Which Honda Generator for Dry Camping?

I live in Colorado and just purchased a new TM 2619. My use will be almost exclusively dry camping in the National Forests high in the mountains or in other remote areas throughout the west – no electrical hookups, no city water, etc. I’ll often stay for a week to ten days. Most of my camping will be in the summer and late into the fall, so at times it may be a bit cold at night. My concern is battery capacity as it relates to electrical power for the lights, furnace fan and other minor onboard eletrical uses (toilet, etc.).

My plan is to purchase a portable Honda generator to augment the twin six-volt batteries that came with my TM. BUT WHICH GENERATOR?

I like the looks of the Honda Super Quiet EU1000i and EU2000i models. The 1000i delivers 1000 watts max. (900 rated). The 2000i delivers 2000 Watts max. (1600 rated). (www.hondapowerequipment.com)

QUESTION #1: Which of those super quiet Honda generators would be best for running the lights, fans and other misc. onboard electrical things (with no additional apppliances plugged in) in my 2619 TM?

QUESTION #2: Which Honda generator would be best if I wanted to add a small portable DVD player to that list?

QUESTION #3: Which Honda Generator would be best if I wanted to add a small microwave to that list?

QUESTION #4: Which Honda generator would be needed (or what sort of power capacity would I need) if I wanted to add my trailer’s air conditioning to that list? I probably won't do that by dry camping, but it would be nice to know what would be needded if a shoreline wasn't available for the A/C.

Thanks for the assistance from a brand new TrailManor owner.

[YWORRYDOG]

We have the Yamaha EF1000iSC it works for us. With the TM plugged in to it, it will charge the battery, and run the lights etc. We have to kick it up to full power to make coffee, or run the microwave. We do not run it at night, just the battery for heat, and TV. Works fine for us even when is reaches 30 degrees at night. If you want to run the AC look at the Yamaha 2400is it will even run the AC!

[Bill]

The Honda EU1000i should be adequate for everything EXCEPT the air conditioner. If you can live without A/C, it would be a great choice.

If you want the A/C to run, and assuming you have the roof unit (13.5K BTU, as I recall), the situation changes a lot. The EU1000i is not sufficient. Even the EU2000i is not sufficient. You have a choice of buying the EU3000, or buying TWO of the EU2000i units plus the parallel-operation cable. Either way is LOTS of money.

The EU3000 is big and heavy, but less expensive than a pair of EU2000s. On the other hand, if you have a pair of EU2000s, you can leave one at home if you won't need it on a given trip.

Bill

i have two eu2000i hondas and love them both even though only one gets the real workout. one 2000 will power everything in my 3023 without hesitation including the air conditioner. i chose to buy the second one and run them in parallel for the air conditioning just because i was concerned in possibly causing problems to the air conditioner. having two makes it wonderful in below freezing weather in that one can power the entire trailer with a small electric heater, and the other can be run separate with another small electric heater brought in on a heavy extension cord bypassing the trailers electrical system. have been out for over seven days on two separate occassions in 20 degree temps and only once did the shower freeze up so that it could not be used. everything else was fine and we stayed super warm.

on my main generator i have over 2000 hours and other than changing the oil and spark arrester regularly i have had no problems whatsoever! they are great and quiet.

hope this helps.

dennisu

[RockyMtnRay]

Originally Posted by Timberline

I live in Colorado and just purchased a new TM 2619. My use will be almost exclusively dry camping in the National Forests high in the mountains or in other remote areas throughout the west – no electrical hookups, no city water, etc. I’ll often stay for a week to ten days. Most of my camping will be in the summer and late into the fall, so at times it may be a bit cold at night. My concern is battery capacity as it relates to electrical power for the lights, furnace fan and other minor onboard eletrical uses (toilet, etc.).

My plan is to purchase a portable Honda generator to augment the twin six-volt batteries that came with my TM. BUT WHICH GENERATOR?

I like the looks of the Honda Super Quiet EU1000i and EU2000i models. The 1000i delivers 1000 watts max. (900 rated). The 2000i delivers 2000 Watts max. (1600 rated). (www.hondapowerequipment.com)

QUESTION #1: Which of those super quiet Honda generators would be best for running the lights, fans and other misc. onboard electrical things (with no additional apppliances plugged in) in my 2619 TM?

QUESTION #2: Which Honda generator would be best if I wanted to add a small portable DVD player to that list?

QUESTION #3: Which Honda Generator would be best if I wanted to add a small microwave to that list?

QUESTION #4: Which Honda generator would be needed (or what sort of power capacity would I need) if I wanted to add my trailer’s air conditioning to that list? I probably won't do that by dry camping, but it would be nice to know what would be needded if a shoreline wasn't available for the A/C.

Thanks for the assistance from a brand new TrailManor owner.

I also live in Colorado Springs and also mostly camp in the high mountain National Forest campgrounds without any hookups so I know exactly what conditions you'll be facing.

Around 150 to 200 watts of solar panels will provide more than enough power for everything you mention except the AC and Microwave. (With a properly sized inverter, the batteries could even power a microwave and then be recharged from the solar panels). Though I find I can do quite well without a microwave while dry camping...for warming foods, the regular oven works well but just takes a bit longer.

I have two panels on my TM's roof (total of 170 watts of generation) which together with the dual T105 6 volt Golf Cart batteries have provided me with plenty of power to freely use the lights, the furnace, the water pump...and recharge my laptop, camera, etc. I've gone as long as 10 days without hookups and my batteries were still fully charged on the afternoon of the last day. Even in September when the sun is much lower in the sky...and the furnace sometimes runs 3 or 4 hours a day I've still always gotten a complete recharge on a sunny day.

