I have been pondering a generator for my home for some time now and was wondering if anyone had some information.

I was thinking just enough power to run the gas furnace and a few lights.

How big should I get and what brand have people had success with. I'd like to use propane too.

Angus
I looked at H**e D*pot and will be putting in the biggest one they have 21k, it is due to arrive the 18th of Dec (installers busy) with a 250 gal propane tank (for the genny only)
Mike

we operate a mobile pet grooming business that requires portable power. We have 3 Onan 3.6 KW propane fueled generators. we use them about 1000 hours per year, and have a pretty steady diet of breakdowns. The propane keeps them clean, but its a lawn mower engine spinning the electronics. Expected life is about 4-5 thousand hours. We also have a system that consists of the trucks engine spinning the alternator, charging a bank of marine 12v batteries and a 3 kw inverter. this seems like a better system to me-no lawn mower engine, solar and manual options for charging the 12v batteries, and reasonably reliable inverter units. Then there is the 5kw generac generator at home, piped in to the municipal gas system with automatic transfer switch, which has functioned well in occasional blackouts for 6 years now. You can determine the load by adding up the requirements of each electrical component: 5kw runs my furnace, assorted lights, fridge, freezer, gas stove.

Do Not buy one powered by gasoline. I bought a gas powered generator & wish I hadn't.This fuel has to be rotated and/or treated for long storage. It is an extreme fire hazard if spilled, and is generally a pain to handle. I strongly recommend either diesel or propane. Diesel is less of a fire problem & can be burned as fuel if you have an oilburner for heat. One supply can do double duty. Diesel fuel doesn't evaporate as fast as gas, so it is less of a storage pain & much less of a fire hazard. Propane is probably the best for ease of handling. The fuel tanks are fill & forget. This option does away with the problem of refilling, pouring & spilling. If you buy two tanks (or more) you can refuel the generator by just replacing the mt tank with a full one.You can position the tanks away from the generator for safety as you don't have to rely on gravity to move the fuel from the tank to the generator. You can go the expensive route with the automatic transfer switch & giant propane tank if you can afford it.

Just be sure that you check the engine oil level periodically.

Dang Izzy, now I need to rethink everything. <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

-Blast

California has been refered to as the cereal capitol of the world: Home of fruits, nuts & flakes! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Several years ago we had a smaller motorhome that did not sport a built in gen, so we bought a Coleman Powermate 1850 at Costco for about $300. Now we have a different RV with gen, but keep the Coleman for emergency use around the house. It is large for its power output, and very noisy, but the price was good. Coleman no longer makes that particular model, but they now have the Pulse 1850, which I assume is similar. MSRP is $429, but I have no doubt that price can be beat.

Camping World has the Generac 1000 Portable Generator, which appears to be a tad smaller than my Coleman, is reported to be pretty quiet, and goes for $411.

Many RVers swear by the Honda® EU2000i, which I know to be very quiet for its output. But it is in the $1000 range.

I agree with some that gasoline may not be the best fuel to use, but it is readily available, can also be used in your car (assuming that it is gas powered), and with the addition of Stabil, can be store long term. A lot depends on your location, needs, and finances...

Joe,

I beg to differ,

"Another con to LP Gas generators is LP Gas has a lot of carbon in it. That means your engines get half the life of a gasoline or diesel powered generator. I've had my 15,000 for 4 years now and it's needed multiple repairs on account of the LP Gas carbon build up."

Propane and natural gas have far less carbon than gasoline or diesel. And propane will keep your engine cleaner internally than any other fuel. If a mechanic is telling you that the propane is causing carbon build up in your engine the mechanic is either full of something other than carbon or there is some other reason for your carbon build up. As a guess i would say oil blow by or improper mixture settings. And as someone else mentioned it could need repairing just because that it is a big lawnmower engine that is designed for a useful lifetime of just a few thousand hours.

But, you are correct in that it will cost more to run an engine on propane than on gasoline. Propane is selling for around $3 a gallon and because of the lack of carbon in it, it is around 20% to 30% less fuel efficient than gasoline.

And on a related subject of gasoline storage i saw something that looked good for transporting and handling fuel. Was at the PRI Show the past few days and there was a vendor there selling fuel cans and manual transfer pumps that appeared to be well made and move fuel easily. Disclaimer, i have no financial interest in this company whatsoever.

http://www.flofast.com/

It was a little pricey, the pump was $140, and if you get a fold up dolly and a 15 gallon fuel container it jumps up to over $300. But after pouring fuel out of safety cans into generators and other equipment the fuel pump doesn't look so bad.

I got rid of the original tank that came with my generator. Now, I have 2 portable boat tanks. Refueling the generator is done by swapping in a full one for the mt. Transferring fuel is easier if the tank is not over the hot generator. I can also take the tanks directly to the gas station.

Joe,

Thanks for the information, next time i am in Lowes i will check it out. Filling the lawn mower with fuel is a bother, especially with the loader attached, which is why i would like a pump to fill the tank.

The boat tank idea is a cool one. The Honda EU2000 forums have plans on how to convert your generator to run on boat fuel tanks.

Maybe I'm missing something, but why do people keep "peewee" generators in their cars? To actually use them for some emergency on the road? Or to use once they reach some destination that may not have power?