A-ipower SC2300i from Costco

According to the web, older models required the use of a flat bladed screwdriver to gently pry along the top. The manual for your generator does not mention this however nor can I find any mention after 20 minutes of searching the web.

-TC

• Thanks for the info and thanks for spending some time on this.  I couldn't find anything either except a video that shows the guy pulling the panel down with his hands.  No way I could do that as it is way too tight.  I thought about using a screw driver but I wanted to wait until I had feedback from others.

I watched the video also and encourage you to keep trying and use a pry tool to assist if necessary.

I have the older model and after the screws (no knob on mine) are out I have to pull aggressively like the person in the video to release the plastic tabs that snap the cover into place.

Thank you!

If you can't get it off...Costco has a great return policy.

I had a ss BBQ and all the pop rivets rusted and it started to fall apart.  Took it back and asked when I got it.  I said a couple of years ago...they looked and looked...manager joined in the computer search.   Found it.  Sir you got this 4 years ago...no problem...BTW they have a new model out and the defects have been resolved.  Had this BBQ probably 5 or 6 years now.    Great return policy!👍

Flatblade

i have the same genny and it has served me well (and fits in the dedicated spot in our 1685)

Thanks for the reply.  Unfortunately I will return this to Costco as soon as I return from my trip.  The generator starts up easily and runs smoothly until it gets a load, any load, including one that is only 400 W at which point the breaker trips.  The generator still runs but it doesn't supply any power.  I borrowed a gen to make sure it wasn't something in the camper tripping the breaker and it is not.  I bought the gen to charge batteries when needed but also to run a 900 W microwave which it can't do.

Make sure the hot water heater and refrigerator are set to LP or Gas only. Auto on the fridge itself draws about 600 watts and the hot water heater about 1200. The microwave is 1300 watts…Battery charging and DC can be as high 900 Watts.

Thanks but we are dry camping running both frig and hot water heater on gas.  Our microwave is small, 900 W

We had a 2k gen made by Smarter Tools which, like yours, utilized the Yamaha 79cc motor and it proved to be vastly underpowered, especially at altitude. Wound up having to get a second one and paralleling them together which was a PITA having to care for two gens instead of one. When Honda released the EU2200i with it's powerful 121cc motor, I jumped on it and sold the two Yamaha knock offs. Haven't had any issue running anything ever since, even above 6,000'.

thanks so much for the reply, now I know why everyone loves their EU2200i Hondas!  I do a lot of camping at 8000' do you think it could hand 1200 W at that altitude?

@R&V Spiker posted:

We had a 2k gen made by Smarter Tools which, like yours, utilized the Yamaha 79cc motor and it proved to be vastly underpowered, especially at altitude. Wound up having to get a second one and paralleling them together which was a PITA having to care for two gens instead of one. When Honda released the EU2200i with it's powerful 121cc motor, I jumped on it and sold the two Yamaha knock offs. Haven't had any issue running anything ever since, even above 6,000'.

There is a reason Honda’s are the best. Even with the 2000 they had a 100cc motor. The 79cc motors most generators in that power range is not enough. The Honda can put out its rated power without stress and last a long time doing it. Quality costs money.

My e2000i for the first time failed to run the ac (I pulled all other breakers) at 8900 ft while in Greer, Az. And, you probably asking why would you run the ac that high…. I was Just curious. I do not have a soft start.

@Azgal posted:

thanks so much for the reply, now I know why everyone loves their EU2200i Hondas!  I do a lot of camping at 8000' do you think it could hand 1200 W at that altitude?

Simple answer...yep!

Longer answer is...if most of your camping is above 5,000', Honda highly recommends getting a carburetor jet made for altitude. Otherwise the gen will run on the rich side (air/fuel mixture). The only problem with re-jetting the carburetor is that if run at low altitude with a high altitude jet, it will run lean which can cause problems.

Before giving up on the Costco gen, see if it can be re-jetted for high altitude. It's unlikely but that little boost in power might be all that's necessary. Or, if you're able to...maybe take it back for a refund. Costco is extremely lenient.

If you are going to buy a Honda gen, you might want to consider their newest portable.

It isn’t much larger or heavier but much more powerful

Honda EU3200i.  

