Generator recommendations

[Mudflap]

We just purchased and had installed a Kohler 20 Kv. It was $5600 plus $1400 installation. Our power goes out a lot and we got tired of it. Had a small generator but it was a hassle to get out and hook up with extension cords. Wind knocked down a power pole a few days ago and Kohler kicked right in. Seamless. No more worries about losing a freezer full of beef. Not to mention keeping from freezing in winter or baking in summer with no power. Gary

20 Kw

 

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[Mudflap]

I would suggest a deul fuel (propane/gas) since even pure gas goes bad after 6 months. (No, don't use sta-bil in small engines)

I agree w/golddigger. Dual fuel gives you more options. On long outages you might not be able to obtain gasoline. ..... Sta-bil used to work but not anymore. Guess it can't handle the corn ethanol in the fuel.

 

[gopal123]

We are simply beginning to perceive what choices there are and gauge this out. This all began with taking a gander at getting our chimney in working request for one or the other gas or wood. In the wake of debilitating those roads, we chose a crisis generator may be most appropriate for our necessities. We presumably won't make the speculation needed for a set up like ToddsPoint's. The fireplace fellow that was here yesterday educated me regarding those and keeping in mind that they sound extremely decent, blackouts here are genuinely uncommon and typically short. Obviously if the SHTF we will presumably wish we had something to that effect.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

What’s wrong with the chimney? The obvious answer seems to be a wood stove.
Fixing a chimney would probably add value to your home?

Is it brick, metal pipe, or? Maybe a second opinion on the chimney or maybe look into doing the work yourself?


Anything other than a proper indoor heater is asking for trouble. We have an immigrant community here locally that suffers from several carbon monoxide deaths each year. They are trying to use alternative means to heat their shelters. Several of the deaths have been due to running a generator near their shelter. I guess the exhaust creeps in.

For electric heaters, I like the oil filled radiator types. You can partition a room down by hanging sheets to something smaller that would be easier to heat. Pretty much any portable electric heater you can buy these days is limited to 1500 watts (by law probably). Won’t keep your pipes from freezing, but you could hunker down and be comfortable for a short time.


At any rate, they sell smoke/carbon monoxide detectors...good insurance. Just last night someone here locally burned to death in an RV trailer. Not sure of the cause.

 

[Trezurehunter]

For a whole house generator, I like Generac. For portable, I've always liked Honda motors no matter what they are in. They are quiet, smooth running, and reliable.

 

[Squirrel322]

What’s wrong with the chimney? The obvious answer seems to be a wood stove.
Fixing a chimney would probably add value to your home?

Is it brick, metal pipe, or? Maybe a second opinion on the chimney or maybe look into doing the work yourself?


Anything other than a proper indoor heater is asking for trouble. We have an immigrant community here locally that suffers from several carbon monoxide deaths each year. They are trying to use alternative means to heat their shelters. Several of the deaths have been due to running a generator near their shelter. I guess the exhaust creeps in.

For electric heaters, I like the oil filled radiator types. You can partition a room down by hanging sheets to something smaller that would be easier to heat. Pretty much any portable electric heater you can buy these days is limited to 1500 watts (by law probably). Won’t keep your pipes from freezing, but you could hunker down and be comfortable for a short time.


At any rate, they sell smoke/carbon monoxide detectors...good insurance. Just last night someone here locally burned to death in an RV trailer. Not sure of the cause.

The chimney is brick and it isn’t lined. The fireplace is also pretty small which limits our gas insert options. Ultimately, either avenue would require an investment that we aren’t willing to make at the moment.

Our interest in a generator is strictly for an emergency situation.

I think we have one of those oil filled electric heaters. At least we did, it’s probably in the back of our closet. We also have a fake fireplace electric heater that my wife uses.

 

[Phil]

Whatever you do, hook it up correctly (According to code), or hire an electrician. If you don't you could kill a lineman that is trying to restore your power in the middle of the night.

I have had good experience with Westinghouse Gens. Great price and reliable.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

If you are going cheap and only want a little light and a small electric heater for one room, you could get away with using a small generator. They are very handy if you do much outdoors as far as recreation or work.

I knew a guy that lived in a small camp trailer due to a remote job site. His generator experience progressed like this...

1.) $800 Ryobi lasted 12 months then blew up. Could not get satisfaction with warranty. Something about having to have a Ryobi shop do the repairs and there was not one within many hours drive. They finally furnished parts and he paid to have it repaired and it lasted another 2 months before quitting again.


2.) $450 Harbor Freight very light, quite, fuel efficient, and started first pull. He was bragging on it comparing it to my Honda. It started running like crap after a couple months so he gave it away.


3.) $1,000 Honda still running after 3 years.


