Has anyone tried using a Honda (or similar ) generator for routine recharging on a small sailboat(like Macgregor 26x)while on a week long cruise?
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Honda 650
We've lugged a Honda 650 (the "quiet" one) along a few times and learned a few lessons: 1. They don't like salt air! The aluminum oxidizes and the ferrous stuff rusts. 2. The 110v output is much greater than the 12v output therefore one should have a good inverter that can handle the amps and charge the batteries. 3. They aren't "quiet" enough! I've thought about puting it in a box with foam and adding another muffler to the exhaust. Cooling could be done with some added 12v fans running off the 12v outlet. The problem is where to put the box. Also, I've only run it in an anchorage where I was the only boat. It would be good insurance against being somewhere and having a dead battery. Can't have too many toys!
We've lugged a Honda 650 (the "quiet" one) along a few times and learned a few lessons: 1. They don't like salt air! The aluminum oxidizes and the ferrous stuff rusts. 2. The 110v output is much greater than the 12v output therefore one should have a good inverter that can handle the amps and charge the batteries. 3. They aren't "quiet" enough! I've thought about puting it in a box with foam and adding another muffler to the exhaust. Cooling could be done with some added 12v fans running off the 12v outlet. The problem is where to put the box. Also, I've only run it in an anchorage where I was the only boat. It would be good insurance against being somewhere and having a dead battery. Can't have too many toys!
Honda
Rob, I looked at getting a Honda EU2000i/ 2000 watts for our C36. I spoke to Catalina and they said I could just plug it into shore power. I've spoken to other people that have done this and are happy with it. I would not keep the unit on the boat. I would just bring it along when on a longer cruise. We can get along for 2 to 3 days fine on batteries without recharging. Regards, Chris
Rob, I looked at getting a Honda EU2000i/ 2000 watts for our C36. I spoke to Catalina and they said I could just plug it into shore power. I've spoken to other people that have done this and are happy with it. I would not keep the unit on the boat. I would just bring it along when on a longer cruise. We can get along for 2 to 3 days fine on batteries without recharging. Regards, Chris
Desperation
Some years ago, I was in a place where it would take six weeks to get a replacement fuel tank built, which I did, and in the meantime I had to have more power than my solar panels would put out. I bought a used Honda 350 generator (only thing I could get) and it really IS quiet, but very small. You could share the cockpit with it and conduct a conversation. I ran my battery charger through it (be careful on sizing....battery chargers have a "power factor" which can make their current draw almost double what you would expect when you calculate watts), and in general everything worked fine. I still have the little generator as a back up for moments of desperation, although my current solar array will handle everything, including refrigeration and water maker. But, you never know. Oh the other hand, a well known cruising couple down here in Mexico, who are amongst the most active, even sailing back and forth from the US every year (emphasis on sailing), have opted on a Yamaha generator. They love it, and they have a very power intensive boat. At anchor,they set it up on the bow and let 'er rip. It is a bit noisy, but not awful. They feel it is the easiest and cheapest answer to their power problems, and he is formerly an electrical and electronics tech, so he does know something about it! Every few years they buy a new generator. Personally, I am always astonished by the amount of gasoline that they carry, which is something I would not do, but it has certainly worked well for them. And, I would imagine that many people whose cruises are much shorter or less serious than my friends', might well find that a little gas generator makes more sense than the elaborate systems we tend to put together. Do go through the battery charger, however, and that is a must.
Some years ago, I was in a place where it would take six weeks to get a replacement fuel tank built, which I did, and in the meantime I had to have more power than my solar panels would put out. I bought a used Honda 350 generator (only thing I could get) and it really IS quiet, but very small. You could share the cockpit with it and conduct a conversation. I ran my battery charger through it (be careful on sizing....battery chargers have a "power factor" which can make their current draw almost double what you would expect when you calculate watts), and in general everything worked fine. I still have the little generator as a back up for moments of desperation, although my current solar array will handle everything, including refrigeration and water maker. But, you never know. Oh the other hand, a well known cruising couple down here in Mexico, who are amongst the most active, even sailing back and forth from the US every year (emphasis on sailing), have opted on a Yamaha generator. They love it, and they have a very power intensive boat. At anchor,they set it up on the bow and let 'er rip. It is a bit noisy, but not awful. They feel it is the easiest and cheapest answer to their power problems, and he is formerly an electrical and electronics tech, so he does know something about it! Every few years they buy a new generator. Personally, I am always astonished by the amount of gasoline that they carry, which is something I would not do, but it has certainly worked well for them. And, I would imagine that many people whose cruises are much shorter or less serious than my friends', might well find that a little gas generator makes more sense than the elaborate systems we tend to put together. Do go through the battery charger, however, and that is a must.
