Newbie’s guide to camping generators

In this first instalment of our newbie’s guide to camping generators, we take a look at the different kinds of generators, what fuels them and who sells what.

While modern lithium battery systems are hard to fault, things can and do still go wrong. Before you know it, your induction cooking, your lighting and your heating/cooling systems are no longer playing the game. While not necessarily a trip-ender, it still sucks.

That’s why many folks still carry some sort of portable camping generator with them. With a quick rip on the pull cord or by pressing a couple of buttons, you’re plugged in, and the caravan’s electrics are back online in no time. They’re even great for when the solar panels aren’t delivering the juice on overcast days. A generator is literally one of the most useful pieces of gear you can own when out on the road.

With that said, in this day and age, things have become fairly tech-heavy, and there are more generator options for camping than ever before. So we thought we’d throw together a quick introductory guide to help you narrow your decision down the next time you’re gennie-shopping and find yourself feeling overwhelmed.

Camping vs. hard mounted vs. emergency/job site generators

Before we hop into the various types of generators for camping, we thought a quick overview of the broader generator categories may be helpful. Generators that can be used for camping or at RV sites are what we’ll be focussing on in this article.

Hard mounted generators

Gennies that are hard mounted to a vehicle (or caravan) like this one are generally fairly heavy-duty and require a lot more installation and set-up than a traditional portable unit. The upside is that they can put out a lot more power – so if you need to run something with a significant power draw, like a welder or a fully functional Ironman suit, then one of these may be the go.

Emergency backup generators

Emergency backup generators are designed to run for longer periods of time, such as when a natural disaster has cut your household power supply off. They can pump out a lot of power but are fairly bulky and not really designed for recreational use. Although it will still work great, it’s more of a when-a-hurricane-hits type of deal rather than a lightweight portable generator for camping.

Jobsite generators

Jobsite generators are, again, fairly bulky yet still moderately portable. They’re designed to run tools and electrical gear day in and day out, so are high quality – which also comes with a hefty price tag. They’re robust, built to take a beating and way more than an average campsite will need. But if you’re on a farm or at a remote location without ready access to power, they’re the best choice.

Okay, with all that said, when it comes to choosing the right camping generator for your needs, it still all really comes down to fuel choice. Namely: petrol, diesel, gas or green power.

Let’s take a look at the different fuel options for camping generators

Petrol generators for camping

Petrol-powered camping generators are by far the most common on the market, with most of the major players selling at least one model. They’re dependable, well-priced, lightweight (around 20kg or so), and modern inverter models are quiet enough to come in under most caravan parks’ decibel limits.

The main downside is that you may need to carry a spare jerry of fuel, depending on how large the generator’s tank is. Most allow for at least a couple of hours of usage, but any more, and you’ll need to top it up.

Even so, these camping generators are the go-to for thousands of campers across the country, and a quality unit from one of the major companies like Yamaha or Honda (for example) will likely last a lifetime with a regular maintenance schedule – they are an engine, just like in your vehicle, after all.

• Specifications: 1000W – 7000W+
• Price range: $400 – $2500
• Suitable for: Battery top-ups, powering your van, running high-draw accessories (like induction stoves, for example)
• Pros: Compact and easy to handle, ease of operation, inverter units are quiet, good ones rarely malfunction
• Cons: Higher quality = higher cost, may need to carry separate fuel, must be transported in vented compartment on vehicle or trailer

Diesel generators for camping

There aren’t a great many camping generators that are powered by diesel, but there are several units that will serve the purpose nicely. While diesel gennies are somewhat more expensive, they have several advantages over petrol units, the biggest of which is that diesels are more suited to stationary engine applications, so tend to be less stressed and last longer than petrol models.

With that said, small petrol engines found in modern generators have come a long way, and there’s not a huge amount separating them these days. Still, the majority of tow rigs are diesel-powered, so carrying an extra jerry or two of diesel is a lot less of a hassle. Any not used for the gennie can go straight into the tow-rig or motorhome’s fuel tanks.

