Easily start and run a pair of 15,000 Btu RV air conditioners with the remote-control enabled gas generator. Provides 120V or 240V power to run appliances, tools, and electronics. CO Alert turns engine off when hazardous gas buildup is detected.
Features:
Specs:
Includes:
Notes:
Certifications
Meets the following important certification standards:
When choosing a generator, you need to match the generator's starting and running output with the electrical demands of the equipment you want to operate.
Starting (surge) wattage is the power a device requires at startup. Running (rated) wattage is the power needed to keep the device running. A large appliance with an electric motor such as a furnace, refrigerator, air conditioner, or washing machine may require 2 to 3 times more starting wattage than running wattage.
It is always best to start your generator with no load connected, then add each device one at a time. Additionally, a good practice to consider is connecting your devices in order from highest starting watts to lowest starting watts. As you connect and start devices, your available wattage decreases. This order of operation allows you to start devices with the highest power demands when there is more power available.
At etrailer, we perform numerous tests on generators that put them through real-world experience. An extensive part of this testing includes starting and running RV air conditioners. The following table will help you decide if the P03631 generator has enough power to handle this critical function in your RV.
Air Conditioner | Will it start and run? |
---|---|
Single 13,500 Btu | Yes |
Single 15,000 Btu | Yes |
Dual 15,000 Btu | Yes |
Appliance | Running Watts | Starting Watts |
---|---|---|
Air compressor (1/2 hp) | 1,000 | 2,000 |
Air conditioner (15,000 Btu ) | 1,600 | * |
Air conditioner (13,500 Btu ) | 1,300 | * |
Air conditioner (10,000 Btu ) | 1,000 | * |
Blender | 400 | 850 |
Cell phone charger | 11 | 0 |
Clock radio | 4 | 0 |
Coffee maker (high setting) | 1,066 | 0 |
Crock pot (low setting) | 126 | 0 |
Crock pot (high setting) | 374 | 0 |
Desktop computer | 150 - 350 | 0 |
DVD player | 14 | 0 |
Electric drill (3/8" / 4 amps) | 450 | 600 |
Electric space heater (high setting) | 1,450 | 0 |
Floor fan | 100 | 0 |
Hair dryer (low setting) | 160 | 0 |
Hair dryer (high setting) | 1,300 | 0 |
LCD television (32") | 68 | 0 |
Microwave | 1,000 | 0 |
Refrigerator | 800 | 1,600 |
Washing machine | 1,150 | 2,250 |
Work light (quartz halogen) | 1,000 | 0 |
* The starting wattage on air conditioners can vary greatly depending on several factors, including the assistance of built-in capacitors and cold starts. Because of this, we can't list a standard starting wattage as every application can be different.
The following section provides calculations for wattage estimates. This will give you an overall picture of your potential power usage and help you decide on the generator that is right for you.
The Industry Standard Calculation is a quick and easy way to determine your required wattage. It may provide some padding in your wattage requirements, which could give you more power than you actually need, but you shouldn't have to worry about not having enough power. The following steps will help you quickly calculate the correct size generator to meet your application.
As stated earlier, you should always start your generator without any load, and then connect each device one at a time. The following calculation requires this approach to work. However, using this calculation removes the worry of connecting devices in a certain order.
1. Determine the starting watts and running watts for the devices that you want to plug into the generator.
a. Find the starting (surge) watts and running (rated) watts for each device that you want to plug into the generator. Look for a sticker or plate on each device or check your owner's manuals.
b. If your device or manual only shows amps and volts, watts can also be determined through a simple formula. (Amps x Volts = Watts)
c. List all of your starting watts and running watts as seen in Table 1 below.
Table 1
Example Devices | Starting Watts | Running Watts |
---|---|---|
Air compressor | 2,000 | 1,000 |
Refrigerator | 1,600 | 800 |
Microwave | 0 | 1,000 |
Blender | 850 | 400 |
2. To find the total starting watts required , add the starting watts for the device with the highest value to the running watts of all the other devices from Table 1 .
2,000 + 800 + 1,000 + 400 = 4,200 total starting watts
3. To find the total running watts , add all of the running watts together from Table 1 .
1,000 + 800 + 1,000 + 400 = 3,200 total running watts
To run all of these devices simultaneously, you would require a generator with at least 4,200 starting watts and 3,200 running watts.