In response to your question on the genset, we use a small Honda on Windlass, a 34 mark 2. We stay out for several days at a time, and have no worries about keeping up with all our power needs; just fire it up-easy to start- and either use as an inverter or charge the batteries full in approximately two hours. It is extremely quiet and will for 8 hours on a tank of gas. No more idyling the diesel!
Honda 350
Didn't know they made anything this small. The 650 is a bit bulky for a boat but this one looks really portable. Thanks Tim for mentioning this!
Didn't know they made anything this small. The 650 is a bit bulky for a boat but this one looks really portable. Thanks Tim for mentioning this!
Attachments
700W Genset Heart Freedom 10
Hi, I bought a 700W genset in the hopes of using it through the Freedom 10 inverter/charger. Whilst the genset happily runs everything else on board, the Freedom clicks in at about 2 amps to charge the batteries, then it notches up in stages to about 20 amps - then it trips out. I contacted Heart Interface who said their unit monitors the waveform, decides it is not a pure enough sinewave and trips out. They also say the smallest genset which is okay is a 3 KVA unit and I am not going to lug one of those on board; so I fitted a crude 20 amp car battery charger with no sophisticated regulation etc and it works just fine. There is no potential problem with overcharging as I watch the amp hours going in and the genset runs out of gas anyway. Also the genset is claimed to be "Whisper Quiet" - funny how loud a whisper can be !!!
Hi, I bought a 700W genset in the hopes of using it through the Freedom 10 inverter/charger. Whilst the genset happily runs everything else on board, the Freedom clicks in at about 2 amps to charge the batteries, then it notches up in stages to about 20 amps - then it trips out. I contacted Heart Interface who said their unit monitors the waveform, decides it is not a pure enough sinewave and trips out. They also say the smallest genset which is okay is a 3 KVA unit and I am not going to lug one of those on board; so I fitted a crude 20 amp car battery charger with no sophisticated regulation etc and it works just fine. There is no potential problem with overcharging as I watch the amp hours going in and the genset runs out of gas anyway. Also the genset is claimed to be "Whisper Quiet" - funny how loud a whisper can be !!!
Article about small gensets...
The link below has an interesting article about small generators. I never realized that they were actually "modified sine wave" and had an inveter built in!
The link below has an interesting article about small generators. I never realized that they were actually "modified sine wave" and had an inveter built in!
Honda 350 for John
It is, indeed, very compact, kind of like a medium tool kit, and pretty light, too. Another interesting thing is that on its low setting (200 watts, if memory serves) it purrs so that you could literally have it on the seat next to you and carry on a conversation. I used to put it on the helmsman's seat, with the exhaust faced aft, and have friends aboard in a cockpit! Try that with any other generator. Of course, on the high setting it was noticeably noisier, but it was never anything close to other generators. I think they originally designed it for campers to carry into the woods with one hand, and assumed they would operate it right outside the tent. It has a spark arrestor in order not to ignite pine needles and such! But beware....check that power factor on your battery charger because I don't think there are many twenty amp chargers that this thing will drive. I use it on a ten amp smart charger, which, by the way, works great, and with the low noise and about .05 (yes, .05) GPH fuel consumption, I did not mind this thing running for hours and hours.
It is, indeed, very compact, kind of like a medium tool kit, and pretty light, too. Another interesting thing is that on its low setting (200 watts, if memory serves) it purrs so that you could literally have it on the seat next to you and carry on a conversation. I used to put it on the helmsman's seat, with the exhaust faced aft, and have friends aboard in a cockpit! Try that with any other generator. Of course, on the high setting it was noticeably noisier, but it was never anything close to other generators. I think they originally designed it for campers to carry into the woods with one hand, and assumed they would operate it right outside the tent. It has a spark arrestor in order not to ignite pine needles and such! But beware....check that power factor on your battery charger because I don't think there are many twenty amp chargers that this thing will drive. I use it on a ten amp smart charger, which, by the way, works great, and with the low noise and about .05 (yes, .05) GPH fuel consumption, I did not mind this thing running for hours and hours.
set up
So is the way to go ..to have the genset charging the batteries while you are using the batteries to power things like the fridge,chartplotter etc?
So is the way to go ..to have the genset charging the batteries while you are using the batteries to power things like the fridge,chartplotter etc?
