Inverter generators

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Dec 7, 2003
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Florida, Cape Coral
I would like to hear from those who have some experience with 2000 watt inverter generators. Reliability or other problems with specific manufactures? Ed
 
We've had a Yamaha EF3000ise for 15 years now, works good, all I do change the oil once in a while. One of these years I should check the plug. The 2000W one is a good idea as the 3000W ones are heavy and now with LED work lights, you don't really need two functional circuits very often. When we got it we were running halogen work lights on one circuit and a tool on the other.
 
Not 2000 watt, but my little Wen 56125i works when I need it to. I bought it for running fans/charging phones at my daughters softball tournaments. Works great for that, and I've used it a handful of times when we've had power outages, although they are usually not long enough that I have to power the fridge or freezer, I know it will run each of them, but not sure if it will do both together. Never taken the time to test it.

Replaced the 'torch' plug with an NGK after breakin just so I'd have a good plug in there. Change the oil every 10 hours or so since it holds so very little. Other than that, its been solid. The 2000 watt one is supposed to be much the same.
 
I've had a Honda 2200i for about two years. I use the generator to supply AC to our RV when off the grid. The Honda is very quiet and very reliable and it starts on the first pull every time. It will start and run a 15,000 BTU air conditioner with a soft starter like Easy Start. However, it won't run much more than the air conditioner, especially if the air conditioner is cycling on and off. If not running the air conditioner, then you can run the fridge, brew coffee, dry hair, run microwave, etc, but none of those high demand items at the same time. We've run it for 24 hours at a time with an extended run tank. Last week it ran for 20 hours straight, running the air conditioner, and used 4.5 gallons of fuel. If you are careful not to have any demand for power, except the air conditioner, then you can use the eco switch so it idles down at night when the air conditioner turns off. It uses zero oil.

I like the 2200 for its size. It fits under the tonneau cover of the truck and I can lift it in and out of the truck by myself. At this point, I'm glad we didn't opt for a larger generator for our use.
 
I have a Honda EU2000i since 2006. Love it. Probably 800 hours on it. Powers the essentials during an outage.

Only issue was the main jet of carb. getting restricted due to old fuel. Switched to a top tier fuel and run Startron fuel stabilizer and now it has been fine.
 
I've had a Champion 2000w inverter generator for about 5 years. It developed a mild surge after a couple of years, and I removed and tried to clean the carb with no change. I called Champion customer service, who were very helpful and friendly. About $60 later for Canadian for a replacement carb out of warranty and my generator runs smoothly again. The only downside in dealing with the carb issue was that Champion doesn't offer any sort of rebuild kit, only replacement. Overall, I am happy with my experience. Who knows what caused the carb issue. It was more likely something in the fuel than a defect, as it ran well when new. I did use marine Sta-Bil with ethanol free fuel.
 
I bought a Generac 2200 Watt Inverter generator online from ElectricGeneratorsDirect several years ago. I can't remember the exact cost but it was about $550.00 There was a design problem with it and many of them failed in a way that they stopped producing power. I do not have many power failures where I live but I ran it once in a while to make sure it still worked. When I finally had a power failure it did not work, and it was out of warranty. I wrote a letter to Generac and explained that I had very low hours on it, and have a background in electronics, and never abused it, and it still failed. By then it was common knowledge that this model of Generac inverter generator had a design problem and it was common for them to fail in a mode where they did not produce power. I was getting ready to buy a Honda inverter, and a new Generac 2200 Watt generator with a new design showed up on my front porch from Generac for free. They had fixed the design problem, and also improved the way it is primed for starting. Even so this new improved version causes the TV to shut off when the load of a compact florescent light is turned on. And now even that new improved model that I now have has been discontinued.

If I had it to do over again I would have bought the Honda inverter generator. Yes the Honda inverter generators are much more expensive, but they are much more reliable, and even in eco mode they handle application of loads much better. And the power they produce is much cleaner.

All of these low Wattage (around 2200 Watts or less) have very small carburetors that have very small passage ways that do not take much to clog them up. Along with using fuel stabilizer such as Sta-Bil you should run the carburetor dry before you put it away for storage. Fuel left in the carb will evaporate and leave a concentrate of gunk that is not good for the carb. Another good thing to do is spray the carburetor with WD-40 before putting it away. BTW WD-40 is combustible, and an engine will run for a short time if you try to start it after you spray the carb with it.

If when you put it away it might be a long time before you use it (more than 6 months) you might want to coat the inside of the cylinder with a spoon full of oil or Sta-Bil foaming oil, and then pull the rope a few times to distribute the oil. The down side to using oil in the cylinder is that after several uses if you do not have long run times to burn off the build-up on the spark-plug it will foul the spark-plug.

