Harbor Freight Predator 3500W question

A tad off topic. I bought a Champion 3100 w remote start online at Walmart this week for $650 delivered. It also happens to be Hurricane prep Tax free week in Fl so no sales tax.

Kansas couple wrote:
What practical use does a 2-pin (12v) outlet have for camping purposes?

They are supposed to be for battery charging, but I've never used it nor do I know anyone who has. They are unregulated and low amperage, and on my Honda only work at full throttle.

The owner's manual should supply any further information.

It's for the 12v banana plug wires, for recharging a battery.
They are the LAST thing to use use, as they are very inefficient. You're better off using jumper cables instead.

How to recharge battery without shore power
1. Plug the shore cord into the generator and let the converter charge.
2. Use a separate stand-alone charger.
3. Use solar power.
4. Use the jumper cables and connect trailer battery to vehicle battery.

Last choice, the generators 12v connection.

My power house 2100 manual says you can back charge the generator battery with that 2 pin plug. If you leave the remote start on the battery will go dead in a few days. If you use that 2 pin to hooked to the TT battery that won't happen.

Thanks everyone!

I think I'll cross off the Predator 3500 as I'd still like to have the option to charge electronics using the 12 volt socket if necessary.

What 12 volt DC device are you charging via a 12 volt DC source?
With genset running you can use any standard 120 volt AC charging device.

Champion on sale

Same price on Amazon too.

Kansas couple wrote:
Thanks everyone!

I think I'll cross off the Predator 3500 as I'd still like to have the option to charge electronics using the 12 volt socket if necessary.

Your logic is flawed 12 volt charging is not even a real issue!

Kansas couple wrote:
I'd still like to have the option to charge electronics using the 12 volt socket if necessary.

That's killing flies with a bazooka. If you do 12v charging just use your onboard batteries. Those chargers take very little power.

Harbor Freight website has manuals available for download for most products. I usually read them before purchase to answer questions like yours. I purchased the 3500 last year and am extremely pleased. I wanted to have power to run the house furnace and pressure pump for my water storage system in case of a power outage. I checked voltage and frequency with an oscilloscope, loaded and unloaded. Its a perfect sine wave and frequency was always exactly 60.02 Hz. Voltage varied about 5V. It's a bit heavy but not so much that I can't lift it onto my pickup tailgate or put it in the cart behind my lawn tractor. It's very quiet and easy to work on. I took it apart for inspection and found the quality to be good. My only complaint is that the fuel shutoff and ignition are combined in one control. I added an ignition bypass switch so I can keep it running to drain the carburetor. There is a fuel bowl drain but it requires taking the side off to access it.

Carl