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Running Compressor with Portable Generator

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mtnGhost

mtnGhost

Member
Dec 15, 2018
3,589
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Defected from the PNW, United States
My 12yr old generator is toast (again) this year. Definitely not looking to do another rebuild, and the nasty fall season is upon me here in the PNW - so I figure that it's time to upgrade to a new quiet Honda.


I'm probably looking to get a 2200i. the amperage rating is 18.3A, but I'm wondering if anyone here has ran a single phase compressor off of something this this one? I would be powering my Daystate LC110, which draws anywhere from 9-13A when I tested it through my metered battery backup UPS's.

Any feedback would be appreciated 😎
 
I have the little Honda your talking about and it is a great generator but a 1500watt coffee make pushes it limits. It does just fine but you can definitely tell when the coffee maker kicks on. Most likely it will run your compressor but you may want to jump up to a 3000watt generator. If I remember right my little Honda’s running watt output is 1600 watt and that 2000 watt rating is starting. 
 
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If you buy an Inverter Generator which the Honda is you must make sure the Inverter is a Pure Sine Wave unit. I thought the Honda was but now I'm not sure after I see above it wouldn't start a Yong Heng. Anyway most if not all compressors use a capacitor start motor and these are notorious for not working with Modified Sine Wave inverters which many of the less expensive generators use. There doesn't seem to any problems running pretty much any pump off a traditional gas generator as long as the start and run wattage is adequate for you pump. Peak starting power can be 2 to 3 times running power with cap start motors.
 
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You have to be careful about the "Clean Power" thing. I have a generator that has the same Clean Power claim on it and even with a 3200W peak it won't start a Yong Heng. I do also have a 2500 / 3500 watt DC to AC inverter that starts it up and runs it easily. It's Pure Sine. The generator is apparently Modified Sine. I tried once to fine out if the Hondas are Pure sine but couldn't find anything definitive. So I'd suggest you get the compressor first and then take it to a Honda Dealer to test it first before you buy.


 
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Without going into detail I have an extensive background in electric motors and their control circuitry. Their are two types of capacitor start motors Type G or type L. Type G (the most common, and it should be marked on the nameplate along with the voltage and amps) require three times the running watts to start. Watts = volts x amps. For instance 110v x 10amp = 1100w x 3 = 3300w. Type L requires six times the running watts to start. So 1100w X 6 = 6600 watts are required. Hope this helps.
 
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when I sold and service Honda generators, if you had an item that might draw more then the generator you had in mind would handle, we would just have you bring in the item and test it

but we were a small shop and did thing a little differently

and the rule was, if it is close it is too small

now just a little generator facts, don't let it sit around with fuel in the carb

it goes bad and the generator doesn't run, run the carb dry or drain the carb even if you have stabilizer in the tank 

gas goes bad in the smallest amount first, the carb float bowl

we have bad weather in the PNW oh sometimes December 2006 sold lot of generators


 
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Without going into detail I have an extensive background in electric motors and their control circuitry. Their are two types of capacitor start motors Type G or type L. Type G (the most common, and it should be marked on the nameplate along with the voltage and amps) require three times the running watts to start. Watts = volts x amps. For instance 110v x 10amp = 1100w x 3 = 3300w. Type L requires six times the running watts to start. So 1100w X 6 = 6600 watts are required. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

GREAT info! The faceplate on my motor leads me to believe the wattage is 1667.5 (115v and 14.5A). I had the thought of using one of my 3000w (APC) UPS battery backups in front if the generator. I have these:

https://www.apc.com/shop/us/en/products/APC-Smart-UPS-3000VA-LCD-RM-2U-120V/P-SMT3000RM2U

Specs are down the page. The wattage might not cut it though, based on what you said. Here is the faceplate btw..


1570048875_9724636325d950b6b5c4a88.64867803_F3A20024-BD8F-440A-B3F0-DE5105F79A01.jpeg





 
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I don't know how to tell what type it is but it's for sure a capacitor motor with two apparently. Anyway the Honda would be near full capacity running it if it can start it which doesn't look likely.
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100% -- Alan_B shared some pictures of what appears to be a start capacitor and run capacitor which is housed in the box where the shut off switch is located. There was a shunt resistor between the blades for I assume overcurrent protection.

One is 120uF the other looks to be 315uF 400VAC -- labeled as c1/c2 on the top of the control box.

Edit: I'm blind, but yeah the motor plate matches up to the information on the control box.
 
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My LC110 runs easily on the Honda EU3000, I've done that test. Sorry I haven't tried it on an EU2000 yet. The generator and the compressor are not in the same place so I can't easily do this test.

The Honda inverter generators are pure sine.

The Yong Heng creates a problem for small generators as both compression stages are stacked at the same crankshaft angle so the peak current is way above the average and this means you need a much larger generator to run it. 

The LC110 has three stages 90 degrees apart and there is more rotating mass so the load is much smoother. Always start the compressor with no load to help the generator handle the current surge and lubricate as well as warm up the compressor, then build pressure.
 
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My LC110 runs easily on the Honda EU3000, I've done that test. Sorry I haven't tried it on an EU2000 yet. The generator and the compressor are not in the same place so I can't easily do this test.

The Honda inverter generators are pure sine.

The Yong Heng creates a problem for small generators as both compression stages are stacked at the same crankshaft angle so the peak current is way above the average and this means you need a much larger generator to run it. 

The LC110 has three stages 90 degrees apart and there is more rotating mass so the load is much smoother. Always start the compressor with no load to help the generator handle the current surge and lubricate as well as warm up the compressor, then build pressure.
Click to expand...

I was looking at those generators as well. 78lbs isn't too bad. I also saw that Honda sells a parallel cable to pair the smaller ones, but two of them (at 48lbs each) would exceed the weight of yours. Then there's obviously double maintenance running two vs. one lol

I'm fairly set on the EU2200i though. Its primary purpose would be powering my lizards' heat and UV lamps during our annual power outage season. We lost power well over a dozen times last fall and winter. Longest outage was shy of 3 days, and man did the neighbors not like me very much running that unmuffled generator for the duration 😬
 
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The Honda EU3000is I have is the heavier electric start model. It is about 140 pounds. So two EU2000's are definitely lighter and easier to move around. 

I brought the EU2000i companion home yesterday from the trailer, I'll try to test it soon.

Having two small generators with a paralleling cable is really nice. You can switch from one to the other with no power glitches for refueling, etc as long as the load is within range of one, and when you need more power just run both. For light loads the fuel consumption is lower than running one larger generator too. Maintenance on the Hondas is pretty much just oil changes, and they don't need much oil.
 
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