Harbor freight generators

[Reit38]

I am thinking about getting a generator from harbor freight. Really just for having incase of power failure. We rarely lose power but with young children,fully stocked freezer and water pump, I would like having the reassurance of having a generator.

I'm in between the 6500 staring and 8750starting generators. I'm assuming I would be better off buying the larger for $100 more.

Has anyone used either model or any of the generators from HF for that matter.

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[A**holes Garage]

I just purchased the 8750 a few weeks ago. It gets good reviews and has a good bit of power. Can't go wrong for the price, comparable Honda is $2300.00.
I bought it for back up house power and to run my Lincoln 210 welder in remote locations.
I plan on getting the electric transfer kit for power outages.
I also fabricated a wheeled cart for it with 8" swivel wheels and a lifting bracket, it's a heavy, bulky mother and it runs full bore all the time. No Eco quiet mode.

 

[6768rogues]

My son’s construction crews are not kind to equipment. He started buying generators from HF and they last as long as anything until they get dropped or something stupid. A good feature is low oil shut down. If it has that, it will protect itself and last quite a while.

 

[miragesmack]

Main beef with them is noise. They are LOUD. So in a shop that might be ok, but if it's for a power outage and in a neighborhood, noise is something to think about. I lose power for maybe 10 days a year due to all the trees and it being an old neighborhood. And you can hear the loud ones for sure.

 

[volvosrock]

Have the 8750, it has competently handled a 4 hr outage and 72 hour outage, so far. They get stellar reviews.


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[ishiboo]

I've had the 8750 for a while, gets used on outages a few times a year, gets started every month... best generator I've ever owned. Hated the $$$ Mitsubishi I had. Have a slightly smaller B&S that just sits for now as the HF is my go-to.

 

[Greeny]

I have the 900 watt. Love it.

 

[Reit38]

I'm assuming the 20-25% off coupons won't work ?

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[58Yeoman]

I've had the 7500 (IIRC) for at least 8 years, and it's done its job well. The low oil sensor did quit on me once. I bypassed it. And yes, it is loud. We lose power quite often.

 

[marineman]

Mine isn't harbor freight but judging by the looks it came out of the same factory with different paint. Mine is the 8750 and it has done me right, it kept my fridge, freezer and sump pumps running when we lost power for 2 days after the tornado last summer. It's loud the same as other HF motors if you're in a fancy neighborhood that could be a downfall but I actually like it. It's a consistent sound so I can fall asleep with it running but if it shuts off it wakes me up.

 

[QwikKotaTx]

If it's not for large demand items I would look at the new Honda compared models. I believe they have an inverter drive 3500 (3000 running watts) for $650 with coupon. They are very quiet and get good reviews. I would only get a 8750 watt genny if you need to run the whole house (minus a/c) or power something that needs 6000 watts etc. During Hurricane Harvey I ran my fridge and freezer during the day on a 2000 watt genny and could run a small window unit at night that drew 15amps @110v.

 

[Vegaman_Dan]

Open frame non-inverter generators are what I call 'clatter boxes' because they are loud and shrill. They provide raw power for lighting, tools, etc. Good for site use. Not so good for electronics, computers, charging phones, etc. The Harbor Freight models stand up well in the quality and reliability factors (yeah, I know, but true!) and seem to hold up.

I recently picked up a couple of inverter generators, 1kw and a 3.5kw models. The difference in noise levels between those and the clatter boxes is crazy and has ensured the open frame genset I have will stay stored away unless I desperately need it.

One trick to reduce the noise on the open frame gensets is to simply build a noise baffle. Just some plywood or similar sheets that lean against each other or connect that surround the generator with a gap of a couple of feet for air flow. This funnels all the noise straight up instead and greatly reduces the overall volume. I've seem some very fancy builds as well, but for on site use, that simple set of plywood walls makes a big difference.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Figure out how big a generator you need first. If the 6500 is enough to handle your needs, there's no sense in spending more money for the larger one.

