RV generator stowage

[MarkB_MI]

So I have a Honda EU3000iS generator I intend to use when we go boondocking with our fifth wheel travel trailer. Ideally, I'd like to carry it in the bed of my truck, then unload it when we camp so there's power to the trailer when one of us goes somewhere in the pickup. But that generator weighs 131 pounds dry, so it's a two-man lift to get it on the tailgate and then stowed forward of the fifth wheel hitch. In a crowded campground, there's always someone willing to help, but out in the sticks I can't depend on getting help and my wife isn't strong enough to lift half the generator.

I've looked at cranes that mount in the hitch receiver. These are fairly cheap and can be broken down when not in use. Although they would work to get the generator on the tailgate, none of them are long enough to set the generator ahead of the hitch. Alternatively, I could use the crane to dismount the hitch; it weighs 250 pounds, but is easy to remove if you can lift it. Then it would be easy to roll the generator from the tailgate to the front of the bed and back. But I'm not sure these cranes can even reach the hitch; I'm guessing they are long enough if I slide the hitch back to its rear position.

The other alternative I see is to put the generator on a cargo carrier mounted to the trailer bumper. I'm not wild about that idea; I don't want stuff hanging off the rear of the trailer, and it would be real easy for someone with a big pair of bolt cutters to swipe the generator. Also, the trailer doesn't have a receiver, so I'd have to add that. There are receivers that mount directly to the rear bumper; these are optimistically rated at 350 pounds of tongue weight, but I don't think the square tubular bumper is going to be able to handle 150 pounds of generator and carrier swinging up and down two feet behind it. So I'll have to buy and install a frame-mounted hitch, which is a considerable expense.

I'm wondering if anyone else has solved this problem; let me know your ideas.

Also, I've found three different receiver-mounted cranes. There are a number of different brands, but it seems they're all rebranded versions of these three. The reviews are not encouraging. Does anyone have any experience with these?

<a href="https://www.amazon.com/MaxxHaul-70238-Receiver-Hitch-Mounted/dp/B008CE0WCW/ref=asc_df_B008CE0WCW/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312128189269&hvpos=1o3&hvnetw=g&hvrand=13865947512198613068&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9016990&hvtargid=pla-568683155946&psc=1">MaxxHaul 70238</a>

<a href="https://www.amazon.com/XtremepowerUS-Pickup-Truck-Hydraulic-Engine/dp/B00N243PTE/ref=pd_cp_196_1?pd_rd_w=OZy8V&pf_rd_p=ef4dc990-a9ca-4945-ae0b-f8d549198ed6&pf_rd_r=VBHD31FDT6K83JQRNECR&pd_rd_r=b18b8eca-974d-11e9-a67f-3142ed7b0a6a&pd_rd_wg=es4TI&pd_rd_i=B00N243PTE&psc=1&refRID=VBHD31FDT6K83JQRNECR">XtremepowerUS</a>

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[Steve@Advance]

How about a wheel chair lift?

I'm sure a new one would be cost prohibitive, but might find a used one, or make one from looking at the design.

 

[dpendzic]

I had a front cabinet under the front overhang on my 5th wheel trailer that i mounted my generator. before that we just relied on the 12 volt system with 2 6v golf cart batteries

 

[Mule Meat]

Let me get this straight.

You are going haul a generator in the bed of a truck while pulling a 5th wheel camper. Because you are afraid someone will steal it.

Then use some gocky contrapion that is going to take up 2/3 of your truck bed, weight almost as much as your generator just to unload a generator that you are going to set on the ground. Then drive off?

That makes about as much sense as nailing Jello to a wal.l

If they want it. They are going to get. Be it in the bed of your truck, sitting on the ground chained to your frame or mounted to the bumber of your camper.

 

[Determined]

What if you were to fashion a strap out of say 1 1/2 inch flat bar that could wrap around the rear portion of the trailer tongue

Or use the existing pin box bolts to attach some kind of base plate.

Basically turn the trailer tongue into the base for a crane.

Slip it under then install a long pin that would act as a pivot point for a mast with a bottle jack under it.


