Oppinion

"HammerheadFistpunch" (hammerheadfistpunch) 12/09/2013 at 16:09 • Filed to: oppinions

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So, question for ye. I have a need for a 2KW generator for backup on my house (furnace, fridge and a few lights) and I want sine wave for the delicate electronics I might want or need to use.

So my options are the $1000 Honda generator

or $360 on a 200 amp alternator and $500 on a sine wave inverter to be permanently mounted to my truck.

Generator:

Pro - portable, dependable, ready to use

cons - more expensive, less likely to have good gas in it at any given time

Carnerator:

Pro - Cool name, I will almost always have it handy, HUGE gas tank

cons - Loose 3-5 extra HP, Have to rig it myself, not with me if i take another car, worried about vibration and moisture durability.

and before you say "well you'll never get 200 amps at idle" you're right. Which is why this little OEM item is so badass

Its a pull throttle for winching or other high power applications. Pull it out for more throttle and leave it.

So what would you do?

Cajun Ginger > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:11

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Detached, attached or no garage?

HammerheadFistpunch > Cajun Ginger 12/09/2013 at 16:12

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Attached 2 car. I would obviously leave it outside and locked when generating.

Cajun Ginger > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:14

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Close neighbors that would get irritated? Neighborhood kids that would smash a window then take it for a ride?

HammerheadFistpunch > Cajun Ginger 12/09/2013 at 16:15

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nice neighborhood, and whats to get irritated about, its quieter than the generator would be.

Cajun Ginger > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:16

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Eh go with the truck mount. It sounds like more fun!

Cajun Ginger > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:17

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My driveway is next to my neighbors bedroom window and they are cranky, not nice people so mine would call the police on me.

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:20

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Are you planning on getting an on-board welder or winch in the future? If so, the answer is easy.

Stupidru > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:24

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While Honda makes great generators, you can pick up a nice Champion unit for less. And almost all generators (Honda, Generac, Briggs, Subaru, Champion, etc.) use the same engines, or very similar copy-cats. And the alternators are all made in the same factories...

Ask me how I know :)

Nibby > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:28

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How about this? http://www.harborfreight.com/engines-genera…

HammerheadFistpunch > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 12/09/2013 at 16:29

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not really, but I do have a 110 hobart wire feeder.

HammerheadFistpunch > Stupidru 12/09/2013 at 16:29

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how do you know?

Chris Clarke > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:29

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Doesn't a dedicated generator adjust the throttle depending on changes in load? Also, a propane conversion is relatively cheap and easy and would eliminate the bad gas con.

I could also see overheating issues if your car sits at high idle or under load for extended periods.

HammerheadFistpunch > Nibby 12/09/2013 at 16:31

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not sine wave and I make it a point not to buy things with more than 6 moving parts from harbor freight.

HammerheadFistpunch > Chris Clarke 12/09/2013 at 16:35

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I'm not too worried about overheating, this car is an under stressed engine with a large capacity cooling system. It would use more gas, but I would have lots of it. The idea is that in the winter my power occasionally goes out for a day or two...snow...so I want something for the inter rim outages.

Nibby > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:35

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Whoops, sorry

getFuckedHerb > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:36

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We use those little Honda's to power our computer & timing equipment at auto cross events and they are fantastic. Keep a spare plug in case one fouls. The eco-idle is great, ramps up as you need it. Clean power, lots of pluses, including being able to go for help or other things without taking the power (heat) with you.

Stupidru > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:36

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I work for one of the aforementioned companies and I've been to the place in China where all of the engines are made. Trucks from each of those companies come in, take a few pallets of engines, and leave. I've torn apart just about every engine and generator on the market and can tell you from first-hand experience that they're all just about the same.

davedave1111 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:37

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I got as far as the Honda generator and was thinking 'everyone forgets that there's a nice powerful engine in their car that just needs hooking up', so you can guess where my vote goes...

Is it really necessary to spend so much on the truck to get it working, though? Instead of swapping the alternator, how about adding a gert big second one from a junkyard so you don't need to leave it hooked up all the time?

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:39

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I'd probably go Honda then. More portable and less wear and tear on the truck. Plus you can go drive your truck around in the snow and not have to unplug your house.

HammerheadFistpunch > davedave1111 12/09/2013 at 16:57

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how would you set up a part time second alternator?

Bird > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 16:57

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That pull throttle is the coolest factory option on a late model 4wd I have ever seen!

Now on to the Honda's. They're the workhorse of the film industry. You'll find at least one (and probably 2 or 3, plus a couple of the 3kw and 6.5kw) on every TV, movie, and commercial set.

They're reliable, and quiet and we rarely have problems with them. Use at least 91 octane and as was said keep an extra plug handy, and you'll be fine.

I'd do the truck rig though...because it's way cooler.

HammerheadFistpunch > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 12/09/2013 at 16:58

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Which yes, but im not too worried about that power draw for how much I will be doing.

