# Don't know what to do



## Debbie in Wa (Dec 28, 2007)

Hubby and I came into a surprise when it came to taxes this year. We are getting some money back and am thinking of getting a generator. We have our eye on this one
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Honeywell-5500-Watt-Portable-Generator/10099156

Now that we will have the money tomorrow to purchase it, we wonder if we could get by with a smaller one, the 3500 series or just do this one. The thing that gets me a bit off key is the fact that the price of gas is going up so much, is it even going to be worth it to buy. If I am going to have a hard time keeping gas in my car ( we are both on disability) then whos to say about the generator.

I am thinking that we could also use this for when we going camping too for our trailer.
Any thoughts would help me out alot.
Thanks


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## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

I have a Generac 5000 generator, a Champion 3500 generator, and a Honda 2000 generator.

The Generac and the Champion are open-frame construction type generators, and are loud and heavy. The honda is a small inverter generator which is quiet and light weight, but of course will not power as many items as the larger generators.

We use the Champion 3500 to power various items in the house during power outages - two freezers, the fridge, some lights, the computers and maybe a tv. It is not too hard to start with the pull-starter but does take some effort.

We use the little honda to re-charge the batteries in our camper when camping. It will also power the entire camper (12V and 120v) but we typically just use the 12V stuff in the camper and run off the batteries. The little honda is light enough that I can lift and carry it, and quiet enough that it doesn't ruin the camping experience. Also uses very little fuel.

The Generac 5000 is going to be sold once I get around to cleaning it up. It is a beast, it's heavy and takes too much effort to pull-start it with its big engine.

This is the champion we have, and I purchased a wheel kit to make it easier to move around.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0..._m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1M2XEGSXZH10GG3PZNTX
I think we purchased it from a shucks or o'rielly auto parts store for $300 three years ago.

The champion is set up with an RV plug so it can power a camper and I tried it a couple of times while camping but it was just too loud and heavy. I can still lift it in and out of my truck by myself, but just barely. I am looking at putting an electric start kit on it off of ebay as I can see the day coming when I won't be able to crank that thing over by hand.

Note that the Champion doesn't have as many 110V outlets as the generator you are looking at, which may be an issue depending on how much stuff you plan to run off it. I use splitter cords to increase the number of extension cords run off the generator but there are circuit limits that must be considered. 

Both the Champion and Generac burn through a fair bit of gasoline during use.

If I were purchasing a portable generator for powering the house during power outages I would buy one that was already equipped with the wheel kit and electric start.


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## shawnlee (Apr 13, 2010)

Don`t know much about that one.....looks like it might have the honda engine....those are good engines.


I do know that a electric starter is very desirable in a genny that size.....11hp is getting up there for a pull start.Should be fine as long as it is kept well maintained on the starting of it.

They key to any of them lasting is upkeep and only running it when needed and keeping it out of the weather......


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## fetch33 (Jan 15, 2010)

Anyone have the permanent generators that sit next to the house? Husband and I were thinking of purchasing one of those this year, as hubby thinks that natural gas will always be available (optomist or misguided?)


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## CJ (May 10, 2002)

We've had one of these Honda's:
http://wisesales.com/honda_EU3000iH.html
for 4 or 5 years, and it has been a wonderfully reliable generator. We've got a very similiar Yamaha, and it's a piece of junk.

The Honda will power our entire RV (which is a 40 footer with quadruple slides) including the a/c, the washer and dryer (but not all at once) or will easily run the fridge, both freezers, and various small appliances in the house during a power outage.

But, have had to use it to run the RV for days on end 24/7 (middle of summer, a/c running) it can cost around $30 a day to operate! And that was BEFORE gas got so expensive.

So in answer to your question.... I think the price of fuel would make running one for more than a day or two cost prohibitive.


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## tkrabec (Mar 12, 2003)

My current plan is to look for a diesel powered generator.
Off-road Diesel is $0.40 cheaper per gallon in my area, and I can run veggie oil and bio-diesel in the future.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> hubby thinks that natural gas will always be available (optomist or *misguided*?


If the grid were to go down totally, gas would stop within a week


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## Debbie in Wa (Dec 28, 2007)

Thank you all for your input. Wayne, we headed over to Amazon and saw this deal

http://www.amazon.com/Champion-Equi...nerator/dp/B00295MN2M/ref=dp_cp_ob_ol_title_3

I am thinking this is going to be on order for us this week.
Hubby is going to have a friend help him later put on the auto starter for us since both of us might have problems starting this later in life.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Having spent quite some yrs living off grid, I am very much not enamored of generators. They have a tendency to break down when you need them the most and require too much upkeep. I prefer solar panels and batteries.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I second the Honda generators if you don't need a large capacity machine. Think of the Hondas as the equivalent to a portable home outlet. Anything you can plug into a regular outlet including a freezer or refrigerator can be run by one of the small Honda generators.

If you have natural gas, enough money and want to power the entire house for an extended period consider a diesel engined generator that's been setup to run on natural gas. That will not normally be a portable unit. I like the Lister Petter engined units simply because of the fact they'll last much longer than the units sold at the typical big box store.


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## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

Debbie in Wa said:


> Thank you all for your input. Wayne, we headed over to Amazon and saw this deal
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Champion-Equi...nerator/dp/B00295MN2M/ref=dp_cp_ob_ol_title_3
> I am thinking this is going to be on order for us this week.
> Hubby is going to have a friend help him later put on the auto starter for us since both of us might have problems starting this later in life.


