I have a 30 foot Kit Companion bumper pull trailer we just bought. I want to buy a Honda Generator to run air conditioner. I think it is 13,500 BTUs. Wondering if the smaller Honda 2,000 will handle the air conditioner? Any thoughts? Suggestions?

Mostly likely not. I have two 2000 yamaha generators that I connect to each other for a total of 4000w to run my TT A/C and other systems.

The smallest quiet generator that will run a 13,500 BTU is the Yamaha 2400i.Yamaha 2400

paul judd wrote:I have a 30 foot Kit Companion bumper pull trailer we just bought. I want to buy a Honda Generator to run air conditioner. I think it is 13,500 BTUs. Wondering if the smaller Honda 2,000 will handle the air conditioner? Any thoughts? Suggestions?A few report success. But it will be marginal with 2,000 watts. Increased elevation and ambient temperature will increase the required power. So even a demonstration that works could be a bit short on the road. Maybe rent one and see. The very newest and efficient AC units are most likely to work.

Most likely not. There is a little bit of variability from unit to unit and occasionally, someone will get it to work but as a general rule, it's too much for a 2000w unit (actually rated at 1600w continous). We have a 2400w yamaha and that gets the job done but it actually can surge beyond 2400w for a second or two.The trick to running the air/con is it takes 2-3times the power to get the compressor turning. Once it's turning, it takes far less to keep it turning. That's why it looks like the 9-11amps the air/con is rated to draw should work but it really needs more like 20-30amps to get it going.

Most likely not. I once had a 13.5K BTU AC that I could barely get to run from my single 2K Honda. This was virtually at sea level. Once I got it to just 2400 ft above sea level, it would not work.I added a Companion 2K Honda, and all is good in the world of AC cooling.

Honda Generators for Air conditioning | Good Sam Community

Huntindog
Explorer
May 29, 2015
What is boils down to is how bad do you want AC?

As tempertures go up, so does the AC current draw, and at the same time the generator loses power with higher temps. So a "test" in the driveway really means nothing. If you go with a 2000, then it may some day not work for you when you REALLY want it to.
pianotuna
Nomad III
May 29, 2015
Hi,

If you get a Hybrid inverter then a 2k generator will run the air conditioner just fine and you can use eco mode.
TomG2
Explorer
May 29, 2015
Mine generally use 10-11 amps when operating in hot weather at 1,000 ft elevation with other things turned off. That will not destroy the Honda 2000.
xteacher
Explorer
May 29, 2015
Two Hondas in parallel will give you enough power, and they're lighter to carry (each separately, of course), than one bigger generator.
TNRIVERSIDE
Explorer
May 29, 2015
RamRider wrote:
My Honda Companion just arrived this week, I used the wiring kit and plug adaptor and the ac fired right up with no issues or overload warnings. Using just one Honda 2000 will over load the generator.

Using just one gen should not overload the gen. Honda generators have an overload protection circuit built in. Honda says not to continue an operation the repedly trips the overload protection. If it works like mine does I feel its fine to use it. Read the manual.
Jayco23FB
Explorer
May 29, 2015
Rainier wrote:
Mostly likely not. I have two 2000 yamaha generators that I connect to each other for a total of 4000w to run my TT A/C and other systems.

X2 .. I also installed a hard start kit that helped alot.
Mr_Beebo
Explorer
May 29, 2015
My Champion 2000s are 1700 watts continuous. I have had it kick the ac on, but I use two. I have owned Hondas and loved them, but I also loved buying two Champions for the price of one Honda.
TomG2
Explorer
May 29, 2015
While there are other, and perhaps better, options, I have been using a Honda 2000 to run 13.5k air conditioners on several different trailers over the last ten years. No harm to Honda, as they have built in safeguards. One does have to manage other demands, like converter, refrigerator, etc.

I mostly use mine for quick cool downs while traveling and don't demand 24/7 100% duty cycles.
RamRider
Explorer
May 29, 2015
My Honda Companion just arrived this week, I used the wiring kit and plug adaptor and the ac fired right up with no issues or overload warnings. Using just one Honda 2000 will over load the generator.
TNRIVERSIDE
Explorer
May 29, 2015
It can work. I hooked my Honda 2000I gen up to the camper yesterday to see if it would run the AC unit and it does. 13,500 btu unit. I turn it on with the thermostat set to a warm setting so only the fan is running then lower the thermostat to a cooler setting. This allows the gen to have the fan running then bring on the compressor. I get a very brief low voltage light but the gen and AC unit work together. This is my experience. Not hearsay.