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Thread: Power Generator - for camping and home

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    Junior Member CrownClit's Avatar
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    Default Power Generator - for camping and home

    Recently I have decided to purchase a power generator as a backup for few critical items in the house in case of a power shortage, camping trips and running couple of tools on friend’s farm. There are quite few on the market ATM starting form (my preferred) a 7kVA with Honda GX390 engine for around $800 to a cheaper one with lesser specs. This unit weights however 86 kg. Would it be an over kill for my limited needs? What are you guys using going camping in the bush for few weeks? Should I consider a diesel instead of petrol one?

    Cheers:

    CC
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    7KVA could power your whole house. A 2KVA Honda EU20i can comfortable run a full size fridge and freezer, and also power a few lights and possibly your TV at the same time. We had to for about a week, last time we had a big storm. Dunno about the specs on the cheapie Gennies, how accurate they are etc, but you'd be pretty comfortable with a 3KVA for most stuff. If you plan to use a small inverter welder, go for the 3KVA. My Honda won't quite handle 2.5mm electrodes at anything over about 80A. I can do small 1.5cm runs, but the penetration isn't great.

    As for camping, that's a tricky one. Do you really want to be running a genny while enjoying the serenity? and the cheapies are really noisy. My Honda E20i is one of the quietest, and I find it very annoying after a short while, not to mention anyone else near you. Better off getting a decent solar set up (>300W panels and a couple of 100AH deep cycle batteries) and you can run a decent sized 12V fridge, water pump, and even a small TV as well as LED lighting, and be off grid for weeks, depending on sunlight of course.

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    Where are you getting a 7Kva Genset with a Genuine Honda Motor for $800 from?
    Sounds way too cheap. Ones i've seen are more like $1800.

    I agree with everything bob has posted too.
    Last edited by ol' boy; 25-11-16 at 11:14 AM.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    Thanks Guys!
    There is one user on ebay selling in now for $799 however it may be a scam, there is another for $899 with $100 off cupon discount. I've bought some other tolls from that company and they are legit.
    Not sure if i can post a link here but i will try for your info anyway - hopefuly admin will not remove it.


    CC
    Last edited by CrownClit; 25-11-16 at 11:46 AM.
    ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI!

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    Thanks, seems he has a mix of good and bad reviews.
    Easy to be tempted at that price for a 5Kva Genset.

    Quite a big price difference when you buy direct from his online shop than eBay
    Same Genset:

    Reviews:

    Whole Range:

    Is this the man?:

    Note: AGR machinery now renamed Edisons. In a world where online reviews mean everything, you may want to question why they changed their name?
    Last edited by ol' boy; 25-11-16 at 12:38 PM.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    i bought a cheap chainsaw of agr yrs ago and well i got what i paid for
    no customer service no nothing from them what so ever

    beware is all i say when spending more than a few hundred $$, i have bought cheap
    when i will only be using the item a few times and that's it when it would have cost me more
    to hire.But when its something i am going to rely on i will buy once and pay for quality.
    dont say linux if i wanted it id install it

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    Diavalo is spot on.
    Not much point having a Genset, that in 2 years time, no longer starts or the Output stage cooked itself and fails to deliver power.

    If money is an issue, maybe have a look at these

    Or


    Yep, just cheap Chinese junk again, but it might fit your budget and usage.

    If you buy a Proper Genuine Honda EU20i, you get a National Service Agent Network, Easy to find and buy spare parts, and it should work like the day you bought it 20 years later (although Honda isn't the same Honda it was 10/20 years ago i've been told)
    Sometimes you have to wonder if the saving is worth it for the Chinese options.

    The Yamaha is considered to be marginally better and with less noise than the Honda these days.
    They come with a 4 Year Warranty and 200 Service Agents around the country.
    But i've heard of the odd ones of these dieing and being more $$$ to repair than the price of replacing it too.
    Last edited by ol' boy; 25-11-16 at 03:07 PM.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    According to reports by the Police there have been a gang of Irish Nationals going around selling portable generators and air compressors for very low prices.
    I am not sure how the scam works, you either dont get the goods or what you get is junk.
    I stand unequivicably behind everything I say , I just dont ever remember saying it !!

