Generator Advice

[barkerdl]

Generac Generator

If you want a Generac 4000XL - a so called RV generator, just come by Las Vegas and I will sell it cheap! I bought it for camping and it sounds louder than my 6. 5 HP Briggs and Stratton lawn mower going thru tall grass. Very reliable - starts on the first pull every time - runs my camper A/C with power to spare. Just LOUD. Too loud to run in polite company.



Get a Honda or Yamaha or go to a quiet diesel if you can afford the price. Never waste your money on a noisy generator for camping.



I also have a Honda EX 1000. That's the only one I take because it is so quiet. Charges batteries and runs small appliances, but will not run a coffee pot or microwave.



Should I buy another it will likely be the Honda or Yamaha 3000 model series.



End of Soap Box



Dennis

 

[NVR FNSH]

I think I paid ~$1600 for my EU3000 from these guys - http://hondashop.com/ They're local to me and they were the best price I could find.



The EU3000 is not cheap but my peace of mind - I'm not afraid that somebody is going to shoot me when I forget to turn it off - is worth it.



Brian

 

[DPelletier]

Good Post, Towpro,



Every decibel counts. Buy the quietest generator you can. I went for a two week trip with one of those box store special Coleman units (sorry, don't have the model #) and it was way too loud to use in the campground. I now have a Honda EU1000 for running the TV, Blender, battery charger, etc. Quiet as a mouse.

On another note, I don't have air in my camper (don't need it here), but I didn't think you needed any more than about 2500 watts for a 12,000 BTUH AC unit. Do you really need double that?

Dave

 

[willy1947]

I have the Troy Built 5550/8550 . Well, it is the one you mentioned from Lowes.



Works good. I can run my 4. 5 hp air compressor off of it and my 220 welder (if I use small rod). The coleman would not run them. I bought this one because of the surge watts.



I am somewhat dissappointed in the pull start mechanism. It rubs some. I worry about this in the long run.



This generator is loud compared to RV generators. I only use it when I am working on my Jeeps when I am out wheeling.



It is a good, inexpensive way to get power. But I would not want to listen to it all night. It would be worth the extra money for the nice and quiet generator. If I was just camping, I would use the smaller one. But I am usually places that have lots of ATV's and Trucks making twice the noise I am, so I can live with it.



Just my two cents.



Dave

 

[RobertBolinger]

I've got a 4200 watt Generac-has a Briggs motor-paid about $450 for it at Northern Tool 5 years ago. Original muffler was the can with holes in one end-very loud-so I spend $85 on a Briggs "quiet" muffler package-said it met National Park standards. It's a little quieter, but not much. Bottom line, is the RV gensets are quieter, and making the cheaper portables quieter may be more trouble and expense that just buying the quiet one to start with.

 

[zari]

Thanks y'all

You're confirming what I already suspected - to noisy for my application... I guess I'll check into the parallel Honda EU2000i set-up.



As far as A/C start-up goes... I have read some complaints from owners of the dual-Honda set-up that their A/Cs cannot start; and about as many of happy owners - go figure... I did read though that a 12000BTU A/C needs between 6800 and 7500W at start-up; but no details on what kind of A/C that is.



Anyhow, thanks for your input; definitely kept me from making a mistake



Alain

 

[TowPro]

Re: Thanks y'all

I read something here, in this forum around a year ago, I can't remember if the guy bought 2 2000's and they would not start his AC, or was it a 3000 and it would not start it.



As far as the Generac 4000XL being loud as your briggs lawn mower, It might be a different one then I have. Mine is a Nagano 7. 8hp OHV engine, and it is quieter then a lawn mower, but still more then I would want to start in a campground. I bought it for camping out in the woods by myself, but ended up using it to backup my house and putting 2 batteries in my camper instead.



If it got real hot and I feel I need it out in the woods with my pickup camper, I can just chain it to my flatbed trailer I carry the dirt bikes on. (then chain the trailer to the truck!)



the Generac's I posted earlier in the DB thread are real RV generator, mounted in a camper cabinet, running on Propane (or gas) type generators, just like the Onan ones. but hell, Cummins owns Onan so you know which one we should pick!

Originally posted by zari



As far as A/C start-up goes... I have read some complaints from owners of the dual-Honda set-up that their A/Cs cannot start; and about as many of happy owners - go figure... I did read though that a 12000BTU A/C needs between 6800 and 7500W at start-up; but no details on what kind of A/C that is.



Anyhow, thanks for your input; definitely helped me not making a mistake



Alain

 

[Turbo600]

I have the honda 2000 and not only is it quiet but i can run my a/c off of it as well.

If you check out campers choice they have a/c units that use 7 amps instead of 13 amps and keep my 32 ft pace toy hauler cold.

I only a/c the front 16 ft.

 

[Buffalo]

I ran across a really neat generator set-up at the RV show , in Quartzsite, AZ. It's basically a Generac in a custom made tool-type box with a 12 gal. tank. Fits in the bed of your pick-up and looks like a toolbox. It is extremely quiet! The 3. 6KW is $3995, and the 5. 5KW is $4495. They make 8 different units, including diesel. Phone #, in Phoenix is 888-686-6278. Website is, gerry@mountainmaster,net. Hope this helps. Joe Fihn.

