Posted: 6/14/2026 6:47:28 AM EDT
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We've been doing it for over a month now after getting our Duke bill from over the winter which averaged out to ~$550 a month. We couldn't pay it and they shut it off. Got the Champion generator and honestly its about 90% the same as grid power. Everyone does the same things as before except for hot showers. Water is tap cold so each person has to decide for themselves for how much a shower means to them. We had our local lake freeze over for the first time people could go ice fishing in the the last several years so even with warm weather outside the water out of the tap is still super cold lol To be clear my kids have access to hot showers via the YMCA or friend's houses and my wife has full hot showers at the gym. We aren't living dirty. Anyone can go take a hot shower anytime they want. We can cook via a hot plate and I have a Weber propane grill that can cook a ton of meals. We got a hot plate at Walmart for cheap and can run an electric kettle without issues. I made greek salad last night and the only difference was where I turned the dial to cook the pasta. As far as gas use we use 2-4 gallons a day. We have already been operating on window units for AC because our house has no central heating or cooling. We recently had the early summer heat wave and it was super humid and in the 90's outside. That was a struggle with how much residual heat the house held in but we kept one room super cool and with a TV running which was our master bedroom. The main thing is the Champion generator. I think this weekend it will eclipse 1k hours. It only gets gas station gas and Ultra Premium oil every 100-150 hours. If you think you have to buy an expensive Honda to get through a few days or the cheaper stuff is garbage I think we are proof that stuff works. We have been hammering this thing pretty hard. The biggest annoyance is the stupid CO monitor and depending on the wind if it goes off or not. Occasionally someone will plug in something they shouldn't and spike the power use to where the generator goes into overload mode. I just do a quick check on what's plugged in then go press a button on the generator. |
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Originally Posted By hammer1995: 4 gallons per day @$3.50 per gallon comes out to over $400 a month. You're doing all of that to save ~$100 a month? |
USN Retired: APR 1988 - MAY 2008
"My center is giving way, my right is falling back, situation excellent, I attack." —Ferdinand Foch
"My center is giving way, my right is falling back, situation excellent, I attack." —Ferdinand Foch
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Originally Posted By ark-and-spark: That sounds pretty awful. I think the point of the post is what the generator can do and what it takes to do it. I appreciate you sharing OP. We don't get too many real-world examples of this type of usage posted here. Do you have an idea how long you will need to keep this up? |
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I’m guessing running 12-16 hrs per day? If I’m correct, that’s up to 480 hrs per month. How long do you anticipate having to live like this? A typical air cooled generator typically lasts 2000-3000 hours. Running on propane would likely extend that a bit. But, that’s 4-7 months before the generator will need to be replaced. What’s your heat source? I know you mentioned you have no central heat or air. An on demand propane water heater would provide hot showers. In summer time you could shower outside. Winter time might be a bit more challenging. It doesn’t sound like a good way to live long term honestly. If there is something like a job loss or income loss, sure it’s possible to live a frugal existence. I certainly hope you guys have a plan to get back on your feet. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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I think the maths don't math. While I appreciate that the generator is outperforming your expectations, my guess is by conserving energy- hell, turn off the water heater- it's a wash. Are you running off a transfer switch or extension cords? That's my dilemma now prior to hurricane season. Attached File |
