Honda repair or new Predator

[asta2]

Here’s the situation: we have a +/- 13 yr old Honda eu3000is generator that needs a new engine. Near as we can tell, the rest of it is ok. A new engine is going to cost us $450.

The other option, should we chose *not to rebuild the Honda, would be to buy a Predator 3500 (inverter) for $700.

Pros? Cons?


A

[rmkrum]

I thoughtfully considered a lot of brands before I settled on a Champion Dual fuel 3400 watt inverter generator. It was “reasonably” priced and easily runs my air conditioning as well as any other loads I might have.

I run it only on propane, and modified the champion supplied regulator set so I can either run it off a standard tank with both regulators as built or run it off the Airstream tanks and regulator at the end of up to 24 feet of 1/2 inch low pressure hose off a 3/8 inch quick connect port and shut off valve I installed. You need the valve to cut off the engine while on propane, I discovered.

See the “Which Generator” thread for tons of discussion as well as details on how I set up mine.

Last trip I was able to be quite comfortable in spite of the heat and humidity in Texas in the fall. Generator can be left (chained in place) in the bed of my truck while running. My dogs particularly enjoyed the air conditioning while we took a couple hours to eat dinner one evening in 90 degree heat. Burns a surprisingly small amount of propane while running a 13,500 btu air conditioner pretty much continuously. Easy starts the a/c running in economy mode as well. Yes, it’s overkill but I have lots of margin for higher altitudes with this setup.

[Bill M.]

If i really liked the Honda I would fix it. If I wanted something different in features I would buy a new gen. But probably it would be another Honda. I have walked past the Predators and they look nice but that is all I know about them.

[Halford1]

Some will just buy their own preference of a brand name, some on quality, some on the looks. I do not have a generator but have not come to decide buy one or not. I buy Craftsman tools based on its brand, quality, availability, creative and its looks. Ahhh I say the same about buying Airstream!

[GCinSC2]

Any insight as to what killed the Honda?

[OTRA15]

What are the decibel levels for the 2 options? Hard to choose without knowing factors like this IMO.

[mefly2]

Very hard to find a different brand than Honda 3000iS that is as quiet ... think also of those you camp with ...

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by GCinSC2

Any insight as to what killed the Honda?

Old age?

Originally Posted by asta2

. . .
. . . we have a +/- 13 yr old Honda eu3000is generator . . .
. . .

Personally, I would get a new Honda mainly for the warranty, especially if it can be adapted/purchased for use with propane. A great investment for the next decade until 2030 !



https://www.amazon.com/Honda-Gasolin...SIN=B076BYPN1B
https://www.genconnexdirect.net/hond...tm#xl_EU3000is

Peter

[asta2]

It got old. The seals and hoses rotted out. At some point in its previous life, someone didn’t take care when inserting the spark plug. (It was bought used 13 yrs ago)

You see where I’m going with this.

As to decibels, they are within 1 of each other.

[drbrick]

Personally I would recycle to old and buy a Champion 3400 Dual Fuel. Great generator

[quietguy]

Love my Predator 3500, problem free going on 4 years now.

But I also have a Honda 2000 for times I don’t need the bigger one.

[brad1]

Decide based brand on generator noise. Please. The Champions I encounter are lots noisier than the Honda’s. And they’re even noisier in a pickup truck bed. I think they’re great on a construction site but annoying in a park.

Get off my lawn!

[rmkrum]

Champion also makes an open frame construction type dual fuel generator. Yes, it’s horribly noisy, like any construction style generator. They are the typical VERY cheap to buy, but horribly loud units. I wouldn’t want to be within a mile of one of those beasts.

The INVERTER dual fuel one that should be considered here is very quiet. A difference of a dB or so is insignificant. People can’t really tell the difference until you hit 3 dB under normal circumstances. It also depends on how you locate the generator exhaust port. It’s gonna be louder if it’s aimed right at the observer.

I run my Champion 3400 dual fuel inverter on the ground or on the tailgate, and it’s not that loud, even when I’m standing next to it. And I’m talking when it’s running with a full air conditioner load on it. At idle it’s really quiet. I also like the fact that it starts with a flip of a switch and the push of a button. No remote, but I’ll live with that.

My only issue is that it’s a bit of a grunt to get it from the ground to the tailgate by myself, but hey, I used to be young and crazy, and now I’m no longer young... I don’t put any gasoline in it, so that minimizes the weight right there. Propane is all I run through it.

I don’t put ANY gasoline containing alcohol it it because a) it smells bad, b) it can gunk up the carburetor jets in storage, and c) it’s a fire hazard in storage.

[Halford1]

im curious, is it possible to buy a noise reducing muffler?

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by Halford1

im curious, is it possible to buy a noise reducing muffler?

I plan to carefully experiment with my Champion Inverter, but right now the internal muffler is quite large and very quiet as is. I want to add an exhaust hose to remote it away from the generator when it’s in the truck bed, eventually under a topper.

The output on the muffler is a spark arrestor screen assembly in a flange held on with two screws into the muffler body. I’m thinking a spare spark arrestor with a welded on nipple clamped to a flexible stainless hose. The fitting has about a 1” diameter opening, so it’s not that large.

[perryg114]

What nuked the Honda? I would tend to go with the Honda and it should be fixable unless it threw a rod of something major.



Perry

[rmkrum]

Also note that a lot of the noise from a construction type generator is the mechanical noise from the totally unenclosed mechanical parts. The other issue is that a standard generator has to run continuously at 3600 RPM to get the correct 60 cycle power frequency. Inverters generate the frequency and voltage by using solid state electronic circuitry.

The quiet inverter generators also have a full enclosure lined with lots of sound-absorbing foam, soft rubber mounts for the engine and alternator, and baffles on the cooling air intake and exhaust. The noise is not just from the exhaust system.

[A W Warn]

I'm on my 3rd year with my 3500 Preditor. No issues at all, but it has not been heavily used. I did run it continuously 4 or 5 days during a power outage. It is quieter than my Honda 2000

[AirMiles]

I boondock at many NASCAR races and get the "opportunity" to hear all the generator brands and styles. I hate generator noise, that's why I have solar. But when I go to NASCAR races, I prefer to park next to EITHER a Honda 3000 OR a Preditor 3500. They are pretty much equally as quiet.

At the championship race in Miami I chose to park next to a Preditor 3500. It was about three feet from my refrigerator wall all weekend and was never turned off - day or night. I couldn't even hear it from inside my Airstream. I could not have been happier unless there was a solar only section!

I have a Champion Dual Fuel. Its an excellent generator and I like that its propane ready right from the factory. But if I had to buy another generator, it would be a Preditor 3500 that I would convert to propane. They are amazingly quiet. I can easily talk over my Champion Dual Fuel while its running in my truckbed without raising my voice, but it isn't nearly silent like the Preditor 3500 or the Honda 3000.

Another amazingly silent inexpensive generator is the AiPower 2000. Maybe even the AiPower 2300? I prefer the lower tones of the larger engines on the Preditor 3500 and Honda 3000, but the AiPower 2000 is also nearly silent with a little higher pitch like the Honda EU2300. There are now inexpensive generators that are as quiet as the Honda's.

[gordyfj49]

Get a predator. Great and quiet. oh, also affordable and reliable.