Does My Motorhome's Generator Have To Be Running To Get Electric While Going Down The Road?

by Anonymous

Does the generator have to be on while traveling down the road to use power. If the generator is not on will this cause the battery to die?

ANSWER: Thanks for submitting your question on our Ask An RV Question Page.

I am going to assume that the type of RV that you are talking about is a Motorhome. In order to get electric to the 120 volt electric appliances in your Motorhome such as TVs, Microwave Oven, Roof Air Conditioning Units, etc. while going down the road you need to have your generator running.

If you want to power smaller 120 volt electrical appliances such as TVs, Laptop Computers, etc. without running your generator you can purchase a 12 volt to 120 volt Power Inverter which connects to the 12 volt DC system of your Motorhome and transforms it to 120 volts AC.

Hooking up a Power Inverter depending on the type of Inverter you buy can be as easy as plugging it into a cigarette lighter in your Motorhome. For greater power needs the Power Inverter needs to be connected directly to the house batteries of your Motorhome.

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You can get more information on Power Inverters by reading the answers I gave to I Need A Power Inverter For My RV How Many Watts Should It Be? and Can I Connect A Power Inverter Directly To My RV's House Batteries?.

Now as far as your house batteries getting charged while going down the road is concerned. The alternator on your Motorhome should be charging the house batteries while going down the road. Even if you are not running your generator or using a power inverter in your RV the 12 volt DC electrical items in your Motorhome such as the interior lights, water pump, etc. will operate because they are being powered by the house batteries on your Motorhome which in turn are being charged by the alternator on your Motorhome.

I hope this information was helpful to you.

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Happy RVing

RVing Al

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