Unhook trailer
Pull ahead a few feet
Install crane mast
Lift up generator
Pull truck away
Lower generator

Might need to incorporate a hand winch on end of boom to lower generator all the way to the ground.

Could also purchase a cheap engine lift and use the jack and mast for your project.

 

[JDEM]

How about a lighter generator? I have two Harbor Freight 3500 watt inverter-generators with electric start. 100 lbs. Light enough I can get it in and out of the truck if I have to. Even easier when my wife or son helps. We have two of them since I no longer want anything that relies on a pull-rope to start. If you can get buy with something smaller, the 2000 watt inverter-generator is only 50 lbs.

By the way, the 100 lb. electric-start HF 3500 watt unit has wheels so it does not have to be lifted. It easily rolls up and down a ramp.

 

[Russ from MN]

When I want to load something like that I use my ramps, a generator that heavy must have wheels. 2 good 2x6 planks without knots with brackets on the end, Make them short enough to fit in the truck bed beside the 5th wheel.

 

[Mule Meat]

(quoted from post at 08:24:14 06/25/19)

Could also purchase a cheap engine lift and use the jack and mast for your project.

That is bascially what he is looking at. Just an engine hoist with a frame that sticks into the receiver hitch and two folding stablizer bars that go on the ground.

When they first came out. They were marketed toward big game hunters as an easy way to load big game into a truck bed.They did not sale to good due to being to aggravating to use.

 

[Determined]

(quoted from post at 10:53:24 06/25/19)

(quoted from post at 08:24:14 06/25/19)

Could also purchase a cheap engine lift and use the jack and mast for your project.

That is bascially what he is looking at. Just an engine hoist with a frame that sticks into the receiver hitch and two folding stablizer bars that go on the ground.

When they first came out. They were marketed toward big game hunters as an easy way to load big game into a truck bed.They did not sale to good due to being to aggravating to use.

I know the ones you are talking about, a fellow I knew years ago was selling them, said it was able to lift a Moose or Elk for gutting and skinning then load it in the back of the truck for you.
Not a bad idea if the pieces for it are not frozen into the ice and snow in the back of your truck.

The idea I was trying to explain was to not use the receiver hitch on the truck, instead use the tongue of the fifth wheel trailer as the base for the crane then he could leave his fifth wheel hitch in place as the engine crane would be able to lift the generator high enough in the air that he could just drive his truck out from under it then lower the generator to the ground.

 

[MarkB_MI]

? How about a wheel chair lift?

Are you talking about a receiver-mounted carrier, or something else? Probably overkill for what I want to do. But I see they make fairly cheap scooter carriers that have ramps, and I'd probably use something like that if I went with a trailer-mounted carrier.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I had a front cabinet under the front overhang on my 5th wheel trailer that i mounted my generator. before that we just relied on the 12 volt system with 2 6v golf cart batteries

I don't think I have any room for what you suggest, but thanks. The main reason for the generator is to power the air conditioner. The only reason, actually.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> Let me get this straight.
> You are going haul a generator in the bed of a truck while pulling a 5th wheel camper. Because you are afraid someone will steal it.

Thanks for your helpful comments, MM.

Theft isn't my main concern. Wherever it is stowed, the generator will be secured with a heavy cable. The point is it has to go SOMEWHERE, and the only options I see are in the truck bed or hanging off the back of the trailer, and I don't care to have stuff hanging off the back of the trailer. Too great a risk of something breaking.

So... what is your recommendation?

 

[MarkB_MI]

> What if you were to fashion a strap out of say 1 1/2 inch flat bar that could wrap around the rear portion of the trailer tongue
Or use the existing pin box bolts to attach some kind of base plate.

Actually I did give that some thought. That is, fabricating some sort of gin pole that would attach to the kingpin and/or pin box. I discarded that idea for fear of damaging the kingpin or pin box, which on the road could be a difficult and expensive thing to fix.

A different idea I had was to fabricate a crane that attached to the fifth wheel hitch in the truck bed: Pop out the hitch head and insert the crane base in its place. But I have the same concern with that idea: If I damage the hitch out in the sticks, I'm in deep kimchi.

Thanks.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> How about a lighter generator?

