Generator?

[deerminator]

I see the depot has a powermate 3000 generator on sale tomorrow. Been thinking about getting a generator as a backup for when the power goes out and also to get power down in our woods when I need.it. Know I can't run the generator in the house obviously durong outages but does anyone run it outside and run extension cords inside when neded? Any tips or tricks for picking out a generator?

[deerminator]

Oh, and happy Thanksgiving!

[Whoaru99]

Yeah, the tip is to do a bunch of research on the Internet. If you search for something like "generator reviews" using Google or whatever you'll get lots of stuff to read. What I've found is that there seems to be lots of variance in performance between models even within the same brand. That makes it difficult to generalize by brand. More or less to the point of needing to research the specific model number, not just "Coleman 3000 watt", or whatever.

Big brands like Honda and Yamaha are much more consistent but as you know are more expensive too. You also have to consider price (up front) vs. cost (long term).

[aanderud]

I'll tell you that my cheap off-brand 4000-watt unit that I got for $120 after rebate at checker auto 5 years ago is still running great as a backup option for when our power goes out. I have probably only used it a total of 100 hours in 5 years, but one of those was a 36 hour deal that saved me a lot of hassle of having everything in my freezer/fridge go bad, and another was 20 hours (with several 6-8 hour stints between).

It was cheap, and it's more than paid for itself in food savings alone, let alone convenience. I split the power right at the generator and run one cord to my freezer in the garage and one into the house. In the house I split it a few more times to power my 2 fridges and a couple power strips. One power strip has my bait tank aerator, wifi router, and cable modem (all in my basement). One has my laptop and cell phone charger and a lamp on the main floor.

It's loud as all get-out, but it was a lot cheaper than a 3 or 4 kw honda. Probably 10-fold, I haven't seen a 4000 watt honda for under 1500 bucks.

Starts within a couple pulls any time I need it which is just random times when our power goes out. About the only thing I can tell you for a tip is that if the one you're buying doesn't have wheels, buy a wheel kit for it. It's much better than carrying the stupid thing around.

You're going to get better reviews in general if you use google like the other posted mentioned -- plus you don't have to wait for people to read and reply to your post. 90% of the answers you get on here are just going to be random guy X telling you about specific model Y that he/she owns, and most owner reviews tend to be biased anyway. not saying you won't pull a few nuggest of info here, but don't count on it as your primary research destination.

[Surface Tension]

Coleman Powermate 3000 specs

6 HP Briggs & Stratton OHV gas engine

3750 Maximum watts

3000 Running watts

That will power most appliances in your home but you'll need to use some

power management.

You can get some idea here and as you can see your limited as to what you can run.

Color television 300 watts 400 watts surge.

Microwave oven 750 watts 1,000 watts surge

Furnace fan 750 watts 1,500 watts surge.

Refrigerator 1,200 watts 2,400 watts surge.

Well pump 2,400 watts 3,600 watts surge.

Something else that'll limit what you can run is the extension cord from the gen to the house. That isn't often thought of and it is a fire hazard.

A 100' 16 gauge extension cord is good up to 1200 watts.

Chances are during a power shortage you'll have a heavy rain, wind, or ice storm.

The Gen will need to be in protected spot. Might as well make shelter close to the house to reduce the length cord. Get yourself a couple 50' 12 gauge extension cords and manage them keeping in mind the wattage of the gen and each cord.

You could go one step further and have a transfer switch installed in the breaker panel but with a small gen you'll be flipping breakers to manage the watts.

[Whoaru99]

Coleman Powermate 3000 specs

6 HP Briggs & Stratton OHV gas engine

3750 Maximum watts

3000 Running watts

Right, but one of the main points of looking for actual test reviews is that a fair number of the (primarily) inexpensive generators don't put out what they say.

If you're pricing on 3000 watts for $XXX but you're really only getting 2000 watts, or buy based on needing 3000 but get only 2000...see what I mean?

[Tom7227]

Noise is a factor. I was urged to buy a unit that had less output but was more quiet and I was happy that I did.

[Whoaru99]

Disregard.