Tell me about generators
 

In a few days, I might be the owner of a really run down cabin here in the local mts. I Know there's no power, water and gas are good. Parts of the roof and some of the windows are gone. I like to not pay to have power turned on (I am putting in a new panel) for the this time because serious work on it will not start until next spring or summer. General power is needed to do immediate repairs such as roof framing. I like to put on a new roof before winter sets in. What generator is best for me? I have never owned one, because I refuse to work with portable power on my jobs. All its needed is to run a compressor and a skill saw for a few weekends. I see them for 300- 1200 bucks. 2000W enough? Tell me, is it easier or cheaper to have power company come out and get me some juice? It just might be cheaper and more convenient, that for sure.

Id go ahead and get power hooked up if I were you...


Look on your local craigslist... My old man has had good luck picking up honda powered Lincolns on there.

He uses a generac 5kw and it works great too, and would be more than enough for you. They use their own motor, but it is scary similar to a honda.

I've heard the cheapo HF chonda powered ones are good too. Worth looking into also.

Thanks Sid. Would you buy a HF if you were in my situation?

Id do a scan to see what I could find used locally first. We've found some awesome rigs for $500..

Like the 3Kw Baldor commercial, powered by a German Hatz diesel

or the Honda powered lincoln welder/5kw generator

Not sure about your local CL, but there is good stuff out there. I'm checking reviews now, but like I said, I have heard good things about the HF ones.

After dealing with their drill press XY mill and cheap metric taps... No!!!!

Search results for: 'generator'

They all get solid reviews. I'd go for the big guy if I were you... I can send you a pic of a 20% coupon too. They will scan your phone if you take a picture in.

Dave, HF is a case by case basis place. Some of their stuff is good, some not so much.. Read reviews.

8750 Peak/7000 Running Watts, 13 HP (420cc) Generator CARB

This should run about anything you could think of, and you can be out the door for sub $600...

I get it. :) But I'm going to fall back one what a number have said. HF is great for disposable tools, screw drivers, and some misc small stuff. I'm done with their taps. Even though I'm prototyping some bushings and do a one off here and there, the cheap crap is not worth my time.

BTW, just still really frustrated with the 8mm tap that needed to go thru 1" of Al a couple nights ago. If Joe REALLY wants a work out.... :D

Taps are one thing not to go cheap on, I agree there...

But that generator has a good number of reviews talking about running 4+ days non stop. Thats impressive.

Just looked at Craigslist and there are lots stuff available. I just don't know what to look for or what's good and not some Chinese knockoff that run a few times and die on me. The place is in Arrowhead, but to drive two hours up there and only to have a busted generator would really suck.

Ya... Its a crap shoot. Do you buy a name brand with an unknown service history, or do you buy the HF unit with a warranty, and just make sure you keep it well lubed and with good gas in it all the time?

HF has a warranty plan too... So you can make them give you a new one!

That may be ideal in this case. :D I'd consider it...

Jeff. Have any 4/4 or 8/4 mahogany scrap? Maple too. :) Solid.

I might have a stick of 3/4 African Mahogany hanging around the job site. It might be 8-9 inches wide and 6' long along with some small pieces of about 3" x 4' wide pieces of scrap hanging around. They are going into the trash bin sometime next week. I will look tomorrow. Its in Arcadia. More shift knobs?

Sid, you really think I ought to turn the power on?

Yup. :) Thanks! SmileWavy

I would.. You are going to need it eventually, and most likely the cost of the bill all winter will still be cheaper than the generator. It would be nice to get there and just flip the switch.

We worked of generators a fair deal and it sucked. Always a constant drone around, always having to deal with hauling fuel, half the time you smell like fumes. Just not fun. If you weren't going to have power eventually, or you needed it for other jobsites it would be worth it. But for this one? I think Id get power onsite and be done.

Thanks for the tip, Sid. I really think you are right on this one.

I did the math at work and when we run our big diesel generator to power two buildings, it costs us ten times what the electrical bill would be- that's just electricity, doesn't figure in the cost of the generator.

Of course having a generator on site is nice if the power goes down, but it agree that just having the power company hook you up is probably the way to go since you'll be doing it at some point anyway.

Honda eu2000i. It's light and quiet. I've had mine running all kinds of stuff.

I doubt I'll ever regret buying my used Honda EU3000 generator. Saved about 600.00 over new and it runs like a champ, starts easily and easily powers my small RV including AC with no issues. Plus it's uber quiet a very nice quality tool.

Honda is worth the $$$. Plus you can get most of your money back should you decide to sell. Honda holds it's value.

