Inverter for 2010?

[ctuck]

So for the Party Snail, we started with a pretty large generator, a 5000. We quickly found that it was great for providing energy and lousy for making noise. We ended up using a 2000 for most of our week and it was just barely strong enough to do lights and sound. We ended up running it with econo mode off and choked to keep it running.

At the very end of the week, we returned the 2000 that was almost silent, and had to run off a deep cycle battery and an inverter. This powered the lights really well. No noise! So I am thinking about how to provide mobile power next year. I think using an inverter is a better way to go, yet this requires charging a 12 volt battery.

What I am wondering about is using a 1000 or 2000 generator to power a battery charger, that is connected to the battery (trickle charging), and an inverter is drawing power off the battery. Has anyone done this? Would a generator or 2nd alternator from the engine work to charge the battery (seperate from the primary battery)?