portable generator

[Ozzie]

The Yamaha 2400iS would get my vote. I've been doing a bit of reading, and these are getting very high marks and are clean and quiet. You can double up if needed, but most are using just the one and able to run the roof air.
Of course my needs are a little less since I only have the 30 Amp.
This doesn't match up with the original posters $500 limit, but if I was to part with my money, that's what I would get.

[HamRad]

Okie Guy,
[quote]
For those of us with a loud generator is there a different type of muffler we can purchase to quiet them down? I have a briggs I bought after the ice storm and man that sucker is like a jet taking off. Its great for working around the farm but I don't think I would want to expose my camping neighbors to it for any period of time.[quote]

I'm sure there are some things you could do to try to dampen the noise. I guess a "better" muffler could either be purchased or manufactured. Some people build boxes to try to cut down on the noise. But the problem is not just the noise from the exhaust. The engine itself can contribute to the noise.

It is best to simply start with a system that is known for its' quietness.

When I first started paying attention to the various types and brands of generators my thought had been to go with the most reasonably priced units. But after camping next to various types it was obvious that one just needs to bite the bullet and get the quietest running generator you can find. If you have to save your money for a short time to get a "good" one then that is what you need to do. There is no substitute for a quiet running generator. You will appreciate it and your neighbors will appreciate it!

By the way I've compared the Honda and the Yamaha and they are both very quiet running machines. I have a Honda but would not hesitate to buy a Yamaha.

HamRad

[skypilot]

It is not just the engine but also the 'generator' portion as well that makes noise in these things. The old army 5KW generators had a very high whistle that we used as a beacon at night to find our headquarters (when we had power running that is.. and that wasn't often just because of the noise ).

As for the question on what is dirty power -- spikes (very bright lights, very dim lights was a good example) but it also includes things like pulses going thru the line as the phase shifts, and a lot of other noise injected by the generator mechanism itself. The digital circuitry in our units is getting more and more advanced, and just like other digital circuitry, is not very forgiving of over and under voltage. A refer circuit board, heater circuit board, or (heaven forbid) your LCD TV fries because of the generator is not covered by the warranty if they think it was an over voltage spike (just bought a new TV -- that is how I know!!!). If you go for the Champion, be sure to put a good high quality surge protector in line to protect your system!!!

[boat391]

I have two different gen's depending on what we are doing at the time but the best investment I have made was to go to an inverter in the 5'er will keep the tv's going and the sat dish with no problem just use my Yamaha 3000iseb to charge the batt's and for the microwave hairdryer and A/C it will run our 15000btu A/C with no problem says we use half the gas we used too when we only had the gen going