Post #3.
Honda-powered at Costco - -
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http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/784172-need-recommendations-generator.html

I've had one of these for years. Quiet. Can run most of the house from a tranfer switch. Efficient on economy setting where it only runs faster in reponse to the load (where many run at full rpm all the time). You will still have it when your line power goes out or when you want to do something far enough away from the house that precludes extension cords. It also puts out a smooth enough power wave so that it's compatible with most electronic equipment. Really like it.

I've been running the 4000 watt HF for a few years, runs all day+ on a tank of gas, still runs fine, starts first pull (probably use about 10-15 days/month)

Under $300 with coupon.

And there's that guy here who works for Honda generators who can help if needed. :D

If you don't go for getting the power hooked up, the important thing is amps versus watts.

For high draw tools, etc., it is all here: Sizing Guide for Portable Generators | Norwall PowerSystems Blog

I have had four generators here on the last 19 years for stand by power. I just gave my 3200w, 19 year old Coleman to a friend of mine: Still works greats.

I also gave my neighbor a small 1200w hand portable Coleman that I had for 17 years. I hadn't used it in years.

I bought a much better Honda powered Husqvarna a few years ago rated at 6500w (I also have a PTO powered unit that will light up a city - runs off my tractors). We've been without power for as long as 8 days so Plan B is important.

A large-ish contractor style open frame genny will provide lots of useable power semi cheap. The downside is noise. The Honda EU2000s are nice, and very quiet but 2000 watts does not run much stuff. At the race track we use two generators. A large but somewhat noisey (loud) 8000w unit that will run several sets of tire warmers and a compressor and the trailer AC during the day. Then in the evening we switch over to a nice quiet Kipor 3000w unit to power the AC and trailer incidentals. The Kipor 3K unit cost about the same as the Honda 2K, but it will run our AC where a single Honda will not.

Kipor IG3000 Inverter Generator

The only reason to buy a generator is if your house panel is not safe or ready to power up. Otherwise, you're going to need to hook up the power anyway, so for even a year or so of AC power idling along, you're money ahead vs DC power.

OTOH, I've run the biggest HF generator for days on end, and it has held up well. The other stuff like compressors, power tools, etc are not worth buying at HF. If you want to check on generators, look for a Honda with low hours. Try SearchTempest: Search all of Craigslist nationwide & more

Is this one out near you?
Looks pretty good....

home lite 6000 watt generator

Hey, wanna buy a natural gas genset??? :D:D:D

I've helped build a couple of small cabins with little more than DeWalt cordless saws and drills and a Paslode cordless nailer. Kept the batteries charging with a large inverter running off a Mule.
Tools these days are pretty awesome.

Costs:

Being in Solar, I regularly make presentations showing the price of electricity vs. generator vs. solar. Unless you are running on Natural Gas, you are better off buying from the grid or going solar. Even with natural gas, be picky with the generator.

My business is in the process of doing whole house designs with Solar, Battery and Generator. If I were building a new house today, I would put in my own generation system.

Remember, most portable generators need a full oil replacement after 100 hours. Even the best Prime power units need oil replacement after 500 and spark plug replacement about the same time.

The only units out there that are prime power and 1 year between oil and plug changes are Yanmar units. The 5kW units are $28,000 and the 10 kW units are $48,000.

The only other thing out there with 1 yr between maintenance cycles for Prime power are the Capstone turbines, minimum size 30 kW, but 3phase/460V power.

Presently working on a design adding an extra large sump and an ultra-fine recirculating particulate filter. If I add a CD ignition and platinum plugs, we might get 2000 hours between plug changes.

IF you buy a Honda eu2000i, they are great. Run Mobil 1, it will cost you an additional $10 over the life of it. Any real Honda dealer can seriously service it if need be. You can also buy a pairing kit to run two of them and double the available power. But as others have said, generators, to live on, are going to be a pain.

In my case, I have it for emergencies (earthquakes). I run it under load (wife's 1,500 watt hair dryer) once a month for 15 minutes and 15 without the hair dryer to cool down. In my case a generator is like a good flashlight. in an emergency, you need something good you can depend on to work.

Forgot to add: $3.50 gallon gasoline = $0.32-$0.45 per kWh electricity.

We have a Home Depot brand 5k works great will run our whole house. Everything but A/C in fact we just had a nice big storm roll through Kansas City and it's running right now. I think it was 5-600 bucks. Best money ever spent.

Only run non ethanol gas in any motors. The ethanol absorbs moisture from the air and the gas goes sour causing rust and gums up the carb.

Borrow a generator and put the new panel in and go from there.

Thanks guy. Sound like Ik should get power up asap and just forget about the generator.