"Mini" Generator Comparisons
The site (link below) has a really good discussion on small gen sets for RVers and a paragraph summary is as follows: Now for a few overview comments. The Yamaha EF1000 is a nice unit for those who want the full 10 amp charge rate. The only negative is that it is a touch heavy at 55 lbs. The Honda EX1000 is OK, a bit noisy and is old technology. The Honda EX650 is nice and quiet, but a trifle heavy for its 5.8 amp charging rate. For nearly the same money, the new EU1000ic is certainly a best buy. It is bulkier in size but 21 lbs. lighter than the EX650. Both the quietness and the long running time are desirable features. Finally, the little EX350 gets the nod for its compactness and economy. Making a choice between these last two is going to be a difficult decision. Selecting one or the other may come down to flipping a coin. Also, this is another really good link about the shortfalls of the 350 (all is not gold that glistens): http://yarchive.net/car/rv/honda_generator.html http://www.ronnies.com/lite.htm 459.95 One site said or implied the 350 is an oil-injected 2-cycle but on another link the user talked about a lean oil mix so I'm confused on this. For most applications on smaller boats it looks like the EX350 would be hard to beat because of it's small size, light weight, and quietness. It is a two-cycle so will use the same gas as most outboards but check the oil-mix ratio. If you have a four-cycle outboard then this means carrying at least two Gerry cans. My outboard is two-cycle so the 350 would work fine. After writing all this I checked with the local Honda dealer and learned the 350 is no longer in the line. The smallest generator they have now is the EX700 which weighs 31 pounds and can be found for as low as $549 (Northwest Power Tools in Spokane). The good part is it runs on regular gas and has an automatic low oil pressure shut-off. A solar panel or two should still be considered as very efficient and could be used in conjunction with a generator.
The site (link below) has a really good discussion on small gen sets for RVers and a paragraph summary is as follows: Now for a few overview comments. The Yamaha EF1000 is a nice unit for those who want the full 10 amp charge rate. The only negative is that it is a touch heavy at 55 lbs. The Honda EX1000 is OK, a bit noisy and is old technology. The Honda EX650 is nice and quiet, but a trifle heavy for its 5.8 amp charging rate. For nearly the same money, the new EU1000ic is certainly a best buy. It is bulkier in size but 21 lbs. lighter than the EX650. Both the quietness and the long running time are desirable features. Finally, the little EX350 gets the nod for its compactness and economy. Making a choice between these last two is going to be a difficult decision. Selecting one or the other may come down to flipping a coin. Also, this is another really good link about the shortfalls of the 350 (all is not gold that glistens): http://yarchive.net/car/rv/honda_generator.html http://www.ronnies.com/lite.htm 459.95 One site said or implied the 350 is an oil-injected 2-cycle but on another link the user talked about a lean oil mix so I'm confused on this. For most applications on smaller boats it looks like the EX350 would be hard to beat because of it's small size, light weight, and quietness. It is a two-cycle so will use the same gas as most outboards but check the oil-mix ratio. If you have a four-cycle outboard then this means carrying at least two Gerry cans. My outboard is two-cycle so the 350 would work fine. After writing all this I checked with the local Honda dealer and learned the 350 is no longer in the line. The smallest generator they have now is the EX700 which weighs 31 pounds and can be found for as low as $549 (Northwest Power Tools in Spokane). The good part is it runs on regular gas and has an automatic low oil pressure shut-off. A solar panel or two should still be considered as very efficient and could be used in conjunction with a generator.
Honda 2000
I also have a honda 2000 watt generator. I have a heart 2000 watt inverter on my boat, and was told by someone at heart interface that the 2000 watt inverter has a 100 amp battery charger. The honda 2000 generator will not handle the 100 amp charger, so I would need a "link 20 control" $342.00 to hook up to my inverter, which would lower the charging ouput of the inverter to 50 amps. The honda 2000 watt genrator would handle this load. My inverter is a 1993 model grey in color, not the new model. I would like to know if anyone else has done this before I spend the $342.00.
I also have a honda 2000 watt generator. I have a heart 2000 watt inverter on my boat, and was told by someone at heart interface that the 2000 watt inverter has a 100 amp battery charger. The honda 2000 generator will not handle the 100 amp charger, so I would need a "link 20 control" $342.00 to hook up to my inverter, which would lower the charging ouput of the inverter to 50 amps. The honda 2000 watt genrator would handle this load. My inverter is a 1993 model grey in color, not the new model. I would like to know if anyone else has done this before I spend the $342.00.
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