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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 13 Jul 2013 17:55 - Edited by: toyota_mdt_tech
Reply
Caution, those shed hold out water, and hold in noise, but can also hold in heat.
Maybe try a inverter type? Cycles remain constant. Did Wen warranty it for you? Did they interrogate you in a dark room with a bright flashlight in your eyes, or just replace it, no hassles? Some Mfg warranty's try to find an excuse to deny your claim right from the start.
50 hours is std for most power equipment oil change intervals.
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bukhntr
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# Posted: 13 Jul 2013 19:56 - Edited by: bukhntr
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has anyone tried the powerhouse brand sold at Northern tool and cabelas. I too want to run a small window a/c only, lighting is all solar inside. I am looking at an 8000 btu a/c. 115 volts 6.4 amps, my calculations give 736 watts. Even doubling it for start up surge seems a 2000 watt peak will handle it
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groingo
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2013 02:12
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I just looked at their 500 WI generator, looked good sounded good until they told me this model has had a lot of returns for broken starters (bad design, too short of starter cord) then they gave me six service centers and not one...ZERO had ever heard of them, just like I found with AllPower.
Bottom line, poor engineering and imaginary customer service is what I found, gonna stay with the Yamaha.
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2013 11:12
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Quoting: bukhntr has anyone tried the powerhouse brand sold at Northern tool and cabelas. I too want to run a small window a/c only, lighting is all solar inside. I am looking at an 8000 btu a/c. 115 volts 6.4 amps, my calculations give 736 watts. Even doubling it for start up surge seems a 2000 watt peak will handle it
I would get a Honda EU3000i, I think this model can come w ith the electric start and even remote start, ie a control panel inside the cabin.
I have a Polar Cub 9000 BTU AC unit in an enclosed cargo trailer i use for motorcycle riding/racing and my Honda EU2000i runs it plus any light loads. I doubt I could run a heavy load plus the AC unit. But a 3000 unit would solve that issue. Plus be nice and quiet and last you for many years.
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ackray
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2013 11:41
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Hate to sound like a wall street type but thats what I am working through here.
The inexpensive construction grade generators are roughly 1/10 the price of a similar capacity Honda. while the better unit has a much better feature set, I don't really need it.
The smaller generators I use, 2000w and 3500w are mainly for charging batteries. The house is all 110v and runs off a 6kw inverter/charger, or the 2Kw Xantech for the circuits that require pure sine.
There is also a 5.5 Kw Diesel for heavy usage.
I am also working these problems on another forum. There the recommendation was for this line of chargers.
http://www.xantrex.com/power-products/battery-chargers/truecharge-2-2.aspx
The idea was that they would be more resistant to the variable output of the construction Generators.
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Tobit
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2013 10:30
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I wonder how the Hyundai 2200W inverter generator is. It's very similar to the Honda and Yamaha gens but about 40% cheaper.
I need to buy something before October, right now I am leaning towards the Yamaha 2000 but it's going to be a hard hit to my wallet.
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mattd
Member
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2013 10:43
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I need to change more previous statement....my Wen is MUCH quiter then my lawn mower, not slightly.
Got its first real use.....
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2013 18:50
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mattd - Nice work!
I like my Wen still. Used it for everything, 220v well pump, washing machine, chop saw and so on. new one will be in on Tuesday. I might get around to rebuilding the old one this winter for a project.
What I've been learning about recently is T.H.D. for Total Harmonic Distortion. This class of generator has a THD of 15 to 20% so this means that the frequency, Hz, will vary by that amount under normal use. Fine for tools, bad for electronics.
I had assumed that I'd be able to compensate for that by using the gen to power battery chargers and run the sensitive electronics off the pure sine inverter. I kinda overlooked the fact that battery chargers are electronic.
graham over at powermax has been great about the warranty but in moving forward I'll probably get the Yamaha EF2000is for the battery charging.
I'd still recommend this generator for general use and then probably a much smaller inverter style for the electronics you plan to run.
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mattd
Member
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2013 18:57
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What about a window a/c unit? Its really mostly a motor right. Past getting this thing built thats all i for see this gen getting used for. What happens if you plug electronics into the gen?
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2013 19:26 - Edited by: ackray
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What I can say is that I've run power tools, old maytag washing machines, Inverter/chargers, Powermax Chargers, the 220v well pump, and so on off this generator for almost 1500 hours without a problem.
It was only when the generator started running out of spec by a wide margin that things started to cook.
On amazon there is an LED hz meter and LED voltage meters. I plan to wall mount a pair of these for every generator I run.
For the AC? I'd say sure, and keep the warranty handy.
Edit to add: over on amazon they list an AC unit in loads. Also read through the comments. I'm sure a lot people are using these for AC .
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mattd
Member
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# Posted: 16 Jul 2013 09:56
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so you'd have meters to see if the gen was putting out something funny? you'd have to eye ball em and if the gen was varying outside of the electronics threshold manually turn it off. that seems cumbersome. someone smarter then me should make a controller that looks like a power strip, but that you can program it to turn off it it goes out of spec.
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 16 Jul 2013 10:19 - Edited by: ackray
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mattd,
I was looking into ferroresonant transformers and so on at a different forum. The bottom line is that is was cheaper to buy the pure sine gen. The other problem was that by the time i was done rebuilding the waveform the energy loss was such that I needed to run a larger generator anyway.
