# Champion 3500w Generator



## jasonrebecca (Oct 30, 2007)

Cabela's has the 3500w generator with a 30a rv plug on sale, this Saturday only for $299.
Saw it in the paper this morning. Champion 3500

Says its 68db, the Honda EU3000IS is rated at 58db.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

jasonrebecca said:


> Cabela's has the 3500w generator with a 30a rv plug on sale, this Saturday only for $299.
> Saw it in the paper this morning. Champion 3500
> 
> Says its 68db, the Honda EU3000IS is rated at 58db.


Remember, every 10dB is a doubling of the sound level


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## Sayonara (Jul 23, 2007)

Nathan said:


> Cabela's has the 3500w generator with a 30a rv plug on sale, this Saturday only for $299.
> Saw it in the paper this morning. Champion 3500
> 
> Says its 68db, the Honda EU3000IS is rated at 58db.


Remember, every 10dB is a doubling of the sound level








[/quote]

Yep - BIG difference.


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## Airboss (Jul 14, 2007)

Let's all remember that not all of us have a $2000+ budget for a generator. I bought my Champion at Shuck's for $299 when they had the $150 MIR. $150 for a 3500w generator?!? Can't beat that in my book! Shoot, $300 is still a great deal.

We bought it for emergencies at home and to take along with us on the occasional dry camping trip. I don't anticipate having to use it for more than a couple of hours a day on those trips, if that. Just enough time to recharge my Trojans if/when they need it.

So, is the Champion louder than the Honda's and Yamaha's? Certainly - considerably louder. Are there more people like me looking for a cheaper alternative? You betcha! And they'll be thanking Jason (or was it Rebecca) for pointing out a good deal.


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## jcat67 (Aug 8, 2008)

Heck when my A/C is running and you are inside the camper, a 747 could take off outside and I wouldn't hear it over the a/c unit.









Of course I am of the type that as long as it is a constant noise it won't matter to me how loud it is when it comes time to siesta. Several years ago when I was youth director of our church youth group we took them to a "gospel rock" concert at the Orlando Convention Center. It was so loud, one of our youth had to leave the building because the concussion from the music was causing her pain from a recent wisdom tooth procedure. The pastor was quicker than I to volunteer to escort her out so I was the lucky one who remained inside with the group. After about 5 more minutes in the dark arena, even with the music blasting, I fell asleep.

I have heard several of the officers who work at our department talking about after evening shift they have to go home and "wind" down for awhile before sleeping.....I just have to lay down.


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## Colorado Outbacker (Jun 6, 2005)

Hi









I also have one of the Champion 3500 Generators due to the cost difference. Got mine a couple summers ago from Checker Auto for $299. Also got the wheels from there which helps out. They continue to have it at that price quit often. In fact last summer they even had a $100 mail in rebate on top of the $299 price. Figures after I bought mine. Oh Well.

One caution; if you camp at altitude it will not pull the air conditioner. They do have an upgrade to the carb that is free for that situation. I have yet to really need the AC when I am above 8000 feet, which is where we do all our camping, so no big thing. Usually 10 - 11,000 so no real need for AC. Charged batteries for heat at night is about it.

We just pick an hour during the day that we won't bother anybody in camp, like when we are playing horseshoes, to charge the batteries. Even when the babies and DW are napping inside it never bothers them. Starts on the first pull every time.

14 day trip to Central Colorado coming up in a couple of weeks. Can't wait, the aspens will be green when we set up and yellow/orange when we leave. The before and after photos of camp are amazing. We do it every year for Muzzleloading Elk season during the same time period. I will post a before and after shot of camp when we return.

We do all dry camping and the $299 generator works just fine for our needs.

Tony


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Airboss said:


> Let's all remember that not all of us have a $2000+ budget for a generator. I bought my Champion at Shuck's for $299 when they had the $150 MIR. $150 for a 3500w generator?!? Can't beat that in my book! Shoot, $300 is still a great deal.
> 
> We bought it for emergencies at home and to take along with us on the occasional dry camping trip. I don't anticipate having to use it for more than a couple of hours a day on those trips, if that. Just enough time to recharge my Trojans if/when they need it.
> 
> So, is the Champion louder than the Honda's and Yamaha's? Certainly - considerably louder. Are there more people like me looking for a cheaper alternative? You betcha! And they'll be thanking Jason (or was it Rebecca) for pointing out a good deal.


