Towing an Airstream with Gen14, and ProPower 7.2

[daemonic3]

Heavy Duty Payload Package: thicker frame and additional leaf on the rear. This option has been recently trimmed down to XL, XLT and a few Lariat unlike previous year you can get it on higher trim, but don't quote on me HDPP is the best payload option to have before moving up to the 250-250 line up.

I love my HDPP, it has everything I need w/o the bells and whistles I don't want. But if PB was available w/ HDPP I'd be on that band wagon in a heartbeat! I stop looking at PB because I have serious impulse buy ha! Once PB is available w/ HDPP on the 150 or even on the 250, I will reconsider again

I would also absolutely get the HDPP on my Powerboost! Unfortunately they only offer HDPP up to XLT 301a, not Lariat.

I believe people have speculated that if they offer HDPP on the upper trims, it would cannibalize the F250 sales. But F250 is not that much more in price so it seems like an invalid justification. F250 does not yet have 12" screen, offer a 5.5' bed, or have Propower/Powerboost, and Propower is a game changer for trailering!

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[laujoyjoy]

Reporting back: I got the dog bone adaptor and connected my 7.2kW generator to my 19ft Airstream Bambi 30A plug. Turned on all the lights and roof top AC heat. Pulling 1700W with engine off. Amazing ?

 

[laujoyjoy]

Looks like a few of us have had the same ideas. My Platinum Powerboost with 7.2kw is due to arrive 03/14 and I'll be towing an Airstream Basecamp 20X. The Airstream shore power hookup is 30 amp / 120 volts but the Pro Power outlet is 30 amp / 240 volts. Does anyone know of an adapter of some sort so that I can hook up the Airstream to my Pro Power outlet?

See my post above. You will be fine ;-)

 

[i2oadi2unnei2]

Reporting back: I got the dog bone adaptor and connected my 7.2kW generator to my 19ft Airstream Bambi 30A plug. Turned on all the lights and roof top AC heat. Pulling 1700W with engine off. Amazing ?

I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO jealous! Thanks for following up and safe travels!

 

[Rich55Marshall]

Reporting back: I got the dog bone adaptor and connected my 7.2kW generator to my 19ft Airstream Bambi 30A plug. Turned on all the lights and roof top AC heat. Pulling 1700W with engine off. Amazing ?

May I ask - where did you buy the dogbone adapter? I still need that last missing piece. Thanks a million.

 

[laujoyjoy]

May I ask - where did you buy the dogbone adapter? I still need that last missing piece. Thanks a million.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MX81TV...abc_0W8TEZB3YQ87M422SSYM?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[daemonic3]

Man, I am over here salivating! I want to connect to my 50A trailer and test the AC units to see what they draw... I have been prepared for months! Expected to have had my truck for months now but it should be here within the week. Officially have a full weekend of camping scheduled mid-april so I gotta break in this truck and program my trailer and learn everything!

 

[dog_tired]

I received my stubby Camco adapter from Amazon yesterday. Plugged it in to the truck and out 23’ Airstream, turned on the truck and generator, switched the AS from “store” to “use” set the air as cold as I could. Here are the pictures with the air running.
Not sure why it’s only B powering, but otherwise all seems good.

 

[don.mullins]

I received my stubby Camco adapter from Amazon yesterday. Plugged it in to the truck and out 23’ Airstream, turned on the truck and generator, switched the AS from “store” to “use” set the air as cold as I could. Here are the pictures with the air running.
Not sure why it’s only B powering, but otherwise all seems good.

The reason you only pull on one side is the 240V / 30A output on the F-150 is really two 120V / 30A circuits out of phase.

A 30 A trailer only pulls from one of the two circuits. The adapter you have (and the dog bone style) for a 120V / 30A trailer just isolates one circuit and connects the other to the trailer.

 

[daemonic3]

I received my stubby Camco adapter from Amazon yesterday. Plugged it in to the truck and out 23’ Airstream, turned on the truck and generator, switched the AS from “store” to “use” set the air as cold as I could. Here are the pictures with the air running.
Not sure why it’s only B powering, but otherwise all seems good.

Have you tried watching the propower meter when the A/C compressor *starts*? That is usually what will go over any capacity if you have multiple things running. I don't know how fast the Fordpass refreshes the display, but if it is a few times per second, you might be able to see the peak, and that will tell you whether you can have a coffee maker or hair dryer running at the same time as the A/C kicks on.

Is the A/C a Coleman Mach unit? I have heard the 15k BTU versions run 13-14A steady state so you are right in line with that! The startup however can be >20A. I don't know what the Dometic A/C's run draw is.

 

[dog_tired]

Is the A/C a Coleman Mach unit? I have heard the 15k BTU versions run 13-14A steady state so you are right in line with that! The startup however can be >20A. I don't know what the Dometic A/C's run draw is.