• Specifications: 2.2kVA – 10kVA+
• Price range: $2500 – $10,000+
• Suitable for: Battery top-ups, powering your 12/240V system, running high-draw accessories (like induction stoves, for example), running a small country town’s power needs
• Pros: Same fuel as a lot of tow rigs (no need to carry extra jerries), extended engine life – diesels love stationary applications
• Cons: More suited to motorhomes or hard-mount applications, limited portable availability, higher price point

LPG/gas generators for camping

Gas or LPG-powered camping generators are not as prolific as petrol, or even diesel, portable generators. But they are available, are priced similarly to petrol gennies, and often have the huge advantage of being able to run as a dual-fuel system. This means that they can run off their inbuilt petrol tank, or off your caravan kitchen’s gas supply, or a dedicated LPG feed.

The versatility of such a set-up is obvious, allowing usage under pretty much any circumstances. However, it does inherently carry the same disadvantages of a petrol unit, and can run down your cooking gas supply much faster than burner-use-only would do.

It’s hardly a deal-breaker, but still something to be aware of. For smaller camper trailers and older caravans, though, they’re a beaut option.

• Specifications: 1600W – 1800W
• Price range: $1500 – $2000
• Suitable for: Smaller camper trailers and caravans, battery top-ups, powering your 12/240V system, running high-draw accessories
• Pros: Huge jump up in versatility over single fuel gennies, can be used in conjunction with some solar generators, most vans already have a gas supply and bottle transport, price is similar to a petrol-only model
• Cons: Limited power output (1600W-1800W-ish), can deplete gas supply much more rapidly, limited options

Solar generators for camping

These ain’t a battery box with a solar panel plugged in, but they’re not exactly camping generators in the traditional sense, either. They’re more standalone power systems that you can plug your camper, van or RV into. Solar generators are the latest in lithium battery technology and can even run heavy-draw accessories (like AC) in your RV for extended periods. A quality unit’s real advantage is the variety of ways they can be charged. From running off your vehicle’s alternator to ensuring it’s charged when you arrive at camp to the standard 240V power lead (the EcoFlow Delta Pro 3 goes from 0% to 85% in under an hour) to solar panel top-ups while at camp.

These solar camping generators are quiet, efficient and they can provide bulk power no matter how remote the locations you’re in. Of course, it’s fairly new tech and high-end gear, so it comes at a price. Even so, you can even link several of these things together and run up to 45kWA, which is enough to power an air-conditioned, microwave-equipped house for up to 3 days.

• Specifications: 500W – 4200W
• Price range: $650 – $10,000 (for a single unit)
• Suitable for: Powering your 12/240V system, running high-draw accessories (like AC, for example), complete standalone power system requirements
• Pros: Don’t need to be stored in a vented compartment, have a multitude of recharging options, are extremely quiet, can be linked together for higher power requirements, smartphone app-controlled, no exhaust emissions
• Cons: They require recharging rather than refuelling (which can sometimes be difficult while camping remotely)

Wind

We’ve all seen the huge wind turbines dotted about hills across the countryside to provide clean and green power, but did you know you can get one of those things (albeit smaller) for your campsite? Okay, look, you’re probably (definitely) not going to be running your 24-foot van with twin AC units, flatscreen telly and coffee machine off one of these bad boys, but as a means of topping up your batteries while relaxing at your site, they may just do the job for you. You should really see them as an alternative to solar panels versus as a hard and fast source of power generation. Still, if you regularly set-up camp in a wind tunnel they may be just the ticket.

• Specifications: 200W (max)
• Price range: $500 – $1000
• Suitable for: Small power requirements, topping up batteries
• Pros: “Free” power, folds up fairly small, decent alternative to solar panels, quiet
• Cons: Needs wind to work – not always available at all campsites, requires some set-up, wouldn’t actually power much more than a couple LED camp lights but they’re still a neat idea

Who sells watt (geddit?)

There are a billion and one camping generators on the market, many of which are cheaply made and with a branded sticker slapped on the side. The ones below are all from legitimate sellers, partly to keep the list short, and partly because we don’t want to give the poorly made ones airtime.

Brand	Petrol	Diesel	Gas	Solar	Wind
Bluetti				⚫
Briggs and Stratton	⚫
Drivetech					⚫
EcoFlow	⚫		⚫	⚫
Engel	⚫
Genpower	⚫
Gentrax	⚫
Goal Zero				⚫
Honda	⚫
Hyundai	⚫			⚫
Kubota		⚫
Ozito	⚫
Redback	⚫
Westinghouse	⚫
XTM	⚫
Yamaha	⚫

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