Not saying it wasn't a good deal, or wouldn't work. I was just reminding everyone that the dB scale is not linear.









I don't have any generator, so if it is 90 deg and there are no hookups, any of you are ahead of me!!!


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## garyb1st (Dec 6, 2007)

A couple of questions.

I didn't see any comments on how using generators that are not designed for RV usage can potentially damage air-conditioners and other electrical equipment. Is that not true with the Champion?

I might be able to live with the increased noise but not a burned out AC motor.

Also, as a backup for home usage, why don't these generators that don't have voltage regulating electronics damage home appliances?


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## Airboss (Jul 14, 2007)

Nathan said:


> A couple of questions.
> 
> I didn't see any comments on how using generators that are not designed for RV usage can potentially damage air-conditioners and other electrical equipment. Is that not true with the Champion?
> 
> ...


Good questions, I suppose. I didn't know that there were RV specific generators except for those that are built it, like the Onan.

As far as voltage requlation goes, I've never had my Champion read too high or too low. Once it's warmed up for about 5 minutes I get a steady 115V (+-5V) even with a heavy load.


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## garyb1st (Dec 6, 2007)

Nathan said:


> Remember, every 10dB is a doubling of the sound level


Didn't know that. According to some Internet sites, normal conversation is about 60 dB. A busy office is about 70dB. But proximity is a big factor. I guess the solution is to set up the generator as far away as possible. Like close to another camper.


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## ColoradoChip (Jan 21, 2008)

Colorado Outbacker said:


> Hi
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hey, Tony. How did you go about getting that free high altitude carb? By the way, I thought that I would sahre an interesting story. About 3 or 4 months back, the generator was on sale for $299.00. I had a 25% off coupon, and there was a $150.00 rebate. So, the discount brought it to $224.25, and after the rebate, I expected to be paying about $75.00, which is an AMAZING deal as far as I am concerned. I didn't think I would use it much, but figured that it's a good thing to have for 75 bucks! I sent in the rebate form, and after about 6 weeks, I hadn't heard anything, so I called to check the status. The rebate checking people couldn't find anything on my rebate, so they asked me to resubmit it. About two weeks later, a check arrived in the mail for $300.00! They paid me $75.00 to take the generator! How is that for a deal??

-Chip


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## jcat67 (Aug 8, 2008)

ColoradoChip said:


> Hi
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hey, Tony. How did you go about getting that free high altitude carb? By the way, I thought that I would sahre an interesting story. About 3 or 4 months back, the generator was on sale for $299.00. I had a 25% off coupon, and there was a $150.00 rebate. So, the discount brought it to $224.25, and after the rebate, I expected to be paying about $75.00, which is an AMAZING deal as far as I am concerned. I didn't think I would use it much, but figured that it's a good thing to have for 75 bucks! I sent in the rebate form, and after about 6 weeks, I hadn't heard anything, so I called to check the status. The rebate checking people couldn't find anything on my rebate, so they asked me to resubmit it. About two weeks later, a check arrived in the mail for $300.00! They paid me $75.00 to take the generator! How is that for a deal??

-Chip
[/quote]

Since when did the Federal Goverment get into generator sales?


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## BoaterDan (Jul 1, 2005)

garyb1st said:


> A couple of questions.
> 
> I didn't see any comments on how using generators that are not designed for RV usage can potentially damage air-conditioners and other electrical equipment. Is that not true with the Champion?
> 
> ...


There was a discussion about this a while back. The summary of the comments were

- these generators run at a constant RPM and therefore have fairly "clean" and steady power output. The voltage is naturally steady.

- the super-quiet inverter generators typically vary the RPM as a way to keep them quieter when the load is reduced. They need the electronics to make sure the output is constantly adjusted to stable and steady.

Several reported using these el-cheapo generators for years without any damage to anything. And we were reminded that people have been using them at home for as long as they've been making them.

Hope that helps.


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## Airboss (Jul 14, 2007)

ColoradoChip said:


> Hey, Tony. How did you go about getting that free high altitude carb? By the way, I thought that I would sahre an interesting story. About 3 or 4 months back, the generator was on sale for $299.00. I had a 25% off coupon, and there was a $150.00 rebate. So, the discount brought it to $224.25, and after the rebate, I expected to be paying about $75.00, which is an AMAZING deal as far as I am concerned. I didn't think I would use it much, but figured that it's a good thing to have for 75 bucks! I sent in the rebate form, and after about 6 weeks, I hadn't heard anything, so I called to check the status. The rebate checking people couldn't find anything on my rebate, so they asked me to resubmit it. About two weeks later, a check arrived in the mail for $300.00! They paid me $75.00 to take the generator! How is that for a deal??
> 
> -Chip


Dude, that's sweet! I thought I got a good deal at $150.