Mine is a Dometic AC unit.
We're heading out this weekend, so I'll play around with the unit and FordPass and see what the initial surge at power on clocks in at, and will report back.

I'm just thrilled that it works (and so is my wife!)

 

[Jack in Prescott]

"Have you tried watching the propower meter when the A/C compressor *starts*? That is usually what will go over any capacity if you have multiple things running."
"I have heard the 15k BTU versions run 13-14A steady state..."

Daemonic3, we have a 10K BTU Dometic and it surges to 12-13A on start-up, then ramps down to a steady ~6A once running. Based on that, I'd estimate that 13-14A draw to be a bit higher than what you'll be seeing.

We camp mostly along the Rockies' spine and found that, as our elevation increased above ~5500', the hp loss of the 2200W Honda was enough that it couldn't support the initial A/C power surge. So one dodge we used was to kill the master DC breaker, which can be drawing 3-4A of AC (lights, converter, house battery charger, fill in the blank). So that is one thing you could do if you find the 2 x A/C demand gets you near the edge of what that 30A feed from the F150 is providing.

The other option is an Easy-Start, which I think you've already looked into. It appears to me there's some circuit management logic built into that unit, meaning it doesn't just provide fixed, reduced power to an A/C unit as it starts up but rather adjusts the supply as needed to maintain a healthy voltage. With 30A/120V service being provided by the ProPower unit, that's likely to be the best solution for 2 x A/C equipped trailers, assuming you don't want to be manually 'switch-flipping' between AC appliances.

Jack

 

[dog_tired]

Mine is a Dometic AC unit.
We're heading out this weekend, so I'll play around with the unit and FordPass and see what the initial surge at power on clocks in at, and will report back.

I'm just thrilled that it works (and so is my wife!)

Following up on my own post.
Didn't have a chance to test the ProPower and initial draw when the AC turns on.

However, I can report some driving characteristics:

Our Airstream is a 23' FB Flying Cloud. Dry weight is about 4500 (if I recall correctly). I have not taken the time to attach the supplied back up assist cable. I have e2, 1000 lb anti-sway weight distribution bars. Truck is a Hybrid with FX4 and trailer tow package (not the max tow).

200 miles to the campground along interstate driving, mostly 65 mph, average 10.5 mpg in tow/haul mode. Much less than I had anticipated. Truck stayed primarily in 9th gear, other than some minor downhills (not much of that in Florida!), or if traveling in excess of 70 mph (not recommended), at which time it would shift into 10th.

Truck tows brilliantly, other than the gas mileage being lower than anticipated, and the traveling in 9th, and dropping to 8th and 7th. Not sure if this is SOP as this is my first F150. I need to hook up the cable provided so that I can use the pro-trailer back up assist. I'm guessing that about the time I get around to that, Ford will drop the software update to our Sync4 units and I'll I will need are the stickers.

 

[i2oadi2unnei2]

Following up on my own post.
Didn't have a chance to test the ProPower and initial draw when the AC turns on.

However, I can report some driving characteristics:

Our Airstream is a 23' FB Flying Cloud. Dry weight is about 4500 (if I recall correctly). I have not taken the time to attach the supplied back up assist cable. I have e2, 1000 lb anti-sway weight distribution bars. Truck is a Hybrid with FX4 and trailer tow package (not the max tow).

200 miles to the campground along interstate driving, mostly 65 mph, average 10.5 mpg in tow/haul mode. Much less than I had anticipated. Truck stayed primarily in 9th gear, other than some minor downhills (not much of that in Florida!), or if traveling in excess of 70 mph (not recommended), at which time it would shift into 10th.

Truck tows brilliantly, other than the gas mileage being lower than anticipated, and the traveling in 9th, and dropping to 8th and 7th. Not sure if this is SOP as this is my first F150. I need to hook up the cable provided so that I can use the pro-trailer back up assist. I'm guessing that about the time I get around to that, Ford will drop the software update to our Sync4 units and I'll I will need are the stickers.

Thanks for the follow up. My EB gives me about 12-14 mpg (dependent on hills and we got lots of them here in Oregon) however I do lock out 9 and 10 (sometimes 8 to keep the RPM ~2500). I also have a 23 Airstream however I can see that your have the FB model vs my RB version. I can't wait to get out there an glamp soon. You Floridians got it good this time of year

 

[dog_tired]

however I do lock out 9 and 10 (sometimes 8 to keep the RPM ~2500). I also have a 23 Airstream however I can see that your have the FB model vs my RB version. I can't wait to get out there an glamp soon. You Floridians got it good this time of year

Just wondering what you meant by "however I do lock out 9 and 10"?

It was hot and dry and full of pollen this weekend. Most of the snow birds will be gone by end of March, which will open up some vacancies to the better camp sites.

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