Quiet Generators

[sokhapkin]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Being a contractor that uses my tools for a living

Here lies the main difference. I agree that durable stuff is essential if you make a living on it. But there is absolutely no need to purchase reliable durable stuff for occasional use.

[PC Steve]

Originally Posted by Bruce H

I have not done any generator research for three or four years. To me the cat's meow would be a generator with remote start (with a key fob like your car). The only ones I saw the last time I looked were larger, heavier generators. I am a fairly stout guy but I don't want to be loading and unloading a 150 lb generator.

www.pinellaspowerproducts.com for remote kits. No pecuniary interest or personal experience.

[Timber Wolf]

Originally Posted by sokhapkin

What is better to you - honda generator for $1000 which will last for 10 years or no-name generator for $400 which will last for 5 years? I prefer to replace cheap things with a new ones. Inverter generator is not a long time durable item. Technology evolves.

I just bought the Honda 2K after thinking about it for a long time. I am usually pretty cheap, but also very risk averse. I felt that while the Honda may not have been the best choice, it certainly was not a wrong choice. In the end, and at my age and "station in life", I decided that I would bite the bullet and have the Honda I always wanted. There are a lot of things that I can not afford to buy the best, but in this instance I could, so did.

[jennykatz]

I bought a gen-set from Sams club it was a Black Max inverter 1000 watt ,900 watt continuous. I bought it to run a 5000 btu A/C on our Cuddy cabin boat and works fine . It also will run the 8000 btu A/C on our Lil Snoozy with everything else off .No water heater or charger on
We also own a 2400 inverter watt Yamaha and it will run everything on the Lil Snoozy and it is quieter then the Black Max 1000 . Eventually I might just sell the 2 gen-sets and buy a 2000 yamaha

[Donna D.]

I've purchased a lot of crap tools from Harbor Freight because I needed to fix ONE thing. Knowing that I wouldn't need that tool again for years. Fixed what needed to be done and Yes, that tool went into the garbage.


But, looking to the future... what is it I NEED? No matter the product, I look to warranty, customer service (can I call and talk to someone?), are there readily available parts to fix the problem? A service center to help me?


I can't imagine boondocking in Arizona (Quartzite) with a no-name generator and having it die... there isn't an extension cord long enough to run the A/C!


In the end, the decision is YOURS. Not my budget and not my time. It's all good.

[trainjunkie]

FWIW, the Harbor Freight generator mentioned is not C.A.R.B. compliant, thus not sold in California (in case anyone in Cali is considering one).

[Perry J]

I'm an old guy who has learned anything from Harbor Freight with any moving parts are going to die at the most inopportune time.
If you but anything electrical buy their warranty as you may need it.

[Steve L.]

I bought a Sears table saw years ago. I eventually realized it had a left and right crown in the table top. To get a perpendicular cut I had to set the blade tilt differently depending on which side of the blade the wood was. And that was even after I had the top replaced which also was bowed. I had a cheap B&D jig saw. Never a square cut (blade bending out of square in curved cuts. Bought a quality one (Bosch) and never had a problem. It seems like early on I bought two of many tools. The first cheap one and later another one to get some quality. My motto in later years has been, “Buy the best and cry (at the price) only once.” Cheaper in the long run. I wonder how many try a new hobby, get crap results, and decide it’s not for them. When the real problem is they bought cheap to start with. I suggest you buy quality and least have some resale value if you change your mind.

In the case of generators, any time I’ve compared specs from the Honda or Yamaha to HF, CostCo, etc. brands they aren’t the same let alone better. Only cheaper. I only buy HF for disposable hand tools. I bring them to the boat because I’m always knocking them overboard. Vinyl gloves, zip ties, etc. are examples of disposal items I’ll get from there.

I’m not going to convince anyone, especially after they’ve already bought something. There’s ego involved, on both sides. Few people have the honesty to admit they either overpaid or bought a POS item. This seems like a discussion for the undecided future purchaser.

[Anita]

Originally Posted by Steve L.

I bought a Sears table saw years ago. I eventually realized it had a left and right crown in the table top. To get a perpendicular cut I had to set the blade tilt differently depending on which side of the blade the wood was. And that was even after I had the top replaced which also was bowed. I had a cheap B&D jig saw. Never a square cut (blade bending out of square in curved cuts. Bought a quality one (Bosch) and never had a problem. It seems like early on I bought two of many tools. The first cheap one and later another one to get some quality. My motto in later years has been, “Buy the best and cry (at the price) only once.” Cheaper in the long run. I wonder how many try a new hobby, get crap results, and decide it’s not for them. When the real problem is they bought cheap to start with. I suggest you buy quality and least have some resale value if you change your mind.

