Portable Generators

I know there are a lot of past threads regarding generators, and I've read several of them.

I'm hoping to get replies from folks with first hand experience in owning or operating either the Honda's or the Yamaha's. If so, I'd be curious what your preference is with either. I'm leaning towards the Yamaha because of the fuel gauge, ability to shut off fuel and run carberator dry and the epa emission compliance period of 500 hours vs 250 with the Honda. The chinese made knock off inverter generators don't really compare in quality and have epa ratings around 125 hours, so I've pretty much ruled them out. I will be purchasing a 2000 watt model to power quite a few electronics lights and a circulating fan. The onboard genny is 7000 watts and will handle the big loads when needed, but it's louder and uses a lot more fuel than a portable.

Phillyfred, a member here, has two of the Yamahas that keep our camping group powered up all weekend. They're quiet and reliable.  Nice units.  Always start right up. One does they job, but we alternate them.  The Hondas are great units, but expensive.

Wolf Pack Fan said:

I will be purchasing a 2000 watt model to power quite a few electronics lights and a circulating fan. The onboard genny is 7000 watts and will handle the big loads when needed, but it's louder and uses a lot more fuel than a portable.

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That's why I purchased a Honda 2000 last fall. My times boondocking using the on board Onan 5000 were getting more and more expensive as gas prices continued to rise - and was total overkill when not needing A/C. At one time my rationale for not buying a portable was that the $1,000 cost of a Honda would buy a lot of gas for the 5000". But my increased time boondocking and the rising price of gas changed my thinking.

I chose the Honda over the Yamaha at the time mainly because of the difference in pricing - with a $100 price reduction by CW for an on line order. The ratings on each were about the same - and I talked w/many owners around my campsite and they were OK with leaving the set for months as long as an annual service was done. Several had been doing that for 6-7 years and ran them 8 hours a day vs. even going to batteries once charged.

So am very pleased with it's performance, gas mileage, and so forth. The downside is that the fuel gauge would be "very" nice. It's really tough to tell how much fuel has been added or needs to be added, while filling. So I have to stop a few times and look. Once I overfilled which is easy to do without the gauge.

The other downside that Yamaha does not have either is remote start. That, to me, is the really bad part about a portable vs. the built in. When the temps outside are below freezing, it is a long way from under the covers to the the pull cord on the genset.

Several other 2000's do have remote start, such as the Powerhouse - advertised HERE on Amazon. Note that the feedback is very positive by current owners.

Another downside about the Honda is that it is bright red and easily spotted by those that steal such items due to their high resale value. Since buying mine, I have seen 2 stolen by RVing neighbors. So either plan to keep in bound with heavy cable or chain - plus I have also added the hardened steel handle overlay to prevent cutting the plastic handle. Or, put it away every night - tho they do steal them during the day as well. One of my neighbors bought a new one and painted it the ugliest shade of brown I have ever seen.

All things considered, I am very pleased with my Honda. If starting all over, I would evaluate the ones with remote start a bit closer.

Gottasmilealot said:

The Hondas are great units, but expensive.

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The Yamaha's are more expensive than the Hondas.

According to a Yahama sales type there are some internal advantages too (Better bearings on the motor) Having never taken one apart I don't know. 

I do know that reading the threads on this and other forums fixed a problem with a Honda.

Hondas have a sealed fuel system, So since they have a fuel pump and a sealed system they can 'Suck" gas from an external aux tank if you wish (It is called an extended run tank by the way).

The problem waas the generator would only run a short time then die.  Acted fuel starved.

I recalled reading how that extended run tank works and suggested to the folks trying to figure it out they open the vent on the fuel filler cap...

Worked perfectly after that.

Bob Buchanan said:

The Yamaha's are more expensive than the Hondas.

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According to their respective websites the Yamaha appears to be the least expensive.

