Generators

[ThoseDarnKids]

My mom is still without power in Spring, North of Houston, a week after Ike hit. It's probably going to be a couple weeks before she has power, so we've been talking about buying a generator for next time this happens, as well as other stuff. I didn't want to rush out and buy one right now, without doing proper research, only to regret it later.

 

I was there all last week and the one thing we've come to hate were the noisy generators that drone all day and night from our neighbor's backyards. Some of them are just obscenely loud. I think most people rushed out and bought whatever $500 generator they could find.

 

What I'm looking for is something reasonably quiet. But, I'm also hesitant to spend a good deal of money on a heavy, 4,000 - 5,000 watt unit that might only get used once every few years. So, I've been thinking about having two 2,000 watt units running parallel. The reason would be that a 2,000 watt unit would be very useful at the racetrack, camping, etc., instead of hauling around a large 150 lb. unit.

 

I've been interested in the Honda EU2000iA. Are Honda generators... err, inverters, pretty much the ones to get? I know a guy who has the 1,000 watt Honda and that thing was amazingly quiet. It was impressive. They're pricey, though.

 

Thoughts?

[georgerosen06]

My mom is still without power in Spring, North of Houston, a week after Ike hit. It's probably going to be a couple weeks before she has power, so we've been talking about buying a generator for next time this happens, as well as other stuff. I didn't want to rush out and buy one right now, without doing proper research, only to regret it later.

 

I was there all last week and the one thing we've come to hate were the noisy generators that drone all day and night from our neighbor's backyards. Some of them are just obscenely loud. I think most people rushed out and bought whatever $500 generator they could find.

 

What I'm looking for is something reasonably quiet. But, I'm also hesitant to spend a good deal of money on a heavy, 4,000 - 5,000 watt unit that might only get used once every few years. So, I've been thinking about having two 2,000 watt units running parallel. The reason would be that a 2,000 watt unit would be very useful at the racetrack, camping, etc., instead of hauling around a large 150 lb. unit.

 

I've been interested in the Honda EU2000iA. Are Honda generators... err, inverters, pretty much the ones to get? I know a guy who has the 1,000 watt Honda and that thing was amazingly quiet. It was impressive. They're pricey, though.

 

Thoughts?

 

heard today that if your powers not back on by monday or something the electric company is giving you 2000 bucks so that would be your generator money. granted this is just what i heard from two of my familys friends that live up there so its not like i found it in writing or anything

[pennzoil29]

I've used a few different models, and yes, Honda's are the quiet ones. Sorry to hear your still without power. We had a few neighboring communities that just had power restored from that storm, and I live over 1k miles from you.

[D&SYukonDenali]

I've always been impressed with the Honda's.

[OUMike]

Well I know we've got a 5500 watt unit that we got for the storm and we paid about 800 for it. It seemed a little high, but we were in the middle of nowhere (Crockett, TX) and didn't have much of a choice. It's Briggs powered and loud as hell.

[ThoseDarnKids]

I've used a few different models, and yes, Honda's are the quiet ones. Sorry to hear your still without power. We had a few neighboring communities that just had power restored from that storm, and I live over 1k miles from you.

 

I was amazed at how much damage Ike did North of us, once I got online and saw some national news. We had been listening to local radio all week, so the coverage was focused on Houston. Ike really left a trail of destruction.

 

 

 

 

So, any of you RV guys familiar with a setup like this?

 

 

Are there any real downsides to running two units parallel?

[Mikeee]

Honda

Honda

Honda

[alaska511]

I own the Honda EU2000i and absolutely love it. I always comment it is the best money I ever spent. I can run it anytime while camping, as it idles so quietly. It only speeds up if I use the microwave, which is rare.

 

Generators are not a popular item in a full campground. That Honda is the King of Quiet

 

There are no downsides to running parallel, they will still run inverter (slow) unless the demand picks up

[Black02Silverado]

Sorry to hear your power is still out. No fun at all. Honda is the way to go. Yes pricey but worth it. Way back when Fran hit here in NC people were using what ever they could get for power and using cheap generators. I guess power is power but the cheap ones didn't have regulated power and over time the ones running cheap generators trashed their refrigerators. The one appliance store that we deal with had a major influx of bad freezers and fridges. Today's might be better since that was over ten years ago but you still want a good clean power source.