While the method for calculating your power needs outlined above will work, it isn't the most precise. If you aren't afraid of doing a little more math, you can use the Advanced, Precise Calculation to get a more accurate idea of how much power you will need and potentially save yourself some money. Because the calculation above pads in enough power to ensure you can start your devices in any order, it may point you to a bigger and more expensive generator than you need. However, by following the more regimented, order-of-operations calculation below, you'll get a much more precise idea of how much power you need, which could in turn point you to a smaller and less expensive generator.
Again, you should always start your generator without any load, and then connect each device one at a time. The following calculation also requires that you start your devices in order from highest starting watts to lowest starting watts. When you connect devices in this order, you can start high demand devices when there is more power available.
1. Determine the starting watts and running watts for each device that you want to plug into the generator.
a. Find the starting (surge) watts and running (rated) watts for each device that you want to plug into the generator. Look for a sticker or plate on each device or check your owner's manuals.
b. If your device or manual only shows amps and volts, watts can also be determined through a simple formula. (Amps x Volts = Watts)
c. List out these devices from highest starting watts to lowest starting watts as seen in Table 2 below.
Table 2
Example Devices | Starting Watts | Running Watts |
---|---|---|
Air compressor | 2,000 | 1,000 |
Refrigerator | 1,600 | 800 |
Microwave | 0 | 1,000 |
Blender | 850 | 400 |
2. To find the total running watts , add all of the running watts together from Table 2 .
1,000 + 800 + 1,000 + 400 = 3,200 total running watts
3. In Table 3 , shown below, the values from Table 2 are used to calculate the highest total starting watts required as devices are connected and running. This number represents the highest power requirement you will encounter as you connect all of your devices to the generator. To find this, add the starting watts of each new device you connect to the combined running watts of all connected devices . The highest of these numbers will be the total starting watts required . And again, remember to always connect devices in order from highest starting watts to lowest starting watts.
Table 3
Device | Starting Watts | Running Watts of All Connected Devices | Total Starting Watts Required |
---|---|---|---|
1. Air compressor | 2,000 + | 0 (nothing connected) | = 2,000 |
2. Refrigerator | 1,600 + | 1,000 (air compressor) | = 2,600 |
3. Microwave | 1,000* + | 1,800 (air compressor + refrigerator) | = 2,800 |
4. Blender | 850 + | 2,800 (air compressor + refrigerator + microwave) | = 3,650 |
* Even though the microwave does not have starting watts listed, you have to account for the power needed to actually run it.
850 + 2,800 = 3,650 highest total starting watts required
In order to run all of these devices simultaneously, you would require a generator with at least 3,650 starting watts and 3,200 running watts.
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hi, everybody. Andy here with etrailer.com. Let's take a look together at this Firman 4,550 watt portable gas generator. Now this gas generator is going to be a portable power source for you for camping. This is basically RV ready or it's gonna be a great option to consider for backup power. When choosing a generator, you do need to match the generator starting and running output with the electrical demands of the equipment that you want to operate.
So on this product page a little bit lower down, we do have a really good writeup for you so you can determine for yourself the type of generator that you are going to need depending on your power demands. This generator is equipped with 3,650 running watts and 4,550 starting watts and 122/240 volt power. And this is going to allow you to easily start and run a pair of 15,000 BTU RV air conditioners. This really does have a little bit of everything. It does feature electric and remote start and that's going to offer easy push button start up using the remote control that you find right here or just a push button on the control panel.
This also does have a recoil handle that you probably already saw to let you start this up. That way if you need to, and this also has a 4 in 1 data minder that's going to measure volts, hertz, hours, and has a low oil indicator. So let me go ahead and go over our control panel here. I do want to point out the features that this has, just so you have a good idea of what this offers. So I'm gonna try to go in order here as much as possible.
So we do have our engine start switch, I mentioned our 4 in 1 data minder and then we have a battery switch and then we have our DC circuit breaker and then our 12 volt DC outlet receptacle. Basically when I was a kid, we would call this a cigarette lighter connection there that you'd find in your vehicles. Most of the, well all of these outlets actually will have these really nice coverings on 'em, caps on 'em to protect it from the elements. So that's a great feature. So I do wanna move over here to our 120/240 volts 30 amp twist lock outlet here.
