Put in for a few south Texas draw hunts and the places don't have electricity. What size generator do I need to run a small air conditioner and a couple of lights on a 16ft trailer? Is renting one cost prohibitive? powdr

An a/c that plugs into a wall outlet can't be over 1500 to 1800 watts so any generator with a 2000w steady output will work. Don't confuse steady output with surge output. They will rate the surge quite a bit higher but the generator can't maintain it.

The first trick is to find out the amp draw on your AC and everything else that could be running at the same time. Add it all up and go from there.


Try to find a quiet one.

Honda Eu2000I should work perfectly, my buddy runs his cabin with his all the time.

I have an eu2000i. It is a great unit but it is not rated to run a typical RV AC unit. You can pair two eu2000's and it will handle it with ease, or spend the same amount of money and get an eu 3000 that will run a trailer. The smart money is on double eu2000's. More power, lighter, and able to be split up makes it a better choice than the single 3000 unit most of the time.

You are looking at a bit over $2,000 for any inverter setups (eu 2000's are about $1,000 each). Unless you are camping in a dry wash somewhere alone you do not want to be the jerk that runs a cheap construction type generator all night long keeping the entire campground up.

Edit to add, if you have a smaller window type AC u it, the 2000 may run it. Check the amperage draw on the AC.

powdr,
I just recently bought a Powerhouse 2000WI inverter generator for my 18 ft. camper and used it for the first time a few weeks ago. I did not try to run the AC unit with it, so I'm not sure it would work for you, but the generator did do a good job for everything else. It's as quiet as the Honda (according to the dB ratings of both) and can be had for about 1/2 the price. Same weight, too, so it isn't difficult to move around (about 50 some pounds). As others have said, you'll have to check the amp draw on your AC to determine if it will work with whatever generator you get.

Great place to ask and purchase if you are looking

Wise Sales

I sell generators among other things, but I wanted to be sure of what to use for my own 25' camper. I found out my AC needed 19+ amps to start and 16A to run. That eliminates household current at 15A. Don't try to under-power things. You need extra current to run things all at once. I settled for a 3500w generator. I work on all kinds including Honda. I even sell Honda. I decided on a different brand for my application. Don't let anyone generalize things. If you need any suggestions let me know. I can warn you away from many things. Probably not familiar with them all, though. Marty

If you REALLY need AC to sleep, that is an issue, but maybe try using 12v lights and living without the AC - cheaper, quieter and less bother. A supplemental 12v RV batt is a lot simpler, and quieter, than making 120v.

A very good generator came bult in to our 25 ft. MoHome which has been used for all sorts of travel and hunting. Have started the gen once - to make certain that it worked.

Another vote for the Honda EU2000I(and it's companion) and another vote for Wise sales.

We took a cheap route... for one that serves many uses.. mostly for running 3000 watts of lights on the airboat for bowfishing.

China freight 3500 watt.

Runs teh RV, 28 foot with AC, runs the window unit in the bedroom in a power outage in the summer, plus a few lights easily.

Took the cheap 300ish buck generator down to the muffler shop and had em add on an extra muffler.

Pretty quiet now and when it goes bad, I don't have to worry about taking it to a shop to work on it.... just uncrate the next one....

What ever wattage choice, make it a Honda. Cry once and never again.

Yep. Buy two and the cord to parallel them.



Travis

This or just get a bigger gen. I can't see a 2kw gen running the AC, fridge, lights, etc for a 16' trailer.

Do this first, though.

Well you have plenty of time to find out plus you have to get picked for the hunts. Wait until you get that e mail before you do too much.
Renting, don't know what they charge but a buy cheap gen in more than likely in the $400 range today. Used to be $300 on sale. Will have plenty of power for what you want but the suckers are loud, real loud. If you go that route get the extra muffler as Jeff did.

Your going to have to compare the rently/purchase difference for what the local guys charge.
Looked at my todays add for cabela's. $329 plus tax. 4000 watts. That's Fort Worth or you could go to Buda wherever Central Texas is to you.

