I need a portable generator

[OHMS LAW]

Good morning Gentlemen

As the title states I am in search of a 5-6000 watt generator. Reading the reviews, they all seem to be about on par with each other.

Personally when I think generators I think Generac or a Honda unit. With the Honda of the wattage I need/want its out of my price range by a couple of bucks, I’m looking at Other units that are cheaper priced
I’ve heard good things about the predator from HF from a trusted welder at my job who swears by his, which he said he has used it to run his welder, grinder and other tools and even RV duty.

Also the champion unit at tractor supply has great reviews also but I’ve never heard of that unit.

The ryobi is also fairly well rated but the same exact price of the generac I’m looking at.

The main uses of this would be first, storm/hurricane duty running two window units, a fridge, tv. Second use would be use at my ranch running my Pop up camper, power tools and a small 120 welder Not all at the same time but you get the point.

I know which way I’m leaning but what would you look for in a genny?

 

[brianh]

I have a champion 4000. It gets used for about the same a few times a year to run our water pump and freezer and fridge. I only run ours periodically about every 4 hours for freezer and fridge champions are relatively noisy. Fine for the little I use it. It is ten years old and fine. I do drop the bowl on the carb every year or so and clean it.

 

[brtsvg]

I just bought a Honda EB2800 which appears to be made in the USA. Everything else I looked at was labeled as made in China. I’ll pay a price premium for Honda quality, as I note that several of my neighbors have told me that want to sell their existing generators and buy a Honda generator to replace them. I want dependability when I really need the generator.

 

[kd3pc]

I have honda and it has been flawless in almost two decades of boat use, home emergency, race track and field repairs.

Very quiet and quite frugal on fuel.

Can't go wrong with the Honda, the rest may last a year or two, if you are lucky.

 

[seber]

Check the offerings from Yamaha. They have inverter types similar to Honda for a lot less. If you are willing to do a little modification, used motorhome generators are readily available cheap and very quiet. You will need to make them portable and the fuel tank is separate. A gas can works well as they almost always have a fuel pump.

 

[driz]

I have honda and it has been flawless in almost two decades of boat use, home emergency, race track and field repairs.

Very quiet and quite frugal on fuel.

Can't go wrong with the Honda, the rest may last a year or two, if you are lucky.

Anything a Honda powered is great. Sams has them always. Go big or go home! Startup surge loads are often 3x the rating ( fridges, blower motors furnace motors ect, well motors.....). We wound up with a 3500 20 years ago as the big ones were gone, ice storm. It’s doable but believe me 5000 MINIMUM.
Put or build a wheel cart for so you can easily move it around and test it once to twice a year. You stabilize gasoline with [emoji82]no ethanol [emoji78]and make sure you run that carburetor dry. Dump the gas in your car and change .out for new annually with stabilizer .Once again always always always run it dry using the fuel shut off[emoji114].


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[Showkey]

Anything a Honda powered is great. Sams has them always. Go big or go home! Startup surge loads are often 3x the rating ( fridges, blower motors furnace motors ect, well motors.....). We wound up with a 3500 20 years ago as the big ones were gone, ice storm. It’s doable but believe me 5000 MINIMUM.
Put or build a wheel cart for so you can easily move it around and test it once to twice a year. You stabilize gasoline with [emoji82]no ethanol [emoji78]and make sure you run that carburetor dry. Dump the gas in your car and change .out for new annually with stabilizer .Once again always always always run it dry using the fuel shut off[emoji114].


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

SAMs has HONDA “powered“ generators.......NOT.........Honda Generators. There is a BIG difference.

 

[jonesg]

I put a predator 212cc in my old snowblower, it gave it a new lease on life.
Starts first pull after choking every time, it gets very cold up here in northern Maine and I can't be messing with a fussy engine when theres 3 feet of snow on the driveway at minus 30F. I run it for a few minutes in the summer, ethanol free gas with Stabil, fire it up and shut the fuel off, let it run til its dry and forgetaboutit for another 4 months.
Its a honda clone, all the kids are removing the governor to power gocarts and bikes, they run the snot out of them with racing cams.
I considered getting a generator but decided on a kerosine heater instead.

