ok, so last year i decided that my camp needed quiet power, and i could use some of my own radical self reliance here, round out the rest of my own part of camp, be self sufficient, have power to run my sound system without fussing with other folks permission, without compromising camp power.
bit of history :
our camp power situation stems from the kind of decisions (or rather mistakes) that most camps make. you want power. you don't have money. you're not even sure how many watts you need. you make a comparison, and find some big cheap generators, a nice open-frame 5kWatt model for $300. deal, right?
you discover it's big and really heavy, but your bound to become a big camp someday, right? and you have some vehicles to haul it in. it's noisy too, but sure, isn't everything at the burn?? you need room to expand, and you need the power, all those sparkly lights, your kitchen, evap pump, sound system... woo!
well --didn't quite work out that way. the thing was *so* annoying. people didn't like camping with that monster in our camp. but survived our first year... we thought we'd be smarter the next.
the following year, we had a battery array and chargers, the works. elaborate setup. in theory, we were suppose to run the gene during the day and let the batteries do their magic at night. i started to do some homework in this department, and thought we should move on to whisper watt. but we couldn't afford one of those fancy gene's (half the watts, twice the price, and no money!!).
well on the playa --the inverters failed. so we had to run the generator all the time (most of the night really, anytime we needed power). we placed it towards the edge of out camp (assigned theme-camp area), and our neighbors hated us (unassigned, open un-assigned camping). so --another year, same story.
i decided enough was enough, and i would put my personal money on it for the following year. we needed quiet. pure and simple. our camp was a 'chill' camp, and not living up to that mission. our resident electronics guy had pretty much failed two years running now. smart guy, had backups, just missed a few key points along the way. perhaps underestimated conditions on the playa.
i did my homework again, decided on my maximum, comfortable spending limit... after some calculations i decided the yamaha eu1000is would do the trick. with a price tag around $680, i wasn't eager to spend the money, but, it would cover my personal power needs and worth every penny for my sanity. in addition it offered totally clean power, good for running electronics, laptops or whatever, like my sound system.
the yamaha eu1000i is beautiful thing. used my SPL meter to check sound levels, pretty much as advertised. purrs along, audible at an average 68 decibels. not deafening. nice lightweight model at 28lbs, the size of a small cooler. very cute, as far as generators go. i put it in my deck outside to test out. on the inside, sounded like the neighbor was mowing their lawn off in the distance (or something like that). certainly audible, but by no means painful.
new problem. i also just bought mackie swa 1801, *1000* watt subwoofer! actually extended my whole sound system, with a bunch of the mackie gear (pair of swa1501's, pair of srm450's). lots of watts. at 900watt peak power on the yamaha, i just ran out of watts... on one subwoofer alone. yikes.
while i could have gotten by here, just using the 1801 - it didn't leave a lot of room. seemed only a matter of time till i would have a problem, just too limiting. i really want the confidence of having one *full* outlet for power, run anything possible like a standard outlet -without having to second guess if the load will hold.
mackie swa1801
so with only an hour in use just testing it out (but no return policy from the place i purchased) -- i turned around and listed the yamaha on craigslist. i got a good price on it, and i knocked that down $50, my "stupid" tax. totally mint condition.
i got a few calls over a week or so. some idiots offered $100, guess it doesn't hurt to ask. a little tougher to sell with all the crappy generators out there. but i stood firm, it was a deal -just might take time for someone to figure that out.
finally, some luck... and the best scenario for me. the fellow responsible for our camp's power agreed -decided this was a really good idea, and a great purchase for the camp. we both figured he could use the yamaha as both a source to charge up his battery array, and as a backup in general. it seems the right choice (going thru the same cost saving analysis as i did. on getting a smaller model). he liked the yamaha, put down his personal money, and bought it. yea.
this freed up the money i spent, to get a model with more watts (i had already decided on which one). of course, i wound up spending a few hundred dollars more, well over the initial maximum limit set. but after some testing i also realized the extra watts would really make the generator useful.
i decided on the honda eu2000i.
if needed, it can power hungry devices (frig, microwave, power tools, coffee maker)... i mean really.. coffee. things i had dismissed previously, some you can get by without. whereas the 1kW yamaha could just barely run the frig (when the compressor kicks in), the 2kW honda didn't break a sweat. plus, that's a nice option if the power goes out. it starts to add up.
shown with kill-a-watt meter attached, fits nicely!
inside section..oil, & air-filter box.
so, the honda eu2000i is a little bigger, a little heavier, but packs a more punch. over twice the running watts, and a 2kWatt peak (with generous 1/2 hour peak-time). at 46lbs, not light at all, but still manageable. the next models up are over $1K, and way too heavy for me to even lift (deal breaker).
along with other 'inverter' models (including the yamaha), the honda offers totally clean power. however, the honda also offers a unique synchronization / parallel operation... very interesting feature. if i need more power i can add-on later. modular system. i like that. so, the eu2000i was the model to get.
yamaha does have a small 2400 watt model out now --but it's not compatible with an external tank, and no parallel operation there. (i expect the market to expand here, so shop around for the current model line up). there are also lots of knock-off models, factory second-runs, other 'brand' names that look identical. far as i can tell, really not quite as good --some run a bit louder. they probably work all right, you might find a deal, but check the specs closely before buying. you get what you pay for in this market. most folks stand firm by their honda eu2000. so, caveat emptor.
the honda rocks. figures too... there's a reason you see a *lot* of those little hondas around the playa.
generator part 2, the external fuel tank.
generator part 3, to the rescue!