Onan Generator Won’t Turn Over on 2005 Roadtrek 190 Popular

[No1UKnow]

Hello Everyone,

Need to drop the jenny and replace the carb I think, cause it sat. It used to turnover but now won't do that. an someone tell me which battery (house? engine?) is tasked with starting the Onan? The house battery is long gone. Thanks!

 

[booster]

If you have no coach/house battery in place, the generator will not have power to run or start as it needs the 12v control and starting power. Depending on how you are wired it is possible that it might start if the van engine is running as long as the isolator is allowing 12v through.

Why do you not have a coach battery? The whole van electrical system needs it to function, except for the 120v outlets unless you have a power supply type charger that doesn't need a battery in the system to make 12v to the coach.

 

[No1UKnow]

If you have no coach/house battery in place, the generator will not have power to run or start as it needs the 12v control and starting power. Depending on how you are wired it is possible that it might start if the van engine is running as long as the isolator is allowing 12v through.

Why do you not have a coach battery? The whole van electrical system needs it to function, except for the 120v outlets unless you have a power supply type charger that doesn't need a battery in the system to make 12v to the coach.

 

[No1UKnow]

Thank you for your input There is a house battery, but by "gone" I mean it's dead. Sadly, my 78 year old stepmother convinced her newly-wed, 88 YO husband to buy this thing. They parked it for two months before they both took ill (that was three years ago, at least), which I think explains why Jenny wouldn't start back then, though it would turn over. We kids could see they were really unable to use it and started the selling process, but the stepmother wouldn't allow it. SO it's been sitting for a few years. They ruined the fridge too, by leaving fruit in it for those first two months before I started looking at it and learning about it. I'm less worried about the fridge, because I know a lot of folks are replacing the Dometic gas fridge with other things. I do want to get the Jenny running though.

 

[DWorrell3]

Hello Everyone,

Need to drop the jenny and replace the carb I think, cause it sat. It used to turnover but now won't do that. an someone tell me which battery (house? engine?) is tasked with starting the Onan? The house battery is long gone. Thanks!

First, you need a coach battery. I don't think you need a new carb, maybe a fuel filter. I had the same problem and was advised to sever the fuel line between the engine and generator (clamped before). Then prepare a Mason jar with a hole in the lid. Fill this jar half with gasoline and half with Seafoam. Stick the fuel line to the generator in it. Use the starter button on the the generator itself to start. This is really going smoke and spit, but it will clean out the carb and fuel system. Mine runs great now and I exercise it religiously every month. Dave W

 

[No1UKnow]

First, you need a coach battery. I don't think you need a new carb, maybe a fuel filter. I had the same problem and was advised to sever the fuel line between the engine and generator (clamped before). Then prepare a Mason jar with a hole in the lid. Fill this jar half with gasoline and half with Seafoam. Stick the fuel line to the generator in it. Use the starter button on the the generator itself to start. This is really going smoke and spit, but it will clean out the carb and fuel system. Mine runs great now and I exercise it religiously every month. Dave W

Thanks for your input. I replaced the coach battery and fully-charged that and the chassis battery. Jenny still doesn't turn over. Nothing happens when I toggle the starter rocker. I'm surprised to read you think I don't need a new carb. I've read in a number of places that if one doesn't run the jenny periodically, the ethanol messes it up.

 

[booster]

First check to see if you are getting power to the generator to start it. There should be a likely 10ga red wire to it from a battery post under the van or near the batteries. It may also have a metal can auto reset circuit breaker in that wire and those breakers are known to fail over time. You need a multimeter and some time digging into why it is happening before you start to throw money at it.

 

[youngnretired]

There should also be a start/stop control panel behind the service cover on the generator itself. You can see if you're getting power down at the generator. If the generator doesn't crank over, that has nothing to do with fuel, air, carb, etc. It's either you're not getting power to the starter, the starter is stuck/bad, or the switches to control the generator aren't functioning.

