air conditioner / honda 2000

Trying to run air when covered? Why on earth would you even try that?

I would not even bother trying to run a 15,000 BTU AC with a 2,000 watt generator of any kind. As far as being close to sea level, one big reason to camp at higher elevations is to eliminate the need for AC in the first place.

Unless you are at sealevel or close a 2k genny will be marginal for the a/c.

rbtglove wrote:
I'v run a 13500 AC on my Honda 2000 on two different TTs and have never had it fail to run. Shut off all other draws and don't run more than an hour or so at a time.

Looking at that pic sign man just posted it appears he has a 15K BTU A/C unit, not a 13.5K, so how he ever managed to start it with his EU2000i would be a mystery to me :@ ... certainly he's the first I've ever heard of who's successfully managed this. :E

I'v run a 13500 AC on my Honda 2000 on two different TTs and have never had it fail to run. Shut off all other draws and don't run more than an hour or so at a time.

this is my ac

Atlee wrote:
I have not priced one out, but what is the cost of a new 11K unit or a newer hi efficiency unit? Over a $1000 or well under a $1000?

Check Camping World and other places. I have seen them priced between $600 and $800.

SoundGuy wrote:
........snip.......
Any of these roof mounted 13.5K BTU A/Cs will typically have an LRA (Locked Rotor Amp) rating that can exceed 60 amps and although it's an overload of very brief duration it's nevertheless a significant overload for which the EU2000i was never designed to sustain, with eventual damage to the inverter (coil windings and/or circuit board components) always a possibility. I never damaged mine either but that's not to say that if I had continued abusing the genset long term in this manner that it wouldn't have eventually failed. The question then is whether one is willing to chance it or not ... some are, some aren't.

By that reasoning, no generator under 7,000 watts (60 X 120) should be used to start a motor or air conditioner. I am not privy to Honda's technology, but I suspect they have safeguards in place for even a dead short at startup. Like I said, I only use mine occasionally to run the AC and am not worried. I would not recommend it on a daily basis. There are better solutions for that. Who wants to give up converter, refrigerator, television, and microwave all the time? Not me.

I have not priced one out, but what is the cost of a new 11K unit or a newer hi efficiency unit? Over a $1000 or well under a $1000?

TomG2 wrote:
All four of my 13.5k AC units have operated off my Honda 2000, as long as I make sure they are the only draw on the generator. Typically, they draw 10-11 amps at 90 degrees and 1,000 foot elevation. Well within the rating of the Honda. I would downsize to a 11k unit or one of the newer hi efficiency units before I went through the expense and effort of a second generator. I only use mine occasionally and would do something different if I wanted it to work everyday and everywhere.

TomG2 wrote:
I would dump my e2000 in a heartbeat if I thought that it would not stand up to running at or slightly under its rated output. Honda builds overload protection into the unit and it works. Mine is nearly ten years old and still going strong.

Sure, but the key words here are "running at or slightly under its rated output" which an EU2000i certainly isn't when the A/C compressor first kicks on. Any of these roof mounted 13.5K BTU A/Cs will typically have an LRA (Locked Rotor Amp) rating that can exceed 60 amps and although it's an overload of very brief duration it's nevertheless a significant overload for which the EU2000i was never designed to sustain, with eventual damage to the inverter (coil windings and/or circuit board components) always a possibility. I never damaged mine either but that's not to say that if I had continued abusing the genset long term in this manner that it wouldn't have eventually failed. The question then is whether one is willing to chance it or not ... some are, some aren't.