Small generators

[keith]

Hows this for a battery charger/generator,small but expensive
12volt 55amp and weighs 13kg
2.5hp honda 4st and bosch altenator
Good backup for the solar panels and invertor

[kmclemore]

The real question is how loud is it? On a small fiberglass boat, generators can be pretty dang noisy, even the quietest of them. I know - I have a Honda EU1000 and it's one of the quietest in the world and it's still somewhat annoying.

[Nautek]

That is a Christie engineering 12 volt generators they are great but they are noisy. I made one some years ago for another boat. Probably kept all the neighbours awake.

For a similar price you can buy one of the new nearly silent Honda, Yamaha or many other similar brand generators and get 240 volt charging and 12 volt or run a smart battery charger off the 240 volt side

Allan

[vkmaynard]

Here is the lowest cost ($399.99 shipped) one I've seen that "competes" with the Honda for weight and low noise (Honda 59 dB vs. Duropower 58 dB). Should run our AC no problem.

But where do you get parts?

http://www.duropower.com/item.asp?PID=8&FID=17&level=1

[Tide Over]

Do you or for that matter, does any body have any experience with the Honda EU200i or the EU1000i generator/inverter? I appreciate that they are expensive but am wondering if they re worth it as I do quite a few all day hauls and expect to do 2/3 day ones next year.

[bobaefa]

For $200 the refurbished model might be worth a try. I don't want to spend $800 for the Honda and find that I don't use it like I thought I would. I really want to find a good solar panel mounting solution but just not sure what I want to do.

[Divecoz]

FWIW I have a knock Off Generator.. Not sure of the decibel range. Its Really.... too heavy ,to loud, and takes up too much room . I used it a couple times on my long trip..it now sits in my garage. Other options no doubt.. Unless you strictly sail your motor might well provided all the juice you'll ever need .. provided you have multi battery banks. I have 3 Batteries. More than I ever needed for any of my 7 day plus trips .. 2 house 1 start.. BUT I have thought for years about adding a 4th a small Motorcycle battery.. I have a New Toy a Clamp on DC Amp meter.. I will be checking what My Mercury 50 HP EFI actually draws to start.. Versus.... mine and Numerous other Large Road bikes...Just a thought...

[kmclemore]

Do you or for that matter, does any body have any experience with the Honda EU200i or the EU1000i generator/inverter? I appreciate that they are expensive but am wondering if they re worth it as I do quite a few all day hauls and expect to do 2/3 day ones next year.

Read further back in this thread for my comments... and you might also search for 'honda generator' using the search field at the top of this page, since there's lots of information about them on this forum, including comparisons with other gensets.

I have the EU1000i and I like it very much. It is not silent, but it is very quiet - indeed it's the quietest generator I've ever heard - you can hold a normal conversation standing right next to it without any issues. It's solid, reliable and you can get all the parts and service you ever need at your local Honda Equipment dealer. I also have a Honda EB11000 (11,000 watt) generator, and it powers our whole house with ease... and it has never failed me. (Sadly, they just discontinued all the Honda generators above 6500 watts... not sure why, since their products were fantastic... but I'm glad I got mine when I did!)

I have always found that when you pay for the best quality tools, they pay you back in reliability and longevity. Besides, if you keep it in reasonable shape, the Honda generators hold their value and can easily be resold for a good price. I don't buy my tools to throw them away when they need repair (which you'd have to do with an unsupported brand)... I buy my tools to last a lifetime, and I get value for money.

The most difficult issue with any generator in a boat is that it will vibrate the hull, and that's where most of your 'noise' will come from. Subsequent to my earlier comments in this thread, I resolved the issue by suspending the generator from thick bungees at the bow pulpit.

Although it is extremely light weight and small, the EU1000i is somewhat low-powered and you're likely to hit situations where you wished you'd had the larger EU2000i. Indeed, if I'd had it to do all over again, I'd have bought an EU2000i instead of the EU1000i. However, if all you're going to do is charge your battery, they both produce *exactly* the same 12v amperage (my Xantrex measures it @ 8 amps), so buy the smaller one.

[Tide Over]

Thanks for the good advise kmclemore.

Although it is extremely light weight and small, the EU1000i is somewhat low-powered and you're likely to hit situations where you wished you'd had the larger EU2000i. Indeed, if I'd had it to do all over again, I'd have bought an EU2000i instead of the EU1000i. However, if all you're going to do is charge your battery, they both produce *exactly* the same 12v amperage (my Xantrex measures it @ 8 amps), so buy the smaller one.

