Charging the battery with a generator: AC or DC?

I have been reading some of the old threads on batteries and generators. I am interested in getting a generator for charging the battery during dry camping. We have a trip out west planned for this summer, but most of our camping is in the east where most campgrounds tend to be in shady areas (making solar not practical). The Honda EU series looks like a reasonable choice for low weight and low noise. How long will it take to recharge the TM battery with a generator with either the EU1000 or the EU2000? (With minimal load). - Bob

[Bill]

Those are both nice generators, but both have a rather low capacity for direct battery charging - only 8 amps. You would charge faster by using the generator to power the entire camper through the main power cord. By doing this, you provide AC power to the converter (just as if you were in a campground with hookups), and the converter will do the charging. If you have an older TM with a 6300-series converter, the charge current is still limited to only 10 or 12 amps. If you have a newer TM with a 7300 series converter, considerably more charge current is available, but your battery may accept that higher current only if it really badly discharged.

Of course, the time required to charge the battery depends on how badly discharged it is when you start. But it is surprisingly long - I think 3-6 hours for a complete charge is not out of line.

BTW, I'm sure you're aware that neither of the Honda EU- generators will run the roof air conditioner ...

Bill

>>BTW, I'm sure you're aware that neither of the Honda EU- generators will run the roof air conditioner ...

Yes - I don't think we would use the AC while dry camping, just lights, water pump and a little furnace if it gets cold in the evening. So if I use the generator to provide AC power to the TM converter, is there any advantage of using the EU 2000 vs the EU1000?

[RockyMtnRay]

Originally Posted by murphyb74

>>BTW, I'm sure you're aware that neither of the Honda EU- generators will run the roof air conditioner ...

Yes - I don't think we would use the AC while dry camping, just lights, water pump and a little furnace if it gets cold in the evening. So if I use the generator to provide AC power to the TM converter, is there any advantage of using the EU 2000 vs the EU1000?

You could easily run most microwaves off the EU2000...and still charge the battery, etc. But unless you have one of the really low power/ultra small 600 to 700 watt microwaves, a EU1000 probably wouldn't handle the load.

Even I, Mr. Boondock Camper himself, do regularly carry a microwave in my TM so that I have it for the 10 to 15 percent of the time that my campsite has an electrical hookup. Those things are just so versatile for quick heating of all kinds of foodstuffs. And they don't warm up the trailer interior on a hot day.

Considering that there's not all that much difference in price (or weight or size) between the EU1000 and EU2000...but a huge jump in all 3 factors to the EU3000, I'd suggest that the EU2000 gives a lot more more bang for just a few more bucks.

[Frenchy]

I've been thinking of buying the Yamaha EF2800i. It weighs 64 pounds, has 2800 watts max output and a noise level of 67 db at 2400 watts. This drops down to 60 db at low loads. At 2800 watts, it will run a 13,500 BTU AC. It costs about $1225 at www.wisesales.com.

[RockyMtnRay]

Originally Posted by Frenchy

I've been thinking of buying the Yamaha EF2800i. It weighs 64 pounds, has 2800 watts max output and a noise level of 67 db at 2400 watts. This drops down to 60 db at low loads. At 2800 watts, it will run a 13,500 BTU AC. It costs about $1225 at www.wisesales.com.

Appears to be a hybrid between the low cost, old style, really noisy contractor grade generators and the newer, high cost, ultra quiet, sound insulated inverter models like Yamaha's EF3000 series.

67db is loud enough that you'll get complaints and you may not be allowed to even use it in some campgrounds, particularly in many National Park Service campgrounds. I've seen some pretty ugly confrontations between campers and a heckuva lot of really nasty looks when someone was using even a moderately loud generator (65 to 75 db range).

Better find out exactly how low the load must be to get the sound level down to the more generally tolerated 60 db level...my suspicion is that would be a load of only 400 to 600 watts.

$1225 is a very good price for 2800 watt generator and a lot less than the ultra quiet 3000 watt generators cost...but it would be an extremely high price to pay if you aren't even allowed to use it because it's considered too noisy by the host/ranger/manager of the campground you're staying in.