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Originally Posted By hammer1995: 4 gallons per day @$3.50 per gallon comes out to over $400 a month. You're doing all of that to save ~$100 a month? While spending money on internet and YMCA. Edit: having said that it is good info in durability. Be interesting to see what needs replacing over time. |
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We owe ~$1550 before we can get the power turned back on. It was either sit in the dark before we can pay it or use the generator. We don't pay for the YMCA membership. Their friend's parents added them to their membership. Gym is $20 a month. Not going to make a dent in paying $1550. |
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I feel for your situation and appreciate your sharing the experience. I make the point often in threads here when folks are buying very large output generators... 10,000 watts and more... that almost always that amount of power is unneeded and effectively can't be used in most cases. I have inverter gens for the farm and parents house, they're IIRC 3200w on propane which is what we try to stay on and we get along fine on generator power. |
This is...a clue - Pat_Rogers
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
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Longest I've run off a generator was 3 weeks after Hurricane Helene and it sucked. The noise, the exhaust, constantly having to refill it and change the oil. Extension cords everywhere, having to unplug stuff and manage power consumption... cold showers. It all sucks. But, it's certainly better than having no power at all. Hope things improve for you guys. |
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Yikes, I feel for you all. Good on you for just doing what you can with what you've got, and for telling us about how it's working out. Running a hotplate on a generator is really inefficient - guess you don't have a propane or white gas stove. Not that you'd want to be paying retail for 1lb propane tanks... If this is going to go on for a while it might be worth looking around for a used camping stove. |
Not a day passes over the earth, but men and women of no note do great deeds, speak great words, and suffer noble sorrows. Charles Reade
| One reason I got a propane grill with a side burner is just for this kind of thing... cooking without grid power. Actually the grill I got has interchangeable griddle plates or grill grids along with the side burner so has flexibility. |
This is...a clue - Pat_Rogers
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
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bummer about the electric bill. hope you get it sorted. is there any risk the city is going to stop you from using the generator? eg a bunch of extension cords etc is probably against fire codes hopefully you can keep it on the dl and your neighbors won't hear it and complain interesting data for sure though although i'm not sure what is cheaper, gas or propane, you might do well with a $50 induction cooktop from amazon. I've been using one in my cabin for years and it is fantastic to cook on. I have an excess of electricity with solar, but use a countertop appliance in the interest of space savings because i can stow it for the 99% of the time i'm not actually using it. i wonder about the relative efficiency, because the induction cook top takes a lot of amps, but also brings the heat FAST compared to gas stoves and my other electric ranges. i spend a lot less time cooking with it. |
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Originally Posted By Rebel31: We owe ~$1550 before we can get the power turned back on. It was either sit in the dark before we can pay it or use the generator. We don't pay for the YMCA membership. Their friend's parents added them to their membership. Gym is $20 a month. Not going to make a dent in paying $1550. Gotcha. Sounds like you need to cut down on the heating bill in winter! 
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You can probably find a coleman 2 burner white gas camping stove for $20 at a thrift store or facebook marketplace. using it outside on a table will be more efficient on gas use that an electric hot plate and you have 2 burners and a lot cheaper than using a camping propane burner stove and just feed it the same gas the genny takes. also less wear and tare in genny and or frees up power fore something else we cook on our when we lose power |
Mach
Nobody is coming to save us.
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Nobody is coming to save us.
