quiet rv generators

[white eagle]

I am in the market for a generator to run my ac in my rv for off park situations
before we get into that aint camping conversations I have done all that and know
all the short falls in tent camping and a soft place to land in the evening is more
important these days
I have ruled out Honda's I don't need to pay freight for the ride over here
looking at a Westinghouse Igen 4500 but anymore suggestions and tips would be greatly appreciated
We also want quiet and efficient

[anthont1]

I have the predator 3500 inverter it runs my ac and basic items quiet as a honda but half the price. Before that I had 2 of the predator inverter 2000 tied them together and they ran everything great also. Would still be using them but they were stolen. When we replaced them we decided on the 3500 because the wife has a elbow injury that means she cannot pull start the 2000. The 3500 had electric start and has panel to show useage, voltage and current watts being used.

[osteodoc08]

Honda or Yamaha inverter generator if I was buying personally and desired to keep them for a long time. If occasional use I’d consider trying one of the Chinese knock offs, but If you can’t afford a failure, blue or red; giving Honda the edge.

[Smoke4320]

predator 3500 inverter that's harbor freight brand ?

[osteodoc08]

predator 3500 inverter that's harbor freight brand ?

Correct sir.

[metricmonkeywrench]

Looked into this on and off over the years, these portable type generators seem to fall into to 2 classes, Honda's and everything else. I have seen a few other mid-range price generators targeting the RV crowd But haven’t seen enough reviews to know how good/durable they are.

After the Hondas (if memory serves it will take 2 to run the AC on the bigger systems due to the surge) what you’re really looking for is a generator to support the requested load, normally a 30 or 50 Amp service depending on the trailer. There’s plenty of off the shelf out there to select from but noise is a concern. Several come with exhausts that may be adaptable to either adding a pipe or standoff to direct the noise elsewhere. Most of these do not come with a RV type connector and an adaptor of some sort will be required. Most have a 220 twist lock round type connector. As the panels are usually purpose built it may be difficult of not impossible to switch out the generators connector to an RV type.

The last option that I have looked at a few times is to find in the want ads/online sites a RV genset pulled from one of the larger trailers/mobile homes and adapting it to a trailer hitch type set up and tieing it into the gas/electrical system and running the exhaust up and over the roof for some noise abatement. I have also seen a few folks who built the genset into the bed of a truck to provide some noise/vibration relief as well.

[Tracy]

It's camping; just a different sort of camping. I love tent camping, but I also love boondocking in my truck camper.
I know most people will disagree with me on this, but I avoid the inverter generators. The inverter is by far the most likely part to fail, and if/when it does it will probably be more cost effective to just buy a whole new generator than to fix it.
Champion sells some decent standard generators with Honda clone engines, and some of them are fairly quiet. Here's one I've been looking at: https://amzn.to/31aHxFX
It has electric start, 30 amp standard RV outlet and is dual fuel, gasoline or propane.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

After some research last year I went with a Firman. It is quiet and I was concerned about size and weight for loading. I also liked the idea for a remote electric start for those cold mornings. I was/am happy with it. I also considered their dual fuel models, propane and gasoline capabilities to eliminate the hazards/smell of liquid gasoline. Only because of the extra weight and a REALLY GOOD DEAL at the local Sportsman's Warehouse to I go with the gasoline setup. I used a Troy-bilt for 12years, but finally developed a leaky gas tank and it was loud. Bought a Honda, quiet, the best, it never ran very well above 5000 feet, even with different 'high-altitude' jets. I was very disappointed and unhappy/irritated due high and very bad performance. We use a generator around the farm on occasion, the old Troy-bilt and the Firman start much easier than the Honda and run much better.

[Larry Gibson]

I've an Onan Marquis Gold 5500 as my on board generator in my 5th wheel RV. Runs quiet and runs everything in the RV; 2 ACs, micro wave, fridge (gas when gen not running), etc. It's been purring like a kitten for 11 years.

[C.F.Plinker]

We've got a little 19' RV that is now almost 25 years old and has been ours for 15 years. It has an Onan 2800 watt generator (chassis mount) which is fed off the gas tank. We only had problems once and that was due to our not running it for over a year and the carb varnished up. I now run it every month and have had no more problems. It's fairly quiet and will run the AC with no problems. I like the fact is is mounted in the chassis and fed from the gas tank. Than means I don't have to get it out in order to run it, and carry a can of gas just for it. It is connected directly into the RV wiring so no extension cords are needed. Since it is bolted to the frame it can't walk off by itself.