 

[AKsmoker]

Go Honda! Worst thing in the world is have some one pull up next to you and fire up world war II for hours on end especially late evening. Ive seen tires slashed over it. First time I heard a EU2000 I swore Id buy one. Put my Coleman to shame. You'll love the peace and quite and so will your neighbors. 6months same as cash any Honda dealer.

 

[HBarlow]

zari:



I bought one of the 4500 watt Generac units from Home Depot last summer. It is electric start and works great. It easily starts and runs my RV air conditioner unit along with the AC/DC converter/charger. To operate the microwave oven I rotate the temperature knob on the AC unit towards warm to kick the compressor off temporarily to avoid overloading the generator. This way the AC blower continues discharging cool air for the minute or two the microwave is running.



The Lowe's product is made by Generac also, just packaged under a different name and without electric start. SAM's Club offers a Coleman with similar power ratings for less than $500.



It is true, as many others have written, that the Generac unit is noisier than a Honda or other quiet unit. It is also heavier, about 160# when full of fuel. However, the price was more attractive than a quiet unit. Since I primarily use the generator to run the AC unit, the generator's noise level doesn't bother me. With the trailer windows closed and the AC unit humming the noise is not offensive. I travel more than I camp so "campground" noise is not much of an issue.



My local Home Depot still offers 10% discounts for old folks (55+) on Tuesdays which made the Generac even more attractive.



You know the old adage: You pay your money and take your choice. If you want quiet quality, I'm sure the Honda is an outstanding product. If you want to spend less money, the Generac is a viable alternative.



Harvey

 

[Tim1]

Fellas, I have the Honda 5000watt electric start model with the roll cage around it. Too loud after 10minutes!! I use this for backup power for the house, but needed it for dry camping at the sand dunes. Solution ::::::::::::::::: No more dry camping!! Tim

 

[jadoca]

Originally posted by Buffalo

I saw a Yamaha EF3000iSEB, portable, on wheels, 152 lbs. , 51-57 dBA (extremely quiet, campground friendly), with "boost technology". Basically, it provides you with an extra 500 watts of power, from the starting battery, for ten seconds, to get the A/C started. I saw it start an A/C while two 500 watt halogen lamps were on, and then they started an air compressor. All 3 were running. 20. 5 Hours@1/4 load. Remote start available. 3. 4gals.

is this the remote start that southwest has or someone else?



regards,

 

[OTRPU]

I couldn't pass on the great price on the Generac at the local discount buying club. wifey and I loaded that puppy up in the PU, hooked the 5er and up the hill we went. Got to the campground unloaded the thing, rolled it over behind some bushes and pushed the button and fired that puppy up. Birds fell from the sky, the fish jumped out of the lake and I think a few deer had heart attacks. Bout a hunnert campers in that campground, every one of them let me know in no uncertain terms that they didn't give a dam if I had air or not. Got less than an hour on that thing, boxed it back up and down the mountain we went, drained the gas outta it and throwed it back in the box. Back to the discount buyers club and returned it for full refund. I've been walking through life stepping in these piles my whole life. Now I'm able to discern shist from shinola. If you wanna camp get an RV generator, if you wanna construct. . . that's a different story. Truthfully. . . there's no such thing as a quiet generator, some just don't make as much noise as others. God Bless Honda et al that provide a better answer. They're actually cheaper in the long run if you count slashed tires and sugared tanks. I haven't seen anybody kilt over it yet, but have seen some that wanted to.



Cheers,

Steve J.

 

[tgrfan2]

I would take a hard look at the Honda 2000's. We use our 3000 a great deal dry camping and love it. The problem I had was snagging the generator on some turns. I would check for clearances carefully on any selection. Now that my generator is in the generator bay I think it is the best compromise going. It will run super quiet and use very little fuel. You don't need 7K power because you can run the water heater and frig on propane. The difference long term in generators that operate in the 50db range makes the cost worthwhile.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Well put OTRPU! LMAO

:-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[Buffalo]

JADOCA, Yes. That unit can have a remote-start installed on it.

 

[Buffalo]

JADOCA, That was the unit from Southwest.

 

[JohnE]

Originally posted by OTRPU

...

. . . there's no such thing as a quiet generator, some just don't make as much noise as others.

...

That's why I appreciated camp sites that separate the tents from the RVs. Even in a plug in site, the sound of the A/C is really loud in a tent when all I expect to hear is crickets.

Some LP powered appliances aren't that quiet either in the dead of night.

 

[zari]

Update...

Well, I finally decided on a unit. After lots of back and forth between the 'quiet' Honda models (two Honda EU2000 and/or EU3000), and after looking into alternative brands, I finally decided upon the <em>Yamaha EF3000ise-b</em>.



It provides up to 3,500W for 10 seconds and can handle 15,000BTU air conditioners at start-up; it has 2,800W sustained load capacity.



It is quiter than two Honda EU2000s, at about the same noise level as the Honda EU3000. It also runs for almost 20h on one tank at 1/4-1/2 load.



It is less expensive than the EU3000 and has a higher max wattage rating.



It weighs in at about the same weight as the EU3000, but has wheels factory standard; with a ramp it's not too hard to get it in the bed of the Ram.