After watching Covid and the rioting while hearing dire words about second and third waves, I finally picked up a small Honda EU2200i.  Decent on gas, portable, and it’ll keep the fridge, my computer (I’ve worked from home since before Covid), well pump (Guess not- thank you to those who pointed this out), and other items running.

We had a fast moving but violent storm blow through on Saturday.  Hail damage and trees down.  Of course, somebody lost a massive tree through the power lines.  Suddenly I and many others are in the dark- all while I’m working on a proposal for a large and profitable project.

That Honda worked as planned.  It took a mere 6 hours for the power to be restored, but I had no worries with that Honda.  One casualty- my modem was the only thing not plugged into a surge protector.  It’s toast.    Lesson learned- surge protector (better yet, a UPS) for all computer peripherals.

My question is about the next step.  I was uncomfortable but okay without the central A/C.  Could I run it with a second 2200i running parallel?  Or should I look into a larger unit?

There is a chance I will not be here in two years, so I do not want to invest in a whole house generator.  

Thank you for your wisdom!

If you are thinking HVAC, you may want to start looking into whole home generators with auto cutover. Check out Generac. I was quoted $14-20k for my 3 story 5000 sq ft home.

Normally I would, but I may not be here in two years.  Given that, I’d rather have something portable to bring to the next house.

You have a well pump that operates on 110 VAC?



Is your HVAC 110 VAC as well?

That's the main stopping point for inverter generators. There are only a handful of 110/220 inverter generators on the market and they are proud of them. I'll stick to my normal, noisy fuel hogging beasts.

It is highly unlikely a second genset will run your homes AC, unless the AC is just a window unit.

Running wattage is far different than starting wattage for equipment with motors or compressors. These type of components have a high draw or "surge" when starting.
The "Surge" rating is very important when figuring the load your genset will handle when combined consumers are starting and stopping on their normal cycle.

Once you start adding HVAC and refrigerator together the starting surge for these applications is a big deal in calculating the genset wattage needed.

There are charts on line explaining the wattage needed while starting and running most house hold application.
Match your HVAC size and other appliances you want to allow to operate on their normal cycling.
Your genset wattage rating should handle ALL the components starting at the exact same time to safely
handle the surge thus not harming any components due to fluctuations from the genset.

2k genset serial connected would max out quickly.
This chart is label RUNNING so keep in mind the STARTING SURGE for many applications will easy Increase the load .

NICE choice in the generator!  They are great.

There's no way the little Hondas will run central HVAC.  You could run small window unit, but be sure to research in advance as you would have trouble starting a larger one.  There's a lot of discussion on this in RV/camping forums.  As mentioned above, the way to do central HVAC is with a large whole-house unit....or at minimum you would need a transfer switch installed by an electrician and a much bigger generator.  If you get into a bigger generator, also consider how you would fuel it...they are thirsty.

As to the well pump, be sure to research that too.  Most are 220V.  Even if your pump is a 110V you might still have issues getting it to start with the little Honda.  Pumps require a large inrush of current to start.

I have a version of your generator, and bought an efficient mini AC unit when I was living in texas. There's no way it would power a whole house AC, but I Could keep a room or 2 comfortable. That's enough for the 6 hour thing like you're thinking. You just use the Generator to power the AC for a bit till the room is cool, then unplug it and plug in your fridge, then switch to your freezer (or just use freezer and put ice from it into the fridge).

there's some juggling extension chords but you never need to run both AC and freezer at the same time, so the start up surge won't kill anything.

And with your WI location you can't be nearly as worried about AC as I was in Dallas...

Can buy a large 12kW/15kW or so portable with a 50 amp 240 outlet.  Get an exterior interlock installed on your panel.
Can run some central AC units, is portable, and is much cheaper than a permanent standby unit.

the vast majority of central A/C units with greater than 2ton cooling capacity require 240Vac 30A at the compressor; there is no combination of EU2200i's that will produce 240Vac at enough current to start and run your central A/C.  

for this reason you will either need a bigger, 120/240Vac-capable generator (and more fuel, etc) to power your central A/C
//OR//
you need a small, room-size 120Vac window air conditioner which will keep your bedroom or other small living space cool.

the latter approach is almost always the less expensive way out, albeit at a reduced cooled volume.  small room sized air conditioners can be purchased at the end of the summer for 75 cents on the dollar, and you don't need a top of the line A/C unit for a backup.  

which brings me to the well pump.
most deep wells (>100 ft) have a 240Vac submersible pump at the bottom of the casing, and all require a pretty steep inrush (startup) current demand.
again, your little Honda is not suited for this application; inverter generators typically only provide 120Vac and inverter generators are not great at high inrush current handling.

ps
you may want to read thru:
https://www.ar15.com/forums/outdoors/Sandy-12-days-without-power-what-worked-what-didn-t-/17-661411/

That’s good to know.  I thought it would barely work; guess not.

