25' plus caravan to live in plus generator?

[KAREN_374369852]

Hi my partner and I are new looking to buy a caravan to live in. We are interested in a longer length around 26ft with fixed bed etc plus shower/toilet. Does anyone recommend a model or another brand as we are having trouble finding one for less than 6k?

Also we are going to have to power our caravan independtly via gas and a generator. Does anyone have any advice on the best way to do this and if it is economical? All advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hi Karen,

I will only offer observation about using a generator.

Firstly, unless you have cheap fuel or access to agricultural fuel free of road tax, (red diesel) then you will not be able to come close to what the commercial generators pay for their fuel.

Then secondly, the big commercial generators at best can only achieve about a 40% efficiency of fuel to electrical power. The smaller generating sets typical of those used for caravans etc, can only achieve 6 to 8% efficiency.

Therefore the cost of generating your own electricity is roughly 10X what you will pay the normal domestic supplies on a kWh basis.

The small generators are not designed for continuous running over long periods, so there is the cost of servicing and repairs to be considered,

And the quality of the power generated is variable and can be affected by turning heavy loads on and off. This can cause power surges from the generator which can affect and damage sensitive electronic appliances.

All internal combustions powered generators make some noise.

Small scale power generation is not a cheap option. You may be able to improve the efficiency of a small generator by using the heat from the exhaust to heat water or provide space heating this is known as CHP generation, but the initial cost of such schemes is high.

 

[KAREN_374369852]

Hi Karen,

I will only offer observation about using a generator.

Firstly, unless you have cheap fuel or access to agricultural fuel free of road tax, (red diesel) then you will not be able to come close to what the commercial generators pay for their fuel.

Then secondly, the big commercial generators at best can only achieve about a 40% efficiency of fuel to electrical power. The smaller generating sets typical of those used for caravans etc, can only achieve 6 to 8% efficiency.

Therefore the cost of generating your own electricity is roughly 10X what you will pay the normal domestic supplies on a kWh basis.

The small generators are not designed for continuous running over long periods, so there is the cost of servicing and repairs to be considered,

And the quality of the power generated is variable and can be affected by turning heavy loads on and off. This can cause power surges from the generator which can affect and damage sensitive electronic appliances.

All internal combustions powered generators make some noise.

Small scale power generation is not a cheap option. You may be able to improve the efficiency of a small generator by using the heat from the exhaust to heat water or provide space heating this is known as CHP generation, but the initial cost of such schemes is high.

Hi John

Thank you for your advice. I think it may be more economoical to look at another option then and fins a site that will let us stay long term. Thanks very much for your help.

Karen.