good deal on a little generator

[Lloyd Smale]

I picked up one of these http://www.harborfreight.com/800-rated-watts-900-max-watts-portable-generator-66619.html  I was skeptical because of the cost but it seems like a good little unit. Not a honda by a stretch but a guy could by 10 of them for the cost of a honda. They call for a 20 hour break in at half load so i hooked it up to two brass tumblers and let it go. It holds a gallon of gas and the add said 6 hours at half load. Well mine went ten minutes short of 12 hours!!  Just for grins i hooked up my kohler 950 watt unit which when i bought it was rated higher then a honda in consumers guide. The kohler only went 6 hours on a gallon. One downside to keep in mind is that its a 2 stroke. I dont know how long it will last but then ive had two stroke motors go a good long time. Bottom line is for less then a 100 bucks its worth having just for a power outage to run your fridge or tv for a few hours. Im going to buy another and just leave it in the box for just in case.

[blind ear]

If parts are available, the 2 stroke rebuild is easier and cheaper by far also. sounds worth a try for that money. ear

[Lloyd Smale]

just ordered a second one. they had 20 bucks off any purchase.

[SHOOTALL]

that looks like a deal if it runs good . The out put is not so high but will do alot . several working could be a good thing , let one run freezer and ref, another the water pump and another lights and one for HWH or stove ( one eye) . turn off whats not needed saving the fuel the larger unit would use just ideling .

[bilmac]

I doubt they will run a fridge or freezer. Mine won't run a shop vac. Still a nice tool to have around for the $.

[Lloyd Smale]

had mine hooked to a 800 watt casting pot and two tumblers (one a huge dillon tumbler) today. I started them one at a time and it grunted a bit at first but ran them with no problem. they put it on my 15 cubic foot chest freezer and it ran that compressor. Again it drug i down at start up but it held on and kept chugging. I checked the voltage when the compressor was running and it was 105. A bit low but not so low as to cause trouble. I  hooked the same load to the 950 kohler and voltage was a bit better at 113 and it seemed to handle the start up a bit better. I think it would handle a mid sized fridge but probably not something bigger then 18 cubic foot. Im actually not to conserned about what it will power. My idea when buying it was to power my tv and coffee pot when there was a power outage. Or maybe a tv and some lights when we set up the pop up for shooting crop damage deer. It will probably run 3 days doing that on a gallon of gas.

[efremtags]

POS, get what u pay for.

[Lloyd Smale]

you have one or are you just pulling that wisdom out of your drawers.

POS, get what u pay for.

[pastorp]

Naw Lloyd, he & swampy are brothers. Swampy takes care of Remington & Marlin and efremtags takes care of generators...
 
Regards,

[spooked]

Heard of a fella living off grid that bought this gen. used it for a year to supplement his solar panel , said he recently bought another one of these throwaways JIC. He said for the money it was a good bargain..

[powderman]

LLOYD. I've been told that an 800-900 watt can run a freezer or frig, but cannot start one because of the higher starting rate. Are you saying they will?? My freezer is the most important thing to me in an outage. POWDERMAN. 

[Old Syko]

Lloyd I think if you check the actual output you'll find it is actually higher than 800 watts.  I've had a similar one from Northern Tool that was supposed to be 1200 that actually put out a bit over 1600 in constant use and a surge up to almost 1800 without popping the switch.  Never used it for a long time at any given time but it did what I wanted when I wanted it.


BTW the one you have was just on special for $89.  Another sidewalk sale scheduled for this weekend but I don't know if they will be a part of it or not.

[efremtags]

I have 16 years experience engineering power equipment from utility scale solar to the UPS systems that power wallstreet and the 911 call centers in NYC.. I think I am qualified to distinguish a POS from a good deal. I don't know what swamp gas does for a living, but I bet he doesn't work for remington or marlin, and didn't invent the 45-70.

What got my goat was the mere mention of a honda as if they can even be mentioned together in the same post. Honda 4-stroke   small generator is actually a gas powered inverter, meaning it has electrically controlled regulation, not a motor governor. Very quiet, reliable and ultra clean power.  I'm sure these 2-stroke poluting POS will work great for the tribal afghans that can't get a real genset. For myself, I'll stick with honda.

[powderman]

efremtags. This might be a shock to you but not everybody can afford what might or might not be the best, in your opinion. Some of us only buy what we can afford.
In an outage my needs are fairly simple. My freezer is my main concern, frig would be nice but not necessary. Cost of fuel would be important to me so I'd probably only run it a couple times a day to keep my food frozen. Please answer the question in my above post. I want as small and cheap a gen as I can find for my purposes. Thanks. POWDERMAN. 

[PowPow]

Powderman - see if your freezer has electrical data on the tag.
RLA means rated load amps, but might as well mean running load amps.
LRA means lock rotor amps, which is the starting amps.


