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Want to buy a genny


Miemie

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What is the best generator to buy to use on the boat we are mooring in a marina in winter but don't have electricity so was thinking of getting a genny what advice can you peeps give me

 

Kim

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Ditto but you will need access to unleaded or LPG if converted.

 

Our 20i provides all we need if I need to either charge batteries or use standalone. The best benefit for us is how quiet it is. We secure it to the boat or through Armco. We always take it into the boat at night, switched off of course. I did look for an exhaust kit so it could live in the engine ole but decided the make yourself to be unacceptable to us.

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I don't think it a good idea to have petrol in your engine room whatever exhaust you have.

The Honda is definitely the front runner but if cost is a factor then the Kipor is about half the price. It's noisier but not horrendous, I had one for about 4 years and it was totally reliable. Electric start, but if you want auto-start then it won't work as there's a manual choke.

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Will these Honda EU20i work ok with my Sterling Power Pro Combi S Pure Sine Wave Inverter Charger?

 

You don't say which model Sterling Combi you have. The largest with 3500 watt inverter has a (12 volt) 100 amp charger. The Honda EU20i with only 1600 watt output power may struggle on start up to power it. A Kipor IG2600 (2300 watt continuous) at half the price will manage fine even with LPG conversion.

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I've a Hyundai HY3000si which cost about £800 a couple of years ago. Not as quiet as the Honda but considerably cheaper. It only runs flat out when I'm using the washing machine and tumble drier otherwise it has a reasonable level of noise. It is however quite heavy and watch your back when lifting it back to the rear cabin. I always run it until it stops, when it's run out of petrol, before bringing it back into the boat.

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I don't think it a good idea to have petrol in your engine room whatever exhaust you have.

 

 

You're quite right. Never put a petrol generator in your engine room. I don't know why people think it's simply a matter of extending the exhaust pipe!

 

The other thing is that an air cooled generator will get too hot down there in an enclosed space anyway.

 

Strictly speaking you shouldn't even store a petrol generator inside the boat, but I appreciate that there are limited options on most narrowboats.

 

However, these threads do highlight the lack of basic safe practices amongst some boaters. I sometimes see people running suitcase petrol generators half in/half out of their stern doors and I can't help shaking my head in astonishment when I see they've also got kids onboard.

Edited by blackrose
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You don't say which model Sterling Combi you have. The largest with 3500 watt inverter has a (12 volt) 100 amp charger. The Honda EU20i with only 1600 watt output power may struggle on start up to power it. A Kipor IG2600 (2300 watt continuous) at half the price will manage fine even with LPG conversion.

3500w model.

 

I have 2 gennys and both wont work it.

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3500w model.

 

I have 2 gennys and both wont work it.

 

The basic calculation is the amp output of charger x max voltage (14.8v for wet lead acid batteries) x 1.15 to cover inefficiencies.

 

So a 100amp charger will require at least 1700w from the generator and an EU20i only puts out 1600w continuous.

 

However, if your combi allows you to reduce the output of the chager to 75% or 50% then that may be an option.

Edited by blackrose
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The basic calculation is the amp output of charger x max voltage (14.8v for wet lead acid batteries) x 1.15 to cover inefficiencies.

 

So a 100amp charger will require at least 1700w from the generator and an EU20i only puts out 1600w continuous.

Ok cheers

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3500w model.

 

I have 2 gennys and both wont work it.

 

Well as I said the Kipor IG2600 will even on propane. It struggles a little on start-up but once the auto-throttle has wound up the revs, I see for a few seconds over 100 amps from charger before it flips from boost to absorb mode.

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You're quite right. Never put a petrol generator in your engine room. I don't know why people think it's simply a matter of extending the exhaust pipe!

 

The other thing is that an air cooled generator will get too hot down there in an enclosed space anyway.

 

Strictly speaking you shouldn't even store a petrol generator inside the boat, but I appreciate that there are limited options on most narrowboats.

 

However, these threads do highlight the lack of basic safe practices amongst some boaters. I sometimes see people running suitcase petrol generators half in/half out of their stern doors and I can't help shaking my head in astonishment when I see they've also got kids onboard.

