Is there a difference in Small Portable Generators?

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

For anyone who carries a small portable generator either as a primary generator such as in a van or small travel trailer, or for a backup if their larger generator fails, or if you need a small portable generator for off-site use, I often wondered if there was a difference in these popular generators, besides the price. 

Here is an interesting video that shows what you get when you spend more money for a good Honda generator vs. something you may get from a discount store such as Harbor Freight. 

Is it worth it?  Well, that depends on how often and long you plan to run it, how long you plan to keep it, how well you plan to maintain it, and what you plan to use it for. I found this an interesting comparison.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5n1sPy3Al6M

[windtrader]

noise along is worth it to every other person in the park. You wanna be hated, get those noisy rattling POS cheap ones .Don't ask me why I know. yeah - i'm a hater, my massive generac purrs like a kitty.

[BusNit]

I had bought a predator generator new from HF two years ago as a backup to our 17.5kw bus unit. I had taken our coach out for a cross country trip when after the first day the inverter failed. The onboard generator did not start either. The predator came out and although it ran, it was not putting out any power. I only had one cord plugged in for a toaster oven to heat our food. When we got back from our 3 week trip, the HF generator went back to the store and I bought a new Honda 2200 unit. Worth the money in peace of mind. I have since replaced the inverter and added solar to the bus. Generator needed some relays. All is well. Last year we did another 2 week trip with no issues and not a drop of oil use/leak. Got this thing dialed in!

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

noise along is worth it to every other person in the park. You wanna be hated, get those noisy rattling POS cheap ones .Don't ask me why I know. yeah - i'm a hater, my massive generac purrs like a kitty.

Yes, my top concern is noise too.  Many of the generators, low-rent kind of people are buying for boondocking are the cheaper commercial-grade generators, built to generate a lot of power for a short amount of time and then crap out after a few hours. 

My Wrico generator is built to run for 30,000 hours with regular maintenance and small Honda generators may last quite a while too.  But there is nothing worse than having to listen to a noisy generator when you are out boondocking enjoying the sounds of nature.

My generator is installed in a soundproof bay, but I still installed a pretty extensive solar array and 8 lithium batteries on my bus so I would not have to listen to a generator running any more than necessary and for my neighbor's benefit too. 

I full-time in my rig, and I got accustomed to a quiet environment living on 100 acres in the country growing up.

[luvrbus]

Generators are why I don't like rallies but they are necessary from time to time .I get a lot of visitors and they all know where the 50amp and 30amp services are even with solar and 8 to 10k dollars worth of lithium batteries   

[windtrader]

Clifford,
Let's be fair and balanced. Yes, even the best and most powerful solar/lithium rigs can need some extra juice from a penny or off the pole.


I've been on the beach for a month in Mexico and never needed anything except what solar is delivering and what batteries are storing.


Over the past several years, I have needed external power only once and that was when I sat in a California fog bank in Monterey for nearly a week. Some days the sun never came out and others some sun peeked through for a few hours. There was not enough sun to keep me powered up.


Keeping the 8kw Generac in the bay costs nothing and pulling it takes labor I don't need to expend. I could easily get rid of it and gain a half a bay of space which I don't need and replace with a small quiet Honda for those rare times I need to power up the batteries but common sense tells me to just leave things as is.

[luvrbus]

Don folks with total electric coaches struggle, even here in Az it can be overcast for 3 or 4 days. The ones with propane for cooking, Fridges .hot water and heat seem to do better, what s the joy of camping to find spots for more solar power and calculating your power use for a day.
I see people parked in the sun with trees all around and the AC units set on 82 degrees in 110 temperature. In colder weather the AquaHot and Webasto will draw some power from a battery bank some of it makes no sense people with generators and solar system with batteries, chargers and inverters that cost more than the bus is worth.
Gary Hatt has a good system but he will plug in or use his generator for a few hours a day,you can buy a lot of fuel for $10,000.00 + and be comfortable too it is whatever flips your switch when it comes to RVing .Me I like parking on the rivers in Idaho under the shade trees with the hot springs close,it cost us about 3 bucks a day to use the generator to top the AGM batteries off, where we park at Lowman on the river the closest rv is spot is over 150 ft away and my generator was quite so it didn't bother the neighbors not like it is at rallies

[lvmci]

I would think the vast majority of intercity bus conversions stay on payment, use pole power and only on special occasion use their generators to power up while boon docking, usually planed in advance. I have used mine on interstate trips where we parked for an overnight stop on the way someplace and on a few occasions used the generator to power the bus when the the RV park lost power. Great to know the generator is there...

[Jim Blackwood]

I always figured the best approach was to be as versatile as was financially reasonable and draw for my needs from a variety of sources that are flexible in use and replenishment. To that end, to get heat I can use diesel, or propane, or electric power. For hot water I can use propane or electric. For cooking I can use propane, electric, or if need be wood and charcoal. I can get my electric from batteries, shore line, or a generator that burns propane. I can add a gasoline generator quite easily if it's ever needed, and some day I can see adding solar to the mix. I am still waiting to see how the flexible membrane solar cells develop as those look like a great option for a bus roof once they become more affordable.

But I always keep the bottom line in view. I'm not about to add $10K of solar to a bus I paid $5k for in the first place, no matter how much it's current worth may be unless that formula changes drastically.

Jim

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

How about this 2200W Honda Generator for only $59.98?  Yay, or Nay?

https://www.shoponline.market/products/powered?fbclid=IwAR2X5gl0JK79Ru3ta4WLbqdasF7SBP0U4h1gmQpxc1Hu3XkTk6J-bZzFZoQ

[dtcerrato]

SCAM

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

SCAM

What was your first clue?   

[luvrbus]

SCAM

Yep about like the 1000 buck tool boxes for 39 bucks with free shipping, I know a guy that bought one all he got was cheap CV-19 mask from China

[dtcerrato]

What was your first clue?   
[/quote

Price, too good to be true!

[epretot]

Solar doesn't have to be expensive. Plus, you can add over time...

I chose to buy batteries. But you can build them for cheap. Solar panels are about 1.15 a watt. You can get those used as well.

Plus ground deploy if you don't want to fasten it to the top.

I wasn't going to install solar when I started this project. But I quickly realized what a mistake that would be.

I have on demand propane water heater, dryer, and stove. I can heat with wood and do often. My dehumidifier is the killer.

I have a 10kw onan quiet diesel that I have to somehow install into the bus. It may weigh 700lbs. That should top batteries off and run air conditioning.

In my opinion, water is much harder to come by.