Champion 3400-Watt Dual Fuel RV Ready Portable Inverter Generator with Electric Start

This generator has all the great features I was looking for. The ability to run on gas or liquid propane, RV ready, quiet, safe for my sensitive electronics, portable, light weight, and affordable, With dual fuel you have the option of gas or propone. The unit comes equipped with a 30 amp RV plug in. At 59 dba 23 feet away this is one of the quietest running generators in the industry. With the economy mode feature turned on it is truly amazing how quiet it is. I love the propane option since it runs cleaner for the environment and keeps the engine burning cleaner, which will mean longer engine life. Also, propane can run up to 14.5 hours on a 20 lb. tank. That's almost twice as long as a full tank of gas. The dual fuel feature is a real game changer if either fuel becomes scarce in some power loss event. Another great feature Champion includes are the never flat wheels already installed and the stowaway handle that make this unit simple to move around. The inverter makes it so I can safely charge my cell phone, laptops, and run my TV's without worrying about power spikes damaging these sensitive electronics. A standard open frame generator with no invertor can have power spikes that these small electronics cannot handle. Weighing in at just 95-lbs. the unit can be lifted with confidence using the built in handles. The last feature that amazes me is how affordable this generator is. Backed by industry leading customer service and a 3 year warranty, the price of this unit compared to other brands like Honda and Yamaha was a big factor in my purchase. From lights, a fridge or freezer, electric blankets, space heater, modem/router, TV's, to a 15,000 BTU window or RV A/C, this generator is the best in it's class!

I live in Houston and as hurricane season approaches I started researching emergency generators. Consumer Reports recommends inverter generators, plus the more I read about propane, the more I liked it.Like many, I was attracted to the Hondas, but there was a recall on some and others do not accept propane. I REALLY wanted a propane option to avoid messing with old gasoline, stabilizers, gummed-up carburetors and fumes. Propane's energy output is 10% lower than gasoline, but I'm willing to take the hit for a clean engine.Eventually I discovered the Champion 3400 Dual Fuel Inverter Generator with Electric Start at half the price of a comparable Honda. Amazon delivered this bad boy in five days and it comes ready to rock and roll with minimal setup. You connect the (included) battery, add 20 ounces of oil for the initial five hour break in and it's good to go. I found small 20 ounce bottles of 10-30 weight oil at Home Depot, eliminating leftovers or over- or under-filling the reservoir.ACCESSORIES: The Champion 3400 dual fuel is a feature-rich machine, but I added a few goodies. For some reason almost no generator sports an hour meter. I found the Docooler® Inductive Hour Meter on Amazon for under ten bucks. It's a snap to install with no cutting.I replaced the standard dipstick with an nicely-machined aluminum dipstick tipped with a powerful magnet for keeping the oil free of metallic shards.I don't own an RV, so I can't use the RV outlet on the Champion 3400. Yet half the generator's power diverts to this socket. I picked up the rugged five dollar Camco PowerGrip Durable Electrical Adapter that even matches the yellow color scheme. I ran a 12 amp, 1440 watt electric lawnmower off it for 30 minutes and it didn't even get warm (I checked). An alternative suggestion is the Epicord RV Y Cable Adapter that feeds two 15 amp standard outlets from the RV outlet. Sweet!The Champion Weather-Resistant Storage Cover is kinda "meh." It's fine for a stationary machine, but much too flimsy for road warriors, work sites or campers. A tarp offers superior protection.FIRST EXPERIENCE: After adding oil and connecting the propane tank I followed the simple instructions for the electric start. The generator wouldn't quite catch--I figure the battery might be a bit sluggish from storage. I used the manual pull rope and the generator fired up.DOWNSIDES: The battery must be kept charged if you use gasoline--the pull rope will NOT work if the battery is low! If you only use your generator for emergencies the battery should be kept on a trickle charger. I keep an inexpensive Black & Decker charger connected to mine.The built-in folding handle and wheels allow easy transport of this near 100-pound machine on smooth surfaces. I wish it offered a bit more ground clearance for rough surfaces, however; the bottom drags when tall guys (I'm 6-foot) lift the handle too high.NOISE: I was surprised at the quiet purr of the Champion 3400 Dual Fuel. Seriously, you can hold a normal conversation standing six feet from the running generator! I placed it about 40 feet from the house and I could barely hear it with the door closed.POWER: This thing runs like a (excuse the pun) champ. During the five hour break in period, I connected my refrigerator (7 amps, 840 watts) and ran the generator on the economy setting for hours. It easily powered my 12 amp, 1440 watt electric lawnmower through the RV adapter plug when I mowed the lawn. My 1000 watt microwave worked fine.I changed the oil after the five hour break in period. Champion improved this model so you can now drain the oil through a flexible tube instead of out the bottom. You still need to tilt the body to get the last few drops, though.The Champion 3400 Dual Fuel Inverter generator is precisely what I was looking for. I have little experience with generators or motors, but Champion put some real thought into making their quiet, powerful generator user-friendly. Five stars!--------------------UPDATE AFTER TEXAS ICE STORM!---------------------O.K., Texas just suffered a near-total collapse of our power grid for almost a week. I live in Houston, so don't get me started.This was the first time I've given the Champion 3400 Dual Fuel a real-world workout. The engine started the first time I pressed the button and ran for almost a week in sub-freezing temperatures and a little blowing ice/rain. I was able to keep my lights on, refrigerator running, cook with the microwave and make coffee with absolutely no issues. I also ran a 100' 13-amp line to my neighbor whose wife is on an oxygen machine, so I've made a good friend.On maximum power the Champion 3400 Dual Fuel typically went though a bottle of propane every 5-6 hours. On "Eco" mode, it ran an astonishing 17-18 hours per tank. That was fine for normal use, but remember to buy extra tanks. I could hear the generator running at night since I kept it on the patio out of the rain, but the noise wasn't bad at all. In better weather (after a hurricane, for instance) I'll place it out in the yard and probably not hear it at all.I'm still delighted with my purchase and it keeps the 5 stars! A literal life-saver.