Even worse when they fill up the petrol tank with the gennie still inside the boat! That was the point we untied and left.

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Even worse when they fill up the petrol tank with the gennie still inside the boat! That was the point we untied and left.

Yup and it was the petrol risk, emissions and heat factors which stopped us moving on, so agree with all.

 

Back to OP, it's down to cost and sound levels in the main for us. We use suitcase type because of portability and weight.

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Right thanks guys yes price will be a factor unfortunately just looking for one that I can use generally as charging the batteries and usage at night save having to start and run the boat for hours

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I think it's the charger output that's the limiting factor unless it can be reduced as I mentioned above. So it's your combi's charger spec that's important rather than the 2500w inverter.

Agreed. The charger function is 80A, and it's fine.

 

Given that a 100A charger wouldnt stay at 100A for long, and 100A x 15V x 1.15 is just over 1700W, I'd have thought the EU20i would just about cope in most circumstances.

 

You could always run the engine for a while, until the batteries would draw 100A for a very short time?

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I've got a kipor ig2000 up for sale. I'm based near Gloucester though. Drop me a message if you're interested. I've only used it a hand full of times. Never missed a beat. I'm after a good price though (whatever that is). I've also got a few other boaty bits which may help make the trip worth while.

 

Dave

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Agreed. The charger function is 80A, and it's fine.

 

Given that a 100A charger wouldnt stay at 100A for long, and 100A x 15V x 1.15 is just over 1700W, I'd have thought the EU20i would just about cope in most circumstances.

 

You could always run the engine for a while, until the batteries would draw 100A for a very short time?

 

Unfortunately that wouldn't work unless the batteries were first nearly fully charged. If batteries are at say 90% SOC or less then a multi-stage charger will go into the constant current mode and supply (or try to supply) max current, even if its for less than a minute. This is not to mention the chargers power factor which dictates a higher start up current. Consequently its very doubtful a Honda EU20i would cope with a 100 amp charger.

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Are Victron the only combi suppliers who offer a turndown facility to allow a smaller supply to power the charger? We used to use a genny with a 2Kw output and turn the combi control down so that it would only draw 8 amp at 240V from the genny. Worked a treat.

Bob

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Unfortunately that wouldn't work unless the batteries were first nearly fully charged. If batteries are at say 90% SOC or less then a multi-stage charger will go into the constant current mode and supply (or try to supply) max current, even if its for less than a minute. This is not to mention the chargers power factor which dictates a higher start up current. Consequently its very doubtful a Honda EU20i would cope with a 100 amp charger.

 

I found out to my considerable cost that a Honda EU10i wouldn't cope with a 50A charger. Now I have a Kipor which despite being more powerful and less expensive contains a device to cut out if over-loaded. The 10i doesn't.

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I found out to my considerable cost that a Honda EU10i wouldn't cope with a 50A charger. Now I have a Kipor which despite being more powerful and less expensive contains a device to cut out if over-loaded. The 10i doesn't.

What happened to the Honda? I.e. which part gave up the ghost? I wonder if we can work out the "biggest" charger it can cope with?

 

40x15x1.15 =700?

 

It's max output is stated as 1000W, and rated output is 900W, so should be able to cope with just over 50A continuously, and just over 55A for a short time.

 

I agree it's not worth the risk for almost £900.

Edited by Richard10002
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What happened to the Honda? I.e. which part gave up the ghost? I wonder if we can work out the "biggest" charger it can cope with?

 

40x15x1.15 =700?

 

It's max output is stated as 1000W, and rated output is 900W, so should be able to cope with just over 50A continuously, and just over 55A for a short time.

 

I agree it's not worth the risk for almost £900.

 

But it won't and neither would an EU20i with a 100 amp charger I suspect, despite what your calculations suggest. You need to take start-up currents due to power factor into account. Why would you want to risk damaging an expensive generator by running it so close its limit anyway?

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I found out to my considerable cost that a Honda EU10i wouldn't cope with a 50A charger. Now I have a Kipor which despite being more powerful and less expensive contains a device to cut out if over-loaded. The 10i doesn't.

 

That's odd because my EU10i had an overload cut out.

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