Generator Info Needed Please

[happyhippymom]

I have a 26' bumper pull camper that me and my family will be living in full time here soon, and hope to boondock on and off. We have two house batteries, recharged with a 100watt solar panel. We are looking at purchasing a generator as well for special occasions when more power is needed. TV, AC, microwave, plugging in devices, ect. from time to time. I am new to all related info and systems and would appreciate any advice. Brands? Size? ect? Thank you much.

 

[phillipaaron]

The inverter generators are popular for their quietness. There are many knockoffs that are cheaper, however, I put a lot of faith in the Honda/Yamaha. With that said I'm using a cheaper Ryobi inverter generator that I got a good deal on. As for watts in the neighborhood of 1500-2000+ watts should be good enough.

 

[29chico]

I have a 26' bumper pull camper that me and my family will be living in full time here soon, and hope to boondock on and off. We have two house batteries, recharged with a 100watt solar panel. We are looking at purchasing a generator as well for special occasions when more power is needed. TV, AC, microwave, plugging in devices, ect. from time to time. I am new to all related info and systems and would appreciate any advice. Brands? Size? ect? Thank you much.

A roof A/C can pull a lot of current.  Enough so that in hot weather, when the starting surge for the A/C is highest, a 2000 watt genny will not do the job of starting the A/C.  That or it will have to struggle to do so and that will often shorten the life of the electrical devices in both the A/C and the genny. 

I prefer Yamaha generators for a bunch of reasons.  Honda gennys can be pretty good also.  The Yamaha EF2400iSCH is specifically designed to handle the starting surge requirements of most smaller roof A/C's.  I have one and it is a quality unit.  It will start the roof air in my 17' Casita Spirit Deluxe trailer in well over 100 degree temps without any trace of a whimper.

 

[BradKW]

I prefer Yamaha generators for a bunch of reasons.  Honda gennys can be pretty good also.

I remember you talking about those reasons in a prior post... could you link it please?  

Any thoughts on tri-fuel conversions, specifically turning the yams/hondas into propane burners? I just sorta bumped into that idea, still haven't googled enough to figure out if its something I might be interested in...

 

[DannyB1954]

Propane burns a lot cleaner than gasoline, that is why you can run a propane forklift in a warehouse. It doesn't have the same energy as gasoline however. You have to burn more of it to get the same amount of energy out of it. Depending on where you live it can cost you twice as much. 1 gallon of gas = 1.36 gallons of propane.
http://members.rennlist.org/warren/propane.html

 

[IGBT]

Get a Honda EU2000i and never look back.

Lock it up though, because being the best generator and quite small, it is a top theft item.

I have though about taking the skin off my EU2000i and putting a Harbor Freight skin on it to prevent theft.

 

[rvpopeye]

There's a Yahoo Group for Honda owners and you can get ALL the info you want on the Propane conversion . Also lots of You Tube vids too.
I have learned a LOT from those two places!

I put red electrical tape over the Honda logos on mine , not a total camouflage but no HONDA screaming out either.