Well, I ordered the Quiet Barrier over the unspec'ed AF-500 foam. BTW, the density of 2 lbs./sq.ft. is pretty dense.

Here's the 24 Gal. gaso tank for the Honda ready to install. It's now in and secured, and only needs a bracket for the filler neck, running the pickup to the genset, and installing and connecting the fuel level gage. That'll be done tomorrow, 5/29.

The only issue was that the bend off the tank caused the filler hose to kink; a 45 deg 1" PVC ell fit nicely, and cured that.

Generator should go into place Wednesday - waiting for the paint to cure on the mount.

The "mightswells" are killing me! I found a grounding block today 'way up on the firewall, so I cleaned up the contacts. This is a brilliant design: An aluminum block, steel screws, securing copper wire...

At least I kept busy, as the epoxy paint on the mounts is very slow curing (Hint: Don't bother with Rust-O-Leum epoxy paint - it takes three days to cure, and isn't very durable, compared to Ace Appliance Epoxy, which cures completely in 12 hours.) I do have a photo of the paint drying, if anyone's interested .

Tomorrow, the Honda goes onto the lift and will probably get slung from the rods (since the rains are finally coming, I need to get it under the Barth), but I still have to fabricate a battery holder (the Honda has its own, not using the house batteries).

Warning: Rant follows.

My rant on soundproofing is that the sellers usually list just either STC or NRC, but not both. What's so hard about listing both? Even a rock has a rating for both. For an engine compartment, it's easy---- STC is the primary consideration, since no one is outside to be bothered by the noise that escapes to the outside.

For a genset, both are important, since some sound can escape. STC determines how much sound travels through the material to be heard either inside or outside. NRC rates how well sound is absorbed inside the compartment. This is important owing to the fact that genset compartments have to have holes in them for air to get in and out. These holes cannot be blocked, so the more sound that is absorbed inside or by baffles (labyrinthine or not) or diverters, the quieter it will be outside. And, to some degree, NRC has bearing on how much sound will come in through your open windows.

Naturally, I want the highest STC and NRC I can get. As far as the trade offs between the two, it would take a science fair project to find the ideal compromise. I just wish the numbers were available so I could at least make the wrong choice.

End of rant.

Rusty, How much of the storm did you get up there? We got about 3 inches and a little wind. Not enough to help much but it will green things up for a little while. The love bugs are starting to come out of hiding again.[Saturday 6 pm] Hope they aren't as bad as before the storm. Good luck with the Honda install.

quote:

Originally posted by bill h: Naturally, I want the highest STC and NRC I can get. As far as the trade offs between the two, it would take a science fair project to find the ideal compromise. I just wish the numbers were available so I could at least make the wrong choice.

I agree - one of the reasons I went with the Quiet Barrier was its published STC and sound absorbtion at the various frequencies. It's 2 lbs/sq. ft., fairly dense. The 4'x 8' sheet had a shipping weight of 70 lbs; I got it yesterday.

quote:

Originally posted by Danny Z:
Rusty, How much of the storm did you get up there? We got about 3 inches and a little wind. Not enough to help much but it will green things up for a little while. The love bugs are starting to come out of hiding again.[Saturday 6 pm] Hope they aren't as bad as before the storm. Good luck with the Honda install.

Very little wind, even though the remains of the center passed about 15 miles east of here. About 2" of rain. Worked out fine - I got the Honda slung under the coach yesterday before the rains. Tomorrow, it goes into place and it's done - except for hooking up the gaso gage and making the enclosure; all the nasty work is done.

In keeping with Bill N Y's observation about posting to oneself, here's a photo of the Honda genset ready to lift into place:

And here's the little darlin' snug in its new home (yesterday; today I hooked it up and ran from the coach gaso tank):

The generator conversion is done, and StaRV II is back on the ground.

Well, the first goal of replacing the Koh-lunker with the Honda EV-4010 has been met - sound level inside the coach is a comforting -12db (actually measured -15db) at 2/3 load than the Kohler at 1/2 load. The only irritating noise is the hour meter clicking off 1/100 hour intervals...the sound from the genset itself is more of a hum than the Kohler's jackhammer sound.

It's been worth the work.

Tomorrow at first light, I'm off to OH for a star party...see you folks in about ten days...

I'm back from Lodi, OH, and the genset worked as hoped. The engine air crapped out (again) somewhere between having it repaired for the fifth time and taking off, so the Honda ran for about 35 hours underway. Quiet and unobtrusive...I have to check the pilot light to make sure it's running.

I spent twenty years installing and silencing RV Generators. Reading these posts indicates ya'll are on the right track. I will share this info with you.
The average "noise is in the 1,000hz range. Optimal absorbtion occurs with an acoustic foam of 4" thickness. I "cheated" sorta by first installing a 26db blocking barrier with a de-coupler foam onto the metal compartment. The high-density vinyl barrier reduces transmission of noise through the wall by 26 db and the de-coupler is nothing more than a 1/4" thick foam bonded to the barrier on the "Wall-side" of the barrier. The foam I used previously was melamine-based, German-Made, two inches thick. Theoretically bouncing the sound off of the vinyle back into the foam = 4". The melamine based foam does not burn at all. RVIA code dictates the use of self-extinguishing foam which does burn as long as a flame source is present but will extinguish itself when the flame source is removed. Either one is okay.
The statement that someone made in an earlier post to duct all incoming and outgoing air is correct. Rule of thumb= "If you can see the machine, you will hear the noise". You can use an air thermometer to measure operating temps in the generator compartment during operation. This temp should never be more than 20 degrees above ambient. You can also add an auxilliary muffler to silence the "Pulsing" from the engine exhaust note. I use a universal, 1 1/2" side-in/side-out muffler with about a 12" oval body. This adds absolutely zero back-pressure. I have attached the article that Trailer Life Magazine wrote about my quiet generator installations over 15 years ago.
Good Luck, I appreciate your concern for generator noise. Nothing ruins the serenity of a quiet park like the rattle of a noisy generator, portable or otherwise.

Generator Silencing Article - 836 KB ~ Trailer Life Article - Dec 1993