Inverter VS Conventional Generator

[john61ct]

I'd love to be able to "intercept" the DC production to charge directly off the quiet portable units.

A little engine + 200A alternator is the DIY way, but good luck making it as quiet!

Originally Posted by JodyandRenee

the ability to be parallel run with another generator to increase output

The little portable Hondas and Yamahas have been doing this for years, EU2200i "Companion" is a great example.

[kidharris]

Originally Posted by john61ct

I'd love to be able to "intercept" the DC production to charge directly off the quiet portable units.

A little engine + 200A alternator is the DIY way, but good luck making it as quiet!

The little portable Hondas and Yamahas have been doing this for years, EU2200i "Companion" is a great example.

I looked up the new EU2200i. It has a useless Bluetooth "monitoring" toy app but no 12v outlet. Do the older versions have a 12v outlet/port?


Oversized engines and mufflers, baffles and strategic use of various sound deadening materials and techniques can control the noise. I think varying the speed is a big factor in noise control on these factory units, but I don't have a clue how you would handle the throttle to control the engine speed to vary the on demand output like the factory units do for fuel economy and noise control.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by kidharris

I looked up the new EU2200i. It has a useless Bluetooth "monitoring" toy app but no 12v outlet. Do the older versions have a 12v outlet/port?

All the AC gensets that do have a 12V port it is pretty useless low current, designed to trickle a starter batt only or charge a phone.

To charge a bigger deep cycle bank you've always needed your mains charger for that size at 12V could probably feed 110-120A

[kidharris]

Originally Posted by john61ct

All the AC gensets that do have a 12V port it is pretty useless low current, designed to trickle a starter batt only or charge a phone.

To charge a bigger deep cycle bank you've always needed your mains charger for that size at 12V could probably feed 110-120A

How are they getting the 12v?

[john61ct]

Probably a small bit of rectifier/charger circuitry feeding off the final inverted AC output.

I bet the DC stage prior to that is way up there dangerous high voltage, buck-converting that output down to 12V nominal would likely be more expensive

[BeNimble]

The 12v output in a 8k generator I fixed came from a winding in the generator that was rectified into dc. So a dedicated output, but note it would be a wavy DC, not clean at all. Not a problem for lead acid charging.

[ol trunt]

Although I have no idea how my Yamaha EF3000iSEB inverter generator produces 12 volts, there is a 12v 12A receptacle on the control panel. Since I can never leave anything alone, I redirected that output to keep the group 24 battery I substituted for the original motorcycle battery charged up. The G24 also powers the pusher and puller thermostatically controlled genny cooling fans and for no reason other than expediency the power passenger seat slide.

Quieting a genny is not simple. Even after studying the energy of noise and gaining an understanding of just what dB's are all about building a successful "sound proofing" box took a number of tries. Without getting into a long discussion, I eventually ended up discarding the entire Yamaha genny case, removing the gas tank, muffler, battery and computer to remote locations and placing the motor and head in a slide out drawer lined inside and out with 3/4" dense rubber gym floor mat. The result was a lowering the original dB rating of 53 dB to 45 dB directly adjacent to the drawer. 45 dB is about the noise a refrigerator makes so I'm happy with that.

A quick note on adding a larger (or straight thru) muffler to a single cylinder genny. This lowers back pressure in the exhaust and actually increases the exhaust report as the noise cancelling properties of back pressure are eliminated.

Of course the easiest way to quiet a genny is to walk out into the woods, dig a hole to set it in and walk back with a 100' length of zippy cord.
Jack

[john61ct]

Those little portable inverter gennies make hardly any noticeable noise at all, even only 10-20' away

especially if you size them relative to your loads so they can stay in their "eco" rpm range.

Using anything else out camping in the wilderness would be just stupid and asinine IMO.

That is why I wish they made units like that, that put out say 100-200A nominal 12V DC directly, rather than producing AC mains style output and requiring a PSU/rectifier to convert **back** to DC charging.