Best 230v remote start gennie
- Thread starter MezzBatt
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Samsonite801
Solar Wizard
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What do you know about generators in general so far?
Like, 2-pole vs 4-pole, or inverter vs conventional, or consumer vs commercial/industrial, etc...
Inverter generators can be more efficient (under lower loads), and quieter, but more complicated, as they have more electronics in between generator and output bus which is an additional point of potential failure.
Conventional generator with 4-pole is simpler in electronics, and runs at 1800 rpm which are much quieter and engines last longer than the 2-pole counterparts (which run at 3600 rpm), as half the rpms means the engine revolutions are spread out across more years...
Most consumer generators are not necessarily meant to last too long, they are not as good for constant duty operation for many years, but rather for periodic power outages, or weekend use or something.
Commercial/industrial grade generators last longer, usually are 4-pole armature (1800 rpm operation), cost much more, etc..
With that said, my personal opinion is not to use inverter generator, as I had a friend who had a pair of Westinghouse which blew out an inverter on one unit, and found out that a replacement inverter board costs more than the whole generator... But if I was going to get an inverter generator, I'd go for a Honda, since they have made inverter generators (and conventional) for a long time.
I had really liked my Onan 4-pole RV generators due to being 1800 rpm, good track record, however, both of mine are dead right now, and been using my Prius lately to charge my boondocked motorhome (when solar isn't strong enough)... I still really like the Onans a lot (as they look built pretty well), but the mice wreaked havoc on them. I did not buy them new, so I cannot say how long they would've ran from new. I am planning to go through them to make them more rodent proof, and get them running again soon. Also good thing to note, there was legacy Onan, and now they are owned by Cummins.
Generac makes some good generator models, but again, it depends on if it is more high-end industrial type or cheap consumer grade model, as the cheaper ones just aren't necessarily built to be robust, and designed for constant-duty operation.
Like anything mechanical, generators need maintenance, and periodic exercising to make sure they will be there for you, and it doesn't hurt to have a portable spare for emergencies in case the primary one is dead and you need power right now.
Like, 2-pole vs 4-pole, or inverter vs conventional, or consumer vs commercial/industrial, etc...
Inverter generators can be more efficient (under lower loads), and quieter, but more complicated, as they have more electronics in between generator and output bus which is an additional point of potential failure.
Conventional generator with 4-pole is simpler in electronics, and runs at 1800 rpm which are much quieter and engines last longer than the 2-pole counterparts (which run at 3600 rpm), as half the rpms means the engine revolutions are spread out across more years...
Most consumer generators are not necessarily meant to last too long, they are not as good for constant duty operation for many years, but rather for periodic power outages, or weekend use or something.
Commercial/industrial grade generators last longer, usually are 4-pole armature (1800 rpm operation), cost much more, etc..
With that said, my personal opinion is not to use inverter generator, as I had a friend who had a pair of Westinghouse which blew out an inverter on one unit, and found out that a replacement inverter board costs more than the whole generator... But if I was going to get an inverter generator, I'd go for a Honda, since they have made inverter generators (and conventional) for a long time.
I had really liked my Onan 4-pole RV generators due to being 1800 rpm, good track record, however, both of mine are dead right now, and been using my Prius lately to charge my boondocked motorhome (when solar isn't strong enough)... I still really like the Onans a lot (as they look built pretty well), but the mice wreaked havoc on them. I did not buy them new, so I cannot say how long they would've ran from new. I am planning to go through them to make them more rodent proof, and get them running again soon. Also good thing to note, there was legacy Onan, and now they are owned by Cummins.
Generac makes some good generator models, but again, it depends on if it is more high-end industrial type or cheap consumer grade model, as the cheaper ones just aren't necessarily built to be robust, and designed for constant-duty operation.
Like anything mechanical, generators need maintenance, and periodic exercising to make sure they will be there for you, and it doesn't hurt to have a portable spare for emergencies in case the primary one is dead and you need power right now.
Last edited:
50ShadesOfDirt
Solar Enthusiast
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Have no idea of your/friend's requirements/understanding of things ... so, here's what we do, as an example of one possible way. Being off-grid, I use:
- magnum inverter/mppt/charger
- lifepo4 battery bank
- solar panels
- westinghouse wgen9500df
wgen is used for backup/makeup power, and it usually only feeds magnum, which recharges battery bank. At most, 4hrs/day when it is used. Remote start (fob), auto-choke, smart-plug, etc. ... all of which is used to start when I think it is needed, or if on vacation, on a scheduled start/stop.
tend to get about 2000 hours out of gen's, before something big needs work. as these are $1000 open-frame, non-inverter gens, we just buy another, part out the first (yes, we recycle our gen's), and keep things going.
Hope this helps ...
- magnum inverter/mppt/charger
- lifepo4 battery bank
- solar panels
- westinghouse wgen9500df
wgen is used for backup/makeup power, and it usually only feeds magnum, which recharges battery bank. At most, 4hrs/day when it is used. Remote start (fob), auto-choke, smart-plug, etc. ... all of which is used to start when I think it is needed, or if on vacation, on a scheduled start/stop.
tend to get about 2000 hours out of gen's, before something big needs work. as these are $1000 open-frame, non-inverter gens, we just buy another, part out the first (yes, we recycle our gen's), and keep things going.
Hope this helps ...
I followed all of your points and support your approach. How do you schedule a start/stop for this gen? Is there a two-wire function you're tapping into? Something else? Thanks.
Samsonite801
Solar Wizard
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- Oct 15, 2020
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Usually in any of these installations (where the generator itself does not have 2-wire closed for starting ability natively), you have to buy one of the many generator controllers to wire in. The manuals for them usually include several different wiring-type scenarios to be able to work with many brands/models of generator.
PDF manual download shows more info about features and possible wiring scenarios:
Last edited:
50ShadesOfDirt
Solar Enthusiast
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wgen9500df has a smart port; to this, add the westinghouse smart switch (senses grid power loss, auto starts/stops gen). So, instead of sensing the grid loss, just stick a digital *programmable* on/off switch in between it and power plug.
I wrote the gory details over here:
https:// www.powerequipmentforum.com/threads/programmable-ats-project-w-wgen9500df.25903/
I wrote the gory details over here:
https:// www.powerequipmentforum.com/threads/programmable-ats-project-w-wgen9500df.25903/
