Generator info wanted.

deuce

New to nuCamp and all things electrical.

curious what community thinks about a Honda Northstar 2700 PG, with 2300 running watts for the 320 CS. 

Is this an “inverted” design?

Local pawnshop wants $250.

Denny16

I think this Northern Tool generator is a bit of overkill for the TaB320, as it it large, compared to the Honda 2200i.  Also it is not an inverter i type Generator, but it will run your trailers AC.  

deuce

How about a Honeywell 2000i. ???
surge is 2100 and running 2000

CrabTab

That should work. We have a 2000W surge rated generator for our 2019 320. It is part of our SHTF accessory collection. It powers the AC.

nhmike

Not intending to be offensive but I don't care for generators.  I have a cs-s and use 160 watt solar panel with a group 27 battery for extended weekends.  I do not bother with the refrigerator.  I'd rather buy a couple of bags of ice than listen to the generator.  Most of the time we have power at the campsite anyway. I totally respect the choice of others, I just like the quiet of the outdoors. 

deuce

@nhmike no offense taken

deuce

@Denny16 and @CrabTab -

Thanks so much for your earlier responses. Do either of you or the community have a reaction to a Ryobi 2300I ?

(I think) I have done a lot of figuring out of things today and am I correct when I say that the AC will not work unless plugged into a shore station or generator? 

(That just goes years it to show how little I’ve used the AC to this point - been at altitude).

After the Danby AC (#DAC050BAUWDB)* starts, does a generator automatically scale back after the initial “surge”?  There is all this talk about Eco control system on generators, but some have seemingly a “manual reduction” to 75%, 50%, 25% to increase the run-time of the gas-load.  In other words, can I dial it down to 25% and the AC will still run?

Do some generators have both automatic Eco control and a Manual reduction in output?

CrabTab

@deuce I can answer some of your questions. 

No personal experience with the Ryobi generator. One of my sons has a Ryobi power washer. It has a Honda engine and is quite nice. He lets me work on it each spring to clean out the carburetor after he forgets to winterize.

Danby air conditioner requires AC power, either campground pedestal or generator.

After the air conditioner starts our generator revs down again
to a much lower RPM. We really haven't used the generator other than break it in and to test its capability.

Our 'house rule'  is to gain altitude and/or latitude if boondocking  in hot weather. In those situations we have been recharging the battery with a 100Watt solar briefcase. In our past travels we have planned stays with available electricity for air conditioner during peak hot weather (i.e. Daytona, FL in July). 

When we are ready to travel again we'll probably take the generator just in case we boondock under a thick forest canopy or hit days of inclement weather. 

Not sure about the specifics of eco mode on either generator you've mentioned. Ours has a manual switch, and seems to run at low revs when under little load. It will pick up with air conditioner running, to meet electrical need.

deuce

@CrabTab - thanks, this messages board is incredible.

Can you share the brand of your solar briefcase?

”  after he forgets to winterize “ - ROFLMFAO

Do our circa age 30 boys know each other?

Tundra57

I use a honda 2800i open frame inverter generator with eco position with my Tab 400. The inverter generators act like they have a battery and the motor charges it the output is a dc to ac converter. So when demand is low, they drop to a quiet idle. As the load increases the motor speeds up. The output is very stabler, both frequency and voltage. The non inverter types which are much cheaper just use a motor to turn an alternator. So it has to run at a constant speed to maintain voltage and frequency. Hence its more noisy. Also the output can vary as the motor speed varies, when the load comes in, the motor will slow down a little as the throttle system tries to get the speed back up. So you can see lower frequency and voltage as you load it up.

If you have voltage sensitive equipment and/ or you want a quieter generator, an inverter type is best. For cost the straight open types are half the cost.

I fitted a soft start (many have here, just search on soft start) on the ac compressor, this reduces the current on start up and would allow a smaller generator (some state that a 2200w  inverter type works fine) and allow it to spend more time in idle mode. Without it, my generator voltage would drop enough when starting the AC  to cause my power protection box to trip. With it fitted there is no problem. Also keep in mind that long lengths and small gauge cables from the generator to the tab will cause voltage drop and causes more current to flow which can cause a no start for the AC.

Use a min of #12 gauge extension cables if you have to  extend the Nucamp supplied power cable, also keep it as short as you can stand. With an inverter generator it will be  quieter anyway.

For solar, i use two Renogy 100 watt suitacases in parallel. Added connector to the Tab and put the victron mppt smart solar controller in the Tab near the battery. Works well. Do a search on Victron or solar and you will find a lot of posts here with ideas.

Enjoy your Tab.

CrabTab

@deuce   My solar briefcase is a Renogy Eclipse. It is a bit smaller in physical size than the standard, but the same 100W output. We were pleased with it last fall when boondocking in the wide open spaces of the west.

Last year it was about $100 less than it is today. Stuff seems to now roll in and out of stock on Renogy's site instead of on and off sale. Guess everyone is a 'prepper' now, so demand is way up. There are many quality brands if you choose to add solar.  In general monocrystalline panels are more efficient than polycrystalline.

I've been looking at HQST brand online. They are curiously similar to Renogy, use Renogy charge controllers on their briefcase and are less expensive. Their street address is a few blocks from Renogy...

Edit 9/26/20: HQST doesn't seem to list a solar briefcase on their site any more. When we recently ordered a flexible solar panel from them the charge controller and wires came in a Renogy labelled box.

