Generator

[Chad Luebker]

I have been starting to look and research generators. I am looking for one to use for ice fishing. I don't have to power much but I don't want to buy to small of one either. What do people have or recommend. I know the Honda 1000i is probably the best but I don't really want to spend $700. Has anyone used an ETQ or Generac? Advice on the small portable generators would be great. Thanks in advance.

Chad

[JSK76]

I would look for a used eu1000i to keep cost down. I love mine.

[Pooh]

fleet farm has (had) honeywell generators on sale. 6 decible louder than a honda alot less money.

[mrjigger]

i just bought a Steele generator from FF. Obviously it is no honda, but I only paid $190 for it too. It is a portable unit rated at 59db.

For those of you who own hondas/yammy when you place it outside your fish house, can you hear it run? Do you have to move it away from the house?

I place my steele outside my ice castle and I could hear it running, but it was not too bad. I will probably put it in back of my truck or use an extension cord and get it away from the house though.

I also looked at the ETQ and the Generac. The ETQ was rated at 62db I think and I could not find anywhere that listed what the noise level was for the Generac. Although the guy at cabelas thought it was somewhere around 60db.

[Hafnutz]

Champion 3500 sold all over. Big "C", F.F. and others usually in the $300-$400 range. Has a lot of good reviews on the rv websites. Noisy like all the cheap generators but not as bad as a lot of them. Chinese like most of the others, even though they have an "American" name. But they do have parts available. I passed and bought the Honda. Hate the noise.

[hoggs222]

I borrowed my neighbors old Honda EM500 last year for a rental on Mille Lacs. Plenty of power for lights, TV, DVD player, etc. Until my buddy tried brewing a pot of coffee. Then it would cut out.

You can probably find old ones for a few hundred on HSO-Classifieds, 3bay, etc.

Really quiet too.

[FrontenacPike]

I was in the exact same spot last year as you are in now. I too wanted a generator and didn't want to spend a lot. I knew I would like to get a honda but couldn't afford it. After doing a ton of research and talking with countless people here on this site I ended up getting a honda EU2000. One of my biggest concerns was noise. Since I was primarily going to be using it for my fish shack i didn't want a loud generator scaring all the fish away. I think the next factor another person brought up that swayed me towards the honda was the fact of gas consumption. Last year at this time gas was $3.50 a gallon. The less you spend on your generator the more gas it will suck up. With the honda's you can expect to get around 14-15 hours off 1 gallon of gas. Granted you pay for it up front but in the long run it will actually save you money.

I'm not by any means a honda rep or trying to purswade you into buying a honda but I can relate to your situation. After a ton of researching I knew a honda was my safest and best long term investment. If you are interested here is how to save a buck if you are going to get a honda. Scour Mn fishing magazines, web site adds and look for a steal. Gander Mountain will match any competitors price. I ended up finding an add from a small retailer who at the time was selling EU2000 for $839. Gander has a policy that the competitor must be with in 50 miles, but with a little schmoozing they will waive.

I couldn't be happier with my honda. To save you some time researching I attached a link to last years research.

http://www.hotspotoutdoors.com/forum/ubb...ng_#Post1626271

[huntercj]

I bought a northstar generator 3 years ago no problems.Its got a 5 horse honda rated at 2500 watts. I paid about 500 for it and have put lots of hours on it.

[herefish101]

Just save your money, turn in your change, and bite the bullet, get the honda, you will not regret it. quiet, dependable, fuel efficient, they start great. I too am no honda rep, but there the best out there. My theroy is if you buy the best you should only have to buy it once.

[Mainehazmt]

my local John Deere shop has something very simular to honda and has it now on sale for around 850 I paid 1200 for mine 2 yrs ago lol great unit

[Hawg]

If you buy a noisy generator it will run just fine. Problem is that your neighbors will shoot you and burn down your house! The noise goes where the exhaust points, it's terrible to have one within 1/4 mile of you.

[minnbowhunter]

I have the Honda 1000w, wish i would have spent the extra $200 on the 2000w. Mine sits within reach of my door of the house so I can bring it inside when I shut everything down for the night. I can't stand the thought of some &%#*@% grabbing it in the middle of the night. I can hear it running, Barely. Been in the house playing cribbage with guests and have had to tell them to shut up a minute to listen to see if it was running.

[GBPackerNut]

EU2000i Honda all the way, or a Yamaha would be good also.

the 2000 isnt any louder than the 1000 really, just deeper tone.

also the 2000 on eco-throttle uses less fuel per hour than a 1000 that is ramping up to match the load all the time, much less irritating also.

[jltimm]

Don't get the generac as they are as good as their name! 2 new ones at work won't start when it's warm out, let alone when it's cold!

[crappiekid]

i whish you were closer i have mine on C L right now for 380.00 coleman powermate 1850 sport barely 2 hours use and RUNS GREAT and quiet. This will run smaller micro wave any tv / dvd / vcr and run a small electric heater. also has built in batt charger.

good luck

[Pooh]

just a thought. a buddy of mine bought a cheapy for night bowfishing. he found a motorcycle muffler for a dollar off of 3bay and put on it cut the noise in half. best part is it didnt change how the generator performed.

[mrjigger]

pooh,

do you know if your buddy attached the motorcyle muffler to the existing muffler on the generator or took the existing muffler off and replaced it with the motorcyle one?

[Pooh]

i think he took off the old one, im guessing it had pipe threads. guessing he threaded pipe into the exhaust hole and knowing him the muffler is welded to the pipe. it deffinatly made the unit bigger because the muffler is quite large. he said the decible readings at 50 ft went from 85 to 60db

[Gator Slayer]

The Honda units are really hard to beat. I believe their longevity will more than make up for the few extra dollars of initial cost. If you don't run a coffee pot or electric griddle you'd likely by ok with the 1000w. The nice feature of the 2000w is a larger gas tank so you don't have to fill as often. Fuel consumption is likely close between the units if the load on them is the same. If you want to get the smaller unit you could always get the "red lake cap" and not have to worry about run time.

If this means anything: I worked on gensets for 10 years in the military and national guard.... I bought a Honda e2000

[minnbowhunter]

gator, I have the honda e1000. What is the "red lake cap"?

[Hawg]

http://cgi.HSO-Classifieds.com/HONDA-Eu2...=item2557ff45e9

These are cheaper than the Big Red Cap and work great. The gasket you get is junk, easy to make a better one. I can run my generator for 2-3 days without filling it.

[Hawg]

http://cgi.HSO-Classifieds.com/HONDA-Eu2...=item2304ab7281

Try this

[Hawg]

Boy something is weird on here. I try to copy an address and it kicks me out of the site and puts the wrong address in. Is this some type of security on here? Go to HSO-Classifieds and look for Honda Generator Cap. It's stainless and costs $29.95, it works great.

[Hawg]

Now it replaced HSO-Classifieds with HSO.

[Hawg]

Can't win , you know the E site.