 

[Rc_Guy]

3100 hours on this one and we have a 2200 inverter also.

 

[theoldwizard1]

As the title states I am in search of a 5-6000 watt generator.
.
.
.
The main uses of this would be first, storm/hurricane duty running two window units, a fridge, tv. Second use would be use at my ranch running my Pop up camper, power tools and a small 120 welder. Not all at the same time but you get the point.

Everyone here is into OVERKILL especially when it is the "other guy".

TWO 2000W-2500W inverter generator is a MUCH better investment. Yes, they cost more but they are SO MUCH QUIETER than an open-frame, non-inverter generator and THEY USE MUCH LESS FUEL ! They only thing they can not do is power 240VAC loads.

Fuel savings is an issue, when you are trying to ride through a long power outage. Having to buy 10-20 gallons of fuel with a generator that size every day is going to be a problem. Two small generators could run for several days on 20 gallons.

 

[JiminAZ]

I have an OLD Generac that I bought in the mid 90's that is still kicking along just fine. And parts are still available. it is a 3500XL. was advertised as having a cast iron cylinder for longevity. Don't know if they are still as durable today but I've sure gotten my money's worth out of that thing. I do wonder about some of these import of the week brands, if you'll be able to get ignition or fuel system parts, air filters, etc in the future.

If I were buying today I would likely get a pair of Honda EU2000's (or 2200 or whatever they are making today). You can daisy chain them together when you need the power, or only use one if that's all you need. Light enough to carry around, quiet and inverter tech as I recall. Also IIRC Honda makes higher power generators (around 4 KW) that can be daisy chained.

Efficiency matters. I have buddies in Louisiana right now whose fuel pig generators are eating up their stores of gas quite quickly and no local gas is available. I haven't penciled the efficiency differences myself though, just heard two of them now voicing the concern that they are consuming way more gas in their generators than they had planned on.

Also have a 5500 watt Onan/Cummins in the motorhome that is designed for high hour service. Very nice running unit.

The problem you run into with "emergency" generators is that you think "cheap is fine, I won't be using it much" but if cheap results in something that doesn't run during an emergency, you're going to wish you had bought a more gucci unit. I grew up in Houston, and when a hurricane rolls through you better have stuff that works and supplies to keep it running for at least a couple weeks.

 

[bas157]

Can you hold out a little longer to save up enough for a larger Honda invertor? Also look into Yamaha invertors units. the HF Predator invertors from what I've heard are a good bang for the buck.
With the hurricane this week, may not be the best time to buy one. Not sure, but wondering if stores have bumped up the prices due to recent demand?

 

[Rc_Guy]

Everyone here is into OVERKILL especially when it is the "other guy".

TWO 2000W-2500W inverter generator is a MUCH better investment. Yes, they cost more but they are SO MUCH QUIETER than an open-frame, non-inverter generator and THEY USE MUCH LESS FUEL ! They only thing they can not do is power 240VAC loads.

Fuel savings is an issue, when you are trying to ride through a long power outage. Having to buy 10-20 gallons of fuel with a generator that size every day is going to be a problem. Two small generators could run for several days on 20 gallons.

My 6500 Honda inverter uses about 4-4.5 gallons in 8-10 hours on our vending trailer.

 

[theoldwizard1]

My 6500 Honda inverter uses about 4-4.5 gallons in 8-10 hours on our vending trailer.

That is an inverter generator. Most generators over 5000W are NOT and use a lot more fuel.

 

[M635_Guy]

Good morning Gentlemen

As the title states I am in search of a 5-6000 watt generator. Reading the reviews, they all seem to be about on par with each other.