Sounded like he got a couple lemons which probably is an exception. That’s the risk you take.

My brothers friend lives off the grid. He literally ran a Honda 3000i continuously for 5 years. Only time it was shut down was to add oil and fuel. He gave it to my brother who fixed the starter. My brother ran it for another year at his off grid house. Still runs, but it leaks oil.

I love my Honda 2200i generator. It was expensive, but I will have it for the rest of my life.

If I was thinking about a true emergency, I’d go with Honda. If it’s only for household convenience when the power goes out once a year....and I was on a tight budget...I’d probably go with this one (with the extra warranty). The extra watts will probably be needed.
$800


What am I saying??! No - I’d actually spend a few bucks more and buy a smaller Honda generator that would last...hunker down and barely get by for a day or so. Besides, I’d be burning wood.

If you do go cheap...get the extra warranty and thoroughly break the engine in to see if you got a lemon. Then change oil, add some down the spark plug hole, drain fuel (non-ethanol) and cross ur fingers. Those Chinese units either last or they don’t.
Also be careful...some of the cheap generators advertise the surge rating and some continuous. Apples and oranges. The surge rating is important since many rotating devices take a lot of power at startup.

 

[pepperj]

In our last build we installed a 20kw propane with automatic switches. Nice to have as were living on an island that had at times outages that ran for more than a few days. (250 year round homes). This unit ran around $15K by the time of purchase, wiring it up. Since then we have resided for the last 7yrs at our present home-and have had to use a generator once. It's only a 5000 watt with a 7500watt surge start up. The meter base has the link up to plug into so it's fairly easy.
I looked into getting a stand alone unit as the island had: 20KW, LPG, auto switch. Propane is easy as there's no fuss/mess/old fuel....but here's a kicker-weekly test/runs 20/30 minutes...outside auto switch...trenching for power/propane lines....costs are similar as the island set up...except it didn't include trenching.

So I have opted for a used diesel 12KW generator $3K that will trailer mounted 100FT 6/4 cabtire power cord. The trailer will be fully insulated and I can tow behind truck/tractors to move it from my shop to the house if needed. By the time it's all done it will be a $4K investment that will run the shop-then when needed the house/garage/barn.

The house is fully renovated with a LPG boiler, hydronic heating system, and as of today we have still 40% of the home's heating system not turned on yet. We have a 3 head split air unit that handles the main living areas, and is used for air conditioning/heating on the shoulder seasons.

The big events effect everyone-ice storms-the grid goes down, weather related events. Hydro One has done a great job in the tree trimming over the years, and it shows when we have high wind events and there's no outages.

It comes down to peace of mind and where one places the value. We have friends that live on the island-home worth close to $2mil. yet they don't have a back up system for the power outages that occur. Closets are full of endless fashion though...

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

In our last build we installed a 20kw propane with automatic switches. Nice to have as were living on an island that had at times outages that ran for more than a few days. (250 year round homes). This unit ran around $15K by the time of purchase, wiring it up. Since then we have resided for the last 7yrs at our present home-and have had to use a generator once. It's only a 5000 watt with a 7500watt surge start up. The meter base has the link up to plug into so it's fairly easy.
I looked into getting a stand alone unit as the island had: 20KW, LPG, auto switch. Propane is easy as there's no fuss/mess/old fuel....but here's a kicker-weekly test/runs 20/30 minutes...outside auto switch...trenching for power/propane lines....costs are similar as the island set up...except it didn't include trenching.

So I have opted for a used diesel 12KW generator $3K that will trailer mounted 100FT 6/4 cabtire power cord. The trailer will be fully insulated and I can tow behind truck/tractors to move it from my shop to the house if needed. By the time it's all done it will be a $4K investment that will run the shop-then when needed the house/garage/barn.

The house is fully renovated with a LPG boiler, hydronic heating system, and as of today we have still 40% of the home's heating system not turned on yet. We have a 3 head split air unit that handles the main living areas, and is used for air conditioning/heating on the shoulder seasons.

The big events effect everyone-ice storms-the grid goes down, weather related events. Hydro One has done a great job in the tree trimming over the years, and it shows when we have high wind events and there's no outages.

It comes down to peace of mind and where one places the value. We have friends that live on the island-home worth close to $2mil. yet they don't have a back up system for the power outages that occur. Closets are full of endless fashion though...

I just opened the door to the wood stove and put a piece of firewood in.
The vent is closed, so it will be running at 40% for awhile. When my daughter gets up in the morning, I’ll crack it open and turn it up some. Feel a bit like a simpleton.

My dad has water pipes built into the back of his wood stove. His hot water heater will not come on more than a couple times this winter as his fire rarely goes out.