Purchased to provide home back up power for key appliances during power outage / hurricanes. Was looking for unit that was small / portable, used propane, good run time, fairly quiet and had electric start. All the boxes checked! I used the RV outlet which provides full access to maximum watts and amps. In lieu of extension cords, decided to install six circuit manual transfer station (Reliance brand) to connect to our breaker box. We used circuits that covered our refrigerators/freezers, router/modem, bedroom and family room outlets/lights, kitchen outlets for microwave, coffee maker, etc. Note - generator is 30 amp - thus, can’t power up home AC, Heat, Stove and similar high electric use items. To connect generator to transfer station, required plug adapter (AC Works brand) to match up generator power cord to plug into this RV outlet. Other end of power cord plugs into transfer station inlet. We went one step farther. We have two inlets - one in garage to allow generator to be placed in drive, and one inlet at back of house. If short term use - we connect in front drive, if longer term, we connect the generator at the back of our house in secure area. Both inlets join up in garage at a “double-throw safety switch” which is then connected to the transfer station. Basically we toggle the switch up or down depending on where we placed the generator when in used. Not needed, but we liked the option to power up generator in two different locations. Once running, we toggle the switches in the transfer station to cross connect and power the circuits in the breaker box. We have found that this generator can actually power up ALL six circuits at one time. The generator (as an inverter technology) powers up and down depending on the amount of electricity is required. If an appliance cuts on, you will hear the generator ramp up, then back down. Everyone was surprised this unit has that much output. This works - just turn on each circuit - one at a time. You will read that you need to be careful with “starting watts” so as not to overload the generator. Yes, items with a motor (refrigerator for instances) do require extra electricity to start, then much lower while running. After research, we find that our motored appliances do not require a lot of extra watts to start up. Seems most newer appliances are that way. Lighting and most non-appliances require minimal watts. Even though all six circuits can be used at one time we switch select ones off when we can so as to reduce gas consumption. On that note, we have not run out a full tank - only tested generator for several items. I can tell we should be able to get 10++ hours use from one 20 pound LP talk. (We keep several on-hand). When our electrician came out to install the transfer station, he was somewhat critical of our purchase of the Champion generator. He said for the cost we could have bought a larger unit that produced more power - - of course I told him, they would not run on propane and not be fuel efficient. Bottom line, when he completed the electric connections and we tested the generator, he “ate his words”. He was amazed that this small unit was quiet, ran on propane and actually powered up all six of our key house circuits. Thus, I could not be more happy with this purchase. We now do not worry about the electric outages - knowing we can power our key appliances and have TV, internet and some lighting, etc. As a final item, this unit is the “inverter” technology - one of the benefits is the electricity it produces is “clean” and you can plug up sensitive appliances and computers - no worries.

Literally cant say anything bad about this unit!!! Price is great, shipping was fast, Runs great, fairly light weight and quiet, does what i need it to do and the propane option is awsome.I have delt with champion in the past for service with another generator i had before and there customer service is really amazing, honestly companys these days with good customer service is very rare, and its awsome to see how champion takes pride in there products and service, and have extremely competitive prices.

Showed very quick. Compact and the sound level is very respectable. I purchased this for my RV and as back up power for my house. It works great for both.

Works just like it's supposed to. It a bit on the heavy side, good thing it has wheels. It's very quiet, able to have a conversation standing next to it while it's running. Only flaw so far, there's no way to lock it with a cable or chain other than through the plastic handle.

I was leary at first about buying this product but after reading all the reviews, decided to take the plunge. Works as described if not better. The attraction was that it ran on propane and it runs like a charm. No more gas messes. Can't wait to have it hooked to my camper next outing.

worked great right out of the box after putting oil in it