That should work just fine. Unless you have the cable and plugs laying around to make a splitter cable up I would be very tempted to buy that $21 10/3 splitter when you buy the generator. That will allow you to split that single 120v 3 prong standard outlet right off the bat for two feeds. By the time you buy the right sized cable and the weatherproof plugs you will be approaching that $21. I much prefer to use these splitter cables over using the adapters you can buy that plug directly into the outlet, especially when the gen is used in the wet. 

Unless you have the generator covered, it will get wet, which won't hurt it, but you want to be mindful of the extension cords and plug connections. Eventually you may find that you can make some type of cover to keep the rain off the gen while running and still provide the required ventilation to keep the engine cool.

This thread over on Rv.net is a goldmine of information regarding the open-frame gensets in general, and the Champion brand 3500W generators specifically. You will find that the Champions while not always perfect, are very well thought of, including parts and technical support from the manufacturer. 

The thread was started in 2005 and has 9,000+ posts and 3/4 million views. It covers just about every conceivable technical and other type of questions about the Champion. How to safely make changes to the gen to make it more efficient, safe, quiet, etc. A really good group of people, and the best part is they will not jump down your throat if you ask repeat questions. Even though it is a pretty straight forward deal, you may want to consult these folks when you install the electric start as they have been there and done it, multiple times. No sense in re-inventing the wheel if there are some particular nuances in the installation.

The thread originator has posted an update (3/1/11) in his original 2005 post at the very beginning of the thread that you should read as provides some background info.

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/15131645.cfm


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## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

Debbie, we have a travel trailer and are frequent campers...This type of generator would be too loud to use camping for more than a few minutes. In the campgrounds, there are rules about their use, and the big rigs have self contained ones that are very very quiet.
Maybe if you were dry camping on provate land, but otherwise you couldnt watch tv etc without being driven crazy by the noise


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## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

Darren said:


> I second the Honda generators if you don't need a large capacity machine. Think of the Hondas as the equivalent to a portable home outlet. Anything you can plug into a regular outlet including a freezer or refrigerator can be run by one of the small Honda generators.


That is a good point, we like our Honda 2000 and as you say it will power a surprising number of things. I really like how quiet and light weight they are, ours will even power the AC in our RV, though it struggles a bit on start up. 

The really nice thing about the inverter generators like the Honda is they vary the RPM based on the load that's on the generator at the time. Unlike the open frame gens which run at the same RPM (usually wide open or close to it) regardless of load. 

The only other inverter gen that I would consider besides the Honda is the relatively new Champion 2000 which is receiving ok reviews so far and is reportedly only $500 at sams club (compared to the $800 and change I paid for our Honda two years ago).

This is an 87 page thread on the Champion 2000 that has some good info.
http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/24022161.cfm


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

Whether or not natural gas in your area is available when the grid goes down depends on the compressors used to pressurize gas in the pipeline. The older compressors in WV where/are driven by engines that were fueled by a small amount of the natural gas that was pumped. You can tell when you drive by one of the stations by the noise. The engines make quite a bit of racket. there's a constant heavy thunka-thunka-thunka sound you can almost feel. That's not an electric motor making that noise.

For some reason some of the compressors in the Texas pipeline system were driven by electric motors. That's why they lost the natural gas supply when they had their electric outage in some areas. It stands to reason if the grid goes down and the compressors pressurizing the natural gas to your house are powered by an electric motor, then you'll lose your natural gas supply too.


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## Debbie in Wa (Dec 28, 2007)

Wayne, we ordered the whole package deal so we got the cord thing and a cover. I think it will meet our needs quite well. When we do go camping, we go out in the middle of no where and we are basically out in the boonies with the bears. It's us and another couple that goes since they know all the neat hide outs and they have the guns for just in case. I am however thinking about this little gem also for if we do go to a federal park as there are a few around us .

http://www.cabelas.com/product/CPE-...t=generators&WTz_l=Header;Search-All+Products

Has anyone seen this one before. We are about an hours drive to the nearest Cabelas and could check this one out to. Since we opt not to have air conditioning in out travel trailer and we can watch a dvd on our portable dvd player, the only thing that I was thinking about was for if I bring my little roaster/crock pot along for cooking.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

You can't beat the price. Did you read the reviews at the link? A few folks had problems that were either resolved or could be resolved. I'm not sure why the one reviewer didn't dump the gas out, let it set for awhile and then return the unit with the jammed pull cord.

None of the reviewers had used the generator for that long. So you don't have any idea how long the thing will last. At that price if you get a couple of years out of it, you're fine. The fact that the company is willing to take care of problems is a major plus.

The only potential problem is the voltage variation found by one of the reviewers. I wouldn't run voltage sensitive equipment off that generator.


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## rhome (Aug 10, 2006)

We use a small 2700watt gen with a 5 HP HONDA engine.
Big enough for a jet pump cycle
or Freezer cycle
or Frig cycle
12 years old, only used for prolonged power outages, probably has less than 100 hrs use.
A very handy feature on the the Honda powered gens is that it has a CARBERATOR DRAIN VALVE you use after the tank is empty then you can put the gen back into storage.


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