In the case of generators, any time I’ve compared specs from the Honda or Yamaha to HF, CostCo, etc. brands they aren’t the same let alone better. Only cheaper. I only buy HF for disposable hand tools. I bring them to the boat because I’m always knocking them overboard. Vinyl gloves, zip ties, etc. are examples of disposal items I’ll get from there.

I’m not going to convince anyone, especially after they’ve already bought something. There’s ego involved, on both sides. Few people have the honesty to admit they either overpaid or bought a POS item. This seems like a discussion for the undecided future purchaser.

I like to buy once as well. Usually saves you in the long run. I am just having sticker shock. Our little home away from home is all electric, and I am also wondering how often we will need a generator when most camp grounds offer hook ups?

[Anita]

Originally Posted by Perry J

I'm an old guy who has learned anything from Harbor Freight with any moving parts are going to die at the most inopportune time.
If you but anything electrical buy their warranty as you may need it.

We have only recently got a Habor Frieght near by, so I don't have any personal experience with items from the store. I have done a couple walk through a but always left empty handed. Thanks for the heads up. If something is gonna break down on me it usually does it the worst possible place.

[Anita]

Originally Posted by jennykatz

I bought a gen-set from Sams club it was a Black Max inverter 1000 watt ,900 watt continuous. I bought it to run a 5000 btu A/C on our Cuddy cabin boat and works fine . It also will run the 8000 btu A/C on our Lil Snoozy with everything else off .No water heater or charger on
We also own a 2400 inverter watt Yamaha and it will run everything on the Lil Snoozy and it is quieter then the Black Max 1000 . Eventually I might just sell the 2 gen-sets and buy a 2000 yamaha

One of the reasons we choose the egg camper is for its light weight, and I can't find the weight specs on most generators. We have a off brand here at the house because we lose power a lot here. It is heavy and loud, but starts on the first pull. Never any trouble out of it. I don't want to be ran out of the camp ground however, so lighter and quieter is the goal. Thanks for you input

[Anita]

Originally Posted by sokhapkin

Here lies the main difference. I agree that durable stuff is essential if you make a living on it. But there is absolutely no need to purchase reliable durable stuff for occasional use.

And how often is it needed. In my experience with tent camping most places offer hook ups. With that being said I don't always plan on being in a camp ground, but shouldn't my battery last a couple days?

[Anita]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Being a contractor that uses my tools for a living, I would not consider anything but the best brand name products. They are definitely pricier, but they pay for themselves in many ways.

Firstly, they last many times longer. I was once told that you can spend double the money for tools you pass off to your kids, rather than spending half the money to replace them in short order. I have definitely found this to be true.

Secondly, they often do a better job, and when quality work matters, quality tools must be used.

And thirdly, they are usually more ergonomically designed, making them easier to use, which is very important when putting a few hours a day on them, and not being fatigued.
This little unit claims to be using the Yamaha motor, how do feel about that?
That said, I agree with what most said, and would only buy a Honda or Yamaha genset. I have owned a few of each, currently have a 3000W Yamaha inverter, and the only problem I ever had with them, is that thieves like to target them. I have had a couple go missing from jobsites, and one was stolen from a locked shed on our rec property.

This little unit claims to be using the Yamaha motor. I found that alittle odd. What do you think about these claims?

[Anita]

Originally Posted by Paul O.

Fuel cells? Those are noiseless, except for a cooling fan...

...however, they are not for those of us in the Scamp price bracket. Sigh.

I looked at some solar panels. But aren't those guys heavy? I have no experience in hooking them up , do the need a special battery? I love the idea of not carrying gas, and being as " off the grid" as possible.

[Anita]

Thanks for so many and quick replies.

[redbarron55]

