2012 airstream ac/generator

[nancyo]

My 2012 air streams generator keeps cutting off after 10/15min of running.
My propane tank is full

Sometimes it will run for awhile, but as soon as I turn ac on it quits whith in 5 min
This happens when I am plugged into shore line too.
The only thing that is on is the fridge

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance

[Titus]

Check the oil level. I think there is a safety shut-off for low oil. I don't know if that triggers an error message on your generator panel.

[InterBlog]

What is the rule of thumb on Onan propane generators where oil changes are concerned? From memory I'm recalling once every 150 run-time hours. Or, once per year, conservatively, if use is only sporadic.

Your generator may not be the exact same model as ours, but you can see some pics and oil change pointers here if you need them.

[nancyo]

Originally Posted by Titus

Check the oil level. I think there is a safety shut-off for low oil. I don't know if that triggers an error message on your generator panel.

Thanks!

[nancyo]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

What is the rule of thumb on Onan propane generators where oil changes are concerned? From memory I'm recalling once every 150 run-time hours. Or, once per year, conservatively, if use is only sporadic.



Your generator may not be the exact same model as ours, but you can see some pics and oil change pointers here if you need them.

Thank you!
This forum is awesome

[73shark]

Originally Posted by nancyo

Thank you!
This forum is awesome

IIRC, on my 2011 the genset oil change intervals were 25 hours for the first one and 50 hours thereafter. YMMV

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by nancyo

Sometimes it will run for awhile, but as soon as I turn ac on it quits whith in 5 min
This happens when I am plugged into shore line too.

Running the generator while plugged into shore power is a pointless endeavor. As soon as the generator comes on, it becomes the only source of 120vAC power; there is an automatic transfer switch that takes the shore power off-line.

This is a safety feature; it prevents current back-feeding through the shore power cable from the generator if there is a loss of shore power while the generator is running. There have been documented instances of power company workers being electrocuted after a storm-related power loss because some careless lamebrain had a generator hooked up to his home electrical system without disconnecting the municipal power at the main breaker, so circuits that should have been de-energized by the power company were actually live due to the generator. By automatically disconnecting shore power while the generator is running, this unfortunate occurrence is prevented.

When I first got my Airstream Interstate, I wondered about the reasoning behind automatically disconnecting a 30amp power source to give priority to a 20amp power source. Then I became involved with one of the teams preparing the November 2014 edition of EM385-1-1, the Corps of Engineers Safety and Health Requirements Manual, and discovered the safety reason behind the generator setup on the Interstate. And I'm pleased to have the opportunity to explain it here for the first time.

Side note, I was one of the writers of the two Fall Protection chapters, had input on the Crane Safety chapters, and was one of many reviewers/editors of the entire EM385-1-1 manual— including the electrical safety chapters. Of all the many and varied things I did in my 34-year career, that project is the one I'm most proud of, because my efforts have helped save lives ever since, even after my retirement.