Thank you for all of the replies.  Looks like I have some reading to do.

as Steve and others have commented... a portable room A/C is a pragmatic solution... my HF 2200w Predator ran a neighbor's portable A/C with extension cord without a problem when we tested it during hurricane Irma....I didn't record the power data for the A/C

I have 1- 5K BTU and 2- 8K BTU units for this reason. I cannot run a 5 ton AC with the generators I have. I will have a whole house soon.

I have a Honda EU2000I, which is the older and smaller version of the generator that you have.   It is my most used generator at this point.   Based on the statistics alone, yes you can max out these generators quickly.   In real life, I have gotten away with running twice the number of appliances that they are rated for, without tripping the overload alarm.  

Like others have said, it won't run your well or you central air, but I routinely run 5,000 BTU window A/C in my teardrop camper.   I set the generator to run on econo-mode and then I never notice the generator slow down to compensate for the compressor kicking in.   I can get that camper COLD with that little A/C unit on that Honda.  

I have a large 20KW whole house, standby generator for keeping the house livable during our frequent and short power outages.   But my plan in a longer outage is to reduce the use on the 20KW (which guzzles fuel) and fill in the gaps with the Honda.   This is what AR-Jedi did over twelve days without power in Hurricane Sandy.   Ref:  https://www.ar15.com/forums/outdoors/Sandy-12-days-without-power-what-worked-what-didn-t-/17-661411/   If I were to run my 20KW generator that long then I would probably consume 600 gallons of propane and six quarts of oil.   I think that is more fuel per day than AR-Jedi burned in twelve days.  

It is really worth reading AR-Jedi's story.   He has a lot of worthwhile information about what worked well and what didn't work while running a generator during a state of emergency.  

I have installed the Hutch Mountain Propane conversion kit in my Honda generator.   That allows me to hook it directly to my 1,000 propane tank.   That should allow for 290 days of constant use if I don't run the 20KW at all.   Or I can run gas depending on which is available.  

Edited to add:   Also in case you aren’t aware, storing gas in the generator long term isn’t good for it.   It is best to drain the gas out of it and fill it again with fresh gas when you use it.  

If it's an emergency and your main power is out, a small window A/C is pretty inexpensive and the generator will run one fine.  Instead of trying to cool the whole house, make the problem smaller -- cool one room and keep it closed off from the rest, and operate out of there.

I work out of my house and use my EU2000I for backup power.  One thing I’ve found very helpful is an extended run fuel tank.  Setting the generator up in the morning with more fuel than it can use in a day lets you work without interruptions.  There are several ways to accomplish this and they’re all pretty easy to do.

My previous home had a central air unit.  I believe it was a 3 ton unit.   My Generac 4000XL likely wasn't big enough to run that size AC.  In many cases I suspect that even a second little Honda 2200 unit won't have the power output to get it done.

You may want to consider an alternative:  Pic up a small window unit, something on the order of 5-6000 BTU.  You likely see a 1300-1500 w surge, then the unit will settle in and draw about 1000 w.  In other words, a small window ac will pull. about half the Honda's output.

If the unit is small enough, its a simple matter to open a window, pop the scree, drop the AC in, and drop the window.  One room in the house becomes the "cold air oasis" for the few days the power is out.

This way, you are using the existing generator, aren't buying another $1000 unit, and have a refuge for the $189 cost of a single AC unit.

In order to run the typical whole house central AC, I think (could be wrong) you're going to need a MUCH larger generator

^^^ this.  

get an aftermarket fuel cap equipped with a hose barb, add a length of fuel tubing and an external tank, and you can run your little Honda for days.  but don't forget to check the oil periodically.

Or convert it to Natural Gas/Propane.  Most places have one or the other available.  

Assuming OP has those as options for fuel... he may not...

in rush corrected by Micro air soft start.

<——- rv tech.

Damn RH, I just read this thread and saw your post. This really helped solve a little problem. Thank you.

Small window AC for the master bedroom has been my plan for years. All I need is to be comfortable while sleeping, I don't care about the rest of the time. A 2200i can run one of those.

a portable room A/C is most likely a little more expensive than a window shaker unit, but is as the name states... portable... only need to provide an exhaust duct, and occasionally empty the condensed water...

I can use a bulk remote fuel tank for both my Honda 3500W and HF 2200W inverter... the remote fuel supply system is a bulb primed section of 5/16" fuel hose... the Honda had a standard gravity tank that was rusty, so I originally made the gravity siphon system for it... the line is carefully charged with the prime bulb as to not mess with the needle and seat, with the supply tank  placed above the genset... a PVC pipe cap that fits over the 5gal fuel spout is drilled for the fuel hose, and a small air vent, and depending on location keeps most of the rain out... the unit was used during hurricane Irma to supply power to 2 neighbors and myself, and ran off their fuel cans... the inverter has a fuel pump, so I added a "T" to tap into the factory fuel line, and external female fitting (the female fitting is to allow me to plug the line if I want to use the internal fuel tank) between the carb and the fuel shut off...it uses the same fuel hose/primer bulb with a male fuel barb if used with the inverter