Generator size

I am interested in reseaching the purchase of a generator for our 04 2720SL. Living in Florida, we have a backup generator for the fridge, hot water, etc should/when a hurricane hits and we are without power. That being said, it is too bulky and too noisy to take with us without ruining the quiet camping experience. My question is how big of a Honda or Yamaha generator would I need to charge the battery, etc in the TM. Since really the only thing that won't run on propane or battery power is the AC unit, Im interested in one that will simply recharge the battery to be able to run lights, furnace, etc. Depending on the size needed to run the AC also and the cost differential, I may be inclined to go ahead and purchase one that will run that too. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Leslie & Nick]

There have been many, many postings about generators. Do a search for "Generators".

We have a Honda EU 2000i I bought about two years ago. I like it because it's very quiet, and relatively light to carry.

It however, does not produce enough power to run the TM's side-mounted AC unit. Some people have said it does run their ACs, so I'm not sure what the difference may be (???). Honda also make a model 3000 unit that would not doubt run the AC, but is is considerably heavier and more costly. The Honda 2000 was about $900 as I recall.

Nick

To only charge the batteries, the Honda 1000 is big enough.

I bought the Honda 2000 because if in the future I want to run the a/c, I can buy a second Honda 2000 and run them in parallel, with the kit.

The Honda 3000 should be able to run the a/c, but it is heavy enough that it comes with wheels.

If you are certain you will never run the a/c, then I recommend the Honda 1000.

If you think you may want to run the a/c in the future, then consider eihther the Honda 3000, or get a single Honda 2000 now and ad a second Honda 2000 in the future.

Yamaha makes similar generators, but I have no experience with them.

After reading everything hear, go over to rv.net. This is a frequent topic over there. I have no doubt that you could find several hundred pages to read on this topic.

I did the search for generators earlier and found plenty of information. It seems to be between the yamaha and the honda. I just couldnt find any posts that specifically stated you needed "this certain size to run a specific option".

Am I correct in saying that the furnace fan runs off the battery and the actual furnace itself produces the heat from propane? That was my main reason for the generator. To recharge the battery if we decided to boondock when the weather was cool enough to run the furnace and lights.

The one option to Yamaha offered that the Honda did not is the ability to shut the fuel off to the carbeurator allowing it to run dry opposed to possibly letting fuel sit and cause problems with lack of use for a few months.

I don't know about the Yamaha line or any others except the Hondas. You need to completely determine what you intend to run with it and then make your choice considering what you can physically carry. The 2000 is relatively portable and quiet and will run everything in your TM except the air conditioner. An interesting compromise if you really only need a battery charger would be to buy the 1000...you can always add a 2000 at a later date should you have the need. The 3000 is a brute, liftable only by multiple people.

there are several articles online regarding portable generators and the two leading, far and away, are yamaha and honda. They are both priced almost identical. I just wanted to make sure I could recharge the TM battery by simply plugging in the adapter and power cord from the TM to the generator and let the converter do the work recharging the battery.

[Bill]

Originally Posted by FightinIrish

I did the search for generators earlier and found plenty of information. It seems to be between the yamaha and the honda. I just couldnt find any posts that specifically stated you needed "this certain size to run a specific option".

You need to figure out what appliances you want to run on a generator. I can think of only 3 that use a substantial amount of AC power, and which do not have a propane alternative.

o Air conditioner. This is by far the biggest power user. Some people are able to run the roof air on a Honda 2000, but some are not. This means that a 2000-watt generator is right on the edge - you really something a little bigger for reliable operation of the A/C. Realisitically, your options are a pair of Honda 2000 units, or a single Honda 3000 unit, or probably the Yamaha 2400-watt unit. All are heavy, all are expensive, all are quiet. By the way, all generators take a performance hit at altitude, so even if you find that you can run your air conditioner on a Honda 2000 at sea level, you probably won't be able to run it in at 5000 feet in Denver.
o Microwave. Depending on size, these things need anywhere from 700-2000 watts of power. I would buy a smaller unit, say 900-watts, so that it can be run from a Honda 1000.
o Hair dryer. A traditional hand-held hair dryer uses 1200-1500 watts of power. Again, if you buy an 800-900 watt unit, you will be able to power it from a Honda 1000.

You will probably also carry an electric space heater, but you have the propane furnace for space heat, so you won't power this from a generator.

As far as battery charging goes, you will probably find that you are charging at a maximum of 20 amps. At 12 volts, this is only 240 watts, so it is no problem for any of the generators. Same for lights, water pump, etc etc. All of these are very small.

Conclusion. If you want to run the air conditioner, you problably need the a pair of Honda 2000 units, or a single Honda 3000 unit, or a Yamaha at 2400 watts.

If you can do without the air conditioner, then a Honda 1000 will carry the load if you are careful about selecting moderate-power versions of the appliances (microwave, hair dryer) you use.

I just wanted to make sure I could recharge the TM battery by simply plugging in the adapter and power cord from the TM to the generator and let the converter do the work recharging the battery.

Yes, any of the generators discussed, including the nice little Honda 1000, will handle this with plenty of reserve.

Hope that is specific enough.

Bill

Here is a site (from Honda) to help decide which generator you need.
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/gencho.asp

I also think you can charge your battery directly from the small Honda generators which would be more efficient than running the converter on 110v. The small Hondas supply both 110 and 12v. The eu1000 12v outlet is 8 amps which is adequate for charging the batteries.

Originally Posted by Freedom

Here is a site (from Honda) to help decide which generator you need.
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/gencho.asp

I also think you can charge your battery directly from the small Honda generators which would be more efficient than running the converter on 110v. The small Hondas supply both 110 and 12v. The eu1000 12v outlet is 8 amps which is adequate for charging the batteries.

The debate on this topic is that the converter, for most traielrs, is a three stage charger.

The Honda when used with 12 volts, is a one stage charger.

The general consensus is that using the trailers converter as a charger will charge the batteries faster and will automatically reduce the voltage as it gets close to topping off, where the converter will switch to trickle charge mode. The Honda generator is all or nothing, there is no trickle mode.

FWIW, we camped a few weeks ago for five nights. Over night lows were 43 to 48. Daytime high was 75. We ran the furnace every night, but it did not run much. I charged the batteries for about an hour a day. Perhaps 45 minutes would have been enough.

Well I own a Yamaha 2400. It does run the AC if you turn it on slowly to let the cap charge before going from fan to AC. Don't bounce the AC on and off and on with the switch. At 70lbs it's bulky for me to carry around. Ironically I've never taken it on a trip. The two batteries last plenty long and the last three weekend trips were to the beach and AC wasn't needed. Over this last hot summer we were at sites with hookups for the week so again I left it behind. Storage on board is inconvenient. I'd strap it down inside but then have to lug it around at the site. A Honda 1000 could probably fit in the outside compartment on a 2720. We just run out of water first anyway.

My wife uses a 12V hair dryer and we have no microwave BTW... That's my inconclusive opinion.