Onan JuiceBox Generator

[jackbetsy]

Anybody with any experience with this Onan Generator?  It's listed as a Juice Box 4000 Gas MicroQuiet.  It attaches to a Reece's hitch on rear of trailer (or 5er). We have a 34 ft. Montana 5er with a 15,000 btu AC.  Enough to power the AC?

 

[Karl]

Looks like an interesting unit. With the 4000, it should handle your a/c without a problem but, if you plan on towing anything behind you, you won't be able to do it. It hangs off the rear hitch and I don't see any provision for an extension beyond that. Also consider you have to store the fuel container separately; it doesn't have it's own self-contained fuel source. The ability to transfer it from one unit to another with the "landing gear" may be useful to some people with multiple rigs, but I don't see that as very practical. Also consider that there may be times when you're hooked up to shore power but, for some reason need to run off the genset (power outage, etc.) I would rather have a permanently installed genset, hooked up to the main fuel tank, and a transfer switch which would allow me to change from shore power to the genset without having to switch the power cord, attach the fuel tank, etc.

 

[jackbetsy]

Thanks for your input, Karl.? Towing would not be an issue in our case. Our 5er is not generator prepped, so what is your recommendation? Can we prep it ourselves? Should we plan on carrying the generator in the truck? We are new to this and it can be a little overwhelming! Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Karl]

With a diesel, you can mount the genset in the truck bed and draw fuel from the truck's tank. Some modification would be necessary. It's difficult to retro-wire for electric distribution, but you could just run your 30? amp plug into the outlet the same way you would if you were using the Hitchhiker. Onan makes several gas and diesel models and there are other mfg'rs as well. If you decide to go with a gas model, make sure it's an rv type, and not one of those 'contractor' models from places like Home Depot. They're quite loud and make for unhappy neighbors. Same goes for diesel. Keep in mind that with a gas unit, you'll still have to carry fuel either in a built-in tank on the genset or a separate one - may or may not be a big concern for you. Even though you have no immediate need for the tow hitch, somewhere down the road you may want to pull a boat or mount a motorcycle rack there. Others here can provide additional experience /knowledge about adding a genset.

Good luck!