 

[raffaelli]

We have the larger generator. It never fails and will provide all the power we need. We power the entire house and keep the use low and to only areas of the house we are in. Works great. Longest we ran it was for 4 days constant. I shut it down on day 3 to change the oil. It is kind of loud but, so what.

 

[Ji m]

I've had a HF 4000 for 5 or 6 years now,
it always does what it needs to do without complaints.

 

[TractorJeff]

Stuart in MN, this is one time you are giving bad advice!
If he follows your logic to size to his CURRENT criteria, once he has that much he'll WANT for more luxuries!
Maybe better to go with the larger unit and run it a little under loaded to minimize fuel consumption verses running close to 100% maximizing his fuel consumption.
Its all only an Internet opinion of course!

 

[NUTTSGT]

Main beef with them is noise. They are LOUD. So in a shop that might be ok, but if it's for a power outage and in a neighborhood, noise is something to think about. I lose power for maybe 10 days a year due to all the trees and it being an old neighborhood. And you can hear the loud ones for sure.

Just about any non-inverter type generator is going to be loud. The money you save buying a cheaper non-inverter can be used to buy ear protection.

 

[Cue]

I sold my large loud generator and bought the 3500 inverter gen as I was scared to plug in a expensive refrigerator, well pump or other sensitive electronics as they can be damaged from the dirty power they put out. The 3500 runs super quiet and has enough power to run my fridge, freezer and a few lights which is all I need. the electric start is nice as well.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Stuart in MN, this is one time you are giving bad advice!

Based on the information provided (no mention of any plans for future added appliances, just being able to run the basics) I stand by my previous post.

 

[6PTsocket]

Open frame non-inverter generators are what I call 'clatter boxes' because they are loud and shrill. They provide raw power for lighting, tools, etc. Good for site use. Not so good for electronics, computers, charging phones, etc. The Harbor Freight models stand up well in the quality and reliability factors (yeah, I know, but true!) and seem to hold up.

I recently picked up a couple of inverter generators, 1kw and a 3.5kw models. The difference in noise levels between those and the clatter boxes is crazy and has ensured the open frame genset I have will stay stored away unless I desperately need it.

One trick to reduce the noise on the open frame gensets is to simply build a noise baffle. Just some plywood or similar sheets that lean against each other or connect that surround the generator with a gap of a couple of feet for air flow. This funnels all the noise straight up instead and greatly reduces the overall volume. I've seem some very fancy builds as well, but for on site use, that simple set of plywood walls makes a big difference.

In the aftermarh of Sandy, with limited options, iI stood in a long line at Costco, waiting for a trailer truck full of generators to arrive. They were Champions rated 7000/9000. It ran for days and several times since. It is what you called a clatter box as it has no inverter. It runs the whole house, less the central air. That includes computers, TVs routers, etc. I never had any problem running electronics. Virtually all electronics today get their power from switching power supplies, that convert any off frequency, dirty, badly regulated AC to high voltage DC, then into high frequency pulses that are stepped down to the needed voltages, rectified and filtered again. Sounds complicated but even little wall worts now do it that way. The one thing I would like is something quieter and an inverter would be better, but a couple of neighbors got HF gens and mine is definitely quieter than those and came with wheels. The newer Champion I saw at Costco runs on gas or propane. I hve no idea what they have now; they keep changing brands.

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[Motorman55]

I purchased the HF 8750 Gen a few years ago. Used it a couple times since. I went with the 8750 because I wanted more power not less. Runs my whole house.

Sure its going to be louder then some, but so what? Its outside. You could build a wall/barrier around it to help deflect the noise away from your house if you really need to.

You need to ground the generator. I bought a length of the correct size wire and a grounding rod from HD. Installed as per the directions that came with the generator

Starts right up with a couple pulls of the cord, so I haven't had to purchase a battery yet. But will eventually get a battery because I'm getting more lazy in my retirement.

The wheel/handle kit are worth it. I used a 20% coupon for the kit.

