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Chance · 03-20-2023, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robertj1961

Agreed and forgot about the diesel Mercedes chassis. David is correct about the Onan having a 2500 watt propane model however but I believe it is a little more expensive than the gas one but still in the same price range.

Yes, I was aware that 2500 is same inverter generator as 2800 (2800i) except engine is set up to run on propane instead of gasoline. That’s what causes slight power reduction. Onan hasn’t manufactured the non-inverter 2800/2500 for a couple of years as far as I know.

However, the reason I mentioned a propane generator at all was not due to whether it was inverter or not. I mentioned diesel for being significantly more expensive (and heavier and louder too than 2800i) and the propane 2500 because it runs on propane. To me that’s a deal breaker if planning to run generator often because it consumes a lot of propane (relatively speaking) and some vans have small propane tanks to start with. That’s the context for bringing up propane not being the same as gasoline generator, which takes fuel from gas tank.

I can’t find specs for Mercedes Sprinter Thor Santuary tank sizes but expect that it may have a relatively small propane tank. Granted generator would be used mostly in summer so not using as much propane for heat at same time.

One more point on this retro topic of adding a generator: Various manufacturers of diesel vans (and some larger motorhomes too) have done away with propane altogether by using diesel for water and space heat. In these cases you’d have to add a propane system for a propane generator, at which point it may be cheaper to just spend more on diesel generator — assuming there is space and weight capacity. Sanctuary should have propane tank, so just mentioning in case others are thinking of adding an Onan propane generator to a diesel van.

I’m a strong believer in buying the right RV to start with. Doing minor upgrades is one thing, but adding a generator will likely cost much more than if installed by manufacturer. Unless you can do install yourself, labor alone would be very costly.