Yamaha MSRP*$1,099   

TypeBrushless Inverter Maximum AC Output2000 watts Rated AC Output1600 watts Rated / Maximum AC Current13.3 / 16.7 amps @ 120V EngineOHV, Forced Air-Cooled, Four-Stroke, Single Cylinder Displacement79cc Overall Length19.3 in Overall Width11.0 in Overall Height17.9 in Dry Weight44.1 lb Fuel Tank Capacity1.1 gallons Continuous Operation at 1/4 Rated Load10.5 hrs Noise Level51.5 - 61 dBA Warranty3 Years Limited Warranty

EU2000i
(EU2000IKN, EU2000IKC, EU2000iAN, EU2000iAC )
Features
? 2000 watts, 120V
? Ideal for TV/DVD, satellite, fridge, coffee pot, and more
? Super quiet
? Easy to carry - less than 47 lbs!!
? Fuel efficient - up to 9.6 hrs on 1 gal of gas
? Inverter - stable power for computers and more

Honda MSRP
$1149.95*

You may or may not be interested but Yamaha generators are available in multi-fuel configuration with full factory warranty http://www.yamaha-propane-natural-gas-generators.com/. There are advantages to these such as not having to carry full or partially full gasoline containers all the time, switching to propane for a time before shutting down reduces the chances of fouling from stale or evaporated gasoline and for diesel folks having a second fuel source if you run out (since you can not syphon fuel from the RV tank to use in the generator). These considerations may not be of much advantage if you have a large built in genny for backup.

I have a Yamaha 2400 and it has served us well for 4 years and a little over 200 hours.

Bob Buchanan said:

The other downside that Yamaha does not have either is remote start. That, to me, is the really bad part about a portable vs. the built in. When the temps outside are below freezing, it is a long way from under the covers to the the pull cord on the genset.

Several other 2000's do have remote start, such as the Powerhouse - advertised HERE on Amazon. Note that the feedback is very positive by current owners.

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I was reading the reviews on the Powerhouse Bob, and it occurs to me that having a remote start that is good to 75 feet away might not be such a selling point if you have to leave the warmth of the covers to go out and prime it before the remote start will start it....

Gizmo said:

According to their respective websites the Yamaha appears to be the least expensive.

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Well - I stand corrected. Thank you . . .

My searching was at the retail level and at the time could not find a Yamaha equal or less than a Honda. This past January in Quartzsite all of the dealers had Honda's less than Yamaha's.

My purchase came on line from Camping World during an on line sale. I paid $900 plus free shipping.

Water Dog said:

I was reading the reviews on the Powerhouse Bob, and it occurs to me that having a remote start that is good to 75 feet away might not be such a selling point if you have to leave the warmth of the covers to go out and prime it before the remote start will start it....

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I would agree . . . 

However, of the 4 reviews, 3 were 5 star and had no problems with the remote start. The one that did worked with Powerhouse and they replaced his unit per the last line of the review:

"Powerhouse has worked with me in trying to resolve the problem and decided to replace the unit with a new one. The new one is working as advertised."

Water Dog said:

I was reading the reviews on the Powerhouse Bob, and it occurs to me that having a remote start that is good to 75 feet away might not be such a selling point if you have to leave the warmth of the covers to go out and prime it before the remote start will start it....

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Dennis, Dennis, Dennis... YOU don't go out in the cold to prime it, Vici does that (after she's made the coffee, of course).           

Kev

Actually received a number of favorable remarks from Honda and Yamaha owners last month at Richmond, our Boliy 3600sie has really been proving itself, sips fuel, runs our 15k aircon when needed, very quiet, electric start and comes in about the same price as a Honda 2000.  Ours is a 2010 model, however the 2011-12 models use the same fuel cap as the Honda, which makes it easier to use the external tank.  With no aircon use, just microwave, coffee maker, TV, satellite box, lights.... It ran for 14hrs on the 1.9gal tank, had not run out of fuel yet however it was about empty.  At any-rate, worth a look for those needing portable.

Kevin Means said:

Dennis, Dennis, Dennis... YOU don't go out in the cold to prime it, Vici does that (after she's made the coffee, of course).           