HammerheadFistpunch > Stupidru 12/09/2013 at 17:00

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The inverter is not shared though, and thats the nice bit

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:01

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Did your truck come with a pull throttle? was that even offered in the states?

HammerheadFistpunch > Bird 12/09/2013 at 17:02

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it would be nice for scenic shoots. I would be able to charge all my stuff AND power and lights I would need. 2kw gos a long with with Kino's or LED's

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:02

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My stock alternator has done an OK job with my 9000 pound Warn winch. However, even when I'm keeping the revs up, it does occasionally kill power to my radio and clock. I have a feeling a better battery might fix the problem though.

HammerheadFistpunch > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 12/09/2013 at 17:04

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No It doesn't, slee sells them but its out of stock and I wonder if they will get more. They say they will, but I was told be christo that the gears for speed reduction are all gone and they aren't getting more. Hopefully it wont be the same. In either case, all the hardware is there to make one easily from a choke kit.

davedave1111 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:05

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How'd you set it up normally? Much the same way. Just need to have it easy to swivel so you can move it into/out of contact with the drive belt.

I don't know, though, never tried anything like it. Unless I've missed something, doesn't sound too hard to work something out. You need to mount the new alternator somewhere, and be able to run a new drive belt to it - presumably having added an extra wheel to an existing drive-belt-pulley.

We'll all have to learn to do it if we ever get a big Carrington Event...

HammerheadFistpunch > davedave1111 12/09/2013 at 17:08

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I can get a 160 or 200 amp stock location, I would rather do that than have to worry about ghetto rigging. Its worth the money to me to not have to mess with my belt

davedave1111 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:22

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Next you'll be telling me that not having visible arcing is also a good thing rather than a downside to doing it your way.

It's not so much a ghetto-fab job I was thinking of, though. Or even saving money, particularly. More about what I think of as the right way to do the job: if the uprated alternator's only needed part-time, it shouldn't be turning the whole time. Plus, it's something I've wanted to try out for a while :)

HammerheadFistpunch > davedave1111 12/09/2013 at 17:25

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well I particularity don't want to mess with the belt system, thats the main thing.

Double belted.

davedave1111 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:29

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Yeah, I can see that. Although if you could get a triple-grooved pulley for the crank, it would be relatively easy to add a third belt. Otherwise, there's always gaffer tape.

But yeah, just replacing the existing alternator would be easier.

Bird > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:40

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2kw really does...and they're so quiet you won't go deaf around them!

HammerheadFistpunch > davedave1111 12/09/2013 at 17:41

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The harmonic balancer is already triple grooved. two for the alternator and water pump and 1 for the ac. Smart Toyota doubled up the belts on the critical systems so if you broke one in the field, you would still get home. I think the AC belt is the same size too so you can ditch ac if needed to limp home.

HammerheadFistpunch > Bird 12/09/2013 at 17:44

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I used my moms 2000i in moab not long ago, its not silent, but its not loud. My truck would be noticeably quieter. partly because of the exhaust system, but mostly because of I6 smoothness.

cbell04 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:46

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I bought a 6000w generac and an aftermarket carb that allows it to run on 3 fuels gas, natural gas, and propane. Then had it plumbed to our natural gas line and our breaker box. All said and done well under a thousand and I never worry about fuel. All set up on exterior disconnects so roll it in place plug it in and go. Let me know if you want more info about it.

HammerheadFistpunch > cbell04 12/09/2013 at 17:48

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what did the breaker box work cost you?

davedave1111 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 17:51

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Oh, right. I thought I was seeing three grooves, but it's a bit hard to make out and I figured it was an illusion. Do quadruple-grooved pulleys exist? This is starting to get silly now, though :)

"Smart Toyota doubled up the belts on the critical systems so if you broke one in the field, you would still get home."

Clever. I didn't realise those were so hardcore, but with the manual throttle, and this stuff, they're more suited for proper off-roading than I'd realised.

cbell04 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 18:10

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Generator=500

electrical=youtube university but neighbors did same process and the paid 150 but dont think that included the generator transfer switch (100% needed for safty) that runs 50-200 depending on your needs/wants.

gas line=120 (easy to do if you have the right tools)

trifuel carb=130

HammerheadFistpunch > cbell04 12/09/2013 at 18:13

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how did you wire up your box? is your whole house on that system, or just a sub box?

cbell04 > HammerheadFistpunch 12/09/2013 at 19:12

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So basically i have two panels 1st one is where the main lead comes in so has main power breaker and a couple exterior lights/plugs on the panel. that panel then feeds the house panel that has all my breakers for the the house. So I installed the generator safety switch between the main panel (power in from street) and the sub box (everything in the house) so I lost my exterior lights when on generator power due to my preexisting setup but didn't have to pay someone or risk my life working with the live feed from the street. Long story short when the generator selector is set to generator power it cuts the connection to the "main" panel that has the main and exterior lights and creates a closed loop with the remaining "house" panel. The generator safety switch has twist lock 220 plug coming from generator for power in and power out is fed into "house" panel to a 220 volt 30 amp breaker that back feeds all the other breakers.