Yamaha 2400isHC first thoughts

[CaptRick]

So I picked up a Yamaha 2400isHC generator. The gen set arrived via FedEx from Amamzon.com from ACME products. I paid just under $ 1400.00 for the unit. Shipping was free from ACME. I got it home and added oil (10W30) regular dino for the break in period. Put gas in the tank and it fired up on the very first pull! It is an inverter generator and weighs about 80 pounds. No problem lifting it into the bed of my pickemup. I proceded to break it in by plugging in some various power tools and heaters on and off for the first hour of run time. Let it cool down and fired it up again for another on and off session with various power loads. After 5 hours of this I hooked up the 13,500 AC in my TT. The AC fired up no problem. I then tried the Micro after shutting the AC, again no problem. The gen set is very quit compared to others I have heard. I took it camping this weekend and i was in a very small (5 site) location on the Rio Grande river, I had the gen set running for about 2 hours during the day and after walking around the camp area and speaking with a couple of tent campers and another slide in camper, they all asked if it was even running. They heard some noise but were not sure what it was. They thought it was my water pump.
Long story short I am sold on this gen set!

[Wayne_Dohnal]

FYI the Yamaha 2400 would not start my AC here in Havasu at 105. I have the fan delay and hard start kit as well. I was crushed. Went with two Honda 2000's. Chino

I've noticed that the eu2000i has trouble maintaining its output above 90* at 3500 feet. In those conditions it delivers its rated output at first but after a few minutes the max tapers off to about 1,400 VA. At lower elevations I don't see the dropoff up to 100*, and at 3,500 feet it runs strong in cooler weather. When your hot and/or high you just need a more powerful generator, and to compound the problem, the air conditioner draws more when it's hot out.

[Wayne_Dohnal]

Some other specifics I found were that Hondas are belt driven versus the gear driven Yamaha. Also, the engine life hour rating for this model is higher than competitor motors.

Both the Honda and Yamaha are direct drive. Or are you talking about the camshaft? Those "life" ratings aren't engine life ratings at all, but are ratings for how long the engine stays in compliance with a certain level of emissions. AFAIK Yamaha has chosen to test to the highest possible rating, and Honda hasn't. Doesn't have anything to do with how long the engine lasts.

[Chinolbz]

FYI the Yamaha 2400 would not start my AC here in Havasu at 105. I have the fan delay and hard start kit as well. I was crushed. Went with two Honda 2000's. Chino

[rodsterinfl]

Greetings All,

I have owned the Yammy 2400isHC for a year now and regret nothing. It is fantastic. I got it with the tri-fuel option (natural gas, LP and gasoline) and it runs well at least on the LP and gasoline for me. I test loaded it right after purchase on LP. I ran the AC (11,000 BTU) , the 600 watt micro and it ran both at once for 40 seconds. When I kicked on the Fantastic fans (2) the overload light began flickering from a dim almost not there working itself up to an on position. I shut the fans off and the micro. Through it all it ran like a champ.

Just a note to the Honda fans regarding Yamaha, this particular model has the bigger brother's motor (perhaps the reason for being 20lbs heavier than Honda 2000) and has the HC designation designed specifically for motor starting use by using a capacitor to ease motor start load. Honda 2000 would just quit running. Also, the manual switching of the Hondas to eco mode is not comparable to the automatic variable adjustment of the Yamaha. They take a bit to figure out the load but adjust as needed. Yes, they are also quieter under load but not as quiet idling from my observation.

Some other specifics I found were that Hondas are belt driven versus the gear driven Yamaha. Also, the engine life hour rating for this model is higher than competitor motors.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Run the AC for thirty minutes. Shut it off for 5 minutes then try to restart it. Make sure during the 30 minutes the compressor is actually running not just the fan. Use a clock.

[tragusa3]

I have to apologize. All this time I thought I had a 15.5 (that's what the sales people told me). It was peculiar though on such a small trailer. Anyway, I was up on the ladder today and saw the tag that says it is a 13.5.