 

[bjcouche]

For emergency use, the noise isn't really all that important. The most important feature on a generator is that it STARTS when you need it. Consider getting a SMALLER generator versus a larger one but still large enough to run your essentials. Unless you are trying to run a well pump, a 3500W generator could be enough to run refrigerators, microwaves, TV's and some lights. I specifically bought a Generac 8,000W (12,000W peak) because my well pump is very deep and requires lots of starting current. I tried running the whole house AC unit but 12,000W wasn't enough to start the compressor. So unless you are buying a whole house generator, you won't be able to run central air conditioning. My 8,000W generac is so heavy that it takes two people to lift it. It has electric start as well as a pull cord. I'm a big guy but the pull cord is so hard to pull that I can't get it started with the pull cord. It turns over fast with the electric start, except that the little 12V battery only lasts a year or two in storage before it's bad. The battery is buried inside the frame and difficult to access to jump start.
My point is, if you can go smaller based on your loads, do so. A smaller generator will take up less space in storage, be easier to lift and transport, and be way easier to pull start. Just my $0.02.
Brian

 

[flan]

My 10k runs my 2.5 ton ac unit. Look into a easy start if your 12k can’t run it.

 

[Reit38]

I think I will probably end up with the 8750. I can always have it on the backside of my like building to try and block the noise if that is the biggest complaint.

I'm assuming coupons won't work on the generators. Do they ever go on sale??

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[A**holes Garage]

Coupons do not apply to generators. I picked my 8750 up a month or so ago at one of the parking lot sales for $100 off, $499.00.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Coupons do not apply to generators. I picked my 8750 up a month or so ago at one of the parking lot sales for $100 off, $499.00.

Correct. You might have to break out the magnifying glass but Predator is in the list.

 

[slow]

Generators do have coupons for them, but the 20-25% off exclude predator. I just got a coupon for 449 for the 2000 watt inverter (normally 499)

 

[Falcon67]

The open frame units are pretty loud, but then most are not what you'd consider quiet. The Predator 6500 is louder than our Champion 6500 but neither is national park camping equipment either. The Predator Inverters are starting to show up at the track and they are very quiet. They seem to be around 3200 running watts so that's a bit low for our use. From what I gather, the extended warranty is a one shot deal. That is, get a wheel replaced using the warranty and it's over. So if purchased it might be saved for a dead generator type situation. None of the HF coupons are good for any of the decent generators. The inverter goes on sale for around $699 regularly. We are considering one if we can't find a deal on a Honda or Yamaha inverter.

As for cheap - we used a Champion 3500/4000 for about 3 years when racing and it never once failed us. We ran it as much as 4 days straight several times. Figure 2 weekends/about 12~14hrs each every month from March to October with a few 36 hour weekends thrown in and one 72 hour. 3 years on a genny that cost $299. No problems. We have $750 in our 6500 Champion and going into the 2nd year with it, same deal. I have also not heard any complaining about the Predator units, except a few about the noise level. The main reason we want an inverter is the noise level for overnight camping.

 

[Reit38]

Figures I just missed a coupon for the 8750 bring $499. I did see one bring it down to $519 tho. Wonder how often it drops to $499

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[volvosrock]

Figures I just missed a coupon for the 8750 bring $499. I did see one bring it down to $519 tho. Wonder how often it drops to $499

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Got ours at $519, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it at $499


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[CharlieM]

Another + for the 8750. Got mine right before Sandy, ran my whole house for 4 days. Just read the instructions. Make sure you do the brake in period to their spec's. Mine runs like a top, 1 pull too.

 

[teddlett]

I'm looking at the 8750 as well, I've got a 5k generac now, but it bogs down when the fridge or freezer or FAU turn on and the electric start would be nice for when my wife needs to kick it on, and having the overhead should increase the refuel time to 8 hrs (I get 6 now if I'm lucky). Though with PG&E talking about turning the power off in the summer when fire danger gets too high I may need to bite the bullet and get a 15k propane with automatic transfer switch.

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[Motorman55]

I've owned my 8750 HF gen for about three years now.

Starts right up with just a couple pulls. In fact it starts so easily that I've yet to buy a battery for it for the electric start.

Works for me.