I have to boondock for two nights on our next trip.? I tested my fridge on gas, and with 2 low wattage computer fans running full time.? I only got 32 hours before it dropped slightly below 12 volts.? So I'll need to use my generator to charge up.? I'm wondering whether I should get the Honda charge cable, or use my stand alone Schumacher charger.? I don't want to run the generator any more than necessary since the campground will be full.? I'm also considering purchasing the propane conversion kit to make it more convenient to use anywhere.

Thoughts?
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Don DeRyke
Sunrise, Florida

2009 Classic, 2020 Ford Escape, 2.0 liter EcoBoost, AWD.?
Previous TV 2015 Ford Escape 1.6 ltr EcoBoost engine.

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2007 Expedition Highwall
2019 Jeep JL (Wrangler)
West suburban Chicago

Honda 2000i spec is 8 amps DC @ 12 volts.? Would take a long time to charge at that rate.? Save your money and use your charger.

Doug M

开云体育

Don’t use the computer fans, my fridge works just fine without them. Didn’t even come with any. I added some but I don’t notice any difference with or without them.?

Do not use your Schumacher standalone charger, and do not use the DC output of the generator either!? Plug the power cord of your trailer into the AC outlet on your generator, and let your converter charge your battery.

You don't want to use the Schumacher for a couple reasons.? First off, if you're like most of us, you have a 15 or so amp Schumacher charger, and thats much less powerful than your converter.? The smallest converters are about 25 amps, which charges 56% faster than the 15A Schumacher, and many converters are much more powerful than that.? The other thing you might hear is "my converter doesn't charge at the rated output", so they get a standalone charger.? That may be true, but the Schumacher doesn't charge at the rated output either.? My 15 amp Schumacher only charged at 8 or so amps.

Second off, the Schumachers, for some reason, are programmed to output 15.5 amps max at the near full condition, and that can damage your battery.? I bought a Schumacher and observed this myself, and then looked it up online, and others see the same thing.? Maybe Schumacher thinks most are charging a dead battery, and they need to boil it a bunch and desulfate it.? But you can only do that a couple times.??

There are also multiple reasons you don't want to use the dc output of the generator.? First, it puts out a lower voltage than a charger, and will only charge slowly.? Second, it never stops charging, so you can overcharge. But overcharging when charging slowly is not that likely, so that's not a real big deal.?

I'm surprised you only got 32 hours with just the fans and fridge running. My fridge controller uses 315 mA and my 2 fans use another 150 mA.? I should get over 100 hours of runtime on a battery with 50 AH available.? You might want to measure how much juice your fans use.? I've found it never matches the specs, but normally it's lower than spec.

Definitely get a propane conversion kit.? I've got the motor snorkel one and it works great.? One point to be aware of though, and it's that the motor snorkel has a big pie plate like thing that you usually bolt on the case of the generator.? On my yamaha 2000, it bolts on the end.? On the Hondas I've seen, it bolts on the side.? Bolting on the side makes it really hard to transport.? A friend had that and was intensely annoyed. I saw one other propane conversion that went inside the case after you removed the gas tank. I'd go for that instead.? And I'd be totally fine with ditching gas altogether.? Once you have propane you'll never want to hassle with gas again.

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Don DeRyke
Sunrise, Florida

2009 Classic, 2020 Ford Escape, 2.0 liter EcoBoost, AWD.?
Previous TV 2015 Ford Escape 1.6 ltr EcoBoost engine.

Determining when your battery is "topped off" will be difficult.? Lead acid batteries take forever to charge the last 10%, and the surface charge left on a battery after charging makes determining full charge difficult.? I'd just measure the current going into the battery while charging, and be aware that current tapers as charging progresses.

It looks like that Hutch Mountain propane conversion has a very nice mounting feature.? They appear to put a quick connect on the propane line where it come out of the generator, so you can store that big "pie plate" regulator separately.? The Hutch stuff is about $90 more than motor snorkel, so motor snorkel is attractive pricewise, but I wouldn't know what special fittings Hutch uses to install that quick connect.? One thing I'd clarify, though, is exactly how the install is done, to save you a trip to an RV place.

For the install, what you want to do is connect the generator to your trailer propane lines after the propane goes through the trailer mounted propane regulator.? That will allow you to pull from either tank, and only the current tank.? No need to partially deplete both tanks, and no need for an extra regulator.