I selected the EU3000is based on two criteria: capacity and quietness. The generator needs to be around 3KW to start the air conditioner, and there are plenty of generators that will do that. But there are very few as quiet as the Honda, and none quieter. It's rated 57 db at full load. In retrospect, I probably should have gone with the EU3000i Handi, which is almost as quiet, but it still weighs 78 pounds dry and is quite a bit more expensive. If things don't go well with the generator I have, I may trade it in on a Handi.

The other option was to get a pair of EU2200i generators, which can be paralleled, but I didn't feel like messing with two generators; one is enough aggravation.

I do have a wheel kit on my generator, and the ramp option may be the simplest way to go. In addition to a ramp to get it up on the tailgate, I'll need to fabricate some sort of ramp over the wheel well to get it around the hitch.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> When I want to load something like that I use my ramps, a generator that heavy must have wheels. 2 good 2x6 planks without knots with brackets on the end, Make them short enough to fit in the truck bed beside the 5th wheel.

Thanks Russ. That is what I'm thinking now. The toughest part is getting the generator past the fifth wheel hitch once it's in the bed. It's a pretty tight squeeze, and I'll need to fabricate some sort of ramp to get it over the wheel well.

 

[Determined]

If the generator will fit in the space between the front of the hitch and the front of the box then it should also fit in the space between the hitch and the tailgate.

Dimensions 25.9" x 17.6" x 22.0"

If so then transport the generator there.

Before you unhook trailer hook the generator to trailer tongue with one or two come a longs, jack up the trailer and drive away then lower generator.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> If the generator will fit in the space between the front of the hitch and the front of the box then it should also fit in the space between the hitch and the tailgate.

> Dimensions 25.9" x 17.6" x 22.0"

> If so then transport the generator there.

> Before you unhook trailer hook the generator to trailer tongue with one or two come a longs, jack up the trailer and drive away then lower generator.

That's an interesting idea. However, the hitch is a slider, so there's a couple of inches more room in front of it than behind. The generator might fit behind the hitch, but it would be tight. I'm also concerned about interference between the generator and pin box. There should be room, but if the generator came loose it could tumble into the hitch and cause problems. It would be more secure in front, and it wouldn't complicate hitching and unhitching.

Note that because of the aftermarket wheel kit, the dimensions are larger than spec. It's about 25 inches tall and the wheel axle is 24 inches wide.

That said, I'm going to play around with your idea. I think it would work if I removed the wheel kit. Thanks.

 

[old]

I have a HF swing boom on my truck for things like that. One can mount ti up front and if you modify it like I did swing things right up and over the side of the truck. I added a boat winch to it so I can pick things up right off the ground then up to the end of the lift boom. I'd loaded many things onto the bed of my truck with that thing and the boom extends so you have more or less lift and shorter of higher lift. It also come in handy for skinning deer etc.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I have a HF swing boom on my truck for things like that. One can mount ti up front and if you modify it like I did swing things right up and over the side of the truck.

Thank you, Old. I've considered using something like that, but I didn't consider mounting it in the front of the bed.

 

[Scott 730]

(quoted from post at 13:09:39 06/25/19) &gt;
The other option was to get a pair of EU2200i generators, which can be paralleled, but I didn't feel like messing with two generators; one is enough aggravation.

I would not waste a minute thinking about doing it this way. Just do it. Each genny shouldn't weigh more than the wife's suitcase. Yes, you will have 2 genny's to maintain, but how much will you really need the AC??? When you don't, you can run the trailer on 1 genny if you watch your appliance loads.

 

[old]

Some of them have tall mounts so the boom will clear the side of the bed so one can lift things up and over the side. Plus one can pull the pin and take the boom part off and lay it down in the bed. The one I have at its shortest is rated for 1000LBS and at its longest 500LBS

 

[John T]

Wow Mark, looks like you got a few "ideas" even if some weren't really what you asked about. Electrical or Legal questions really draw out the responses !!

