Generators

[BrassMagnet]

I am curious about the Honda ex650. How does it compare to the Honda EU2000i?
I saw a Hond ex650 on FleaBay "Buy it Now" for $550.

[Beerfix]

I am curious about the Honda ex650. How does it compare to the Honda EU2000i?
I saw a Hond ex650 on FleaBay "Buy it Now" for $550.

Not really a reasonable comparison, a 25 year old 650W vs a modern 2KW inverter. Two totally different animals.

[FLPrepper]

Ever consider a solar generator? They don't hold as much of a charge and can be more expensive, but they are much cleaner and better for the environment. Also very compact. Here is one of the most popular:

https://completeprepperstore.com/sto...generator-kit/

[redman2006]

I would love to have a full solar set up, but that will have to wait. A well pump would drain that in no time. My pump has a start up of 3500 watts and running of about 1/3 of that. Even cycling a freezer would be tough if you could only run it for 12 hours on 40 hours of recharge time.

For small things, I see the good, but at that cost, I will save and move forward with solar panels and battery bank later.

[amy0002]

I would love to have a full solar set up, but that will have to wait. A well pump would drain that in no time. My pump has a start up of 3500 watts and running of about 1/3 of that. Even cycling a freezer would be tough if you could only run it for 12 hours on 40 hours of recharge time.

For small things, I see the good, but at that cost, I will save and move forward with solar panels and battery bank later.

Redman, check out Engineer775 on youtube he has a well pump that cycles up to it's full wattage.. that you can use on one panel and 1 battery at least during the day it could pull water up all day long.

[redman2006]

I will check it. I was wrong on the pump. 3500 to run not start. That is supposed to be 1/3 of start up. Deep well for here.

I bought a regular gas generator for emergency and projects. Later, we want to put solar up. Not enough wind for a turbine here.

[Airhawk27]

I have a 10KW Generac and a Honda 6500 (redundancy) and used both of them heavily during hurricane outages in Fl and latter ice storms in Ga. Both have the idle down capability and it does save fuel. I have had the Generac since '92 and the Honda since 2002. Only trouble was with the carb on the Honda as it gummed up due to my lack of run time. And that is the trick.... run it every month and put it under a strong load after warm up. Stabil is your friend!

[kickstand]

Do you have any experience with these generators? I need to replace my stolen generator, and am asking for your actual experiences and thoughts.

What I had was a Briggs & Stratton 8k/10k Watt Elite. It was a beast, and I never had any problem with it. It would run everything that I asked it too, with power to spare. I only had 2 issues with it, and by "issues", I mean things that were not ideal. (1) Dang, that beast was loud! I had even built a muffler system for it , which helped a little bit , but the majority of the noise was from the genset itself, not the exhaust. (2) It was heavy, weighing in at just over 200 pounds, making it a chore to move. Even with its "Never Flat" tires, it was tough to move around the property. In retrospect, this might not be a bad thing, as it obviously wasn't so heavy that some SOB couldn't carry/drag it over my fence. Weight will NOT be a consideration for the new one.

The three prime contenders are:

1: Exact replacement. Great option , but a bit over budget. Currently running about $1,200. When we got the first one , we got a smoking deal at the Grand Opening of our local Tractor Supply store.

https://www.briggsandstratton.com/na/en_us/product-catalog/generators/portable-generators/8000-watt-elite-series-portable-generator.html

BS8000.jpg


2: Briggs & Stratton 7000/8750 Basically the same unit, just slightly smaller output. Currently available for $899.

https://www.briggsandstratton.com/na/en_us/product-catalog/generators/portable-generators/7000-watt-elite-series-portable-generator.html

BS7000.jpg


3. Westinghouse 7500/9000w WH7500E This unit is very highly rated by customer reviews on Amazon and other sites. One thing that really impressed me was reading the Amazon reviews, any problems stated by customers were quickly responded to by Westinghouse support people. One of my only gigs against this one is that the power outletsare not covered by rubber covers. On the "plus" side, folks have commented that it's relatively quiet. It also has Automatic Voltage Regulation, so it *should* be easier on electronic devices. I know that my previous Briggs unit blew all of the capacitors on the motherboard of my desktop PC when I first started using it. It's currently going for $741 at Home Depot.

http://www.westinghouseportablepower.com/shop/all-products/wh7500e/

WH7500E.jpg


All 3 units listed are unfortunately made in China. 7000k running watts is as low as I want to go. All three systems are Electric Start, which I consider a necessity with a genset of this size. I am considering mounting the new one in the bed of my full size Chevy truck.

Do you have any experience with any of these units, especially the Westinghouse set? Do you have any other suggestions that won't break the bank ?

[redman2006]

I can not help you with those, but the lifan I got had been great working at the house before we got power back to it. If you have any interest I can send details.

The thing is far quieter than I expected. LESS noise than my riding lawnmower

[Jstwaiting]

I have the Westinghouse. Runs quieter than the Generac I had. Only around 15 hours on it but no problems so far. I would buy another.

[W.Lynn]

Most here know that it has been a LONG transition (8 years, +/-,) to get the RP on board. Friday night at deer camp (first hunting weekend for the older grandson,) it finally became personal for him.

He was doing so many other things, that he didn't get the generator/inverter going before they went to bed. He was feeling the difference Saturday morning, and still looked ragged when he got home on Sunday afternoon. He even admitted, "I thought, what kind of shape would I be in, if there were REALLY no power?"

Yes, he made sure he could plug in his cpap Saturday evening, and he was happy to find out that it not only sipped at the fuel as promised, but ran longer than expected on that little tank full.

But finally, he gets it.

Water, food, warmth, health, and the means to keep them.

[kickstand]

Now comes the question that I flip-flop on. I will be getting a video security system. Would you put in the security system first, and postpone the purchase of the genset , or go ahead and get the genset prior to any protection ?

[Cwi555]

You may catch the thief on recording, but it won't stop the theft in the short run. Your description makes your security situation sound poor, and in need of physical protection first. I would suggest a top down review before spending any money.

My .02

Now comes the question that I flip-flop on. I will be getting a video security system. Would you put in the security system first, and postpone the purchase of the genset , or go ahead and get the genset prior to any protection ?

[airdrop]

kickstand , look on the Harbor freight web site for their cheap motion detectors , I've got them doing perimeter work and they do very good . As a transitional option they work . http://www.harborfreight.com/wireles...tem-93068.html
Mine will pickup movement out to nearly 100 ft so if it is a short run you need point the censor down some , on one location it was picking up the neighbors car and deer crossing the yard out over 100 ft . The warning box has 2 settings lo and high volume and the loud well really get your attention , the lo I'll set up for bedtime and it will wake me up but not blast me out of bed lol . I start testing the batteries at around 4 months or so to see if they need replaced , I just buy the cheapest the Dollar store had .

[W.Lynn]

Kick, you know you need wiggle-room. If your total electrical need is figured out *including* the security devices, then your power needs figuring will be more accurate, and the bit extra you plan for will really be "extra" rather than "sort of ear-marked" for security devices.