MarkO...I'm new to generator ownership, but plan on starting mine once a year... about a month ahead of hurricane season... my older Honda 3500es has a carb bowl drain, so I do run mine dry... my fuel supply is a bulb start siphon line from a 6 gal can, so don't have a separate fuel tank...I start to use the stored hurricane season gas (about 15 gallons) about a month after the season, then refill... I do run a good synthetic oil in the crankcase, and spin it over without the fuel line attached to pre lube it ...small float charger for the battery