The problem with the power strip option is that as far as I know there isn't one that trips on Hz. For a while I was using a UPS to try and correct this. An I also got an Opti boost and buck type gizmo. All of this will help but the problem is that the waveform will need to be rebuilt.
I honestly don't think you will have any problem with the AC unit. the Wen is a good generator. The problem with mine ended up being that the brushes (exciter cube??) were putting out over 20 volts instead of the 12volts they were supposed to.
As far as the volt & Hz display goes I'd recommend it regardless of the Generator you are running.
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 16 Jul 2013 20:59
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Here's a good example of what I am talking about.
I picked up a honda today. the 2000w inverter charger. That ran most of today running the battery chargers.
The Wen also arrived today. So I flipped it to 220v and ran the well pump for a few hours. Having a bit of a drought here recently and the garden needs some heavy watering.
That little Honda is good at what it does but for heavy tools and the well pump the Wen is what I use.
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rayyy
Member
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# Posted: 19 Jul 2013 14:46
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I must admitt,rightnow,I'm running a Generac 1600 watt,cheapy that I picked up on line but it's hard to start and it run's rough as hell.It surges up then throttles down almost to a stalling point.It's doing the job but it's no Honda.I hope to save up for another EU2000I.There $899.right now on line.
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 23 Jul 2013 18:31
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@rayy
get a meter that can test voltage and Hz, the hertz issue is what damaged my chargers and inverters.
As far as generators go I'm still of the opinion that they are like any other tool. I still run three of them for different purposes and will be installing a 400 watt windmill on the roof next month.
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Cooks Dock
Member
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# Posted: 23 Jul 2013 19:46
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2 month test of the Champion 2000 Inverter. Quiet, I'm more than happy. Fuel efficent..will run 9 hrs on econo mode. Great for charging batteries, some lights, basically light use. Did not like my 12 inch compound mitre or table saw but ok with shop vac.
So, great on gas, quiet but specific use. I'd buy another.
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Kudzu
Member
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# Posted: 23 Jul 2013 20:53
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Generators are like tractors, you need a big, medium and small.
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beachman
Member
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# Posted: 24 Jul 2013 18:02
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I bought a Champion 6000 w, 7200 peak for my remote camp build. Important to change the oil every so often. I paid $450 plus tax on sale at Costco. It worked great for the build and the guys treated it badly. Had some problems starting it all the next year - couldn't use the electric start and had to manual start with great effort. I took it to a small engine shop and they fixed a stuck intake valve for 75 bucks. It works great this year and electric start works like a charm.
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foxdud
Member
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# Posted: 2 Aug 2013 13:37
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Just bought a small craftsman from sears comparable to the Honda but cheaper. nice and quiet.
http://www.sears.com/briggs-stratton-1600-watt-powerstart-series-8482-inverter-genera tor/p-07133148000P?prdNo=5&blockNo=5&blockType=G5
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Rossman
Member
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# Posted: 2 Aug 2013 23:26
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Wow, it looks like they just copied the Honda!
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 4 Aug 2013 00:52
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Quoting: Rossman Wow, it looks like they just copied the Honda!
Imitation is the best form of flattery. 
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mattd
Member
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# Posted: 5 Aug 2013 08:56
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as far as using the bigger ones like the Wen for electronics, what about using the 12v plug on the Wen to plug my 400w inverter into? or will the Hz not work with the inverter.
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 5 Aug 2013 09:06
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The 12V is rectified AC, so its cleaned up and cycles isnt an issue. But it seems like a lot to get around just a good quality generator. There is lots of low cost inverter generators now. But still more than the non inverter gennies. Kipor is a nice one, I see Honeywell has one, Hyundai and many more. Most are chinese made. But if they have parts available, you may be OK, but the old reliable Honda, parts will be around for a long time.
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whitecapsfan
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# Posted: 22 Aug 2013 17:42
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I would recommend a Honda. They may be more expensive to start but they last forever and take a beating. We have an off-grid cabin in BC. We have two Hondas: a 30 year old 2200 that still starts second pull every year and runs a table saw. It is horribly noisy. For lights and music we have a small EU1000i that only uses about 40c an hour in gas. Once you've bought a Honda you don't have to buy again!
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ackray
Member
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# Posted: 24 Aug 2013 17:18
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Personally I'm still using three generators. The Honda EU2000, the wen 3500 and the Powerland 6500 Diesel.
The Honda is being used for what it does best, providing pure Sine for the battery chargers. Since the battery chargers are electronic they function much better working off a pure sine power supple. Also, once the batteries are past the bulk charge the honda can run a 1/4 load and it's very fuel efficient.
The Wen is more of a general purpose generator, can run the washing machine, or be wheeled around for power tools and provided power where needed.
The Powerland Diesel is being used to put the 6Kw Inverter/Charger into charge mode and power the house on Laundry and chore days. This also allows the battery bank to be isolated from any demand and run up to a full charge.
In short, I've found it's best to have a mix of generators to cover the different types of power requirements that you face.
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 24 Aug 2013 20:23
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In my home, where I reside, I use a Honda EU6500is during power outages. Its electric start, has a remote start circuit, runs just as quiet as the Honda EU2000i (rated at exactly the same noise level) will run my washer and dryer (electric dryer) my hot water tank (electric 55 gallon) and anything else in "eco" mode. Does burn more fuel with heavy loads, still economical with light loads. But not as economical as the 2000, but its just one generator. The price, these are spendy, retails for $4295. Was $3999 when I got mine. I paid cash for it and got it new for $3125. Has the fold down handles and the wheel kit standard.
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