If it cost more than $100 bucks to rent for a 4 day trip, I'd buy.

Yep. I've got the Honda EU2000i and it's a great little unit, but it doesn't have enuff oomph to run a large camper with air, on it's own. Two of them in parrallel would be perfect if you've got the wallet. They are amazing machines.

what ever you get make sure it has more than enough amperage to run the AC. low power the ac and you will damage it.

And enough to *start* the AC!

Need around 1.3 to 1.5 times the running amps for starting surge.

Last I checked, Onan was the only brand certified for Fed Forests.

That may have changed. Last week I was camping and since we were alone, I pulled out the 4000w generac to charge the battery and enjoy the AC since it was on. Local Fed ranger happened by and nicely advised me I couldn't run it. I showed him the old Honda 1500 and asked if I could use it just to charge the battery. He looked like he was gonna say no, but said OK but it wasn't rated for the forest either. But that thing is about as old as you'll find still running

Exactly what we learned. Two together might work, probably would, but that is a lot of coin.

We bought a used ONAN 4000W inverter type Generator with electric start and have been using it now for 3 years. It is not only powerful enough to easily run our camp trailer, AC, microwave etc. but when we have had power outages this unit keeps items in our home here that are critical to live like the fridge and DirecTV during football season going! Oh yeah, the pellet stove, too

Looks like I'm wrong

http://www.fs.fed.us/eng/pubs/html/03511304/03511304.htm

I still vote Onan. Best one out there. Quietest too based only on my observations. Expensive though

I found what I must have mistaken from before. At the bottom, you'll see they MEET National Parks noise requirements. 60db at 50 yards.

http://power.cummins.com/onanpowerW...arentId=533&linkName=RV%20Generators

Looks like I'll be looking for a throw away in the 3500-4000 range for as cheap as I can get one. Rost's idea sounds about the best unless I find a used one. powdr

The Honda 2000 watt gens are rated at 1600 with a surge rating of 2000.

Please add an extra muffler. I've seen people run those damn things all day and into the night. They are made for construction sites and loud as hell.

I bought a new Honda EU2000I,it wont run my air conditioner, but does a great job on everything else...they're bullet proof.

WE had a couple fo these, and they ARE loud, and they are badly over rated as to power output. Get a 5000W unit, and my might have one that will actually handle a 4K load. Plus 1 on the need for a better muffler and set it as far away from your camper as your chords will allow. THEN, put a large piece of thick plywood (best) or your spare tire (ok) against the unit to force reflect the sound away from your sleeping and eating quarters. BTDT x many and have the t-shirts and scars.

Check small engine shops. You might be able to get a spark arrestor for about anything.

The trick to getting any refrigerated unit (ac, frig, freezer) to run off a generator is to make sure the generator has enough surge power to get the appliance running.

Its not the running that draws the most amps, its getting the compressor started.

For ex., the typical frig will run at 800 or so watts, but it takes about 2200 or so watts to get the compressor running.

Most small generators are sold by watts (the big number sounds impressive), when actually they should be sold by amps (that's what is listed on the appliances the generator will be running).

Amps = Watts/Volts or .5 amp = 60 watts/120 volts (typical incandescent 60 watt light bulb)

Also keep in mind that an a/c will be cycling on and off. It will be repeatedly demanding the high wattage so you can't turn on the a/c, let it get running, then turn on other stuff when the demand drops.

When I was looking at them Honda only made their inverter generators up to 3K. They might make a 4K, but I don't recall seeing one.

Yamaha makes a 4K inverter, and my buddy has one. Bad ass generator, incredibly quiet, but heavy as fugg, cost over $3,000.00 brand new, and you only have one generator.

For around $2500.00 (more cheaper actually) you can have two very portable, very reliable, very quiet generators that can be paralleled and will likely handle most any task involved with campers.

