Generator Set up for Van Dwelling



This page will point you to a biblical van dwelling life via the gospel to eternal life: https://www.dontperish.com/the-gospel.html  

Here is a link of our daily van dwelling posts: https://spiritandtruthdiscernment.blogspot.com/2019/12/van-dwellers-preaching-christ-2020.html


One of the things that will give you great freedom is the ability to make your own electricity / power in the van life. You will need power to recharge electronics or to run any devices you are using daily.  Yes, some rely on plugging in to power, like at camp sites but we have found that is expensive and we choose to be our own power company with a good generator. We have found we can make our own power, run our things, charge up our electronics and heat our van for about $1 a day in gas. (We only run it maybe 4 hours a day and is usually less than that.) 

 After much experience and trail and error, we settled on the Harbor Freight Predator 2500 generator for several key reasons:



1)  Cost (at $400 it is far below the Honda at $1400 )
2)  It is quiet and very gas efficient.
3) It is good quality and you can buy a cheap warranty to replace it anytime, for any reason, with Harbor Freight
4) It is powerful and it will even run a heater / small air conditioner ( 5000 btu max )
5) It is safe to charge all your computers and phones on as it is a invertor generator ( clean power )

Now you ask,  so where do I store and use the generator in a van? 

Well, since you cannot run it inside your van and leaving it sit outside to run as some do (I don't like doing that), I had to decide how I would house it and keep it safe and dry while it sits or runs?

I have an easy solution......

Assuming your van has a 2 inch trailer hitch ....
See my post on hitches: https://spiritandtruthdiscernment.blogspot.com/2020/03/hitch-basics-for-van-dwelling-life.html

This is my new generator box set up:
http://spiritandtruthdiscernment.blogspot.com/2020/03/generator-storage-box-for-van-dwelling.html

Here is the older version I did start with: 

get yourself a cargo carrier ( like $75 ) 
Note: if you have really heavy things on the cargo carrier you MAY need to add some straps from the corners of the carrier up to the top of your van to stabilize it. Once it is all set up, you can see if you want to add those. I did and I used ratchet straps.  They work perfect as I can adjust them easily and they support the load well!


Then get yourself a large tool tote ( Home Depot $70 ) and it mounts on the cargo carrier with some u bolts drilled in on bottom to hold it. 


Then the generator goes inside it, secured by a cable lock that goes around the cargo carrier bars underneath so it cannot move around or be stolen. ( I added some small wood blocks so the generator will not move as you drive ) 


 Note: I also recommend add a locking hitch pin so they cannot just take your cargo carrier off and run away with your generator rig. They are only about $10


The tote also locks so your generator is very safe inside. And there is even room inside the tote for your tool box and others needed items.

 Warning: keep those items away from the heat of the generator and store them all to the other side!!!  (Make sure the generator has good air flow around it so it can stay cool. I have also added a small 120 volt fan inside the tote to keep the generator cool. Point it at the exhaust end and have it run whenever the generator is running. ( the fan is about $10 ) 

Another great advantage of the cargo carrier is you can add your 12 volt battery to it on the outside as the tote is not that big. 

I will cover the battery issue in another post soon.... 
IMPORTANT:
Make sure you have a good fire extinguisher ready in case you have a fire. (We have 2 / one outside and one inside the van.) 



Then you have to cut a hole by the muffler to let exhaust escape out. I used a plastic plumbing fitting, metal piping and steel wool... all painted black with high temp paint. It gets warm but not hot enough to melt anything but; always keep a eye on it as you test it out.



Note: You can add a side exhaust pipe to direct the exhaust down to the ground like I did here:


Next: cut a hole to get at the pull rope on the generator. You can just open the tote to start it from the top, but I like the access via the back cut out hole without opening up the tote each time. 


You can even add lights to the back of your cargo carrier for extra safety like this:

This is will take a extra wiring harness ( like $25 ) and I will cover that another time.....


Finally, you will have to run a 120 volt power cord from the generator into your vehicle so you can use it to wire/power your van up. 


I will discuss this in another post to come.....  

We have found this to be a great generator set up and it has kept us with power, heat, air and given us much mobility all for a very low cost! 

 Total for the generator set up was under $600

 About the ONLY down side I have found is it adds about 3 feet to the length of your van. We are at 23 feet total but we still can park just about everywhere a car parks. I would not go longer then 23 feet though if you want to try to park in a average spot. Another great perk is that our generator can run and we barely hear it inside as it is so quiet.

  I hope this article has helped you go further in your van dwelling quest? 
We will add to this list article as we uncover more advantages/better ways as they need to be listed here..... 

Go back to our van dwelling page of you want to go on and learn more about this awesome life:
https://spiritandtruthdiscernment.blogspot.com/p/van-dwelling-tips.html

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