I've got the Honda EU2000i also. I bought mine a few years ago from a place that had an ad in a magazine I read. They were very good to work with and their prices were awesome. The cheapest I could find locally within 100 miles was a little over $1100. I called this place and got the generator and a cover along with shipping for a couple hundred less. They had to quit posting their prices as Honda won't let them anymore. You have to call to check them now, but I'm sure it's still well worth the effort. The place is: Honda generators - State of the art Honda Inverter equipped series generators featuring the eu1000 and eu3000 models.
Generator for camping and tailgating? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter BBQ BOY
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LAMBCRUSHER
SILVER Star
just curious, when is it too late at night to run a generator when you are in a campground? would you say 8-830, or would you be like that a hole I camped next to last year who thinks that 11 is time to shut down? At what time is it acceptable for a guy to crash in on the party and yank the magneto wires from said genset with protection of a large bore rifle? just curious.
most campgrounds have generator hrs. If they are over those hours, it is perfectly acceptable to go ask (nicely) for them to turn the generator off. If they decide to be dillholes about it. Then step it up.
Sneak over and put water in the fuel tank. It gives you enough time to get back in your sleeping bag.
rusty_tlc
Dain Bramaged Member
We were camped in death Valley last weekend, I don't remember the exact quiet hours but I know they stopped at 7:00AM because the generators started firing up at 7:02AM. 
I guess all those people in RV's that cost more than my house needed their AC and Microwaves running ASAP.
Yet another reason we Boondock camp whenever possible. I really enjoy drinking a cup of coffee and watching the sunrise in silence.
I guess all those people in RV's that cost more than my house needed their AC and Microwaves running ASAP.Yet another reason we Boondock camp whenever possible. I really enjoy drinking a cup of coffee and watching the sunrise in silence.
If you are camping around others,chain it up to something with a heavy chain.We were camping last summer and two generators were stolen overnite.Both were cabled down but the cables were cut.
If you are camping around others,chain it up to something with a heavy chain.We were camping last summer and two generators were stolen overnite.Both were cabled down but the cables were cut.
wow, you'd think that cutting those would make quite the racket eh...?
one disadvantage of having a Honda... the lowlifes know their Hondas too...
Bogo
FOOF
Near silent, quite easy, use bolt cutters...
I have a few pairs of pocket sized mini bolt cutters that would go through an average 1/4" cable rather quickly and quietly. I also have two crimpers that also can serve as bolt cutters. I know they will cut 1/2" steel cable.I haven't gotten any yet, but I've always wondered how hard it would be to cut a 1/4" #120 chain. Maybe as hard to cut as a padlock shackle.
I absolutely love the Hondas, have used them, know lots of folks that have them, etc. That being said, I don't need to use one often, only on extended trips, so I bought one similar to this ( GIO GENERATOR PORTABLE DIGITAL INVERTER 1000W | eBay) for ~$100 to the door. Supposedly, they are a clone of a tried and true old Yamaha 2 stroke. It's worked well for me when I've had to use it, or wanted to. That being said, it is noticeably louder than the Honda, especially with that telltale 2 stroke sound, but the difference wasn't worth $600 to me.
NorCalDoug
problems solved daily...
another vote for the Honda. I've had the EU2000i for a few years now and absolutely love it.
I've owned other (much cheaper and immensely louder) generators in the past and would own nothing other than a Honda.
I've owned other (much cheaper and immensely louder) generators in the past and would own nothing other than a Honda.
I know this thread is kinda old but....
I killed my battery tailgating at the UGA-GT game yesterday and it made start looking for something I was always curious about.
Does anyone know if there are small generators like the Hondas and Yamahas mentioned in this thread that can be used to power the electronics on a vehicle and maintain the battery simultaneously?
I know the Honda/Yamaha gensets have a 12V outlet, but can it be used in that way? Will it hurt the genset, car electronics, or car battery?
Would be super useful for camping or tailgating....especially if you have a fridge and a nice sound system (ie extra amps)
I killed my battery tailgating at the UGA-GT game yesterday and it made start looking for something I was always curious about.
Does anyone know if there are small generators like the Hondas and Yamahas mentioned in this thread that can be used to power the electronics on a vehicle and maintain the battery simultaneously?
I know the Honda/Yamaha gensets have a 12V outlet, but can it be used in that way? Will it hurt the genset, car electronics, or car battery?
Would be super useful for camping or tailgating....especially if you have a fridge and a nice sound system (ie extra amps)
Bogo
FOOF
The 12VDC battery charging outlets on the inverter generators aren't charge controlled. Also they are limited to 4 or so Amps in Eco mode and 8 to 12 Amps in regular mode. If you need to provide lots of 12VDC power I'd look at using a high capacity battery charger with one of them. A 1000 Watt Honda, really only 900W continuous, can easily power a 45Amp battery charger with some power to spare to run a laptop or two. For the battery chargers, look at the RV and boating industries. The other option is to just use 120VAC stuff.
I was under the impression that using battery chargers while running other things of the battery being charged is no-no.
