Portable Inverter Generator or Reg. Generator?

[Hatch]

I looked at a Kiplor gen. and was impressed.
It was VERY quiet !!!
I found it at a pawn shop and it was there for months.
The day I went to get it, a guy walked in 15 min. earlier and bought it.

But I found that parts and service were both difficult to get.
Not sure why, but if I had to do it over - I still would have bought it, if I still had the opportunity !!!

I've heard and read that the Yamahas are good, but the big determination for a boat gen. (for us) is the sound at full load at 7 meters.

[Tripod]

Originally Posted by Hatch

I've heard and read that the Yamahas are good, but the big determination for a boat gen. (for us) is the sound at full load at 7 meters.

The Yamaha EF2000is is very quiet. At full load it's definitely noticeable, but we can still converse in a normal voice at 3 meters. Ours rarely runs at full load. A 700-watt microwave and a 5K btu air conditioner are our biggest loads. Our normal load in the summer consists of lights, television, 20-amp battery charger, the air conditioner, and some incidental loads. With this load the generator is no where near full power and the noise level is very tolerable. The microwave and the AC unit starting up will rev the generator all the way up, but only for a few moments. Rowing away from the boat on a calm night, I can't hear the generator at about 10 meters when it's running at about half load. YMMV, but we're very happy with ours.

Bob & Judy
S/V Adagio

[Hatch]

Hey Bob and Judy -

You can really run a 5K BTU A/C unit on the 2000 watt gen ??
The reason I got our 3500 watt gen was to do just that (if it became necessary)

We may have miss calculated the start up watts.

Question - are you using a 110v adaptor on a 30amp cord from the boat ??
I'm thinking your gen. puts out 13amps ??

No over load problems ??
Just don't start them all at once - right ?

This is good info. I wasn't aware that I could use a 2000 watt gen for a small A/C unit.
Thanks.

[woodymr]

HONDAEU2000i

[Tripod]

Originally Posted by Hatch

Hey Bob and Judy -

You can really run a 5K BTU A/C unit on the 2000 watt gen ??
The reason I got our 3500 watt gen was to do just that (if it became necessary)

We may have miss calculated the start up watts.

Question - are you using a 110v adaptor on a 30amp cord from the boat ??
I'm thinking your gen. puts out 13amps ??

No over load problems ??
Just don't start them all at once - right ?

This is good info. I wasn't aware that I could use a 2000 watt gen for a small A/C unit.
Thanks.

No problem starting the A/C unit as long as the fan is set to low speed and nobody turns on the microwave. I've found that it works best to set the A/C unit to run continuously on low so the compressor doesn't cycle on and off. When runing in this mode we can simutaniously run a 20A battery charger, 20" LED TV, a few 110V LED lights, and a 600W microwave without problems. The microwave revs the generator up to full power, but it settles back to a quiet hum when it's done.

To prevent corrosion, I've sprayed a conformal coating on the cicuit board and we store the unit below. So far no signs of trouble.

Can't wait to get our propane conversion kit and get the gasoline off the boat.

And yes, 13A continuous, 20A peak load.

[HopCar]

Hatch, I've run my 5K BTU air conditioner with a Honda 1000. The trick is that I installed a hard start capacitor.
Hard Start Kit, AC Compressor - Cooling Equipment Relays - HVAC Controls - 4E240 : Grainger Industrial Supply

Even though I could make it start and run on the 1000 W generator, I bought a 2000 watt Honda just to have some extra power.

[Hatch]

Thanks for the replies !!!

We are now looking at a Yamaha 2000 watt (1600 watt continuos) and 16amp.
We will use a 110v adaptor for the 30 amp cord.
And we will look for a hard start kit.

This forum rocks !!
Thanks everyone !!!

[HopCar]

You can buy the hard start capacitors at any refrigeration supply house. Before you go to the trouble of buying one, try your generator with the air conditioner. I think some of the new ones will start with a 2k generator. If it sounds like the ac is straining to start then you can add the hard start.

[Hatch]

HopCar -
Thanks for the advice.
We will do that first.

[T7GEN]

Best Portable Generator Reviews 2017

I will choose the WEN 56180,it's cheap and quiet ,

[ClassicalBGP]

Originally Posted by T7GEN

Best Portable Generator Reviews 2017

I will choose the WEN 56180,it's cheap and quiet ,

I went with a WEN before reviewing this thread. Now have some questions. My a/c unit is 1100 watts, the WEN is rated for 1800 starting and 1500 continuous. It has a grounding nut on the generator.

My questions are....
1) it should run the a/c right? My a/c comes on, but not blowing cold

2). It appears that it has a floating ground, how do I ground the generator?

The only thing that is hooked to shore power (I use the 30 amp adapter) is the a/c and battery charger. I do not run them both at the same time.

[a64pilot]

It may not be able to get the AC started, the start up amps can be quite large, you may need a hard start capacitor, then there is a rather expensive, but very good hard start kit, sorry forgot who makes it.
I won't comment on ground, I am sure vast majority are not really grounded, although I feel sure they should be.

[HopCar]

A64 is right. The starting amps may be many times that of the amps required to run it.
Look for LRA on the label on the compressor. This is Locked Rotor Amps. LRA is very close to the amps needed to get the compressor moving. I had a 5000 btu air conditioner that ran on 600 watts but needed over 3000 watts to start.

I solved the problem by adding a hard start capacitor. I was able to run it on a 1000 watt Honda.

I think this is the one I used: https://www.amazon.com/SPP6-Capacito.../dp/B0002YTLFE

Newer air conditioner don't seem to need as much power o get started.

[ClassicalBGP]

Thank you, I have ordered a Hard Start Kit and will attempt that.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by ClassicalBGP

I went with a WEN before reviewing this thread. Now have some questions. My a/c unit is 1100 watts, the WEN is rated for 1800 starting and 1500 continuous. It has a grounding nut on the generator.

My questions are....
1) it should run the a/c right? My a/c comes on, but not blowing coldCan you hear the compressor motor kick over? Starting the fan is pretty easy but the compressor is what takes a lot of amps to get turning. If you listen, you can usually hear it come on a few seconds after the fan. (try it on shore power to check for what it sounds like). If the compressor is kicking over and it's not putting out cold air, there is something wrong with the air/con.


2). It appears that it has a floating ground, how do I ground the generator? 6' copper ground rods driven into the ground...honestly,
never seen anyone actually hook a ground up to the stud on the side of a portable generator. Effectively, it grounds back to the generator. Good in theory but not realistic.


The only thing that is hooked to shore power (I use the 30 amp adapter) is the a/c and battery charger. I do not run them both at the same time.

Unless you have a really big battery charger, you should be able to run the air/con and battery charger on shore power (not on the generator)