Honeywell HW1000i 1,000 Watt 53cc Portable Gas Powered Inverter Generator

6 Responses to “Honeywell HW1000i 1,000 Watt 53cc Portable Gas Powered Inverter Generator”

1. Brian Hill says:

   April 15, 2010 at 3:27 pm

   It pretty much does what it says. A bit louder than I had hoped, but not so loud that I wouldn’t want to use it. The comparable Honda is quieter, but much more money. I bought it for camping and it fits that role fine. Easy to carry with one hand, even when fueled. Perhaps I should have gotten the 2000 watt version so I could power my refrigerator in an emergency, but that is larger and uses more fuel, and I had camping in mind, (and it costs more) so I chose the smaller version. First start took about 8 pulls, only needs one or two pulls thereafter (unless you run it dry).

   I had seriously considered one of the cheapo (~ $130) two cycle 1000 watt portables, but I can’t make myself believe that any two cycle would be as quiet as this unit. Perhaps someone with access to both could offer up a comparison? Maybe if I didn’t want to use it for camping (but if that were the case, I’d want a larger generator anyhow).

   Rating: 4 / 5
2. W. Raley says:

   April 15, 2010 at 3:48 pm

   I bought this generator to have as an emergency battery charger run through our Xantrex inverter/charger aboard our cruising sailboat. I also wanted to have portable power for low power hand power tools without taking from the ship’s battery bank. I wasn’t sure if it would run my very fussy, electronically controlled Bosch saber saw because that saw won’t run off our on board Xantrex inverter even though computers and other electronics work fine from from the on board 120v power. The Bosch runs perfectly off of the Honeywell 1000i: it must produce a true sign wave output.

   It is shipped without oil, so I added the prescribed amount with the little spouted oil container provided (very handy for our 4 stroke 9.8 hp outboard too), added gas, and gave a pull. She started on the third pull and ran smooth and quieter than my old Honda 1000 watt generator. On subsequent tries both hot and cold, she started on the first pull.

   I have one minor complaint: there is no dipstick to check the oil level; you have to get the unit exactly level, remove the screw holding the back cover and eyeball the oil filler hole. Of course it does have a low oil level automatic shutoff, but who wants to rely on an emergency shutoff to monitor the oil level?

   Bill Raley
   Rating: 5 / 5
3. Ryo Chijiiwa says:

   April 15, 2010 at 5:29 pm

   I bought this generator to charge a 12V deep-cycle AGM battery using a 40 Amp charge controller. For that, this generator works just fine, although it’s a lot louder than I expected.

   I’m giving it two stars because the particular unit I got failed after less than 10 hours of usage. I had it running, and went away for a couple of hours, and when I came back, it had stopped. The oil level was low, so I added some oil, but it simply wouldn’t start. I checked everything the manual tells you to check, with no success. I pulled out the spark plug to see if there was a spark, but there didn’t appear to be, so the electrical system might’ve failed. I took it to an authorized mechanic, and hopefully will find out exactly what happened.

   The bottom line is, if you’re buying a generator, you’re probably using it in a situation where you need to be able to depend on your gear. I found that I couldn’t depend on this generator, so I’m giving it two stars. If I could do it again, I’d probably look for a used Honda EU 1000i or 2000i.
   Rating: 2 / 5
4. Jonathan R. Burnette says:

   April 15, 2010 at 5:52 pm

   Overall this is a nice little generator but the main purpose of this review is to let people know that this generator DOES NOT HAVE A DC OUTPUT. In reality it does have a DC output but you’re not supposed to use it. The DC output is unregulated which did not pass certain licensing so rather than remove the DC outlet Honeywell decided not to ship or sell a plug that will fit the DC outlet. I think this is a very unprofessional solution and they should do a better job of telling customers what happened. I wasted several hours and trips to multiple hardware stores trying to find a plug for this thing.

   I’ve used the generator for about 5 hours now and the thing I notice most is that this is the easiest starting generator that I have ever used. It starts on the first pull every time and has been very reliable. It is a gasoline engine so it is fairly loud but compared to my 5500 Watt portable generator this thing is incredibly quiet.
   Rating: 4 / 5
5. Matthew T. Karhan says:

   April 15, 2010 at 6:28 pm

   The honeywell generator, HW1000i is a great generator for the price. It does everything that is promises. However, within the first month of ownership, I have had a few things go wrong that were easy fixes assuming the owner has a basic grasp on small engine maintenance. I use my genny to charge my deep cycle batteries on my 35 foot sailboat. I have a 20 amp xantrex battery charger, which I power normally with the generator through a typical shore power cable and outlet, (30 amp shore cable with 15 amp pigtail adapter). The generator spends most of its time semi-covered and in the sunshine in san diego. Within a month of owner ship, I have replaced the inline fuel filter as a result of condensation in the half full fuel tank causing a kinda scary rust on the surface of the inside of the tank. This caused a blockage in the highspeed jet fixed inside the carb. This is a fairly simple task assuming you have lived on a boat and are familiar with cleaning carbs on outboard motors for tenders. This was a task that was fairly easy considering the carb is within easy access once you remove the maintenance panel and the air filter unit. The panel cover comes off with one screw, the same for the air filter cover and then there are 2 maybe 8-10 mil bolts holding the carb to the engine. The bowl for the carb is also easy removal as it has one centrally located bolt through the bottom of the fuel accumulation bowl. (the carb cleaning in a honda ex700, a very similar genny,(my previous) was not quite this easy.) I also removed almost the entire outer casing and removed the fuel tank to clean it out with mineral spirits to clean up some of the rust spots.
   
   Once the tank was cleaned and re-installed, The carb cleaned, and a new inline fuel filter installed, the engine runs perfectly. I have made a few other improvements including an engine hour meter, which helps me keep track of engine usage and maintenance tasks.
   
   In terms of noise, the genny has a signifigant noise increase without the eco-throttle, compared to my previous slighty smaller honda, however it quiets up nicely and is what can be expected for the price.
   
   I would recommend this generator to anyone in the market for other similar products but buyer beware-In calling around to repair shops for parts, the service center in san diego had stopped servicing these units due to lack of availability of parts and reliability. If you are not a do it yourselfer, you could be in a pinch when it comes time to service, or to get it running after a problem.
   
   I , however, am totally happy for the price!
   
   Rating: 4 / 5
6. holmes humidifier says:

   June 25, 2010 at 7:00 pm

   Thanks for sharing these great tips. I can’t wait to put them to good use! I’m glad to learn from what seems to work best for you even if it doesn’t always work best for everyone else.