Generator advice

[Monster1]

I'm looking at buying a generator. 95% of what I need it for is charging house battery while dry camping. The other 5% is to run the microwave for hot pockets and pizza for the kids. I borrowed a 2000w champion that falls right on its face and dies when trying to run the microwave. My friends 2200w power(something) will run the microwave but its wound out doing it. I should have bought the 3200w firman from costco when it dropped to $469 with manufactures discount before Christmas. That generator went up in price to 639. Still a good deal but I'm trying to explore other options. My other thought was to buy two 2000w ipower generators. One fir charging or both when needing more power. Would I be better suited with a large generator or two smaller in parallel when needed? IMO a large generator to just charge up a 12v battery might be overkill and inefficient. And yes, I know Honda is the best, but for only being used s few times a year, spending that kind of money is a waste.

[ppine]

Just a thought. The whole point of camping to me is get away from modern life. Buying a large generator to run a microwave seems odd to me. You can easily make pizza in a Dutch oven on a fire. It is not instant, but it is quiet and you will always have enough fuel. No hookups, no generator, no problem. Teach your kids.

[2oldman]

Tvov wrote:
I asked if she had the "Eco" mode turned off to run her A/C. She said "What?". She had no idea that the button was even there.

Owner's manuals are a beautiful thing.

[tragusa3]

I tried to solve these concerns with one generator. I ended up with a Yamaha 2400ishc. It is a little heavier than the 2k versions, but also a little stronger. Our has served us wonderfully. I could move it by myself ( a little tough) and it would run our A/C. It will run the microwave along with all of the other "small" draw items.

Here's a link to a video I made of ours running the A/C (after installing a hard start capacitor).

Yamaha 2400 ishc running A/C
Part 2: Followup

We just changed over to a motorhome and are currently selling the Yamaha.

[festag]

I do not have personal experience with portable generators, but take a look at the videos on YouTube from Long Long Honeymoon. Sean does a good job reviewing the features of each and may help decide on which generator will work best for your situation. Hope this helps.

Long Long Honeymoon generators playlist

[Tvov]

Boon Docker wrote:
....
Do you have econo off when using the microwave?
My Champ 2000 has no issue running the microwave except when it is in econo mode.

This! We borrowed a friend's Honda EU2000 last August. She warned us that it couldn't run a camper's A/C, as it wouldn't run theirs. Well, we ran our A/C all weekend with it, no problems at all.

Later when I told our friend about it, I asked if she had the "Eco" mode turned off to run her A/C. She said "What?". She had no idea that the button was even there.

Double check your generator setup before you invest in a larger unit.

[HadEnough]

Sounds so expensive, heavy and like a chore.

A solar array, battery bank and inverter is a much more suitable setup for this situation. Microwaves don't need generators at all. They pull a lot of current but only for 10-15 minutes here and there, so Amp HOURS used is actually small.

Solar keeps the batteries topped off at all times too, unlike generator only setups. It's silent, always on and working and handles a situation like this with ease and no need for fuel.

These is no better case for solar than this one.

[Monster1]

Thank you all for your insight. I'm thinking a 2000w should be sufficient for my needs. If it proves to not be enough, I can just buy another and link them when needed. Honestly, I was looking at getting the 2000w ipower. Nothing against champion products. I think the one I borrowed was needing a tune up or something. It just didn't seem to have the output my friends 2200w power(house I think). The champion was less than 50lbs and the other 25 pounds more. I just figured it was just a beefier unit. I could be wrong though.

[BFL13]

Ease of handling for sure. But size counts too. I had a Honda 3000 that stayed in the truck with the 5er. The C we have now did not come with a built-in gen, but the compartment where it would go is too small for the Honda 3000.

I sold the Honda 3000 and got a new 2200 gen that is easy to carry. I could get another one in that compartment if I wanted, and get back to 3000 with them in parallel. IMO two smaller is better than one big for several reasons if you need that much power at times.

[Ltrip]

theoldwizard1 wrote:

Monster1 wrote:
My other thought was to buy two 2000w ipower generators. One for charging or both when needing more power. Would I be better suited with a large generator or two smaller in parallel when needed? IMO a large generator to just charge up a 12v battery might be overkill and inefficient.

For me, the decision of 1 vs 2 generators comes down to easy of moving them around. 2 small ones are definitely easier to handle !

Yes, 2 small (2000W) generators cost more, especially when adding in the parallel kit. You will save a small amount of fuel running only one generator when you don't have a high load, but it would not be enough to recover the additional costs in your lifetime.

Also, don't condemn Champion for one bad experience ! IMHO, I would rather own a Champion than the A-Ipower model.

X2 Ease of manhandling the generator (s) is a key consideration. I went with 2 Champion 2k models. So far I am happy.

[wa8yxm]

2oldman wrote:
For your described use I would suggest 4 batteries and a 2kw pure sine inverter. That should run the MW much easier than a generator, and you can recharge at your leisure. Heck, you can be charging at the same time.

How I'd do it.. or have done.. sort of.

2000 watt Inverter generator powers most of the incidentals in the RV via a Progressive Dynamics 9180 with wizard... About the only thing that gave it pause is my 750 watt coffee pot. (long story)

The inverter/charger I tripped the 30 amp breaker feeding it manually (Turned off) so it powered electronics (IE: this laptop) Coffee pot. Microwave. Electric oven et-al (In short almost everything save the fluorescent lamp in the bedroom). 100' 12ga to a 20 15/20 amp outlet (not sure which breaker)

2000 watt Trusine.

For some reason it did not have enough battery power to make coffee in the am but if I hit the BOOSt button on the Wizard I had no tribble.

Did that for about 2 months.

Worked.

[Gdub2]

Here we go again

[pianotuna]

Hi,

two possible solutions:

1. 3400 champion with remote electric start

2. any generator mated to a hybrid inverter/charger

[ScottG]

I can see where a 2K gen wont run a 1500 watt micro. 1500 watts is the COOKING power but the micro can consume 1850 or more overall (using the micro in our S&B as an example). Most 2K gens are only rated at 1600W continuous.
I would get the Champion 3400 with electric start if I had it to do over.

[MrWizard]

you have something else going on

like water heater on electric, "big power use"
fridge on electric
heavy battery charging going on

2000w will run any RV or residential MW

[theoldwizard1]

Monster1 wrote:
My other thought was to buy two 2000w ipower generators. One for charging or both when needing more power. Would I be better suited with a large generator or two smaller in parallel when needed? IMO a large generator to just charge up a 12v battery might be overkill and inefficient.

For me, the decision of 1 vs 2 generators comes down to easy of moving them around. 2 small ones are definitely easier to handle !

Yes, 2 small (2000W) generators cost more, especially when adding in the parallel kit. You will save a small amount of fuel running only one generator when you don't have a high load, but it would not be enough to recover the additional costs in your lifetime.

Also, don't condemn Champion for one bad experience ! IMHO, I would rather own a Champion than the A-Ipower model.