Minor Cruising Equipment Thoughts

[CAELESTIS]

Some quick equipment thoughts after just a week delivering down the coast and another week cruising . . .

Tohatsu 9.8--had not been started in over two years and was stored on the rail in all types of Seattle rain. After just two pulls it was running perfect. Amazing piece of gear! The Master lock had seized, so I had to cut the Tohatsu's handle for removal (WD40 and Kroil were not successful on the lock).

Honda Companion Generator--brand new source of alternate power, used more fuel than I thought, and was far noisier than expected. It put out about 45 amps @ 24v. My Yanmar 4JH4-TE with the 140amp @24v alternator puts out far more power and is dramatically quieter. The Honda is a great source of backup power and I am still glad I bought it.

Mooring ball, so no anchor comments.

Balmar voltage regulator--failed after about 365 hours while over 100nm offshore. No event, it simply failed. Ordered the replacement from West Marine . .it was sent to a different store. The store salesperson drove to the other store and brought it to me while I waited! Wow! Great customer service.

Harken custom traveler--exploded in a crash gybe in 35 knots true with a rogue wave skidding us sideways at 11 knots. Jury rigged a repair with snatch blocks and no further problems.

Mendicino--not too bad
Point Conception-- a washing machine. Lots of big breaking waves.

[onestepcsy37]

what's a 'honda companion generator' and why are you running 24 volts?

[CAELESTIS]

The Honda puts out 120v, my charger is 24v. It is properly called a Honda 2000 companion generator. The "companion" model has a plug for a shore power cord.

Sorry for the mistake.

[onestepcsy37]

no mistake, no apology needed. i've had my honda eu1000 for several years now and use it to run a 12 volt charger when necessary. didn't know they were known as 'companion' models.

i'm so accustomed to boats having 12 volt systems that i sometimes forget there are 24 and 36 volt systems out there....

[GordMay]

Honda’s “Companion” model generator has a 30A receptacle, designed for paralleling two EU2000i units for 4000W of power.

See ➥ Honda EU2000i Companion

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by CAELESTIS

The Honda puts out 120v, my charger is 24v. It is properly called a Honda 2000 companion generator. The "companion" model has a plug for a shore power cord.

Sorry for the mistake.

Could you clarify whether the Honda Companion 2000 was louder than expected when running with no load, or when running in conjunction with a regular Honda 2000 as a 4000-watt (potential) "companion"?

I have the regular Honda 2000 and find it pretty quiet and very reliable. I use it at home as well to run power tools up to 10 amps or so on the AC side instead of deploying 100 feet of extension cord.

I ask because having that Honda pair would give me not only decent charging ability should everything else fail, but would allow me to kick off my March pump and Marine Air setup. The 2000 W inverter can't really cope with the initial 17 amp kick, which falls back to 6 amps or so while running, so I thought "aha! Two Hondas ganged together!".

Also, what in the context of a Honda is excessive fuel usage? I can run my Honda 2000 to power a work light and, say, a 1/2 inch drill for five to six hours straight on the internal tank. I've used a buffer in a yard for hours and charged my batteries at the same time and gotten five hours before I need to throw another litre in.