Update on using the Costco Yamaha 2300 generator. I purchased this generator in March of 2021, and so far it has given me trouble free power while camping, and at home. In that time frame we have traveled with our 1997 Lance camper over 14000 miles from Colorado to Quebec Canada twice, Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakotas. Lots of dry camping and power outages at home, and that little Yamaha has never failed to provide power for us. It does not run the air conditioner in our Lance, but does run everything else including microwave, hair dryer, furnace using our 30amp cord. Could not be happier with this purchase.

Keep on camping....it's what we do!

@Dakota Cruiser posted:

Update on using the Costco Yamaha 2300 generator. I purchased this generator in March of 2021, and so far it has given me trouble free power while camping, and at home. In that time frame we have traveled with our 1997 Lance camper over 14000 miles from Colorado to Quebec Canada twice, Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakotas. Lots of dry camping and power outages at home, and that little Yamaha has never failed to provide power for us. It does not run the air conditioner in our Lance, but does run everything else including microwave, hair dryer, furnace using our 30amp cord. Could not be happier with this purchase.

Keep on camping....it's what we do!

We discovered the same thing with the AC in our 1993 and our 1996 TCs.  Those vintage air conditioners were power hogs and we couldn't get ours to start either.  Once we replaced the roof unit with a Coleman Power Saver model, our little genny started it without even adding a Soft Start. 

Thanks for the info on the Coleman Power Saver, I will have to look into that model will consider when the original needs replaced.

Dakota Cruiser....

@Dakota Cruiser posted:

Thanks for the info on the Coleman Power Saver, I will have to look into that model will consider when the original needs replaced.

Dakota Cruiser....

Just for a visual to show how different models of air conditioners made by the same company draw different amperages, here are some comparisons I've run across and documented.   In the pics below you can see how the "PS" or Power Saver models really beat the rest at amperage draw if you have a small generator.   

DuoTherm  "13.5K BTU Brisk Air" models were common in older Lances.   They drew high amperage, which is why 2000 watt generators just couldn't run them.  15.1 amps while running.

The "Penguin" was a popular air conditioner because it was a low profile model.  But, it was a power hog at 14.425 amps draw while running.

You can be really FOOLED by Coleman's use of the word "MACH" in their models.  This particular 13.5K BTU "MACH3+" draws 13.1 amps while running.

On the other hand, the "MACH 3 PS" is also a 13.5K BTU air conditioner but as one can see in the "Power Saver" line (PS), it drew a mere 10 amps instead of the Mach 3+ shown above.  What a difference the fine details can provide.

This particular "MACH 1 PS" was a 11K BTU model and it appears in many recent model truck campers as the primary one installed.   It draws a mere 9.5 amps when running.   Easy for a 2000 watt generator to handle this.

Staying with the misleading "MACH" word, this is the Mach 8, a version that draws between 15.3 to 15.9 amps when running.

The Furrion is sometimes found in campers and trailers.   Their 15.5KBTU model draws 15.4 amps and their 13.5K BTU model draws only slightly less.

@Dakota Cruiser posted:

Update on using the Costco Yamaha 2300 generator. I purchased this generator in March of 2021, and so far it has given me trouble free power while camping, and at home. In that time frame we have traveled with our 1997 Lance camper over 14000 miles from Colorado to Quebec Canada twice, Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakotas. Lots of dry camping and power outages at home, and that little Yamaha has never failed to provide power for us. It does not run the air conditioner in our Lance, but does run everything else including microwave, hair dryer, furnace using our 30amp cord. Could not be happier with this purchase.

Keep on camping....it's what we do!

This yamaha has a 79cc engine. It may claim 2300 watts but that is not achievable from 79cc. The old Honda 2000 had a 100cc engine and the newer Honda 2200 has a 121cc engine. There is a reason the Honda costs more and in hard use outperforms its specs.

From my perspective, which may be different from yours, if the genny won't run the AC I don't see the point in carrying it.

The 79cc Yamaha generator that I have is a 1800 watt output, and with the addition of a soft start, it runs the AC just fine, thank you Costco.

I have a Generac GP3000i, which I've owned for about three years that cost at the time about a grand and wouldn't buy it again (it hasn't been a total failure when needed).  If it sets with gas in it for too long it wont run.  If its at altitude above 5k feet, nope!

