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2oldman's avatar
2oldman
Explorer II
Feb 17, 2019

Residentials and generators - all day.

I'm in a rustic no-hookups CG where I'm fortunate to be able camp well away from a newbie with an i-Power brand inverter generator that he runs ALL DAY. Why? Because he has a residential refrigerator.

This i-Power unit is pretty loud. I was thinking it didn't have an Eco throttle or the owner wasn't aware it did, but it does, and he's using it. Problem is, even at its lowest power output, it's tough to carry on a conversation near it. If you're wanting to avoid the cost of a Honda/Yamaha, I strongly recommend the Predator over the i-Power unit. I was pleasantly suprised at the quietness of the Predator.

Residential refers are pretty and keep your initial costs down, but IF you plan on doing a lot of boondocking, take it seriously they will need 120v power. And that's either going to be solar/batteries/inverter or generator. Your salesman will try to wow you with how hard your ice cream will and how much they hold. Don't be blinded by that. These refers need 120v power.

Running a generator, ANY generator, all day is just obnoxious.
  • I'm sure it will last quite some time if you never open the doors. But honestly we use our refrigerator, which means the doors get opened a pretty fair amount. How long will stuff stay cold/frozen if the doors are opened frequently. I would hate to have a fridge that required careful usage of it. When I want a cold drink or ice cream, I want to open the door and get it, and not be overly concerned if I don't immediately close the door.
  • dons2346 wrote:
    So they need 120 power. They do not need it 24/7.
    I'm not sure they realize that.
  • So they need 120 power. They do not need it 24/7.
    I went over 20 hours without power because of a faulty transfer switch and guess what? Everything was still frozen like a rock and the refer side was still below the danger zone as far as temps go.

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