Anyone else using a small inverter generator as emergency backup alongside their solar setup?

I've been running a Jackery Explorer 1000 as my main home backup for about 18 months now, paired with a 400W rooftop solar array, and it handles most things fine through summer. The problem is January and February — we're in North Wales and sometimes go four or five days with barely any usable sun. The battery just slowly bleeds down and I end up paranoid about running the fridge and the router.

I've been looking at the Ecoflow Smart Generator (dual fuel) as a top-up option, but at £500+ it's hard to justify for something I'd realistically use maybe 10–15 times a year. A mate suggested just grabbing a cheap 1000W petrol inverter genny from Aldi or Lidl when they come up, wiring it through a proper transfer switch, and using it purely for recharging the Jackery directly via the AC input. Wondering if that's actually sensible or if the cheaper units cause problems charging via AC — I've read mixed things about pure sine wave output and whether the Jackery cares.

Has anyone gone down this route? Specifically interested in whether a budget inverter generator (the £200–300 ones) puts out clean enough sine wave to keep the Jackery's BMS happy, and whether there are any gotchas I should know about before I buy something and regret it.

@DebbieEvans January is exactly where solar-only setups fall apart — I've got a 48V LiFePO4 bank (Fogstar cells, 280Ah) paired with a 600W array and even that struggles mid-winter with three consecutive overcast days.

I added a Honda EU22i as emergency supplementary charging about two years ago. Runs incredibly quietly, sips petrol, and the sine wave output plays nicely with my Victron MultiPlus without any of the voltage/frequency instability you get from cheaper generators.

The critical thing people miss is pairing the generator to a proper charger rather than just plugging directly into the Jackery's AC input — efficiency is vastly better and you're not thrashing the internal charging circuits. Worth checking what charge rate your Explorer 1000 actually accepts through AC before sizing a generator around it.

What's your typical daily consumption in winter? That'll determine whether a 1kW or 2kW unit makes more sense.

Great thread, @DebbieEvans. I've got a similar setup and last winter was the reality check I needed!

I added a Honda EU22i as emergency backup around October and honestly it's transformed my confidence in the system. The EU22i is incredibly quiet for a petrol generator and sips fuel when you're not pushing it hard — I was getting nearly 8 hours on a litre running it gently just to top up my batteries.

The key thing I'd say is don't wait until you're desperate to switch it on. I now run mine briefly every couple of weeks regardless, keeps the engine happy and means you're not scrambling when a proper storm rolls in.

@FormerMechanic68 — curious whether you're running yours through a proper transfer switch or just manual changeover? I've been meaning to tidy that side of things up properly.

@DebbieEvans this is exactly why I ended up adding a Honda EU22i to my narrowboat setup last winter — January was absolutely brutal, three days of grey nothing and I was rationing like it was wartime 😅

Quick question though: have you looked at the Victron MultiPlus route for integrating a generator properly? I'm curious whether your Jackery can even accept generator input cleanly, or whether you're basically just running appliances directly off it?

Also, what's your actual minimum daily consumption in winter? I'm wondering if a small genny even makes sense versus just beefing up your battery bank — @FormerMechanic68's Fogstar setup sounds like it handles the shortfall differently altogether.

@DebbieEvans January in the UK basically turns your solar array into an expensive roof ornament — my motorhome Renogy panels produced about enough to charge a phone last February.

A small inverter genny alongside is the obvious fix, but the real trick is letting your Victron (or whatever charge controller you're running) do the heavy lifting so the genny only kicks in when the batteries genuinely need it, rather than running constantly like a guilty conscience.

Honda EU22i gets all the love on here but a Yamaha EF2000iS is worth a look if you spot one secondhand — virtually identical noise levels and fuel sip.