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    Quote Originally Posted by oceanboy View Post

    If you buy a Proper Genuine Honda EU20i, you get a National Service Agent Network, Easy to find and buy spare parts, and it should work like the day you bought it 20 years later (although Honda isn't the same Honda it was 10/20 years ago i've been told)
    .
    Not sure on new honda motors but i have a pressure washer that i bought 14yrs ago and trust me when
    i say the old girl has worked its little heart out ( over 4000 hours ) and all i have had to replace was the
    choke spring and oil plug. I service it every 30 hours with new oil and new plugs every yr no matter how
    many hours its done. It will need all new seals soon as it starting to show a oil leak but for the hours its
    done its a miracle i haven't had to do them earlier.
    Last edited by fandtm666; 25-11-16 at 02:44 PM.
    dont say linux if i wanted it id install it

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    Yeah, think the issue with the newer Honda EU20i is the Electric Output Stage fails and it ends up costing more than the whole Genset to fix.
    Hence why you see a few sold second hand and cheap (people trying to get some money for their broken genset).
    I don't think it all that common, but its been mentioned on some forums and 4WD sites.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    just bought that 7kVA unit from Edisons. With pickup option cost me $1018 minus 10% discount from Ebay = $916
    lets hope it will work well :-)
    ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI!

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    Haha, what are you taking camping with you, you electric stove and fridge? Geez, 7KVA is huge...

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    Quote Originally Posted by bob_m_54 View Post
    Haha, what are you taking camping with you, you electric stove and fridge? Geez, 7KVA is huge...
    Hey hey Bob, you know the drum when you're camped up near the Murray River, its all about what you brought and how big it is
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    Quote Originally Posted by bob_m_54 View Post
    Haha, what are you taking camping with you, you electric stove and fridge? Geez, 7KVA is huge...
    Actually, not so funny.
    I went to a property this week
    Recreational Property, 50 acres, shed, beds and bunks, bikes and buggies, Gas Stove, Gas HWS, Gas Fridge
    Then a Genset for when you visit and when you need it.

    So much cheaper than getting the power on
    Ok, Solar and Batteries would have been nice, but for these people, a few dollars in fuel, far outweighed Grid Connection and sky rocking bills, or Solar at this point.

    For 5 or 6 visits a year.... It is not a bad solution.
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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    Think I'll stick with my 120w solar panel and 100Ah battery for the moment. Beer's always cold and the lights are always on. Don't need much more personally.
    Last edited by Drift; 03-12-16 at 03:08 PM.

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    Another consideration is the quality of the output... A lot of the cheap GenSets have real dirty output (as in not a clean pure sine wave). Whilst for your lights this is not a problem, but you may notice strange lines on your TV, your fan makes a funny humming noise, etc. I read somewhere a while ago, Engel (I think) fridges were not to be run on 240v Generator as it will stuff the compressor.

    Anyway, as long as the beer is drinkable who cares about lights and tvs etc

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    Quote Originally Posted by oceanboy View Post
    Actually, not so funny.
    I went to a property this week
    Recreational Property, 50 acres, shed, beds and bunks, bikes and buggies, Gas Stove, Gas HWS, Gas Fridge
    Then a Genset for when you visit and when you need it.

    So much cheaper than getting the power on
    Ok, Solar and Batteries would have been nice, but for these people, a few dollars in fuel, far outweighed Grid Connection and sky rocking bills, or Solar at this point.

    For 5 or 6 visits a year.... It is not a bad solution.
    Yep, if it is a permanent location, that would be a good idea. But for camping trips?? 3KVA is even getting a bit large. And unless you really need the power for some sort of medical equipment, it really defeats the idea of going camping. Unless you subscribe to the theory, that going camping, is spending vast sums of money so you can go and live like a homeless person.

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    Quote Originally Posted by CrownClit View Post
    just bought that 7kVA unit from Edisons. With pickup option cost me $1018 minus 10% discount from Ebay = $916
    lets hope it will work well :-)
    Happy with the unit CrownClit?

    Did you have to assemble anything?
    Run quite?
    Not too heavy?
    If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!

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