Home Generators

[Ny1969]

Looking into buying a home portable generator. Leaning towards the honda eu 7000. Any pros and cons of this model or any other model recommended. Will only be using this when the power goes out to power well pump / fridges / and heat if needed .. basically the essentials to just get by.. thanks

 

[PutnamCharlie]

For what that costs you can set up a whole house Generac unit that will auto start and come with a transfer switch. But as far as a portable that's a really nice unit.

 

[Ny1969]

Was thinking a portable one so I can use it by my barns also when needed.

 

[PutnamCharlie]

Like I said it's a really nice unit but if your only going to use it once or twice a year it's a bit of overkill. You can get a 10kw from other companies for 1/4 the price. Honda makes a great unit for someone that uses the crap out of it. But if you take care of it maintenance wise (not leaving the gas in it for a year at a time) it will last you a long time.

 

[Doc8404]

If getting a portable I would look at tri fuel.

 

[dwa12479]

The Hondas are definitely great units, but the price tag comes with them for sure. If yoy have other outbuildings to power you may be able to go with a cheaper unit and just get several of them.

 

[Ny1969]

Any recommendations of cheaper quality brands ?
Harbor freight ?

 

[PutnamCharlie]

The Generac portables are decent. Depot runs a clearance every now and then. I bought two 5500's for 200 a piece a few years ago. I also bought a cheap 10kw on ebay a year ago just because it was only 400 bucks. I just keep it as a back up. They are basically disposable at that price if you get 4 or 5 years out of them.

 

[Depick]

Any recommendations of cheaper quality brands ?
Harbor freight ?

I’ve heard really good things about the pricier harbor freight generators. I’ve used the cheaper ones before aside from being quite loud it worked good for temp power and lighting on a couple job sites. Consider a generac stand by system for the house and a smaller HF generator for your barn. If you can do the install yourself You could do both for the cost of the Honda.

 

[phatfarmerbob]

Picked up this “portable generator “ a couple years ago.. works a charm!

 

[TEOTWAWKI inc.]

View attachment 110952Picked up this “portable generator “ a couple years ago.. works a charm!

HAHAHAHA

You are running power TO a generator.

What brand is that? It looks like a nice unit. How much power?

 

[phatfarmerbob]

@TEOTWAWKI inc.
Haha yup when I got it home the battery was dead. I actually replaced it and hooked it up to a trickle solar charger.

it’s a WANCO with a 3 cly diesel kubota. 72 hours on a tank

it had 2100 hours on it and I researched the engines seem like their usually good to 10k hrs

paid 4K for it.

the lights are a nice touch it’ll illuminate the whole back yard for small Independence Day gathering

 

[Criticalt]

Last year we upgraded our old Generac 12kw to a Generac 7210 24kw.
A bit of overkill for our 3 bedroom house but I got a screaming deal from a friend who owns a generator installation business. This generator was a "floor model" he had hooked up in his showroom for just a few months.
As far as portables....I have a Duramax 5500 with 5,500 watts and 220cc engine......I believe those are the right stats.
We use t for hauling around the farm for odd jobs or to light our small cabin.
We have had it for a couple years, it has worked great.
It was about $500 in 2019.

 

[masterswimmer]

I've got this one for about 13-14 years now.

Coleman Powermate 5500
Engine Yamaha MZ300
7500w startup
5500w continuous

Worked fantastic for super storm Sandy on 11 days power outage. Took care of the whole house, including well pump, as long as you're smart about using toilets and sinks without opening the fridge and furnace running all at once.

 

[FrankenCub]

We've got a small generator, little POS Tecumseh engine on it. Had that carb apart for cleaning probably 5 times. Damn thing still won't run longer than a minute. Gonna try a new carb next. I hate Tecumseh anyway. If it had a Kohler it would run perfect.
Wife wants a bigger generator, enough to run everything. She can't do without electricity. Probably going to look for a surplus military diesel generator this summer.

Damn wind is getting crazy here and power browning tonight.

 

[spat]

We've got a small generator, little POS Tecumseh engine on it. Had that carb apart for cleaning probably 5 times. Damn thing still won't run longer than a minute. Gonna try a new carb next. I hate Tecumseh anyway. If it had a Kohler it would run perfect.
Wife wants a bigger generator, enough to run everything. She can't do without electricity. Probably going to look for a surplus military diesel generator this summer.

Damn wind is getting crazy here and power browning tonight.

I had one of those.

It's problem was a faulty low oil shutdown switch.

It had the correct amount of the correct oil, but the switch would trip every few minutes and shut down the generator. It *seemed* like a carb problem until I bypassed that low oil shutdown switch and then it would run fine all day.

 

[FrankenCub]

I had one of those.

It's problem was a faulty low oil shutdown switch.

It had the correct amount of the correct oil, but the switch would trip every few minutes and shut down the generator. It *seemed* like a carb problem until I bypassed that low oil shutdown switch and then it would run fine all day.

I'll have to look again, but I don't think this one has the low oil switch.
Certainly worth a look though.

 

[MikeM]

Got a 8000 Westinghouse after Sandy. Tested it, ran it dry and put it in the shed. Used for the first time this past summer. Had to get some carb spray into it but it ran my house for a week like a champ.