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Old 08-02-2018, 03:57 PM   #1
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Starting drive engine monthly ( Ford V10)

I try and start my gas engine once a month to keep the gas fresh at the injectors. Will it hurt anything with the shore line hooked up? The coach batteries seem to charge @13.2 and when you start the engine they go to 14.5 which is normal for a alternator out put. I have not been unhooking the 30a AC cord, does any one to know of any problems doing it this way to the inverter? When I start the generator I do disconnect it then.

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Old 08-02-2018, 04:52 PM   #2
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Does the gas at the injectors get stale faster than the gas in the tank?

No need to disconnect anything to run the generator either. But you should be running the generator monthly at load for the benefit of the generator.
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Old 08-02-2018, 05:01 PM   #3
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If you're going a Month between start-ups: it wouldn't hurt to add some fuel stabilizer to the tank.

But leaving things plugged in never hurts!
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Old 08-03-2018, 12:19 AM   #4
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When parked the coach is my dog house so the house systems get regular use.
When we cant use our coach for travel we try to use it for a trip to the grocery store, about once a month or so. When I worked, I also drove my class c to work occasionally. I always figured a quick trip somewhere was good for the drive train.
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Old 08-03-2018, 08:03 PM   #5
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I've started mine occasionally while plugged in with no ill effects as far as i know.... I know of no reason it would hurt anything. Seems to me that the converter charger would probably just sense the higher alternator voltage and switch to it's "full battery" mode....

so that's +1 I suppose indicating it's probably ok to do....


That said, I have for many years heard the advice that it's better to not start an engine unless it's driven a good ways. I'm assuming you are saying that you just start up the chassis engine and let it idle for some period of time while it's parked...

I'm not saying it's right or wrong necessarily...just what I have read and heard often enough to consider it "common knowledge" advice... but I might be just spreading mis-information here. So the thought is, that this brings in moisture through a few different ways, but it's not getting hot enough to burn it all out... especially the stuff not getting warmed up as much such as the transmission.

One thing I can say with confidence is that anything vented, such as an engine crankcase, gear box, etc...will bring in moisture... The air & oil inside it warm up and expand when you idle for a little while, venting out. Then when you shut it back down it cools, and as the air and oil contracts it draws in fresh air that contains humidity...that will condense on the surfaces...and then collect in there.... the more short cycles you do like this without driving all the old moisture out just build the level of water higher and higher. The same thing happens to a degree just with temp swings between day and night.

What I do, is add stabilizer to the tank on the last one or two fill ups before I get home from a trip... making sure to do it early enough so that the stabilized fuel is fed into the engines (chassis and genny)...and I try to have my tank as full as possible when I park...
so the day to night to day to night temperature swings don't fill my gas tank up with water... (if there's no air in there to vent out, then none will vent back in when it cools for the night...)
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Old 08-03-2018, 08:27 PM   #6
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With blw2 on this one...if you're gonna start it at all, run it to operating temperature and if possible and drive it a few miles. Get transmission and rear end hot...get all the fluids going. Run A/C and heater so water in the heater core gets replenished as well. Boats, wives and RV's do not like being left alone! One of them will skip out on you...we don't want it to be the RV!!! Man, am I in trouble for that one!!
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Old 08-03-2018, 08:37 PM   #7
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good one Gritz
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Old 08-03-2018, 10:16 PM   #8
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I agree!


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Old 08-03-2018, 10:32 PM   #9
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Well during the winter months our RV is covered and thus a bit difficult to drive around.

I usually try to bring the V-10 & generator up to operating temp every other week if not every week (yeah probably too much). By the end of winter I've typically run through 1/2 a tank of gas just running it warming it up and charging things.

So far, 4 seasons in now, I haven't had any issues with the drive train or the generator (both get annual oil changes at the end of the season).
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Old 08-03-2018, 11:05 PM   #10
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The idea of regularly exercising RV (or car for that matter) engine came about in the carburetor days. Modern engines fuel injections engines do not need the exercise. Close tolerance engine with fuel injection do not suffer from oil dilution. Since 90% of the engines wear in in the first 15 seconds of a cold start, that is about the only thing that I can think of that would tilt you either way. Your RV engine was built to withstand the riggers of being parked outside for 200,000 miles (remember it is a truck engine). To confuse Cumnins recommend exercising their Onan generators.. The reasons given for that is to change the gas in the carburetor and to dry out the stator in the alternator. Strangely the tires need to be rotated every 45 days or so if weight is on them. So I guess everyone has an opinion.
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Old 08-04-2018, 12:35 AM   #11
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My unit gets out every couple weeks, three at most. I do fire both engine/generator during off weeks. Likely not an issue if I do not fire engine.

I do it to dry everything plus chase out critters. Current engine tech is great but I am hesitant to store anything with ethanol in tank/fuel system.

Everything I have gets start to temp no more than every 2 weeks.

As Gritz said, leaving anything sit is not good.
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