[truckjohn]

One thing to keep in mind is the fuel. If the RV is diesel - do you really want to have to carry around gasoline too? It doesn't matter if you are towing a car or moped, though....

But... If you already run bottle gas for the stove/water heater - consider a bottle gas conversion for a gas generator or a dedicated bottle gas generator....

The nice thing.... Bottle gas doesn't go nasty if you don't use it in a couple months.... And any left over Diesel could be run back through the RV....

For example - I have a little Honda Hushpuppy 2000... I have a propane kit and keep a bbq tank of propane around for an "Oopsy" emergency. I can stock up on some gasoline the week before a hurricane or ice storm if need be.... but the bottle gas doesn't go bad for an actual unplanned emergency and it doesn't glob up the carburetor..

On the technology question... If you are running old fashioned analog/mechanical appliances - they are generally fairly insensitive to power quality and will generally work fine with a conventional generator. The newer solid state/microprocessor controlled ones are VERY SENSITIVE to power quality and need an inverter. I would rather the inverter board dies when the generator hiccups than to take all the solid state control boards in the new electronic TV, Fridge, Stove, and AC.....

One last thing to consider.... Maintenance intervals and parts. The better generators can run a reasonable amount of time between oil changes and other maintenance... The cheap ones generally need oil changes every 24 hours and spark plugs every 40-80 hours. If you are RV'ing - that may mean an oil change every day or 3 and spark plugs once a week..... That gets to be a hassle. Parts wise - the cheap ones have either ZERO or very limited parts support and no repair support besides hoping that the local small engine guy can figure it out. Honda and Yamaha have parts available at every Honda motorsports dealership and easily online through common places like Amazon. Miscellaneous Chinese generator parts are generally drop shipped out of China - that means a couple weeks wait if it's out of commission.

[Petrol & Powder]

I like truckjohn's thinking.

If the RV is a diesel powered rig, I might be looking at a diesel powdered generator. The noise is largely a function of the exhaust system and how well the generator mounting isolates the unit. A diesel generator may be slightly louder than a comparable gasoline model but it's a different kind of noise.

If you're already running propane for cooking/heating/hot water & maybe other things; a propane powered generator makes a lot of sense. And as truckjohn points out, propane stores for long periods of time far better than gasoline does.

I am a HUGE fan of simple logistics. I would be very reluctant to add one more type of fuel to my rig. If the RV was diesel powered, I would be looking for a diesel generator. If the RV was gasoline powered and had propane appliances; I would be looking for a propane powered generator or converting a gasoline generator to propane.

And a little off topic but I'll toss it out here; solar panels, a charge controller and a small battery bank will not replace a generator for high amperage loads (like an A/C) BUT it can dramatically reduce the need to run the generator. The goal isn't to replace the generator but rather to supplement the generator. If the weather will allow no A/C at night and you can run the lights, refrigerator, radio/TV/CD player etc. off the battery bank - it doesn't get any quieter than that. If you take the high amperage stuff out of the equation, solar has some real attraction as a supplemental power source.

[Lloyd Smale]

honda and ill give you two reasons why. Weve ran our hunting camp on a 3500 for 15 years. That gen is started as soon as someone gets to camp for the day and shut off when they go home. Its probably ran 24 hours a day for 3 months a year for 15 years with nothing but oil changes. Second example was when I was a lineman. We plowed underground power two miles down a road to a guy who built a home two years before that. He and his wife and 3 kids had lived there for those 2 years and ran a 5000 watt honda steady. Again stopping it for oil changes and a couple spark plugs. there not cheap. In fact when I bought a 5000 watt unit for home I went with a cheap menards unit because I knew it would only be used in power outages maybe once a year. Ive had it 5 years and had to use it twice. Were building a new camp right now and to save hours and gas with the big gen my brother in law bought a 1000 watt honda inverter gen. It sits in the generator shack and with the door closed you cant even hear it running. Im one that hates buying stuff not made in America but good luck finding a generator that is totally made and assembled here.

[6bg6ga]

I have an Onan in the Diesel Pusher motorhome that is extremely quiet and runs on propane.