And then we have our circuit breakers here. And then moving down we have our 120 volts 20 amp duplex GFCI outlets here. So basically you can plug in your devices or electronics that you use at home, basically same outlet that you have there at home. And then we have our 120 volt 30 amp RV outlet. So quite a few different ways of connecting here, which is great. And then we have our two, going back here real quick, two USB-A ports to charge your USB-A devices. So that's over there. And then as I mentioned outlet covers to protect the receptacles. A feature that this has that I don't think I've seen on other generators before and it's kind of hard for you to see there. We have LED lights here that are going to light up these receptacles. So that's a really great feature that this has. We do have our ground terminal here and then we have our voltage selector switch, so 240, 120 and then a remote start indicator light right here. And then the remote start program button right here. And then we have our tethered TT-30P 30 amp, 120 volt to L5 30R 30A 120 volt adapter here. And just to show you how that works for making sure that I don't lose everything here. So this is just gonna pull out here like this, it's got a cap on it as well. And then that's just going to plug in right here just like that. So that is included. That's a nice addition and put that back here and it stores right there and you're not gonna have to worry about it accidentally popping out of there or anything like that. So let me look over here, make sure that we've got most everything covered. We do have our CO alert here as well. So I think I covered most of the features that this panel offers. It does provide quite a bit for you. Like I said, it has a little bit of everything. This does feature Firman's single cylinder four stroke overhead valve air cooled 208cc engine. It uses standard unleaded gas. And let me go ahead and give you an overhead view here real quick. And this is the gas tank here where you will fill up the gas. We also have a fuel gauge there as well. So no need to mix gas or oil. This has a continuous runtime at half a load of 14 hours and as I pointed out, this has built in safety features including the CO alert sensor, warning lights, voltage regulator, spark arrester as you can see right there. And this clean running engine is going to meet the CARB, CETL and EPA standards. That's a five gallon steel tank up there and the noise level of a normal conversation is about 60 decibels measured at 25 feet away at half load and standard mode, this is gonna be about 75 decibels just to kind of give you an idea of the noise. And we do have these eight inch flat free wheels that are gonna provide easy mobility, strong tubular steel frame and lemme go back out to my wide view here. And we have this handle and just bring it over here real quick. I actually use this to roll this into my studio so it's gonna be very easy to use. So that is included with this. Gonna make transporting it all the more easier. Going back to my closeup here, this does include the remote control and it has a nice little compartment here and a little carabiner on there so you can hook that up to maybe like your keys or something. So very easy to not only store that but also transport that as well. Let me see if I can point out some other features that's included with this. I'm really amazed with everything that comes with this. You're gonna get a air filter and then you're going to get this cable with alligator clips as you can see right here for like charging or jump starting a battery. And then you're going to get the battery here for startups, you're gonna get a bottle of engine oil and lemme go back here and see what else we have here. An oil funnel is included with this and then you're gonna get a cloth. And then if you probably notice we've got a cylinder here, this might be kind of tricky to show you, but lemme see what I can do here. This cylinder that's housed in the generator itself has quite a few tools here that's going to be included. So I'm gonna dump this out on my table here. You're gonna get two wrenches, it's a 12 and 10 millimeter wrench. You're going to get the spark plug wrench and then you're gonna get a spark plug and then get the rod that goes with the spark plug wrench obviously. Run that through just like that. And then you're going to get this spout here. So I mean I'm really impressed with all the things that are included here. I'm gonna go ahead and put the tools back here into this canister and then like you saw, and like I said, this is just going to go right back into that little compartment there in the generator. Just gonna make sure I can get everything to fit into place here. There we go. Gonna replace the cap just like that. It's nice and tight and then just pop it right into there. So that is pretty cool. You're going to be able to easily drain the oil right here. This is gonna be hard for you to see because of the wheel, but you're gonna be able just to bring this down and easily drain your oil. The oil fill is right there and I'm just kind of looking over here to see if there's anything else that I'm neglecting to go over. This is where you can shut your fuel off. This is going to be the choke right here and then there's our handle again. So you're probably wondering about some measurements. So looking at the overall height from top to bottom, we're sitting right at about 21-3/4 inches tall. And then looking at the length from end to end, about 24-13/16 inches long. And then the width and I'm including the wheels with the width, we're sitting right at about 21-3/4 inches wide. This generator is on the heavier side. This is gonna be pretty close to 119, 120 pounds. Obviously that's dry weight. And I of course I wanted to mention, and I'm sure you know this, gas generators do obviously produce carbon monoxide, which is poisonous. So for your safety, you always wanna be sure to operate this gas power generator outdoors because this generator does not have a built-in inverter to control the electrical current, the voltage can fluctuate. So be careful not to plug in sensitive electronic devices such as a computer or a television to this generator. You will get a quick start guide, and of course a full blown manual as well. But I think that's gonna wrap up our look today. I do hope that our time together was helpful for you. Again, my name is Andy. Thank you for joining me.
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