Posted: 9/21/2008 12:54:09 PM EDT
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Its kind of funny how my thoughts on a subject can change so much over time. Just before Y2K I bought a cheap 5000 watt generator and filled a 55 gallon drum with gas (boy do I wish I had those prices again!). That suck is easily big enough to run my little house. We never did install the transfer switch so we would have had to run extension cords, but it was usable. Now, I am realizing that I don't even want to run a generator full time, or run lots of stuff off the same generator. A small generator would actually be much better. Those little honda generators are looking a hell of a lot better. I could easily charge up all the AA rechargeables with it in a matter of an hours with all the quick chargers I have. I could run it for a couple of hours each day to keep the freezer frozen. If it was big enough, I could run both the freezer and fridge at the same time to get them both cold. I am going to install a regular male/female plug in before the main power to the water pump switch so I can easily unplug that sucker during a black out and plug it into a extension cord and run the water off the generator. The pump would switch on and off like normal. We have propane water heater so we could take hot showers as long as we have gas and we can run well water through our filter and softener. I am just thinking more clearly about it than I did when I bought it. Where is the best prices on the little quiet Honda generators? |
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I purchased my Honda EU-2000i from Wise Sales. They had fantastic pricing and free shipping. Below please find a link to them. wisesales |
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During the recent power outage in Houston (FU Ike!), I loaned my Yamaha 2400 to my folks. You'd be surprised what that little thing can run. At the peak, we ran: 1 deep freeze 2 refrigerators 2 box fans 1 37" TV 1 24" TV 1 DVD player 1 stereo receiver There was probably enough left over to run a small window unit air conditioner. We just made sure to plug one fridge or freezer in at a time, and wait for the thing to start up before plugging in the next one. Sure, it would have been more convenient to have a larger generator to run a few circuits in the house, but you'd also use more fuel and probably have a much louder generator. I hear people talking about Mayberry's to get the Honda units a lot. |
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I'm having the same thoughts. I have a 10KW diesel unit and recently bought a 3K honda unit (the commercial unit not the inverter type) for $200 because it wouldn't put out power. I replaced a $2 20 amp breaker and $2 broken outlet and it works fine. I just ordered a kit for $180 to convert it to tri-fuel. |
I think tri-fuel kits are the best damn accessory you can get for your generator. During the above mentioned run, my folks ran 100% on propane. Running the generator for 14-15 hours/day, they averaged about 1lb of propane/hour. Not quite as good as running it on gasoline, but propane was FAR easier to find, since there was no power anywhere (no power = no gas pumps functioning). Propane was everywhere though. And the option to tie it into their NG line, that just makes it even easier. |
WiseSales and Mayberry both sell Honda generators. Before you buy a Honda, check out Yamaha inverter generators. In terms of bang for the buck, I think the Yamaha series of inverter generators might have an edge over the Honda line of inverter gens. I am particularly fond of the Yamaha EF2800. It's hard to compare prices online because nobody lists the sale prices for the Honda models but I think that the Yamaha offerings come out cheaper... Good luck and be sure to reports back with your final decision(s) on generators... |