Thinking about the new Yamaha EF2000iS combo

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supermanotorious

supermanotorious

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I wonder if these would power my A/C quietly enough to use overnight. Does anyone have experience with them?

https://www.yamahagenerators.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=EF2000iSv2_Combo
 
Depends on where you're spending the night. Most RV parks will not allow generators, and many state parks and other government campgrounds have quiet hours, often 10PM to 6 or 7AM. But Yamahas, like Hondas, are among the quieter generators.
 
Hey Super,

I recently bought the Yamaha EF2400iSHC which was reported to be able to run newer AC units. I wanted something that could in a pinch, it does without any issues, mine at least. It is on the edge power wise. I was concerned about size and weight. It runs easily and very quiet, appears to be fairly well made.

Good luck
 
I was looking at that one and the 2800 as well. But I still like the idea of the 2000 pair for even quieter operation and portability. I didn't think the 2400 had a 30amp receptacle. Either way, I looked at Yamaha's web site long enough to decide on the 2000 pair but I don't feel the specifications are very robust.

My plan would be to use it mainly shore camping at Lake Pleasant in the summer or in remote desert areas this summer if our hunting trips align. It's hot at night in the Arizona summer and this would be a game changer.
 
The plunge said:
Hey Super,

I recently bought the Yamaha EF2400iSHC which was reported to be able to run newer AC units. I wanted something that could in a pinch, it does without any issues, mine at least. It is on the edge power wise. I was concerned about size and weight. It runs easily and very quiet, appears to be fairly well made.

Good luck
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Could you set it up, and film a little video where you talk as it is running your A/C, and have you do that in a few positions relative to the 2400 so we have an idea of the sound level?
 
supermanotorious said:
My plan would be to use it mainly shore camping at Lake Pleasant in the summer  It's hot at night in the Arizona summer and this would be a game changer.
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I'll be interested in the answers you get. As it happens we just spent the weekend dry camping at Lake Pleasant, met a buddy with his fiver who want to do the same thing - run AC all night this summer but in an area where you're not supposed to run generators after (I think) 8pm. (It's dry camping but not boondocking, at least where we were.)

My concern, as someone who likes having a generator when it's needed but doesn't want to listen to the other guys'  ::), is that when you're in an area like this it can be very quiet at night. That other guy is sleeping with his windows open and even a very quiet generator can probably be heard from quite some distance. Depends on how far from the other guys you're able to get I suppose.
 

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Odds are strong that you will need to use both of the pair to run one a/c. A single 2000 (1600 watts continuous) will probably trip its circuit breaker most every time the a/c compressor starts up. The 2400 watt unit should be able to use just one if you only need to run the a/c.

None of these units are quiet enough to escape notice. Low noise is not no noise, and when the a/c is actually running they won't be all that queit anyway. With an inverter generator, the noise level increase with the load and an a/c will have them working hard. The noise advanatge of an ionverter genset is that it throttles way back (low rpms) when the load is light. Under heavy load there isn't any real advantage except compared to some of the cheap "contractor grade" gensets that have a lot of NVH (vibration noise).
 
Gary RV Roamer said:
None of these units are quiet enough to escape notice. Low noise is not no noise, and when the a/c is actually running they won't be all that queit anyway. With an inverter generator, the noise level increase with the load and an a/c will have them working hard.
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I wondered about that. Great for "idling" all night for battery charging or very light AC loads but wide open is wide open - I guess there's no free lunch. The other thing that occurred to me was fuel consumption, which is stated as quite low but on the little generators I note that they use 1/4 load for calculating fuel consumption, not the usual 1/2 load. While I know you can add external tanks, without them seems like you'd be dry in 2-3 hours. While I guess you can get out two generators, rig up the parallel cords, rig up two external tanks and make it work if the situation allowed, seems like a diminishing return at some point.

And I forgot about the noise of the AC itself, which I think we often do because we're inside enjoying the cool air. Actually ran into a park that limited campers to one AC at night, just to try and cut down the noise in the park.
 
I know exactly where you stayed at Pleasant and those are nice pictures. We plan to be a little more remote though and likely on the Yavapai County side, right at the water line. Much to think about with these power sources.
 
Here is email correspondence I got from Yamaha:


Subject: Yamaha Generator Questions From YamahaGenerators.com

Hi, I am considering purchasing the EF2000iSv2 combo for my toy hauler. What I'm not sure of is, would the 30amp service be able to run my A/C and general lighting? I would assume it would but I can't seem to find the info online.

Reply:

The 2 linked would give you 30 amps surge. They would run up to and including a 13,500 BTU AC. Should be fine with a couple of lights, but if it is a 13,500 BTU, you may have to shut the battery charger off when running the AC since they can draw 500-1000 watts from the generator when running. Most set ups have a shut off to turn them off when running the AC.

Regards,
National Supply
Yamahagenerators.com
877-316-3954
 
supermanotorious said:
We plan to be a little more remote though and likely on the Yavapai County side, right at the water line.
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For future returns I'd be interested in a pin on a Google map of the area you're talking about. Planning on doing lots more dry camping/boondocking. Can I get my coach in there?
 
