[T2] Run engine on idle to charge batteries

[jon]

JohnA et.al.,
     We had an early 350 watt Honda generator in the late 80's at one of 
the PWS field camps.  It ran for ~ 8 hours on one tank every Friday to 
charge our battery bank while we were in town. it was quite practical 
for that purpose _provided you weren't in it's vicinity_. For sure the 
background noise level in Olsen Bay was as low as it gets, short of a 
cave, but that thing, all 35cc or so of mighty Honda tech,  was 
definitely not quiet by EU genny standards.   I also doubt you could 
find a 30+ year old Honda that was working worth anything.  We have a 
couple in our warehouse, but they are just taking up space. Haven't been 
used in >10 years. We _never_ take anything but an EU series to the 
field any more, there is no comparison in reliability, fuel efficiency, 
or noise level. In an alternate life I am around thousands of generators 
in the desert every Labor Day weekend.  Amongst many other things, that 
event has engendered a rapid evolution in power generation 
systems-solar, wind, and fossil fuel. You will get some pretty harsh 
vibes if you run a construction type genset in the camping areas. Folks 
would instantly loan you enough extensions to tap into their EU just to 
shut it off.  Yamaha makes an equivalent series, and there is an 
authorized, Chimp knock-off of the EU 1000 that has a good rep with the 
RV crowd (who are very frugal, and harsh in their reviews if things 
don't last).  As an aside, the inverter parts last much longer than the 
motors (which last a very long time) in the Hondas.  How come no one has 
come up with a replacement motor for them?  We have not been able to 
find anyone who will rebuild the motors either.
MTYWTK. jon