Looks like a great prototype. A taller cooler should help a lot. Is the
genny mounted to the bottom of the cooler to prevent shifting while
underway? How hot does the exhaust vent become with high power loads?
Could it be protected from inadvertent touching? I would continue to very
carefully monitor generator cooling.

I would also recommend the exhaust be vented at the lowest practicable level
to ensure no carbon monoxide spills into the cockpit. One would assume that
prevailing breezes would place the bow into the wind at anchor and that
speed while underway would do the same. But, you never know when something
will happen and cause/allow carbon monoxide to get into people spaces.
Perhaps the most dangerous situation would be using the genny while tied to
the dock. A few carefully placed carbon monoxide monitors/alarms would
provide an acceptable comfort level.

Butch
wrote in message
ups.com...

dene wrote:
A couple of months ago, somebody in a boating forum described using a
modified cooler to house a honda 2000 genny. I passed on those posts to
my talented stepson and today we came up with a proto-type, that he may
eventually market for roughly $150 on E-bay. This is the first one with
more improvements envisioned before it goes to market. This cooler is a
Coleman 5 day, 100 qt. we got on sale at Walmart for $35. Only problem
with it is that it's not high enough, forcing us to cut a hole into the
top of the door.

Here are some pictures with comments in the captions. Please share all
opinions.

http://tinyurl.com/2kqwjd

Outlay was as follows....

$35 cooler
$10 ventilation pipe/exhaust
$30 padded cooler cover

Plus an hour or two of labor.

Results....this modified cooler cut down the sound about a third. Most
of the remaining noise comes from the exhaust. Also pertinant, the
gen-box looks good on the back of my upper swim platform and it
provides waterproofing for the genny, which will allow me to use it in
the rain. (We get a little here).

Again....don't hesitate to be critical and/or creative.

Thanks!

-Greg Schoenberg
"She Said Yes"
2002 Regal 2465
Kalama, Washington

That looks like a great idea to me. For my Honda EU2000i, I use a
Rubbermaid "Roughneck", #2162,
35-gallon, storage container, but I use it for storage only to keep the
mice out and discourage thieves. These cost $14.99 at Target.
http://www.rubbermaid.com/rubbermaid...d=HPProd150029

The EU2000i fits in the storage container with lots of room to spare
and no need to cut the lid. However, the container isn't insulated and
wouldn't provide any significant sound attenuation. However, you might
be able to glue some sort of insulation on the inside of it, or put
something on the outside, I dunno. If you did happen to run into heat
problems, you could mount some 12V computer fans on the container. The
problem, of course, is that the holes for the fans will also let some
noise out. People generally minimize this problem by making a couple of
U-turns in the airflow path. The EU2000i is already relatively quiet,
but it would be nice to make it even quieter.

If you cut a hole in the top, I would suggest a cover for the hole to
keep the mice and bugs out during storage.

The one criticism I would have is that you probably should do some
sophisticated heat tests and/or provide a caveat that you're not
responsible for overheating damage. I think you can buy a temperature
sensor that fits underneath a spark plug to measure heat. Or, another
idea might be to rent some good temperature measuring equipment from a
rental equipment company and measure the temperature at several
locations on the generator. I believe generator companies typically
rate their generators for operation at an ambient temperature up to
100F. That would mean you would have to heat your garage, for example,
up to 100F and then put the generator in the enclosure inside the
garage to run the heat tests.

Butch Davis wrote:
Looks like a great prototype. A taller cooler should help a lot. Is the
genny mounted to the bottom of the cooler to prevent shifting while
underway? How hot does the exhaust vent become with high power loads?
Could it be protected from inadvertent touching? I would continue to very
carefully monitor generator cooling.

There isn't much room for it to shift. The slot in the lid holds it
well.

I would also recommend the exhaust be vented at the lowest practicable level
to ensure no carbon monoxide spills into the cockpit. One would assume that
prevailing breezes would place the bow into the wind at anchor and that
speed while underway would do the same. But, you never know when something
will happen and cause/allow carbon monoxide to get into people spaces.
Perhaps the most dangerous situation would be using the genny while tied to
the dock. A few carefully placed carbon monoxide monitors/alarms would
provide an acceptable comfort level.

It's on the upper swim platform with the exhaust near the engine vent.
I always run it when running the genny. Also, I have CO monitors in
the cockpit and cabin.

-Greg