I'd been claiming all over the forum that the 2400ishc can run my 15.5 and that is not the case. Hope my claim didn't cause any problems for anyone.

In the end, it's good news really. I didn't need that large of an AC and now I feel better about the Yamaha running it. I ran it today in my driveway for about 20 minutes. It's a bit slow on the startup, but did run it. I'll have to get the hard start capacitor now.

[jodeb720]

I followed Adam-12's path. I had a 2400, and it always started my AC in my TT - but at 85lbs fully loaded, I decided I have no business dead lifting it a my age and my lack of physical exercise!

My 2400 worked great for the 13,500 ac, but only after I put in a hard start kit (when it was hot or it was cycling, there wasn't enough to overcome the Locked Rotor Amps). The hard start took care of that for me.

I now have a single Honda 2000, and I'm wondering when I'll get the second and twin them.

One thing I didn't like on the Yamaha was the inability to turn off the Eco mode - and run it at full speed as you can on the Honda - but in retrospect, I really didn't need to do it after the hard start was installed.

[Adam-12]

Those blue machines are awesome!!!! I wanted two in parallel, but the extra 30lbs of lifting it was just too much for my bulging discs. So, I bought two Honds at only 50lbs each (roughly). Now I get 4000 surge watts and 3200 continuous watts. The generators don't have to work as hard while running the 15K BTU A/C plus.... Lights, kid's TV or stereo.

Lifting only 50lbs at a time is a back saver. Lu's, when we camp in cold weather, I only bring one Honda genny because I'm not running the A/C.

That being said however, your Yamaha is awesome. I'm definitely a "Red and Blue" fan exclusively! I don't care for the "Yellow" brand because its too loud. Constant "lawn mower" noise is the last thing anyone wants to hear and a quiet camp ground.

One suggestion,,,, since ethanol gas is pretty much nation wide now, make sure you use Sta-Bil fuel preserver and maybe some Marvel Mystery Oil or SeaFoam splashed in each tank full. Your genny will last forever! Just change the plug about every year and keep running that synthetic oil!

Congrats on the new Yamaha!!!

[HiTech]

Tried it on the AC yet?

Jim

[CaptRick]

Updated, well I now have a little over 10 hours on the generator and I changed the break in oil to Royal Purple synthetic 10W30 and I good not be happier with the Yamaha. It works great starts on 1-2 pulls every time, its quiet and uses very little gas when running. The fuel gauge is a great feature as well. No complaints at all.

[tragusa3]

I've enjoyed mine. Have had it since last November. It started up my 15k AC, but I haven't tried using it to run it extended yet.

It has started first pull every time for me too. I've had it running next to a Honda 2000, and it is quieter when running with a load. I used mine on a few trips so far. I run it for 2 hours a day to charge up, and it ran for 4 days like that on the one tank. Haven't found anything not to like.

Even though I'm capable of lifting it, it did get old. I now have my wife grab an end...it's a piece of cake for two.

[CaptRick]

RoyB wrote:



I think the EU2000i Hondas are selling for $990 where this one cost just under $1400...

Roy Ken

Yes, I looked at getting two Honda's for extra power but after running the usage numbers the Yamaha does the job and I only have to think about one carb, plug, fuel tank etc.

[RoyB]

Was just looking at the specs on this unit. Looks like it is rated for 2400WATTS and will produce 2000Watts output. That is just strong enough to run the 13,500 BTU air conditioners it seems...

The 2KW Honda's are rated for 2000WATTS and will produce 1600WATTS which is just slightly below what is needed to run a 13,500BTU air conditioner.

The noise level of this unit is 53-60DBA where the 2KW Honda is 53-59DBA... Pretty much the same.

I think the EU2000i Hondas are selling for $990 where this one cost just under $1400...

Roy Ken

[ng2951]

I use to have one. Worked great for two years. If the engine every buck backwards when you pull the rope, have them check the rocker arms. I had one that was not tracking right.

Other than that it worked great.