Blue Boy tote and generator

[SweetSue]

We are new owners of a new 2004 2720 SL. It's the first RV we've ever owned, so we are REALLY new at this. We, my husband and I, need advice. We plan to buy a Blue Boy tote, but we need suggestions about how to carry it. We do not have a truck; we have a Jeep Grand Cherokee, so we need to attach the tote somewhere on or under, etc., the TM. Any advice? Same thing with the generator: where to carry it?

[Windbreaker]

I don't think I would put a blue boy inside, maybe on the rear bumper, empty, of course. If the gen is for running the AC it would be my guess that it is too heavy for your rig considering all the other things you have/want to take.

Honda puts out a very small one that will do for running the frig and recharging batteries, maybe even a microwave if it is small enough and there is no other power drain. It could go inside.

[Bill]

I have a 10-gallon blue tote, and like T_C, I sure wouldn't want to deal with anything heavier. Mine, at least, has hard dinky little wheels (5"?) that make it a real pain to pull over the gravel on the way to the dump site. And at some of the National Forest and State Forest campgrounds I have been in, you have to LIFT the full tote up to the level of the dump opening - it is not at ground level.

I guess I would consider carrying the tote inside the TM if I could be sure that I had hosed it off (and out) thoroughly. But instead, I just bungee it to the trailer's A-frame, somewhere around the propane tanks, wherever it fits best.

As Windy said, a generator is more problematic. Have you convinced yourself that you absolutely HAVE to have one? The only place you will use it is in boondocking or dry camping - and in many dry campgrounds (National and State Forests), they are frowned upon or outright forbidden.
If you must have one, the best place to carry it would be inside the tow vehicle, as far forward as possible. But with a closed tow vehicle (your Cherokee or my Explorer), this isn't feasible because the stink of gasoline would drive you out. For the same reason, you can't probably can't carry it inside the TM. (Maybe if you sealed it in a big trash bag ...). The rear bumper of the TM is a really poor choice, in my opinion, because it not only INCREASES total weight, but it DECREASES hitch weight which causes handling problems during towing. I've known a couple people who had racks fabricated for the A-frame - but with the SL models, this is a little tougher because of the horizontal propane bottles (did you get the swing tongue, by any chance?). I have also seen at least one carrier mounted on the FRONT bumper of the tow vehicle. This one actually makes some sense, in my opinion - it puts the extra weight where it can best be tolerated, and with a good tight cover the unit stays clean and dry.
If you are convinced that you have to have a generator, I suggest you follow Windy's advice and get a small one, such as one of the small Honda models. Of course, a small one won't run the air conditioner - do you need to run it?
Propane conversion is possible, which would reduce the gasoline stench and enable you to carry it in the tow vehicle - but expect to pay a couple hundred bucks for the conversion.
There have been several good threads regarding generators on this board. It would be worth your while to click the SEARCH button.

If you can convince yourself to do without a generator, as most of us do, there a number of options for keeping the batteries topped up. Solar comes to mind, of course, but some people use the tow vehicle to recharge - or bring two batteries - or increase the size of their batteries. There are a number of options, and again, a search for "charge" or "recharge" or "battery" might yield some useful results.

All that having been said, there are a few people on this board who have generators AND closed tow vehicles. We haven't heard from Wade for a while, and I remember he has a pair of nice Honda EU-2000I's. We need to hear from any of you who have this situation.

Good luck

Bill

[BobWilson]

1. Tote
We use the 10 gallon tote because it is the smallest one with wheels. If I had to do it again I might consider the 5 gallon unit and use a hand cart. At our last campground I had to take it to a toilet to dump because there was no rv dump site. That worked ok by only half filling it so it wasn't so heavy. You just have to make more trips. But the key to dry camping is water conservation. Take short showers and use the public facilities when possible. By the way, some people don't like to carry a tote in their tow vehicle because of the sanitation issue. But you can use a spray disinfectant on the outside and use your outside shower nozzle to wash off the tote before storage. If you look at camping world you can get extra caps for the tote that are standard for the septic including ones with the 3/4 inch fitting. You will have to figure out which method works best for you.

2. Generator.
I bought a 650 watt Honda a few years ago. But now I really wish I had one of the new 1000 watt Honda generators. It is only 29 lbs compared to mine at 49 lbs plus gas. The new ones have a vent you can close. Best to carry the generator empty. But you still have to carry the gas somewhere and that can get smelly unless you can siphon some out of you car tank.
The propane conversion sounds like the best deal.

Good luck,

Bob W.

[SweetSue]

Thanks for the information and suggestions. I'm not sure if we will buy a generator or not. We plan to camp on our farm, by a trout-filled river, and it just might be cool enough without the air conditioner. We'll just have to try it and see. We will need the blue boy tote, though. The bungee cord on the A frame behind the propane tanks sounds like what we will probably do. We are only considering the 10 gallon size, with wheels.

[Bill]

Welcome aboard, SweetSue -

Soon you will be venturing across the country - but the lessons you learned by the river on your farm (what a gorgeous vision!) will serve you well no matter where you go. Nice introduction!

Re the generator, your best approach might be to choose a generator to use on your farm, assuming it is hot there. Then, when you hit the road, either take it (if you expect hot weather) or leave it (if you don't expect to need it). The best of both worlds, in other words. WADE has reported that he usually takes his first Honda EU2000I (which will run everything except the air conditioner), but he takes the second one only when he expects to hit really hot weather. Nice compromise - I'm jealous!

Bill

[SweetSue]

Thanks for the welcome to the Forum. I know we will learn a lot here. That's a good idea about taking one Honda 2000i and only taking another if really hot weather is expected.

We have bought a deeded membership in an RV resort in Branson, Missouri, and it has full hookups. We will be going there at least once a month. Can hardly wait! Our maiden voyage will be the end of this month. I'll let y'all know how that turns out.

[Cateye]

We own a 2003 2720SL and tow with a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee. We use a 22 Gallon blue tote. We coated the box with a clear polyurethane (spray can) so that we could use it as a carring case so that we would not have to worry about contamination etc. We normally stow it in behind the door of the trailer. This seems to work fine for us. Also made up a special dump hose/adapter so that we could place it right next to the black water outlet.