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Based on a recent post by the OP in another forum on this site, it sounds like he’s gotten hit hard by life but is working on bouncing back. I suspect it’s not irresponsibility but a dose of shitty life circumstances. At least that’s my take on it. I’ll leave it up to the OP to decide if he chooses to share here or not. I appreciate the OP posting his experiences using a generator to run his household. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By hammer1995: 4 gallons per day @$3.50 per gallon comes out to over $400 a month. You're doing all of that to save ~$100 a month? $14 per day * 30 days = $540 per month so just the fuel is more than the winter electric bill. Time to say screw it to air conditioning and electric cooking, because converting gasoline into electricity and then into heat is inefficient and expensive. You need to use fans in the house for cooling, and a fire pit or cinder block stove that can use minimal wood for cooking and heating bathing water. Cinder block stove cooking - some use pavers instead of the "H" cinder block.  The "4 Block" Rocket Stove! - DIY Rocket Stove - (Concrete/Cinder Block Rocket Stove) - Simple DIY |
Heller II - Challenging DC's bans on semi-automatic rifles, large-capacity ammunition feeding devices, and its onerous and expensive handgun registration process. http://www.HellerFoundation.org/
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To address the actual gas/fuel usage I said 2-4 gallons a day. The 4 was really an outlier when we had a couple of days where it was hot and we were running the bedroom window AC 24 hours a day. During a day like today we get more like 8-10 hours per gallon. I also use fuel rewards a lot. I was able to get gas down to $2.33 a gallon for one fill up. As for only running it 12-18 hours a day- nope. This thing has been running basically 24x7 outside of oil changes. I fill it up when I go to sleep and it will still be running when I wake up on all but a few days where we had to keep the AC going. As to getting the electric turned back on no our provider does not do a payment plan to get it turned back on. You pay it in full or it doesn't go back on, and they're likely going to make us pay a deposit on the 1st bill after it does get turned back. Already called and talked to them. This house was built in the 60's and we don't have central AC or heat. We are already used to running space heaters, baseboard heaters, and window AC's. It's really not that big of a deal for us. It's in the 60's outside right now and I have only run an AC a couple of hours today. The thing you do have to pay attention to is what order you start things up at because of the starting draw that lasts 1-3 seconds. If I do turn on the bedroom window AC I "step up" the draw. So start it on fan, then low AC, and then high AC with about 5-10 seconds between each step. I generally go fridge before anything else, then AC with the step up method if it's hot out, and then everything else that doesn't have a huge starting load behind that. I also think people should "invest" in good extension cords. Sam's has 12 gauge 100ft cords for $68. If you have cheap 16 gauge cords get rid of them. I also got a few 12 gauge splitters. The "low draw" stuff like the fridge is on a 14 gauge cord. The fridge actually uses a surprisingly low amount of power but we have a very basic unit. Attached File Attached File |
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Originally Posted By Mach: You can probably find a coleman 2 burner white gas camping stove for $20 at a thrift store or facebook marketplace. using it outside on a table will be more efficient on gas use that an electric hot plate and you have 2 burners and a lot cheaper than using a camping propane burner stove and just feed it the same gas the genny takes. also less wear and tare in genny and or frees up power fore something else we cook on our when we lose power I have a Weber Spirit in the backyard and we've been making good use of it but it's not good to cook everything with. It will impart a BBQ grill smell on everything. |
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Originally Posted By taliv: bummer about the electric bill. hope you get it sorted. is there any risk the city is going to stop you from using the generator? eg a bunch of extension cords etc is probably against fire codes hopefully you can keep it on the dl and your neighbors won't hear it and complain interesting data for sure though although i'm not sure what is cheaper, gas or propane, you might do well with a $50 induction cooktop from amazon. I've been using one in my cabin for years and it is fantastic to cook on. I have an excess of electricity with solar, but use a countertop appliance in the interest of space savings because i can stow it for the 99% of the time i'm not actually using it. i wonder about the relative efficiency, because the induction cook top takes a lot of amps, but also brings the heat FAST compared to gas stoves and my other electric ranges. i spend a lot less time cooking with it. The single burner electric cooker was only like $12 at Walmart and it's worked fine so far. Just have to be aware of what else is plugged in. I wouldn't recommend this in in the winter or height of summer. A single space heater that runs at 1500w is over 75% of it's running capacity. Attached File |