So here's what looks like a good install option:

Put a T connector just below the propane regulator on your trailer.? Connect a short propane hose to the side of that T (15" long on my trailer)..? Put a ball valve shutoff, and a female quick connect fitting, on the other end of the 15 inch hose.? I think it's code to put a ball valve next to a quick connect that has pressurized propane behind it.? On mine they had to use a male to male stubs to get the fittings connected.? You also have to tell them about each hose you need, because they have to use a special crimper tool to put the ends on the propane hoses.??

Get an 8 ft propane hose with female quick connect on one end and a male quick connect on the other end.??

Install the propane plumbing in the generator, with a male quick connect on the generator handle, as seen in the Hutch kit picture.? Have the pie plate thing attached to a short piece of propane hose for the input, and another short piece of hose for the output.? Each piece of hose has a quick connect on the end.? That way you can store the pie plate separate from the generator or the hose. You will probably want an elbow in there somewhere too so you can "hang" the pie plate in front of the propane tanks.? You can't lay the pie plate on the ground because that would let it stuck dirt into the air vents.

Get dust covers for all the quick connects.? They sell dust covers made explicitly for quick connects.? But I found a chair leg cover from ace hardware exactly fits a female quick connect, and an eye dropper bulb from ace fits a male quick connect.??

Get two stubby bolts to fill the two air input ports on the pie plate.? Another trip to Ace.

You may also want to buy another propane hose about 3 or 4 ft with a regulator on the end, just like the regulator in the Hutch pick on the propane tank, so you can use the generator to power your house fridge if you have a blackout.? ?

In the Hutch writeup they also mention converting a 1/4" to 3/8" quick connect.? My thoughts on that are the 1/4" is plenty big enough for our little generators.? Thats all mine has.

The folks at motor snorkel were emphatic that I use pipe dope for the screw on fittings.? No Teflon tape.? They said several propane kits were sent back for failure due to slivers of Teflon tape getting stick in the regulator.

Anyways, good luck with your conversion.? I assume you'll have followon questions.? Its hard to explain this stuff in writing.? You might find a YouTube video that's more clear.

The "T" below the regulator, looking from between the batteries and propane tanks.? That white "cylinder" is the chair leg cap i have covering the female quick connect on my propane line:

I have dealt with this issue since 2004 because I camp off grid a lot in the high sierras and cascades and a variety of other locales.? I bought the Honda 12-volt charge cable for my EU2000i Honda generator years ago.? ?It was deemed worthless due to NOT outputting the proclaimed amperage.? ?So, I would recommend NEVER buying it based on my experience.

I have been using a 35-amp battery charger (for going on 20 years) that is connected to one of the two outlets on the generator to rapidly and efficiently charge the battery via a direct large hot wire to it (in spurts while running 120-volt items).? During the minutes that the microwave, hair dryer, etc. are operated, I simultaneously turn on the charger.? Both the charger and the generator are mounted on the rear bumper.? I have an analog voltmeter and ammeter mounted inside the trailer.? I can monitor the charge entering the (interior) lead-acid battery.? These let me know when the charge rate is dropping (in addition to reading the output on the 35-amp charger--the battery charger has a readout on the charge at the time).? Usually when I am thru with a microwave, etc. I watch for the output to drop to 8 amps and then shut off the generator.? I use less than a gallon of gasoline a week.? It would be nice to switch to propane but at a high altitude there would be additional loss of power and propane.

The big upgrade to cut battery drain was when I trashed the factory installed 10-watt refrigerator vent cooling fan and installed two computer fans so with a DPDT switch I can run them on either 6 or 12 volts.? In mild weather I can cut battery drain by 94% over the noisy factory fan.

The big issue is siphoning ALL the gas out of the generator at the end of the week and running it until it is dry.? Today's gas is a disaster and cannot be left stored in the engine.? Fresh gas is important (unless you can get alcohol-free gas).? I also add a treatment compound to the fuel called Sea Foam.? Also, I found it to be critical to always turn the lever on the generator gas cap to the closed position when turning off the generator (paint white and red on the two positions) so that the fuel doesn't cool and suck in moist air which adversely affects generator operation.

Eventually the tiny idle jet for the Honda generator will clog up.? the Carb can be removed carefully (I wrote an article) and rodded out with a tiny wire from a wooden handled wire brush (very strong and fine).? This is a very easy and simple 10-minute job needed every few years depending on how much the generator is used.? The generator will surge up and down when idling if only the main jet is available.

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