Bogo
FOOF
All depends on the battery charger. Smart battery chargers shouldn't have any issues with powering a load too. Any made to be built into a boat or RV use should be able to handle it fine. RV ones will likely be cheaper as they don't need to handle a potentially wet environment.
Oh, forgot about RV 12VDC converters. They are made to handle 12VDC loads while parked with an AC hookup. They aren't battery chargers, but will charge a depleted battery. Usually they output something like 13.6V which is the float voltage for lead-acid batteries. They are often a bit cheaper than true battery chargers, but may charge a battery at to high of rate if it heavily depleted.
Here is one of the converters, but this one also has some smarts for charging batteries. Inteli-Power 9200 Series Converter/Chargers with Charge Wizard - Product - Camping World
Oh, forgot about RV 12VDC converters. They are made to handle 12VDC loads while parked with an AC hookup. They aren't battery chargers, but will charge a depleted battery. Usually they output something like 13.6V which is the float voltage for lead-acid batteries. They are often a bit cheaper than true battery chargers, but may charge a battery at to high of rate if it heavily depleted.
Here is one of the converters, but this one also has some smarts for charging batteries. Inteli-Power 9200 Series Converter/Chargers with Charge Wizard - Product - Camping World
The Honda is the way to go.... I have one
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/...ge=modeldetail§ion=P2GG&modelname=EU2000i Companion&modelid=EU2000IKN1
Its quite....just get an HD extension cord move the generator out a few feet with the exhaust facing away and it will be hard to tell that its on.
When we had a torrnado hit and we were out of power for 7 days or so...I used the generator to power my frigerator, a fan, radio & TV....it would run well over 10 hrs on a tank of fuel. IT has a throttle feature that you can turn on and off where the generator wsill increase the rpm as the laod increase and decrease it when the load decreases. At full throttle / heavy load the generator is louder but still it is by far the quitest generator I've seen. 2000 watts. I used the generator for 6 of those days...all night and most of each day.
The mayberry store has some good deals on them sometime..you have to call.
I bought mine locally a few years ago for backup power. Even after sitting for a while it will start after about the third pull and then once in use it will generally start after one pull. THe load I generally placed on the generator was light (so it runs on what is called echo throttle) at low speed, I did use the clothes washer once or tiwce and then just turned the echo throttle off and the generator runs at full throttle. The 10hr run time I mentioned is at light load.
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/...ge=modeldetail§ion=P2GG&modelname=EU2000i Companion&modelid=EU2000IKN1
Its quite....just get an HD extension cord move the generator out a few feet with the exhaust facing away and it will be hard to tell that its on.
When we had a torrnado hit and we were out of power for 7 days or so...I used the generator to power my frigerator, a fan, radio & TV....it would run well over 10 hrs on a tank of fuel. IT has a throttle feature that you can turn on and off where the generator wsill increase the rpm as the laod increase and decrease it when the load decreases. At full throttle / heavy load the generator is louder but still it is by far the quitest generator I've seen. 2000 watts. I used the generator for 6 of those days...all night and most of each day.
The mayberry store has some good deals on them sometime..you have to call.
I bought mine locally a few years ago for backup power. Even after sitting for a while it will start after about the third pull and then once in use it will generally start after one pull. THe load I generally placed on the generator was light (so it runs on what is called echo throttle) at low speed, I did use the clothes washer once or tiwce and then just turned the echo throttle off and the generator runs at full throttle. The 10hr run time I mentioned is at light load.
I know this is an old thread. 6 months ago I'd have said a Honda. Now that I have seen the light as far as inverters I'd say a decent 1000w inverter for camping and tailgating and spend the remaining money you would have spent on the 2k honda and buy a cheap huge generator for the house. Unless you bring a microwave camping you really don't need more than 1000w for tailgating or such. And lets be honest. When the lights go out at the house nothing says your prepared than busting out a huge generator and plugging it in and going on with your business.
Just my opinion.
Just my opinion.
I'm getting this for camping/batteries: Solar Panel Kit - Save on this 45 Watt Solar Panel Kit This is one of HF's 'new' products, and should be much higher quality. (hmm...at $160 right now, I may order today...hhmmm)
I purchased my Honda EU2000 a year ago from my True Value local hardware store for $999...they had them on sale last week for $899...that's a GREAT price on these.
I purchased my Honda EU2000 a year ago from my True Value local hardware store for $999...they had them on sale last week for $899...that's a GREAT price on these.
rusty_tlc
Dain Bramaged Member
How much generator do you really need at home?
I have a Honda 1000 that is enough to run the freezer and our forced air heater. I always keep a couple extra propane tanks on hand so we have the BBQ and plenty of gas for stoves and lanterns. We could probably get by for a week without power. Back when we had a self contained RV I never worried about having more AC than was required to charge the batteries.
How much generator you need also depends on where you live. Since I live in a newer development all the utilities are underground, we rarely have any power outages, and when we do they are usually less than an hour. I can remember when I was a kid in the rural PNW we had outages that lasted days.
If you do elect to set up a whole house generator please pay the extra few bucks to do a proper service disconnect/switch. In the grand scheme of thing it won't cost that much and could save a life.
