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Alp Propane Generator


Jps190

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Has anyone used one of these?  Seems like a nice size generator for a just in case scenario. Not having to carry gasoline would be a big bonus.  It is only 1000watts so it wouldn't run the AC but if your only looking to charge your batteries in a pinch it might be a good choice.  How fast can the ollie take a charge?  Would the trailer charge faster with 2000 watts or is there a limitation on somewhere in the electrical system?

https://alpgenerators.com/products/alp-generator-1000-watts-blue-gray

John and Kim

2021 GMC Sierra 2500 AT4 6.6L Duramax 11350 GVWR  3048lb Payload

2021 Oliver Elite II.   Hull #887

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The standard (45 amp) onboard charger draws around 7 amps AC. A 1000 watt generator should, maybe, perhaps, might work adequately, but only if you switch off all the other circuit breakers. If you try to use the air conditioner, inverter, fridge or hot water heater it will kick offline. A 2000 watt or bigger will prove to be much more useful. Plus it will let you cool the trailer. If you have the lithium package - it has a more powerful charger - you need a bigger generator than this one.

They don’t seem to publish the actual specifications. Does it provide 1000 watts continuously? Many brands have a surge rating that is the one they choose to advertise, with a lower continuous rating. My Yamaha 2300 is rated 2300 continuous, but actually surges much higher without issues. It will happily provide nearly 20 amps all day.

Alp brags about the light weight but a Honda EU1000i is only about 10 pounds heavier, full of gas. It will run for 8 hours, so if it is just for an emergency, you don’t have to carry any extra gas for it.

My personal feelings about gas vs propane: I like gas since if I run out of propane I am not totally screwed for auxiliary power. And I could run a small space heater off it if the furnace failed, or if the Ollie’s propane ran out. And the 10 extra gallons of gas are available to put into the truck’s too small fuel tank if it runs out, or if I am far from a gas station camping and I want to top it off to go exploring. I really like to have lots of options when boondocking.

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

Edited by John E Davies

SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/john-e-davies-how-to-threads-and-tech-articles-links/

Tow Vehicle: 2013 Land Cruiser 200, 32” LT tires, airbags, Safari snorkel, Maggiolina Grand Tour 360 Carbon RTT.

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Thanks for the replies.  I just saw this thing reviewed by the guy Topgun linked to and figured I would get some opinions.  Had not seen it discussed before.  I have a Yamaha 2200 which is most likely what I will carry when I need a generator. So what you're saying John is that when using shore power the electrical system prioritizes that and will not load share with the batteries?  I have some time before I make decisions on the solar/battery option.  I am going to start another thread with some questions on that topic.

 

Thanks,

John

John and Kim

2021 GMC Sierra 2500 AT4 6.6L Duramax 11350 GVWR  3048lb Payload

2021 Oliver Elite II.   Hull #887

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1 hour ago, Jps190 said:

. So what you're saying John is that when using shore power the electrical system prioritizes that and will not load share with the batteries?  

No, that isn’t exactly accurate. The system isn’t smart in any way. If you are supplying a fixed amount of AC amps via the shore power cord, the system will use up to that amount depending on what appliances are enabled by their circuit breakers being turned on. The owner has to control that. If you exceed the maximum amount for very long the generator will disconnect and flash its angry little red light.

You need to keep the fridge and water heater running on propane, not 120 vac, and do not use the air conditioner while other 120 vac stuff is operating. The onboard charger will deliver as much as the batteries can accept, but its DC load is also shared by any other 12 volt items being used. So if every load was turned off, the batteries could get the full 45 amps DC. It’s important to learn how each applaince or load affects the total energy picture. 

The lithium package has a 60 amp charger built into the inverter, I am not sure how exactly that functions. I personally would not like having these functions combined, in case the unit fails. Some folks have reported issues with it. A separate DC converter makes more sense to me, in terms of reliability and functionality.

I hope that helps. There are power usage charts you can study, to get an idea of how much goes where.

John Davies

Spokane WA

SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/john-e-davies-how-to-threads-and-tech-articles-links/

Tow Vehicle: 2013 Land Cruiser 200, 32” LT tires, airbags, Safari snorkel, Maggiolina Grand Tour 360 Carbon RTT.

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I'm holding out for miniature nuclear fusion personal power sources. Elon has it in the works. 

in the meantime - JD has the answers - options....

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11 hours ago, Jps190 said:

Thanks for the replies.  I just saw this thing reviewed by the guy Topgun linked to and figured I would get some opinions.  Had not seen it discussed before.  I have a Yamaha 2200 which is most likely what I will carry when I need a generator. So what you're saying John is that when using shore power the electrical system prioritizes that and will not load share with the batteries?  I have some time before I make decisions on the solar/battery option.  I am going to start another thread with some questions on that topic.

 

Thanks,

John

Keep an eye on your Yamaha 2200 . . . . we've been trying to get one since October, and there are none . . .  nada . . . . zip . . . .  anywhere.  Yamaha is now telling me they should be available this Spring . . . . . URGHHHHH!

