harbor freight generator

[JAK]

Ive seen alot of disscussion about genarators on the tbn site. It seems to me that to have a house set up on a genarator is very expensive. Im 42 years old and cant ever remember a power outage lasting any longer than about 2 or 3 hours, and very seldom at that. I have a small gen. to power tools and things out doors where i cant get to electricty. In other places does the electricy really go down that much that a genarator is needed ?

 

[techman]

For a number of people it is insurance. My sister in Virginia did not have any lengthy outages for two decades, until 2 years ago. Then they were without power for nearly 2 weeks. Now she has a Generac LP backup.

Where we live, occasional blackouts that last a few hours are normal. Then on Christmas week 1 1/2 years ago we lost power in the evening when it was 10 degrees. It lasted through the next day. Sure I could have survived without power, but keeping the house warm and not having anything freeze was a benefit.

I have not had an accident or claim on my insurance in 25 years, but I still carry insurance. And I have paid a whole lot more for insurance than I did for my genset. Given the energy squeeze of the last few years, and the increase in violent storms, having power backup looks a bit better each year.

paul

 

[mikim]

other places does the electricy really go down that much that a genarator is needed ? yep --- My place is on the end of the power line .. there aren't any other poles past where I connect. Guess who will be the last one back up after a power loss? They concentrate on the areas with the most customers. Makes sense that they should. But in the meantime I want to be able to have running water and hvac -- even if it's only for a few hours.

 

[shvl73]

We've had two outages that lasted about 8 hours each in three years. One was during mildly cold weather and the other during cold weather. During the second we had our generator (5500/7250 surge) and it was nice to have heat, plumbing and refrigeration. For under a grand including transfer switch, I'll take the security. As a bonus I'm using it weekly to work on my barn that is 150'+ from the closest outlet.

 

[Dargo]

It may come as a shock to some people, but I'm not a big fan of most items that Harbor Fright sells. However....I do have to admit that the generator shown in the link does look pretty darn nice; especially for the price. Please, please, please, don't make me say that something at HF is actually "nice"....

Maybe there isn't a starter motor included and you have to pull start the generator...

 

[shvl73]

Maybe there isn't a starter motor included and you have to pull start the generator...

Or maybe a crank start!

 

[BobRip]

Gordon, if you check you will find that a similar new unit is $18,000 and up. That is too expensive for my pocket. If I purchased this, I would have 100-150 gal of fuel. It would not tie up the tractor with a PTO generator. I could run any welder I needed if required. I can keepthe whole house supplied with power.

Ron

So 100 gallons of fuel would run it for 40 hours, less than 2 days. Better have another tank stored some where.
I have never had much faith in Harbor Feright. I have seen post on this site of people stating they have had problems with many items from there. Maybe the generator is different, but I would not bet anything important on it. Just my opinion.

 

[Ronbo]

We also are at the end of the line. There are 2 houses past mine. There are 42 houses on our line and we are always the last to be restored. We have had a couple 23 hr outages in the last 2 years. My dad has cancer and he need power.

I have narrowed it down between 2 units. This one in 24 kw, made in china so my jimna tractor won't get lonely
http://cgi.ebay.com/20KW-Open-Frame...Z014QQcategoryZ106437QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

and this one, also made in china
http://cgi.ebay.com/20KW-Diesel-Gen...627628QQihZ002QQcategoryZ106437QQcmdZViewItem

Ron