That's why I recommend the two smaller Hondas. Or, two smaller Yamahas. I have another friend that has the 2K Yamaha's and he is very happy with them as well. I just prefer Hondas.




Travis

^This. More wattage/amperage, lighter, less money, and the ability to split them up if needed. The only reason to go for the Honda inverter 3000 is the ability to mount it on the roof or tongue of a horse trailer and start it using the remote. It sounds like the OP is going the other way toward a construction site type generator. I hope he is camping where there are no close neighbors.

This ^^^^^

And getting an AC to start up is the worst offender of them all. Yet for hot weather camping or hunting they are a HUGE plus to have. To be able to really rest and re charge one's physical "bodybatteries" in a cool place is monsterously helpful in making the next hunt, or morning, a fun thing and time VS "Here we go again, I hope I kill something so I can quit this hot messy chit"

I remember having a non AC equipped truck camper on a hot deer hunt not so long ago. My goodfreind and I had a great spot to hunt deer, and we had made a pact to only shoot a 4 point buck with antlers that stuck out past his ears. Early the second morning my freind shot a 2 year old 3 point buck, ready to quit the heat and all. I shot a moderate buck a couple of hours later so that we could GET OUT OF DODGE and get clean and comfortable. I have endured many long and gruelling, endurance testing hunts in the past, but I am pretty much done with that stuff now.

Good point. I have an Onan 4000 in my trailer. It is rated at 30 amps. The Honda 2000 is 13.5a. I still want a Honda though, I don't always want the Onan running because it sounds like a lawn mower compared to the Honda.

Regarding the start up power on a compressor (A/C, reefer, freezer, etc.) check the locked rotor amperage specification. Convert that number to wattage and size your generator to that power requirement. There are electronics that can be added to your compressor that delay the start up of the cooling fan on the compressor until the locked rotor amperage drops to the steady state running amperage. Be aware that these after market devices void the factory warranty. The newer RV A/C units have this delay built in from the factory. Put LED bulbs in your light fixtures.If you select your electrical devices carefully and manage the electrical load (don't run high draw devices simultaneously), you can run everything except the A/C on an EU1000 and parralel a second EU1000 when you need A/C. If your vehicle motor is a diesel, it's a pain to bring gas for the generator. Most small generators can be converted to propane but then you need a larger propane tank. Honda used to be the only quiet small generator but you pay for that exclusiveness. Suburu (Robin engine), Yamaha and others are closing the gap. You can quiet the Harbor Freight Chinese POS generators if you provide cooling air intake and direct the exhaust out a plywood/foam shroud but then you end up with a slightly less noisy POS generator for a lot of hassle. Most guys that buy them don't care about their neighbors so then their noisy generators are permanently silenced at 03:00 AM by their pissed of neighbors while they are sleeping off the effects of their drunken card game the previous evening (so I've been told).

I was in Cabelas recently and looked at the Champion generators they're carrying. They say they're very quiet.

The problem with most of these smaller generators is that they only output 120v. If I buy a generator, I want one that will run my pump in an emergency and that takes a 240v. A 3500W with a 240 will take care of my well and enough lights to get by for a week if necessary.

A 3500 is going to be pushing it to run a pump, fridge some lights etc. I run a 4400peak/4000 when our power is out. It's a strain say if your pump is running and the fridges compressor kicks on at the same time.

I have both a Honda 2k and 3k inverter generator. The Honda 3k is quieter and will run my 13.5 btu air conditioner.A much better all around generator in my opinion and better than the Onan 4k I had also, much quieter.

The Honda 3k is the quietest of all accept the little Yamaha 1k.



Jayco

Interesting mention about intake air on the cheaper gensets. I was told years ago by a friend in the marine business that most of the noise from these small generators actually comes from the air intake, not the exhaust. At the time I had a one cylinder diesel generator in my boat that operated at 3600 RPM, and was LOUD. An extra/larger muffler did not help much. I ran a 1 1/2" diameter thick plastic hose from the air cleaner "horn" to an intake fitting outside the hull in the the stern, and it cut the engine sound by an amazing amount. Also, on any diesel engine, the operating RPM has a lot to do with engine noise. The old style diesels running at around 2,000 rpm can be very quiet. I had twin 6 cylinder Cummins engine in that boat, running the exhaust through 2" pipe with no mufflers at all, and it was not noisy at all.