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## jasonrebecca (Oct 30, 2007)

Airboss said:


> Let's all remember that not all of us have a $2000+ budget for a generator. I bought my Champion at Shuck's for $299 when they had the $150 MIR. $150 for a 3500w generator?!? Can't beat that in my book! Shoot, $300 is still a great deal.
> 
> We bought it for emergencies at home and to take along with us on the occasional dry camping trip. I don't anticipate having to use it for more than a couple of hours a day on those trips, if that. Just enough time to recharge my Trojans if/when they need it.
> 
> So, is the Champion louder than the Honda's and Yamaha's? Certainly - considerably louder. Are there more people like me looking for a cheaper alternative? You betcha! And they'll be thanking Jason (or was it Rebecca) for pointing out a good deal.


It was Jason, Rebecca never comes on here anymore.

The honda's don't have the 30a plug either, so you have to remember you adaptor as well!


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## N7OQ (Jun 10, 2006)

Nathan said:


> Cabela's has the 3500w generator with a 30a rv plug on sale, this Saturday only for $299.
> Saw it in the paper this morning. Champion 3500
> 
> Says its 68db, the Honda EU3000IS is rated at 58db.


Remember, every 10dB is a doubling of the sound level








[/quote]

I though it was every 3db to double the power???


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## Sayonara (Jul 23, 2007)

Airboss said:


> Not saying it wasn't a good deal, or wouldn't work. I was just reminding everyone that the dB scale is not linear.


Me too. I wasnt judging or really care how much anyone spends on their generator. i was just confirming that 10 db can be a big difference. A friend of mine has both an EU2000i and the Champion. He bought one and then decided to buy the Honda.... 
Buy what you feel suits your needs and enjoy !!


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## skylane (Oct 28, 2007)

yes .....every 3db doubles the sound level

and yes you did get a screamin deal....wish I could find that price.......good on you


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## Carey (Mar 6, 2012)

Met a guy on the Alaskan Highway a while back that had been using his champion about 4 hours a day, 6 months out of the year for the last 4 years.. He had a high end Alpenlite 5er and had never had a bit of trouble..

Said it was the best 300 bucks he had ever spent.

Carey


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

N7OQ said:


> Remember, every 10dB is a doubling of the sound level


I though it was every 3db to double the power???
[/quote]

Good thing I'm not working on Noise control I guess!









Thanks for the clarification.


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## sleecjr (Mar 24, 2006)

Colorado~DirtBikers said:


> Met a guy on the Alaskan Highway a while back that had been using his champion about 4 hours a day, 6 months out of the year for the last 4 years.. He had a high end Alpenlite 5er and had never had a bit of trouble..
> 
> Said it was the best 300 bucks he had ever spent.
> 
> Carey


Ouch! That thing uses about 1/2 a gallon and hour. Thats a lot of gas over 4 years.


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## Colorado Outbacker (Jun 6, 2005)

[/quote]
Hey, Tony. How did you go about getting that free high altitude carb? By the way, I thought that I would sahre an interesting story. About 3 or 4 months back, the generator was on sale for $299.00. I had a 25% off coupon, and there was a $150.00 rebate. So, the discount brought it to $224.25, and after the rebate, I expected to be paying about $75.00, which is an AMAZING deal as far as I am concerned. I didn't think I would use it much, but figured that it's a good thing to have for 75 bucks! I sent in the rebate form, and after about 6 weeks, I hadn't heard anything, so I called to check the status. The rebate checking people couldn't find anything on my rebate, so they asked me to resubmit it. About two weeks later, a check arrived in the mail for $300.00! They paid me $75.00 to take the generator! How is that for a deal??

-Chip
[/quote]

Hi Chip, what a deal. I would get two at that price.

I just called the service department for Champion and told them the issue with the generator at altitude. THey said this was common and they had the altitude parts needed to adjust the carb. They told me to check a few things on the RV and if they did not work that they would send me the needed parts to make the carb high altitude for free. I have not called them back as of yet to get the parts.

Tony


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