This isn't exactly what you asked for either, but its how I rigged a method to get heavy loads in and out of my pickup. I installed an electric 12 VDC winch near the top of the bed area in the middle and I have two nice fold up light weight aluminum ramps. Its easy peasey to load up a lawn mower or golf cart etc., but of course this would require your genset be on a small wheeled trailer of some sort, but that's a good idea anyway.

Travelling in the RV all over the USA I've seen several of those Honda gensets used by Fifth Wheel Trailer and Pickup campers, they are great units, very quiet, and you have ONLY ONE unit to deal with YOU MADE A GOOD CHOICE...?..Also, there are a gazillion methods and choices when it comes to camping options and generators and solar power etc etc and each one is the best right??? to each their own. FWIW I just today installed two more solar panels on the roof of my small 29 Ft Class C and now have a total of 1080 solar watts, a 2000/4000 Watt Pure Sine Wave Inverter, an MPPT Solar Charge Controller, a total of 520 Amp Hours of Deep Cycle AGM batteries, an onboard 4000 Watt Genset but I seldom need that with all the solar I have...When needed I can pack 86 gallons of fresh water and use a marine recirculating toilet and the first wife and I can dry camp about a week before we need to take on fresh water and we can go two weeks before needing to dump the black tank BUT WE NEVER RUN OUT OF ELECTRICAL ENERGY as the solar panels can get us to 100% SOC often (depends on clouds and rain and shade cover) by early to mid morning....

Take care Mark, lets RV sometime and talk shop. With that Honda you're welcome to dry camp next to me anytime UNLIKE when dudes pull in with loud noisy screaming knock offs or construction generators grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

John T

 

[JMOR]

will it fit thru the door of the travel trailer?

 

[JDEM]

No doubt Honda has great parts support. Other then that - I'll take the HF unit. I know you did not ask to hear rants or raves about other brands. Just making the point that the HF 3500 is a 3000 watt generator and your Honda EU3000 is only a 2800 watt generator. Yet my HF cost half what a Honda does, weighs 99 lbs., has a bigger engine, and has electric start. I am sure that if I need a factory part 10 years from now, I will likely be out of luck as far as the HF goes. But to be honest - I have been using generators for 50 years and never bought a factory part for any of them from any brand-name.

I will also note that I have had my HF sitting in the same area of a Honda making the same run and surge power (running an AC unit). They are both very quiet and I cannot tell the difference. Any generator gets heard when 40 people come to a campground and run them 24 hours a day. Thus why I choose campgrounds either with no people or no generators.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> No doubt Honda has great parts support. Other then that - I'll take the HF unit.

Well JD, there are a number of things I'll buy at HF, but generators aren't on that list. No doubt your HF generator brings you great joy as it rumbles through the night, but I've reached a point in my life where I don't have to drink cheap beer or own Harbor Freight generators. So I don't.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I installed an electric 12 VDC winch near the top of the bed area in the middle and I have two nice fold up light weight aluminum ramps.

John, that sounds like a pretty good setup. These days, if I have to haul anything the least bit heavy, such as a rototiller, I use my utility trailer which is low to the ground and has a nice big ramp.

I'm going to make myself a couple of 2x8x6' ramps and see how that works for getting the generator onto the tailgate. Assuming that works, then I have to figure out how to get it over the fifth wheel hitch. It only takes a few seconds to pull out the hitch head, and with that gone I have a nice rectangular surface I can set a small ramp on. With a 45 degree slope, it will take about a hundred pounds of force to get the generator up the ramp; that should be manageable.

> ...lets RV sometime and talk shop...

Sounds good. Our first dry camping test will be at the Experimental Aircraft Association airshow in Oshkosh next month. I don't suppose you go to that, do you?

 

[MarkB_MI]

> will it fit thru the door of the travel trailer?

Possibly, and I did consider it for about ten seconds. But I don't want to risk getting gas fumes in the trailer. (I'm not the only one who gets a vote on what's allowed in the trailer.) More importantly, I don't want to mess with unloading the generator at every stop, whether it's needed or not. Sitting in the bed of the truck, I can always just plug in and run without unloading.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I would not waste a minute thinking about doing it this way. Just do it. Each genny shouldn't weigh more than the wife's suitcase. Yes, you will have 2 genny's to maintain, but how much will you really need the AC??? When you don't, you can run the trailer on 1 genny if you watch your appliance loads.