Personally when I think generators I think Generac or a Honda unit. With the Honda of the wattage I need/want its out of my price range by a couple of bucks, I’m looking at Other units that are cheaper priced
I’ve heard good things about the predator from HF from a trusted welder at my job who swears by his, which he said he has used it to run his welder, grinder and other tools and even RV duty.

Also the champion unit at tractor supply has great reviews also but I’ve never heard of that unit.

The ryobi is also fairly well rated but the same exact price of the generac I’m looking at.

The main uses of this would be first, storm/hurricane duty running two window units, a fridge, tv. Second use would be use at my ranch running my Pop up camper, power tools and a small 120 welder Not all at the same time but you get the point.

I know which way I’m leaning but what would you look for in a genny?

I'd save the extra money for the Honda unit - I don't have experience with their big ones, but the small inverter models I had were flat-out fantastic.

If you can't do that, I'd just go with the Predator stuff - they seem to have a great reputation with the RV crowd. Hell, they even have a 2-year warranty.

 

[AA/FC]

I am convinced the best deal in all of generators right now is the HF Predator 3500 watt Super Quiet inverter generator. If that isn't enough power, buy two. They occasionally go on sale for $689-699 and are an absolute steel at that price.

These things are whisper quiet, sip fuel, produce clean power and they have electric start. I'm pretty sure this generator produces more power, cleaner and quieter, DOLLAR WISE compared to any other generator on the market today. I'd like to be proven wrong.

Sure, it's not a brand name Honda or Yamaha, but it's also about $1400-$1500 cheaper than those units, too. You could buy THREE HF 3500 watt inverter generators for the same price as ONE Honda 3500 watt inverter generator....... and you'd also have 3 times the available electricity!

I already own 2 generators, an 8500 watt Generac (only ran once) and a 2000 watt Predator inverter from HF so I'm not current looking for a generator...... but I am VERY tempted to buy one just to have because I think they're that good. lol.

Your mileage may vary....

 

[mike93lx]

I have a Briggs and Stratton Q6500 5kw inverter generator. I need 240v for a well pump, and wanted an inverter, which pushed me to this model as I wasn't spending Honda money to get that.

They can be had in the $900-1100 range and are very quiet. Not as good as an eu7000is, but much better than a traditional generator.

It doesn't have electric start, but will usually get going in 2 pulls for me.

 

[vssjim]

I have a Honda inverter gen 3500 it's about ten years old and is fantastic, I have also had a Robin which was great and donated it to a Cop that lived and stayed in New Orleans when some ICE cops went there to help after Katrina. The Craftsman/ Briggs unit that replaced it is was way to loud for residential/camper use and china made Universal Tool labeled generator was just poorly made they both went to the Pit Bull rescue people in New Orleans as they have a lot of power reliability problems and needed them . My Mother in law still has a Robin 2500 I set her up with that she takes no care of but still works great also. I don't think they sell them anymore but we also have a Cummins Onan inverter /Gen 3500 for my wife's hair salon for emergency times as some processes need to be finished once started and It has been flawless, I bought it through Costco. If I had to but another I would save up and get a Honda 3500 Inv/Gen. My friend has a predator but I have to service it and run it fairly often or it doesn't like starting even after stabilizing gas and running out of gas every time to store it so I know they are cheaper but it's tough to beat a Honda.

 

[Gummi Bear]

Mrs scored a tremendous deal on a brand new B&S for us a while back, it was a demo unit, and only had an hour or so of run time. It is a 5,500 watt run power, 8,250 startup. It starts and runs easily, I exercise it every week or two. I haven’t had a chance to run it long term, so not sure on fuel consumption. I’m hoping it burns less than a gallon per hour, we’ll see.

I want a Honda eu7000, but can’t afford it.



I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately...

Henry David Thoreau

 

[matt_i]

If Honda could make an eu5000 with 240vac for about $2500 I'd be there.

There are probably good reasons why-not but its interesting to think about.