We have run our generators fairly hard during planned power outages at work and so far there is no difference in the operation of the three Honda (2 - 2000 watt and 1 3000 watt) and the 2500 watt HF unit.
We have broken them in (all of them ) and changed the oil to synthetic.
We ran each of them with a load equal to their max continuous rating (and in the case of the HF unit the max surge) for at least a tank of fuel.
The HF unit may well crap out the next time it is used, but there is no evidence of it in oil usage, noise, or anything else SO FAR.
Several of my maintenance people have bought these for emergency use at home (we are in the hurricane belt here in Mobile, AL.)
I think you won't go wrong with the Hondas, but at the same time the HF unit seems to be well made and 40% of the price.
I have not taken one apart and don't plan to either, but if one does quit then it is a possibility. The main problem area with most of these Chinese generators is the low quality spark plugs used, but again so far there has been no problem with these. The replacement is a NGK CR7HSA.
The main problem with generators is that they are not operated enough and the fuel tends to varnish and the Alcohol blend tends to cause prolems as well. Probably you should use Sta-Bil fuel treatment in all of the generators.
We run our generators every month, loaded, for at least an hour to help insure that they will run and we have two available where these things are critical for backup.
I have to admit that I bought the Harbor Freight Predator inverter generator as a test to compare to the Hondas and I have expected it to give trouble, but so far it has run just as good as the Hondas. The testing has not yet run for a year, but we are working on it.
We let the guys borrow the generators for camping etc. just to keep them running more (see above), but they tend to borrow the Hondas and not the HF unit.
We have also had one generator stolen and again it was one of the Hondas and not the HF. If you are going to steal something you might as well compromise your ethics for the perceived higher quality and value!
I do wish the HF unit was lighter and I am going to try side by side testing for the intake silencer (mine) vs. the Hondas and the unmodified HF generator here to see what the difference really is on noise.
When we checked the noise with the same load and idling with the admitted (perhaps) lower quality dB meter APP on my phone they measured the same at the same distance, but the HF unit sounded to the ear a little "rappier" and that was from that intake noise discussed above.
I talked with the guys at break this morning and we decided to run some more tests since it is about time for the monthly PM.
We are going to compare the gensets again with a Kill-a-Watt hooked up and borrow a good dB meter from the safety department. We will take a 5' rope with a hook on it and measure from the handles on the top.
We will load them all the same and as close to their max rating as well to compare at idle, 1500 watt load, and max.
We know that the HF unit uses less gas than the book says when loaded with two 1500 watt heaters for 8 hours. This time we will try it with measured output.
Also we think that we can parallel two of the HF units and we will try this as well. Since the inverter electronics are pretty standard and the Hondas and others just tie the outputs together it might play (or not).
Either it will work or we will have two crispy units.
Also since these inverters are pretty common and the pinout are pretty much the same the unused terminals on the inverter might just give the eco mode if hooked up.
Experiment time! ( will report when the smoke clears)
If possible we will try to do a video, but that is a fairly low priority for us.

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by sokhapkin

What is better to you - honda generator for $1000 which will last for 10 years or no-name generator for $400 which will last for 5 years? I prefer to replace cheap things with a new ones. Inverter generator is not a long time durable item. Technology evolves.

Thank you for telling me that my Honda 2000 watt generator that has lasted for 15 years broke 5 years ago. And a 6,500 watt Honda powered generator is still running strong after 11 years. The current must be magically produced. And I'm surprised that you can tell me a $400 generator will last for 5 years when even the manufacturer will not say that. I guess my experience significantly differs from yours.


Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[redbarron55]

A shorter aside...
I didn't really buy the generator for camping in my Scamp. but rather as a backup if a hurricane is forecast to hit Mobile and we might have to use the Scamp.
Still the secret is to run the things often enough to keep them in good shape and maintain them even though they are cheap. We change the synthetic oil every 25 hours of runtime for all of the gensets.
Bad gas and crudded up carbs are the main things that kill the generators around here.
We see few of them with real mechanical engine troubles like bearings etc. ( most are knock offs of the Honda design. I'll know more when we have taken the covers off my unit.)
Now almost all are overhead valve engines with overhead cams and they need to be adjusted as well.
Maintenance is the key! all of them are made in some Chinese factory, btu of course some have better quality control. The Hondas that everybody copied have the better QC. My feeling (not yet proven) is that once you are outside of the infant mortality and maintain them they are good to go.

[Jon Vermilye]

Originally Posted by Paul O.

Fuel cells? Those are noiseless, except for a cooling fan...

...however, they are not for those of us in the Scamp price bracket. Sigh.

When Chevy engineers brought their experimental Chevrolet Equinox Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Vehicle to the NY State Fair, I was very impressed with the 100KW fuel cell the size of a large microwave. Then they mentioned that they only run on hydrogen & each cost $1,000,000.00. Now if they could built one for $1-$2K (even the same physical size) that produced 5KW on propane, they would sell lots of them!

[Steve L.]

In my opinion, the electricity source of the future RV-er will be fuel cells. Once the storage and handling of hydrogen is addressed/solved, it would be a quiet, cheap, 24 hour source.

Solar cells may of course get up to reasonable efficiency levels to compete with gas or diesel engines, but the attendant cost and weight of electricity storage weighs against it, in my opinion. But of course development of the Lunar Cell (works off moonlight, don’t cha know) may mitigate everything but cloudy days. Wind is unlikely. Portable nuclear is likely to only be used by middle east campers. Methane powered generators strapped to cow’s butts are (probably) a long shot.