If you can swing the cost of a generator that will make it through the LRA, you can probably run a few more things on it.
Now you could run the freezer for a while, then plug in the frigde for a while and take care of both.


Look like Lloyd's might handle up to 7 amps continous, and 20 starting amps, if I read the spec sheet correctly.


Lloyd - you might satisfy all our curiosity and see if it starts your freezer. Most all residential freezers are about 1/4 hp, so if your starts, ours would probably start.

[Lost Farmboy]

efremtags. This might be a shock to you but not everybody can afford what might or might not be the best, in your opinion. Some of us only buy what we can afford.
In an outage my needs are fairly simple. My freezer is my main concern, frig would be nice but not necessary. Cost of fuel would be important to me so I'd probably only run it a couple times a day to keep my food frozen. Please answer the question in my above post. I want as small and cheap a gen as I can find for my purposes. Thanks. POWDERMAN. 

 
Thanks Powderman for typing my message just the way I wanted it. All I want is a generator that will keep my freezer frozen in an emergency. I don't have much use for one other wise. If this little guy will do it I'll buy one.

[Lloyd Smale]

give me a couple days. Im at camp and the only fridge here is a gas one.

Powderman - see if your freezer has electrical data on the tag.
RLA means rated load amps, but might as well mean running load amps.
LRA means lock rotor amps, which is the starting amps.


If you can swing the cost of a generator that will make it through the LRA, you can probably run a few more things on it.
Now you could run the freezer for a while, then plug in the frigde for a while and take care of both.


Look like Lloyd's might handle up to 7 amps continous, and 20 starting amps, if I read the spec sheet correctly.


Lloyd - you might satisfy all our curiosity and see if it starts your freezer. Most all residential freezers are about 1/4 hp, so if your starts, ours would probably start.

[Lloyd Smale]

well pal ive got 31 years as an electrical lineman and know that not everyone is buying a generator to power a computer or any other sensitive electonic gear so an invertor generator is a waste of money for most and even if a guy has to have an invertor generator theres 4 stroke invertor sets for under 400 bucks, still about a 1/3 of what a honda would cost you. We got a honda 4000 watt generator at camp and its a good unit but theres nothing majical about it. Its been in for repairs a couple times in the 8 years weve had it. Weve also got a coleman 1800 watt unit that runs even more often that has been absolutey reliable. More so then then the honda. Now to be fair anything can break and lots of this is just luck of the draw but id be the first to tell you to buy a honday if a 50 percent increase in cost is worth it to you for a pretty red case and honda stamped on it. No doubt these china made 2 strokes arent going to hold up to a honda if used everyday but id bet most who buy a small generator like this use it once or twice a year for an outage or maybe for a camping trip or two a year and there going to last a good long time for that. id also bet that if you bought 5 of them (stilll would pay half as much as a honda) that the last one would be running long after the honda was in the junk pile.  As for poluting the generators have a california carb sticker on them so they cant be to bad. Like i said dont get me wrong. these are not high quality top of the line generators. There inexpensive little generators and someone who doesnt have a bunch of money can buy and have at least something in a power outage if for nothing else to power a coffee pot or your tv or radio. Id about bet you could have made some major money during catrina if youd a had about 20 of these.

I have 16 years experience engineering power equipment from utility scale solar to the UPS systems that power wallstreet and the 911 call centers in NYC.. I think I am qualified to distinguish a POS from a good deal. I don't know what swamp gas does for a living, but I bet he doesn't work for remington or marlin, and didn't invent the 45-70.

What got my goat was the mere mention of a honda as if they can even be mentioned together in the same post. Honda 4-stroke   small generator is actually a gas powered inverter, meaning it has electrically controlled regulation, not a motor governor. Very quiet, reliable and ultra clean power.  I'm sure these 2-stroke poluting POS will work great for the tribal afghans that can't get a real genset. For myself, I'll stick with honda.

[Ron 1]

for what its worth i have a 850 watt el cheepo  and it wont run a skill saw i tried when i built my hunting house but did just fine with a jig saw and drill
  rw 

[powderman]

for what its worth i have a 850 watt el cheepo  and it wont run a skill saw i tried when i built my hunting house but did just fine with a jig saw and drill
  rw

 
I'm really surprised to hear it won't run a kil saw. POWDERMAN. 

[Ron 1]

i did try both the black n decker and a makita  the saw would run but not long enuff to cut a 2x4 it would pop the breaker even the ply wood was to much for it. reset the breakers every 3-4 in of the cut
rw

[Old Syko]

for what its worth i have a 850 watt el cheepo  and it wont run a skill saw i tried when i built my hunting house but did just fine with a jig saw and drill
  rw

This tells you that your saw is pulling over 7 amps which is what you get when you divide 850 watts by 120 volts.  Not surprising since your saw probably pulls 12 or more amps when in a load.

