Very small generator - am I thinking right?

[DoubleEagle]

The problem with Honda parts is when you go to a Honda Dealer to get them - you get gouged. I have bought Honda carburetors from aftermarket suppliers for Honda mowers and snowblowers for under $30. They were made in China, but are in plastic bags with the Honda name and stock number on them. It could very well be that the latest and greatest models have parts available through Honda only, but I would always do a search first. Nothing is worse than paying way too much for exactly the same part. I wonder if the markup in price makes the dealer pay too much as well.

[luvrbus]

Honda does gouge the dealers and they pass it on,Carl showed me a fuel filter from Honda almost 4 bucks he buys the same filter aftermarket for $.80 and you cannot tell the difference in the 2.He also said Honda is now getting terrible about paying for warranty work  

[Jon]

You cannot have too much money. You can never be too thin. And you cannot have too much generator power.

If you want to be comfortable running all the AC units you can put on a coach, run a refrigerator, an electric stove and grill, a HW tank, etc. put in a diesel powered generator. It will last forever and run almost trouble free its entire life.

The noise is because they need a sound box. The box needs sound deadening material and if it is done right the AC units are going to make more noise than the generator.

[lostagain]

The ideal coach is all diesel, all electric.

One generator is enough. I don't get why you would want a separate small generator. You would have to burn a lot of fuel in the big built-in genny to offset the savings of using a small one. Then there is the hassle of having to pack it along with you, and take it out to use it, have a gas can for it, etc.

As for solar panels, they are great if the bus came with them, like mine. But I probably would not put them on a bus I was building. They only work when the sun is high and bright. They don't work when parked in the shade, or in the winter when the sun is low.

Just make the big genny quiet in a good enclosure, and use it when needed.

JC

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

All good points JC.  But you live up in Canada where the sun never shines.  Move to California then you can take advantage of the sun. ;-)

[Tikvah]

Thanks for all the input, suggestions, and opinions.
I think, if I can, I'm going to get the tiny generator and find a 30amp 24v charger, and use it when it makes sense.

Know any good deals on a 30a charger?

[luvrbus]

The ideal coach is all diesel, all electric.



As for solar panels, they are great if the bus came with them, like mine. But I probably would not put them on a bus I was building. They only work when the sun is high and bright. They don't work when parked in the shade, or in the winter when the sun is low.

Just make the big genny quiet in a good enclosure, and use it when needed.

JC

Or covered with snow 

[Tikvah]

The ideal coach is all diesel, all electric.

Wouldn't it be fun if everything was ideal?   

My coach isn't ideal, but it's mine and I really like it.
It's a lot like me, not ideal, but pretty nice just the same

[belfert]

I have been carrying a Honda EU2000i as a backup generator on my annual big trip for several years now.

I bring an extra generator because I had major trouble with the brushes on my big diesel generator for a few years.  One year I had to get power from a neighboring RV to keep the refrigerator running.  I spent about eight hours working in a cramped six inch wide space to fix my generator instead of enjoying my trip.  The year after that fiasco I added a slide to my generator.  No more problems with the generator since I added the slide, knock on wood.

[Iceni John]

I saw a price of $360 per panel times 8= close to $3000? Plus charge controller $$$? That's a good deal of money for a lot of us for battery charging.. Harbor Freight have some that are on sale frequently for some that wish to gain some initial experience.
Btw, does a controller shut off the panels when the batteries are fully charged?

Yikes!   You should be paying less than $200 for a grid-tie panel (about 250W).   The deals are out there.

John

[Iceni John]

The down side to all the small generators like the Honda and others if you don't take care of the crappy fuel we get now the tanks rust through and the CARB compliance fuel system you can buy another generator for the price of repairs.
I have saw bills at our local Honda dealer ( a friend)for over $500.00 for repairs caused by fuel on the little things and the parts are big $$$,Honda has minimum parts order my friend has to order at least $150.00 worth of parts each order or they will not send them       

If you convert your gasoline generator to propane, then the quality of available gasoline won't matter any more.   I converted my emergencies-only Champion 3.5kW to propane, and it starts and runs as well as before  -  for the 5 hours or less I run it each year propane is ideal.   I now think of it as a propane generator that can also run on gasoline if needed.   I drained the tank, fuel line and carb, so now there's nothing in it to cause problems.   Easy!

John

[luvrbus]

We have a 3800W Onan propane generator in the Trek it does real good, burns clean and always starts.Only draw back it sucks propane under a load like with the roof it uses almost 1 GPH

[Oonrahnjay]

We have a 3800W Onan propane generator in the Trek it does real good, burns clean and always starts.Only draw back it sucks propane under a load like with the roof it uses almost 1 GPH 

     Ouch.  Yeah, propane has low BTU/gallon versus diesel and gasoline.  There are always tradeoffs and compromises.  I'm seeing more "non-ethanol" gas available around here (N Carolina, S Carolina, Virginia) these days - used to be just at boat docks and similar places; that and "Stabil" should help but I just don't like the results you get with modern gasoline.

[TomC]

http://www.powertechgenerators.com/pages/cd8000si

[luvrbus]

I see new S/S RV's with Kubota propane powered generators when using a gasoline engine we have a neighbor that has one