LE1 Generator Selection

[Steve and MA]

9 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

Did the same testing on the ole Dometic Hammer Mill A/C and a Honda 2200.  With soft start it did well. 

We used our old EU2000i with a SoftStart equipped Dometic for a couple of years. Our OEII has the 3000 watt Xantrex. We only used the generator for summer boondocking in the Texas Hill Country, never at high altitude. The combination worked well most of the time.  We couldn't use the microwave concurrently with the AC, and if the batteries weren't at 100%, the Xantrex had to be dialed back to the lowest charge rate.  When outside the trailer, the generator was much louder than advertised due to the higher rpm and frequent surging as the AC compressor cycled. It was annoying.  At least when inside the trailer the generator surging couldn't be heard over the noisy Dometic.  We recently switched to the Truma AC and a 3200 watt generator.  They're both much quieter, inside and outside the trailer.

[Ronbrink]

On 11/13/2024 at 7:57 AM, Ronbrink said:

Also, gasoline as produced and sold today is of rather low quality. You cannot keep it on hand, in a gas can, for more than a month or two before it starts to produce a lacquer-like sludge.

Not only that, ethanol blends are hydrophilic and have an affinity to absorbing moisture, thus causing condensate water in a tank.

[MAX Burner]

On 11/10/2024 at 4:51 AM, Ronbrink said:

DC-DC charger is a great alternative!

Concur 100%.  

If boondocking multiple days in overcast WX (sans a GENSET), one can always plug the OTT into the TV and "idle-charge" the battery bank at 30 - 50Amps depending on what type of 12/12 charger is installed.

With 740W of solar modules, we have not seen the need to haul the 48# Honda EU2000i much.  

Edited Tuesday at 01:15 PM by MAX Burner

[topgun2]

2 hours ago, MAX Burner said:

If boondocking multiple days in overcast WX, one can always plug the OTT into the TV and "idle-charge" the battery bank at 30 - 50Amps depending on what type of 12/12 charger is installed.

Unfortunately, if you are camping in Yellowstone National Park, this is not allowed.  Generators are not allowed and they consider a vehicle a generator when it is being used like this.😪

Bill

[jd1923]

26 minutes ago, topgun2 said:

Generators are not allowed and they consider a vehicle a generator when it is being used like this.

As it should be!

I walked by a brand new GMC Duramax in the Walmart parking lot the other day. It was soooo quiet I could not tell the engine was running until I was within a few feet of it. Very nice, wish I could afford one!

My Gen 2 Cummins at idle is quite another story! It is certainly much louder than a Honda generator. I never start the engine just when somebody is walking in front of me in a parking lot. Good thing it quiets down at highway speeds! 

[Geronimo John]

12 hours ago, MAX Burner said:

If boondocking multiple days in overcast WX, one can always plug the OTT into the TV and "idle-charge" the battery bank at 30 - 50Amps depending on what type of 12/12 charger is installed.

I use your method as a back-up plan for my Honda Generator.  Reason is running a 400 horsepower engine, even at idle, to create what a small generator can do just as well..... causes me to pause.  But if my solar panels and Honda fail to get the job done, then I will for sure be singing praises for your suggestion! 

[katanapilot]

8 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

I use your method as a back-up plan for my Honda Generator.  Reason is running a 400 horsepower engine, even at idle, to create what a small generator can do just as well..... causes me to pause.  But if my solar panels and Honda fail to get the job done, then I will for sure be singing praises for your suggestion! 

At the risk of starting a "climate change" debate, I have often wondered if our modern automotive gasoline engines with all of their pollution controls are actually more polluting than a Honda generator?  Yes, the Honda meets CARB specs, but I don't think these little engines are really very "clean".  We have a golf cart that we drive around the neighborhood (Kawasaki engine) and I sometimes contemplate driving the car instead - as I believe a warmed up automotive engine is actually "cleaner" than the small air-cooled one.  Maybe not on CO2 - but I don't see CO2 as a polluting gas.  CO2 levels on earth were higher during the dinosaur days and I doubt the dinosaurs were burning "fossil" fuels.