Generator for travel trailer

Taxman2436 wrote:
I’m trying to decide on a generator to use with my travel trailer and hoping to make a better decision based on your experience. What suggestions do you have?

You need to provide more information, to get better recommendations.

Will the generator be used in a campground, around others?
Do you want to run the a/c with it?
Will lifting a 100lbs+ generator be a problem?
Do you want to also run it on propane?
Do you want electric start?
Do you know the differences between inverter generators and open frame contractor-style generators?

enblethen wrote:
I have a pair of Honda eu2000I gensets. Have had issues with both. One has had fuel system, went to shop still bad. The shop has it scheduled for more work on them. Other had electrical issue, poor solder joint. They are used at house and occasionally in place of on-board Onan.
I would be looking at the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight. Much better dollar value then what was paid for the Hondas. Could have bought three of the Predators for cost of Hondas. Neighbor has one and has worked it hard on their 5er.

This is a bad stroke of luck.
Fuel issue could/likely is self induced and even if not, is very simple to fix.
Bad elect connection, I'd say is rare. Have been beating the snot out of hundreds of Honda generators for 25+ years and basically unless old gas gums them up, or they run out of oil, get stolen or get smashed by something on a construction site, they run.
Have submerged a few, dry em out, change oil, dry up the fuel tanks, back to running.

Have the first Yamaha 2k, bought 2 seasons ago, construction work. So far it's been stone reliable as well and expect it to be on par with Honda.
Don't doubt that Champions run well, never used one personally, but there's a reason that people in the industry use the likes of Honda, Hilti, Sthil, Makita, etc instead of Predator, Bosch, Homelite and Ryobi.

My powerhouse 2100 is 12 or 13 years old, ran the AC in our TT and is quiet. It was about 1/2 the price of a honda. Honda is not the only good generator, there are others.

A generator can be necessary but it won't get used too much with a good solar system except for A/C.

Champion, best bang for your buck and as reliable as Honda.

I have a pair of Honda eu2000I gensets. Have had issues with both. One has had fuel system, went to shop still bad. The shop has it scheduled for more work on them. Other had electrical issue, poor solder joint. They are used at house and occasionally in place of on-board Onan.
I would be looking at the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight. Much better dollar value then what was paid for the Hondas. Could have bought three of the Predators for cost of Hondas. Neighbor has one and has worked it hard on their 5er.

I had a Yamaha 2000 for ten years w/o any trouble. Gave it to a nephew and bought a Honda 2000. Used one weekend and had to take it to shop. They said it was clogged because of bad gas. I explained that I just bought it and used it once. Repairman said Honda is notorious for testing them and leaving gas in them when they box and ship to stores. He said it could have been 5-6 months in warehouses, stores, etc. and that is what clogged it. It never ran as good as my Yamaha.

No doubt Honda and to some extent Yamaha, although not nearly as popular, are higher quality units with pricing that reinforces that conviction. All my Honda equipment has stood the test of time, have no experience using their gennies.

First thing to really consider is the highest wattage item you plan to run, obviously the AC unit and microwave are the power hungry items in RVs across the board. Most 2K watt gennies can run microwaves along with everything else except your AC unit.

Our RV has an onboard Onan that powers our rig as if connected to shore power, convenient one button starting/stopping, most of the time it is way more power than we need. Great unit but it doesn't have smart technology like an inverter genny, certainly not as quiet or fuel efficient.

Since we do lots of RVing off the power grid, under harsh weather conditions, we do put hundreds of hours on our genny yearly. With our solar panels, on fair weather days our genny gets to relax. With cloudy days we run our genny an hour or two to let our Iota quickly replenish battery bank.

After 8 years our Onan had over 1500 hours, was looking to give it a break and hoping to get something with smart technology. Needed at least 3K watts to occasionally run our AC unit, and the convenience of one button starting. That was 5 years ago, our Champion 3100 inverter genny with 600 hours has proven very reliable.

I have two Honda 2k,s Do every thing I need. However there are two of them. Honda is no longer the only game in town. You need an inverter generator of close to 3000 watts. Definitely not smaller than 2400.

Reliability and quietness, Important qualities. Honda EU2000i is the best for your money.IMO, one has to pay for quality.....Dennis