If the power goes out here, it’s usually Never more than 3-4 hours.
I usually don’t notice because I’m either at work or sleeping. I gave up resetting clocks, so everything just flashes all the time.

Worst case scenario is I break out a lantern. The stove is propane, so it works regardless.
I could hook my generator up to the well pump to get water if things got really bad.

I feel sorry for you folks that live in areas where these hurricane, tornadoes, and ice storms destroy your infrastructure every 25 years. You would think everyone would have it figured out already....UNDERGROUND POWER.

Around here...Y2K was a big worry. Everyone put generator systems in....and never used them.

 

[pepperj]

I just opened the door to the wood stove and put a piece of firewood in.
The vent is closed, so it will be running at 40% for awhile. When my daughter gets up in the morning, I’ll crack it open and turn it up some. Feel a bit like a simpleton.

My dad has water pipes built into the back of his wood stove. His hot water heater will not come on more than a couple times this winter as his fire rarely goes out.

If the power goes out here, it’s usually Never more than 3-4 hours.
I usually don’t notice because I’m either at work or sleeping. I gave up resetting clocks, so everything just flashes all the time.

Worst case scenario is I break out a lantern. The stove is propane, so it works regardless.
I could hook my generator up to the well pump to get water if things got really bad.

I feel sorry for you folks that live in areas where these hurricane, tornadoes, and ice storms destroy your infrastructure every 25 years. You would think everyone would have it figured out already....UNDERGROUND POWER.

Around here...Y2K was a big worry. Everyone put generator systems in....and never used them.

There comes a time to stop chopping wood and packing water-so to speak.
The only wood to be split is for the evaporator, and that is maple syrup time.

 

[Gare]

Squirrel There are many out there that would work. You need to How many amps and watts you will need first. ALSO VERY IMPORTANT !! MAKE SURE what kind of generator your using DISCONNECTS you from the MAIN POWER LINES. People working on power lines are injured and even killed from GENERATORS feeding power back down lines that are supposed to be DEAD !~!!

There are other things to consider How they start pull rope or electric, Type of Fuel , Fuel Consumption . Yours is not a simple question and you need to check all requirements

 

[ARC]

Yamaha is a better built generator for the same price as Honda.

Neck and neck... not quite... Yamaha over Honda for me... also on boats.

Don't get me wrong... Honda is good... its just that Yamaha is better.

Not opinion... Fact.

 

[releventchair]

We are interested in getting a generator to provide power in the event of a power outage. Outages here are rare and usually short. However, the winters can be cold and we want a plan B to keep warm.

I know there’s a lot of varieties and options. So I’m looking for suggestions to help drive our research.

Thanks in advance !

i'm a little S.W. of you and average 4-5 days of outages a year.

Got rid of my 5000 watt generator I used a long time. Got tired of wrestling it.

Did like DC Matt and bought a Champion 3500. Have a few years on it now. Probably the upper cheapest route.
It runs my furnace and fridge/freezer ,plus entertainment. Radio or t.v. d.v.d. player.
When my old furnace died one winter , I ran two electric heaters. Kept things cozy.

You need to calculate wattage and start up surge draw of everything you want to run. Base generator size a little above that.
Kill all power potential to house at main breaker box , just to insure you don't backfeed the line .

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

Yamaha is a better built generator for the same price as Honda.

Neck and neck... not quite... Yamaha over Honda for me... also on boats.

Don't get me wrong... Honda is good... its just that Yamaha is better.

Not opinion... Fact.

Don’t be confused, it’s definitely just your opinion.

On construction jobs, where reliability and breakdowns affect profit...If it has a small engine attached, it’s a Honda. Actually never seen a Yamaha powered tool yet on a construction job. Not saying Yamaha is not good (I’m sure it is). Perhaps they don’t have the market share that Honda does concerning small engines.

Maybe it has to do with the size of their service/repair network compared to Honda.

Either way, if their small engine products were far superior to Honda at the same price point, they would be prevalent in industrial applications and from what I can tell they are not.

Boat engines...I can’t offer an opinion since they are a totally different application than generators.

 

[wainzoid]

Honda small engines are as good as it gets.
The only thing I know about Yama-ha ha ha's, is when I rode Motocross bikes, if i wanted to see one i looked behind me.

 

[islamoradamark]

Honda

 

[ARC]

lol... read.

heh

https://www.bestgenerator.org/honda-vs-yamaha-generator-comparison/


Don't get me wrong... I like Honda... owned many... and I like the fact that some parts are made in USA...

But when I am on the water... I want a Yamaha behind me.

 

[ARC]

Also... you do know the Honda has 500 hour rating... VS yamahas 1000 ? ? ?

 

[Al D]

Steer clear of Kholer, IMO, just check out the bad reviews