[pastorp]

We have used Honda outboards, Generators, Mowers, & motorcycles. My friends generator on his commercial fishing vessel was nothing but trouble. When it worked it was good but you had to tinker with it a lot to keep it working. I did not like the honda outboards. A evenrude or Merc is much more reliable IME. And their movers, for what they cost, required way too much service. The only thing Honda I do like is their motorcycles.    JME
 
Regards,

[Lost Farmboy]

  This should help.


http://www.harborfreight.com/generator-guide


Looks like the little guy can't do what I need. But I think it would still be worth having. The next size bigger will not fit my budget for a while.

[powderman]

LOST. Thanks. According to that chart my freezer would take 2200 watts to start it, no help there. I was hoping. POWDERMAN. 

[dpe.ahoy]

What about the small new refrigerators?  I can't find a wattage on them, just amps.  The one's I've been looking at are rated at 0.8 and 0.9 amp.  Wanted to lose the cooler and ice and just run a small dorm frig on weekends and during hunting camp at my cabin.  I have two 45 watt solar panels to try to get hooked up to keep 2 deep cycle batteries charged up while I'm not there.  A couple of CF bulbs and a boombox are about all I have for electric demand.  DP

[Lloyd Smale]

amps x volts= watts. So 1 amp is going to ive you 120 watts. You can at least figure double that for start up amperage. So beings that one horsepower is 756 watts you can about count on running a 1/3 hp motor and possibly a 1/2 horse with a 800 watt gen. Now a couple other things come into play. How much load is on the motor. Those amp ratings are for no load. Also keep in mind that condition of your motor means alot. If say it wont run your skill saw. How old is it. Whats the condition of the bearings in the motor. How dirty is it? Did you try to shove it through the wood before it got up to speed? We have a 1/2 hp water pump at camp thats an OLD pump. Our 1800 watt gen wont strat it and it even dims the lights with our 5000 watt generator where a 1/2 skill saw doesnt even begin to blink lights. Most air compressors, at least good ones, have an unloader valve that allows the motor to start without a load on it other then just spinning the compressor. Something like the compressor on  a fridge or freezer doesnt have that luxury. Like i said i bought these to run a tv or radio in an outage or make a pot of coffee. If your going to build a house or go off grid you sure dont want a generator this small. Even if they do run an appliance they may be doing it at a voltage level that is borderline and this will cause wear and tear on your appliances and possible ruin them. If you want to run your freezers and fridges and basicaly run a whole house you shouldnt be fooling around with anything less then 3000 watts and preferable something between 5000-8000. I should be home monday and ill run that test then just for grins though. ill even test the voltage to see how low it goes.

[Doug B.]

What about the small new refrigerators?  I can't find a wattage on them, just amps.  The one's I've been looking at are rated at 0.8 and 0.9 amp.  Wanted to lose the cooler and ice and just run a small dorm frig on weekends and during hunting camp at my cabin. 

If those are running amps and not peak rated, you'd be drawing under 110 watts each if my calculations are correct.

[Old Syko]

Usage charts like the one posted above are only a very rough estimate.  Don't try to use them for a guide because as Lloyd states, there are a lot of variables to consider.  I run a 9200 watt portable for home use and even then I have to play the Green Acres game to run some things that need a higher supply rate such as AC, water heater, oven, etc.  3000 watts will usually safely run a fridge and a freezer along with a handful of lights but that is all.  Newer more energy efficient equipment sometimes use much less than the charts state while older stuff may use many times more.  A simple check with an ammeter and voltmeter is the only way to get an honest read on each item you intend to power.  The same goes for generator output.  Just because your generator states it puts out a specific amount of power, doesn't mean it actually does.  Most come up a bit short and the older they get the less they put out.  With some of the smaller units as started this thread, some have proven to put out more than stated but that is a variable in itself.

[Lloyd Smale]

i can pretty much run my whole home on my 5000 watt gen. Ive also got an appartement that my learning disabled son lives in so im powering 3 refrigerators and have two freezers. He has his own hot water heater and  stove also. Everything is electric except my heat which is gas. When theres an outage i have to unplug all my fridge and freezers and take turns running them two dont just happen to start at the same time. I can though start one and then start another and run two at a time. I have to tell the son not to use the oven during the outage but leave the hot water and everything else alone. Never had a problem and probably could roll the dice that two refer units dont start at the same time and just leave it all plugged in. By the way its a 5000 watt but has a peak of 6000. A  bigger might do a better job but anything bigger then this and gas consumption really goes up. the cost doesnt bother me as much as possible availability of fuel.