Supermanotorious,

Wouldn't this be something that would work for you, rather than having two to deal with?:

http://m.powerequipment.honda.com/generators/models/eu3000is

 
Well, 4000 watts (for the pair) is more than the 3600 watts needed to produce 30A power, so sure, the pair will do just fine. But now you have doubled the noise of just one. Not sure how two compares (noise-wise) to one larger size one, though.

The primary reason for using two smaller gensets is that they are easier to lug individually and some of the time you can get by using just one. If you always need both online, there is little benefit.

It all depends on how you envision using them...
 
You don't double the noise using 2 gene's. When they are the same dBA, the total noise is an additional 3 dBA louder. There are some neat calculators and charts online. The greater disparity in dBA between devices lowers the additional dBAs, for example, if gene A is 75dBA and gene B is 60dBA, the total sound is 75dBA, gene A is loud enough to drown out gene B.

If gene A and gene B both run at 60dBA, the total noise is 63dBA.
 
Sun2Retire said:
Wouldn't this be something that would work for you, rather than having two to deal with?
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I was thinking the same about the EU3000. One thing he would lose with the EU3000 is portability. It's a heavy one when full of fuel. I own one. I know. I believe over 130 lbs. I love mine. But I don't travel. However, I do move it twice a year at the beginning and end of the camping season.
If portability is a necessity or wanted, that model may not be a good fit.

Gary is right. You are on that fine line of just what you want to do. It depends on how silent you want to be vs. type of camping you want to do.
And don't forget, if you have two gennys, you have to accommodate enough gas for two. Just a thought.

supermanotorious said:
You don't double the noise using 2 gene's. When they are the same the total noise is an additional 3 dBA louder. There are some neat calculators and charts online.
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Tell that to your neighbor.
You can also find out online how much of a 3 dBA difference sounds during the middle of the night. No offense, but the truth.
 
Believe me, when they're both running at 70% to 90% power you'll know it. :eek:  I had a neighbor a few weeks ago in Death Valley with two Champions tied together, even without A/C those things were obnoxious so to paraphrase denmarc, be kind to your neighbors 'cause you won't always be the only one in the desert.

Sun2Retire brought up a good point though, your fuel consumption running these to power an A/C all nite long will require an aux tank.  You could probably easily plumb one tank to both units though.

Regarding using one 3000 versus two 2000's I think you'll find that the versatility of having two smaller generators outweighs any advantage of the single unit 3000.  Yes a 3k will run your A/C but it's gonna be pushing it on a compressor hot start.  Since I have a 5.5k onboard genset I don't need two 2000's but I've found that my little Honda gets used about 98% of the time.  I'll admit that I no longer live in the land of Kitty Litter year round and don't often use my A/C if ever up north but I'm guessing that you probably won't be only camping during the time of year that you can fry an egg on a man hole cover.

 
Sun2Retire said:
For future returns I'd be interested in a pin on a Google map of the area you're talking about. Planning on doing lots more dry camping/boondocking. Can I get my coach in there?
Click to expand...

I would suggest you drive it in a truck before you decide about the coach. Simply take Castle Hot Springs north and instead of turning right to the Yavapai boat ramp, turn left on the dirt road and follow it around the north end of the lake.
 
supermanotorious said:
I would suggest you drive it in a truck before you decide about the coach. Simply take Castle Hot Springs north and instead of turning right to the Yavapai boat ramp, turn left on the dirt road and follow it around the north end of the lake.
Click to expand...
Thanks
 
In practice, many of our customers get by running a 13.5k and even a 15k just fine on a 3000. The only time I've heard of blowing the breaker is when the microwave (or other large load)  is running and the ACs compressor kicks on.  With 4kw from running 2 x 2000s, you're well over the power centers max load in a 30 amp machine, anyway.

On a side note, I've noticed that Yamaha uses a split wire parallel kit that goes right to a 30amp rv plug. IMO, that trumps Honda's odd jumper to the Companion model kit, which then requires another adapter to get to the coach. Even stranger is the Companion's outlet is rated at precisely 26.6 amps.
 
First most of the AC units will run with a 2000 watt generator but its the startup current draw that causes the problems and for units of 13500 and larger your maxed out with the 2000 watt deal so even if the startup current draw wasn't an issue you'd be pushing it to the max. They do make a high efficiency AC unit that will run on a Honda 2000, takes about 11 amps to run. For most a 3000 watt generator is needed and the better choice IMO. The Honda EU3000 is very good but heavy and not cheap. Champion makes a 3100 watt generator that will work with a 15000 but AC unit. It is similar to Honda's Handi 3000 unit but priced much better, about half. It is quit also, has two wheels and a nice fold up handle.

BTW two coupled 2000's will work also but why have two generators!

Anther thing that can be done is add an Easy Start capacitor to your AC, this helps lower the current draw at startup that the compressor motor draws. Not much money for these either.

Hope this helps.
 
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