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Originally Posted By PhuzzyGnu: I think the maths don't math. While I appreciate that the generator is outperforming your expectations, my guess is by conserving energy- hell, turn off the water heater- it's a wash. Are you running off a transfer switch or extension cords? That's my dilemma now prior to hurricane season. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/69748/8915_jpg-3778582.JPG I am not living off a generator because I want to or trying to save money by going "off grid". Our power got turned off and it was this or sit in the dark with my fish tank dying and our food rotting in the fridge with an unknown ETA of when it would be back on. I don't think the generator in your pic would be enough for an all electric water heater, either. One of the things my wife and I have talked about in the past month is people's shower usage. The people using significant amounts of hot water and water in general aren't the ones responsible for the bill. We are taking an entire water heater worth of water and using electricity to heat it up to "hot" temps then sending it down the drain. How much electricity does it take to heat water in the 30's F up to hot water temp? In the winter here I assure you our incoming cold line is seriously cold water. It's June now and our water is still "cold". I caught one of my kids at 3AM taking a shower for 75 minutes several months ago, and since the grid power got turned off our water bill is already $50 a month less than the month prior. The bill for having no grid power isn't out yet. I can see it on the usage chart and it might be a top 4 for our lowest water usage months ever in almost 8 years 
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Originally Posted By ColtRifle: Based on a recent post by the OP in another forum on this site, it sounds like he's gotten hit hard by life but is working on bouncing back. I suspect it's not irresponsibility but a dose of shitty life circumstances. At least that's my take on it. I'll leave it up to the OP to decide if he chooses to share here or not. I appreciate the OP posting his experiences using a generator to run his household. Originally Posted By jaqufrost: I hope things turn around for you soon and you can get the power back on. Thanks, and we should have it on soon 
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Anyone able to compare this to their own grid power usage? Attached File Attached File Attached File |
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Originally Posted By Rebel31: Anyone able to compare this to their own grid power usage? https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040457_png-3782049.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040513_png-3782050.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040537_png-3782051.JPG My house used 948 kWh in May. That included running a pool pump. My house is very energy efficient. We typically run the pool pump from May-early Sept. It’s an energy hog even though we have it on a timer to reduce total run time. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By Rebel31: Anyone able to compare this to their own grid power usage? https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040457_png-3782049.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040513_png-3782050.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040537_png-3782051.JPG Your power usage is extremely high. I live in an ancient old farm house with bad windows. It takes a lot to heat it or cool it. We run 3 freezers and the normal appliances, all electric. With 3 people in the house we average 935kwh a month. |
| My 3700 SQ ft house with central ac summer time usage is between 950 and 1200 kw based on how hot it is. All electric except the stove, 2 people. |
"I am gonna laugh my ass off looking out the air vent of the box car watching some of you shot in the head in a ditch when you finally realize it's time to resist." stolen from RR_broccoli
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that is a high power bill! ours will get high in peak season. if you are @ 500 a month, that is 6K a year. If you plan well, you can go off grid for 10K if you can pair your usage down, and not have a bill. Granted batteries/solar don't last forever, but they can last a good numbe of years. Watch some Will Prowse on youtube, go to signaturesolar.com and eyeball some stuff, just food for thought. For example: battery $5336 for 4 inverter/charge controller - $1629 panels $1805 for 15 thats - $8,830, which leaves extra for mounting, wireing etc, with load discipline this is doable - expecially if you do dryer as a daytime load every other day or something - you would have to make allowances but definitely doable. Generators are great, but this setup would be more long term, would give up probably 16-17kw usable daily, provided you are getting decent sun. generator could be tied in as backup for low run stretches. |
