Looking For Advice On A Small Generator

[wickhamfish]

Hello everyone.. How are you all

I'm a newbie to the world of forums and most importantly.. generators... so please bear with me. I really want to buy a small and hopefully QUIET generator to power my apartment... 85 sqm... with available land outside to put the thing. My Wife and I use the place in the evenings and we generally don't use a lot of electricity.. A few lights (4watts), 2 fans, fridge/freezer, TV, music system... Unforunately we don't have access to the government grid and the complex owner sells his electricity way too expensive... 3600 baht for the month including generator maintenence fees ;( We already have in place 2 - 12 volt batteries, charger and inverter to store and use the electricity in the evenings. So it has come to this... What is a good, SMALL, quiet generator that would be suitable for home or RV motorhome use? which will not have the neighbours complaining!! I'm looking for something in the region of 2-3KW, portable, light weight etc.. I like the look of the Honda EU series, the EU2000i has caught my eye. Can anyone reccommend this model? What Brands are used in Thailand and similar to the Hondas'. What fuel is most efficient, Petrol, Diesel, Gas (Propane)? Can the Honda EU series run off Benzene 91... this is the fuel we have in Koh Tao.. along with Diesel. Are the Gas models any good... Is there a Honda EU generator supplier in Thailand? Where should I look? Do I need to build a noise insulation hut!! I would appreciate your knowledge and experience, I'm just starting out and this idea of self sufficiency has been forced on me... but I like it Kind Regards... Ben

[IsaanAussie]

Honda manufacturers small engines here so for parts and service they would take a lot of beating. Sound deadening should be easy enough but cooling the engine and exhaust modification are issues to look at. But take a hard look at operating costs and the potential for some midnight shopper knicking it.

Will your apartment owner let you install into their wiring system or are you planning to provide alternate wires?

Thought about a solar system? Seems like you have most things bar the panels and some larger batteries. Again solar panels made here.

[genset]

Have a read through this post then email me with your telephone number and I'll give you a call and we can chat. I did receive your original email but have been very bust the past few days.

Regards,

Genset

[WatersEdge]

Diesel is more fuel efficient with lower maintenance cost over the long run

compared to Gasoline.

Diesels cost more initially however and are generally larger size.

I had a Honda 5.5 hp driving a 2kW Generator

which sold new at B25,000 and which I bought for B15,000

For a little more there is a model that also serves as an arc welder.

It would have been fine for occasional use,

but would have required engine rebuild more frequently than a diesel.

Siam Kubota makes a 7.5kW generator drive by the RT-140 diesel engine.

It costs B75,000, a nice looking system on a steel frame.

As I recall it is electric start

I know the RT-140 engine is very good because I used it for water pumps.

The best news for it is that a complete rebuilt costs less than B5,000,

which would be necessary after perhaps 5,000 hours.

A rebuild would be new sleeve, piston, oil pump....you might say all the wearable moving parts.

Good as new for another 5,000 hours.

Noise will be a factor if your neighbors are grumpy.

Fiberglass insulation is a good sound deadener

Venting the radiator heat and of course the exhaust outside the building.

Since you already use battery and inverter,

consider charging your batteries on your car alternator.

I connected copper cables back to the passenger cabin,

so that I could recharge auxiliary batteries for the farm as I drove.

This works very well. You already own your car and the alternator.

The extra power requirement is insignificant on the car engine.

Car Batteries cost B3,000 each.

You might want a disconnect switch in the recharge cable,

so your car battery doesn't discharge to the house,

then your car wouldn't start.

If you did happen to wear your alternator out prematurely,

a new one costs B6,000.

It is a nuisance to move and connect batteries to and from the car,

so it might be smart to arrange connection from your car to the house,

perhaps placing the inverter in the car as well.

In this way, disconnect the AC house cable when you drive.

Neighbors would not complain of noise if you occasionally started your car near the house.

Edited September 7, 2011 by WatersEdge

[WatersEdge]

May I point to a completely new topic.

If you have abundant supply of woody material,

you may consider a downdraft gasification unit,

which first converts woody material to engine fuel,

in turn generating electricity.

Look up GEK Gasifier based in Berkeley CA.

They are a band of garage designer geeks who are going big time,

based on their years of dedication to raw hard work.

They now sell complete Gasifier Gensets,

as well as providing equipment and knowhow for the DIY guy.

