Inverter Generators

MDof2 said:
As far as in / on ground, this is what I wish I did originally. Cry once.
I had a large 8-ish? KW CPE (Champion) generator that I returned after 3 years because the seam on the gas tank started leaking, and CPE basically told me to pound sand. Wasn't their problem anymore. Thank you Costco for a more than generous return policy. So, needless to say, probably not going to be their customer anymore :)
I ended up with a Firman 9.5KW dual fuel, and it works beautifully. Have a whole house isolation breaker, (manual) , but it's a heavy somebitch to move out in the dark, and the breaker bar doesn't automagically switch over. So while I love it, use it actually pretty often because it also runs a larger welder on job sites / remote where I don't have 240v 50a. But it's big, bulky, heavy, etc.
If I were to do it again, I'd spend the money and brain damage on a 15 or 20KW whole house / hands off unit, (Generac, etc.) just as @RR did and then buy a smaller one for camping, barn, jobsite, etc.
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I'd wanted a whole house for awhile. Had the money. Wife was opposed to the idea. Didn't wanna spend it, which I get.

Then what was left of Hurricane Michael passed right over our house in Oct 2018. It wasn't much more than a tropical depression at that point but the tornadoes and straightline winds it spawned tore up a bunch of trees and power lines between here and Graham. We were dark for about 4 days. Had portable generator power but not hooked in to well pump or water heater.

After about day 2 of no shower and flushing toilets with creek water she was like call the man. So I called the man. And seven months later we had a generator.

Our power has been out a grand total of 6 hours since LOL.
 
Relapse said:
So the piece of shit lasted only 3 months? And you abused the warranty to cover your losses? Thanks for clarifying your splendid testimonial.
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No i didn't abuse anything. I bought a no questions asked warranty outside of the 90 days no questions asked return policy, and exchanged an identical item within that time period. 2200hrs on the one I borrowed from my friend (who didn't keep his receipt) so I used the receipt for the one I bought him to return that under the 1 year. It was replaced under the 90 day return and they extended the one year.

3 months running 24hrs a day is nearly 2200hrs but we didn't run it the entire time due to traveling and having a power hookup partially.

Like I said it's alot of value for the money and we have been pleased. I doubt a $2500 Yamaha would have fared much better under these conditions but I could have bought 3 predators with warranty and bridged 2 of them for 7000 watts and had a spare.

Reading is Fundamental...

By all means though, Let us all know when you put over 10K hours on generator power and your experiences.
 
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Abuse, misuse, normal wear and tear? I read pretty well. Defects in material or workmanship is all that's covered. Substituting your receipt for the one your friend lost to subvert the policy rules?
 
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RR said:
I'd wanted a whole house for awhile. Had the money. Wife was opposed to the idea. Didn't wanna spend it, which I get.

Then what was left of Hurricane Michael passed right over our house in Oct 2018. It wasn't much more than a tropical depression at that point but the tornadoes and straightline winds it spawned tore up a bunch of trees and power lines between here and Graham. We were dark for about 4 days. Had portable generator power but not hooked in to well pump or water heater.

After about day 2 of no shower and flushing toilets with creek water she was like call the man. So I called the man. And seven months later we had a generator.

Our power has been out a grand total of 6 hours since LOL.
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Been there, done that, got that t-shirt......
Went 3 days without a generator of any sort.
And a wifey....
 
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When we made the offer on our house, we didn't know/realize it had a 13kW Siemens whole house generator & auto transfer switch. Huge bonus, as we'd already discussed needing a robust genny, living in the boonies. With the auxiliary wood burning stove/boiler, we oughtta be GTG.

Need to get the 1000 gal propane tank topped off before prices get too stupid.
 
Crazy Carl said:
When we made the offer on our house, we didn't know/realize it had a 13kW Siemens whole house generator & auto transfer switch. Huge bonus, as we'd already discussed needing a robust genny, living in the boonies. With the auxiliary wood burning stove/boiler, we oughtta be GTG.

Need to get the 1000 gal propane tank topped off before prices get too stupid.
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We just topped off and the prices have been surprisingly stable, so far.
 
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Relapse said:
So the piece of shit lasted only 3 months? And you abused the warranty to cover your losses? Thanks for clarifying your splendid testimonial.
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I don't think returning a defective product is abusing the warranty.

And he did say the one he's using now has been going for 6 months, meaning over 4000 hours of reliability.
 
GoWolfpack said:
I don't think returning a defective product is abusing the warranty.
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Read a little closer
Ikarus1 said:
The first one I borrowed from a friend with 9hrs on it. I adjusted the valves at 1000hrs and it died about 2200hrs. So i bought him a new one and swapped the dead out under the 90 days with the receipt. The third one was faulty (carb issues) out of the box.
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1) It wasn't a defective product. It had 2200 hrs of use.
2) Buying a new, identical product and returning or exchanging the old, broken one in its place (or doing so via the warranty) is dishonest and could be considered theft by the merchant.
 
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I installed a whole home generator in late 2016.

