smallest, lightest, single generator that would run my air conditioner. I have to cycle, or turn off, my air conditioner if we want to use our micro-wave oven.

robertsunrus

Hi, Mark; This generator runs my 11,000 BTU air conditioner just fine. I can run a few other things too as mentioned above.

robertsunrus

Hi, to mount this generator in the bed, I ordered some single bolt type rings. The ones in the front of the bed were too small for my liking and the ones in the back of the bed were larger than what I wanted, but I couldn't find anything in the middle size wise. I did some very careful measuring before drilling into my bed for the front tie downs. They go through a bed cross member for double strength. On the rear tie downs I had to drill larger holes so the Ford bed bolts would fit. Since the brackets are so thick the washers were not needed. And I wanted the bolts to thread all of the way through the speed nuts. The bed bolts are crimped to keep the washers on. I mounted my bed bolts in my drill press, turned it on, and held a file against the crimped area. After a few minutes of filing the bolts, the washers came off. This gave me a few more threads for the speed nut.


I use a thick cable and some locks to hold my generator in place to the large tie down rings. For stability, I use a ratchet strap to hold the generator to the front tie downs.

robertsunrus

Hi, I bought the single bolt tie downs from E-bay.

Velosprout

Nice looking install. I like the rubber mat to insulate the truck bed from vibration and your locking cable. Is that a flex exhaust extension wrapped with exhaust/header tape? Why not extend it to above the top of the tonneau when in use?


This would not work for me, as I use the truck bed for too many other things and wouldn't want to permanently attach the tie-downs, but for a tow-vehicle exclusive truck it works well. I would also want the ability to drive away quickly in my truck for errands, athletic events, fishing, etc., while family members continued to enjoy using the generator.