I need a cheap APU

[Duck]

I bet that thing will wake the dead . my neighbors have a some kind of POS contract grade genset and I can hear that POS all over my house when the power goes out. but I can't hear my Honda EU7000 over that POS even @ full load

Yeah it's pretty damn loud. Totally unacceptable for truckular purposes.

The funny thing though, is that I also have a little 2500 watt generator with a 5 hp vertical shaft Briggs & Stratton engine & it's even louder.

That little generator just has a tiny little gas tank, the kind that's attached to the bottom of the carb. It runs for about 30 minutes & runs out of gas.

 

[krelithous]

Just what ya need. A generator that takes more fuel to run then your truck!!! That one guy looks stoned too.

I think he is stoned to install something like that. that thing takes more fuel than the darn truck shit the motors almost as big

 

[krelithous]

Yeah it's pretty damn loud. Totally unacceptable for truckular purposes.

The funny thing though, is that I also have a little 2500 watt generator with a 5 hp vertical shaft Briggs & Stratton engine & it's even louder.

That little generator just has a tiny little gas tank, the kind that's attached to the bottom of the carb. It runs for about 30 minutes & runs out of gas.

I would not want that thing near me let alone near me from all of the noise. I cant even stand those things on a job site let alone behind me next to my bunk. An inverter genset can run at a lower RPM and save gas and be quieter when it's not under a heavy load. It will ramp up noise and RPMs when necessary. It produces DC current and converts it to 60 cycle AC. This is why inverter gensets are more expensive but also quieter . An old fashioned POS genset is an alternator genset. it produces alternating current and must always run at a specific high RPM in order to produce 60 cycle AC. they run @ full speed even when there is little or no load on it!!

 

[Duck]

I would not want that thing near me let alone near me from all of the noise. I cant even stand those things on a job site let alone behind me next to my bunk

Well mine is for powering the house during storm outages.

Inside the house, I can hear it. It's just loud enough I'll be able to tell if it's misfiring or something. I like it that way.

Now if I were to take it camping or something, it would be obnoxiously loud.

 

[krelithous]

Well mine is for powering the house during storm outages.

Inside the house, I can hear it. It's just loud enough I'll be able to tell if it's misfiring or something. I like it that way.

Now if I were to take it camping or something, it would be obnoxiously loud.

no way would i take that thing camping. i see a lot of expediters use those POS gensets in there vans hell i can't even think of spending a night in a cargo van with one of those things.

 

[Duck]

no way would i take that thing camping. i see a lot of expediters use those POS gensets in there vans hell i can't even think of spending a night in a cargo van with one of those things.

I'm planning on maybe taking it on a raft trip if I pull a weekend thing.

Maybe my smaller (and louder) one.

I'll run it & a battery charger while running the raft upstream, possibly with something rigged up to route the exhaust underwater. Then when we get to the camping spot, I'll set it next to the water if I have an underwater exhaust system, or just put it 100 feet out into the woods & use an extension cord for the charger, just til the deep cycle batteries are topped off then kill it for the night.

It's hard on lead acid batteries to leave them sitting in a state of discharge for very long, and I predict that running a heavy loaded raft upstream for 7 miles with a 40# trolling motor will use up about 50% of its capacity even with a 10-15 amp charger on them.

The deep cycles will run the stereo and LED lights all weekend with no problem.

It would make more sense to just use a little outboard motor, but that would require buying one. I already own the other stuff.

 

[krelithous]

Another thing to consider is when wanting to build a APU. compare the surge/starting and running amps of both your AC unit and your genset. All data is when stuff is new. your genset will produce less with age and your AC will need more power so have some reserve. 70-80% load is a good target for fuel economy. . and check your manual for duty cycle, some gensets need to cool down every few hours or they over heat and perhaps croak. make sure the unit has good air flow around it and the exhaust fumes don't go into your living space!! a 5000 BTU window Ac will draw about 700 watts

 

[krelithous]

I'm planning on maybe taking it on a raft trip if I pull a weekend thing.

Maybe my smaller (and louder) one.

I'll run it & a battery charger while running the raft upstream, possibly with something rigged up to route the exhaust underwater. Then when we get to the camping spot, I'll set it next to the water if I have an underwater exhaust system, or just put it 100 feet out into the woods & use an extension cord for the charger, just til the deep cycle batteries are topped off then kill it for the night.

It's hard on lead acid batteries to leave them sitting in a state of discharge for very long, and I predict that running a heavy loaded raft upstream for 7 miles with a 40# trolling motor will use up about 50% of its capacity even with a 10-15 amp charger on them.

The deep cycles will run the stereo and LED lights all weekend with no problem.

