Advice on Generator's (1 Viewer)

DAVWOD

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I was pleasantly surprised when seeing my neighbour pull a small generator out of his Garage plugged it into his electric point pulled a cord and with a quite humming sound he switched his TV on.
My Question to anyone who has a Generator : Are they expensive to purchase and what other advantages are their having one?
 

Glandwr

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I've got one and use it quite often but don't pull it out in public. :) Would NEVER consider it on a UK campsite. The more you pay, the quieter and more efficient they are. I have a Honda 1kv ideal for charging batteries, any bigger and you are talking heavy.

Dick
 

hilldweller

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what other advantages are their having one?

You don't have to open the hundreds of Christmas cards you would have received without one.

There is no such thing as a quiet genny, they all get louder the longer they run.

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Don Quixote

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Not long enough, but a little common sense helps..........
I was pleasantly surprised when seeing my neighbour pull a small generator out of his Garage plugged it into his electric point pulled a cord and with a quite humming sound he switched his TV on.
My Question to anyone who has a Generator : Are they expensive to purchase and what other advantages are their having one?
Get the coffee on here is some reading for you:
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OP
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DAVWOD

DAVWOD

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Thanks , we mainly tour on the continent and not having Solar we struggle after 6 weeks touring so I was considering other options.. Thanks chaps
 

Don Quixote

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Not long enough, but a little common sense helps..........
Thanks , we mainly tour on the continent and not having Solar we struggle after 6 weeks touring so I was considering other options.. Thanks chaps
Get a B2B charger fitted. This year we went for 190 days on solar and B2B when needed without EHU hook up.

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9

9526

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We take our kipper with us on ski trips, but managed 3 months in France this summer with just 100w solar.

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hilldweller

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Thanks , we mainly tour on the continent and not having Solar we struggle after 6 weeks touring so I was considering other options.. Thanks chaps

Can you not fit solar, cheaper than a genny ? About £150 off ebay buys 100W or £250 for 200W. Granted not as much as a genny but so easy to live with.

Genny, you carry a dangerous smelly fuel and gennys don't like not being used for weeks.
 

scotjimland

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much as previous replies..

lugged a 2kw Honda around for three years and only ever ran it to keep it fit..
it was more useful at home if there were a power failure..

ended up selling it..

In the UK winter, when solar is next to useless, better off on a site with an EHU ..
 

Jaws

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A Honda 2kVA is about a grand now.
For that money you could have the best solar set up in the world as well as multiple batteries !! ( OK, an exaggeration but you get the drift )

I am a compulsive generator buyer.. I must have had 6 or 7 now ( in fact I still have two ! ).. One comes up cheap and I cannot resist it.. I am 100% sure I will use it.. Carry it around for several months then realise that nope, STILL do not want or need one !

I have 2 x 145aH batteries and 300 watts of solar power.
Providing we get even a modicum of sun that will keep us going indefinitely

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Glandwr

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You don't have to open the hundreds of Christmas cards you would have received without one.

There is no such thing as a quiet genny, they all get louder the longer they run.
Not factually correct, with the intelligent ones they actually get quieter as the load on them is reduced and your batteries are charged. As to smelly fuel I run mine off LPG through the BBQ point.

Be aware though that nothing but nothing divides motorhomers like generators, not even politics.

If you are interested here is an intelligent one that is more than sufficient to charge your batteries and all you need unless you are running a mobile hairdressers.
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Dick
 

ianandkath

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mine came with a jenny, but dont use it much, only has 65 hours on it in 7 years
 

ceejayt

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We were once shunned by another couple because they knew we had a generator. We were on a tour with several vehicles. We pulled up next to them on a site and despite having set up they put everything away and moved grumbling about the generator!

I found this rather hilarious as I had quite clearly and very obviously just taken a very long orange cable and connected to the Electric Hook Up.

We are extremely conscious about using the generator when around other vans. We don't like other generators and don't see why we should inflict our generator noise on others. If parked somewhere with other vans and no access to electric and we are staying several days so no chance of an 'engine recharge' we will turn it on for 5 to 10 minutes in the morning (hairdryer and bean to cup coffee time) and probably another 5 to 10 minutes during the rest of the day (another bean to cup coffee) and never in the evening.

Ours is an onboard Gas Genny 2.9kva and is pretty quiet overall I have to say
 

MattR

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I was pleasantly surprised when seeing my neighbour pull a small generator out of his Garage plugged it into his electric point pulled a cord and with a quite humming sound he switched his TV on.
My Question to anyone who has a Generator : Are they expensive to purchase and what other advantages are their having one?

What do you want to use it for? Many owners have commented that they rarely use theirs as you may read in other genny threads.
 
Jan 28, 2008
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spend the money on solar and batteries they are fit and forget no maintenance no fuel we have 180ws and 225 amps of good batteries and can go at least 3 days in british winter and indefinitely in summer or further south

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DanielFord

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We have a Hyundai 1kva which we use for topping up the batteries when we are off grid for prolonged periods. It is a brilliant piece of kit, I believe I paid about £300 for it. Just to put this into perspective, the van is going in to have a solar kit fitted along with 2kva inverter, which is going to cost us £2,000.
So for all those decrying generators, if you are rarely off grid, then the generator is the choice for you and you can save yourself £1,700. If however, you are always off grid, then solar is the choice for you, and worth the investment.
A generator also has the added bonus, when your power fails at home, you have a power source! Happy days! :D

[edited because I was watching the telly and not concentrating]
 

GWAYGWAY

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weighs a fair bit though even the baby Honda 10 weighs a lot., Mine does not get used a lot but is there in case, chained to the floor of the garage, some traveler might take a liking to one, as they use them a lot on was going around trying to flog CHEAP HONDAS they were ying-yang specials that didn't even look like one. cheap rubbish and noisy too. I do have a diesel 3kva genny that does make a fair rattle when it is going but runs the house during outages.
 

Crusty jack

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Solar is all well and good when the sun is shining, but I defy anyone to spend a winter off grid in Wales like us full timers do and not have their leisure batteries ru n down. Generator was purchased as a last resort to be used only as the last resort, for when the weather has been dull for 3-4 days and 200 watts angled at the sun are quite simply ineffective. The more watts of solar power on the roof the better for harvesting the sunlight when it does appear for 5 minutes. Maybe you have to live off grid through a Welsh winter to appreciate this. Toby Trux.

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mustaphapint

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We have a Yamaha 0.5 KVA which came with the MH. We haven't used it yet other than to check it works and it is very quiet. I'm holding off buying solar until we see how much we might need it, but the generator gives me some comfort that we have a backup if we're stuck.
 

Jaws

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300 watts of solar, 290aH of battery, and thats us done.
We do have a small inverter tucked away under one of the seats but have never ever used it ...

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PeteH

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Be aware though that nothing but nothing divides motorhomers like generators, not even politics.

And "A" Frames!!!!!

Seriously though I have an (old )1990`s Honda one I use mainly for charging SWMBO`s Mobility Scoot, when we Marshal at Festivals Etc:.. I am very aware that they can be an issue, but even solar and an inverter will not re-supply a scoot. And believe it or not some event location managers are dead against leaving the scoot inside to charge overnight!! (Elf and Surftey)

Pete
 
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Augusta08

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I use a Honda 1 Kw and found it reliable and quiet, I changed the microwave to a 500w one, and have a 900w kettle, so we can cook and have a cuppa without using gas. Which can be useful, however it does depend upon your circumstances, some situations can tolerate it others not. There's no right or wrong way about it.
 

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