Generator

Strange! I said early on that the OP needs to total up what he/she plans to use at one time and to add in the converter requirements.
My Honda 2000 will drag down quickly. It doesn't like to run on eco until the batteries are pretty much charged completely.

rangerheave wrote:
I own a 2012 Keystone Passport 3050bh and am in need of a generator which is capable of proving the enough power for coffee pot, microwave, hair dryer etc. I live in Alaska so the air conditioner is not a factor. Additionally, I would want it to be capable of providing power to two refrigerators in my home in the event of a power loss.

What is the minimum size that would be recommended and are there brands besides Honda and Yamaha that I should consider? Ive had my eye on a Honda eu2000i.

Thanks in advance for your responses.

I would suggest taking a separate power audit of your RV needs and your home needs. In other words make a list of the items you want or need to run.

On that list you put down the wattage needed to run the item then prioritize the items on the list and mark down what items you might want to run at the same time..

You have a lot of high wattage items listed, microwave which might be listed as 1,000W but in reality will actually draw 1,500W which if you are limited to a single Honda 2000i would be the only thing you could run (no coffee maker and micro at the same time)..

Your home needs and your camping needs may be the same or may not be the same so a written list of home and RV items is a good idea.

On the RV side you will also need to factor in the converter for recharging your batteries which you may not need for home use (a 60A converter can draw 800W-1000W while recharging deeply depleted batteries). But at home you might have a water pump or other high surge motor devices like residential fridges.. or even 240V items (which eliminates a Honda 2000i and many other 120V only gens).

I suspect that you may need to buy two different gens, one for home useage and one for camping. There is nothing wrong with that, in fact that is the direction I am going.. I have been making due with a 4Kw 120V only gen to run a few lights, woodburner fan, one fridge and one freezer in my home.. The 120V only gen however cannot run my water well which is a 240V motor..

The 4Kw 120V only gen does cover all my needs for camping but leaves a lot to be desired for my home needs. So, I now looking at some 7Kw-8Kw 120/240V gens for home use and keep the 4Kw 120V only gen mainly for camping..

I do have a 120V 2Kw (non inverter) gen but it is really not enough wattage for home or camping use so it is going on the chopping block..

rangerheave wrote:
I own a 2012 Keystone Passport 3050bh and am in need of a generator which is capable of proving the enough power for coffee pot, microwave, hair dryer etc.

First, check the actual wattage draw on all three of those appliances. If you intend on running all three at the "same time" will determine what Gen you will need. :B

I have a Champion 3500/4000. I used it for a few days when our power was out. It ran 2 large refridgerators, a small freezer, and a couple of CFL lamps all at the same time. Worked for me!

The EU2000 will do the job if you can do some load management to avoid having too many heavy-load appliances like microwave and hair dryer on at the same time but it is marginal. I put 1,000 hours on one with no problems until it was stolen while in a campgrounds. A 3000 would do it for sure but at considerably higher cost and weight.

If you are sensitive to noise or to making your neighbors unhappy avoid the cheaper brands like Champion.

A 2K watt unit can possibly do the trick but any of those items run together will cause genny to shut down. If you don't want to pair a couple of 2K units a 3K watt unit would be more suitable. Champion is a good alternative to the costlier Honda/Yamaha units and they have a decent 3K inverter generator that would fit your needs for a few hundred less than a single Honda/Yamaha 2K unit,
.

Check the draw of everything you want to run, if they are all under 1600w and you are at sea level, get one of the 2000 inverters. The next step up is the Yammy 2400 and then the 3000 series running 2800w running.

The Champions have done well and the 3100i would stay on the quieter end running loads half it's capacity. There is a newer remote start version but it cost more and weighs more too. We have the remote start version of the champion 3500/4000. We don't use it often but when we do, it sure is nice just pushing a button instead of going out to fire it up.

I don't believe a 2000W Honda will give you enough power.


Maximum output is 2000W

Rated output is 1600W

Here's what the wattage is for some of the items your looking at running.

Coffee maker 600W

Microwave oven {650W draws-1,000W} {800W draws-1300W} {1000W draws-1500W}.

Toaster 1500W

If you parallel 2-2000's you'll have 4000W max and rated 3200W

Other option is a Honda 3000 that has a max 3000W output and rated output of 2800W


C.B.

rangerheave wrote:
What is the minimum size that would be recommended and are there brands besides Honda and Yamaha that I should consider? Ive had my eye on a Honda eu2000i.

Thanks in advance for your responses.

There are other brands. They are a bit louder than the Honda or Yamaha, but, they are also considerably cheaper. Champion makes one with a 30 amp RV outlet (no adapter needed), along with two 20 amp outlets for extension cords. It could handle your RV, even if you wanted to run the AC.

Here is a link to one at Walmart. Besides Walmart, they are carried at some RV dealers, Gander Mountain Stores, Tractor Suppy stores, and many other retail outlets.

Here's a link to a thread on this generator.

the cHampion 3100 watt with economy mode and 30 amp direct plug in would do what you want.Pretty quiet and fuel efficient