Honda's new EU2200i model...

All this discussion about whether the cables are connected first and one power source is fired up before starting the Honda isn’t the issue, everyone knows that’s how you do it.
I have connected two already-running EU2000s before. I don’t remember why or if I meant to (it was about ten years ago). There was a bit of a zap but nothing happened. They kept working.
I still don’t recommend it, but there was no disaster.

If I owned a Yamaha parallel-capable generator I’d connect them and see how they played.
I’m willing to bet they’d work perfectly. I’ve yet to hear an accurate and solid reason why an EU2000 wouldn’t sync to a PSW inverter.

I have not heard about a Honda generator timing belt breaking. The most common failure mode I see is bad gas.

While looking at class "B"s, if I wind up with one that has an "engine generator" (i.e. an alternator under a different name), I definitely will be buying a pair of these. I'm glad Honda has a fuel valve now, so I can run them dry and not worry about gas in the carb when I store them.

road-runner wrote:

robert_at_honda wrote:

Yes, if the timing belt should break, the valves will indeed collide with the piston.

For discussion's sake, has anybody reading this thread ever heard of an eu-generator's timing belt breaking? I have to say I fear the plastic camshaft more than the timing belt, yet all I hear about these engines is that they just keep going without failures. I'm also no fan of the plastic intake manifold in the Honda Fit, and never heard of any failures there, either. For a real-life comparison, a few years back there were a lot of Onan Microquiet generators manufactured with bad valve springs. A lot of engines were ruined as a result, with no timing belt involved.

I absolutely don't like the plastic parts, but what matters to me in the end is the overall reliability.

I tossed a rod on a GC motor which had the cogged rubber cam belt. The belt didn't break but the connecting rod big end when through the case. Didn't know they had a plastic cam shaft. Mine had a metal cam, rubber belt and no Honda refused to warrant it. That piece of power equipment no sports a HF predator.

That's why I ask questions - two helpful answers :)

road-runner wrote:
For discussion's sake, has anybody reading this thread ever heard of an eu-generator's timing belt breaking? I have to say I fear the plastic camshaft more than the timing belt, yet all I hear about these engines is that they just keep going without failures.

I absolutely don't like the plastic parts, but what matters to me in the end is the overall reliability.

No different than anyone else I wondered about those plastic camshafts before buying an EU2000i but with hundreds of thousands if not millions of these gensets in use around the world I concluded Honda engineers must know what they're doing. As it turned out I never had a lick of trouble with the 2 units I owned, one manufactured in Japan and the other in Thailand, and wouldn't have any hesitation buying another if it fit my needs. :B

robert_at_honda wrote:

Yes, if the timing belt should break, the valves will indeed collide with the piston.

For discussion's sake, has anybody reading this thread ever heard of an eu-generator's timing belt breaking? I have to say I fear the plastic camshaft more than the timing belt, yet all I hear about these engines is that they just keep going without failures. I'm also no fan of the plastic intake manifold in the Honda Fit, and never heard of any failures there, either. For a real-life comparison, a few years back there were a lot of Onan Microquiet generators manufactured with bad valve springs. A lot of engines were ruined as a result, with no timing belt involved.

I absolutely don't like the plastic parts, but what matters to me in the end is the overall reliability.

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
A question for Robert, if I may...

These motors are overhead cam, meaning they have a camshaft timing belt.

If a belt should break...

Is this an interference grade motor...?

Yes, if the timing belt should break, the valves will indeed collide with the piston.

ktmrfs wrote:


If voltages are not the same, then the lower voltage inverter will act as a power sync (load) to the other inverter. and results may not be very nice. they will have to come to the same voltage or one or the other is going to suffer.

I'd have disagree with this. A traditional battery powered, parallel-capable h-bridge inverter will act as a load and dump the absorbed power into the battery. I certainly don't know what the internal technology of Honda's inverter is, and I sure as heck can't imagine where it would dump the absorbed power. The only thing I can think of is to heat up and destroy itself, and it's apparent it doesn't do that.

road-runner wrote:
With the Honda eu-series generators, there's no phase issue as the second one that gets fired up places itself on line in phase with the first. There is an amplitude issue, however, as the Hondas stand alone providing a higher output voltage than other brands. With mixed brands I'd expect the Honda to carry the full load until its output gets pulled down to the other brand's no-load voltage. Paralleling with an inverter that's not designed for back-feeding is just asking to fry the inverter.

this assumes that the parallel cables are connected, and generators are fired up one at a time. It also means that the inverter sections are not completely independent and the one starting up will phase and amplitude sync with the running one as it starts up instead of relying on it's internal time base and amplitude section. Something that is very easy to do.

If voltages are not the same, then the lower voltage inverter will act as a power sync (load) to the other inverter. and results may not be very nice. they will have to come to the same voltage or one or the other is going to suffer.


What happens with a honda if both are running THEN the parallel cables are plugged in??

Never done that, but I'll bet someone has.

With the Honda eu-series generators, there's no phase issue as the second one that gets fired up places itself on line in phase with the first. There is an amplitude issue, however, as the Hondas stand alone providing a higher output voltage than other brands. With mixed brands I'd expect the Honda to carry the full load until its output gets pulled down to the other brand's no-load voltage. Paralleling with an inverter that's not designed for back-feeding is just asking to fry the inverter.