Ray and Susan Huff

Elite II Twin "Pearl" - Hull#699; delivered December 7, 2020

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Yamaha is now telling me they should be available this Spring . . . . . URGHHHHH!

 

Great - just in time for hurricane season.  😁

2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

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  • 10 months later...

I have been looking into this generator for some time, and am getting ready to buy one.  It runs at 850 watts.  And I understand the flexibility of having a duel fuel generator.  One might have a problem getting either propane or gasoline.  But the dual fuel options are all at least 2000 watts surge and they run max 35 hours on a 20 lb tank of propane.  The Alp can go 60 hours.  They are also a bit noisier.  The Alp can run in parallel, so you can boost this to 2000 watts surge and 1700 continuous with two of them.  I have also seen that they are soon going to launch a 2000 watt version of this.  I am thinking of getting a cheap (under $200) gas generator to carry as well, just in case I need to run a heater and I have no propane.  But the Alp has a "built in" legitimate "staged" battery charger; DC to DC. And you can get a cable with alligator clips to charge directly your batteries.  I would not hook this up to the rig and just let it try and run your onboard charger.  With the kind of time you can run this thing and that built in charger you would not have any problems keeping your batteries charged.  Myself, I always like to keep my onboard propane full and a couple of 20 lb. tanks as well.  There are very cheap adapters you can buy that allows you to either use a propane tank to feed your onboard propane lines (when your main tank is empty) OR use our onboard propane for an exterior appliance.  So you can run that Alp off of your onboard propane supply as well.  I am still on the fence about the dual fuel myself.  But I am leaning towards just getting an inexpensive small gas generator that I can keep full and carry a couple of gallons of gas for situations where propane might be hard to find.   I think a decision on a generator actually is a priority over a solar generator, because the generator works when there is no source of solar. And, you can charge a solar generator with the generator as well.  The  Alp is a PURE SINE WAVE inverter, so you can run any of your sensitive electronics, charge a solar generator, or whatever.  It is specifically designed for RV living.  For me it's an emergency device.  I have a small rig and have a low wattage setup in terms of appliances for when there is no shore power. 
 

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What do actual users say about run time? The manufacturer claims 60 hours per 20 pounds at 50% load in the manual, but they say at 25% load on the product page. The onboard DC charger is for lead acid use only. I would never use that feature except to recharge my truck battery in an emergency (just like the DC charger in my Yamaha 2300, which has never been used). The Ollie’s onboard 45 amp converter will charge your batteries way faster. What about service and parts? Can you get consumable stuff like air filters or electronic parts easily? How about ten years from now?

I actually like the idea of a 2000+ watt version for home use, do they offer a natural gas conversion kit?

 John Davies

Spokane WA

SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/john-e-davies-how-to-threads-and-tech-articles-links/

Tow Vehicle: 2013 Land Cruiser 200, 32” LT tires, airbags, Safari snorkel, Maggiolina Grand Tour 360 Carbon RTT.

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11 hours ago, Vinny said:

I have been looking into this generator for some time, and am getting ready to buy one.  It runs at 850 watts.  And I understand the flexibility of having a duel fuel generator.  One might have a problem getting either propane or gasoline.  But the dual fuel options are all at least 2000 watts surge and they run max 35 hours on a 20 lb tank of propane.  The Alp can go 60 hours.  They are also a bit noisier.  The Alp can run in parallel, so you can boost this to 2000 watts surge and 1700 continuous with two of them. 
 

Although we don't take delivery on our Elite II until next summer, I considered how useful it would later be for boondocking when I recently purchased a dual fuel backup generator for home use.   FWIW, I ended up buying a dual fuel 2kW Champion from the orange big box store online, for many of the same reasons you reference.  I have tested it with propane, and it works well.  Others on this forum have reported that the Champion 2kw is adequate to run the AC on an Ollie, with the Micro Air East Start installed.

I would not be satisfied with the Alp 1kw unit because to obtain that same level of performance, I would have to buy and carry two of 'em, not one.  Today, the Champion 2kw can be purchased for about $100 more than an Alp 1kw (which is running a Black Friday sale now).  My Champion dual fuel 2kw weighs 39 lbs. empty.  It emits about 60 db at the standard 20 feet, a bit louder than 1 Alp 1kw, but I doubt louder than 2 in parallel.  So, two Alp 1kw units run in parallel cost several hundred $$$ more, and have a combined weight of 60 lbs. vs. 40 lbs. for roughly the same output as the Champion.  I would not be interested in 2 Alp 1kw units at more than 1.5x the cost and the weight.  What am I missing?

Edited by Rivernerd
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3 hours ago, Trailblazers said:

I'm thinking about purchasing the 2k Champion generator as well.  Will it run the a/c with a soft start?  I believe it puts out 1,750 continuous watts.  

Mine does.  I got my Champion 2K at Tractor Supply on sale for $349.  Mike

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