Sharon_is_SAM

https://www.trailerlife.com/top-stories/power-your-adventures/

Found this over on the TaG forum.  A good starting point.

DougH

@deuce No doubt you have both the perfect inverter generator and solar briefcase by now.  And it's odd talking air conditioning in December even though it's in the mid-70s today.

But just to be that lonely voice arguing weakly for solar based A/C...

You can run the air conditioner off of a solar system too, but you will need several panels and several batteries.  I have 4700Wh of AGM batteries in my 320 (1 in front, 2 in back), and 300W of solar. I'm using a 400-550W 6000BTU air conditioner in place of the 5000BTU Danby.  Running nonstop at 500W, with inverter efficiency accounted for, with 150W of incoming solar (I peak at 250W under perfect conditions) means I can run the battery bank down to 40% (2820Wh / 350) for up to 8 hours of air conditioning.

HOWEVER... you should not deplete AGMs down to 40% unless you are immediately going to recharge them.  And if running the A/C until sunset, that won't happen, and the next day or two would use all the solar to charge the bank back up.

That said, if it's 90F outside, and I set the A/C to 78-82F, the A/C will cycle on and off periodically... using 500W for 5 minutes, then idling for 10 minutes. I frequently boondock and take a lot of 1-2 week trips, and I routinely run the A/C for 3-5 hours a day in summer boondocking without dipping below 50% battery bank utilization at the end of the day.

It's an alternative to a generator, but only if you recognize that you will need to spend $1500 or more on panels, Victron charge controller & battery bank monitor, batteries, and an inverter... and only if you're okay running the air conditioner for only a few hours per day, and setting the thermostat to a higher temperature, assuming it's sunny most days.  Note: on cloudy days solar drops by half or more depending on brand of panel, but so too does the solar heating of the camper, so A/C isn't needed as much. I used to have a Honda EU2000 on the front rack, but eventually sold it since I never needed it.  No fumes, no noise, no CO2 emissions, no gallons and gallons of $3 gas. The solar investment will pay for itself in only 117 years of relative discomfort when boondocking in the sweltering heat versus a traditional generator. 

I have my panels permanently mounted in the back, but in hindsight, I would have put a rack on the back of the T@B, gone with 300W of portable panels I could keep in the sun while the camper is under a shade tree, but then be able to securely mount the panels to the rack when on the road to keep the fridge and other accessories powered.

LonesomeRoad

Can't speak from experience, yet, but we're looking to probably get a Predator inverter from Harbor Freight for out 320BD. I've watched many videos on this unit, and, for the money, it seems reasonable. If we go that route, I'm adding in one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Motoparty-Magnetic-Predator-Inverter-Generator/dp/B07VK1H6HG/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=0PT6R&pf_rd_p=58f68c27-9bf4-466f-b1c8-101a062bcc82&pf_rd_r=TAX8BZXKKS0637GDZ3KE&pd_rd_r=2f068dd1-c46d-452c-85c1-30d1ff829f6d&pd_rd_wg=Iby7y&ref_=pd_gw_wish  right away and going to be religious with early oil changes to ensure production residue is well cleared out. It seems like an inverter is the only way to go to keep noise to a minimum. That said, we're hoping to use the 100W solar on top and supplement with a 200W Renogy suitcase before resorting to the inverter.

JPRoland

I have the Honda 2200i and in the Eco mode it runs very quiet. However, like NH Mike, I don't like a lot of noises while camping and I have not used it camping in the three months I have owned it. I do like having it with us as a back-up, though. By the way, is a high-powered air-wrench that sounds like a jack-hammer really necessary for one to put down his stabilizers? I realize it is necessary if the person has a disability or just can't crank the stabilizer up or down. But, the guy next to me this past weekend blew me away when he fired up his air-wrench. I though I was at a NASCAR event. I have Parkinson's and bending over unscrewing a cap, stretching upwards putting on an awning, and using my arms in a rowing motion to crank up the stabilizers is all good exercise for my condition. I'm going to try to do things manually until I can't. It's good for my muscles and cuts down on noise pollution. 

Dutch061

LonesomeRoad said:

Can't speak from experience, yet, but we're looking to probably get a Predator inverter from Harbor Freight for out 320BD. I've watched many videos on this unit, and, for the money, it seems reasonable. If we go that route, I'm adding in one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Motoparty-Magnetic-Predator-Inverter-Generator/dp/B07VK1H6HG/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=0PT6R&pf_rd_p=58f68c27-9bf4-466f-b1c8-101a062bcc82&pf_rd_r=TAX8BZXKKS0637GDZ3KE&pd_rd_r=2f068dd1-c46d-452c-85c1-30d1ff829f6d&pd_rd_wg=Iby7y&ref_=pd_gw_wish  right away and going to be religious with early oil changes to ensure production residue is well cleared out. It seems like an inverter is the only way to go to keep noise to a minimum. That said, we're hoping to use the 100W solar on top and supplement with a 200W Renogy suitcase before resorting to the inverter.

I have owned 2 Predators, they are terrific. I would suggest buying from HF and getting the 1 year warranty. You can return it before it is a year old and get a replacement for free. You can buy another year warranty, and keep going. I had a 2K Watt but bought a 400, so I used the return credit (100%) and rolled it into a 3500 Watt. I never even changed the oil in the 2K but I have used the 3500 Watt many more hours, so I have serviced it.

Rated very high on CR and less $$$ than most anything out there, plus a free replacement annually if you keep buying the warranty.

Brad