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Anonymous
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 06:34am
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I know many people here use generators. The things that I'm interested in.
1) what type of generator (and fuel source) ?
2) How often do you use it?
3) how long do you use it for when you do?
4) what do you use it for? (how much load and from what devices)
5) how efficient is your generator? (and at what capacity)
6) what else is required and how often do you have to provide it ? (oil, filters etc)
7) if you could give advice about purchasing a generator and its use what would it be?
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Cooks Dock
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 07:30am
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Search this one, there are a bunch of posts on this forum regarding similar
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 08:56am
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I have a large Honda EU6500is for home (outages only), but for the cabin:
Honda EU2000i
When there, it can run most of the day. But I will shut it off when no electricity is needed. Unless I'm doing work with power tools, its off most of the day. In the evening as the sun sets, comes back on till bedtime.
It runs on gasoline, can run all day long and not run a single tank out which is about a gallon. Its so quiet (runs all in eco mode, even if I'm using my air compressor, table saw etc)
I do take it off eco mode to run my microwave only. And I think its 1000 watts.
I change oil on it every 50 hours. This is std for most power equipment. I dont do that at the cabin of course. Do it ahead of time. Carb is also equipped with a carb drain screw made just for long term storage. Its without a doubt, the finest generator I have owned. Well, except my large 6500 one, it has electric start, and is rated for the exact same noise level as the little 2000. The Yamaha inverters are also nice and a little less $$$ but they have a few trade offs for the smaller price.
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MtnDon
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 10:31am
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I have a Yamaha inverter generator. 2800i, no longer made. Works well. I bought it over a Honda as at the time it was the most powerful one I could fit into the compartment on the RV it went into. Today I'd seriously consider the 3000 inverter generator.
I hate loud generators. I have owned them in the past, originally because I needed one for work on remote sites. I got to hate the loud ones so much I stopped accepting work that did not have grid power available.
Moral: Buy a quiet inverter generator... part of the thing is they vary engine speed whereas most regulat types run at 3600 RPM's even when not producing power for some use.
If at all possible go solar and only use generators as a backup or for an extra heavy load. That's an opinion of course. Others will not agree. It is possible to be off grid without a generator. I have friends who have done it for years. I still have mine "just in case", but for the past year the main reason I run it is to keep the generator engine conditioned.
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groingo
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 11:55am
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I guess to answer your most important question, how much power do you need....then I'd go from there.
Pretty much, once you go beyond the 2000 watt requirement they all drink a lot of fuel and make a lot of noise.
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GomerPile
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 12:44pm
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I'm using a Honda EU2000i.
I'm building a cabin so my biggest loads are power tools at the moment.
It holds about a gallon of fuel and will run all day as I'm working.
It uses less than a quart of oil which should be changed every 50 hours....not too sure on the frequency. Its messy to change without buying an aftermarket screw in oil tube or other contraption.
Advice would be to buy the Honda or Yamaha models that others have mentioned. Noise is a very big concern as it travels a long distance out in the sticks.
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TheWildMan
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 07:42pm
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I have owned several, i find them to be more trouble than they are worth, solar and wind all the way!
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UpstateNYADK
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 08:01pm
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I am totally off the grid. I am running a Generac Ecogen series. Tied together with 12 Batteries and a Magna Pure Sine Inverter. Batteries power cabin, furnace, well pump,hot water, lights, fridge. When they hit 50% the Generac fires up and recharges the batteries. Thousand gallon propane tank lasts about one year. When I am not at the cabin the Generac runs once every three days for about three hours. Burns about .8 gal/hr. Most of the time its quiet when you run off the batteries, but even when the Generac starts (its in a generator shed) its very quiet. I may add a solar panel with a trickle charge to make the propane last even longer.
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MtnDon
Member
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# Posted: 30 Nov 2012 08:18pm
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I have a friend with the same thing by the sound of it. 6 KW? That Generac is a totally different thing from what the bulk of generator users here use. They are very quiet... 52 dB.
A couple hundred watts worth of PV panels would eliminate a lot of the generator time. Not only help on making a load of propane last longer it'll cut down on the oil change intervals. Maybe to the point where you'll do it by calendar months rather than hours run.
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Anonymous
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# Posted: 1 Dec 2012 06:22am
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Thanks guys, I was more just curious about it all rather than any actual planning for myself. Sorta one of those "whatever info you got, sharing is caring"
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beachman
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# Posted: 1 Dec 2012 02:23pm
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I bought a Champion 6500 watt unit at Costco just so the builders could run their stuff - and later so I could vacuum and run the odd tool now and then. I do not rely on it for any power needs for the cabin itself, but while running, I usually hook up my battery to a charger just to keep it topped up. It ran great during the build but then became very hard to start - has an electric starter. I dragged it out of the woods & across the lake to my truck (no easy feat) and brought it in for repairs - thought it was a gummed up carb. Turned out to be a stuck intake valve and works great now. Uses very little gas and is noisy, but not excessively.
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tcmatt
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# Posted: 2 Dec 2012 08:10am
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I've got a Champion 3500/4000 watt and its great. I built my entire cabin with it - saws, air compressors, shop vac, etc. It uses gas. I have no idea how much - not much. It seems like I have only filled the tank a few times (I just built the cabin, this spring and summer). I only use it to run tools and a shop vac. I'm guessing its louder than the Hondas out there. I did buy a $3 adapter to convert the RV plug into a standard three prong, because I seem to recall that RV outlet had a higher amp or watt rating. Best part about mine is that it only cost $329 at Tractor Supply.
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