which portable generators do people have

[Michael Aos]

I've been curious about break-in as well. Just started using my new generator and Harbor Freight Chipper Shredder.

There were no break-in instructions with the generator.

Here's what it says for the chipper:

Break-in period:

a. Breaking-in the engine will help to ensure proper equipment and engine operation.
b. The operational break-in period will last about 3 hours of use. During this period:
• Do not apply a heavy load to the equipment.
• Do not operate the engine at its maximum speed.
c. The maintenance break-in period will last about 20 hours of use.
• Change the engine oil after this period.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I just purchased a Harbor Freight Predator 8750/7000 13hp gas generator, for $529.00 with the wheel kit.

I have to say it appears to be a 9 out 10 in quality, fit and finish. It has a cast iron Honda clone engine.

Well, the ones I looked at, weren't "cast iron"... I have one of those 13hp motors too, and it's not CI, nor is the one my brother has...

My brother bumped the carb on his, and he had a problem getting parts, Honda parts did NOT fit either...

He says the casting was thinner than a Honda part and rather fragile...

SR

 

[Ford850]

i have the same generator, im curious as to why you think a no load break in is the right way to go?

also thats a pretty thick oil for a splash lube in the winter no? i use 5w-30

and according to HF the THD on this generator is <25% which is not considered clean although i did scope it and it looks very good

one thing i ran into though, was the governor spring can/will osculate when coming from a high load to an idle or vice vs. i ended up adding a piece of 1/2 pipe foam insulation over the spring to stop it from osculating. that made it much more stable for me

i hope u change the oil before 20 hours, alot of metal in it after only 1 hour of breakin, ( i do a varying load break in) so mine may have had more metal in it

This is from the generators manual:

8. Break-in Period:
a. Breaking-in the engine will help to ensure proper equipment and engine operation.
b. The operational break-in period will last about 3 hours of use.
During this period:
Do not apply a heavy load to the equipment.
c. The maintenance break-in period will last about 20 hours of use.
After this period:
Change the engine oil.

 

[TheMan419]

This is from the generators manual:

8. Break-in Period:
a. Breaking-in the engine will help to ensure proper equipment and engine operation.
b. The operational break-in period will last about 3 hours of use.
During this period:
Do not apply a heavy load to the equipment.
c. The maintenance break-in period will last about 20 hours of use.
After this period:
Change the engine oil.

My non HF generator has the same instructions. It is getting its 18.7 hour oil change this weekend after 1.2 hours of run time

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I don't change the oil after brief test runs, but I never store an engine with used oil in it. A generator will run a week just fine without an oil change, but shutting it down after 8 hours means an oil change.

 

[rbstern]

I don't change the oil after brief test runs, but I never store an engine with used oil in it. A generator will run a week just fine without an oil change, but shutting it down after 8 hours means an oil change.

That seems excessive.

 

[Michael Aos]

The manual for my new 1600W generator says to start it in "normal" (high RPM) mode, then move to eco mode after it's warmed up.

It also talks about not using eco-mode for heavy loads.

My thinking is that constant / consistent RPM's are a bad thing when breaking in a motor, so I switch to eco mode as soon as it's warmed up.

First task was vacuuming the shed. Should have put the RPM's all over the place.

 

[Michael Aos]

How do you add an hour meter? That would be really handy.

 

[TomSeller]

How do you add an hour meter? That would be really handy.

Hour meters for run time on a Generator are typically just wired to voltage on the output. Many (most?) have them.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

That seems excessive.

It's a quart of oil. How can changing it be excessive?

 

[Helitech]

How do you add an hour meter? That would be really handy.

You can get a really cheap hourmeter that has a wire that you just wrap around the spark plug wire. Add some double sided tape to the back of it and stick the meter where ever you want it!

 

[Helitech]

Amazon.com: KEDSUM Hour meter Tachometer 2 & 4 Stroke Small Engine Spark For Boat Outboard Mercury: Home Improvement

 

[Helitech]

I have a Honda 1000 and a Honda 3000. I use the 1000 a lot, It's just so convenient.....grab and go!

 

[KubotainNH]

I have a Honda 1000 and a Honda 3000. I use the 1000 a lot, It's just so convenient.....grab and go!

The 1000 is a sweet unit to have hanging around. A few years back I used my FIL's to power a sawzall in a junkyard so I could cut off the rear quarter panel of a Camry. Good stuff.

