OT - Generators

Size is only one concern. Durability and noise (VERY important) is another. You need enough juice to power your furnace, refrigerators, TV (need to get news), some lights, sump pump when it kicks in, perhaps garage door opener, maybe computers, etc. It all adds up, although you do not need to perform 100% addition of every device's power requirement. On cheap crap generators, do not believe their rated power too much. Also, very noisy generators are basically prohibitive to use.

alt.energy.homepower is a great newsgroup, check it out.

i

It is unlikely that you will only need "a couple of lights and the TV", somehow things like furnace blowers, sump pumps, refrigerators, and freezers have a habit of needing power when the grid is down. And they don't take no for an answer. This usually means 3kw to 5kw as a start.

As Iggy mentioned, the NOISE will get to you. Most of the smaller units are incredably noisy at 11:00 at night and your neighbors are out of power.

For your "2 60 watt bulbs and a small TV", consider a 300 or 600 watt inverter hooked to the car. Better yet, go to an RV place and get some

12 volt/60 watt bulbs and run them directly off the battery.

Dan wrote:

Before getting a real generator, I used to have an inverter based setup.

That was a Ferrups FE UPS with the charging circuit blown. The nice thing about that UPS was its high 1400 VA power, and use of only a 12V battery, and the fact that it could be switched on on battery power. I could not care less about the charging circuit. I would connect it to my truck battery (with the engine running) and it would nicely invert

1400 VA of power and make nice power on its 6 outlets.

It works great.

I am now trying to give it away (western suburbs of chicago).

i

The best TIME to buy a generator is after a catastrophe is largely resolved and excess stock of generators are liquidated. That may be much later in the case of Katrina recovery. The best size generator has the following characteristics -

- largest muffler available (to keep it quiet)

- longest run-time available (at least 6-9 hours)

- minimum 3KW WITH a wheel kit

- sufficient power for refrigerati>If you live in the USA right now is not a good time to buy a generator.

A Honda EU2000 will power anything that plugs into a standard household outlet. It's remarkably quiet, and its speed varies with the load, a feature that's really nice if you have it running for many hours to power small loads. About $900, which is pricey considering the capacity, but the features are worth the premium.

Wayne

I have thought about buying a generator and so far have not. Instead of powering a couple of lights, I have about four propane lanterns. Much cheaper than a generator and less maintenance. I did have a TV that would run off 12 volts, but my wife got rid of it. I do have a battery or AC operated AM/FM radio. It also has a TV band, but we don't reallly listen to the TV channels. Also have a propane stove for coffee or tea. We keep some water in a five gallon container in the basement. And have a wood stove in the family room.

We find this as adequate for short power outages ( one day or so ). For longer outages, I would want one adequate to run the refrigerator and the well.

Dan

They don't all need power at the same time. If you're adaptable, you can rotate the power: run the refrigerator till it shuts off, then the furnace for a couple of hours, then the pump, etc. I have a 10A/1250w gen that I get by with in this manner. But if your power goes out a lot, it may be worth it to have a bigger one. Bob

How high is up? The Magic 8 Ball says "Answer Uncertain - Need More Input..." Tell us what you need to do, how big are the loads, can you handle the hookup and operation by yourself or do you need a fully automatic system...

I have a 1944-ish Army signal Corps 10KW generator with a Willys flathead and a solid Cast Iron generator that seems to always start and work when I need it ;-) but as always Your Mileage Might Vary.

Your criterion are Reliable, Quiet, Large enough for your loads. And do you want to do your own load management (through switching the extension cords by hand between the refrigerator, freezer, and furnace) or just hook it straight to the house and handle the whole thing like normal. (That takes a whole lot more generator, so it won't stall in case several large loads kick on at once.)

Reliable leaves out all the No-Name Far-East imports with a no-name motor. You want Honda, Kawasaki, Wisconsin/Robin, Briggs & Stratton, Onan, Kohler. If you've never heard of them, chances are you'll still have problems in the future - especially in 2 to 5 years when you start needing maintenance & repair parts and they say 'Cheng Hua' Who?

As the above post by Wayne says, you can't go wrong with the fully enclosed Honda's, especially the EU 'Inverter' series - if the load is low, the engine speed drops back to near idle and really stretches the fuel consumption and overall engine life. And you get a rock solid clean power output - the kind that computers and electronics like seeing.

If you can't pull start the larger units, they make them with electric start. There are even some large Honda portable units in the

10Kw to 12 Kw with enclosed water-cooled diesels, and they'll run darned near forever.

And don't walk past a good deal on a RV-enclosure-mounted style generator from Onan, Generac or Kohler if you find one - you will have to do a bit of work to hook up a battery, boat-style gasoline tank, muffler kit, and a power outlet panel - but then you have a quiet and long life unit for your house. You can "build it in" in the garage, venting the compartment through the wall.

The same style unit is sold enclosed in a soundproof outside cabinet (with all the accessories attached, and an automatic transfer switch) at places like Home Depot and Lowe's - anyone who has a resident with medical issues should strongly consider getting one of these installed before the next (insert disaster here). All automatic - the lights go out, the engine starts, and your lights snap back on in about 10 - 15 seconds. Even starts and runs itself for exercise once a week.

Leave the open-frame 'Contractor Model' 4Kw generators at the bottom of your list - they are cheap, sure, but they fail the Quiet criterion and often fail the Reliable, also. They are noisy as heck when running, and it takes a lot of effort to muffle them down with add-on enclosures and still provide proper ventilation.

On a construction site they can handle a lot of noise, but your next door neighbors at night are a different situation altogether. Unless you have some extra watts to share with the neighbors, then they won't complain. ;-P

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