Actually, the generator only exists to run the air conditioner. The only other appliance that requires 115 VAC is the microwave oven, which isn't that important. I have a small inverter to run the TV set and everything else is 12V and/or gas. So, other than maybe for a quick charge, the generator will never run when AC isn't in use.

The air conditioner will definitely be required when we go to Oshkosh next month. I know that from many years of tent camping there.

 

[JDEM]

My HF inverter-generator "rumbles" just like a Honda. Just makes more power, weighs less, and costs a lot less.

 

[circus]

Is there a way to mount a I-bolt to the front of your camper-trailer? Then winch up, remove tk, winch down.

 

[Indiana Ken]

It seems you have put a lot of thought into this! A while back, I helped a guy put a heavy item he purchased at an auction into his truck. He had some type of heavy duty drawer system mounted to the bed of the truck. It had a platform which rolled on ball bearing wheels, inside rails, from the front of the bed to the back. We simply lifted the item on the platform which was rolled back to his tail gate. He then rolled the item to the front of the bed and tied it down. Worked like a drawer in a very large tool box. You would need it mount it high enough to clear your fifth wheel hitch...? If I were to make something like this - perhaps garage door rails with the roller wheels could be used.

Also, have you considered mounting the generator on the front of the truck via some type of snow plow mounting system...? Now, that would be "high tech red neck"....! Run a fake cord under your hood, if anyone asks about it tell them the truck is a hybrid...eh.

 

[Billy Shafer]

How ever you mount it. Make sure the exhaust fumes. Are where the wind can carry them off.

 

[circus]

You could also make your wife's handle longer than yours. Then she would lift 40 lbs and you 100.

 

[MarkB_MI]

Is there a way to mount a I-bolt to the front of your camper-trailer? Then winch up, remove tk, winch down.

Thanks, but I don't think there's anything forward of the pin box that's substantial enough to attach to.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> I helped a guy put a heavy item he purchased at an auction into his truck. He had some type of heavy duty drawer system mounted to the bed of the truck. It had a platform which rolled on ball bearing wheels, inside rails, from the front of the bed to the back. We simply lifted the item on the platform which was rolled back to his tail gate.

That sounds like a pretty slick setup, but I don't think I have room for something like that. 6-1/2' bed with a slider hitch.

> Also, have you considered mounting the generator on the front of the truck via some type of snow plow mounting system...?

Yes, I've seen such setups on van conversions. Even if I was inclined to do that, it would block airflow to the engine oil cooler.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> Make sure the exhaust fumes. Are where the wind can carry them off.

For sure. Every winter at least one Detroit family dies while running a generator indoors. And others are killed by illegal electrical hookups.

 

[MarkB_MI]

> You could also make your wife's handle longer than yours. Then she would lift 40 lbs and you 100.

That's not an entirely wacky idea, although I'm not sure my wife would agree. The aftermarket wheel kit includes a folding handle about 18 inches long so you can wheel the generator around like a wheel barrow. She probably COULD lift on the handle while I picked up the other end. Nothing to be done, however, about the 10 inch difference in our heights.

 

[circus]

""You could also make your wife's handle longer than yours. Then she would lift 40 lbs and you 100.""

"That's not an entirely wacky idea... Nothing to be done, however, about the 10 inch difference in our heights."

Wasn't meant to be funny. Lower handle?

 

[circus]

I probably would just build a simple handle extension out of scrap.

 

[MarkB_MI]

OK, here's the solution (for now). Thanks to John T and Circus; I used their suggestions. As well as everyone who suggested ramps.

So I built a couple of 2x8x6' ramps. (I couldn't make them any longer and still fit them in my 6-1/2 foot bed.) Turned out to be too steep. But with a come-along attached to the fifth wheel hitch it's easy enough to pull the generator up the ramps.

As for getting the generator past the hitch, if I pull the head out of the hitch, it's only about 12" tall. My wife and I can lift the generator over the hitch, if she lifts with the wheelbarrow handle on one end and I lift with the regular handle on the other end.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.