What solar generator?

Any recommendations for a 2000 + Wh solar generator? I am off grid and need it for the winter. I charge it with a 2000 watt gas generator. Thanks

I don't have a recommendation for you, but you will need one capable of charging at a rapid rate. Most of the solar generators I've seen charge at a relatively slow rate with an AC adapter. You'll want to be able to charge at at least 1000W for optimal fuel burn.

Since generator charging is primary, have you considered DIY with an inverter/charger and battery?

Agreed… for your situation, the specs you need to focus on are watt charge rate, and battery cycle life.

BillT said:

Any recommendations for a 2000 + Wh solar generator? I am off grid and need it for the winter. I charge it with a 2000 watt gas generator. Thanks

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What are you powering with the SG? What are your demand loads?

I can recommend the ecoflow Delta 2 max. 2400W output and 2kWh capacity. Can charge at around 1600W via AC but can reduce that load in the app if it's too much for the circuit.

Can expand the capacity with 12V 100Ah LFP batteries, if you can get a few in series, 36V is the sweet spot with 15A input on each of its two mppt controllers for 1kW charging from external battery, versus paying big bucks for the official ecoflow expansion (which does charge from the base unit).

Another vote for building your own. It's simple and rewarding.

Thanks for the advice.
I made the mistake of buying an Anker 767. It is supposed to charge at a rate of 1,400 watts. I have a Yamaha 2000 watt inverter generator that cannot handle charging this thing. It goes from 220 watts to 1000 watts then back down to zero..then stars all over again. A lot of stress on the generator. I have two of these Yamahas and both do the same thing.This Anker unit has a on off switch for the AC outlets. When there is nothing plugged in it shows a 25 watt ac output. If I turn the outlets off this goes to zero. Does that make sense?

Anker costumer service says this 25 watt output is normal. Anker also says that you need a pure sine wave input to charge the unit. My Yamaha does deliver pure sine wave but costumer service ignores this and keeps telling me i need pure sine wave. Not a good experience.

I use separate components: Batteries, charger, inverter. With separate components, you can choose exactly what you want for each task specifically for your use case. If any part of the system fails, you can address that component individually. Further, you have much less software/apps/BS to confuse the operation, and it turns out to be about half the price of a Delta or similar. Plus you can simply expand your battery bank however you like so long as you can make cables and fuse everything properly, which is not difficult. Overall just more flexibility.

I keep it fully charged on standby for grid-power outages, then use a 2kw Honda for charging if the grid is down for more than a few days. I run the generator at about mid-load as steadily as possible, on a 12 gauge 100ft extension cord so I don't have to hear it. If the generator surged from an erratic charge load as you describe, I would go completely nuts.

BillT said:

Thanks for the advice.
I made the mistake of buying an Anker 767. It is supposed to charge at a rate of 1,400 watts. I have a Yamaha 2000 watt inverter generator that cannot handle charging this thing. It goes from 220 watts to 1000 watts then back down to zero..then stars all over again. A lot of stress on the generator. I have two of these Yamahas and both do the same thing.This Anker unit has a on off switch for the AC outlets. When there is nothing plugged in it shows a 25 watt ac output. If I turn the outlets off this goes to zero. Does that make sense?

Anker costumer service says this 25 watt output is normal. Anker also says that you need a pure sine wave input to charge the unit. My Yamaha does deliver pure sine wave but costumer service ignores this and keeps telling me i need pure sine wave. Not a good experience.

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Sounds like 25W is the idle load when the inverter is running (AC outlets on). In the Anker app can you reduce the charging rate from the max of 1400W?

Brucey said:

Sounds like 25W is the idle load when the inverter is running (AC outlets on). In the Anker app can you reduce the charging rate from the max of 1400W?

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Look at the sustained output of the inverter.
Most 2000W ones are only capable of 1600 max sustained.
Toss in efficiency loss at the charger, and it may be too much for a 2000W generator.
You may need to get a 2200 or higher to support the charger.

Thanks again

Supervstech said:

Look at the sustained output of the inverter.
Most 2000W ones are only capable of 1600 max sustained.
Toss in efficiency loss at the charger, and it may be too much for a 2000W generator.
You may need to get a 2200 or higher to support the charger.

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Right but at least with the ecoflow devices you can reduce the max input wattage in their app to deal with exactly this scenario (if it's hitting the Yamahas output limits).