Honda Generator eu22i with a Bavaria 36 cruiser 2011 vintage question

[john102345]

Hi
I have a Bavaria 36 cruiser & want a generator option of charging batteries rather than running up engine hours on my D 130.
I have not bought a Honda yet so thought I would ask here before buying.

I borrowed a Honda eu20i generator from a buddy down the pontoon & plugged it in to my boat turned on the 240v switch panel boat booted up as normal but had a polarity warning issue ran for 1 min then the panel breakers tripped off.
He uses the same generator on his Jeanneau boat & has never had any problems
I have raised this question on the YBW forum but to be honest lots of replies but all technical which hurts your brain if you don't understand the basics as I

I understand that its the earth & live which require re wiring so that the honda has the same earth as the boat
Does this make sense?

Is there anybody here that succesfully uses a Honda generator to charge the boat when at anchor if so can you let me know what you did to the 16amp plug to make it work please.

Thanks
John       

[Salty]

Were you also connected to shore power at the same time that the generator was connected and running?

[Sitesurfer]

The output from the generator can’t be that complicated, all you need to do is to match the input wiring on the boat to the output from the generator.

Assuming that the generator has a conventional plug outlet, it should be as simple as making the connection to the boat exactly the same as your shore power lead. Worth mentioning that it’s not a given that your mates yacht has the same input wiring - yes it’s a long shot but stranger things have been known.

[dawntreader]

Think of 'Shore' power as 'generated' - which it is of course. Plugging your (shore power) lead into the Honda instead of the supplied output from the marina should have the no adverse effect. If you have a different lead which causes the problem you mention, it is that lead which is faulty 

[Odysseus]

I have my Honda generator under the seat in stern,  its chained on via safety eye bolts. I have a short lead that plugs into shore power socket in the stern, runs great, not experienced any issues. Treat it like I am on shore power.
One thing I did learn early on was get yourself a plastic bottle the size for fuel refill so it's easy to fill at sea. I have a bottle that has a hose coming out of cap so no spills.
Been running this for 10 years the Honda is very reliable and easy starter.

See generator under stern seat.

Odysseus
Bav 38

[Rampage]

If the generator has eu round pin plugs fitted the it is possible to reverse the polarity simply by putting the plug in “upside down.  That wouldn’t matter in most circumstances but where the boat electrical control panel has a polarity sensor it could present a problem. 
I had a generator once which had eu round pin plugs and ended up marking both plug (on the end of the lead and socket (on the generator) so as to be sure of matching the polarity.

[Salty]

Going back to my query at reply no 1, is the possibility that maybe the marina wiring is not set up correctly. I gather from points raised elsewhere within the forum, that marina wiring problems occur fairly frequently and that this might result in reversed polarity.