It would make more sense to just use a little outboard motor, but that would require buying one. I already own the other stuff.

why in the hell are you bringing that thing so you don't have to listen to mrs duck. sorry i run my gen set all night when camping i like my AC .

 

[Duck]

why in the hell are you bringing that thing so you don't have to listen to mrs duck. sorry i run my gen set all night when camping i like my AC .

My tent doesn't have air conditioning.

 

[krelithous]

My tent doesn't have air conditioning.

mine does

 

[8978]

I'm planning on maybe taking it on a raft trip if I pull a weekend thing.

I'm picturing @Sinister falling off the raft, grabbing the extension cord, getting electrocuted, @Duck filming and posting on YouTube

 

[krelithous]

I'm picturing @Sinister falling off the raft, grabbing the extension cord, getting electrocuted, @Duck filming and posting on YouTube

 

[ironpony]

Some guy at an Oklahoma rest area got pulled out of his sleeper dead last winter from carbon monoxide poisoning. Seems his cheapo genset was mounted just right to fill the cab full of exhaust. Diesel engines don't produce enough CO to build up the concentration in your blood to croak you over 10 hours, but a gasoline engine will. You Rube Goldberg types would be well-advised to put a CO detector in your sleeper about nose height where your bunk is.

This guy...

Taylor Made - APU's for Trucks

...buys up APUs pulled from turned-in trucks, rebuilds and reconditions them, and installs them for a good deal less than new units. I know a number of guys who have gone this route, and are quite satisfied with his work.

 

[krelithous]

Some guy at an Oklahoma rest area got pulled out of his sleeper dead last winter from carbon monoxide poisoning. Seems his cheapo genset was mounted just right to fill the cab full of exhaust. Diesel engines don't produce enough CO to build up the concentration in your blood to croak you over 10 hours, but a gasoline engine will. You Rube Goldberg types would be well-advised to put a CO detector in your sleeper about nose height where your bunk is.

This guy...

Taylor Made - APU's for Trucks

...buys up APUs pulled from turned-in trucks, rebuilds and reconditions them, and installs them for a good deal less than new units. I know a number of guys who have gone this route, and are quite satisfied with his work.

a lot of us Honda owners use a tri fuel kit and run em off of propane or natural gas instead of gas cause there's less emissions. if i was using my genset in a trucking application or an rv i would convert it over..
do you know how much this guy charges for a refub unit. thermo queen out here is socking it to everyone 20 grand for an APU. @SkateBoard posted a link a while back where you can buy a unit for a little under 10k!!

 

[ironpony]

a lot of us Honda owners use a tri fuel kit and run em off of propane or natural gas instead of gas cause there's less emissions. if i was using my genset in a trucking application or an rv i would convert it over..
do you know how much this gut charges for a refub unit. thermo queen out here is socking it to everyone 20 grand for an APU. @SkateBoard posted a link a while back where you can buy a unit for a little under 10k!!

I'd give him a call... I've "heard" as little as $4k installed, but I'm guessing. This guy is an established biz these days with employees.

On the CO detector... I designed those things for awhile when I was engineering, and ran a couple of units through certification at UL in Northbrook IL. If you're using any kind of gasoline engine... no matter what kind if fuel, including propane, its important that you have a CO detector in your truck. They're cheap, and could keep you alive some night.

 

[krelithous]

I'd give him a call... I've "heard" as little as $4k installed, but I'm guessing. This guy is an established biz these days with employees.

i can swallow 4k but not 20k!! id'e love to be able to upload that convo when i called the thermo queen dealer in my area. everyone else is cheaper but the commies. i think i'll give him a call to see what he charges it might be usefull info for someone else looking for a APU

 

[8978]

You can find tons of used APU's for sale very cheap. Most need work but you have a great starting point.

 

[ironpony]

You can find tons of used APU's for sale very cheap. Most need work but you have a great starting point.

These units are used... buys them as junk from all the trucking outfits in the region. This guy puts them back to good as new condition before they leave his shop. I just can't be sure on the price. If you're looking for one, this guy comes recommended by a number of o/o's.

 

[Duck]

I'm picturing @Sinister falling off the raft, grabbing the extension cord, getting electrocuted, @Duck filming and posting on YouTube

Yeah probably not a good idea to have a 120 volt AC power source on the raft, with Sinister around.

 

[Injun]

I'd give him a call... I've "heard" as little as $4k installed, but I'm guessing. This guy is an established biz these days with employees.

On the CO detector... I designed those things for awhile when I was engineering, and ran a couple of units through certification at UL in Northbrook IL. If you're using any kind of gasoline engine... no matter what kind if fuel, including propane, its important that you have a CO detector in your truck. They're cheap, and could keep you alive some night.

I'm a proponent of CO monitors/alarms whether you have an APU working with whatever fuel or not. You might not have one, but what about the guy who parks next to you?