Looking for advice on generators

Uh. Here. And I know that my generator is as powerful of 2 of those honda inverter generators at least.

I had never seen the bigger honda generators.

 

When we had our transfer panel put in the electrician said we could put our hot water heater on it. We have a 4500 watt continuous. He said we could just shut everything else down and heat the water up. Our hot water heater is only 3000 watts though and the hot water lasts about a day when the power is out.

As for the generator itself we were just starting our research and a neighbour offered us his Champion for $300 that was about 3 years old at the time. 14 hours on it. Figured it would do until we found a larger one at a good price. It runs our fridge, freezers, well pump, lights and keeps the water in the barns from freezing. When we had oil heat it ran our furnace blower as well. We haven't seen a need for anything bigger but we are careful not to run too much at once. If I went bigger I would want electric start and most likely a remote to make it easy to conserve gas. Dual fuel would be up there on my list as well.

Good luck in your quest for power.

 

I have the 6500 honda SX. It is electric start. It is standard, not the IS (inverter), version. The standard has to run as a specific RPM to generate 60 cycle power. The inverter generates DC power and converts it electronically to 60 cycle so the speed is controlled by demand. The inverter output is very clean and the unit is very fuel efficient.

My 6500 SX has a fuel management system that provides only enough gas to maintain the proper rpms under the load demand. Our normal load uses about a half gallon per hour at what I guess is somewhere around 50% capacity. It is much quieter than my old Briggs & Stratton unit and most other units in the area. Normal load is 2 refrigerators, lights, several PCs, our DHW/heat boiler as needed, and assorted entertainment devices. It has run a 14,000BTU air-conditioner without problem.

I think he $2,400 I paid hurt a little but was a solid investment. The inverter units at the time were over $3,000.

KaptJaq

 

I have no need to. Sure there great motors and are quiet but there are many others that work and cost way less. Hopefully the 5000 watt generator I have will last quite a few more years and I want have to worry about that anytime soon.

 

First off are you sure your existing genny isn't set up for a electric starter ? A hump on the lower part of the blower housing and a couple of tapped holes on the block maybe ?
Secondly what are your needs actually like ? I have seen your comments about a low electric bill, how about frequency of power failures ? Is portability a desired feature ? Do you already have natural gas (the piped kind) or propane for a totally hands free automatic system ?
If pulling the rope has lost it's romance for you now how will you feel about the whole drag it out and get the cord check the gas drop the flashlight scenario just to have the power return 5 or 10 years from now ?
I'm on a well myself, something to consider is additional tank capacity.....A lot of it. It doesn't need to be anywhere near your existing one just tied into the system somewhere. Can really increase the ease of riding out nuisance power failures and does happy things to the efficiency and life of the pump.

 

Also if you happen to find a used BRUSH TYPE unit you will have a much better machine than a "brushless". Contrary to popular belief the output power does NOT go through the brushes only the "exciter" current, a small amount of power used to energize the rotating electromagnet.
The majority of brushless alternators came about by being cheaper to manufacture not by being better.
Automotive alternators are still brush design for what it's worth. And they are 3 phase to boot..... Wrap your noggin round that.

 

Power return in 5 or 10 years

 

A chart to go along with my earlier advice:

Honda Generators - Wattage estimation guide

I will also add that the Japanese armatures (gen set) from Fujikawa are top notch. These are a big part of why you "pay for the name" on Honda & Subaru generators.

 

Yeah well......speekun and writun, punkchewation ...... along with going out in public iz not on my list of strong points.

 

I have a Honda EU3000is, which is a wonderful generator. It's extremely quiet and fuel efficient, but it's 120v only. It's my first choice when the power goes out. I did have a Generac 5000w with a 10hp recoil start Briggs motor. I used it in extended outages and when I needed to run the well pump. It was a b*tch for me to start and impossible for my wife, noisy and crude. After looking around for awhile, I decided on a Rigid 8000 watt (10,000 surge) with a Subaru motor and electric start. That model is no longer available, I found it used with 150 hours for $600. It will run the electric water heater OR the well pump and the rest of the house. It starts easily, but is noisy. The power is much cleaner than the old Generac (my microwave always sounded like it was running on half power).

If you have natural gas or propane, go that way. Storage and handling of gas is always a hassle. Given that the motor is the primary source of problems with a generator, I would look for one with a Honda, Yamaha or Subaru motor.

 

Between return and 5 I missed the insertion of a comma. The jist was once you've got all that done the power comes back on and when you purchased your existing genny pulling the rope didn't bother you but in 5 or 10 years dragging all of that out might. So a automatic system might be desirable. Oh noo I think sr Mary yardstick is coming to take me out....
Also ask a local well guy for a used tank (bladder type) put on a "T" with a couple of garden hose fittings and put it in line with your hose when you are watering, much easier on your pump as it cuts short cycling.
Again my apologies.... Mother always said I talked like a sausage.

 

How about a PTO generator ? If you have a tractor that is. If not please start a "help me choose my new tractor thread"
Don't worry I'm sure we can help you spend your money.

 

And now things just got expensive.

 

Depends on how you look at it. I'm a fan of more but in this case generators are like saws. A 3 generator plan haha. 22 kw is a lot for a lighting load. I start with a 750 watt and go to a 50kw 3 phase unit. With several in between (I refuse to count as that would indicate a addiction)

 

Also I have never used a Honda but I do have a 3 cyl 1800 rpm 6500 watt Kubota that purrs like a kitten.
Maybe Kubota should be on your list.