I sell BSPP (Briggs & Stratton Power Products)and Hondas.The BSPP has generac made components. I've seen them go 800+ hours with crappy maintanance from customers. My cost for the 3500W RV model was $430. I usually mark em up about $100. Don't buy too many throw aways with some quality equipment available that is pretty affordable. This one is quiet and comes with a 30A RV receptacle.

I've always given free estimates and some preliminary check overs on equipment. This went away for the Chinese knockoffs after losing money too many times. There are jobs that don't get finished because of lack of parts, etc. Champions are included on my bad list. Some air compressors, power washers, etc are also junk and hard to work on.

The honda 3k is quieter than the honda 2k. Both are really quiet.

[quoteYep. Buy two and the cord to parallel them.



Two of them in parrallel would be perfect if you've got the wallet. They are amazing machines.[/quote]


You're blowing my mind! How do you sync the wave-forms of two AC generators in parallel?

Ancient Chinese secret!

Series?

No, it is parallel. Electricity is not my strong suit.

You're blowing my mind! How do you sync the wave-forms of two AC generators in parallel? [/quote]


It's quite simple really:

Understood and I agree. But...I still think the place to start is to figure elec draw of all circuits and appliances, etc. Then the OP can calculate start surge and added margin needed.

In that vid I posted the guy said that hooking two Honda 2000s together with the factory harness will still only get you 20 amps because of the built in breaker. His kit allows for a 26 amp load.

I keep seeing the fridge mentioned. If we're still talking about an RV fridge, I don't know of one that won't run on propane. You only need a battery to start the pilot.

I've dry camped 14 days straight and never used the Gen except to run an AC or charge a battery. We're not talking about running a house during a power outage. Unless he wants dual purpose.

I would run the Hondas with what Honda recos, makes, and sells.

YMMV.

We went the cheap route for our 22 ft trailer.

Cabela's had a 3500/4000 watt unit on sale for $329 around the middle of June. I found out, it is made by Champion.

Doing a little research, Camping World told me the Champion 3500 would not run an RV AC unit at our elevation (2500 ft) since they had made them California compliant.

That left me concerned as our campsites are in excess of 5500 ft.

It turned out that the Cabela's generator was labeled "Not For Sale in California". It is fitted with a 30 amp RV outlet or one may draw power from a 20 amp 220V outlet or use an included cord to split the 220 into two 20 amp 110 V circuits.

We run the refer on gas, and the generator powers the AC at 100 degree plus temps and recharges the two twelve volt deep cycle batteries with no trouble.


The caveat is, the AC must be turned off before the microwave can be started. (Momma insisted that that she get to take a microwave along to warm her coffee.)

Also these cheap generators are not good for sensitive electronic devices. But I am one who has promised to shoot the first TV or computer to appear in the camper.

That's weird. My Generac 4000 is Ca compliant and will run lights, AC, and charge the battery at 8000 ft.

Interesting. I looked over the specs on Cabela's website for their 3500 and here's what it says:

Receptacles include 30 amp 120 volt AC twistlock, one 30-amp 120-volt RV receptacle, a 20-amp 120-volt.

There's no mention of a 220v outlet. Must be a typo or something.

Same with my Onan. It has an altitude adjustment knob on the carb that I think adjusts the main jet. I didn't even notice it until I had to replace the carb last week. The only difference I think is the California carb is sealed and un-adjustable and un-rebuildable.

Now that you mention it, I never did put the volt meter across to see if it made 220. It is a four prong outlet with two separate 110 feeds coming out of it, I suppose i just assumed one could cross them and get 220.