Generator input

[John in Santa Cruz]

yeah, a 20A cord typically is AWG 10. a real 15A cord up to about 100 ft long is AWG 12. many extension cords are NOT rated at 15A, and are not AWG 12... 14 and 16 gauge are common, because copper is expensive.

[RF Paul]

I have the Champion 2500w dual fuel. It has a 20 amp plug. I bought it when I got my new 5.0 with the Coleman Mach AC w/soft start. I haven’t used it yet, but am anticipating that with some load management, I’ll easily be able to run the AC. I got the Champion to replace a Firman 3200w dual fuel (Costco), which weighs at least twice as much, and usually stayed sitting in my garage. It will soon be for sale.

[Selkirk]

I use a Yamaha EF2800i (rated at 2500w continuous use). It is slightly louder than the fully enclosed "suitcase" models from Yamaha/Honda, but is still a reasonably quiet, high-quality inverter-style unit. I don't find it annoyingly noisy, and my closest neighbour is about a quarter-mile away.

It features a 30A twist-lock style outlet. I use a short twist lock to TT-30R adapter cable that allows me to attach a standard 30A RV cable.

It has no problem powering the AC, fridge, and converter.

[TTMartin]

Originally Posted by Selkirk

I use a Yamaha EF2800i (rated at 2500w continuous use). It is slightly louder than the fully enclosed "suitcase" models from Yamaha/Honda, but is still a reasonably quiet, high-quality inverter-style unit. I don't find it annoyingly noisy, and my closest neighbour is about a quarter-mile away.

That's fine for when you're at home, but, please don't bring any open frame generators to a campground or even boondocking.

At 60 to 67 decibels it is NOT slightly louder than enclosed inverter generators, which are about 10 decibels quitter. It is actually twice as loud!

While every 6 dB SPL represents a doubling of amplitude, a non-exact rule-of-thumb is that every 10 dB increase is a doubling of perceived loudness - psycho-acousticians tell us. Don't use the term "doubling of decibels, or doubling of dB".

The maximum allowable noise level for mechanical equipment including generators at anytime in U.S. National Parks is 60db.

[scottarue]

What are you running that requires 3000 watts? We have the Honda 2200 and it runs everything (including AC) fine. I have the coleman with the soft start, but the Dometic will run without the soft start. They are a little expensive, but you don't have problems with them either. I owned a 2000 for 20 years and never had a failure.

[Doug2000]

I bought a Honda 2200i to run the AC, yes it will run the AC but I sometimes have to shut other stuff off. Do I want a bigger heavier generator, NO, I want a smaller lighter generator that is easy to cart around. We mostly camp where there is services but the generator does come in handy when camping at race tracks or friends farms.

YES, the Honda was expensive but we can use it 10 years and it will likely still be worth the $1000 I paid for it barely used. Stupid Hondas, they start every time always.

[vintageracer]

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