Not being that knowledgeable with electricity, if I could keep my batteries charged which are providing the current for all my instrumentation on my 26X ,plus starting up my outboard why would I need anything more than the EU1000i if it will keep my batteries fully charged?

[moondancer]

I just purchased the EUI2000 and am happy with noise and output. I was going to go for the 1000 for weight and size for the boat. The 2000 is slightly larger and not that heavier. But here in New England I also wanted some back-up power. Run a pellet stove with its 3 motors, a stair lift and a few lights. I believe this generator will do it. I put 2 100w lights on an extension cord and plugged in the 110v battery charger in the boat and the rpm's didn't even go up and the lights did not dim. This is running in the economy mode. Switching that mode off and on changed the rpm's so I know that works. Having a Honda CRV, Honda 50 hp on the back of our M and never had any trouble, I had to go with their generator. This winter I will make a long pig-tail to go from generator to battery charger, I know they have the 12v output and I will have that on-board also.
Mike
Monndancer 05M

[kmclemore]

Thanks for the good advise kmclemore.

Although it is extremely light weight and small, the EU1000i is somewhat low-powered and you're likely to hit situations where you wished you'd had the larger EU2000i. Indeed, if I'd had it to do all over again, I'd have bought an EU2000i instead of the EU1000i. However, if all you're going to do is charge your battery, they both produce *exactly* the same 12v amperage (my Xantrex measures it @ 8 amps), so buy the smaller one.

Not being that knowledgeable with electricity, if I could keep my batteries charged which are providing the current for all my instrumentation on my 26X ,plus starting up my outboard why would I need anything more than the EU1000i if it will keep my batteries fully charged?

Just call me Kevin. (or Mr. Pennybags )

As I say, the EU1000i will do just fine if all you need is an 8 amp charger (that's about what most outboards put out). But if you also want to run power tools at home, it's going to be marginal and some tools may not run on it.

[kmclemore]

I just purchased the EUI2000 and am happy with noise and output. ..... the rpm's didn't even go up and the lights did not dim. This is running in the economy mode.

One note on the EU series gensets - if you are going to run them in 12v mode (i.e. you've got the special "DC Charging Cord", pictured below, needed to connect the generator directly to the battery for charging) you *must* run the generator in full mode, NOT economy. This is a major consideration, since in 12v mode you do have more noise than in economy. Having said that, it's still pretty quiet, just not as quiet as in 110v 'economy' mode.

[Catigale]

Not being that knowledgeable with electricity, if I could keep my batteries charged which are providing the current for all my instrumentation on my 26X ,plus starting up my outboard why would I need anything more than the EU1000i if it will keep my batteries fully charged?

If it is just lights and accessories then the 1000W will easily be enough. Even a small AC/DC fridge is only pulling a 100W so the EU1000 would do.

The big divide is Air conditioning.... If you are in air conditioner country, I think you will want the 2000 for the 'start up' draw current.

[Gypsy]

If you were strictly sailing and didn't have solar cells ,

Why not crank the outboard and run it at a high idle for a few hours ?
Or put it in gear and motorsail for a few hours ?

My Honda puts out 17 amps and is extremely quiet , so it it should double as a generator , just fine . I realize it will burn more gas than a generator , but it considering the price of the generator , the extra room it will take up , noise factor with it on deck , I think you would come out even.

[Catigale]

On outboard vs generator fuel consumption - I make it the HONDA gen would be 2x efficient or less.....based on:

1. Charge curve for Mercury BF

his is an old thread but I found my Merc 50 HP Bigfoot manual with the following alternator charge curve - the charge curve is highly asymptotic as given by the following table

RPM output in Amps
Idle 0
800 8
1000 12
1500 16
2000 18
3000 19

>> Use 1500 rpm, 12 V * 16 Amps - 6 amps overhead means 120 Watts charging capacity....


2. ...From JamesV smartcraft data, he reports

I have the Mer 50hp Bigfoot 4 stroke, 14 x 10 prop. Not quite yours but it might help

5 mph - 12 to 16 mpg

or about 2.5-3 hours per gallon fuel burn under load. You could probably put 220 Watt-hours of charge into your batteries per gallon of gas this way. The HONDA EU1000 is rated at about 1/2 of this fuel consumption. The Mercury might even be close to this just under alternator load.