Auto Gen Start

[Dick Simonis]

I'm still patiently waiting for my coach to get repaired and spending time reading the manuals on the new Magnum Inverter and remote.  One thing jumped out is that the remote is already set up to control a AGS module and I'm wondering if it would be worth while to add this feature.  Seems simple enough as it appears everything I need is right in the same panel where the remote mounts.  The only question is whether I can multiplex the comm cable between the remote and inverter.  If I have to run another cable, may not be worth the effort.

Reckon what I'm looking for in input from those that have a AGS feature....is it really worthwhile or not something that is really used.  For those that don't have this feature....is it something you wish was you had.

Thanks for any input.

Dick

[Glenn Perkins]

Dick,

We have Magnum's AGS and feel it was worth the investment.  We originally purchased it since we were doing several months of dry camping on our wilderness property near the Grand Canyon every summer and wanted a system to ensure we kept our batteries charged appropriately.  Our unit also has a setting to start the genny if temperatures reached a selectable level but found that not much value as the summer temps at 6200 ft elevation with the sun on the side of the coach where the unit was located made the selectable range to low.

All in all< i think the utility is for prolonged dry camping periods to keep batteries properly "inflated".

Best
Glenn

[Joel Weiss]

As an alternate approach, there's a plug and play AGS system made by Onan and designed to interface to Onan generators. The control module plugs into the genny and there's a wireless remote that controls it. Cost is ~$600 and installation appears to be an hour or so.

[Joel Ashley]

I found ours difficult to deal with.  It was hard to get the settings to where the unit would kick on when the batteries got down to 12 volts, but not at 3 am, ticking off the whole campground (and us).  Though we do a fair amount of dry-camping, I just found it easier to manually use the generator as needed - the so-called automatic stuff was more aggravating than it was helpful.  It would either come on when it wasn't supposed to or wouldn't come on when it should.  Trying to get the timer programmed right was not as common-sense or as easy as it should have been, and I spent hours with the operator's manual in 2006-2007 to no avail.  Maybe something was haywire with our system, I dunno, but I did my share of cussing.

Now I keep the AGS off;  I don't trust it anyway.  :-/

By the way, you indicate everything is mounted in the same place.  I don't know how they'd mount yours, but the control module on our coach isn't mounted where the Magnum remote is;  it's in the electrical bay.  You have to configure several settings on the module, then make further settings on the remote in the coach.

Joel

[Dick Simonis]

Thanks, I appreciate the input.  To install the AGS would be ~260.00 since I have everything else.  Interestingly, the adjustments on the AGS module itself are disabled when using the Magnum remote which means I could tuck it away behind the panel.  Since a gen start, switch, hour meter, and the remote are already right there...should be a piece of cake....if I can multiplex the existing comm cable.

Hmmmmm, need to dig into this a bit further.

Work on the coach is proceeding nicely but with the holidays and such it looks like well into Jan before I can pick it up.  Looks like we're going to miss Quartzite which is a shame.   Such fun.