Their Kubota 3 cylinder engine on a 10kW generator is especially cute.

[slapout]

The op's description of electrical needs for his residence could be handled by a 2 to 3 kw gen set. Gasoline powered for 4 to 6 hours/day may use about 1 plus gallon of fuel, same engine using propane as fuel is cleaner and less expensive. (in this day of prices). Diesel is a bit more noisy, in between 2 mentioned options on fuel cost, but initial outlay is more.

Not having priced any electric source for the op's needs I cannot give a real investment figure, but the cost of diesel/gasoline for the times I used vs costs of 1 gallon fuel/day, I cannot see how he will better himself too much vs the 3600 baht/month he is presently paying.

[pnustedt]

I have a generator with a Honda engine (I believe the machine is Italian manufacture). We used it when we were building a house, before power was available and it now used as a portable machine for powering a welder etc. on combine harvesters for which it is ideal. It runs on 91 Benzine.

From memory, it cost about Bt30K about 3 years ago, is expensive to run and quite noisy. I agree with Slapout that it would cost more than the Bt3,600/month to run.

[howto]

This is too weird...

so this morning I'm banging out

my pathetic reply to this thread,

and the power goes off. All day.

(Got too much time on my hands while recovering

from a near fatal Russell's Viper snakebite)

Ben,

Please share with us the details of your inverter.

It may be what I've been (lazily) looking for

as a backup ups for my SOHO computers.

Brand name, specs, cost, contact info...Tanks!

OK the genset, I'm with the others...

Given your environment/circumstances,

you already have the best setup possible.

Pay the owner his rate,

really you can not do it cheaper.

While a genset for "on-going daily use" is a no-no,

Redundancy is a good thing when living off-grid.

A small genset for emergency use is practical.

I prefer LPG and Honda engines.

A second dual-battery/inverter setup may be wise.

Less costly than a genset, provides extend run time and

a backup in the event the current inverter fails,

or the main genset is down for repairs (days).

Do Check if someone is stealing your power.

... a non-issue if you only pay a flat-rate.

If you are metered...

Turn off all your breakers, does the meter spin?

Do it at different times of the day.

Do Check the genset supplied power is at 50Hz.

Up to a point, having 50Hz is more important

than having dead-on 230 volts.

The generator's rpm (engine speed) determines the Freq.

If the system has a AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulator)

the voltage should auto-adjust.

Here, it's common to set output to 230v by volt meter.

The freq will always be wrong, sometimes by a lot.

You can measure the freq and voltage with

a cheap meter from the hardware store.

If it's off, you can inform the owner,

a slight speed change will bring freq into line.

Voltage will change up/down.

A Power Conditioner/Filter (for harmonic distortions)

is important for electronics and compressors.

For you this may apply when using power directly from his system,

which is not passing through your inverter.

Maybe all the power you use does pass thru your inverter.

Maybe it is filtering while doing pass-thru. Maybe not.

You can check your setup and inverter specs.

You may want to exercise your Google-<deleted> for

different Inverter types and

proper battery charging/maintenance guidelines.

Here in Thailand,

automotive batteries are known to be of low quality.

Of what quality is the battery brand you are using and

which brands do tv members recommend/ban may be found

in these threads...

Car Battery Lifespan in Thailand

Best Brand Of Auto/truck Battery

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Brand-Auto-truck-Battery-t215776.html

Never use that snake-oil battery-rejuvenator stuff.

[DavidARoss]

why not buy a have dozen deep cycle batteriies such as they use for trolling motors hook them all up together,get some solar panels hooked up to them and you should have enough power for the night for what you need. Just remember your fridge is going to use the most power so buy a good ice container and fill it with ice and that should last you until you leave. Forget the generator it will be too expensive and after a few thousand hours you will have to rebuild it.

Edited September 11, 2011 by DavidARoss

[SurfRider]

.

Does anyone know if a Honda EU2000i type generator (or similar) is available anywhere in the Pattaya/Jomtien area?

Thanks in advance for any comments.

.

[who]

.

---- I bet that the landlord won't allow you to do it ----

.

[Gary A]

I'd gladly pay 3,600 baht per month rather than maintain and fuel a gasoline generator. I bought my wife a 2,500 watt gasoline generator to run an electric pump to water her garden during the dry season. I think she could have bought her vegetables cheaper than what it cost to run the generator.