Whatever you are thinking about getting, try hard to get one with fuel injection.  I understand Honda has a kit for changing the jet on the carb, but who wants to do that?

@Dakota Cruiser posted:

The 79cc Yamaha generator that I have is a 1800 watt output, and with the addition of a soft start, it runs the AC just fine, thank you Costco.

You did not mention which AC unit you have. But I do note that you have a TC and the AC is most likely on the small side. My local lance dealer is also Yamaha generator dealer and he cannot get 13.5's or 15k's to run on any Yamaha 79cc machine he sells.

@Ivins posted:

I have a Generac GP3000i, which I've owned for about three years that cost at the time about a grand and wouldn't buy it again (it hasn't been a total failure when needed).  If it sets with gas in it for too long it wont run.  If its at altitude above 5k feet, nope!

Whatever you are thinking about getting, try hard to get one with fuel injection.  I understand Honda has a kit for changing the jet on the carb, but who wants to do that?

The new Honda EU 3200 has been tempting me. It does have fuel injection.

Currently I have two Honda's; a 2200 and 2000. The 2000 is in the serial number range which will pair with the 2200 (early 2000's will not). While I sometimes bring the 2200 when camping my main use of them is to pair them and power the house in a power outage. For that reason I have both of them set up with Hutch Mountain tri-fuel conversions. They can run on gasoline, natural gas and propane. It takes less than a minute to swap out the jet to convert from NG to propane or the other way. I leave them set up for NG at home and have a QD connection on the natural gas line to the house. If we were to loose NG I have them set up to suck from 5 gallon NATO gas cans. This setup works pretty slick as the Honda have a fuel pump and keep the gas tanks on the gennies full so it is easy to swap 5 gallon cans and keep running.

A friend who suffered a 6 month electric outage ran his 2200 Honda for 16 hours a day for the six months. He shut down every Saturday and changed the oil. When the power came back the unit was still putting out its rated power.

Both Hutch Mountain units are set up to let the carb run dry when running on gasoline. This eliminates the problem you mentioned. Hutch is coming out with a kit for the EU 3200 too.

Yes the AC that came with my Lance is a 11k, at the time Lance only offered a 11k or 13.5k as options, so adding a soft start to the 11k it runs fine. The AC has 3 settings, lo, med and hi, have never used anything but the lo setting.

I'm stuck with my GP3000i.  I live at 3k altitude, so if needed it
should work.  I say should work because as you mention I too run the
thing until it stops, but that doesn't really mean it's dry, at least
not for me.

Take care!

@Ivins posted:

I'm stuck with my GP3000i.  I live at 3k altitude, so if needed it
should work.  I say should work because as you mention I too run the
thing until it stops, but that doesn't really mean it's dry, at least
not for me.

Take care!

Is there a chance that it has an accessible screw on the bottom of the bowl that will let you drain the remaining fuel? The Honda has one.

One other thing to do is to store it with gasoline in it and not run it dry. I do that with my riding mower and pressure washer. I just run a heavy concentration of SeaFoam in the gas tanks (about 2 oz per gallon) and make sure it has run long enough with the SeaFoam that the carb is left with SeaFoam treated gas. Both start up immediately come spring time. My last John Deere riding mower was 13 years old when I traded it in and I had no carb problems for the first 12 years. My neighbor had the exact same machine and he drained the tank and carb at the end of mowing season. His machine was the same age as mine and he installed three new carbs.

@Ivins posted:

I have a Generac GP3000i, which I've owned for about three years that cost at the time about a grand and wouldn't buy it again (it hasn't been a total failure when needed).  If it sets with gas in it for too long it wont run.  If its at altitude above 5k feet, nope!

Whatever you are thinking about getting, try hard to get one with fuel injection.  I understand Honda has a kit for changing the jet on the carb, but who wants to do that?

Gasoline apparently degrades to a varnish-like substance that eventually will clog carburetor if left in the carb, tank or fuel lines for an extended time. I’ve found that using Stabil fuel stabilizer extends the life of the stored fuel.

Even when stabilized gas can still attack seals and fuel lines if left for long periods.

With a generator (or any small gas engine), when done using the device, disconnect the load and turn off the fuel valve until the engine runs the fuel line and carb dry.

As mentioned, Sea Foam in the fuel has helped preventing and clearing clogged carb jets when fuel was left untreated.