 

[OHMS LAW]

Sounds like an inverter gen is the way to go. I’ll shall continue to save my pennies

 

[3rdgen]

I have a 7500,3000,2200 and 1000 watt Honda and can’t say enough good things about them never had issues and always start when we need them the 2200 is used the most and stays in the work van almost 100 percent of the time.

 

[FMC1959]

A Yamaha or Honda or top of the line in the wattage you are looking for. Even if it is another brand but the motor is Honda (or Yamaha, but can't recall any), still way ahead of the game.

Just the Honda motor costs more than the equivalent size generator with a non Honda motor. If a company spends the money on a Honda motor, they will not cheap out the rest of the generator. Examples like Wacker-Neuson, Northstar (by Northern Tool) and other

The rest of the generator in these small portables is not as important as only a handful of MFR's make the electronic boards and all. Honda, Yamaha, Generac, Champion and a ton of others do not make the electronics, all outsourced. I believe Onan is one of the few that makes electronics, Mitsubishi did at one time, not sure if they still do...anyway.

Not sure you are interested in used, but if you can find a Vanguard motored generator, they are excellent. They are Briggs & Stratton's answer to a Honda motor competitor and I have found that used they go very cheap compared to Honda (at least in my area)

 

[finn]

I have two of the 2000w Champion inverters for the camper. I run the camper on one except when I née they A/c, then run both. They cost me under $400 each four or five years ago, which is less than half the cost of the equivalent Honda. Pretty quiet and fuel efficient. I would buy them again if someone stole mine.

I also picked up a Menards Black Friday Chinese built Wen, open frame with what looks like a Honda clone ohv engine. It’s around 3400w (don’t remember exactly), and has a 240 v plug and enough surge backup to start my well pump. We don’t have hurricanes or extended power outages (longest I remember was around 8 hours a couple of years ago), so I do need something that will run 20000 hours. The little Wen started on the first pull last week during a short outage, after sitting for 11 months.

Best $187 I spent that Black Friday.
I understand the man love for the Honda, but I’m not playing that game.

 

[Showkey]

A Yamaha or Honda or top of the line in the wattage you are looking for. Even if it is another brand but the motor is Honda (or Yamaha, but can't recall any), still way ahead of the game.

Just the Honda motor costs more than the equivalent size generator with a non Honda motor. If a company spends the money on a Honda motor, they will not cheap out the rest of the generator. Examples like Wacker-Neuson, Northstar (by Northern Tool) and other

The rest of the generator in these small portables is not as important as only a handful of MFR's make the electronic boards and all. Honda, Yamaha, Generac, Champion and a ton of others do not make the electronics, all outsourced. I believe Onan is one of the few that makes electronics, Mitsubishi did at one time, not sure if they still do...anyway.

Not sure you are interested in used, but if you can find a Vanguard motored generator, they are excellent. They are Briggs & Stratton's answer to a Honda motor competitor and I have found that used they go very cheap compared to Honda (at least in my area)

Your dreaming if you believe the electronics, winding, controls, connectors or even the hardware are shared or some how the same is a bit of joke. That’s runs to the heart of the parts and service issues with an off brand.

It’s real important if the engine runs great ........but.........the genny produces no power or worse bad power in off HZ or piss poor Voltage Control.

 

[FMC1959]

Your dreaming if you believe the electronics, winding, controls, connectors or even the hardware are shared or some how the same is a bit of joke. That’s runs to the heart of the parts and service issues with an off brand.

It’s real important if the engine runs great ........but.........the genny produces no power or worse bad power in off HZ or piss poor Voltage Control.

Maybe I am dreaming, but a fellow that runs a rental shop told me that in this size (5000-6000), the vast majority are sharing parts from 3 or 4 MFR's that make these parts.

Producing no power he said happens, but rare; almost all gen's that come in the shop with problems are engine related

 

[WinMod21]

Has anyone here had or used a Westinghouse generator?

I'm not familiar with them, as we've had Generac & Honda, but I've noticed various places selling them.