[6bg6ga]

honda and ill give you two reasons why. Weve ran our hunting camp on a 3500 for 15 years. That gen is started as soon as someone gets to camp for the day and shut off when they go home. Its probably ran 24 hours a day for 3 months a year for 15 years with nothing but oil changes. Second example was when I was a lineman. We plowed underground power two miles down a road to a guy who built a home two years before that. He and his wife and 3 kids had lived there for those 2 years and ran a 5000 watt honda steady. Again stopping it for oil changes and a couple spark plugs. there not cheap. In fact when I bought a 5000 watt unit for home I went with a cheap menards unit because I knew it would only be used in power outages maybe once a year. Ive had it 5 years and had to use it twice. Were building a new camp right now and to save hours and gas with the big gen my brother in law bought a 1000 watt honda inverter gen. It sits in the generator shack and with the door closed you cant even hear it running. Im one that hates buying stuff not made in America but good luck finding a generator that is totally made and assembled here.

I've seen a number of motor home people that pulled out a Honda instead of using their onboard generators. They seem to be extremely quiet and dependable.

[jonp]

predator 3500 inverter that's harbor freight brand ?

Yeah. I've got a HF generator and it runs with no problems. I'd give one of the quiet gens they sell a shot for the price.

Wife's parents RV 8 months a year and they use the Honda for about everything. Swear by it.

[fivegunner]

Like Lloyd said HONDA! :D I have a 2,000 watt Honda inverter generator , I used it camping , and when using my Ham radio `s (portable ) They work so well . it won`t start the AC but it run`s a fan well . I have a 10,000 watt gen for Home and cheap 2500watt That I got for free in the shed. I have A Quad and 2 bikes that are Honda`s Anything Honda works for me!

[Petrol & Powder]

Honda does make some great stuff when it comes to small engines. If I was going with a gasoline powered unit, Honda would be near the top of my list. I haven't looked at them in a long time but for a while it was difficult to find the smaller Honda units that had 220VAC outputs. They only had 110 outputs on the smaller units.

Onan was the mainstay of fire & rescue equipment back about 35 year ago but that may have been more to the availability of the larger units in those days than anything else. The old Onan units worked well if you ran them frequently and maintained them well but were nightmares if you neglected them. I serviced a couple of them and the fire & rescue ones worked perfectly, but they had scheduled use and maintenance. The guys that had Onan units in RV's that never ran them and didn't maintain them had all sorts of problems.

I don't know what type of RV the OP has but as I said earlier, I would be extremely reluctant to add another type of fuel to my requirements. If the RV has a diesel engine and propane appliances I would want to stay with diesel or propane for an on-board generator just so I wouldn't have to add a third fuel to deal with.
Propane stores better than gas or diesel in terms of time but it's bulkier in terms of space for tanks.

NOW, if we're talking about a portable generator that you set on the ground some distance from the RV, then I am solidly in agreement that Honda is the way to go. Those Honda units are very well made, extremely reliable, very durable and quite.

[Idaho45guy]

My dad had a Coleman 2500 watt unit that was noisy and thirsty. He Jerry-rigged a 1-gallon gas tank to it to supplement the stock fuel tank. He upgraded to a Yamaha 3500 watt unit and loves it. Gave the Coleman to me and I start it every couple of months and it is indeed noisy and stinky.

But he loves that new Yamaha, lol.

[Petrol & Powder]

A lot of those Coleman units still used flat head engines. A newer overhead valve engine will use less fuel, last longer and make far less noise.

[iomskp]

My wifes brother in law has a Honda he fitted a different muffler to it, he uses it a lot he does a lot of camping, when it is running 10 feet away you can just hear it.

[beechbum444]

Hondas are GREAT, I did some research on these for a trailer (another project) that I still haven't finished and I think that Champions are Honda copies.....just my two cents.

[Sweet McAwesome]

This topic just came up in another group I'm in. My buddy was looking for a generator to use at the race track to power his RV (Mainly A/C and his Microwave), Tire warmers (For the race bike), and a fan to cool/dry his helmet. After a lot of lengthy opinions, what we found is that the guys running the Predator 3500 from Harbor Freight were all just as satisfied with their equipment as the Honda and Yamaha guys. The difference? you can buy 2 Predator 3500's for less than the price of a single Honda or Yamaha Gennie. None of them have had any issues, and these are very quiet, smooth running machines.

[Mal Paso]

Honda Inverter

If the OP wants built in, Generac. 1800 rpm if you can get it but the Honda will be quieter.

[lightman]

I'm not a generator expert but I've been around a lot of them. Hondas are quiet and usually easy to start. Most of the guys that I know that don't have a Honda want a Honda.

[6bg6ga]

My propane Onan in the motor home is so quiet you can hardly hear it run.