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I’d say a portion of his high summer bill (I assume that’s what we are talking about) is due to window AC units. Window units are horribly inefficient. They work but are energy hogs. Friend of mine went from two window Ac units (total 16k btu) to a single 18k mini split with two inside heads for his cabin. His electric bill dropped by 2/3s and it was more comfortable. I recently discovered during a power outage that my 5500 watt running generator will start and run my 2ton mini split in my shop with no issues. And, it has a generator setting that will reduce the load (and the capacity) when needed. If central heat/AC is out of the question, mini splits are a great way to heat and cool in many cases. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By Rebel31: Anyone able to compare this to their own grid power usage? https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040457_png-3782049.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040513_png-3782050.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/381696/Screenshot_2026-06-20_040537_png-3782051.JPG My 3000 sq foot home in TX with central A/C (a 5 ton and a 2.5 ton) and gas heat, with a swimming pool pump, uses a 12 month avg of 2120 kwh. The 6 months of summer use 3016 kwh avg per month, and the 6 months of winter use an average of 1306 kwh per month. This home was built in 1996, is not very efficient, bad leaky windows, etc. Your consumption is WAY too high. |
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I'm in a roughly 2500 sq ft home in northern NY. We have been running a mini split AC to cool most of the house, a second mini split to cool a studio work space, and two window AC units to cool bedrooms.. it's not been terribly hot lately, but the units run: we like to sleep in bedrooms that are 65-66F. Clothes dryer runs FREQUENTLY. Gas water heater . Induction electric stove. Our mid May to mid June total consumption was 1545 kwh. Here's the kicker: we ran a large 10 cubic foot electric pottery kiln a LOT that month. Think of it as a giant toaster that runs up to 2,240 degrees. It's 15,000 watts, running for 9 hours.. basic math is only an estimate, but that thing is consuming about 70 kwh each firing ( it's not on consistently... Uses power in surges). And we fired it 6, 7, 8 maybe more times that month.. and it's a total electricity hog. Question: do you have any older freezers and or refrigerators running,? A lot of guys have an old fridge running in the garage as a beer fridge, another in the man cave. Old refrigerators and freezers can be TOTAL power hogs ( 300-400% more than newer units), and they run a lot. |
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Grid power is back. We really need to figure out the energy use. There are a lot of older homes around here so our usage is based on other people dealing with an older house, too. I'm letting the generator run dry but here is the hours count when I unplugged the cords. Attached File |
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Originally Posted By jaqufrost: I'm glad to hear your power is back on and your generator held out with all those hours. Good timing too. We are supposed to be in the 90's starting Sunday until the following weekend. We'd have had to stay in one room with AC until night time. Total ended up being 53 days. With 1233 hours that averages about 23 hours a day of use. Super happy the "cheap" generator handled it like a champ. |
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It's great that you are back on grid power. I have serious questions about that power usage, though. Holy shit. Attached File 2,560 square foot, two story 1935 build renovated brick house. In Houston. (We spent an obscene amount of money on the A/C in May) |
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Good news OP! Now it’s time to figure out what’s causing the high electric bill. A killawatt device and a clamp on amp meter, both pretty inexpensive, will help you figure out what’s causing the high electric bills. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Yikes brother. Find a way to make more money. Pray on it and keep your eyes open for opportunities and your heart open for relationships. I work a high level ad agency job, a part-time realtor, land owner, and run a wildlife management association, and I've also got two small time businesses. I have a 9mo baby as well. I'm tired as hell and struggle most days, but it's better to be tired and run down than poor. PM me if you'd like to talk about making some money. I've had mentorship on my heart lately. God bless you and your family. |
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Originally Posted By Rebel31: Grid power is back. We really need to figure out the energy use. Grid power back. This is great news. Energy use... BLUF Cook outdoors on camp stove and save lots of money in hot months. High electric bill was a problem for me. So I had a look at my lifestyle and habits. I found 2 things that I could fix. Cooking with electricity. Even bigger cooking heat in the house. Electricity is the most expensive way of cooking. I get it there is no gas microwave or auto timer coffee pot. I get it my buddy who survived a house fire as a kid demands an all electric home to reduce fire rick Making heat in the house to spend electric $$$ to cool the house again with the ac. This is like running a fridge with a space heater running inside. So what I did. I got the cheapest 2 burner propane camp stove I could find. I put the camp stove on the back patio. I moved all pan on stove cooking to the camp stove. This moved 87% of the kitchen heat out of the house I made this move in the summer so I got an apple = apple test between 2 Hot months Electric bill down more than $100 first month. Camp stove was about $35 and adapter to use 20 pound propane bottle another $20 so first month I was money up already. This was Obama term dollars 2012 or so. I ended with all the counter top cookers like crock pot, toaster oven, air fryer and others on my patio cook table whenever the heater was off for the season. So March something until very late November. |