 

[Garandman]

In Boston we have two EU2000i that can be put in parallel for 4,000 starting watts. We wanted something that used minimal fuel for a Hurricane Sandy scenario, with heavy snow. We have city water and gas heat, hot water, stove, oven and clothes dryer so we just needed to run the heat circulation pump and keep the fridge and freezer cold in cold weather.

Only problem is our new electrician absolutely positively would not buy off on the manual interlock switch we had to take the house off line. He installed a Reliance transfer switch. It is very easy and convenient: but requires 240v feed. Those Hondas and most other Inverter generators are 120v only.

We found three with 240: the fuel injected Honda EU7000iS, the Yamaha EF6300, and a newcomer: the Briggs & Stratton Q6500. Surge rating is 6,500, 5,000 watts continuous. 128 lbs, 5 gallon tank, and comes with wheels. Will run up to 14 hours on a tank (under low Load), and I知 sure folks will quickly have an adapter for a marine fuel tank to extend the run time. Like the Hondas it has an eco mode that increases rpm on demand. The big difference is price: the Honda is $4,000, the Yamaha is $3,300, and the Briggs is $1,500!

We lose power so seldom in Boston that it was worth any risk (as we still have the EU2000 and could run off cords). It was released last Spring s there arent too many reviews so far: but people who ran them for the hurricanes in the SE were almost all 5 Star.

Q65�� QuietPower Series Inverter Generator

At our place in NH we have a 220v well pump and outages are common enough (lots of heavy snow and trees) that we didn稚 mess around. We have a propane fueled 14KW Kohler with auto start and auto transfer switch. Longest we致e run it is 18 hours, knock wood.

FWIW Honda has a new, lower cost Inverter model, the EG2800.




The Briggs is designed for this kind of home backup, with a locking 30A plug

 

[KubotainNH]

Looks neat, I wonder how quiet it is. As for the transfer switch, they used to make 110v style units. I'm on town water so don't need a 220v unit, I wired one as 110v (changed the plug to 30a 110v twist lock) and use my 3k inverter gen to power the necessities. Fridge, freezer, heat/hotwater (same unit), internet and some lights. Works great.

 

[fried1765]

In Boston we have two EU2000i that can be put in parallel for 4,000 starting watts. We wanted something that used minimal fuel for a Hurricane Sandy scenario, with heavy snow. We have city water and gas heat, hot water, stove, oven and clothes dryer so we just needed to run the heat circulation pump and keep the fridge and freezer cold in cold weather.

Only problem is our new electrician absolutely positively would not buy off on the manual interlock switch we had to take the house off line. He installed a Reliance transfer switch. It is very easy and convenient: but requires 240v feed. Those Hondas and most other Inverter generators are 120v only.

We found three with 240: the fuel injected Honda EU7000iS, the Yamaha EF6300, and a newcomer: the Briggs & Stratton Q6500. Surge rating is 6,500, 5,000 watts continuous. 128 lbs, 5 gallon tank, and comes with wheels. Will run up to 14 hours on a tank (under low Load), and I知 sure folks will quickly have an adapter for a marine fuel tank to extend the run time. Like the Hondas it has an eco mode that increases rpm on demand. The big difference is price: the Honda is $4,000, the Yamaha is $3,300, and the Briggs is $1,500!

We lose power so seldom in Boston that it was worth any risk (as we still have the EU2000 and could run off cords). It was released last Spring s there arent too many reviews so far: but people who ran them for the hurricanes in the SE were almost all 5 Star.

Q65�� QuietPower Series Inverter Generator

At our place in NH we have a 220v well pump and outages are common enough (lots of heavy snow and trees) that we didn稚 mess around. We have a propane fueled 14KW Kohler with auto start and auto transfer switch. Longest we致e run it is 18 hours, knock wood.

FWIW Honda has a new, lower cost Inverter model, the EG2800.




The Briggs is designed for this kind of home backup, with a locking 30A plug

And the Briggs QuietPower actual
DB rating is?

 

[airbiscuit]

And the Briggs QuietPower actual
DB rating is?

From Home Depot comments:

flawedexistence
September 3, 2017
At about six feet I measured 73 db in quiet mode. At full throttle from six feet I measured 84 db. I was facing the muffler. At twenty feet I measured 65 and 74 db respectively.

Briggs & Stratton
June 28, 2017
This generator has a sound level of 66 dBa at 1/4 load at 7m away from the control panel side of the generator.

 

[dragoneggs]

Noise is my second most important variable... 1st is reliability.

Honda 3000iS = 58 dB(A) @ rated load, 49 dB(A) @ 1/4 load

This has been my favorite generator all time.

 

[Cat_Driver]

I bought a Honda 2kw