Champion inverter genorator

Pinspot

First off I would like to say thank you to everybody for sharing your experiences and helping us newbies. My name is Kipp and I just drove from Sparks Nevada To Murray Utah to pick up my brand new TAB CS_S. I must say that the dealer in Murray disappointed  me as they knew very little about the TAB. They had 2 teenage kids do the walk through with me that was a complete  waste of time. That's why I'm  so happy finding you guys. My question is about the Champion inverter generators. I'm looking at the Champion 3400 watt dual fuel that runs on gasoline or propane. Does anybody own or have experience with this unit? I really like the idea of being able to use both fuels, and would probably only use the propane so not having the maintenance of gummed up carbs. Any feedback would be great.

dragonsdofly

@Pinspot, can't speak to your question, but welcome to the forum, the t@b family and especially,  congratulations on your trailer. We had a nearly identical walk-through experience, but quickly overcame any newbie yips, as we find the t@b systems pretty intuitive. Good luck, savor the journey and enjoy!

robpt

@Pinspot, that is a promising looking generator! I like the 14.5 hours on propane, but my question for you would be, do you need that much power? Especially since it weighs just shy of 100 Lbs., and you would be loading that on and off every time you camped.  I mean, that is a nice generator and it would be ideal for my situation with the 400 where I need more power than what I currently have in a generator to run the air, but 100 lbs. lugging in and out of my vehicle would get old - unless you always have help. For the CS-S, I wouldn't hesitate to just use something like the Yamaha EF2000iS which I currently have (44 lbs), or the very popular Honda EU2000i.   

As for the walk-through, yes, I have experienced many times where I would educate some kid who is working the summer on features they had no idea about on some campers I have looked at. When I had originally bought my 320 S before trading it in for the 400, I politely sat through the prepared walk through speech, sat patiently while the young guy fumbled with starting the frig on propane, and when I finally left and got set up at my campsite, found that they had for some reason removed the filter screen washer out of the city water intake and water came shooting back out of the connection. I had to repack and drive back to the dealer where the mistake was finally discovered. 

Congratulations on the purchase! You have got me curious about this generator... I had be eyeing a Westinghouse igen2500 and a Microair Easystart mod for my air on the 400, but now I will have to go find something close to 100 lbs. to see just how bad lifting it will be to loading level in my tow vehicle. 

 

Tabaz

Did a quick check on noise levels via the web.  Looks like the Champion 3400 is quieter than the Honda 2000. Seems implausible, but could be accurate. I too looked into the dual fuel option with great interest for my Honda 2000. Factors to consider are (1) initial cost of the unit, (2) weight and your ability to move it around, (3) noise levels (you don't want to be the guy at the campsite with a loud generator), and fuel storage. Also, do you really need 3400 watts? Seems like overkill for a T@b. Have to say that propane connect on the Champion is elegant compared to the aftermarket Honda propane devices I've seen.

mikencarol

I have the Champion 3400. It is propane-ready right out of the box and I have only run it on propane. It is very quiet and you can plug a 30a cord in directly.  It’s also very heavy!  At about 100 pounds it’s a chore to lift it up to get into the bed of the truck. Mike

Pinspot

Thanks for the replys. The main reason I am looking at the Champion with the 3400 watts is we do a lot of camping at higher altitudes in the Sierra Nevada's. My brother has a Yamaha 2000 i believe and he has problems running his air on high. And I also like the option of using propane. But, your all probably right about the weight of the unit. As I do go out a lot by myself it probably would be a big hassle getting in and out of the tv. Thanks for the input and I will do some more research.

Sharon_is_SAM

Any chance you can just run it from the back of your truck?

Pinspot

Sam. That could be a good idea. I'll have to ponder it a little bit.

mikencarol

SAM said:

Any chance you can just run it from the back of your truck?

I run it from the back of my truck. I leave a couple of sections of my tonneau cover open. 

Verna

Judging by the Class A that pulled into the next campsite tonight, please be kind to your future neighbors and take a sound check 50’ from your exhaust......They have no idea how loud their generator is. I know how loud it is.....

Silver320

We have the Champion 3400.  No problems running the AC.  It is convenient to run it off of propane and we've only run it on propane.  Don't forget the push button start too which is awesome!  The noise is not bad and to my surprise my wife has even mentioned that it is not as loud as she thought it would be.  We just got back from a trip where we had it running about 15' away and could still talk comfortably.  (The "neighbors" 100 yards away were running theirs and it seemed about as loud as ours... though maybe it was just the irritation that they ran it 8am to 8pm.)  Like others have mentioned the big down side is the size and weight.  It takes two of us to get it in/out of the TV.

2Cougs

@Pinspot- Welcome!  We have a CS-S as well and LOVE it!  We bought ours three months used (barely) so got no walk thru.  You will find the knowledge you gain here plus talking with other T@b owners you meet, as well as not being afraid to just go do it, is all you need.  Happy T@bventures!