Generators

[Tony in Tas]

I am looking at purchasing a portable generator around the 2000W region for use to charge all my batteries when out bush.

So far I have looked at the Genquip and Honda. There doesn't seem to be too many threads on generators so I was wondering if anyone has any experience and or recommendations.?

My specifics are lowest noise possible; long run times; DC and AC power output; pure sinewave.

Cheers
T

 

[BravoBrad]

The Honda's are hard to walk past. They may not be the cheapest, but they are a good unit.

 

[Navvic]

Yeah we have a Honda and are very happy with it

 

[Matt76]

I have a 1000w Honda, great bit of gear.

 

[Red Dog]

I have a 2000w Honda, not the cheapest to buy but very reliable.

 

[Krankin]

I have a 2900 Kawasaki...got it second hand, cleaned it up and a service...great geny...have had it running the house 4 or 5 times all day while power has been out and i ran my house during/after the 2009 bush fires for 3 1/2 days straight till mains come back on....runs superbly.

you should be right with any of the name brands though...keep in mind there's also some reasonably priced diesel gensets around now.

 

[Old.Tony]

We have the Honda Eu20si 2000W generator. It's rated at 52dB, the Eu30 of the day (about a year ago) was rated at 51dB and THAT was the quietest on the market.

Yamaha have come to the fore with a 2,000W genny that produces 47 or 48dB. It would be every bit as reliable as the Honda and similarly allows you to piggy-back a pair together to produce 4,000W.

My advice: don't skimp. Scorpion, GMC and other cheapie brands are NOT viable. I have a GMC generator and the only way to make it produce stable 240V is to put a 100-150W load on it, otherwise the voltage fluctuates from 170V to 300V.

I've been considering looking at diesel generators but until I have a farm where I am completely self-sufficient in terms of energy, I don't see the need. When I'm camping, I need quiet as my main priority - and although my Honda is still ranked as one of the quieter generators, everyone could hear it at the Muster - I had to run it to keep the ice cream cold, and no matter where you stood in the paddock, the gentle drone was present.

I would go and take a serious look at one of the new Yamahas.

 

[snapper2112]

Iv got a Crommelins Subaru R1700i which is 1650watt ( more than honda) same 3 year warranty really happy with it.

 

[Navie Oiler]

We have the Honda Eu20si 2000W generator. It's rated at 52dB, the Eu30 of the day (about a year ago) was rated at 51dB and THAT was the quietest on the market.

Yamaha have come to the fore with a 2,000W genny that produces 47 or 48dB. It would be every bit as reliable as the Honda and similarly allows you to piggy-back a pair together to produce 4,000W.

My advice: don't skimp. Scorpion, GMC and other cheapie brands are NOT viable. I have a GMC generator and the only way to make it produce stable 240V is to put a 100-150W load on it, otherwise the voltage fluctuates from 170V to 300V.

I've been considering looking at diesel generators but until I have a farm where I am completely self-sufficient in terms of energy, I don't see the need. When I'm camping, I need quiet as my main priority - and although my Honda is still ranked as one of the quieter generators, everyone could hear it at the Muster - I had to run it to keep the ice cream cold, and no matter where you stood in the paddock, the gentle drone was present.

I would go and take a serious look at one of the new Yamahas.

ok to dramatically reduce the noise, put an insulated tea chest over the gennie. get some flexi pipe (the stuff that looks like coils) and extend the exhaust out and down and preferably under the ground or throw some sand on top of the extra pipe...

 

[Navie Oiler]

the trick is to stop the sound waves from travelling....

 

[Old.Tony]

That's an excellent idea. As long as I can get air in for cooling (and the air intake too) then it could be a workable idea. I might play around with that ... step one is finding a tea chest, although I could just make the box myself and if I'm smart, make it collapsible. I'll give it some thought!

 

[matmce]

I have a 1000w yamaha. Slightly better specs than the honda equivelant (run time and noise). But its hard to go past honda's reputation. I couldn't get a honda with my gift vouchers i got for a birthday, so it was yamaha for me.

 

[RustyNav09]

I have had a Honda EU 20i for over 5 years and never missed a beat. Regularly serviced and used everyday. Until Boxing Day 2012 when some lowlife prick flogged it from my work Ute along with my petrol blower. I had it chained up and they cut the lock and chain to get them. I hate scum.

So I would recommend Honda for sure. Quality product

 

[gadgets]

Instead of starting a new thread I might just kick start this one again, Im looking at putting a van on a vacant block I have, most gear can be powered off my car(triple battery's),Im mainly looking for a geny to power the air con in the van Im looking at buying,Its an old one , 1978. Ive no idea what the power draw of the air con is, What Im most interested in is it being reasonably quiet( cant hear from say 50mtrs away) and the fuel capacity to run an air con through the night.
I would consider something you can hook up a aux tank to increase run time (if possible), Budgets at $1500 max, I would consider going second hand as long as its made by a known performer(yamaha/honda/briggs and stratton etc).Thanks for any imput.

 

[Old.Tony]

In this case it's not so much the engine that's important, but the alternator and electronics providing the power output. Honda does it the best, they say - although I'd have to pitch Yamaha right alongside them from discussions I've had with owners of those generators.

That doesn't mean that others will be poor, but you DO get what you pay for. GMC don't cost a lot and unless you already know to put a 100W to 150W "dumb" load on the generator before you plug your appliances, you'll burn them out with voltages varying from 170V to 370V. Grab a floodlight, plug it in and watch it deliver 238V (that's what mine does, anyway).

Adding a tank will take away the plastic-moulded generators and leave you with a frame-bound kit. You can grab a Scorpion or the like from BCF/Rays etc with > 2000W of power output and add a tank - put it behind something so the sound is reflected away!

 

[camo.b]

Ive got a scorpion 1kva pure sine wave genny..i got it to keep my 800 ltr fish tank going for a day the power was suppose to be off all day...after a oil flush carbie jet/bowl clean..new quality plug and a valve clearance adjustment she starts and runs perfectly(was brand new in the box too)5 years later its still going strong..makes a stable 240v and will start and re start everytime.
If you dont like to fiddle with new things or dont know how to check and tune...buy a good one.
Im perfectly happy with the scorp genny but it probably gets used once a year for a day and thats it.

 

[Gov]

I've got the Yamaha EF200is and love it. Never misses a beat. Quiet and good run times. Powered fridges, lights, laptops and lots of electronics and never had an issue.
Flood lights are a great indicator and can draw lots of power.
As Old Tony said, external tank may limit the models you can get but building a noise screen will compensate for the noise of the bigger framed units.

 

[Pats]

What Genny. ??

I have the Yammy 2400, runs like a charm, quite easy to start, had it running for extended time and fuel usage is acceptable.
They're linkable with another Yammy and double the output, runs the aircon in my van easy..
Down side they're quite heavy for shifting around and more bulky than the honda, but they do have a better consistent output load.

GOOD TIP..
1) always drain the fuel from the carby when packing away, I forgot after a trip away and it was a bugger stripping carby's and lines, but when done it ran like a dream again.
2) use higher octane fuel 98 makes the unit run better than 90-95... don't use E10 in them..