Kohler 20KW running on plumbed natural gas with an automatic transfer switch and load shedding (when load exceeds generator capacity, the switch automatically shuts down specific circuits.)

A couple of items to note:

* Generator manufacturers won't provide warranty service if the generator was not installed by an authorized electrician.
* The cost difference between a 12, 16, and 20KW generator is negligible when considering the total installation cost.
* My natural gas supplier (Dominion Energy) required their own crew to install a gas branch line to a new appliance. They're not cheap ($1800 to run a straight line 20 feet from the meter to the generator)
* The automatic transfer switch detects a powerline failure and starts the generator. When the genset power has stabilized, the power is transferred. This usually takes about 30 seconds, so computers still need a UPS (mine are sized to give me at least 5 minutes run time for the critical systems)
* The generator can report status and be managed via the internet. They'll continue to function properly even when they loose connectivity.
* It runs a 20 minute self test weekly.
* My installers have a yearly maintenance program that includes oil change, load test the battery, and load test the genset. Not cheap, but worth it for me
* Longest I've been on generator power: 56 hours. A friend of mine in Reno was on generator for 78 hours and had to do an oil change during that time.
 
Relapse said:
Abuse, misuse, normal wear and tear? I read pretty well. Defects in material or workmanship is all that's covered. Substituting your receipt for the one your friend lost to subvert the policy rules?
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None of that applies to these purchased "no questions asked " 1 or 2 year extended warranties HFT sells. I was told by the store manager on multiple occasions that they don't care where it comes from or what condition it is or the reason its returned with the "product replacement policy".
That's why they push you to buy them on almost everything with a gas engine.
I consider it cheap insurance when you're buying something that is an unknown.

But yeah virtue signal on...
 
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Ikarus1 said:
None of that applies to these purchased "no questions asked " 1 or 2 year extended warranties HFT sells. I was told by the store manager on multiple occasions that they don't care where it comes from or what condition it is or the reason its returned with the "product replacement policy".
That's why they push you to buy them on almost everything with a gas engine.
I consider it cheap insurance when you're buying something that is an unknown.

But yeah virtue signal on...
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The scenario as you described it

Your friend purchased generator #1 - without an insurance policy - and it ran 2200 hours
You purchased generator #2 and an insurance policy - which only applied to generator #2
You claimed insurance on generator #2 but gave HF generator #1.

That's dishonest and most likely theft.

That HF didn't call you on it isn't a good excuse.
 
poller said:
The scenario as you described it

Your friend purchased generator #1 - without an insurance policy - and it ran 2200 hours
You purchased generator #2 and an insurance policy - which only applied to generator #2
You claimed insurance on generator #2 but gave HF generator #1.

That's dishonest and most likely theft.

That HF didn't call you on it isn't a good excuse.
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It's not insurance, and it states such in the brochure. I actually purchased a product replacement plan for a certain period of time, in this case, 1 year plus 90 days and returned several generators for different reasons. Harbor Freight promotes and sells it as no questions asked. The fact that this bothers you concerns me about as much as it bothers them. So take your virtue signaling and shove it. Seriously take it to PMs and I will tell you exactly what I think.
HAPPY FRIDAY

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At my last job, we used Yamaha brand inverter generators that had been converted to run off propane. They worked great and were very reliable. I brought one up 1500' on a radio tower (in the tower elevator) and it provided power for over a week. I would buy a Yamaha if I needed my own.
 
rdinatal said:
Any suggestions for a 'true' 20a generator?
Dual fuel preferred.
Budget <$500
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Something like this?

www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com

DuroMax XP5500EH 5,500 Watt Portable Dual Fuel Gas Propane Powered Generator

The DuroMax 5,500 Watt Mighty Series Dual-Fuel Generator is one of the most powerful and unique generator in its class. Powered by either gasoline or propane, the dual-fuel capability coupled with an available 5.500 peak watts in a small footprint allows this generator to be used anywhere for...
www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com

(I’m assuming you’re not after inverter style?)
 
BigWaylon said:
Something like this?

www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com

DuroMax XP5500EH 5,500 Watt Portable Dual Fuel Gas Propane Powered Generator

The DuroMax 5,500 Watt Mighty Series Dual-Fuel Generator is one of the most powerful and unique generator in its class. Powered by either gasoline or propane, the dual-fuel capability coupled with an available 5.500 peak watts in a small footprint allows this generator to be used anywhere for...
www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com www.generatorfactoryoutlet.com

(I’m assuming you’re not after inverter style?)
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No sensitive electronics so no inverter is needed. The 30a is a plus.
 
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rdinatal said:
Thanks, I spaced on that. Looks like the twist lock is 30a but the actual power is well short.

Since the 240v was not one of my needs but a 'nice have' I didn't notice. @LeeMajors nailed it.

Need to up my budget... It's the CFF Way.
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I spent 5 years in college to learn what I should have learned in highschool physics.


And it's not just CFF, "Save up longer and buy something more expensive" is the way of the whole internet.
 
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