generator suggestions

[ncboman]

I'm beginning to shop for a camping generator for hunting.

Requirements;

must power two 1500watt heaters. :D

A coffee pot would be nice ...
and perhaps a small portable tv.

lights doan matter, the heaters are the primary purpose.

Quiet is good but not a biggie. I can make a box from the 1" polyiso board I work with that will quieten anything down. :rolleyes:

Price is kinda important because if someone steals it, I doan wann feel a huge loss.

Anyway, I looked around a bit on the net early this mornin and saw this;

Power Max 4400 (http://www.amazon.com/PowerMax-XP4400E-Generator-Electric-Compliant/dp/B001BMDFPS/ref=pd_cp_hi_1?pf_rd_p=413863601&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00130GGRM&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1PH70YZ53SKQ50HYD531)

It ain't a honda but it doan cost as much either. :rolleyes:

I ain't above buying used from Craigslist if I find the right deal. I got all summer to shop.

suggestions?

ncboman

[AK-49]

That generator is probably over rated as far as output is concerned. It will be heavy to move around, suck up fuel, and noisy but as you said it is cheap... so you get what you pay for. Have you looked at inverter generators?

http://www.toolsdirect.com/index.cfm/page/search:browse/categoryID/5913

[ncboman]

I've been lookin at the ones in that link and some from Honda also.

I dunno. They sure are nice ... and cost more than I paid for my camper. :o

Maybe I should buy an acre or two of land near where I like to hunt and start another business. :rolleyes:

ncboman

[AK-49]

You might want to consider the cost of operation (cost of gasoline) before making a purchase. A yamaha 3000 generator might be a better choice if you don't want to get an inverter.

[30-338]

The generators your looking at are air cooled may have a problem trying make a box to quite the noise.

I got the Honda 3000ISA for my trailer uses 3gal 15hrs. If I had to do it over I would of gotten two Honda 2000ia run parallel I'd maybe use 2/3gal for 20hrs and get more power. You won't have too many problems with light etc but those heaters you need a pretty good cord also those 2000ia run around 60 or so lbs each.

If I was going to buy an air cooled I look at known brands get all the information on watts etc you want to run and buy the next size bigger so your not running at max all the time.

[ncboman]

Thanks for all the input. ... kinda glad I have plenty time to decide ... and shop. :rolleyes:

A unit I can put inside the camper when I'm gone would be desirable so I need to keep the width ~24" or less. ... and more power is good up until weight becomes a negative factor.

I guess if one is willing to afford any of the offerings to begin with, it changes the playing field somewhat. :rolleyes:

What I doan wanna do is buy a new one and then see a steal come along. All the generators sold around here after the hurricane makes me think there should be some unadvertised steals around for the huntin.

ncboman

[DancesWithKnives]

I agree with the suggestions to buy a good brand unless someone you know personally can vouch for a less costly unit. I have too many other things going on to spend time rebuilding generators or even taking them back for warranty service. I'd like to have one that I know will work when it is needed. But like you, I'm perfectly willing to put a little effort into finding a good initial price on a name brand unit.

DancesWithKnives

[AK-49]

you might call your insurance company and see how much insurance would cost for protecting your future inverter against theft. Stay with a good brand regardless of what you get... honda or yamaha

[ncboman]

The inverter generators seem the way to go.

I'll check on the ins but am somewhat doubtful about that. I carry a lot of small ticket insurance 'off the hip' and over the long haul, the savings have been significant. :rolleyes:

ncboman

[Twanger]

My $0.02 - Generators are an expensive way to make heat.

For your camper you could get plenty warm using a propane heater like the one I brought to Ohio last time we went. I bought the one in the link below at Wally World, and it would heat my tent from 30F to 60F in about 2 minutes. It takes 1lb propane bottles or you can hook it up to a 20lb bottle with an accessory hose.

See: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4382667

[ncboman]

I'd completely forgotton about that heater, even though I used one for a week a couple years back. Can't sleep using those in a camper but they do warm it up quickly.

hmmm... :rolleyes:

thanks Walt. :)

[Twanger]

I'd completely forgotton about that heater, even though I used one for a week a couple years back. Can't sleep using those in a camper but they do warm it up quickly.

hmmm... :rolleyes:

thanks Walt. :)

I don't sleep with mine going in the tent - it uses too much propane and that's what a sleeping bag is for, anyway. I do put the heater close enough that I can turn it on while I'm still in the sleeping bag, and in the morning I stick an arm out, turn the heater on, and 2 minutes later it's toasty enough in the tent to get up. Ahhhh... as I get older I do like my creature comforts. When I was 25 I could sleep comfortably on a shopping bag full of coconuts, but now I need a 4-inch foam pad, and still wake up stiff. :confused:

[Charlie in TX]

I use my Mr Heater http://www.mrheater.com/ProductFamily.aspx?catid=41. It is propane and safe indoors. It has a low O2 shutoff and UL approved indoors. Then run one inverter type generator for lights and such. Should be able to run 24hrs off a pound of propane and a gallon of fuel. A Honda 2000i will easily fit in your cabin/trailor when you are gone. Under the load you will have on it, you can have the gen by your campfire and talk over it. Wisper quite when litely loaded.

[Bushman]

Those unvented propane heaters scare me a whole bunch for heating a tent or a camper. Last year they found a father and son dead in their tent from asphyxiation from an unvented heater. I rented a small camper once and discovered that the on-board heater would not light. No problem I thought, I'll just go to my back up system which was an unvented propane heater. An hour or so later I was getting a headache just as I was about to make supper. I could not even light a stick match to light the stove in that trailer because of the lack of oxygen. I would not be here today if I had decided to take a nap before supper. That and propane heat smells and your throat gets sore from breathing in an area heated by an unvented propane heater.

What I found was a much better option was a gasoline powered Honda generator and a ceramic thermostatically controlled 1500 Watt heater. My older Honda generator is only 1600 Watts and that heater pulls it down a lot on start up, but once it is running it works fine for heating the trailer and running the lights. In CO. we ran a 100' heavy cord and put the generator behind a berm in a three sided box and you could barely hear it. Toasters, coffee makers... will pull a lot of power. I can get 11 hours of power out of 3 gallons of gas and that was good for all night. The newer ones are even better than that. For what I would use it for, I would probably get that Honda 2000 if I were buying one today.

[ncboman]

Doan be too scared. You kinda gotta try to make it dangerous. ... or be kinda ignorant.

In the beginning I was concerned also so I closed my Apache camper as tight as it will close, which isn't all that tight. I fired up my lantern, stove, AND the big buddy heater I had borrowed and kept watch on the situation. The heater never kicked itself off.

To check the heater, I then enclosed it inside the camper cap on my truck (which IS relatively tight). The heater shut down within 5 minutes.

I never sleep with gas powered items running but I think the term 'danger' is somewhat misapplied to the term 'possible'.

Ventilation is like common sense here, ie, a little goes a long way.

ncboman

[LE]

I have the "buddy heater" also. I just don't trust the CO2 monitor to shut it off if something went wrong. I fix electronic equipment & know that anything can fail. The thought of not waking up scares me probably more than it should.

[ncboman]

I wonder what the signs are of the CO2 builds to a high level?

ncboman

[DancesWithKnives]

Your canary falls off his perch, you can't light a match, you don't wake up.:(

DancesWithKnives

[AK-49]

http://www.cdc.gov/co/faqs.htm