Talk to me about portable generators

Suprf1y said:

I have two, a small 1000 W and a 5000 W. We mostly use the 1000 W because the power rarely goes out for long and we use it mostly for lights, TV and satellite.

 Our power went out a few months ago and I pulled the little 1000W 2 stroker  out. Hit it with some ether,  it fired and ran perfectly for the 3 or so hours we needed it. It probably hadn't run for a year. I needed it last weekend and same thing. It has over 2000 hours on it and runs perfectly. When I bought it a dozen years ago (for $75 shipped) I bought two thinking it wouldn't last. The other is still in the box

Canoe!

Since this is bumped up however, I just splurged on a brand new Honda EU2200i generator this weekend, thinking that if I bought something new and high quality, that with care it would last me for a lifetime.  Unfortunately it seems to be bad right out of the box. I gave myself a blister trying to get it to start, but finally got it going with a bit of starting fluid. It runs good with the choke on full, but dies like you hit the kill switch when the choke is tuned off, even after running it for several minutes. 

Now I'm wondering if I should have just bought a Harbor freight "predator" for less than half the price...

bgkast said:

Canoe!

Since this is bumped up however, I just splurged on a brand new Honda EU2200i generator this weekend, thinking that if I bought something new and high quality, that with care it would last me for a lifetime.  Unfortunately it seems to be bad right out of the box. I gave myself a blister trying to get it to start, but finally got it going with a bit of starting fluid. It runs good with the choke on full, but dies like you hit the kill switch when the choke is tuned off, even after running it for several minutes. 

Now I'm wondering if I should have just bought a Harbor freight "predator" for less than half the price...

Return that puppy and grab a fresh one.

FWIW, I've had great success with m 2000w Predator.  I keep it in the garage and can carry it to the deck off the kitchen and have lights/fridge in about 10 minutes.

Dislike: there's no convenient way to drain the carb and/or run it with the fuel shut off.  On my 5500W Generac, I'll run it with fuel in OFF until it quits, then drain the float bowl.   I have no idea how that compares to the Honda.

HF makes a  big deal about running StaBil in the gas and running it every so often.  It's small and convenient enough that I do both of those things but my bigger generator sits for years between runs and fires right up because I can prep it better for storage.

In reply to 84FSP :

Done! The second one they pulled off the display wouldn't run at all. They pulled a third out of the box and it runs good. Must be a bad batch from the factory!

bgkast said:

Done! The second one they pulled off the display wouldn't run at all. They pulled a third out of the box and it runs good. Must be a bad batch from the factory!

QC on the Predators does seem a little spotty.  

Frustrating but glad you sorted it sir.  A generator or powerwall/solar is on my list.

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

bgkast said:

Done! The second one they pulled off the display wouldn't run at all. They pulled a third out of the box and it runs good. Must be a bad batch from the factory!

QC on the Predators does seem a little spotty.  

My 9000w apparently doesn't have bearings and died really fast.

The other one has about 4 billion hours on it

Timely discussion as Assembly Bill 1346 will kill all SORE (small off-road engine) sales in California starting on July 1, 2022.

I'm somewhat on-board with banning gas weed whackers and stuff as battery tech has gotten really good but generators???

We've got serious power grid issues...cutting power when it's windy to prevent fires, not having enough power for peak loads, etc..

Anyway, I may be buying a generator soon if they're not all sitting on container ships.

Added later...

I did some fact checking and the ban would go into effect on January 1st, 2024 or when it's feasible, which ever is later.

But still, I'd do a carve out for generators.

I looked into the the above noted absurdity a bit.  The "law" is not supposed to be implemented until 2025, the definition of what it is exactly supposed to be is supposed to be determined by 2022.

It "appears" as if it is pointed at yard equipment.  Which means it might not (and I would certainly hope not!) apply to generators.  The land of earthquakes and high wind power cut off, making generator illegal!?  Well, I can see how they could be that clueless.

Of course, yard equipment is heavily used by professionals, and electric would be wildly impractical (at this point) for that purpose... so... 

Of note:  Gas powered leaf blowers are already illegal in Los Angeles (not sure if city or county).  Good luck finding a gardener NOT using gas powered blowers in LA!

By July 1, 2022, the state board shall, consistent with federal law, adopt cost-effective and technologically feasible regulations to prohibit engine exhaust and evaporative emissions from new small off-road engines, as defined by the state board. Those regulations shall apply to engines produced on or after January 1, 2024, or as soon as the state board determines is feasible, whichever is later.

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB1346

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

bgkast said:

Done! The second one they pulled off the display wouldn't run at all. They pulled a third out of the box and it runs good. Must be a bad batch from the factory!

QC on the Predators does seem a little spotty.  

Probably true, but these were all Hondas.

bgkast said:

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

bgkast said:

Done! The second one they pulled off the display wouldn't run at all. They pulled a third out of the box and it runs good. Must be a bad batch from the factory!

QC on the Predators does seem a little spotty.  

Probably true, but these were all Hondas.

Huh, I misread.  Well, that's unexpected.  But QC on the Predators is spotty, I know several people with the experience of having bought 2 and one of them worked great, the other failing quickly.

As for the California ban, we'll see what happens.  Yes, I think it's primarily aimed at the landscaping industry, and there probably is a case to be made for batteries being a decent replacement for those.  Banning generators is crazy though, half the point of them is to provide backup power in situations where you can't charge up batteries.  And I have no idea how I'm expected to bring enough batteries to run the AC on my trailer for 3 days, even if I cover the roof in solar panels.

Davidortiz canoeing away over here.

In reply to Davidortiz :

There are better ways to get electric in a canoe