Kev

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That's right...! What was I thinking? Funny story- I retired last year and Vici is going to continue to work for a couple of years, so being the nice guy that I am, I decided that I would continue to get up first every morning so she wouldn't be discouraged to see me still snoozin' while she got ready for work. That went on for about a week before she said, "The only reason you get up first is so you won't have to make the bed!".....Can't win. : :

I pulled the trigger and ordered the Yamaha ef2000.  Got it fromwisesales.com for $910 complete.  No tax, and free shipping.  Scheduled to delivery next Thursday, going camping the Friday after.  Will run conventional oil for the first trip for better break in.  After 10-15 hours it'll get a good synthetic oil.

Love my Champion 2000 Inverter type.  Quiet and works well.  $498.....  Got mine a few months ago at Sams for $298.....

The Honda and Yamaha are both excellent products and you can't really go wrong with either. I have had a Honda 2000 for about 10 years and could not be more satisfied. Never a hitch and great on gas.

I ended up getting the Yamaha ef2000.  Gassed and oiled it and it started on the 2nd pull.  Ran it on econ mode for a coupl of hours before ramping it up or putting any kind of load on it.  Used it last weekend camping and it's awesome.  Ran for about 7-8 hours per tank on a load of 2 amp power supply for gaming laptop, 32" lcd, Kicker ik500 boombox, various lights and a crock pot.  It was enough to even power the microwave in the motorhome.  I'm extremely pleased.  Now if someone will just call me about the Camp Mate 1050 I've got on craigslist for $180.

As far as early morning getting out from under the covers.  I like the idea of having the wife start it, but I don't think that would fly to well with mine.  At bed time it's shut down and the furnace runs on 12v and propane if it drops below 65 or so inside.  Not terribly uncomfortable to wake up to.  In the morning before it warms up outside I'll fire the on board 7k to run the coffee pot for the morning cup a joe.

I think that you're going to be very happy with the Yamaha.  We use a Honda 2000 and the thing has over 1,000 hours on it, I've changed the spark plug a total of once and it gets an oil change every 100 hours.  When we purchased the Honda we didn't have much selection, Yamaha at the time only had their 1000 model and it's just not enough to do anything other than charge the batteries.  The 2000 will run everything in the rig except the A/C, including the electric water heater if you want to listen to it scream.

Some folks will dis-agree with me on this but don't waste your money on synthetic oil, it's like buying the "New & Improved" Tide for your laundry, same product different name.  We use plain old Castrol GTX.  I do recommend purchasing an induction hour meter though, they aren't as cheap as the used to be but they're worth the money.

Foto-n-T said:

I do recommend purchasing an induction hour meter though, they aren't as cheap as the used to be but they're worth the money.

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My Honda EU2000i has a form of hour meter built in using the green Output LED light. It was covered in the manual that came with the unit, plus here is a more detailed synopsis I found of how it works and whihc later units have the feature:

As part of a running change to the popular EU-series models, the green Output LED functions as an hourmeter. When the unit is first started, the Output LED can flash based on the total number of hours of operation logged (and stored) by  a circuit in the inverter.

Running time Green Output LED blinking status
Less than 100 hours 0 blinks after start
100 to 200 hours 1 blink after start
200 to 300 hours 2 blinks after start
300 to 400 hours 3 blinks after start
400 to 500 hours 4 blinks after start
Over 500 hours 5 blinks after start

Here are the serial number breaks where the feature was implemented:
EU2000i AC (50-state) EAAJ-2018516
EU2000i AC1 (50-state Companion)EAAJ-2069970
EU2000i AC2 (50-state Camo) TBA
EU2000i AN (49-state) EAAJー2017305
EU2000i AN1 (49-state Companion)EAAJ-2022368
EU2000i AN2 (49-state Camo) EAAJ-2062989

Since the running time is stored within the inverter board, replacing it means
the hourmeter starts back at zero hours.

Related:
The smaller EU1000i got the same change:
? EU1000i 50-state EAGA-1224038
? EU1000i 49-state EAGA-1224009
All EU3000i Handi (pull-start only) models have the feature.
EU3000is Electric start models do not have this feature, but may get it in the
future.

Used units will list items such as, "Used less than 100 hours" and such. Now, one can ask that the seller post the status of the blinking LED to verify what they claim. Not as exact as a standard hour meter, but fine for me for now.

.... a more detailed synopsis I found of how it works ...

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Care to post a link to the source Bob?