Remote duel fuel 2500 watt generator?

I'll share my experience with the remote on my Champion 3400W inverter generator. It's a joke!

Sure, I can start and stop it remotely. First I have to go to the generator to enable it to start. Why not just start it? When I turn it off with the remote I have to go back to the generator to disable it or it will drain the start battery down. Why not just turn it off while I'm there?

I bought it so we can run it just before bed time. Hop in bed, turn it off from bed and call it a night. The start battery is dead the next morning. Then it's very difficult to start using the pull cord while the generator is in my truck bed between the cab and the FW hitch. YMMV

laknox wrote:
Generally, you won't find remote-start gennys < 3k watts. Personally, I can't think of a single one < 3k with remote start.

Lyle

While one may exist, I can't think of any either.

Kind of why I mentioned the Champ 3500 above. Plus, if using the propane feature, you may need the added watts to run the AC.

Jerry

There is soft start which has a good rep and supposedly lets a 2.3K run the a/c. But the dual fuel plus remote start combo does not exist so far as I know in that size range.

Generally, you won't find remote-start gennys < 3k watts. Personally, I can't think of a single one < 3k with remote start.

Lyle

I'm not finding anything with a remote in that size. This is 2500W Peak on propane but only 1665 running watts.

Use case is critical.
- If you are just charging the batteries, making some coffee or watching some TV, your little 1500w is a great option.
- Once you want to run the air/con, something in the 3000w or better is my recommendation.

Yes, you can dink around and make a smaller generator work but it's hit and miss. We have a 2400w Yamaha and there are times, it struggles to get the air/con to start up.

The other issue with propane is the engines generally put out less power when on propane. So a 2400w generator may only be good for 2000w on propane.

I use a Champion 4500/3500 Inverter generator that works for me. Weighs about 100 lbs with full gas tank, so is a bit on the heavy side.

For occasional and short term usage, LP is fine for a generator. The convenience and reliability make it worthwhile. If you need generator power for long term use (like air conditioning) you’d be better off sticking with gasoline. You didn’t say what your needs are, but those are the two ends of the spectrum.

I’ve got both ends covered with my built-in LP powered Generac, and my portable gasoline powered Yamaha 1000. The Generac occasionally gets used, typically for just 10-30 minutes. At 20 years old it only has about 125 hours on it. The Yamaha doesn’t have an hour meter on it, but I’d bet it has hundreds, maybe even 1000’s of hours on it.

I always appreciate being able to start the Generac from inside by just pushing a button though.

:):)

You will burn a LOT of propane in a generator. Go thru a 20 lb bottle a day. Propane has much lower energy density compared to gasoline.

You can find propane conversion kits for many of the Honda generators online, so if you're happy with the one you have, you may be able to convert it to dual-fuel.