[pm26]

Well I know we've got a 5500 watt unit that we got for the storm and we paid about 800 for it. It seemed a little high, but we were in the middle of nowhere (Crockett, TX) and didn't have much of a choice. It's Briggs powered and loud as hell.

 

Sounds just like my Coleman 5kW generator powered by a single cylinder 10 HP Briggs engine. Extremely loud and no idle speed, or other speed control. Always runs at full speed. If I was going to buy a generator now, I would get one that drops to lower or idling speed with light load or no load.

 

Another desirable feature on a generator is a skewed brushless rotor, which provides a cleaner sine wave so you can run electronic equipment off the generator.

[ThoseDarnKids]

We got a Honda EU2000i on Saturday. AlaskaLTZ is not kidding, this thing is awesome! It just purrrrrrs all day and all night. We ran a mini-fridge and 3 fans the other night for 11 hours on the 1.1 gallon fuel tank!

 

My mom loves it, too. Steadily filling it up with a full 5 gallon fuel tank is the only thing about it that's not super easy. But, I'm going to do that gas cap mod that let's you use an external fuel can. I was reading a thread where this dirt bike racer turns his on Friday afternoon and let's them run non-stop all the way through Sunday afternoon without touching them to refuel or anything.

 

If only the damn neighbor's generator wasn't so noisy, I could Enjoy the Silence.

[alaska511]

We got a Honda EU2000i on Saturday. AlaskaLTZ is not kidding, this thing is awesome! It just purrrrrrs all day and all night. We ran a mini-fridge and 3 fans the other night for 11 hours on the 1.1 gallon fuel tank!

 

My mom loves it, too. Steadily filling it up with a full 5 gallon fuel tank is the only thing about it that's not super easy. But, I'm going to do that gas cap mod that let's you use an external fuel can. I was reading a thread where this dirt bike racer turns his on Friday afternoon and let's them run non-stop all the way through Sunday afternoon without touching them to refuel or anything.

 

If only the damn neighbor's generator wasn't so noisy, I could Enjoy the Silence.

 

 

They are sweet, worth every penny IMO. Just keep the oil changed! I went for a long weekend, and started adding up hours, holy cow! You run it a lot more, since it is not overly annoying, and the next thing you know, it's due for service

[ThoseDarnKids]

Yeah, I made a mess with the first oil change. Tilting it over didn't work very well. I ended up picking the damn thing up and holding it over the drain pan after most of the oil was already on the ground.

 

Check out how nicely a Kill-A-Watt fits on it...

 

[alaska511]

That's a great idea with the Kill A Watt!!

[C & A s Dad]

We got a Honda EU2000i on Saturday. AlaskaLTZ is not kidding, this thing is awesome! It just purrrrrrs all day and all night. We ran a mini-fridge and 3 fans the other night for 11 hours on the 1.1 gallon fuel tank!

 

My mom loves it, too. Steadily filling it up with a full 5 gallon fuel tank is the only thing about it that's not super easy. But, I'm going to do that gas cap mod that let's you use an external fuel can. I was reading a thread where this dirt bike racer turns his on Friday afternoon and let's them run non-stop all the way through Sunday afternoon without touching them to refuel or anything.

 

If only the damn neighbor's generator wasn't so noisy, I could Enjoy the Silence.

 

 

They are sweet, worth every penny IMO. Just keep the oil changed! I went for a long weekend, and started adding up hours, holy cow! You run it a lot more, since it is not overly annoying, and the next thing you know, it's due for service

 

 

 

You are exactly right about the service issue. Many people buy a generator and kind of think of it like a lawnmower. With most mowers they get run about an hour or so a week and the oil gets changed 2 times a year. With a generator running 8 hours a day, it is ready for an oil change about every 3 days. Some brands recommend the first change to come after only 2 hours of running. I also think if there were an engine that needed a quality synthetic oil, it is a generator engine.

 

I have a 5250 with a Subaru Robin engine on it and although it is not an inverter style it is still pretty quiet. One of our stores has a little 1000 Honda and a 3000, both inverter style and I have heard them run. Most vacum cleaners make more noise than these things.