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Brett Hartwig

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what are your opinions on portable generators for emergency home use. We had a bunch of rain recently, and being winter, had a lot of water pouring into my sump pit. Luckily the sump pump kept up with it and the power never went out, but it got me thinking- if that power had gone out for any more than 5 minutes, I would have water pouring across the basement floor. I want to get a small generator, around $200-300, just for running a freezer and sump pump in an emergency. Looking at Home Depot's site, I see a few "All Power" and "Powermate" brands that seemed to get pretty good reviews. Any suggestions? Don't tell me some $900 Dewalt or Bosch or something. I don't have the money and I don't need it. Just want to keep that sump pump running in an emergency.
 
Remember that sump pump motors draw a bit of current when they start. Pad that into the equation when determining the wattage of the generator. Bottom line: Get a generator that's double the wattage of what's needed to run the sump pump and freezer.
 
freeport,

I agree with Mark on the need for extra power for things like pumps that have a heavy start-up load, however I am not sure that you will need additional power to provide power for your freezer.



Most modern, well insulated freezers will maintain frozen foods for 3 or 4 days without the need for power as long as you keep the freezer door closed.



If you want to get by as cheap as possible, look for a generator that will handle the the largest single load (probably the freezer) and use it to power the sump pump while it's raining...your freezer does not need continuous power like your sump pump does while it's raining. If it stops raining and the power is still off, then switch the generator over to power the Freezer.

It's pretty rare that it will rain 3 or more days continuously and hard enough to require the sump pump...however, once the ground get saturated, you may have to keep the sump pump going continuously for some time even after it stops raining?



You will just have to weigh the price of a generator capable of handling both loads vs just appliance with the largest load and the longest continuous need.



...Rich
 
I have had the 5500/6500 electric start Harbor Freight unit. For 5yrs. I ran it connected to my whole house 17days 24hr a day, after hurricane Ike.



It is not as quiet as the Honda, but almost. My brother works on small engines. He said it is a honda copy-cat motor. I start it once a month. Kicks right off.



13hp motor. Pull starts easy also. I store 30gallons of gas, at the begining of huricane season. Treat it with ethenol and storage conditioner. Put it in the trac, at the end.



I think the cost was $499, now $599. I got it for about $300 on sale and with a coupon.

I would buy it again. I would recomend the smaller one 3500watt also. Because of the success I have heard others have.



Mine ran my whole house, except the central air. I now have a small window AC, if needed.I only burned 5gallons of gas every 12hrs. Then I shut down for service, fuel and restart. Ran my ceiling fans, lights, tv, refrige, freezer, microwave, etc. voltage stayed between 112 to 119. Just depended how much was on. I would like to buy their 7000/8000 unit.
 
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Get the smallest one that will do the job. I have had a Kawasaki 2300 for 15 years and it has served me well From building something in the wild to a number of power outages up to two weeks . Light enough to throw in the back of the truck and doesn't burn much gas. Runs the fridge and the freezer without a problem. If you need to run the pump just unplug them off a while . Freezer will come in handy for making ice.
 
Redfish,

I agree. And the frig will come in handy for keeping the beer cold. :haveabeer:



Just making sure we have our priorities straight..:bwahaha:



...Rich
 
Gas supply- wouldn't it be pretty easy to tap into the Trac's fuel system to use the Trac's gasoline? That would save a lot of refills. Seems a remote / larger fuel supply shouldn't be too hard to come up with.
 
Gavin,



You can't use the sport trac for that. You need the trac to pull the boat which is full of gas so you can fish, which is why you need a generator to make ice, to keep the fish and beer cold. You use your wife's car for extra gas.
 
freeport,

a 300 watt generator is not big enough to run either the freezer or the sump pump.



Refrigerator/Freezer typically require 600 watts or more, but the real surprise is the Sump Pump which requires 800-1100 watts depending upon the HP rating of the pump motor (1/3 or 1/2 HP are typical). They will easily require double or triple that wattage to start.



Your minimum generator requirements would likely be around 1500-2000 watts constant power, and be able to handle start up surges of 3000 watts or more. So a 300 watt generator would not solve your problem and would only be a waste of money.



Before you buy any generator you need to find out the wattage of your sump pump and the starting power needed and also look at the freezer's power requirements too. Then you will know what kind of generator you need.



...Rich
 
freeport,

Oops my error. I read the $330 price for the 4000 watt HF generator you asked about or the $300 price that Eddie mentioned and my cross-wired brain registered one of them as the wattage.



Totally my error. Yes, I would think a 4000 watt generator would work well and the price is good too.



Eddie said his generator was from HF and he was very happy with it. I have bought a lot of HF products and for the most part they are a good buy for the money. I have never bought any gasoline engine powered items from HF, but I don't care much for their AC electric motor powered tools....I think they overrate the power output of their AC electric motor tools and they really can't handle the loads that they should be able to handle.



Unless you had test equipment to verify the maximum output wattage of HF generators, I would suspect that they probably put out a little less than the wattage they claim. Just my opinion of HF electrical products.



...Rich
 
I see a 4000W Predator generator for $330 from Harbor Freights Tools. Any issues with HF stuff?
Click to expand...



I have no problems with mine. Nor have any freinds, that bought after I did. I suppose you can get a lemon with any brand except Honda...LOL...
 

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