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Jonnagyp · 08-18-2013, 07:00 PM

Hello,
I am an avid Airstreamer.

We own an old 1966 airstream and now a 2007 airstream.

The new(new to us) one has a Dometic 13,500 roof air conditioning unit so today, I went and spent around $2000 for the Honda 2000 with its companion and came home with full excitement to try it. It ran the unit for approximately 5 minutes until the AC unit became fully running with cold air, and then it ran another 5 minutes.

During the latter 5 minutes the generators made alot of noise and it was not consistent, kind of like it was running intermittently, so we turned them off for a minute.

We then restarted them, and tried again, this time, maybe a total of 15 minutes went by when both generators load dropped and our AC turned off. We looked at both generators and both said OVERLOAD.

I was told that using both Honda Generators piggyback would be enough to run this AC unit. By the way, nothing else at all was running, so now I am so confused what to do.
I have MS and I need this AC to work when it's too hot and I saved just to get both these and liked the thought they were both less than 50 pounds, making it easy for myself or my husband to use them.

HELP PLEASE.

Any reasons you may have why this isn't working?

Any help would be appreciated.

Ridgerunner3 · 08-18-2013, 08:16 PM

Have you tried turning off the "Eco Throttle" switch on your generators? I need to turn off the Eco Throttle switches on mine to keep the generators from sometimes going into overload when the air conditioner compressor cycles on.

r carl · 08-18-2013, 08:28 PM

Those Honda's are more than enough to run a 15,000 ac unit.

HiHoAgRV · 08-18-2013, 08:33 PM

I had the same problem, it turned out my starting cap was marginal. I changed to an easy start kit and now the dual 2000's have no problem kicking the 13500 off.

Jonnagyp · 08-18-2013, 08:56 PM

Yep, both generators had the Eco Throttle off.

purdiferis · 08-18-2013, 09:13 PM

I would get a kiill-a-watt (google it)and put it on the ac side, turn on the ac and see what it was pulling. Then I would know if it was the ac unit or the gen set. Its a start.

Jonnagyp · 08-18-2013, 09:19 PM

Thanks. AC unit has rarely been used but have all the paperwork and know the exact details of the unit. 13,500 BTUs, is the deal.

Inland RV Center, In · 08-18-2013, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonnagyp

Hello,
I am an avid Airstreamer.

We own an old 1966 airstream and now a 2007 airstream.

The new(new to us) one has a Dometic 13,500 roof air conditioning unit so today, I went and spent around $2000 for the Honda 2000 with its companion and came home with full excitement to try it. It ran the unit for approximately 5 minutes until the AC unit became fully running with cold air, and then it ran another 5 minutes.

During the latter 5 minutes the generators made alot of noise and it was not consistent, kind of like it was running intermittently, so we turned them off for a minute.

We then restarted them, and tried again, this time, maybe a total of 15 minutes went by when both generators load dropped and our AC turned off. We looked at both generators and both said OVERLOAD.

I was told that using both Honda Generators piggyback would be enough to run this AC unit. By the way, nothing else at all was running, so now I am so confused what to do.
I have MS and I need this AC to work when it's too hot and I saved just to get both these and liked the thought they were both less than 50 pounds, making it easy for myself or my husband to use them.

HELP PLEASE.

Any reasons you may have why this isn't working?

Any help would be appreciated.

It's not true that "nothing else" was running.

The Univolt "always" runs.

Depending on the condition of the batterie, the Univolt can draw 6 to 7 amps itself.

Andy

xrvr · 08-19-2013, 05:26 AM

Does the AC unit work on shore power? 30amp/120volt. Jim

Jonnagyp · 08-19-2013, 07:46 AM

Yes, the AC works great on shore power and I guess what I mean by nothing was running - we made all lights, and anything and everything turn off, so only the AC was on. Today I will check the watts so I can report back to you.

Can it be that ONE of the generators is bad? They were brand new out of the box, but ONE, the main one, not the companion was the one that was making noise by revving up and down when it was under load.

We have a friend who has another Honda 2000 so we are going to borrow it and use his with our companion to see if there is any change in performance.

I appreciate you answers and any new answer gives me hope.

**moosetags** · 08-19-2013, 08:19 AM

I have been using 2 Honda 2000's for the last 5 years to run the 13,500 btu air conditioner on our 2005 Safari 25FB. The two Hondas have been able to run the whole trailer on most occasions. These gensets have been able to do the job with the air conditioner, refrigerator, converter, and lights all running.

The only times that I have run into any problems with the generators is at high altitudes. While camping in the Bighorn National Forest at about 9,000 feet, the generators just don't put out like they do at sea level. The gensets will run the air conditioner, but I have to cut off everything else, including putting the refrigerator over to gas.

Brian

Ridgerunner3 · 08-19-2013, 08:59 AM

Are you using the Honda wire kit to connect the two generators in parallel? Are you connecting the "R" labeled wire to the right generator connector and the "L" labeled wire to the left generator connector on both generators? Are you plugging your 30 amp cord into the Companion generator?

graysailor · 08-19-2013, 09:07 AM

What is an "easy start kit"? Also, what is the "Univolt"?

perryg114 · 08-19-2013, 09:08 AM

I can't imagine even needing an AC unit at 9000 ft. Try turning eveything off accept the AC and see if that helps. You can get a cheap AMP probe from Harbor Freight and that might tell you how much your total current draw is. You will need access to a hot wire to put the probe clamp around.

Perry

Jonnagyp · 08-19-2013, 12:23 PM

Yes, I am using the cord from Honda and I am using the correct cords in the correct places L and R, right being red and so forth and yes, I I am using the 30 cord from the front of the trailer into the Honda 2000 Generator.
Thanks for contributing and if you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear them.

Jonnagyp · 08-19-2013, 12:25 PM

The batteries on the trailer are brand new, and the trailer has barely been used. We are not at high altitude.

Moflash · 08-19-2013, 12:31 PM

Did you put oil in (or check the level) the generators?

perryg114 · 08-19-2013, 01:40 PM

Try doing a load test where you have a couple of space heaters on high. If they can't handle that much load then they won't be able to run an AC unit. It should not be connected to the trailer to do this load test.

Perry

TBRich · 08-19-2013, 02:43 PM

Make sure the gas caps on both generators are turned to "on"...this allows air into the system so the genny can draw fuel. If they are in the "off" position, they will run for a while, then falter and stop. I have forgotten to switch them to "on" more than once!

matthorr · 08-19-2013, 03:09 PM

I've had my generator (Yamaha 2400) fail a few times if I wasn't careful to switch the refrigerator and water heater to gas. The surging could be a problem with that generator or additional loads being put on the generator. I've been told all Dometic Penguin II a/c's have the hard start kit already installed - it is a capacitor designed to spread out the high current draw when the a/c compressor starts to avoid overloading the circuit.