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#300196 - 10/14/21 03:46 PM Gas generator alternatives?
Bingley Offline
Veteran

Registered: 02/27/08
Posts: 1576
California bans gas power generators.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/california-law-bans-small-off-174600432.html

This may become a trend. What will we do? Will solar power be enough of a replacement? Perhaps we can do nuclear fission in our kitchen a few years from now?

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#300197 - 10/14/21 05:05 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
Eugene Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 12/26/02
Posts: 2995
Originally Posted By: Bingley
California bans gas power generators.
Will solar power be enough of a replacement?


Depends on what/how much your trying to run

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#300199 - 10/14/21 07:50 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
dougwalkabout Offline
Crazy Canuck
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 3219
Loc: Alberta, Canada
This bans the sale of such items, starting 2024-ish.

I predict a brisk business in gas generators up to that date.

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#300200 - 10/14/21 08:02 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
Burncycle Offline
Addict

Registered: 09/16/04
Posts: 577
If it's just sale and jot possession and use then you could probably just bring units in from out of state. If it's use, then I wonder if you can get around this by using wood gasifiers, since firewood seems plentiful. Until then, I guess solar generators like the Jackery for those with $1,000 to drop, but in a puerto rico situation where you're looking at weeks or months without power you'd be SOL

And people voted for this...

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#300202 - 10/15/21 01:38 AM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
Famdoc Offline
Member

Registered: 04/29/09
Posts: 155
Loc: PA
Invertors, connected on an as-needed basis to a vehicles wiring system, may meet the need for some.

Woot happens to have one such available today: a 3000 watt pure sine wave model that I am finding tempting: https://tools.woot.com/offers/gowise-3000w-sine-wave-power-inverter?ref=w_cnt_wp_2_2

It appears this model does not come with wiring cables: these would be a separate purchase.

Usually, models of this wattage are double the $180 price of this brand.

It's not enough juice to run a whole house AC or heat pump perhaps but probably enough to keep a fridge cold and keep the food from spoiling.

Even bigger invertors are available, up to 5000 watts.

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#300204 - 10/15/21 02:51 AM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
dougwalkabout Offline
Crazy Canuck
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 3219
Loc: Alberta, Canada
Unless you have a hybrid vehicle, a vehicle plus inverter setup is massively inefficient. I have such a setup to run a furnace in a last-ditch emergency to prevent my pipes from freezing, but the energy losses are insane. Better to have a real generator.

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#300206 - 10/15/21 01:20 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
Famdoc Offline
Member

Registered: 04/29/09
Posts: 155
Loc: PA
I'm cheerfully clueless as to the energy inefficiency of using a vehicle + invertor versus a dedicated generator. Would you have the time to share some hard data on the subject or a website one might be directed to?
For some /many folks the additional cost, storage and ongoing preventative maintenance needs and space needed for a separate generator are deal makers/breakers.

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#300207 - 10/15/21 01:32 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Famdoc]
Eugene Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 12/26/02
Posts: 2995
Its mostly due to inverter losses. converting from 12v to 120v power out = power in + loss. If you use 300W out your drawing like 400w in. Some of the higher cost less portable inverters used for permanent solar installations are getting a bit more efficient but cheap portable ones are not.

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#300209 - 10/15/21 03:48 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Bingley]
jshannon Offline
Addict

Registered: 02/02/03
Posts: 647
Loc: North Texas
Inverter losses can be from 5%-30%? I am trying to remember what the RV folks said about that subject.

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#300210 - 10/15/21 07:04 PM Re: Gas generator alternatives? [Re: Eugene]
Mark_R Offline
Old Hand

Registered: 05/29/10
Posts: 863
Loc: Southern California
te=Eugene]
Originally Posted By: Bingley
California bans gas power generators.
Will solar power be enough of a replacement?


Depends on what/how much your trying to run [/quote]

My boss has a solar plus Tesla power wall as emergency power in place of a whole house generator, and he seems pretty happy with it. The local utilities keep shutting off his electricity during wildfire season, so it gets lots of use.

If you're looking for something portable, there's the perviously mentioned Jackary power banks, as well as Whisperpower systems.

Caveat Emptor for any lithium battery based systems. The battery life (charge/discharge cycles) goes way up if you don't charge it past about 80%, and don't run it flat. It's not really an issue with emergency use only, but if you take it camping every other weekend...
_________________________
Hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane

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