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Bus Discussion => Bus Topics ( click here for quick start! ) => Topic started by: chessie4905 on June 24, 2018, 04:13:10 AM

Title: High altitude
Post by: chessie4905 on June 24, 2018, 04:13:10 AM
Just thought about this today. Coach engines not turboed get wheezy at high altitude. How well do your generators do at altitude, since they aren't turbocharged? Gas vs. diesel? Have never seen this mentioned.
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: luvrbus on June 24, 2018, 05:16:57 AM
Cummins has the info on their site on how altitude and heat both affect the performance of a generator with propane,gasoline and diesel I thought was covered several times here 
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: Oonrahnjay on June 24, 2018, 05:26:35 AM
Quote from: luvrbus on June 24, 2018, 05:16:57 AMCummins has the info on their site on how altitude and heat both affect the performance of a generator with propane,gasoline and diesel ... 

     I have Cummins/Onan 10K "Quiet Diesel" (non-inverter).   I looked at this data when I bought it and was first looking through the printed stuff.  I was surprised how big the effect is.  It doesn't come in much for East Coast altitudes, but many places in the western US/Canada are places where performance will really fall off.
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: luvrbus on June 24, 2018, 05:42:03 AM
The turbo's don't help much on the small engines other than making one quieter,the entertainer people just oversize their generator to compensate or use 2   
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: chessie4905 on June 24, 2018, 05:58:33 AM
Do the diesel gens smoke a lot at those altitudes? I know they drop in output but wondered how they acted in real time use for users...voltage, engine temp, etc.
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: luvrbus on June 24, 2018, 06:18:07 AM
They do smoke a little more it is more noticeable on the ground for most RV, the old Perkins will smoke a lot it is very noticeable and one can smell it 
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: TomC on June 24, 2018, 06:25:32 AM
Diesel generators are not a problem at high altitude-all you'll get is less power and you'll figure that out when you start seeing black smoke-use that as your guide to how much load you can put on.
Gasoline generators are another story. Unless it is electronically fuel injected, you'll have to screw in the main jet to let it run. I had an Onan 6.5kw Emerald III Commercial on my big rig and at anything over 4,000ft, had to screw in the main jet on the carb just to allow it to run. Just remember to screw it back out when you come back down. Good Luck, TomC
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM on June 24, 2018, 10:52:34 AM
This is what I take when I get Wheezy.  Have you tried putting a couple of these in the fuel tank?   ;D

Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: Van on June 24, 2018, 12:29:50 PM
(https://busconversionmagazine.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi457.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fqq292%2Fcwvanhagen%2Fgdpit_com_96762789_138-1.gif&hash=8245f5087109a53d39bfb5a66679080bdb7a0f4a)
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: chessie4905 on June 24, 2018, 12:55:39 PM
I still use mothballs.  lol
Title: Re: High altitude
Post by: Sebulba on June 24, 2018, 01:32:20 PM
Huh?

Quote from: chessie4905 on June 24, 2018, 12:55:39 PM
I still use mothballs