generator inverter

If I'm out boondocking, what can I run/not run with a straight generator, without the inverter?  Mainly, I'm thinking about the AC.  But what about things like counter top appliances?  What about a hairdryer?  What happens if you try your microwave?  I would charge my kindle/tablet ect. from the car, but just wondered about plugging anything into the outlets in the pod.

It's hard to tell if anything is going to have an issue with the slightly to mostly bad power of a generator. There is also the problem of non-inverter gennies being 240, so you have all the load on one leg of the circuit, this can damage the generator bearings if the load is big enough, long enough. Steady state gennies also use WAY more fuel then the inverter style. But the only real answer we can give is, "try if so inclined, and see how it works.."

Originally posted by Keith-N-Dar Originally posted by furpod It's hard to tell if anything is going to have an issue with the slightly to mostly bad power of a generator. There is also the problem of non-inverter gennies being 240, so you have all the load on one leg of the circuit, this can damage the generator bearings if the load is big enough, long enough. Steady state gennies also use WAY more fuel then the inverter style. But the only real answer we can give is, "try if so inclined, and see how it works.." Have yu put a scope on the output from traditional generators?  Mine is a fine sine wave and at 60 cycles/second.  Power generation for years was done quite well before inverter  generators came on the scene.  And mine is one of many that are 30 amo 120 volt designed for RV use.

A long time ago, in life far from this one, I was on the test bed team for the M1A1 APU systems.. I have scoped a lot of gennies. And back when your 30A 120v gennie was built, RV's didn't have 10 circuit boards of their own, plus whatever the owner plugged in and hooked up etc.

It's OK, everybody has a different experience level, and tolerance. AND, as much as we would like it to be so, no two generator/equipment combos is the same. My a/c WILL run on a single 2000i, most won't. In fact the genny I tested with isn't mine, and the guy who owns it, it won't start his, same model a/c.