Unlike a generator...which takes several hours to recharge the batteries (during which time you really shouldn't leave camp)...the solar panels charge all day long without any monitoring. So I can happily leave the trailer early in the morning for a day of hiking/biking/kayaking and know that when I get back at the end of the day the batteries will be fully charged. Plus the panels are completely silent and maintenance free...even the quietest Honda makes some noise and definitely requires recurring maintenance.

Costwise, my panels (a DIY installation) were around $1000...about the cost of an EU2000. Read this for a full discussion of the issues I encountered and how I solved them.

After two seasons of experience with the panels, the only circumstance I'd ever see needing to buy a generator for is if I went dry camping in Utah or other hot, low elevation area where having the AC would highly desirable. But for high altitude Colorado camping, there's no need for generator if you have sufficient solar.

Picture below shows the panels on my TM's roof...click the thumbnail image for a larger image.

[Bill]

Originally Posted by dennisu

one 2000 will power everything in my 3023 without hesitation including the air conditioner.

Wow, a single EU2000i will start the air conditioner? I seem to recall that you have a 2001 model TM - it has a 13,500 BTU roof unit, not a side-mounted air conditioner? In that case, I'm very impressed - all the literature from both Honda and Dometic say that it won't happen. I have been screwing up my courage (and my checkbook) to buy an EU1000i, but maybe the EU2000i is worth considering after all. I'm not willing to go to the EU3000i.

Thanks for the info.

Bill

[kdrickard]

We use a Honda EU1000 with the goal of running the furnace (fan) in the mornings and sometimes evenings for a bit, as well as lights and pumps. We run off battery, and use the EU1000 to recharge 2x Interstate 12v batteries when juice gets low during the day. Usually we go 2 or more days before having to fire it up for a bit, but since our extended stays tend to be in National Parks we like to avoid running the generator as much as possible.

At altitude, you might want to consider having the generator adjusted for that if that is where it will be run the most. I have not done that, and at 6,700 feet it runs fine after playing with the choke a bit, at 8,600 it will cut out from time to time but works for my purposes.

We like the EU1000 for what we do. If I was running "stuff" while the generator is going -- say microwave or a/c, I'd look for a larger unit and look at run time based on fuel tank capacity in addition to electrical req's.

Kevin

Timberline,

I am working the same issue. The first step I took was to replace the converter in the TM with a Progressive Dynamics 9160. This will quick charge my battery to ~80% in 1 hour making the generator a very practical device. The model 6330 in the camper takes about 70 hours or something like that.

A charged battery will do you well overnight with no problems. Might even be good for 2 or 3 nites. It depends on the amount of lighting you run and getting to camp with a fully charged battery. There have been folk on this site running business from their TM who have calculated the power required by laptops, lights, etc and you can look that up. They figured how to maintain charged batteries with solar cells.

I happen to have a 2nd hand 700/800 Watt Honda older model generator and am making do with it. I tried it out a week ago and it works great. This unit suffices for everything you stated except the last two items. These Hondas are much more quiet than the units normally found in RVs. You just hear a small hum inside the TM, even if it is sitting right next to the rear end of the TM.

I am looking at a 600 watt microwave at Wal Mart for $40. Normal home ovens run about 1000 or 1200 watts. I would be very marginal in running that with mine, but a 1000 watt would run the smaller one. I am leaning in this direction rather than getting a bigger generator.

My 700 Watt generator weighs 65#. The Honda 1000 Watt weighs 29#. Think about that when you are lifting it out of the TV! The Honda 2000 Watt weighs 46.3#, still significantly less than my 700 Watt. The new ones are marvelous in power-to-weight.

The A/C requires 2800 or 2900 Watts. Honda has a hookup where you can connect 2 of the 2000 Watt units to get 4000 watts. It is easier to carry and would only be needed if you ran the A/C. That way, you could leave one home unless you suspected warm weather. Or you could buy the second one later. Your stated objectives lead me to believe you won't need the A/C where you are camping. You will be running the heater at night, but rarely need that A/C.

The larger Honda has self start and could be started with a remote control from inside the TM. Now wouldn't that be nice? But its 139# and thats a pretty good lift. Even for somebody in good shape. I don't think you need this size unit.

Yamaha makes a unit that is less costly than the Honda and slightly more noisey. I haven't been able to find one of them yet. I only know of a 2800 Watt unit from them, though.

Keep us posted. I'm interested in your findings as well.

Bob

[Cateye]

We have used the Honda EU2000 quited extensively. We originally purchased an EU1000 and ended up taking it back in exchange for the EU2000. The EU1000 simply did not meet our needs at the altitudes we camp in Colorado. It was barely sufficient to power the toaster, hair dryer etc. The EU2000 has been wonderful and with the conversion from the 6300 converter to the 7300 we can charge the batteries in a shorter time. The Honda Generators are very reliable, fuel efficient and quiet.

Thanks to all for the advice. Solar sounds fascinating and a variety of generators would seem to work as well.

As a rookie TM user I am, however, a bit confused over the repeated reference by generator users to charging the batteries. I have the impression that what you're decribing is a mode of operation in which you run the batteries down in the evenings by using the lights, fans, etc. on battery power, and then recharge the now-low battery(s) the next day with the generator.

I imagine that would work, but why not run the generator during the evenings when you're using the lights, fans, etc. so as NOT to draw down the battteries. In other words, when the electrical demand is high, run the generator. When the eletrical demand is low, use the batteries. That seems to be how most motorhomes with built-in generators work. Would the TM be any different? What am I missing here?