Anytime you store a single cylinder engine you should slowly pull the rope and stop when you feel the rope getting harder to pull which means the engine is on the compression part of the cycle, and therefore both the intake and exhaust valves are closed. This is easier on the valve springs, and also with the valves closed atmospheric moisture can not condense out of the air and into the cylinder.

There have been some recent improvements in gas additives the help keep carburetors clean. Maybe others can comment on what additives are now the best the gasoline for small 4 cycle engines?
 
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Have a couple of Yamaha ones. An EF3000iSEB and an EF2000iS. Never any issues with either one, battery died on the 3K but I expect to replace starter batteries now and then. We use the 3K for the toy hauler and I bought the 2K because the 3K really isn't portable, even though it has wheels.
 
I have always heard that if your going to store a single piston engine, pull the rope until it's at its easiest...no strain on the crankshaft, bearings or rod. Haven't heard that reasoning before, but it makes sense. May have to start doing that. I have a single piston Chonda 7500W generator that hasn't been used a lot. Stored dry and no fuel in carb or bowl and was stored when the rope was at it's easiest. May have to pull it out and do what Jim said.
 
Originally Posted by Schmoe
I have always heard that if your going to store a single piston engine, pull the rope until it's at its easiest...no strain on the crankshaft, bearings or rod. Haven't heard that reasoning before, but it makes sense. May have to start doing that. I have a single piston Chonda 7500W generator that hasn't been used a lot. Stored dry and no fuel in carb or bowl and was stored when the rope was at it's easiest. May have to pull it out and do what Jim said.

The reason for the hard pull is that it is coming up on the compression stroke. No engine is 100% sealed so if you pull up, wait a few minutes, then pull some more, you should feel it pull easier (at least for part of the pull). The compression will leak off.

If anything I'd think this is where it should be stored. Both valves closed. Depending on the valve closing/opening it'd be great to get it at BDC for least exposure of the cylinder to moisture in the air, but just getting valves closed should really slow down any moisture (or creature) ingress. That might be a bit overkill, lots of engines get stored wherever they last stopped (although come to think about, those would have stopped on a compression stroke) with little issue.
 
I purchased a used Honda EU2000i a few years back. I'm pretty sure it was run pretty hard (likely construction) as it was pretty beat up outside. It still started from cold pretty easily. I changed the oil and plug when I bought it, and has been trouble free. It's just for emergency use (haven't needed to use it, knock on wood), and yearly tailgate use.

I put a heavy dose of marine Stabil in all of my gas cans, and I try to run the tank dry when I can (although I didn't last time, and the generator sat with fuel for about 9 months before I started it again with no issue).

For a little more than I spent, I could have bought a new HF or Wen model, but I figured the Honda would be more fun, and likely plenty of life left for my usage.
 
I had a Powerhouse PH2100PRi. That model has been superseded by other models, but I'd steer clear of that brand. The automatic choke was horrible, the battery for the electric start was this ultra-rare weird size that was ridiculously overpriced, and the fuel lines got very brittle after a few years.
 
I have a eu3000is. I like it because it is very quiet and always starts, I dislike it because it is heavy. I am in the market for ~2000w one myself. I think if you have the money Yamaha or Honda are the only way to go.
 
I make sure and use non-ethanol gas and try to remember to run mine every month or so. Sometimes I'll take it out and use it to power the hedge clippers when I'm giving the bushes a trim, or let it power the fans in the garage if I'm out there working. Let it run with a load on it for an hour and then top it up with gas and set it back on the shelf.
 
Ive had a Robin Subaru 2000W inverter for probably 15 years now. Ive also had a 1000W Honda at a remote site for a few years.

IMO you cant go wrong. You need to manage loads, and they will trip out if you overload them, but its to be expected. They are quiet, clean, and manage any worst case scenario I encountered. I also dont adhere to some concept of keeping every light and the central AC on. Additionally, I can heat my home for less than 1kW, since its hydronic. So long as NG is coming, I can keep the place warm.

I run mine dry when not using them. I do put some of the Home Depot ethanol free gas in there if I know it is going to sit...
 
I have a 1st Gen Harbor Freight Predator 2200 / 2500 inverter generator. It has always started right up, very quiet and sips fuel. After the first couple tanks I replaced the oil and original Torch plug with a NGK and have never had any problems. After Hurricaine Irma I loaned it out to a friend that ran it for a week or so powering a fridge and freezer. Most of its duty for me has been around the property running electric tools, pole saws etc... also winter camping to run the lights, furnace and fridge in the camper. The only think I dislike about it is the weight. Its a bit on the heavy side. I think I paid about 375 on sale several years ago.
I keep cruising CL in hopes of finding another one so I can use a parrallel kit during summer camping to run my roof AC on my camper.
 
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