Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Portable generator comments?

For our new-to-us 25' camper trailer, we are considering getting a little generator for boondocking use when Mom wants to run the microwave, etc. We do not anticipate continuous use like running the air conditioner overnight, if at all. We have been looking at this one and would like to hear your experiences. I dont want any cheap Walmart junk, if I buy one it will be a quality item. Thanks.

Honda EU2200IC 2200-Watt Companion Super Quiet Portable Inverter Generator

Honda would be my pick

The only small generator we have is an old small with a Briggs, and Staten, I'd agree, Honda.

I've got the Honda 2000, it's the older version of the 2200.

Completely reliable and quiet.

Get a CO detector.

Thanks, trailer came with one. It's a modern unit.

Honda generators are excellent. Harbor Freight has a good generator and the extended warranty is second to none. We carry one as a backup on the boat and it starts whenever it's been needed.

I have a Honda EU2000i and it's been a great generator. However, in one of our trailers, the microwave's load was too much for the EU2000i to handle even without any other electrical load. I suggest you look at the starting load for the microwave and make sure your generator has enough capacity with a little extra for a safety margin.

I have a bearcat , echos answer to the Honda, base the purchase on price.

Yep, +1 both.

The Honda 2200 is pretty much the standard for small inverter generators, it's an excellent one. They're pricey though and if you're looking to save a little money the Champion 2000 watt ones are very good at about half the price. I have a champion 2000W I bought several years ago when they were on sale for $399 and it's been fantastic, matter of fact I just used it about an hour ago and it started on the third pull after sitting several months.

If the money's no factor then the Honda is as good as they get. Just make sure it's enough output for the microwave, they draw a bunch of juice.

There are few things in life where when asked for an opinion I generally answer with one name first and work out from there.

Lapua brass
Yamaha power sports
Honda generators

Not that others aren't hood - just that I have implicit trust there.

Honda and not lose a second's sleep over the choice.

The Yamaha 3000 iSEB boost is a fine generator. The boost feature separates it from the pack.

And if you want to run the AC at all, check the starting load for that too.

I also have an EU2000i. Great little (expensive) generator. It will run a very small microwave (maybe 700 watt at most) or a very small AC ( I've run a 5000Btu AC ) but no way both at the same time. And better not have much other load on other than a few lights. You may have to go up to a larger generator, or get two of the 2200s and a pairing kit to combine their output.

the honda is supposed to have a fuel pump making it ideal for the extended run kit where you add a 3 gal boat tank to it.

Personally impressed with the Honda's. We have a 3000 version as there is some chance we'll run the air conditioner (a bit heavy for tossing in and out of truck) and put it on wheels. All is under a cab high canopy, and I just roll it back onto the tailgate and fire it up. Have about the same use patterns as the OP described, so a tankful of fuel should run for a week or more.

I have the EU2000i. It has been great and runs my microwave (even at altitude if I remember correctly). If you are only getting one, don’t get the companion version. The way they work is you can hook two eu2000i units together in parallel to get 4,000 watts out of them. You can’t normally do this with a generator, but the small Honda inverter generator (and a few others) are capable of it. You have to have a special set of cables and a linking box to link them.

For the Honda, if you link one regular EU2000i to the companion version (costs a bit more) you can delete the box. Bottom line...if you buy one get the regular version. If you want to link them and run the AC later on, make your second unit a companion model and you are good to go. Other than the hassle of keeping 2 generators, this makes more sense to me than buying the 3000. They are lighter, you have more power, two 2000’s cost the same as a 3000, and you have the option of splitting the set when you need only one.

When you get the generator get the appropriate 15 amp to 30 (or 50) amp adaptor. Also, you can get a set of charging cables to directly charge a battery from the generator. It may save you if you have a dead truck battery sometime.

Another Honda EU2000i vote. This is the older model as people pointed out but runs our deer camp and power tools reliably. I use an extended run 6 gallon fuel tank and run it continuously for a week. Requires minimum maintenance like oil and filter change. Have linked it to friend's EU2000 with no issues.

first see what btu your ac unit is. there are 2 different size units that come on campers.microwave pull a lot of juice . I had a champion 3100/3400 unit and it would not run my ac unit. it would throw the overload breaker everytime. champion says it should run the whole camper but even after replacing the carb and computer it would not run it. I do not understand why because I have a off brand 2250 watt that will run it fine. the big drawback to lots of small generators is run time. most will not run ac all night on a tank of fuel. my cheaper generator hold 3.3 gal and runs 40hrs on a tank.

Seeing as how you guys are discussing generators, any suggestions on a portable model with 220-240v capabilities for use on our well if the power goes out for any length of time. Right now, it's our only semi-major issue for outages over a few hours.

Portable model on wheels would work fine. Small enough to hand carry, with enough juice for a well pump, I can deal with that too.