Harbor Freight/Honda smackdown....
I see HF is now offering a 3500 (maximum) watt PSW inverter with all the bells and whistles for $700.00 (regular price. Even looks like the Honda that retails for $1999.00 the HF puts out a bit ...
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As an update, predator 3500 starts either one of my ac units if not in eco. In eco with no load at all my progressive industries EMS chatters briefly during start meaning voltage dipped below 104VAC. If I turn on the water heater first to put some load on the generator it doesn't do it. I'll probably install a hard start cap on both units as well as they are difficult to start. Dometic claims you need 3500 watt generator to use with these, and that seems about right.
Noise levels measured with galaxy 7 phone and sound app, 97 degree outside temp, elevation 4,300 feet. Ambient noise 45db
Champion 2000 in ECO 23 feet away 60db
Predator 3500 in ECO 23 feet away 57db
Champion 2000 ECO off 23 feet away 64db
Predator 3500 ECO off 23 feet away 59db
Champion 2000 in ECO powering 1500 watt heater on high at 23 feet, 73db
Predator 3500 in ECO powering 1500 watt heater on high at 23 feet, 62db.
Don't know how close the phone app is to actual db levels. Also the Predator is still being broke in so I didn't try running it at full power yet. The heater is pushing the Champion close to it's full load capability while only pushing the Predator to less than half. Once broken in I'll push it harder to see how much the noise level goes up.
So far the engine seems to run smooth, throttle spools up at least as quick as the champions, which is good, but they can't always keep up with a sudden high demand when in ECO. Predator suffers the same, but that's just the nature of the game when trying to use mechanical engines to keep up with rapid electrical demand changes.
Noise levels measured with galaxy 7 phone and sound app, 97 degree outside temp, elevation 4,300 feet. Ambient noise 45db
Champion 2000 in ECO 23 feet away 60db
Predator 3500 in ECO 23 feet away 57db
Champion 2000 ECO off 23 feet away 64db
Predator 3500 ECO off 23 feet away 59db
Champion 2000 in ECO powering 1500 watt heater on high at 23 feet, 73db
Predator 3500 in ECO powering 1500 watt heater on high at 23 feet, 62db.
Don't know how close the phone app is to actual db levels. Also the Predator is still being broke in so I didn't try running it at full power yet. The heater is pushing the Champion close to it's full load capability while only pushing the Predator to less than half. Once broken in I'll push it harder to see how much the noise level goes up.
So far the engine seems to run smooth, throttle spools up at least as quick as the champions, which is good, but they can't always keep up with a sudden high demand when in ECO. Predator suffers the same, but that's just the nature of the game when trying to use mechanical engines to keep up with rapid electrical demand changes.