I don't know how accessible the starter is inside the housing, but they do make a starter switch that you can bypass the control circuiting and verify if the starter turns over. Kind of like using a screwdriver and shorting the terminals directly on the starter in the old days.....

https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/...ter-switch/kdt0/124dd?q=Remote+starter+switch

 

[DWorrell3]

Thanks for your input. I replaced the coach battery and fully-charged that and the chassis battery. Jenny still doesn't turn over. Nothing happens when I toggle the starter rocker. I'm surprised to read you think I don't need a new carb. I've read in a number of places that if one doesn't run the jenny periodically, the ethanol messes it up.

Try using the starter button down on the face of the generator. You will have to crawl under the van and the starter button is on the driver's side on the back of the generator. Using this button by passes the rocker switch. If it does not turn over with this, then it's something more serious. I made the comment about the carb because, from experience, I can tell you it is **** changing out the carb and fuel filter. Best to drop the genny. Using the mason jar and Seafoam directly introduces a very high powered cleaning agent to the whole fuel system. Worked great for me. If you get it running, just remember to exercise it once a month. Good luck!! Dave W.

 

[No1UKnow]

Thanks. I had planned to drop the generator to service the car

 

[youngnretired]

Last year I made an adapter plate for my harbor freight jack to cup the axle to raise the rear of our 2008 Chevy Roadtrek and a separate plate adapter to drop the generator to service it. It is a chore to drop the generator, but doable in your driveway. I was able to drop it and lift the generator cover without disconnecting fuel or electrical lines.

I serviced the generator by removing the non operational fuel pump, and installed a fuel pump and filter outside the generator, up high between the generator and propane tank. I left the existing fuel filter and fuel line in the generator thinking that with the new external filter, the internal filter essentially does nothing.

Link to the tools with pictures.

Floor Jack Adapters for Roadtrek Lifting and Generator Removal

you may have luck cleaning the carb by getting it running on like 50/50 gas/seafoam and then let that mixture set in the carb for a day then run it on gas. That has worked a couple times for my friends in the past without having to remove or do any other work to the carb.

 

[No1UKnow]

Last year I made an adapter plate for my harbor freight jack to cup the axle to raise the rear of our 2008 Chevy Roadtrek and a separate plate adapter to drop the generator to service it. It is a chore to drop the generator, but doable in your driveway. I was able to drop it and lift the generator cover without disconnecting fuel or electrical lines.

I serviced the generator by removing the non operational fuel pump, and installed a fuel pump and filter outside the generator, up high between the generator and propane tank. I left the existing fuel filter and fuel line in the generator thinking that with the new external filter, the internal filter essentially does nothing.

Link to the tools with pictures.

Floor Jack Adapters for Roadtrek Lifting and Generator Removal

you may have luck cleaning the carb by getting it running on like 50/50 gas/seafoam and then let that mixture set in the carb for a day then run it on gas. That has worked a couple times for my friends in the past without having to remove or do any other work to the carb.

I hadn't realized I needed to raise the van to provide enough room to lower the generator. Makes sense though. I did check out that other post. Is it necessary to fabricate that part to fit the axle to raise it?

 

[youngnretired]

Depending on your jack, you may have to get creative to lift from the axle. My pad on my jack wouldn't fit between the pumpkin and shock mount, or shock mount and spring mount without some modifications. That is what I came up with.

I used 3-4 2x6's on each side of the van, stepped to make a ramp, and backed it up onto the wood and that gave reasonable room to get under and drop the generator. No jack and no jack stands were used to lift the vehicle. These vans are so low to the ground to begin with, that getting under it is difficult. Otherwise you'd need a lift for the whole vehicle, or a pit, to get at the generator.

I also didn't try to get the jack/plate out from under the generator when I had it dropped down. The generator is 125lbs-ish and there was no way I would have been able to lift the generator by myself to get it back up on the plate to reinstall. All service work was performed with the generator sitting on the jack/plate as in the picture in the link.

 

[cptnjohn]

Double check that there is power running TO the generator from the switch mounted inside the coach… I’d discovered after my generator wouldn’t start (or turn over or anything at all- 2013 RT Adventurous RS) that mice had chewed through the wiring between the switch and the generator…